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Stream It or Skip It: ‘Black Island’ on Netflix, a German Thriller Where a New Teacher Isn’t Quite What She Seems

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• Black Island
• Stream It Or Skip It

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Islands in movies and TV shows rarely lead to much good;  Lost  sees a group of flight passengers stranded on an island after a crash,  Old  turns its visitors, well, *old*,  Fantasy Island  is home to some truly heinous nightmares , and Shutter Island is a less-than-ideal destination for a very mentally ill Leonardo DiCaprio. (Spoiler alert?).  Black Island , now streaming on Netflix, showcases some gorgeous German scenery — and tells a chilling tale. 

BLACK ISLAND : STREAM IT OR SKIP IT?

The Gist:  Teenager Jonas (Philip Froissant) lives on a beautiful, remote German island with his family. A year after his grandmother and parents are killed in separate tragic accidents, Jonas lives with his cold grandfather Friedrich (Hanns Zischler). He dreams of being a writer and spends his days riding his bike around the island with his friends, including Nina (Mercedes Müller), who he’s also exploring a romantic relationship with. When their German teacher is involved in an accident abroad and a mysterious new substitute arrives, things start to get a little strange. This young instructor, Helena Jung (Alice Dwyer) takes a special interest in Jonas, encouraging him in his writing and seducing him without much effort.

As Jonas and Helena grow closer, Nina grows more suspicious, wondering where Helena came from and why she’s here. Nina tries to warn Jonas that not all is as it seems, but he brushes her off, even as their own relationship develops further. Behind Helena’s seemingly warm persona is a deadly agenda, one that will change the lives of the people on this island forever.

What Movies Will It Remind You Of?:  Black Island  may remind you a little bit of  The Ring – – the quiet, mournful vibes were present for me — as well The Skeleton Key at times, and the more family-friendly thriller The Strange House .

Performance Worth Watching: Mercedes Müller is utterly lovely as Nina, Jonas’s love interest whose curiosity causes her to pay the price. Müller turns in a quiet, understated performance, leaving most of the work to her expressive eyes and the silences between her and her scene partner. I kept thinking of a younger Marion Cotillard while watching her; she’s got that unique graceful, mesmerizing screen presence that oozes movie star vibes. If Müller is given the chance to break through into something really mainstream, I won’t be surprised if she starts popping up everywhere.

Memorable Dialogue: Not much of note.

Sex and Skin: There’s some implied oral sex and a few forbidden encounters (both clothed and not) in bed, on the couch, and in the kitchen.

Our Take:  Black Island  starts with some promise, even if it is incredibly bleak; I prepared myself for something fearlessly dark and depressing, the kind of thriller that might be equal parts total bummer and bone-chilling thrill ride. Boy, was I disappointed. There may be a few solid elements in place, but  Black Island  is a half-baked, aimless attempt at telling a spooky story, a film that plants seeds it has no interest in watching grow. It’s a shame, too, because there is some real potential for something interesting here, but rather than building up to something that makes the climax dramatically effective,  Black Island  inches its way through uncomfortable sex scenes and pointless conversations.

Slow burn thrillers can be deeply unsettling and entertaining, but I’m not sure  Black Island  earns that title; it’s definitely slow, but there’s no real heat keeping things going, pushing us to a certain place. By the time we learn the truth about what’s really going on, there are only a few minutes left in the film, making all the drama that unfolds in the end feel incredibly rushed. I had high hopes for this one, especially given the idyllic setting and all the storytelling magic that can come from telling a dark story in a beautiful place, but  Black Island  is really only a sleepy showcase for its scenery — there isn’t enough story here to warrant adding it to the watchlist.

Our Call: SKIP IT.  Black Island  may have a few chilling twists and turns, but it’s mostly a snooze fest, lazily making its way towards a lackluster climax that leaves the viewer feeling unfulfilled.

Will you stream or skip the German thriller #BlackIsland on @netflix ? #SIOSI — Decider (@decider) August 23, 2021

Jade Budowski is a freelance writer with a knack for ruining punchlines, hogging the mic at karaoke, and thirst-tweeting. Follow her on Twitter: @jadebudowski .

Stream  Black Island  on Netflix

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Black Island Ending, Explained

Helmed by Miguel Alexandre, the German-original erotic thriller ‘Black Island’ takes the audience to a sparsely populated island for a damning exposition. The revenge story revolves around Jonas, who is finishing his final days in school. After the death of a revered teacher in the local school, a mysterious substitute teacher appears on the island. The revenge tale subsequently reveals that the teacher has a motive far more menacing than indoctrinating students with the poetry of Rilke.

The movie shines through with a superb performance by the cast ensemble comprising Alice Dwyer, Philip Froissant, and Mercedes Müller, and the cinematography adds a layer of doom to the bleak story. The fast-paced final moments may raise some questions in your mind. If that is the case, let us go hand in hand and decode the final denouement. SPOILERS AHEAD.

