Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Brisk
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Easy to follow
- Violence
- Brutal
- tense
- oppressive
- harrowing
- historical film night
- political thriller night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film's historical subject and performances compelling but considered its political thriller execution conventional and uneven.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Lena voluntarily enters Colonia Dignidad after Daniel is abducted, turning the rescue effort into an infiltration of the settlement.
The Chilean military regime and its secret police create the conditions in which Colonia Dignidad can operate beyond ordinary accountability.
Lena's bond with Daniel motivates her to risk imprisonment, coercion, and torture inside the colony.
The settlement presents itself as a charitable religious mission but functions as a sealed-off place from which nobody escapes.
Films like Colonia, and why
The Lives of Others
Shares a true-events political thriller framework, authoritarian repression, and a determined protagonist navigating institutional danger.
Missing
Shares historical drama, military dictatorship, political violence, and a relationship tested by state persecution.
The Sacrament
Shares a claustrophobic captivity thriller structure, cult control, and a rescue mission driven by romantic devotion.
Movie Details
- Director
- Florian Gallenberger
- Release Date
- 2016-02-12
- Runtime
- 106 min
- Rating
- 7.2 / 10 (2024)
Cast
- Emma Watson
- Daniel Brühl
- Michael Nyqvist
- Richenda Carey
- Vicky Krieps
- Jeanne Werner
- Julian Ovenden
- August Zirner
- Martin Wuttke
- César Bordón
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Colonia about?
- A young woman infiltrates a supposedly charitable religious colony in 1970s Chile to find her lover, confronting dictatorship, coercion, and systematic abuse.
- What is Colonia like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Colonia as brisk, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as easy to follow.
- Is Colonia violent?
- Yes. Ember rates the violence in Colonia as brutal.
- What did critics think of Colonia?
- Critics broadly found the film's historical subject and performances compelling but considered its political thriller execution conventional and uneven.
- Which films are like Colonia?
- Films with a similar feel include The Lives of Others, Missing, and The Sacrament.
- How long is Colonia?
- Colonia runs 106 minutes.
- Where can I watch Colonia?
- In United States, Colonia streams on fuboTV.
