Best South American drama movies
A curated collection of popular drama movies from South America.
The Settlers (2023)
The Settlers (2023)
Chile, early 20th century. José Menéndez, a wealthy landowner, hires three horsemen to mark out the perimeter of his extensive property and open a route to the Atlantic Ocean across vast Patagonia.
Olga (2004)
Olga (2004)
Based upon the true story of Olga Benário, the German-born wife of Brazilian communist leader Luís Carlos Prestes. During the dictatorship of Getúlio Vargas (1930-1945) she was arrested and sent to Nazi Germany, where she was put to death in a concentration camp. After World War II began, Vargas decided to uphold the Allies.
Blindness (2008)
Blindness (2008)
When a sudden plague of blindness devastates a city, a small group of the afflicted band together to triumphantly overcome the horrific conditions of their imposed quarantine.
Unknown Origins (2020)
Unknown Origins (2020)
In Madrid, Spain, a mysterious serial killer ruthlessly murders his victims by recreating the first appearance of several comic book superheroes. Cosme, a veteran police inspector who is about to retire, works on the case along with the tormented inspector David Valentín and his own son Jorge Elías, a nerdy young man who owns a comic book store.
The Club (2015)
The Club (2015)
In a secluded house in a small seaside town live four unrelated men and the woman who tends to the house and their needs. All former priests, they have been sent to this quiet exile to purge the sins of their pasts, the separation from their communities the worst form of punishment by the Church. They keep to a strict daily schedule devoid of all temptation and spontaneity, each moment a deliberate effort to atone for their wrongdoings.
7th Floor (2013)
7th Floor (2013)
Buenos Aires, Argentina. Sebastián, a successful lawyer, leaves his ex-wife's condo, located on the seventh floor of an apartment building, to take his two children to school. While they run down the stairs, he uses the elevator. Once on the ground floor, Sebastián awaits the arrival of the children.
Thesis on a Homicide (2013)
Thesis on a Homicide (2013)
Roberto is a Law professor whose life is thrown into chaos when he becomes convinced that one of his best students has committed a brutal murder. Determined to uncover the truth, he begins a personal investigation…
Carancho (2010)
Carancho (2010)
Sosa is a lawyer who haunts hospital waiting rooms hoping to represent the victims of traffic accidents in insurance claims. When he falls in love with ambulance medic Luján, he tries to leave this dark business but the shady law firm that he works for won’t let him off that easily.
Four Days in September (1997)
Four Days in September (1997)
Fernando, a journalist, and his friend César join terrorist group MR8 in order to fight Brazilian dictatorial regime during the late sixties. César, however, is wounded and captured during a bank hold up. Fernando then decides to kidnap the American ambassador in Brazil and ask for the release of fifteen political prisoners in exchange for his life.
The German Doctor (2013)
The German Doctor (2013)
Patagonia, 1960. A German doctor meets an Argentinean family and follows them to a town where the family will be starting a new life. The family welcomes the doctor into their home and entrust their young daughter to his care, not knowing that he is one of the most dangerous criminals in the world.
The Summit (2017)
The Summit (2017)
At a summit for Latin American presidents in Chile where the region's geopolitical strategies and alliances are in discussion, Argentine president Hernán Blanco endures political and family drama that will force him to face his own demons.
The Accused (2018)
The Accused (2018)
Dolores lived the life of a higher-class student until her best friend was found brutally murdered. Two years later, she’s the only indicted suspect for a crime that attracts a lot of media attention and has placed her in the center of the public eye. Dolores spends her days preparing for the trial, secluded in her house as her parents work as a team ready to do anything to defend their daughter. The best lawyer is not enough, they obsessively control around her: how she looks, what she does, eats and who she sees. But as the trial moves forward and pressure grows, suspicion and secrets emerge within the family. Cornered, increasingly isolated and just when any mistake could prove disastrous, Dolores puts the entire strategy at risk.
Trauma (2017)
Trauma (2017)
Four friends visit a rural locality of Chile, are brutally attacked by a man and his son. After not finding help in the town, they decide to confront these men with the help of a pair of policemen. But in this way, they will discover that their attackers have in their blood the direct legacy of the darkest period of Chilean history and will have to face the most brutal enemy.
Orbiter 9 (2017)
Orbiter 9 (2017)
Helena, a young woman on a deep space mission, has been alone for 20 years. Her parents abandoned ship after a technical malfunction made it impossible for all three of them to reach their intended destination. Alex, an isolated engineer, is about to enter her life and turn her world upside down.
