Subgenre Sampler

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Guinevere (2001): Dir. Audrey Wells
Feat. Sarah Polley, Stephen Rea; Sarah Polley (GO) headlines in this Sundance–winning indie, as a directionless Harvard graduate who falls under the spell of…
My Mother Frank (2000): Dir. Mark Lamprell
Feat. Sinead Cusack, Sam Neill, Sacha Horler…; Sober comedy with an 'it's never too late' theme, is nicely done despite some rather convenient plotting. Mother and widow Sinead Cusack decides…
Shower (Xizhao) (2000): Dir. Zhang Yang
Feat. Pu Cunxin, Zhu Xu; A popular success with international audiences, this Chinese comedy is centred around a modern–day bathhouse in Beijing without a…
Beautiful People (1999): Dir. Jasmin Dizdar
Feat. Rosalind Ayres, Julian Firth, Bobby Williams…; Set in London 1993 when the Balkan Wars were in full flight, this lively, panoramic drama reaches its ambitions in witnessing turbulence of the…
Elephant Juice (1999): Dir. Sam Miller
Feat. Emmanuelle Beart, Sean Gallagher, Daniel Lapaine; The makers of the cult late–night TV–series ‘This Life’, extract a similar blend of drama, ennui and pathos from the lives of…
I'm Losing You (1999): Dir. Bruce Wagner
Feat. Frank Langella, Andrew McCarthy, Elizabeth Perkins…; Hollywood 'commentator' Bruce Wagner (WILD PALMS) directs his own novel inter–connecting the rather plaintive lives of well–heeled Los…
L.A. Without a Map (1999): Dir. Mika Kaurismaki
Feat. David Tennant, Vincent Gallo, Julie Delpy…; A young Scottish undertaker (Tennant) follows an aspiring American actress back to La–la land, where he competes with the shallow excesses and…
Mifune (1999): Dir. Soren Kragh-Jacobson
Feat. Iben Hjejle, Anders W Berthelsen, Jesper Asholt…; The third Dogma 95 film is in many ways as traditional a European romantic comedy as you could come across, a breezy and smart take on a yuppie…
Playing by Heart (1999): Dir. Willard Carroll
Feat. Sean Connery, Gena Rowlands, Gillian Anderson…; Ambitious multi–character film along the lines of SHORT CUTS, likewise set in the varying social strata of Los Angeles, but infused with…
Siam Sunset (1999): Dir. John Polson
Feat. Linus Roache, Danielle Cormack; Bright brain candy that puts a surreal, antipodean tilt on road–movie/black comedy familiarities, with dazed Brit Linus Roache suffering an…
This Year's Love (1999): Dir. David Kane
Feat. Kathy Burke, Jennifer Ehle, Ian Hart…; Set amongst the romantic roundelays of 6 thirty–somethings who reside in London's bohemian Camden Town, this comedy has a quirky streak, some…
Venus Beauty Institute (Venus Beauty) (1999): Dir. Tonie Marshall
Feat. Nathalie Baye, Audrey Tautou; A modest beauty salon is the setting for this wry ensemble piece about the vagaries of womanhood, with an engagingly eccentric collection of clients…
Butcher Boy, The (1998): Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Eamonn Owens, Stephen Rea, Fiona Shaw; Despairing yet distinctive black comedy depicts the insanity implicit in a boy's view of his small town in Ireland, circa 1962. Adopts a lurid…
Girls' Night (1998): Dir. Nick Hurran
Feat. Julie Walters, Brenda Blethyn; A windfall at the local bingo hall puts air in the wings of forty–something factory gals Julie Walters and Brenda Blethyn, but a wheel of…
Living Out Loud (1998): Dir. Richard LaGravenese
Feat. Holly Hunter, Queen Latifah, Danny De Vito…; Facing up to life without her philandering husband, a nurse (Holly Hunter) forges unlikely friendships with a jazz club chanteuse (Queen Latifah) and…
Polish Wedding (1998): Dir. Theresa Connelly
Feat. Gabriel Byrne, Lena Olin, Rade Serbedzija…; Laid on incredibly thick, Polish accents and all, this is 'ethnic shtick' writ large with Gabriel Byrne, Lena Olin and Rade Serbedzija heading a…
Relax...It's Just Sex (1998): Dir. P.J. Castellaneta
Feat. Mitchell Anderson, T.C. Carson, Lori Petty…; Centring around an eclectic group of friends – gay, straight and lesbian – in LA, a struggling gay playwright is desperately looking for…
Young Person's Guide to Becoming a Rock Star, The (1998): Dir. Sheree Folkson, Kieron Walsh
