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I Was a Stranger
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Showtimes
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Movie Details
Videos & Photos
- Trailer 2 (02:24)
- Trailer 1 (02:02)
Movie Info & Cast
Synopsis
A Syrian doctor and her daughter flee Aleppo, setting off a chain of events that binds five strangers together. A smuggler, a soldier, a poet, and a coast guard captain collide in a crisis that tests their courage, their choices, and their humanity.
Cast
- Yasmine Al Massri
- Yahya Mahayni
- Omar Sy
- Ziad Bakri
- Constantine Markoulakis
- Ayman Samman
- Mahmoud Bakri
- Saleh Bakri
- Jason Beghe
Moviegoers are saying
Angel Studios' ambitious anthology 'I was a Stranger' tackles the Syrian refugee crisis through five interconnected perspectives, but audiences are deeply divided over its execution and messaging. While some praise the powerful performances and gripping narrative structure, many critics slam it as manipulative 'misery porn' that deflects from political accountability, with particular controversy surrounding its white director and faith-based distribution.
Top Mentions
Summary generated from the text of Atom User reviews
Letterboxd User Reviews
3.4
2.5K
1.0K
570
- Jan 8, 2026
Y’all really worried about who’s telling the story rather than the story that is being told. It’s gripping, moving and intense with layered characters who all give incredible performances.
ChazmJan 9, 2026Why make a movie about refugees and open up with the trump building? Especially when the film never takes place in America. Typical angel studio misery porn type of film.
🏳️⚧️💕Belle Forger💕🏳️⚧️Feb 24, 2024the refugee crisis put into a digestible thriller/drama for mass audiences. the type of film people walk out of, feeling terrible yet their conscience is a little bit more relieved. hey, at least you're on the right side of history, huh? i see the need for a film like…
shookone - Jan 9, 2026
pros: - produced by philistine films, an independent studio based in palestine and jordan - THE atticus ross of NIN on the soundtrack - critique of xenophobia - diverse cast and strong acting cons: - distributed by weird christian company that is ironically named angel…
anglerphishJan 8, 2026decently well made but the white boy at the end asking for donations to pay-it-forward movie tickets to his movie after showing syrian children dying in the water really sums up the overall messaging
the gravel goblinJan 10, 2026The first new release review of 2026 is another film from faith based Angel Studios. Their newest “I was a Stranger” is an anthology film broken up into different individual based chapters surrounding a key event a la Magnolia or last year’s Weapons. The event being one…
Marqus Rice - Jan 7, 2026
What did I just watch? We have the stories of several strangers converging in a bizarre fashion with no character or plot development at all. The doctor and soldier were a great start, but once you gave us the smuggler, poet, and captain the movie basically fell of a…
Cinemaniac247Jan 8, 2026In the credits, the director comes on to tell us that the purpose of his film is to show people that strangers are more alike than we think, even in times of war like the Syrian Refugee Crisis, it is all a matter of perspective. Empathy for refugees/immigrants is extremely…
2ManyCultMoviesJan 12, 2026I actually had no idea this movie even existed until yesterday, which is a little surprising, since I usually try to keep a pretty close eye on new releases from Angel Studios. So I went into it with no expectations — and… it’s fine. Although it’s probably the Angel movie I…
MoviePsycho06
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Top Reviews
- Diego Huertas is "meh" onI Was a Stranger
6/10 It was alright had some pacing issues overall a good story about perspective
Tyra watched_neutraldI Was a Stranger6/10; i was hooked til the end, but the ending was SO SAD
Samantha McQuillan lovedI Was a Strangergut wrenching
Atom User Reviews
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Verified Review
I was confused through a bunch of it. It was definitely a different Angel movie than I've ever seen. A lot of questions left unanswered
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Dorotha F
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