With the majority of the public practicing self isolation, we're all going to be searching for some new films and documentaries to pass the time.
Granted, it's very likely that you've already seen the 'big titles' on various online streaming platforms, but what about some of the other features that might have gone under the radar?
On this note, we've gathered ten of the best documentaries and films titles that people may have missed.
Five documentaries, five films. Here's what we've got...
Documentaries
Massacre at Ballymurphy
Where to watch: All4.
Plot: A forensic exposé of one of the most shocking events of The Troubles in Northern Ireland: a series of killings of which the British Army stand accused, that happened over three days in 1971.
Rating: 8.6/10 (IMDB).
Watch it because: While No Stone Unturned and Netflix's ReMastered: The Miami Showband Massacre may have been released on bigger platforms, Channel 4's expose is just as shocking. The documentary tells the story of Briege Voyle, a daughter that's desperately looking for answers.
In 1971, Briege's mother, Joan Connolly, was one of ten people that were shot in a West Belfast neighbourhood over three days of horrific violence.
A story that needs to be told.
“It has to be told... the truth has to be told."
In August 1971 the British Army shot and killed 10 people in a Catholic estate in Belfast - claiming they were terrorists. One of the victims was a mother of eight children. This is her story.#MassacreAtBallymurphy Sat 9 pm C4 pic.twitter.com/LMiYkWGNEd— Channel 4 Dispatches (@C4Dispatches) September 7, 2018
The Boys In Green
Where to watch: RTÉ Player.
Plot: The story of the greatest period in the history of Irish football, as the achievements of Jack Charlton’s team put Irish football firmly on the global map.
Rating: N/A but our own Mick McCarthy absolutely loved it.
Watch it because: It's understandable if Ross Whittaker's nostalgic documentary about Jack's Army may have got lost with recent developments - the second part only aired this week - but it's a very welcome distraction at the moment.
Aside from this, the interviews with the likes of John Aldridge, Ronnie Whelan, and Mick Byrne are gold.
"We were kings of the world, we just didn't realise it!" 👑#BoysInGreen Monday, 9.35pm pic.twitter.com/H10Fyh8LgO
— RTÉ One (@RTEOne) March 16, 2020
For Sama
Where to watch: All4.
Plot: The documentary is both an intimate and epic journey into the female experience of war. A love letter from a young mother to her daughter, the film tells the story of Waad al-Kateab's life through five years of the uprising in Aleppo, Syria as she falls in love, gets married and gives birth to Sama, all while cataclysmic conflict rises around her.
Rating: 99% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch it because: Aside from being Oscar nominated, it's a remarkable tribute to the power of the human spirit.
Clip via PBS Distribution
The Irish Revolution
Where to watch: RTÉ Player.
Plot: The story of the Irish war of independence 1919 to 1922.
Rating: 8.4/10 (IMDB).
Watch it because: While every single Irish person is familiar with the history of the period, the three-part documentary feels fresh in terms of the contributors, archive footage, and clever use of drones to capture those areas we're all familiar with in a new angle.
If you haven't seen it already, it's an excellent watch and features Cillian Murphy on narrating duties.
🇮🇪 The Irish Revolution 🇮🇪
Cillian Murphy narrates a documentary marking the centenary of the Irish War of Independence
Monday 9.35pm pic.twitter.com/z5tfSMANDJ— RTÉ One (@RTEOne) February 1, 2019
Three Identical Strangers
Where to watch: All4.
Plot: In 1980 New York, three young men who were all adopted meet each other and find out they're triplets who were separated at birth. But their quest to find out why turns into a bizarre and sinister mystery.
Rating: 97% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch it because: It's genuinely one of those features where the description 'so crazy that it has to be true' is perfectly apt.
Clip via NEON
Films
Buffalo Soldiers
Where to watch: All4/Film4 online.
Plot: A US GI based in Cold War Germany is making a handsome living from selling contraband on the black market, until his sergeant finds out.
Rating: 73% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch it because: If you like your comedy dark, then this is as dark as they get. As is the norm, it features a brilliant performance from Joaquin Phoenix too.
Clip via Moviesque
Booksmart
Where to watch: Amazon.
Plot: Two academic superstars and best friends who, on the eve of their high school graduation, suddenly realise that they should have worked less and played more. Determined never to fall short of their peers, the girls set out on a mission to cram four years of fun into one night.
Rating: 97% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch it because: It's the funniest film of 2019. Kaitlyn Dever and Beanie Feldstein are a great double act, the soundtrack is fantastic, and in Billie Lourd's Gigi, it might have one of the most memorable supporting characters in recent years.
Clip via Entertainment One UK
Force Majeure
Where to watch: All4/Film 4 online.
Rating: 94%.
Plot: The family life of an idyllic Swedish family is turned upside down during a skiing holiday in the French Alps. After a husband selfishly decides to run and save his own life during an impending avalanche - the anticipated disaster having failed to occur - rather than save the life of his wife and children, things begin to unravel.
Watch it because: It's oddly prescient with Covid-19, especially since we're all spending more time with those closest to us. This is dark, but it's also very funny.
Clip via Magnolia Pictures & Magnet Releasing
Blockers
Where to watch: Netflix.
Plot: When three parents stumble upon their daughters' pact to lose their virginity at prom, they launch a covert one-night operation to stop the teens from sealing the deal.
Rating: 84% on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch it because: Blockers really got a bad deal from the people who made the trailer. at first glance, you'd think it's a mindless, generic, and cliched entry into the teenagers trying to lose their virginity subgenre of comedy. However, it's far cleverer, on the pulse, and enlightened than anyone would imagine.
Clip via Universal
Captain Fantastic
Where to watch: Netflix
Plot: Deep in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, isolated from society, a devoted father (Viggo Mortensen) dedicates his life to transforming his six young children into extraordinary adults. But when a tragedy strikes the family, they are forced to leave this self-created paradise and begin a journey into the outside world that challenges his idea of what it means to be a parent and brings into question everything he's taught them.
Rating: 82% on Rotten Tomatoes
Watch it because: Viggo Mortensen is great throughout but in an odd way, it's a very similar companion piece to A Quiet Place. Both films deal with unconventional family units that are moulded in inhospitable environments, but there's plenty of intelligence, laughs, and heart in this one too. It's like Little Miss Sunshine mixed with Marxist survivalists.
Clip via Bleecker Street
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