Black Island Plot Synopsis

The story takes the audience to the titular island in the North Frisian Islands to tell a story of mystery and revenge. The story begins with the death of Mr. Maineke, the German teacher of the local school Klaud-Mann. Jonas’ grandfather Friedrich also holds quite a prestigious position in the school, as he has served in the role of a teacher too. After the death of Mr. Maineke, a new teacher Helena Jung takes up the position of German tutor. She comes off as eccentric and liberal at first glance, with a penchant for natural beauty.

After the class, Helena calls Jonas, Nina, and Florian to help her unpack the boxes and set up the home. While Helena, Jonas, and Florian have a hearty conversation assembling a shelf, Nina injures herself. Florian takes Nina home while Jonas follows with his cycle. Later at her home, Helena burns printed Instagram photos of Jonas. She assigns the students to write a poem that sounds like Rilke in class, and aspiring poet-writer Jonas helps Nina write her poem. Jonas’ grandfather dismisses his attempt, but Helena wholeheartedly encourages him, even after knowing he helped Nina write her assignment.

Later, Jonas goes to show Helena his manuscript of poems, which seemingly breaks Helena into tears. Jonas impulsively kisses her, and she responds with another invigorating kiss. They strike up an affair, but the sudden cardiac arrest of his grandfather at the school ceremony after the sight of Helena implants a doubt in Nina’s mind regarding Helena’s beguiling appearance. Nina’s investigation pushes her towards a deadly conjecture, while Jonas comes to know of the terrible past pursuing Helena.

Black Island Ending: Who Is Maria Roth?

Friedrich collapses after seeing Helena at the event. Although Jonas misses this little detail, Nina and her friend Jule see this clearly. Nina deduces that Helena may be the reason for Friedrich’s sudden ailment and that these two may even know each other. Jule comes to know from her father that Helena looks identical to his German teacher in school.

Nina pays a visit to the library to look for the old school yearbook archives to see if there are any facial matches of Helena with any of the other staff members. She stops at a page to find an identical image. The image is that of Maria Roth, who was also a German tutor in the school. The sudden revelation prepares Nina for a fatal confrontation with Helena. Helena chokes Nina to death and subsequently tears the page of the yearbook.

When Jonas comes looking for Nina at the library, Helena tells Jonas that Nina left the premises earlier. While Jonas forgets to look for Nina’s bicycle, Helena spots it after putting Nina’s corpse in her car. She takes the keys out of Nina’s bag and retrieves the cycle too. Helena carries Nina and her belongings to the island shore and dumps the corpse in the seas. That night, Helena sneaks into the house of Jonas for another dreamy liaison, and on the following day, Nina’s corpse washes up the shore. After the revelation, Friedrich collapses for a second time and is taken to the hospital. Jonas is visibly distressed and goes to Helena’s house for a confrontation.

However, by that time, Helena has gone out to pay Friedrich a visit to the hospital. From Helena’s provocative monologue at the hospital, we understand that Maria is the mother of Helena. The friends go back to the library to find the page torn from the book. They search on the internet to find a photo of Maria Roth and Friedrich together. They probe some more to find Maria Roth mysteriously died in an accident in 1988. The next morning, Helena gets Friedrich discharged from the hospital and knocks at Jonas’ door. Before Jonas can understand anything, Helena carries Friedrich’s bed through the door.

Jonas bursts out at Helena, and Helena promises to tell him everything over coffee. The audience sees Helena drugging Jonas’ coffee, presumably for a seamless death following the confrontation. She later places Friedrich’s bed by the window for a better view of Jonas’ finality. The confrontation reveals that Helena is the blood-related aunt of Jonas. When Maria Roth came as the new German teacher at school, Friedrich struck up an illicit affair with Maria, and Helena was the child of their love. While Maria was head over heels in love with Friedrich, Friedrich was only concerned about dignity. Therefore, Friedrich drowned Maria in cold blood, while Helena survived, reborn with a taste for vengeance.

Is Helena Dead or Alive?

Following the revelation, Jonas senses that he is drugged. By that time, Helena drags him into the pool while assuring him that it would be alright. Helena attempts to drown Jonas in the pool, but Jonas still has the strength to release himself from Helena’s clutches. He escapes the pool and crawls towards the home in the final tense moments. Helena chases Jonas into the home, and a fistfight between the two ensues.

Helena tries to choke Jonas, but he gets hold of a piece of glass. Jonas stabs Helena in the chest with the piece of glass, and she collapses by the side of Jonas. By the end of the story, she is seemingly dead while both Jonas and Friedrich escape the situation alive. But Helena’s specter haunts Jonas as he escapes the damning island on a ferry. On the boat, he chases a woman who wears a yellow jacket identical to Helena.

Why Is The Island Blackened on the Map?

