The Best Indie Films Yet...
by ChunkyMistress | created - 17 Jun 2012 | updated - 02 Dec 2022 | PublicThese are just a few of the Independent films that I adore. I love Indie films because of the 'realness' it portrays by the director and the actors. Enjoy my list.
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1. 12 and Holding (2005)
R | 94 min | Drama
After his twin brother is accidentally killed by vengeful bullies, a 12-year old boy and his friends face the harsh realities of death, teenage hormones, and family dysfunction.
Director: Michael Cuesta | Stars: Conor Donovan, Jesse Camacho, Zoe Weizenbaum, Annabella Sciorra
Votes: 7,119 | Gross: $0.10M
2. L.I.E. (2001)
R | 97 min | Crime, Drama
A 15-year-old Long Island boy loses everything and everyone he knows, soon becoming involved in a relationship with a much older man.
Director: Michael Cuesta | Stars: Brian Cox, Paul Dano, Bruce Altman, Billy Kay
Votes: 10,446 | Gross: $1.14M
3. Chop Shop (2007)
Unrated | 84 min | Drama
Alejandro, a resourceful street orphan on the verge of adolescence, lives and works in an auto-body repair shop in a sprawling junkyard on the outskirts of Queens, New York. In this chaotic world of adults, Alejandro struggles to make a better life for himself and his sixteen-year-old sister.
Director: Ramin Bahrani | Stars: Alejandro Polanco, Isamar Gonzales, Rob Sowulski, Carlos Zapata
Votes: 4,719 | Gross: $0.12M
4. Bullet Boy (2004)
R | 89 min | Drama
In one of East London's most volatile neighborhoods, pride, rivalry and revenge are the only codes on the street. Touted as a British Boyz in the Hood, Bullet Boy is a gripping and ... See full summary »
Director: Saul Dibb | Stars: Ashley Walters, Luke Fraser, Leon Black, Clare Perkins
Votes: 2,743
5. The Babysitters (2007)
R | 88 min | Drama
After fooling around with one of her customers, a teenager turns her babysitting service into a call-girl service for married guys.
Director: David Ross | Stars: Lauren Birkell, Paul Borghese, Chira Cassel, Anthony Cirillo
Votes: 12,750 | Gross: $0.04M
6. Mississippi Damned (2009)
TV-MA | 120 min | Drama
Three poor Black kids in rural Mississippi reap the consequences of their family's cycle of abuse, addiction, and violence.
Director: Tina Mabry | Stars: Adam Clark, Malcolm Goodwin, Michael Hyatt, Malcolm David Kelley
Votes: 996
7. 96 Minutes (2011)
R | 93 min | Drama, Thriller
The story of 4 lives slammed together in a shocking moment. Intercutting between a carjacking and the separate stories of the 4 kids in Atlanta, we watch as they hurtle toward a life-changing end.
Director: Aimee Lagos | Stars: Brittany Snow, Evan Ross, Sharon Conley, Justin Martin
Votes: 3,400
8. Life Support (2007 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 87 min | Drama
The true-life story of a mother who overcame an addiction to crack and became a positive role model and an AIDS activist in the black community.
Director: Nelson George | Stars: Queen Latifah, Vianca Mercedes, Anna Deavere Smith, Wendell Pierce
Votes: 1,322
9. Just Like the Son (2006)
PG-13 | 86 min | Drama
A petty thief's mentoring of an apparent orphan takes a profound turn when he kidnaps the boy from a foster home and drives him cross-country to his sister's house in Texas.
Director: Morgan J. Freeman | Stars: Mark Webber, Antonio Ortiz, Brendan Sexton III, Rosie Perez
Votes: 1,181
10. On the Outs (2004)
R | 86 min | Drama
Follows the choices made by three young women - one a drug dealer, one an addict, one a pregnant teen - in Jersey City.
