In the early to mid '90s, when the South African system of apartheid was in its death throes, four photographers - Greg Marinovich, Kevin Carter, Ken Oosterbroek and João Silva - bonded by their friendship and a sense of purpose, worked together to chronicle the violence and upheaval leading up to the 1994 election of Nelson Mandela as president. Their work is risky and dangerous, potentially fatally so, as they thrust themselves into the middle of chaotic clashes between forces backed by the government (including Inkatha Zulu warriors) and those in support of Mandela's African National Congress.

Catch a Fire

2006

English

6.7

♡ 4

75%

71%

Action

anc (african national congress)

Phillip Noyce Director

Brandon Auret as Army Commandant

Tim Robbins as Col. Nic Vos

Marius Weyers as Police Brigadier

Nelson Mandela as Self

The true story of anti-apartheid activists in South Africa, and particularly the life of Patrick Chamusso, a timid foreman at Secunda CTL, the largest synthetic fuel plant in the world. Patrick is wrongly accused, imprisoned and tortured for an attempt to bomb the plant, with the injustice transforming the apolitical worker into a radicalised insurgent, who then carries out his own successful sabotage mission.

Winnie

2017

English

6.3

♡ 4

78%

Pascale Lamche Director

Nelson Mandela as Self

Teboho Murdoch as Self

Niel Barnard as Self - former head of South Africa's National Intelligence Service

George Bizos as Self - lawyer

While her husband served a life sentence, paradoxically kept safe and morally uncontaminated, Winnie Mandela rode the raw violence of apartheid, fighting on the front line and underground. This is the untold story of the mysterious forces that combined to take her down, labeling him a saint, her, a sinner.

Her Majesty's Prime Ministers: John Major

5.6

Amber Rondel Director

Dick Daleki as Narrator

Queen Elizabeth II as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

John Major as Self

As a school dropout, the teenage John Major could simply never have dreamt that he would one day become a powerful political leader and get elected as Britain's Prime Minister. Major became Her Majesty's ninth Prime Minister.

Mama Africa

2011

English

7.0

♡ 1

75%

Mika Kaurismäki Director

Paul Simon as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

Harry Belafonte as Self

Sipho Mabuse as Self

Miriam Makeba was one of the first African musicians who won international stardom and whose music was always anchored in her traditional South African roots. Miriam Makeba was forced into exile in 1959. She sang for John F. Kennedy, performed with Harry Belafonte and Nina Simone, was married to Hugh Masekela and also Stokely Carmichael. Her life was tumultuous. She always stood for truth and justice. She fought for the oppressed most importantly for black Africans, as a campaigner against apartheid. She died November 2008 after a concert in Italy. Mika Kaurismäki's documentary, traces fifty years of her music and her performing life. Through rare archive footage of her performances and through interviews with her contemporaries we discover the remarkable journey of Miriam Makeba.

The Life of Jo Menell: Americans, Mongrels, & Funky Junkies

Paul Yule Director

Nelson Mandela as Self

Jo Menell as Self

South African filmmaker Jo Menell is most well-known for the cult feminist classic, Dick (1989), which featured 1000 penises accompanied by an audio commentary from women. The nature of that film, however, belies a rich career in film and journalism that spans the Vietnam War, the Allende government in Chile, the emergence of gay rights in San Francisco, a 1981 Bob Marley documentary, an Oscar nominated film about Nelson Mandela (1997), and the Street Talk television series, as well as close relationships with key figures from the 20th Century. Born into a life of privilege, Menell had progressive political inclinations and soon left apartheid South Africa for Britain where he was schooled in the ways and connections of the British ruling class. The film chronicles his amazingly rich and varied life using archival footage alongside a series of interviews conducted with Menell while his portrait was being painted by Cape Town artist Beezy Bailey.

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

2013

English

7.1

♡ 45

61%

Justin Chadwick Director

Nelson Mandela as Himself

Idris Elba as Nelson Mandela

Elizabeth Taylor as Self

Naomie Harris as Winnie Madikizela

A chronicle of Nelson Mandela's life journey from his childhood in a rural village through to his inauguration as the first democratically elected president of South Africa.

Michael Jackson: Chase the Truth

2019

English

7.1

♡ 4

75%

investigative journalism

portrait of an artist

testimony

Jordan Hill Director

Nancy Reagan as Self

Michael Jackson as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

Dan Reed as Self

Taking an investigative look into the legal battles of the global superstar. Close friends, former staff and researchers paint an intimate portrait of Jackson's complicated world and put allegations of sexual abuse under the microscope. The film defends American singer Michael Jackson against allegations of child sexual abuse made in the documentary Leaving Neverland.

The Edge of Democracy

2019

Portuguese

7.3

♡ 2

97%

Petra Costa Director

Petra Costa as Self

Queen Elizabeth II as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva as Self - Ex-Presidente

A cautionary tale for these times of democracy in crisis—the personal and political fuse to explore one of the most dramatic periods in Brazilian history. With unprecedented access to Presidents Dilma Rousseff and Lula da Silva, we witness their rise and fall and the tragically polarized nation that remains.