Jonas follows the woman to the side of the boat, near the engine room. The woman is not Helena, but she intently looks at the map of North Frisian Islands hung on the side of the boat. The woman greets Jonas, who is relieved to know that she is not Helena. The woman asks Jonas whether he has taken the boat from Kiel Island, to which Jonas nods. The woman is curious about why the island is blackened on the map.

Jonas takes a look at the map, and he touches the blackened area to find the island has been blackened out with black pastel color or soot. The final revelation paints the story with another shade of darkness following the series of devastating events. The island is not originally painted black but has been manually colored afterward. It can be that the island was previously blackened from the map by Helena due to her hatred and grudge towards the island and its inhabitants.

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The Ending Of Black Island Explained

Netflix's latest intense thriller "Black Island"  is set in a picturesque oceanside town. But don't let the scenery fool you — it's one twisted ride. It stars Philip Froissant as a young man named Jonas Hansen, who lives with his grandfather Friedrich (Hanns Zischler) after both of his parents are killed. A year after their deaths, we catch up with Jonas as he attends classes, flirts with his friend Nina Cohrs (Mercedes Müller), and works toward his goal of becoming a writer.

Everything changes when a substitute named Helena Jung (Alice Dwyer) is hired as a temporary replacement for the regular teacher after they're hurt in an accident. While at first glance Helena appears to be an approachable, enthusiastic teacher, she soon reveals her toxic nature as she seduces Jonas and becomes increasingly violent. Things escalate as Nina becomes determined to discover the truth behind Helena's intentions, which results in an intense and mind-boggling conclusion.

Let's take a look at the ending of "Black Island" and the fates of those at  the center of the thriller .

Who is Helena Jung?

Before Helena joins the school as a teacher, we learn that she was involved in the death of Jonas' parents. At the beginning of the film, we watch her drive straight toward a couple on the wrong side of the road, causing them to swerve their car into a tree — though we don't know why. Knowing that she was involved in a murder should have prepared us for the future revelation about her identity, but alas, it's such a twist that few probably saw it coming.

At one point in the film, Nina not only infers that Helena had something to do with their teacher's injury, but also she pieces together the mystery of Helena's identity. In an old yearbook, she finds a photo of a teacher named Maria Roth, who looks identical to Helena. However, before Nina could learn more, Helena kills her.

We eventually learn that Helena, was in, fact Maria Roth's daughter by Friedrich, meaning Helena is Jonas' aunt. According to Helena, her mother was deeply in love with Friedrich, who wasn't emotionally invested in their affair. When Friedrich refused to step up after getting Maria pregnant, Maria ended her life, and Helena grew up to seek revenge on Friedrich and everyone he loves — including Jonas.

A violent end

After Nina's death, Friedrich has a seizure and is partially paralyzed and unable to speak due to the injuries he sustained. Helena reveals her cruel plan to him while he's in the hospital, then takes him home and faces him out the window so he can watch as she murders Jonas next. She then drugs Jonas before revealing her motivations to him, and as he gets more debilitated, she brings him to the pond in the backyard to drown him.

Thankfully, Jonas' instincts kick into gear at the perfect moment, and he's able to escape. The two continue fighting as they make their way indoors, and just as Helena seems as if she's going to successfully strangle Jonas, he stabs her in the chest with a piece of broken glass. The suspenseful end to the mega plot twist may be a bit unclear to those who look away for even a second, as the action takes place in a very short amount of time.

Nonetheless, the intense struggle makes for a thrilling conclusion to the twisted story.

The mysterious map

But wait — there's more! After killing Helena, Friedrich gives Jonas a letter from Maria. This is essentially her suicide note, corroborating everything Helena revealed. Jonas then (understandably) heads for the nearest ferry to get the heck out of Dodge as he seems to take in the gravity of his life and the events that just unfolded.

While on the ferry, Jonas spots someone wearing a familiar yellow raincoat that Helena previously wore, and he follows her, aghast. Thankfully, it turns out to be a complete stranger, and she makes small talk with Jonas about living on the island. She points out that the map is strange, and as Jonas gets closer we see that out of all the North Frisian Islands, only his appears to have been marked out with a black writing utensil of some sort.

Did Helena scratch out the island in anger as she made her way to take revenge on the person who caused her mother so much pain? It seems likely, and we wouldn't put it past her.

Home » Endings Explained

Black Island (2021) ending explained – who is Helena?

This article discusses the ending of the Netflix film Black Island (2021), so will contain major spoilers.

Black Island follows Jonas ( Phillip Froissant ), an orphan living on a remote island, whose life takes a bizarre turn when a mysterious new teacher ( Alice Dwyer ) takes over his German class. Before long, the two embark on a sordid if somewhat strange affair whereby it’s not all that clear quite what one party seeks to gain from it.

