Best Movies to Watch in Miami This April 2025
Miami’s independent cinema scene is entering a turning point. After a tense standoff between city leadership and O Cinema over the screening of No Other Land, the arts community is regrouping — and reminding everyone why cinema matters. This April, the spotlight is on independent theaters and the Miami Film Festival, with dozens of screenings you won’t find anywhere else. Here are the best movies to watch in Miami this April and events that make this month a vital time for film lovers in Miami.
The Best Movies You Can Only See in Miami This April
Miami Film Festival (April 3–13)
Miami’s largest film event returns with a packed lineup of global and local titles. This year’s schedule includes:
- Happyend, Apocalypse in the Tropics, and The Wedding Banquet
- On Swift Horses, starring Jacob Elordi and Daisy Edgar Jones (closing night film)
- Retrospective screenings of Before Sunrise, Picnic at Hanging Rock, and Pride and Prejudice (2005) at Vizcaya
- La La Land with live orchestral accompaniment at the Adrienne Arsht Center
- Florida-focused films like River of Grass, The Perfect Neighbor, and Know Me: The Untold Miami Bath Salts Phenomenon
Various locations across Miami
Tickets start at $15.50
miamifilmfestival.com
Queer and Nosferatu at Cosford Cinema
The University of Miami’s Cosford Cinema screens two distinct films this month, both free to attend:
- Queer (April 2 and 5): Luca Guadagnino’s intimate gay romance
- Nosferatu (April 9 and 12): Robert Eggers’ gothic horror vampire tale
These films are available online but watching them in a theater brings added depth.
5030 Brunson Dr., Coral Gables
Admission is free
cosfordcinema.com
Roger Beebe’s 16mm Projector Performances at Deering Estate
Experimental filmmaker and UM professor Roger Beebe marks 25 years of touring with a night of multi-projector performances. Presented with Barron Sherer, this show combines film, sound, and storytelling in an analog format.
April 3 at 8 p.m.
16701 SW 72nd Ave., Miami
Admission is free with RSVP
deeringestate.org
Calling Miami Home — AV Club at Miami Film Festival
As part of the festival, AV Club hosts a rare screening of 1980s short films by Mel Kiser:
A Few Things I Know About Miami, Calling Miami Home, and Last Night at the S and S Diner. These works preserve snapshots of a long-gone city.
April 13 at 12 p.m.
2705 SW Third St., Miami
Admission is free with RSVP
miamifilmfestival.com
Centennial Week at Coral Gables Art Cinema (April 14–20)
To mark 100 years since Coral Gables was founded, the cinema is showing classics linked to film or actor centennials:
- Battleship Potemkin (1925)
- Nashville (1975)
- Some Like It Hot (1959)
- The Hustler (1961)
- Gaslight (1944)
Two standouts:
Battleship Potemkin shaped modern editing and cinema language.
Some Like It Hot features career-defining performances from Jack Lemmon, Tony Curtis, and Marilyn Monroe.
260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables
Tickets $10 to $11.75
gablescinema.com
Gene Hackman Retrospective at Coral Gables Art Cinema
In tribute to the late Gene Hackman, Coral Gables Art Cinema is showing two 1970s classics:
- The Conversation – April 17 at 9 p.m.
- The French Connection – April 24 at 9:15 p.m.
Hackman’s performances in these films showcase his range — from paranoid surveillance expert to gritty detective. Both are critically acclaimed.
260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables
Tickets $10 to $11.75
Heat at Coral Gables Art Cinema
Michael Mann’s Heat (1995) returns to the big screen. This Los Angeles crime epic stars Al Pacino and Robert De Niro. The screening is hosted by Jose Bedia Jr., a former production assistant on Miami Vice.
April 18 at 9:30 p.m.
260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables
Tickets $10 to $11.75
Miami’s theaters are offering something rare this month: films that demand a big screen and community setting. From indie premieres to centennial retrospectives, this is a great moment to step away from streaming and return to the cinema.
Support local theaters. Take a seat. The reel is rolling.
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