The Melancholic City
This week we're watching films about isolation in an urban environment. From rush hour commutes to crowded nightclubs, these films highlight how, even in a bustling city, amidst a sea of people, we can still be searching for meaning and connection.
The August Virgin
(La virgen de agosto)
An Éric Rohmer-esque love letter to Madrid and affairs of the heart.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Spain • 2019
- Director Jonás Trueba
- Cast Itsaso Arana, Vito Sanz, Isabelle Stoffel, Joe Manjón, Mikele Urroz, Luis Alberto Heras
- Genre Comedy, Drama
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Strand Releasing Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, Freevee, Plex, Plex Channel
Long Day's Journey Into Night
(地球最后的夜晚)
A man returns to his hometown, where he is haunted by memories of his long-lost love.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- China • 2018
- Director Bi Gan
- Cast Huang Jue, Tang Wei, Sylvia Chang, Lee Hong Chi, Chen Yongzhong
- Genre Drama, Mystery
- Available on OVID, Kino Film Collection, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
With All My Hypothalamus
(Gusto Kita With All My Hypothalamus)
The lives of four men intertwine as they all fall in love with the same woman.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Philippines • 2018
- Director Dwein Baltazar
- Cast Iana Bernardez, Nicco Manalo, Dylan Ray Talon, Soliman Cruz, Anthony Falcon, Ash Nicanor
- Genre Romance
- Available on No streaming locations found.
The Tokyo Night Sky Is Always the Densest Shade of Blue
(夜空はいつでも最高密度の青色だ)
The paths of two lonely young adults keep crossing under the Tokyo sky.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Japan • 2017
- Director Yuya Ishii
- Cast Shizuka Ishibashi, Sosuke Ikematsu, Ryuhei Matsuda, Mikako Ichikawa, Tetsushi Tanaka, Ryo Sato
- Genre Drama
- Available on No streaming locations found.
Oslo, August 31st
(Oslo, 31. august)
As he finishes his drug rehabilitation program, Anders wrestles with the past, and the possibility of a new life.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Norway • 2011
- Director Joachim Trier
- Cast Anders Danielsen Lie, Hans Olav Brenner, Ingrid Olava, Tone Beate Mostraum, Malin Crépin, Øystein Røger
- Genre Drama
- Available on Strand Releasing Amazon Channel, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
My Blueberry Nights
Waitressing across the country after a nasty breakup, Elizabeth crosses paths with a series of lost souls.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- China, France, United States • 2007
- Director Wong Kar-wai
- Cast Norah Jones, Jude Law, David Strathairn, Rachel Weisz, Natalie Portman, Cat Power
- Genre Drama, Romance
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Peacock Premium, Peacock Premium Plus, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Google Play Movies, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, Pluto TV, Freevee, Kanopy, Hoopla, Plex, Plex Channel
Three… Extremes
(쓰리, 몬스터)
An anthology of nightmare films from three different East Asian horror masters.
- ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong, Japan, Korea • 2004
- Director Park Chan-wook, Takashi Miike, Fruit Chan
- Cast Kyoko Hasegawa, Atsuro Watabe, Mai Suzuki, Yuu Suzuki, Mitsuru Akaboshi, Bai Ling
- Genre Horror
- Available on Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Tubi TV, VUDU Free, Freevee, Plex, Plex Channel
Millennium Mambo
(千禧曼波)
Vicky describes her youth and story of her changing life at the beginning of the new millennium.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Taiwan, France • 2001
- Director Hou Hsiao-hsien
- Cast Shu Qi, Jack Kao, Duan Chun-hao, Doze Niu Cheng-Tse, Jun Takeuchi, Yi-Hsuan Chen
- Genre Drama
- Available on Metrograph, Kino Film Collection, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Fallen Angels
(墮落天使)
In this bifurcated crime narrative, a disillusioned hitman attempts to escape from his violent lifestyle against the wishes of his partner.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong • 1995
- Director Wong Kar-wai
- Cast Leon Lai, Michelle Reis, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Charlie Yeung, Karen Mok, Chan Man-Lei
- Genre Drama, Action, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Chungking Express
(重慶森林)
Two tales of love and loss told in sequence.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Hong Kong • 1994
- Director Wong Kar-wai
- Cast Brigitte Lin, Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Faye Wong, Takeshi Kaneshiro, Valerie Chow, Piggy Chan
- Genre Comedy, Drama, Romance
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube
Vive L'Amour
(愛情萬歲)
Three lonely people unknowingly share an apartment in Taipei.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Taiwan • 1994
- Director Tsai Ming-liang
- Cast Lee Kang-Sheng, Yang Kuei-Mei, Chen Chao-jung, Lu Yi-Ching
- Genre Drama
- Available on Film Movement Plus, Apple TV, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, YouTube, Kanopy
La Notte
(La notte)
A married couple attend a bourgeois party and wade through the stifling strain that long-term marriage has imposed upon them.
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- Italy, France • 1961
- Director Michelangelo Antonioni
- Cast Marcello Mastroianni, Jeanne Moreau, Monica Vitti, Bernhard Wicki, Rosy Mazzacurati, Maria Pia Luzi
- Genre Drama
- Available on Criterion Channel, TCM, Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Amazon Video, Kanopy
Elevator to the Gallows
(Ascenseur pour l'échafaud)
Frantic for life and love - frantic for excitement
- ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭ ✭
- France • 1958
- Director Louis Malle
- Cast Jeanne Moreau, Maurice Ronet, Georges Poujouly, Yori Bertin, Lino Ventura, Iván Petrovich
- Genre Crime, Drama, Thriller
- Available on Criterion Channel, Max Amazon Channel, Max, Apple TV, Fandango At Home, Amazon Video, Plex, Plex Channel