Netflix film Black Island ending explained

It is in the final 20 minutes of the film that we finally find out who Helena Jung is and what relevance she poses to Jonas. It turns out that she is the daughter of Jonas’ grandfather (and is consequently Jonas’ aunt) as a result of an affair he had with one of the teachers working at his school years before. Following the death of her mother when she was a child, Helena swore revenge against her father for the pain and destruction he caused her. It is only when she visits him in hospital following a seizure at the scene where Nina’s (Mercedes Müller) body is found that all of this is revealed, but that’s not the end of the chaos. Helena reveals her grand plan to kill everyone her father ever loved and that she had already taken care of his son and daughter-in-law (Jonas’ parents who we saw get run off the road way back at the start of the film).

Helena gets her father released from hospital and sent home to Jonas as she prepares to carry out the final stage of her operation with is to kill Jonas himself. She drugs him and attempts to drown him — all in front of their bed bound father/grandfather — but fails. What follows is a final fight to the death inside the house, where Jonas stabs Helena in the heart with a piece of broken glass from a table they smashed through earlier.

Article by Kira Comerford

Kira holds many talents, including photography, videography, events, and film & TV journalism. Joining Ready Steady Cut in July 2021, Kira has written over 90 published articles for the site. If you ever see Kira, you’ll probably find her holding a camera doing her latest film project.

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‘Black Island’ Ending, Explained – Were Helena Jung and Maria Roth, the same person?

Netflix’s German film Black Island ( Schwarze Insel in German ) depicts a mystery thriller set in a tiny island community north of the German Mainland. However, the island and its dark secrets are fictional. The director, Miguel Alexandre shot a picturesque narrative in Amrum, Germany, to give the island an enigmatic character.

At the center of the drama, the film follows a mysterious woman who arrives at Black Island, bringing a sense of eeriness with her in a well-knit community. What follows ahead is a series of accidents and bizarre deaths that reveals a dark secret of the past. Let’s dig the buried mystery without further ado.

‘Black Island’ Plot Summary

Black Island begins with the violent attack on Jonas Hansen’s grandmother, by a wild dog who kills her near the shoreline. 4 months later, her father and mother die in a car accident triggered by a mysterious woman on the road.

Jonas and his arrogant grandfather, Friedrich, are the only people left in the family. Jonas and his late father never admired the opinionated Friedrich. Still, with back-to-back tragedies, Jonas stays back at the island until he finishes school and becomes an adult.

A year later, Jonas and Nina Cohrs get along pretty well, and their friendship soon transforms into feelings, which they both are trying to explore. In the meantime, another tragic news arrives. The Klaud-Mann school student learns about their german teacher, Mr. Meinke’s accident in Mallorca. A substitute teacher, Helena Jung, arrives on the island to take German lessons until Meinke’s gets well.

Jonas gets infatuated by Helena, and even she leaves no stone unturned to allure Jonas. The attraction leads to an intimate relationship between a teacher and a student, but Nina is suspicious of Helena. Who is this new German teacher, and what does she want?

Were Helena Jung and Maria Roth, the same person?

An opening sequence already established Helena’s involvement in the accident of Jonas’ parents. In her new house, Helena had some voodoo objects along with numerous pictures of Jonas. These intricate details were enough to establish a sinister mystery around her persona. Nina found Helena’s travel bag in the storeroom tagged with luggage tickets that suggested Helena was in Mallorca when Mr. Meinke’s accident took place.

Nina’s doubts turned into suspicion when Friedrich and Helena exchanged an odd look at the school function organized to honor Friedrich, a retired principal of Klaud-Mann school. Later, Nina’s friend underlined that Helena looked like one of her father’s teachers who studied in the same school. In the archives, Nina found old-school magazines. In the staff column of the 1985 yearbook, she discovered a woman Maria Roth, who shared an uncanny resemblance with Helena Jung. Before Nina could plunge further into the mysterious pit, Helena killed her and dumped her body near the shoreline.

In the end, Helena visited Friedrich in the hospital and called him father. It was that moment when all the questions around Helena’s identity were answered. She was the only daughter of Maria Roth, which she had from her affair with Friedrich. Maria and Friedrich worked in the same school. He was in love with her. When Friedrich found out about Maria’s pregnancy, he abandoned Maria. She thought that the sight of their daughter would stir something deep in Friedrich’s heart but he was too proud to accept his affair.

Four years later, Maria committed suicide leaving behind four-year-old Helena. Maria thought, maybe, after her death, Friedrich would accept Helena. Still, a dignified Friedrich never cared or dared to take the illegitimate child.

What did Helena Jung want?

The death of her mother, Maria, and the ruthless behavior of her father, Friedrich, transformed Helena into a bloodthirsty entity looking for revenge from the Hansen family. She vowed to kill everyone Friedrich loved and to wipe out his family’s name from the face of the earth.

To fulfill her vengeance, Helena murdered Friedrich’s wife and Jonas’ parents. Her next target was Jonas, but Nina discovered her truth. Even without a desire to hurt Nina, Helena killed Nina to accomplish her mission. She wanted Friedrich to witness the death of his family, one by one. Thereby leaving him with the tragic guilt of being the reason for so many deaths. Only because he was too afraid to accept his affair and his daughter.