Directors: Lori Silverbush, Michael Skolnik | Stars: Anny Mariano, Judy Marte, Paola Mendoza, Dominic Colón
Votes: 692 | Gross: $0.05M
11. Raising Victor Vargas (2002)
R | 88 min | Drama, Romance
A Lower East Side teen-ager struggles to find some sanity while surrounded by an eccentric grandmother, a crazy new girlfriend, and a longing younger brother.
Director: Peter Sollett | Stars: Victor Rasuk, Donna Maldonado, Kevin Rivera, Krystal Rodriguez
Votes: 5,696 | Gross: $2.07M
12. Pariah (I) (2011)
R | 86 min | Drama
A Brooklyn teenager juggles conflicting identities and risks friendship, heartbreak and family in a desperate search for sexual expression.
Director: Dee Rees | Stars: Adepero Oduye, Kim Wayans, Aasha Davis, Pernell Walker
Votes: 7,555 | Gross: $0.76M
13. Our Song (2000)
R | 95 min | Drama
Focusing on the bonding between three girls in Brooklyn's "Jackie Robinson Steppers Marching Band" and the choices the girls face once their high school closes down for asbestos removal.
Director: Jim McKay | Stars: Kerry Washington, Anna Simpson, Melissa Martinez, The Jackie Robinson Steppers Marching Band
Votes: 852 | Gross: $0.25M
14. Girls Town (1996)
R | 90 min | Comedy, Drama
A look at a group of girl friends coming-of-age during their senior year of high school in urban America. Nikki and Emma have a heart to heart talk one evening about how much they'll miss ... See full summary »
Director: Jim McKay | Stars: Lili Taylor, Bruklin Harris, Anna Grace, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor
Votes: 815 | Gross: $0.40M
15. The Unseen (2005)
Not Rated | 99 min | Drama
A film by Lisa France. A Luis Moro Production. In a hidden southern Georgia town, nothing is quite what it seems. A small time hustler Harold (Gale Harold) has a few secrets. In his house, ... See full summary »
Director: Lisa France | Stars: Steve Harris, Gale Harold, Phillip Bloch, Catherine Dent
Votes: 381
16. Explicit Ills (2008)
R | 87 min | Drama, Romance
A drama of four interconnecting stories revolving around love, drugs and poverty in Philadelphia.
Director: Mark Webber | Stars: Paul Dano, Rosario Dawson, Naomie Harris, Lou Taylor Pucci
Votes: 864 | Gross: $0.03M
17. Black Butterfly (2010)
Not Rated | 95 min | Drama
Ariel (Mahogany Monae), a talented and strong willed inner city high school student, who dreams of making the U.S. swim team, sees her entire life turned upside down after being victimized by a brutal event.
Director: Mark Harris | Stars: Elizabeth Abraham, Sheree Bynum, Ron Cooper, Tiffany J. Curtis
Votes: 122
18. Diary of a Single Mom (2009– )
Not Rated | 85 min | Drama
In the center of a storm is Ocean (Monica Calhoun), a 27-year-old highly-motivated mother who manages a neighborhood apartment building and all of the problems that come along with it.
Stars: Monica Calhoun, Valery M. Ortiz, Janice Lynde, Jonathan Biggs
Votes: 115
19. The Tested (2010)
Not Rated | 106 min | Drama
A life shattering tragedy sends three people on vastly different paths to a similar goal of redemption and understanding.
Director: Russell Costanzo | Stars: Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, Armando Riesco, Michael Morris Jr., Frank Vincent
Votes: 66
20. Prince of Broadway (2008)
Not Rated | 100 min | Drama
A New York street hustler specializing in name-brand knock-offs finds his highly profitable game suddenly complicated when his ex-girlfriend shows up toting the son he never knew he had.
