By Vlad Zakh · September 13, 2026
Cuban cinema built its international reputation through ICAIC, the state film institute, whose best work managed formal daring and social critique even under political limits. Una Noche has two friends planning a raft escape to Miami, Habana Blues has two musicians choosing between leaving and staying, and Suite Habana is a wordless documentary following Havana residents through one day. Viva Cuba, Guantanamera, The Last Supper, Lucia, Death of a Bureaucrat, Memories of Underdevelopment, Strawberry and Chocolate and Juan of the Dead round out the list.
01 Two friends plan a risky raft escape to Miami just as one's sister falls for the other.
Directed by Lucy Mulloy · 1h 30m · Rated NR
Stream: Philo, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, Sundance Now · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Stream: Sundance Now Amazon Channel, Sundance Now, AMC+ Amazon Channel, Sundance Now Apple TV channel · Rent or buy: Apple TV Store
02 Two Havana musicians face the same choice: emigrate for success or stay loyal to home.
Directed by Benito Zambrano · 1h 55m
03 Two young friends run away together after their feuding families try to keep them apart.
Directed by Juan Carlos Cremata Malberti & Iraida Malberti Cabrera · 1h 33m
Rent or buy: Amazon Video
04 A wordless documentary follows a dozen ordinary Havana residents through one full day.
Directed by Fernando Pérez · 1h 24m
05 A woman's body must be transported across Cuba, and the bureaucratic trip becomes a satire of the whole system.
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea & Juan Carlos Tabío · 1h 45m
Stream: Vemox Cine Amazon Channel
06 A plantation owner's Easter charity toward his slaves reveals the era's brutal hypocrisy.
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea · 2h 00m
07 Three women named Lucia, in three different eras, each navigate love against Cuba's revolutionary backdrop.
Directed by Humberto Solás · 2h 41m
08 A widower's attempt to bury his uncle's union card with him triggers an absurd bureaucratic nightmare.
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea · 1h 24m
09 A wealthy intellectual who stayed behind after the revolution drifts through a Havana he no longer recognises.
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea · 1h 39m
Rent or buy: Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home
Rent or buy: Apple TV Store
10 A committed young communist's friendship with a gay intellectual challenges everything he believes.
Directed by Tomás Gutiérrez Alea & Juan Carlos Tabío · 1h 48m · Rated R
Rent or buy: Amazon Video
Rent or buy: Amazon Video
11 A lifelong slacker starts a zombie-extermination business as Havana descends into a full undead outbreak.
Directed by Alejandro Brugués · 1h 36m · Rated NR
Buy: Apple TV Store
12 A troubled eleven-year-old in Havana forms a life-changing bond with a devoted, unconventional teacher.
Directed by Desiree Akhavan · 1h 30m
Stream: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Philo, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Revry Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, MovieMe · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Rent: Apple TV Store, Rakuten TV, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, Curzon Home Cinema, BFI Player · Buy: Apple TV Store, Rakuten TV, Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Stream: fuboTV · Rent: Apple TV Store, MovieMe · Buy: Apple TV Store
Stream: Stan · Rent: Fetch TV, MovieMe · Buy: Fetch TV
Stream: MUBI, MUBI Amazon Channel · Rent: MovieMe
13 A single wedding dress circulates through a Havana neighbourhood, changing the lives of everyone who borrows it.
Directed by Marilyn Solaya · 1h 44m
Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Google Play Movies, YouTube
Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.