‘Black Island’ Ending, Explained

Friedrich suffered a seizure as soon as the unfortunate death of Nina arrived. He bit his tongue so hard during the fall that he couldn’t speak for a while. His motor functions were limited due to the attack, and thus he was almost paralyzed (in a way). Helena visited him in the hospital and swore to destroy his family’s only living member, Jonas, in front of Friedrich’s eyes. Friedrich was pinned to the bed with shock and couldn’t reveal Helena’s villainous schemes to anyone. He felt miserably helpless.

Helena brought Friedrich home from the hospital and commenced the last act of her vengeance. She drugged Jonas and revealed Friedrich’s affair with her mother, Maria, making Helena his illegitimate aunt. (let’s ignore the fact that Jonas was fascinated by her aunt). Helena tried to drown Jonas in the garden pool, but Jonas’ survival instinct somehow kicked in, and he ran into the house. When Helena tried to strangle him, he stabbed her heart with a broken piece of glass, killing her after that.

In the closing montage sequence, Jonas finally left the island. In the background, Maria’s voice-over read the last letter she wrote to Friedrich before committing suicide. Maria promised Friedrich not to leave the island (something he would have demanded). Thus she died on the black island, leaving her remains behind. Even while ending her life, she was hopeful that someday Friedrich would adopt Helena, but it never happened. Maybe men like Friedrich never change, or they don’t want to change.

Jonas made a wise decision to sell off his parent’s house and leave the cursed island behind. On his ship’s journey out of the island, a mysterious girl (dressed in similar yellow coast as Helena) pointed out to Jonas that only his island is painted black on the map of North Frisian island. The instance made the girl curious, but probably Jonas knew that it was the work of Helena who considered the island “black” for all practical reasons.

Black Island (Schwarze Insel) is a 2021 Mystery Thriller film written and directed by Miguel Alexandre . It is streaming on Netflix .

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Black Island or Schwarze Insel is a mystery-thriller movie directed by Miguel Alexandre and starring Hanns Zischler, Hanns Zischler, and Mercedes Müller, alongside other cast members. The total runtime is 104 minutes.

The Netflix description reads:

The dark secrets of a seemingly peaceful island threaten to swallow up an orphaned student when he grows close to a mysterious new teacher.

– Black Island review does not contain spoilers –

– Trigger warning for grooming –

Black Island starts with a woman getting attacked and murdered by a dog. There is a woman standing close by who looks at her hatefully. The same woman hatefully looks at the murdered woman’s son and daughter-in-law and they, too, die. This is Jonas’s family, who is now left orphaned, except for his grandfather, whom he presumably does not get along with.

Anyway, after this, Jonas moves in with his grandfather in order to not move away from the island and a year later, everything seems ok. Until, of course, the new teacher comes in. She’s easy-breezy and different from the others – she’s the cool teacher, you know? But is there something more going on here?

Black Island starts off by creating a chilling atmosphere. We don’t know why Jonas’s grandmother was killed by the dog or why she murdered Jonas’s parents. Either way, Helena seems mysterious. We are told early on that Helen has something more going on than meets the eye. She does things that normal people don’t and generally comes off as a creep.

On the other hand, Jonas and his grandfather’s relationship, too, seems a bit strained. There was clearly some problems between his father and grandfather and that seems to stem from his rigid outlook towards writing, something Jonas is passionate about.

Anyway, Black Island is confusing for the better part of the movie. Ok, it was scary because there is some grooming involved here. Teachers starting sexual relationships with their students is disgusting and not cool at all. However, there’s always an underlying sense of dread of the supernatural that we are not made privy to for some time.

Thus, you wait for a long time in order to figure how things work together. Was Jonas’s family involved in causing harm to Hannah in some way? As we peel back the layers slowly, you get a better sense of what’s going on. And as the layers peel, it becomes increasingly apparent that this is a mediocre movie. There’s a murder in the library which just gets over way too easily and conveniently.

Then, as Black Island reaches its last 30 minutes, it becomes the generic thriller that doesn’t thrill and neither does it scare. I’m sure you’d be able to figure out what’s going on, but you’d want it to be something else – just for the sake of your sanity if nothing else. Also, when the truth comes out, the grooming just takes on a whole different level of disgust.

Also, the movie starts by giving us the impression that there might be something supernatural going on – with the random dog attacking Jonas’s grandmother and whatnot. However, there is nothing supernatural here, and I am confused why the creators thought that this shift in tone was necessary. It’s hella confusing to watch and leaves you wondering what to think.

Also Read: Netflix’s Nevertheless Episode 9 Recap: I Know It’s Over. Nevertheless,

Black Island looks absolutely wonderful though. The production quality is high, as expected from Netflix, and that shows in the way the movie looks. It’s beautiful and the light and shadows are perfectly balanced. The acting is fine and Alice Dwyer is mysterious enough to keep the ruse going. Philip Froissant as the confused Jonas, too, is good and believable.

