Four Films That Stayed with Me in September 2026

September brought the first German releases of some films from this year's Cannes Film Festival, including one of my favourites from the Official Selection. Other films had already appeared at festivals such as Toronto or San Sebastián last year and took some time to arrive in German cinemas, but they were worth the wait.

Paweł Pawlikowski is one of my favourite directors working today. His last two films were among my favourites of their respective years, and Vaterland was one of the films I was most looking forward to seeing this year. I even dedicated a whole post to the director's career and explained why this film was one of my most anticipated titles at the Cannes Film Festival.

The film follows the writer Thomas Mann and his daughter Erika on a road trip through Germany in 1949. They travel from Frankfurt to Weimar, crossing a country still marked by the Second World War and now divided by the emerging tensions of the Cold War. Thomas Mann is expected to deliver speeches for the bicentenary of Goethe's birth, but the journey also becomes a way of confronting the state of the country he once left behind.

I will keep recommending this film, especially because of its analysis of German society. I was struck by how familiar some of its descriptions still feel: a country divided, searching for hope and progress, but carrying many of the same flaws. It is disappointing to see a country you have grown attached to still struggling with its past, with former Nazi supporters and people with a military mindset holding positions of power, while freedom of speech and the possibility of change remain under pressure.

Vaterland has many layers, and its beautiful black-and-white cinematography adds another one. It reflects on what home means, especially after a war, and on what happens when returning home does not mean finding the country you remember. For me, it is one of the best films of the year.

Saoirse Ronan is an actress I trust when choosing a film. She seems to know how to find interesting characters that add something to her filmography, and Bad Apples is another example of that.

Teaching is one of the most complex and underappreciated professions. Teachers are responsible for so many children, not only for giving them knowledge but also for helping them prepare for the world outside school. It requires patience and a talent for communicating with children that not everyone has, especially when dealing with a disruptive pupil who struggles to communicate with others and creates problems in the classroom and during school trips.

Bad Apples is a dark comedy that gives Saoirse Ronan plenty to work with, but it also has a darker message about individualism and how self-centred we are becoming as a society.

I found the screenplay both funny and thought-provoking. At the same time, I had the feeling that the film did not quite know how to end. The final part did not work as well for me as the rest of the story, but the situations and ideas that lead us there make the film worth watching.

Jim is a gay, muscular influencer who reigns over Paris's gay scene. But when a virus called Heterosis starts turning gay men straight, his popularity collapses overnight. He teams up with one of his fans in an attempt to save the queer community.

This crazy premise for a French animated film makes for a refreshing experience. It takes stereotypes from within the queer community and uses them to show a wider picture, including kinks, identities and personalities that are not often seen on the big screen.

I had an amazing time watching it. You can feel that the screenplay comes from people who understand the queer characters they are presenting. Yes, there are plenty of clichés, but the film knows how to play with them and build jokes around them, rather than relying on the kind of insults and tired jokes that queer people are so often subjected to. It also shows how diverse the word queer can be, and how many different experiences and identities it can include.

There is also a more tender side to the film, with the development of the characters' journeys, original songs and a genuinely feel-good moment. It was especially fun to watch it in a cinema full of people laughing out loud together. Sometimes, sharing that kind of reaction with an audience is part of what makes going to the cinema such a great experience.

Another queer film, but one that approaches the subject from a very different perspective. Maspalomas follows a 76-year-old gay man whose life changes after a stroke forces him to return to San Sebastián and move into a care home. There, he finds himself hiding his sexuality again, after having spent years living openly as a gay man.

It is a deeply sad story about how queer people exist at every age and how important it is to have an environment where they can be themselves, without having to restrict who they are because of the people around them. The film reminds us that being able to live openly is not something everyone can take for granted, even after years of having built a life on their own terms.

The main character also has to confront his past when his daughter, whom he abandoned years earlier, becomes involved in his care, finds him a new home and visits him. Another important relationship is the one with his roommate, a supporter of a right-wing party who initially seems like someone he would never get along with. Their relationship gradually develops into a surprisingly gentle and tender friendship.

The ending is difficult to process. It shows how society can be open-minded and accepting in some places while remaining exclusive and restrictive in others. For me, the film offers a small ray of light to someone who is still looking for a place where he can be happy and live as himself.

What stayed with me most is the idea that, even at an age when you might expect to have found your place in the world, you can still be forced to hide a part of yourself. Maspalomas is a reminder that the freedom to be yourself should not have an age limit.