Feat. Ciaran McMenamin, Simone Lahbib, Nicole Stapleton…; Young persons are the target of the whimsical Scottish TV series following the fortunes of an eclectic rock group who go from garage nobodies to gain…
Clockwatchers (1997): Dir. Jill Sprecher
Feat. Toni Collette, Parker Posey, Lisa Kudrow…; Four office temps band together in an oppressive (and outdated?) corporate environment – too bad they're caricatures: Toni Collette is…
On Connait la Chanson (Same Old Song) (1997): Dir. Alain Resnais
Feat. Pierre Arditi, Sabine Azema, Jean-Pierre Bacri…; A winner of seven Cesar awards, this light–hearted homage to Dennis Potter applies his musical–cinematic ideas to the…
Second Civil War, The (1997): Dir. Joe Dante
Feat. Denis Leary, James Earl Jones, James Coburn; Fairly realistic speculation of an American Civil War, occurring when present–day Idaho cedes from the Union, painted over with the lighter…
Someone Else's America (1997): Dir. Goran Paskaljevic
Feat. Tom Conti, Miki Manojlovic; A quirky character–study drawn from the lives of illegal European immigrants living hand–to–mouth on the bottom–rung of New…
Weapons of Mass Distraction (1997): Dir. Stephen Surjik
Feat. Gabriel Byrne, Ben Kingsley, Mimi Rogers…; Media moguls Gabriel Byrne and Ben Kingsley vie for ownership of a pro football team, in an escalating war of one–upmanship, eventually raking…
Citizen Ruth (1996): Dir. Alexander Payne
Feat. Laura Dern, Swoosie Kurtz; When chronic solvent–abuser Laura Dern becomes pregnant, then gets arrested again, she strays into the idealogical thicket of the abortion…
Dogs (Dogs: The Rise and Fall of an All-Girl Bookie Joint) (1996): Dir. Eve Annenburg
Feat. Pam Columbus, Pam Gray, Melody Beal…; Four Brooklyn women opt for a life of running an illegal bookie joint, over the dead–end, unemployed lifestyle of the local area. In her debut,…
Lust and Revenge (1996): Dir. Paul Cox
Feat. Nicholas Hope, Claudia Karvan; An unlikely creative partnership between the solemn, prolific Dutch–Aussie director Paul Cox (MAN OF FLOWERS, A WOMAN'S TALE) and John Clarke…
Summer in La Goulette (1996): Dir. Ferid Boughedir
Feat. Sonia Mankai, Ava Cohen-Jonathan, Sarah Pariente…; Three families of disparate cultures enjoy harmony in Tunisian paradise, until three of their beautiful daughters flirt with losing their virginity,…
Disappearance of Kevin Johnson, The (1995): Dir. Francis Megahy
Feat. Pierce Brosnan, James Coburn, Dudley Moore…; Fact–based movie movie about the perils of the Hollywood machine, in which a would–be film producer apparently runs afoul of the…
Edie and Pen (1995): Dir. Matthew Irmas
Feat. Stockard Channing, Jennifer Tilly, Scott Glenn…; Unhappily–marrieds Stockard Channing and Jennifer Tilly cut out to Reno to dispense with husbands, bad luck and sobriety. Bittersweet comedy…
Kicking and Screaming (1995): Dir. Noah Baumbach
Feat. Josh Hamilton, Eric Stoltz, Elliott Gould…; Several college grads flounder in love and with prospects of the future. Dialogue–intensive comedy borrows its philosophical vantage and acting…
Madagascar Skin (1995): Dir. Chris Newby
Feat. Bernard Hill, John Hannah; Intimate drama that portrays the unlikely relationship between two outsiders in a remote seaside cottage in South Wales. Hannah plays a disfigured…
Perez Family, The (1995): Dir. Mira Nair
Feat. Alfred Molina, Anjelica Huston, Marisa Tomei…; A gently humorous tale about Cuban refugees who pose as a family in order to gain entry into the U.S. The director of SALAAM BOMBAY well harnesses…
Being Human (1994): Dir. Bill Forsyth
Feat. Robin Williams, Robert Carlyle, John Turturro…; An episodic comic–drama in which Robin Williams plays five men named Hector, who each search for their place in their own historical period…
Country Life (1994): Dir. Michael Blakemore
Feat. Sam Neill, Greta Scacchi, Kerry Fox; Yet another version of Uncle Vanya, this time set 'out back' in WWI–era New South Wales, and providing some interesting comparisons between…
Sex Is a Four Letter Word (1994): Dir. Murray Fahey
Feat. Joy Smithers, Mark Lee, Miranda Otto; A love columnist holds a dinner party for six young Ozzies, ostensibly to source material for her spicy novel. Low budget comedy–drama.