Summing up: Black Island / Schwarze Insel

Black Island starts off with sort of a promise and is confusing enough to keep you mostly guessing. However, before long, things start to take the tried and tested route and eventually becomes a let-down. It’s not the worst movie out there, but don’t watch this with really high expectations.

Black Island is streaming on Netflix .

Also Read: Aftermath (2021) Review: Decent Thriller Keeps It Going

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Black island, schwarze insel.

Directed by Miguel Alexandre

The dark secrets of a seemingly peaceful island threaten to swallow up an orphaned student when he grows close to a mysterious new teacher.

Philip Froissant Hanns Zischler Alice Dwyer Mercedes Müller Lieselotte Voß Ilknur Boyraz Charlotte Crome Katja Geist Sammy Scheuritzel Jodie Leslie Ahlborn Isabella Herbst Lisa Carline Hofer Katharina Schütz Altamasch Noor Caroline Kiesewetter Marco Wittorf Tina Rother Florian Hacke Verena Jost

Director Director

Miguel Alexandre

Producers Producers

Ann-Kathrin Eicher Mischa Hofmann Britta Meyermann

Writers Writers

Miguel Alexandre Lisa Carline Hofer

Casting Casting

Dorothee Weyers

Editor Editor

Marcel Peragine

Cinematography Cinematography

Production design production design.

Thomas Franz

Sound Sound

Kai Nührmann Florian Neunhoeffer

Odeon Fiction

Releases by Date

17 aug 2021, 18 aug 2021, releases by country.

• Digital 16 Netflix
• Digital 12 Netflix
• Digital 13+ Netflix

South Korea

• Digital 18 Netflix
• Digital Netflix

105 mins   More at IMDb TMDb Report this page

Popular reviews

Review by Ceren 🌿 ½ 3

One of the worst things I have ever watched in my life. Sometimes I truly do wonder what Netflix decides to spend their money on.

Review by Danni ★½

This review may contain spoilers. I can handle the truth.

Lol this woman just dragging a body bag in broad daylight

Review by tmcgra21 ★½

Many things to say:

1. I didn't even realize this took place on an island until the very end - I thought it was in a seaside town like Broadchurch because there weren't any establishing shots of an island. 2. Calling this movie "Black Island" is overdramatic when only two of the people on the island have done evil (and one of them isn't even from the island in question) 3. I find it unbelievable that a kid of my generation wouldn't call rape on everything that happened (especially in a country like Germany) 4. The sex scenes are so bad they're funny at points. 5. The musical score was incredibly bad - I kept thinking I was playing an…

Review by Mister Cap ★

Mit „Schwarze Insel“ werden gleich zwei Klischees bedient und bestätigt! Jenes über Netflix-Filme und jenes über Filme aus Deutschland. Man muss sich aber immer vor Augen führen, dass es in diesen beiden „Segmenten“ auch genügend Meisterwerke gibt, obwohl es bei dieser Grütze hier schwer fällt, das Wort Meisterwerk auch nur zu denken. 

Ich fand alleine schon den Umstand lächerlich, dass hier Schüler von Leuten gespielt werden, die an die Dreißig sind und auch keinen Tag jünger aussehen. 

Der Film beginnt mit einer Art Versprechen und ist verwirrend genug, um einen meistens im Ungewissen zu lassen. Es dauert jedoch nicht lange, bis die Dinge den bewährten Weg nehmen und schließlich zur Enttäuschung werden. Es ist nicht der schlechteste Film da draußen, aber wenn ihr ihn euch anseht wollt, schraubt die Erwartungen zurück. Am besten in Richtung Nulllinie.

Review by Rula ½

god , this is one of the worst movies

Review by EstefaníaZun ★ 3

Le tenía esperanzas, la sinopsis pinta algo bueno.  Lo único rescatable es que estéticamente se ve que le pusieron empeño, y las actuaciones que meh, no están tan mal.  De ahí en fuera realmente se me hizo terrible.  Para mi, tiene una pésima historia, pésimos efectos visuales y un desenlace que no te llevo a nada interesante.

Review by vanessa ★½ 1

adding a sex scene every 2 minutes does not make a film more interesting

Review by Adele 🪓 ★½ 2

I do wholeheartedly believe no one who works at Netflix actually watched this movie before allowing it to stream.

Anyway, Happy New Year! We’re at rock bottom but we can only go up from here!

Review by Zay ★★★

I thought this was going to be sort of a slowburn style, dread inducing horror film from the trailer. I was wrong. This was a mildly erotic mystery thriller by way of Germany with an "Oh shit" twist. The setup has been done countless times before. A mysterious new character shows up in a small town and charms the shit out of everyone then things get a lil crazy. At times the situations the characters found themselves in were a bit too convenient. Nothing special but the twist was kinda jarring and out of left field. Lazy Sunday evening watch.

