Movies Similar to The Specials: A Message to You

Land Without Bread(1933)

An exploration —manipulated and staged— of life in Las Hurdes, in the province of Cáceres, in Extremadura, Spain, as it was in 1932. Insalubrity, misery and lack of opportunities provoke the emigration of young people and the solitude of those who remain in the desolation of one of the poorest and least developed Spanish regions at that time.

The Greatest Night in Pop(2024)

On a January night in 1985, music's biggest stars gathered to record "We Are the World." This documentary goes behind the scenes of the historic event.

No Lye: An American Beauty Story(2019)

A documentary that chronicles the rise and decline of the black-owned ethnic beauty industry in America.

The Venerable W.(2017)

A view of the religious tensions between Muslims and Buddhist through the portrait of the Buddhist monk Ashin Wirathu, leader of anti-Muslim movement in Myanmar.

Valley Underground(2025)

A short documentary on the underground music scene of the Rio Grande Valley.

Serge Gainsbourg, les meilleures chansons(2021)

Paul McCartney: In the World Tonight(1997)

Documenting the recording process for Paul's 1997 album Flaming Pie, In The World Tonight is a fascinating insight into how a studio album is constructed, following Paul around his home studio and Abbey Road as he creates what would go on to be his first studio album in four years. In many ways there are two Paul McCartneys, the legend and the man. In The World Tonight reveals the man behind the public face, intimately capturing him at work, at ease and as candid as ever.

Dixie Chicks: Shut Up and Sing(2006)

Shut Up and Sing is a documentary about the country band from Texas called the Dixie Chicks and how one tiny comment against President Bush dropped their number one hit off the charts and caused fans to hate them, destroy their CD’s, and protest at their concerts. A film about freedom of speech gone out of control and the three girls lives that were forever changed by a small anti-Bush comment

Time(2020)

Fox Rich, indomitable matriarch and modern-day abolitionist, strives to keep her family together while fighting for the release of her incarcerated husband. An intimate, epic, and unconventional love story, filmed over two decades.

The Go-Go's(2021)

As the first all-female band to play their instruments, write their songs and have a No. 1 album, The Go-Go’s made history. Underpinned by candid testimonies, this film chronicles the meteoric rise to fame of a band born in the LA punk scene who became a pop phenomenon.

Between the Sun and the Sidewalk(2024)

Christian Garcia, a fiercely dedicated Latino political organizer, leads a team of young people mobilizing their community for a soda tax. Tested during their fight for the right to vote, the young recruits dare to beat back the goliath soda industry and ignite a youth-powered movement for health equity and justice.

La Historia Enterrada(2018)

In My Genes(2009)

Agnes may not seem like someone with much to laugh about. For one thing, she has albinism - a lack of pigment in the skin, hair and eyes - and her appearance has provoked prejudice from family, friends and strangers since she was born. But despite all odds, Agnes refuses to lead a life of sorrow. This fascinating and inspiring documentary also shares the stories of seven other people's individual experiences of living their lives with albinism in Kenya, a predominantly black society. While each person's story is unique, they all have one thing in common: they know what it is like to stand out uncomfortably from the crowd.

Asia Rising: The Next Generation of Hip-Hop(2019)

With the help of record label 88rising, we look through the eyes six different artist from six different backgrounds, all within Asia, as they share their thoughts on the recent rise of hip-hop throughout the region.

Le Fils(2024)

Les enfants de la lanterne magique(2023)

Couch Man(2023)

In Asheville, NC, five individuals find their place in longboard world. This is an action documentary crafted with a broad audience in mind, appealing to more than just the downhill community.

Hoxsey: When Healing Becomes a Crime(2005)

In the 1920s, former coal miner Harry Hoxsey claimed to have an herbal cure for cancer. Although scoffed at and ultimately banned by the medical establishment, by the 1950s, Hoxsey's formula had been used to treat thousands of patients, who testified to its efficacy. Was Hoxsey's recipe the work of a snake-oil charlatan or a legitimate treatment? Ken Ausubel directs this keen look into the forces that shape the policies of organized medicine.

Happy Pills(2023)

A journey through six different countries and characters into a world where chemistry is the ultimate response to human pursuits of well-being.

Barbra Streisand: Becoming an Icon 1942–1984(2017)

Barbra Streisand grew up in working class Brooklyn, dreaming of escape from her tough childhood. A stellar student, she resisted the pressure to go to college as her sights were firmly set on Broadway. She was determined to become an actress and landed her first role aged 16, but it was two years later, when she started to sing, that her career took off. Subverting stereotypes and breaking glass ceilings, this programme looks at her rise to stardom and the remarkable achievements of her early career.