Watch
Films we recommend
Faith-respectful films, series and documentaries for families and neighbours: chosen with the help of Christian, Jewish and Muslim reviewers, with no prophet shown on screen.
Signs
Apollo 11 (2019, U)
Archive-only film of the Moon landing: awe at the scale of creation and human skill, with no narrator's agenda.
Very mild bad language (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Hubble 3D (2010, U)
IMAX journey through Hubble's images: galaxies and star nurseries, ideal for 'signs in the heavens' pages.
No material likely to offend (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
A Beautiful Planet (2016, U)
Earth filmed from the International Space Station: the planet as a gift held in trust.
No material likely to offend (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Biggest Little Farm (2018, PG)
A couple restore a dead farm and learn how creation balances itself: patience, stewardship, wonder.
Mild threat; dead and injured animals (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Secrets of the Whales (2021, not BBFC-classified (streaming))
Whale families, language and grief: the intelligence and tenderness built into creation.
Animal predation; Common Sense 8+. Not BBFC-classified (streaming). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Winged Migration (2001, U)
Birds' migrations filmed alongside the flocks: a near-wordless meditation on guidance and instinct.
No sex, violence or bad language (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Farthest (2017, PG)
The Voyager probes and the Golden Record: humility before the size of the universe.
Infrequent mild bad language, natural nudity (the Golden Record images) (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Signs / Kids
Earth (2007, U)
The cinema cut of Planet Earth: one year, one planet, told for families.
Predation (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Signs / Screen closer look
Baraka (1992, PG)
Wordless film of worship and nature across the world, including prayer at mosques, churches and synagogues.
BBFC PG; some ritual nudity and scenes of poverty and slaughter. · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Color of Paradise (1999, PG)
A blind Iranian boy 'reads' God's presence in nature with his hands: Majid Majidi's most awe-filled film.
BBFC PG; a distressing climax. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Screen closer look / Signs
Into Great Silence (2005, U)
Nearly three hours of silence with Carthusian monks: what prayer looks like when nothing else is there.
No material likely to offend (BBFC U). Very slow. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Watch with your neighbours / Kids
Koran by Heart (2011, U)
Three children at Cairo's Qur'an recitation contest: devotion, family and pressure, told kindly.
No material likely to offend (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Watch with your neighbours
The Sultan and the Saint (2016, 12A)
Francis of Assisi meets Sultan al-Kamil during the Fifth Crusade: two men of faith choose conversation over war.
Moderate violence, bloody images, threat (BBFC 12A). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Imam and the Pastor (2006, not BBFC-classified)
Two Nigerian militia leaders, one Muslim and one Christian, who once tried to kill each other and now work for peace together.
Discusses violence and maiming. Not BBFC-classified. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Driving Miss Daisy (1989, U)
A Jewish widow and her Black Christian driver become friends over 25 years; her synagogue is bombed, he stands with her.
No sex, violence or bad language (BBFC U); racism theme. · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Band's Visit (2007, 12)
An Egyptian police band stranded in an Israeli desert town for one night: strangers become neighbours.
One use of strong language (BBFC 12); a gentle romantic subplot. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Free Men (2011, 12)
The Grand Mosque of Paris shelters Jews from the Nazis: Muslims protecting Jewish neighbours.
Moderate violence (BBFC 12). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Where Do We Go Now? (2011, 12)
Christian and Muslim women in a Lebanese village scheme to stop their men fighting: comedy with grief underneath.
Infrequent strong language and soft drug use (hashish cakes) (BBFC 12). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Hundred-Foot Journey (2014, PG)
An Indian family opens a restaurant opposite a French one: rivals become neighbours and friends.
Mild bad language, threat (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Au Revoir les Enfants (1987, 12A)
A Catholic boarding school hides Jewish boys in occupied France; a friendship and a betrayal.
Moderate sex references, moderate bad language (BBFC 12A). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Hiding Place (1975, PG (1983 video))
Corrie ten Boom's Christian family hides Jews; after the camps she forgives a former guard.
Concentration-camp scenes (UK video PG, 1983). Made by World Wide Pictures (Billy Graham). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Chosen (1981, PG)
Friendship between a Hasidic boy and a Modern Orthodox boy in 1940s Brooklyn (Chaim Potok's novel). Not the Jesus series.
BBFC PG; mild. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Joyeux Noel (2005, 12)
The 1914 Christmas truce: enemies share carols, prayer and burial of their dead.
Moderate battle violence, sex, one use of strong language (BBFC 12). Only a French-language trailer on a studio channel. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Screen closer look
Babette's Feast (1987, U)
A refugee cook spends everything on one meal for a severe village congregation: grace, gratitude and generosity.
No material likely to offend (BBFC U). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Straight Story (1999, PG)
An old man rides a lawnmower 240 miles to make peace with his estranged brother: repentance and reconciliation.
Upsetting scenes (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Amazing Grace (2006, PG)
William Wilberforce's faith-driven fight to end the slave trade; John Newton's repentance.
Mistreatment of slaves, mild language (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
A Hidden Life (2019, 12)
An Austrian farmer refuses to swear loyalty to Hitler: conscience before God at any cost.
Moderate violence, threat (BBFC 12). Nearly three hours. · Where to watch: F-ILM
Kids
Paddington (2014, PG)
'Please look after this bear': a refugee stranger is taken in and changes a family.
Dangerous behaviour, mild threat, innuendo (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Iron Giant (1999, PG)
A boy befriends a giant robot who chooses to be good: sacrifice and the choice of who we are.
Mild fantasy violence, infrequent mild bad language (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Queen of Katwe (2016, PG)
A girl from a Kampala slum becomes a chess champion through a church-run chess club.
Mild sex references, injury detail (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Wonder (2017, PG)
A boy with a facial difference starts school: 'when given the choice between being right or being kind, choose kind.'
Mild bad language, violence (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (2022, not BBFC-classified (BBC/Apple))
Charlie Mackesy's animated short about kindness, courage and asking for help.
Not BBFC-classified; Common Sense 5+. Possible misuse of God's name once (Plugged In). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Kids / Signs
The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019, PG)
A Malawian boy builds a windmill from scrap to save his village from famine: knowledge as service.
Mild bad language, violence, sex references (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Hidden Figures (2016, PG)
Black women mathematicians at NASA: faith, family and calculating the heavens.
Discrimination theme, mild bad language (BBFC PG). · Where to watch: F-ILM
Watch more: Films we recommend
6 films and talks, chosen for this page. They play here.
[FILM] 1001 Inventions and the Library of Secrets - starring Sir Ben Kingsley (English Version)
1001Inventions · 13 min
The life and work of Mary Anning (dramatisation) | History - True Stories
BBC Bitesize for Teachers · 12 min
BBC Teach: the life of Mary Anning, a dramatised true story for families.
Earthrise in 4K
NASA Goddard · 7 min
The Hiding Place | A Billy Graham Film
Billy Graham Evangelistic Association · 146 min
The Hiding Place: the true story of Corrie ten Boom, who hid Jews from the Nazis, from the film-makers' own channel.
Fr. Mike Schmitz Reviews ‘Triumph of the Heart’
Ascension Presents · 9 min
Fr Mike Schmitz reviews Triumph of the Heart, a film about Maximilian Kolbe.
Baghdad Messi | A Short Film by Sahim Omar Kalifa
MAGNETFILM · 18 min
Baghdad Messi: an award-winning short film about a boy in Iraq, from its distributor.
- More films and talks on F-ILMWatch free