Review by Neidhammel 2

Niki & Lorenzo Weekly-Filmclub #3 | Black Island | Ausgewählt von Lorenzo | Review von Lorenzo

Mit Black Island hat das netflixsche Idioten-Geschwader den Vogel endgültig abgeschossen. Miguel Alexandre übernimmt sich maßlos, obwohl es für eine derart einfach gestrickte Handlung keinen überdurchschnittlich kompetenten Regisseur bedürfe.

Die sowieso schon schwer erträgliche Erzählweise wird mit falsch platziertem Dauergedudel übertönt - wenngleich der Song aus dem Trailer ordentlich Potenzial hatte. Wenn man sich an die Unfähigkeiten von technischer Seite gewöhnt hat, wird einem Schauspiel der schlimmsten Sorte zuteil. Alice Dwyer und Philipp Froissant - man verbiete sich den geschmacklosen Croissant-Namenswitz - wetteifern um den goldenen Arschtritt, den sie sich nach solch unfähiger Darbietung einfacher Rollen verdient haben.

Black Island stümpert vom einen Twist zum…

Review by Vivian Ribeiro ½

pelo amor de deus a mulher retirando um corpo de uma ESCOLA em plena luz do dia pela porta da frente, perdi tudo nessa cena

Review by Mariana Simas ★½

Dark e Game of Thrones fizeram melhor.

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This gripping mystery thriller on Netflix has everyone glued to their screens

If you buy through a BGR link, we may earn an affiliate commission, helping support our expert product labs.

We’ve written a fair bit now about how much success Netflix has had lately with content in the horror genre. For one of the latest examples, check out our post from earlier on Friday, about a new demonic horror movie on the streamer that managed to earn a perfect Rotten Tomatoes score. Meanwhile, Netflix has also enjoyed similar success with some new titles in an adjacent genre. Recently added thrillers that have rocketed up the Netflix Top 10 charts included Security , in which Marco D’Amore plays a home security expert in the Italian resort town of Forte dei Marmi. Another is the newly added Black Island — about the secrets on a seemingly peaceful island that threaten to overwhelm an orphaned student who gets too close to a new teacher.

Black Island – now streaming on Netflix

“After the tragic death of his parents,” Netflix’s press synopsis reads. “High school graduate Jonas lives on a North Sea island with his grandfather. It is a time of departure, the time of the first great love. The arrival of the new, young German teacher Helena turns Jonas’ life completely upside down. She recognizes and encourages his writing talent and uses this emerging trust to build an intimate relationship with him.”

According to the latest streaming data from Reelgood , Black Island was actually the #2 movie on Netflix for the week ending August 24. Yet another thriller, which speaks to our point above, made it to the #1 spot. That would be Sweet Girl , the Jason Momoa-led action-packed title about a devastated father who wants a pharmaceutical company to be punished for his wife’s death.

Rounding out the Top 3 on Reelgood’s list of the most-watched Netflix movies for the week is another thriller. It’s Beckett , starring John David Washington and Alicia Vikander, in which Washington plays an American on the run from the authorities in Greece.

Not everyone felt that way, though. Below, you’ll find some reactions from viewers who shared their thoughts on Twitter:

Netflix august Black island- 8/10 Aftermath – 6/10 Sweet girl – 6/10 The Swarm – (geli) 4/10 pic.twitter.com/IAlux9W6G2 — maria (@MariaFarlina) August 27, 2021

‘black island’ on netflix was crazy 10/10 — B (@___bmh) August 21, 2021

Movie Review 🎬: 'Black Island' 🏝️ ('Schwarze Insel') is the #Netflix 🍿 thriller you did not know you needed to watch and @BrittLWriter explains why BELOW 👇 https://t.co/5WT8A3e964 — Eclectic Pop 📺🍿🎧 (@EclecticPop) August 23, 2021

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Andy Meek is a reporter based in Memphis who has covered media, entertainment, and culture for over 20 years. His work has appeared in outlets including The Guardian, Forbes, and The Financial Times, and he’s written for BGR since 2015. Andy's coverage includes technology and entertainment, and he has a particular interest in all things streaming.

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Black Island

• The dark secrets of a seemingly peaceful island threaten to swallow up an orphaned student when he grows close to a mysterious new teacher.
• After the tragic death of his parents, high school graduate Jonas lives with his grandfather on a North Sea island. It is a time of new beginnings, the time of the first love. The arrival of the new German language teacher Helena turns Jonas' life completely upside down. She recognizes and encourages his writing talent and uses this trust to build an intimate relationship with him. But Jonas doesn't suspect that Helena is pursuing a deadly plan. — Canon y mus

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Black Island

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Black Island Reviews

• 1 hr 45 mins
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An orphan teen develops an illicit bond with his enigmatic teacher, threatening to unravel their isolated island community.

