Independent movies have become harder and harder to define over the past two decades. The definition of independent film in the 1990s meant something entirely from what it means to be an indie film in 2020. With the advent of streaming services, studio mergers, niche distributors, multi-platform content and the like, the filmmaking landscape continues to change.
As a result, several high-quality indie films have gone overlooked in the past five years. Sure, some of them went on to win the top prize at the Oscars, such as Moonlight, but by and large, indie films have been supplanted by big-budget blockbusters over the past half-decade. Let’s take a look back, shall we?! Here are the 10 Most Underrated Indie Films of the last five years (2015-2019)!
Captain Fantastic (2016)
Although the film did score a well-deserved Oscar nod for star Viggo Mortensen as the titular Captain Fantastic, the film about an eclectic family living off the grid continues to be vastly overlooked.
Written directed by Gavin Belson himself (Matt Ross), the film follows an offbeat father raising his six talented children in the woods of the Pacific Northwest. With a staunch home-schooling regiment and physical training routine, Ben (Mortensen) challenges the notion of traditional parenthood while preparing his offspring for the unexpected.
The Sisters Brothers (2018)
One of the best indie movies of 2018 practically nobody talks about is Jaques Audiard’s The Sisters Brothers, a contemplative western featuring two great performances by Joaquin Phoenix and John C. Reilly.
Set in 1850s Oregon, the story tracks two outlaw assassins named Charlie and Eli Sisters. As the two brothers pursue a gold-miner and his unlikely sidekick, a harrowing showdown redirects the two men to their childhood homestead. With gorgeous photography, excellent performances, and a heartfelt ending, The Sisters Brothers proves home is where the heart is.
The Florida Project (2017)
Following his equally underrated indie film Tangerine, Sean Baker followed-up with a touching tale of lost youth in the supremely slept on Florida Project.
Starring the great Willem Dafoe, the movie concerns Moonee (Brooklynn Prince), a wise-beyond-her-years six-year-old who spends her summer days dreaming of a better life in a motel just outside of Disney World. The heartbreaking tale of hope and innocent youth is uplifted when Bobby (Dafoe), the hotel manager, begins a fatherly relationship with Moonee and her friends.
Dope (2015)
One of the most vibrant and vivacious indie joints from 2015 includes Dope, Rick Famuyiwa’s stereotype-shattering coming of age comedy.
Set in Inglewood, California, the film centers on Malcolm (Shameik Moore), a nerdy black kid from a bad neighborhood desperate to find his way among his peers. Along with his two close pals, Jib (Tony Revolori) and Diggie (Kiersey Clemons), Malcolm forms a punk rock band, gets involved with an illegal drug-running scheme and fights for his one true love.
The Handmaiden (2016)
Not to be confused with Derek Nguyen’s The Housemaid released the same year, or the Hulu hit The Handmaiden’s Tale, Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden is easily one of the most unheralded indie films of the past five years.
In a tale of devious palace intrigue, the film follows a woman who is employed to be a servant to a Japanese luminary. However, the maid is really a clandestine thief hired by a criminal to swindle the heiress’s fortune. But when the plan is muddied by the romantic feelings developed between the maid and the heiress, the movie blooms in a whole new direction.
Ex Machina (2015)
Alex Garland’s mind-boggling feature debut Ex Machina won an Academy Award for Best Visual Effects, yet still remains largely undervalued by the filmgoing public.
The startling sci-fi tale finds an idealistic twentysomething computer programmer given a chance of a lifetime. When Caleb (Domhnall Gleeson) is afforded the chance to spend a week with brilliant but eccentric robot expert Nathan (Oscar Isaac), he is introduced to Ava (Alicia Vikander), a lifelike AI robot that challenges the young man’s notions or reality.
Blindspotting (2018)
For an honest tale of class divisions, racial identity and the ever-growing trend of urban gentrification, Carlos Lopez Estrada’s Blindspotting is the best title you likely never heard about.
Two best friends, Collin and Miles, serve as furniture movers in California’s bay area. As Collin tries to survive the final three days of probation, he begins to reassess his longtime friendship with Miles. A circumstance forces Collin to miss curfew, forcing him to choose his freedom or his friend in the end.
You Were Never Really Here (2018)
While Joaquin Phoenix is tearing up the awards circuit for his breathtaking turn as Joker, the performance he gave in Lynne Ramsay’s brutal revenge thriller You Were Never Really Here deserves equal praise.
The underrated indie tracks Joe (Phoenix), a deeply troubled war vet who is inured to extreme acts of violence. As a result, he carves a niche for himself as a vengeful enforcer who brains and bashes child kidnappers. The more violence he exacts, the more Joe feels at home in the world. The movie came and went after making only $2.5 million at the domestic box-office.
Hunt For The Wilderpeeople (2016)
Before helming the Thor franchise and winning awards for Jojo Rabbit, Kiwi director Taika Waititi made two uproarious indie comedies that almost nobody talks about these days. One is the vampire satire What We Do in the Shadows, and the other is the feel-good adventure film Hunt for the Wilderpeople.
The latter film follows an unruly kid and his foster uncle who, as a result of a widespread manhunt, find themselves on the run in the New Zealand outback. With charming humor, the kid’s uncle must protect him from the grasp of Child Services while surviving the bush.
Hereditary (2018)
For indie horror, the last five years have given us great works that include The Babadook, The Witch, The Lighthouse, The Nightingale, Midsommar, and more. But none are as scary as Ari Aster’s underrated magnum opus, Hereditary.
With an award-worthy turn from the great Toni Collette, herself an underrated actress, the film disguises itself as a dramatic portrait of a family dealing with grief. Under the surface, however, the film reveals itself to be a maddening tale of demonic possession that derives from the very family tragedy that begins the movie.