Fire in the Blood

2013

English

7.7

♡ 2

Documentary

History

Dylan Mohan Gray Director

Bill Clinton as Self

George W. Bush as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

Desmond Tutu as Self

An intricate tale of "medicine, monopoly and malice", Fire in the Blood tells the story of how Western pharmaceutical companies and governments blocked access to low-cost AIDS drugs for the countries of the global south in the years after 1996 - causing ten million or more unnecessary deaths - and the improbable group of people who decided to fight back. Shot on four continents and including contributions from global figures such as Bill Clinton, Desmond Tutu and Joseph Stiglitz, Fire in the Blood is the never-before-told true story of the remarkable coalition which came together to stop 'the crime of the century' and save millions of lives in the process.

The Young Karl Marx

2017

French

6.6

♡ 23

63%

industrial revolution

Raoul Peck Director

John F. Kennedy as Himself

Nikita Khrushchev as Himself

Nelson Mandela as Himself

Stephen Hogan as Thomas Naylor

26 year-old Karl Marx embarks with his wife, Jenny, on the road to exile. In 1844 in Paris, he meets Friedrich Engels, an industrialist’s son, who has been investigating the sordid birth of the British working class. Engels, the dandy, provides the last piece of the puzzle to the young Karl Marx’s new vision of the world. Together, between censorship and the police’s repression, riots and political upheavals, they will lead the labor movement during its development into a modern era.

The Corporation

2003

English

8.0

♡ 7

89%

Jennifer Abbott Director

George W. Bush as Self

Kathie Lee Gifford as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self - After Release, with Winnie

Harry S. Truman as Self - Potsdam

Since the late 18th century American legal decision that the business corporation organizational model is legally a person, it has become a dominant economic, political and social force around the globe. This film takes an in-depth psychological examination of the organization model through various case studies. What the study illustrates is that in the its behaviour, this type of "person" typically acts like a dangerously destructive psychopath without conscience. Furthermore, we see the profound threat this psychopath has for our world and our future, but also how the people with courage, intelligence and determination can do to stop it.

Fire in Babylon

2010

English

7.7

♡ 1

91%

Stevan Riley Director

Nelson Mandela as Self

Bob Marley as Self

Bunny Wailer as Self

John Craven as Self

Feature documentary about the great West Indies cricket team of the 1970s and '80s. Fire In Babylon is the breathtaking story of how the West Indies triumphed over its colonial masters through the achievements of one of the most gifted teams in sporting history. In a turbulent era of apartheid in South Africa, race riots in England and civil unrest in the Caribbean, the West Indian cricketers, led by the enigmatic Viv Richards, struck a defiant blow at the forces of white prejudice worldwide. Their undisputed skill, combined with a fearless spirit, allowed them to dominate the genteel game at the highest level, replaying it on their own terms. This is their story, told in their own words.

The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story

2019

English

7.8

♡ 5

Documentary

festival

Christopher Bird Director

Nelson Mandela as Self

Rami Malek as Self

Joe Jonas as Self - Musician

Adam Lambert as Self - Present Queen Singer

A documentary chronicling Queen and Lambert's incredible journey since they first shared the stage together on "American Idol" in 2009.

Lola

2022

English

♡ 14

98%

Andrew Legge Director

Lorcan Cranitch as Major General Norbury

John F. Kennedy as Self

Nelson Mandela as Self

Nick Dunning as Television Newsreader

Sussex, England, 1938. Shortly before the outbreak of World War II, Thomasina and Martha Hanbury, two ingenious sisters, create LOLA, a miraculous machine.

Anne Frank Remembered

1995

English

8.1

♡ 7

97%

84%

Action

auschwitz-birkenau concentration camp

Jon Blair Director

Glenn Close as Diary Readings

Joely Richardson as Diary Readings

Kenneth Branagh as Narration

Nelson Mandela as Self

Using previously unreleased archival material in addition to contemporary interviews, this Academy Award-winning documentary tells the story of the Frank family and presents the first fully-rounded portrait of their brash and free-spirited daughter Anne, perhaps the world's most famous victim of the Holocaust.

White House Revealed

2009

English

6.8

♡ 2

Action

Documentary

In this eye-opening documentary about the inner workings of the White House, the most famous residence in America opens its doors for a behind-the-scenes tour and a meet-and-greet with the staff who keep it running in tip-top shape. Highlights include bird's-eye musings from White House workers who've seen it all and an interview with former President George H.W. Bush, who shares his memories about living in Washington, D.C.

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Kickback

The Bang Bang Club

Catch a Fire

Winnie

Her Majesty's Prime Ministers: John Major

Mama Africa

The Life of Jo Menell: Americans, Mongrels, & Funky Junkies

Mandela: Long Walk to Freedom

Michael Jackson: Chase the Truth

The Edge of Democracy

Fire in the Blood

The Young Karl Marx

The Corporation

Fire in Babylon

The Show Must Go On: The Queen + Adam Lambert Story

Lola

Anne Frank Remembered

White House Revealed