Spanking the Monkey (1994): Dir. David O. Russell
Feat. Jeremy Davies, Elizabeth Newett, Benjamin Hendrickson…; The awkwardness of youth is brilliantly captured in this provocative tragi–comedy, another maverick success story from the US indie scene. A…
Spider and Rose (1994): Dir. Bill Bennett
Feat. Ruth Cracknell, Max Cullen; A light Ozzie road movie about a special friendship between her elderly widow and a rebellious young ambulance driver entrusted to escort her home.…
Vanya On 42nd Street (1994): Dir. Louis Malle
Feat. Wallace Shawn, Julianne Moore, Andre Gregory; The late director's final film recouples him with Wallace Shawn and Andre Gregory from MY DINNER WITH ANDRE for another compulsive round of…
Business Affair, A (1993): Dir. Charlotte Brandstom
Feat. Carole Bouquet, Christopher Walken, Jonathan Pryce…; Would–be writer Carole Bouquet is caught between her husband (another struggling scribe) and publisher Christopher Walken. European…
Dallas Doll (1993): Dir. Ann Turner
Feat. Sarah Bernhardt; Sandra Bernhardt plays a free–spirited American who turns the lives of a middle–class Sydney family on its ear with her unbridled…
Younger and Younger (1993): Dir. Percy Aldon
Feat. Donald Sutherland, Julie Delpy, Lolita Davidovich; The director of BAGDAD CAFÉ fashions another quirky, character–driven comedy of self–discovery. Donald Sutherland must reconsider his…
Broadway Bound (1992): Dir. Paul Bogart
Feat. Anne Bancroft, Hume Cronyn; Third film in the trilogy based on the Neil Simon's memoirs remains faithful to its stage origins. His alter–ego aspires to write successful…
Discrete, La (1992): Dir. Christian Vincent
Feat. Fabrice Luchini, Judith Henry, Maurice Garrel…; Things don't go to plan for a philandering writer who refuses to commit emotionally. A literary yet accessible essay on sexual game–playing,…
Used People (1992): Dir. Beeban Kidron
Feat. Shirley Maclaine, Marcello Mastroianni, Kathy Bates…; Feathers fly in the hen–house of recently widowed Shirley Maclaine when courted by debonair Marcello Mastroianni.
Breaking In (1991): Dir. Bill Forsyth
Feat. Burt Reynolds, Casey Siemaszko, Sheila Kelley; A Stateside charmer from the director of LOCAL HERO about a veteran burglar who takes on a young petty criminal as an apprentice of his trade.