Red Island Review: A Simultaneously Captivating & Confounding Historical Drama

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French filmmaker Robin Campillo takes a more personal approach with his latest film, Red Island . Here, he brings us to his childhood on a French military base in Madagascar in the early-1970s, just over a decade after the Malagasy Republic officially gained independence from France. While this context is, of course, fundamental to understanding what happens in Campillo's new historical drama , the director offers us an entry-point by way of its protagonist, 10-year-old Thomas (Charlie Vauselle). It's through Thomas' young eyes — which has both advantages and disadvantages — that we bear witness to a time of great change and grief, and even greater anger.

Red Island follows Thomas' family as they enjoy a seemingly blissful life on a military compound in Madagascar. His father, Robert (Quim Gutiérrez), is a low-ranking officer, but has clear ambitions to rise up the ranks at the base. Meanwhile, Thomas' mother, Colette (Nadia Tereszkiewicz), spends her days at home, taking care of the house and her three sons. Thomas himself is a pensive and observant child, who prefers reading and keeping a keen eye on the goings-on between his parents and other adults on the compound, which includes a passionate, if somewhat listless, young man named Bernard (Hugues Delamarlière).

Thomas lives in a military base on colony of Madagascar, with his parents and friends. He gradually becomes aware of territorial and sexual politics while finding an outlet for his imagination in the exploits of crime-buster Fantômette.

• A surprisingly breezy and beautiful coming-of-age movie (until an exciting and jarring ending) from a talented director.
• Young Charlie Vauselle does an outstanding job in a movie that realistically portrays the childhood of an introvert.
• Limiting the film to the young boy's perspective prevents it from exploring more complicated things.

Red Island feels like a summer vacation , as the characters bask in the warmth and beauty of the country, but this paradise houses a darker truth .

Masterfully Captures the Softness of a Child's Gaze

Campillo's previous film, BPM (Beats Per Minute) , which was about the AIDS crisis in 1990s France, showcased the director's ability to tap into the fury and frustration of a people abandoned by its government. His directorial efforts before that — 2013's Eastern Boys and 2004's They Came Back — also dealt with darker subjects, each tinged with violence and death in their own ways. This is what makes Red Island a particularly notable film, as, tonally, it feels almost in direct opposition to everything else he has directed.

Indeed, framed predominantly within young Thomas' perspective, Red Island prioritizes the softness and propensity for play and daydreams of any young, introverted child. This is immediately apparent in the film's opening scene, which sees super-girl Fantômette (Calissa Oskal-Ool) facing off against a group of henchmen (who are costumed in muppet-like masks). It's not until a few moments later that we learn Fantômette is the lead character of a book Thomas is reading, but the fact that Campillo coerces us to sit in this moment — in fact, scene-inserts of Fantômette are a recurring element throughout the film — indicates how rooted we are in Thomas' point of view.

Most Underrated Coming of Age Movies

From The Way Way Back to Waves, these are some of the most heartfelt and underrated coming of age movies everyone needs to see.

In this regard, Vauselle must be commended for his performance as the young protagonist, striking the perfect balance between naive and precocious . There's the expected youthful spark in his eyes, but he proves himself capable of the more serious scenes, imbuing Thomas' knowing looks and leers with a heaviness that suggests wisdom beyond his years. By extension, praise also goes to cinematographer Jeanne Lapoirie, who accentuates Red Island 's child-like scope without it feeling juvenile or purposeless . Yes, we see the story through Thomas' eyes, but it's not solely superheroes and playing pretend; real colonialist history and tragedy hovers on the outskirts.

Red Island Is Limited by Its Own Narrative Devices

Interestingly, Red Island 's biggest strength is also responsible for one of its biggest weaknesses. Thomas' perspective, and his infectious curiosity about the world around him, does well at teasing the more mature themes at play, but it also effectively limits the film's ability to fully explore them. The dynamic between Colette and Robert, like many realistic marriages , simmers with as much tension and perhaps even resentment as it does love and passion. And while Tereszkiewicz and Gutiérrez are magnetic in their roles, because of the perspective, we only get an incomplete portrait of who they really are.

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Similarly, and arguably more egregiously, the historical context the film is founded upon — that of France's colonization of Madagascar — isn't given the screentime it deserves . Understandably, Campillo's film operates on his own childhood memory, which itself can never be perfect, complete, or fully-informed; however, the closing sequence takes a decidedly sharp turn away from Thomas, the military base, and everything we saw thus far. It's a harsh (and exciting) awakening here, with anger and outcry taking the reins from childhood wonder and safety.

Much of Red Island ping-pongs between the importance of seeing and being seen (whether literally, socially, culturally, or otherwise) and the failure of sight (what we see through Thomas' eyes isn't the full story, after all ). Though it is an exquisite film on a technical and creative level, by the closing sequence you can't help but wonder if this is the story that should have been told all along.

Red Island is a Film Movement release and had a limited theatrical run in select theaters. You can find information here .

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