Movies Similar to Straying home

Born into Brothels: Calcutta's Red Light Kids(2004)

Documentary depicting the lives of child prostitutes in the red light district of Songachi, Calcutta. Director Zana Briski went to photograph the prostitutes when she met and became friends with their children. Briski began giving photography lessons to the children and became aware that their photography might be a way for them to lead better lives.

6.8

March of the Penguins(2005)

Every year, thousands of Antarctica's emperor penguins make an astonishing journey to breed their young. They walk, marching day and night in single file 70 miles into the darkest, driest and coldest continent on Earth. This amazing, true-life tale is touched with humour and alive with thrills. Breathtaking photography captures the transcendent beauty and staggering drama of devoted parent penguins who, in the fierce polar winter, take turns guarding their egg and trekking to the ocean in search of food. Predators hunt them, storms lash them. But the safety of their adorable chicks makes it all worthwhile. So follow the leader... to adventure!!

7.1

MOTHERLAND(2024)

Having left their home country for almost 20 years, a mother, her son and her daughter reminisce of their days in Armenia and reflect on how radically different their life is now. They also discuss the current political state of the country in the midst of an ongoing war.

10.0

A Dog's Life(2013)

A Dog's Life examines how our canine companions perceive the world - from the moment they take their first morning walk to the time they curl up at our feet to go to sleep. We accompany Daisy, a Jack Russell Terrier, through an average day and on the way discover that, while dogs are not miniature humans, they are amazingly well adapted to life with us. But how well do we know them?

0.0

Vougas of the Ria de Aveiro(2025)

“In a meeting between history and the present, this docufiction takes us on a unique journey through the Ria de Aveiro, through the curious eyes of a child who discovers, for the first time, the Vouga Class boats. Guided by an adult, a symbol of the generations that preserve this centuries-old tradition, the child enters a world of memories, knowledge and traditions that resist the test of time. Between workshops and shipyards, conversations with master builders and walks along the waters of the estuary, the story unfolds like a bridge between generations. This docufiction interweaves reality and fiction, testimonies and dramatization, showing how cultural heritage is transmitted, not only through words, but through lived experiences. More than telling the story of the Vougas, this film celebrates those who keep them alive, and those who will one day carry them forward.”

10.0

Tehachapi(2024)

French visual artist-director JR situates his latest social-art intervention in a Southern Californian supermax prison, where he has imagined an enormously ambitious collaboration with the facility’s inmates.

7.6

Paula Says Hi(2024)

A personal and intimate portrait of disabled, gender fluid cosplayer Paul/Paula. Inviting us into her world, Paula lives life to the full, embracing her passion for cosplay and sci-fi conventions. Paul offers his intimate thoughts on accepting their disability and the joy of gender euphoria.

10.0

Girls State(2024)

What would American democracy look like in the hands of teenage girls? In this documentary, young female leaders from wildly different backgrounds in Missouri navigate an immersive experiment to build a government from the ground up.

7.4

Electric Boogaloo: The Wild, Untold Story of Cannon Films(2014)

A documentary about the rise and fall of the Cannon Film Group, the legendary independent film company helmed by Israeli cousins Menahem Golan and Yoram Globus.

7.2

Once Upon a Cow(2017)

Through this exploration of three cows, each living in a very different environment, this documentary reveals the daily life and behavior of this fascinating animal with highly developed social intelligence.

7.5

Woodstock(1970)

An intimate look at the Woodstock Music & Art Festival held in Bethel, NY in 1969, from preparation through cleanup, with historic access to insiders, blistering concert footage, and portraits of the concertgoers; negative and positive aspects are shown, from drug use by performers to naked fans sliding in the mud, from the collapse of the fences by the unexpected hordes to the surreal arrival of National Guard helicopters with food and medical assistance for the impromptu city of 500,000.

7.5

The Return of Errol Gulden(2025)

A short documentary on the recovery of Sydney Swans AFL player Errol Gulden after sustaining an ankle injury in the Opening Round of the 2025 AFL season.

8.0

Something like Hyde Park(1989)

In the weeks and months surrounding the overthrowing of Bulgaria's socialist dictatorship, the public's taste for democratic discussion begs to be sated. Kiryakov's camera walks through Sofia's South Park as it turns into a hotbed for ideological debate and picketing, where citizens from all walks of life share their hopes despite the winter weather.

8.0

Florida, Man(2026)

Evan, a filmmaker from Mississippi, catches feelings for a gal he meets at a found footage film festival in San Francisco. They decide to make a movie together, exploring the haunted landscapes of Evan’s family history in the swamplands of Florida. Old wounds are reopened and generational trauma reveals itself to be perhaps the scariest part of this attempted mockumentary that ends up being a little too real.

0.0

Man with a Movie Camera(1929)

A cameraman wanders around with a camera slung over his shoulder, documenting urban life with dazzling inventiveness.

7.8

Dear Zachary: A Letter to a Son About His Father(2008)

In 2001, Andrew Bagby, a medical resident, is murdered not long after breaking up with his girlfriend. Soon after, when she announces she's pregnant, one of Andrew's many close friends, Kurt Kuenne, begins this film, a gift to the child.

8.0

Das geheime Wesen der Katzen(2021)

Cats are the most popular pet in Europe. Around 14 million house pets live in German households alone. But hardly anything is known about the nature of cats - their emotional life has been little studied by science. Until now! Scientists all over the world have begun to explore the secret nature of cats.

6.7

The Pocket Film of Superstitions(2023)

The film is described as a weird and wonderful merging of shades of folk horror, the supernatural with dadaist humour and a quaint British eccentricities that are long gone in the cinema of today.

8.0

The Boy of The Fish(2024)

"The Boy Of The Fish" follows Noon, a young boy living in a Syrian refugee camp, who finds solace and a sense of freedom in a whale-shaped doll he names "Bahr." Set against the challenging realities of camp life, Noon’s journey is both a story of resilience and a testament to the boundless imagination of childhood. Through vivid symbolism and a unique soundscape, the film explores themes of loss, hope, and the longing for freedom amidst confinement. Shot entirely on an iPhone due to restrictions in the conflict zone, the film combines raw authenticity with poetic depth to capture the emotional landscape of a young soul navigating adversity.

6.0

Cow(2022)

A close-up portrait of the daily lives of a pair of cows: told by way of some narrative-free, intimate POV photography, with plenty of close shot images, we follow the daily routine of these animals as they live what can only be described as mundane, boring lives - all with an ultimate purpose within the human food chain.

6.4