Object of Beauty (1991): Dir. Michael Lindsay-Hogg
Feat. Andie MacDowell, John Malkovich, Joss Ackland…; An amusing black comedy set around a pair of passionate high–flying art lovers, who contrive the theft of a prized sculpture while in London,…
Woman, Her Men and Her Futon, A (1991): Dir. Mussef Sibay
Feat. Jennifer Rubin, Grant Show; A woman juggles her career in the film industry with her love life as she tries to find the perfect lover and partner. The star presence of Jennifer…
Antonia and Jane (1990): Dir. Beeban Kidron
Feat. Saskia Reeves, Imelda Staunton; Whimsical portrait of friendship will tickle the fancy of women in particular. Insecurities abound for long–time chums – attractive…
Dancin' Thru the Dark (Dancing Through the Dark) (1990): Dir. Mike Ockrent
Feat. Peter Beckett, Angela Clarke, Julia Deakin…; An engaged couple's stag and hen parties wind up at the same nightclub, with a mixed reception! Writer Willy (SHIRLEY VALENTINE) Russell again forges…
Time of the Gypsies (1990): Dir. Emir Kusturica
Feat. Davor Dujmovic, Bora Todorovic, Ljubica Adzovic; A fascinating and unconventional glimpse at gypsy life in pre–revolution Yugoslavia. It follows the fortunes of a supernaturally–gifted…
A World Without Pity (Un Monde Sans Pitie) (1989): Dir. Eric Rochant
Feat. Hippolyte Girardot, Mireille Perrier, Yvan Attal; A young Parisian slacker falls in love with an ambitious, bright student but finds the tables turning on his egocentric existence. Rochant's debut…
Kiwi Shorts Volume 2 (1989-1993): Dir. William Toepfer, Anthony McCarten, Jessica Hobbs; Another good sampling of eight short films funded by the NZ Arts Council and Film Commission – also compiled by the good folk at…
She's Been Away (1989): Dir. Peter Hall
Feat. Peggy Ashcroft, James Fox; After a lifetime in mental institutions, an elderly Peggy Ashcroft is released into the care of her liberal nephew James Fox. A disarming and…
Kiwi Shorts Volume 1 (1988-1992): Dir. Grant Lahood, Scott Reynolds, Nicky Marshall; A good sampling of eight short films funded by the NZ Arts Council and Film Commission, including the classic "The Lounge Bar". Compiled by the good…
Someone to Love (1987): Dir. Henry Jaglom
Feat. Orson Welles; Typically loose and naturalistic drama from independent stalwart Henry Jaglom, who pretty much plays himself – a jaded divorcee filmmaker in search…
Mr. and Mrs. Edgehill (1985): Dir. Gavin Millar
Feat. Ian Holm, Judi Dench; Based on Noel Coward's play about an English couple who lived on the South Pacific island of Cowrie, this telemovie is graced with top cast and…
Comfort and Joy (1984): Dir. Bill Forsyth
Feat. Bill Paterson, Eleanor David; Another likeable and quirky comedy from Bill Forsyth, about a disc–jockey who becomes involved in a mob feud over a mobile ice–cream…
Dim Sum (A Little Bit of Heart) (1984): Dir. Wayne Wang
Feat. Laureen Chew, Kim Chew, Victor Wong; Endearing, warm–hearted tale of Chinese–Americans living in San Fransisco. Distinctly Chinese but the themes and the humour are universal.
Experience Preferred, but Not Essential (1983): Dir. Peter Duffell
Feat. Elizabeth Edmonds, Sue Wallace; Amusing, low–key drama about a young woman waitressing at a seaside resort.
Measure for Measure (1979): Dir. Desmond Davis
Feat. Kate Nelligan, Tim Pigott-Smith; Part of the BBC's excellent series of Shakespeare productions, filmed in a 'theatrical' TV environment utilising the best of English acting talent.
That Sinking Feeling (1979): Dir. Bill Forsyth
Feat. John Hughes; The Bill Forsyth (LOCAL HERO) ‘touch’ for gentle, ironic comedy, is fully evident in this first feature. Chronicling a small–scale…
Despair (1977): Dir. Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Feat. Dirk Bogarde; Fassbinder's blackly comic adaptation of Nabakov's novel about delusion, depression and decline of the human spirit. Dirk Bogarde plays a Russian…
Kotch (1971): Dir. Jack Lemmon
Feat. Walter Matthau; Heart–warming fare with irascible senior citizen Walter Matthau resisting all attempts to 'retire' him. Matthau's regular screen buddy directs.
Virgin Soldiers, The (1969): Dir. Norman Cohen
Feat. Lynn Redgrave, Hywel Bennett, Nigel Davenport…; Comdey–drama following a squad of naive young British soldiers in 1950's Singapore who fall for the daughter of the Regimental Sergeant Major.
Quartet (1949): Dir. Ken Annakin, Arthur Crabtree, Harold French
Feat. Dirk Bogarde, Basil Radford, Honor Blackman; Four W Somerset Maugham stories are given exemplary treatment by the best of British, incl. Dirk Bogarde, Basil Radford and Honor Blackman. Unlike…
Le Crime De Monsieur Lange (1935): Dir. Jean Renoir
Feat. Rene Lefevre, Florelle , Jules Berry; One of the dir.’s early classics. Rene Leferve rises to newsprint fame as the author of the serial “Arizona Jim” after his boss, a…

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Subgenre Sampler