Director: Sean Baker | Stars: Prince Adu, Karren Karagulian, Aiden Noesi, Keyali Mayaga
Votes: 620 | Gross: $0.02M
21. Red Hook Summer (2012)
R | 121 min | Drama
A middle-class boy from Atlanta finds his worldview changed as he spends the summer with his deeply religious grandfather in the housing projects of Red Hook, Brooklyn.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: Jules Brown, Thomas Jefferson Byrd, Toni Lysaith, Limary Agosto
Votes: 1,951 | Gross: $0.34M
22. Money Matters (I) (2011)
Not Rated | 89 min | Drama
Monique "Money" Matters caught at the brink of adolescence. Her relationship with her mother, is far from stable and depicts the struggle between a young mother and daughter who both come of age.
Director: Ryan Richmond | Stars: Terri Abney, Aunjanue Ellis-Taylor, James Whalen, Victoria Wallace
Votes: 142
23. N-Secure (2010)
R | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
N-Secure is a no holds-barred thrilling drama mixed with murder, mayhem, and manipulation among affluent professionals. This film sheds light on a man's downfall from the pinnacles of ... See full summary »
Director: David M. Matthews | Stars: Cordell Moore, Essence Atkins, Denise Boutte, Tempestt Bledsoe
Votes: 665 | Gross: $2.59M
24. Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
R | 98 min | Drama
A mother and daughter find their lives adversely affected when a new man enters the picture. Will their family ever be what they expect?
Director: Anjelica Huston | Stars: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Ron Eldard, Glenne Headly, Lyle Lovett
Votes: 4,808
25. Just Another Girl on the I.R.T. (1992)
R | 92 min | Drama, Romance
With hopes of becoming a doctor and not a product of her environment, a Brooklyn teenager is faced with numerous challenges that threaten her dreams.
Director: Leslie Harris | Stars: Ariyan A. Johnson, Kevin Thigpen, Ebony Jerido, Chequita Jackson
Votes: 1,365 | Gross: $0.48M
26. Kidulthood (2006)
R | 89 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
A day in the life of a group of troubled 15-year-olds growing up in west London.
Director: Menhaj Huda | Stars: Aml Ameen, Red Madrell, Noel Clarke, Adam Deacon
Votes: 19,785
27. Liberty Kid (2007)
Not Rated | 92 min | Drama
Two friends start a concession stand at the foot of the Statue of Liberty. After the World Trade Center attacks, each of their dreams go up in smoke and yet they must endure the effect the attacks have on their lives.
Director: Ilya Chaiken | Stars: Al Thompson, Kareem Savinon, Anny Mariano, Rayniel Rufino
Votes: 190
28. Exit Strategy (2012)
Not Rated | 76 min | Comedy, Romance
Evicted from his apartment, James has to move in with his girlfriend of 3 months. He quickly discovers that she's everything he never wanted in a woman.
Director: Michael Whitton | Stars: Jameel Saleem, Quincy Harris, Noelle Balfour, Kimelia Weathers Smith
Votes: 425
29. Kids (1995)
Unrated | 91 min | Drama
A day in the life of a group of teens as they travel around New York City skating, drinking, smoking and deflowering virgins.
Director: Larry Clark | Stars: Leo Fitzpatrick, Justin Pierce, Chloë Sevigny, Sarah Henderson
Votes: 84,631 | Gross: $7.42M
30. Imperial Dreams (2014)
TV-MA | 87 min | Drama
A 21-year-old reformed gangster's devotion to his family and his future is put to the test when he is released from prison and returns to his old stomping grounds in Watts, Los Angeles.
Director: Malik Vitthal | Stars: John Boyega, Rotimi, Glenn Plummer, De'aundre Bonds
Votes: 4,796
31. Dayveon (2017)
75 min | Crime, Drama
In the wake of his older brother's death, 13-year-old Dayveon spends the sweltering summer days roaming his rural Arkansas town. When he falls in with a local gang, he becomes drawn to the camaraderie and violence of their world.
Director: Amman Abbasi | Stars: Devin Blackmon, Dontrell Bright, Lachion Buckingham, Kordell Johnson
Votes: 561 | Gross: $0.00M
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