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Trailer+1 trailer

Timbuktu

2014Movie1 h 36 min

Drama
83
GreatGoodWatch score
IMDb7.1Metacritic927.3Rotten Tomatoes98%77%

A relentlessly bleak, moving drama movie about everyday modern life and society.

Good for drop-in friendly · thought-provoking · adults

Skip it if you need an uplifting mood · you want fast pacing

Where to watch

Fingerprint

Not for warmth, comfort or laughs.

Movies with

Story

A song for freedom.

Just outside of the Malian city of Timbuktu, now occupied by militant Islamic rebels who impose the Sharia on civilians and inconvenience their daily life, a cattleman kills a fisherman.

Feels like

  • Malian Conflict
  • Islamic Extremism
  • Social Injustice
  • Cultural Clash
  • Religious Hypocrisy
  • Bleak
  • Political Commentary
  • African Cinema

Cast

11 of 11

Crew

Directed by
Abderrahmane Sissako
Written by
Abderrahmane Sissako, Kessen Tall
Produced by
Sylvie Pialat, Étienne Comar, Frédérique Dumas-Zajdela
Music by
Amine Bouhafa

Everyone

Pick a department, or search for a name or a job (“editor”, “stunt”).

Facts

December 10, 2014 · 1 h 36 min · Violence

Released
December 10, 2014
Runtime
1 h 36 min
Content
Violence
Genres
Drama, War
Original language
French
Also spoken
Bambara, English, Arabic
Made in
France
Box office
$1 million
Available in
24 countries

Tropes

Blood from the Mouth, Sand Necktie, Establishing Character Moment +9

  • Blood from the Mouth
  • Sand Necktie
  • Establishing Character Moment
  • Day of the Jackboot
  • Reasonable Authority Figure
  • Punch-Clock Villain
  • A Taste of the Lash
  • The Fundamentalist
  • For the Evulz
  • Screw the Rules, I Make Them!
  • Determined Homesteader
  • Moral Guardians

12 of 18 tropes. From TV Tropes.

Q&A

5 questions, like "Where can I stream Timbuktu?"

Questions about Timbuktu

Quick answers from GoodWatch data.

Where can I stream Timbuktu?

KanopyCohen MediaTubi TV

In the United States, Timbuktu streams on Cohen Media, and it is free with ads on Kanopy and Tubi TV. You can rent or buy it from Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, and YouTube. It also streams in 13 other countries.

Is Timbuktu worth watching?

83
GreatGoodWatch score

Yes, it's widely acclaimed, with a GoodWatch score of 83 (IMDb 7.1, Rotten Tomatoes 98%, and Metacritic 92). Critics rate it higher (95 out of 100) than audiences (74).

Will I feel good after watching Timbuktu?

BleakHopeful

Probably not: the title analysis rates it 9 of 10 for bleakness and 7 for melancholy, against 1 for hopefulness.

Is Timbuktu plot-driven or character-driven?

CharactersPlot

Mostly character-driven: it leans on character depth (8 of 10) and pathos (8 of 10) more than on its plot.

Is Timbuktu in English?

FrenchBambaraEnglishArabic

No, it was made in French, with some Bambara, English, and Arabic.