Memoria (2021)
Memoria (2021)
One morning, Jessica Holland, a Scottish orchid farmer visiting her sister in Bogotá, is woken by a loud ‘bang’. This haunting sound dispels her sleep for days, calling into question her identity and guiding her from recording studios to secluded jungle villages in an attempt to find its source.
Executive Order (2022)
Executive Order (2022)
In a dystopian future, the Brazilian government decrees a measure that forces black citizens to migrate to Africa in an attempt to return to their origins. Seeing themselves in the center of terror, two cousins take refuge in an apartment, where they debate social and racial issues, and share the same yearning for the change of country.
The Way He Looks (2014)
The Way He Looks (2014)
Leonardo is a blind teenager dealing with an overprotective mother while trying to live a more independent life. To the disappointment of his best friend, Giovana, he plans to go on an exchange program abroad. When Gabriel, a new student in town, arrives at their classroom, new feelings blossom in Leonardo making him question his plans.
Sidewalls (2011)
Sidewalls (2011)
Martin is a neurotic web designer taking baby steps out of the isolation of his one-room apartment and his virtual reality. Mariana is an artist fresh out of a a long relationship. They are perfect for each other, live on the same street, in opposite buildings, but they never meet. Can the movement of a modern city of three million people bring them together?
Gloria Bell (2019)
Gloria Bell (2019)
Gloria is a free-spirited divorcée who spends her days at a straight-laced office job and her nights on the dance floor, joyfully letting loose at clubs around Los Angeles. After meeting Arnold on a night out, she finds herself thrust into an unexpected new romance, filled with both the joys of budding love and the complications of dating, identity, and family.
I Don't Want to Go Back Alone (2011)
I Don't Want to Go Back Alone (2011)
The arrival of a new student in school changes Leonardo's life. This 15 year-old blind teenager has to deal with the jealousy of his friend Giovana while figuring out the new feelings he's having towards his new friend, Gabriel.
Black Orpheus (1959)
Black Orpheus (1959)
Young lovers Orfeu and Eurydice run through the favelas of Rio during Carnaval, on the lam from a hitman dressed like Death and Orfeu's vengeful fiancée Mira and passing between moments of fantasy and stark reality. This impressionistic retelling of the Greek legend of Orpheus and Eurydice introduced bossa nova to the world with its soundtrack by young Brazilian composers Luiz Bonfá and Antonio Carlos Jobim.
From Beginning to End (2009)
From Beginning to End (2009)
Two brothers develop a very close relationship as they are growing up in an idyllic and happy family. When they are young adults their relationship becomes very intimate, romantic, and sexual.
My Best Friend (2018)
My Best Friend (2018)
Lorenzo, a quiet teenager lives in a small town at the edge of the world in beautiful Patagonia. He’s a good student and a curious and smart person, more skilled in music and literature than sports. Lorenzo’s father decides to host Caito, the son of a friend from Buenos Aires who had to go to hospital for a long stay. Caito has obviously a different family background and seems to be a tough kid. Lorenzo finds Caito very intriguing in many ways as they start spending a lot of time together…
Esteros (2016)
Esteros (2016)
Childhood friends Matías and Jerónimo reach adolescence and experience sexual attraction to each other, before being separated by circumstances. Later, as young adults, they meet again, and the film follows themes of complicated relationships and sexual tensions, as well as issues of homophobia.
Burning Betrayal (2023)
Burning Betrayal (2023)
Babi discovers a betrayal by her long-term partner and decides to embark on a new adventure in life. On this journey, she meets judge Marco and they begin to live a story permeated by a lot of sexual tension.
The Blonde One (2019)
The Blonde One (2019)
Gabriel rents a room in Juan’s House. They work together in a Woodwork place. Gabriel is a very quiet guy and has a little daughter. Juan is a party boy who has a lots of girls around. Inadvertently the sexual tension starts to grow between them. It opens a new hidden forbidden world they have to deal with.
Reaching for the Moon (2013)
Reaching for the Moon (2013)
In 1951, New York poet Elizabeth Bishop travels to Rio de Janeiro to visit Mary, a college friend. The shy Elizabeth is overwhelmed by Brazilian sensuality. She is the antithesis to Mary’s dashing partner, architect Lota de Macedo Soares. Mary is jealous, but unconventional Lota is determined to have both women at all costs. This eternal triangle plays out against the backdrop of the military coup of 1964. Bishop’s moving poems are at the core of a film which lushly illustrates a crucial phase in the life of this influential Pulitzer prize-winning poet.