ajb's - Rented List
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Dekalog and Other Television Works (2016)The Ten Commandments / Spokój / Krótki dzien pracy / Personel / Pierwsza milosc / Przejscie podziemne / Still Alive
Krzysztof Kieslowski's "Dekalog" is one of the greatest achievements of the late twentieth century - as much an intricate work of moral philosophy as it is a collection of psychologically riveting narratives. Each standalone stop/ revolves around the consequences arising from a breach of one of the Ten Commandments, but this is no finger-wagging religious tract: Kieslowski was one of film history's keenest observers of human nature, and his troubled, vainglorious, self-deceiving, deeply flawed characters (many played by some of Poland's finest character actors) are all too universally recognisable. "Dekalog" is merely the highlight of a box set that compiles virtually all of Kieslowski's television work, starting with his first professional short fiction film and continuing with four feature-length pieces that are in every way as probing and incisive as his better-known cinema films. - Director:
- Krzysztof Kieslowski
- Cast:
- Artur Barcis, Olgierd Lukaszewicz, Olaf Lubaszenko
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The 10-episode legal thriller stars 2021 Golden Globe Nominee Bryan Cranston as Michael Desiato, a respected New Orleans judge whose teenage son, Adam (Hunter Doohan), is involved in a hit-and-run that leads to a high-stakes game of lies, deceit and impossible choices. SAG Award winner Michael Stuhlbarg (Boardwalk Empire) stars as Jimmy Baxter, the much-feared head of a crime family opposite Emmy and Golden Globe nominee Hope Davis (The Special Relationship) as his wife, Gina, who might be even more dangerous than her husband. The series also stars Carmen Ejogo (Selma), Isiah Whitlock Jr. (The Wire), and Sofia Black-D'Elia (The Night Of). Emmy nominee and Golden Globe winner Maura Tierney of 'The Affair' guest stars as Fiona McKee, a fearless prosecutor trying a major case in Desiato's courtroom. Additional guest stars include Amy Landecker (Transparent ), Margo Martindale (The Americans), Lorraine Toussaint (Orange Is the New Black), Chet Hanks (Empire), Lamar Johnson (The Hate U Give) and Lilli Kay (Chambers). - Director:
- Clark Johnson
- Cast:
- Bryan Cranston, Hunter Doohan, Hope Davis
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A remarkably assured debut from Swiss director Andreas Fontana, 'Azor' invites us into the alluring world of the ultra-wealthy in 1980's Argentina. Set in Buenos Aires, the film follows private banker Yvan (Fabrizio Rongione) as he arrives from Geneva with his wife Ines (Stéphanie Cléau) to replace a mysteriously missing colleague and placate their moneyed clientele. Moving through the smoke-filled lounges and lush gardens of a society under intense surveillance, he finds himself untangling a sinister web of colonialism, high finance, and a nation's "Dirty War". - Director:
- Andreas Fontana
- Cast:
- Fabrizio Rongione, Stéphanie Cléau, Carmen Iriondo
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The Phantom of the Open (2021)The Fantastic Flitcrofts
"The Phantom of the Open" tells the remarkable true story of Maurice Flitcroft (Mark Rylance), a crane operator and optimistic dreamer from Barrow-in-Furness who, with the support of his family and friends, managed to gain entry to the 1976 British Open qualifying, despite never playing a round of golf before. With pluckiness and unwavering self-belief, Maurice pulls off a series of stunning, hilarious and heartwarming attempts to compete at the highest level of professional golf, drawing the ire of the golfing elite but becoming a British folk hero in the process. - Director:
- Craig Roberts
- Cast:
- Mark Rylance, Ian Porter, Tommy Fallon
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"Shiva Baby" is a darkly playful comedy of chaos about a young bisexual woman grappling with tradition and independence over the course of one climactic day-long shiva, a Jewish gathering of friends and family during a time of mourning. A highlight of 2020's Toronto International Film Festival and SXSW, and featuring a standout lead performance from emerging actor-comedian Rachel Sennott, the acclaimed feature debut from writer-director Emma Seligman is bold, modern filmmaking at it's most daring, hilarious and unforgettable. - Director:
- Emma Seligman
- Cast:
- Rachel Sennott, Danny Deferrari, Fred Melamed
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Sarah Lancashire stars in the compelling four-part drama about the abduction of a young child, written by award-winner Jack Thorne. Miriam (Sarah Lancashire) is an experienced, no-nonsense social worker who loves and believes in her job, but has a maverick and instinctive approach to protecting the children in her care. Miriam arranges for Kiri to have an unsupervised visit with her biological grandparents. But when Kiri disappears during the visit, the fingers of suspicion and blame from the police, the press, and even her colleagues, point firmly at Miriam. As the media spotlight around the story intensifies, Miriam, as well as both sets of families, are forced to ask the toughest questions, not just of themselves, but of each other. - Director:
- Euros Lyn
- Cast:
- Finn Bennett, Paapa Essiedu, Sarah Lancashire
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Film recounts the adventures of Gustave H., a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars; and Zero Moustafa, the lobby boy who becomes his most trusted friend. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting; a raging battle for an enormous family fortune; a desperate chase on motorcycles, trains, sleds, and skis; and the sweetest confection of a love affair - all against the backdrop of a suddenly and dramatically changing Continent. - Director:
- Wes Anderson
- Cast:
- Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric
- Formats:
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Raimunda (Penelope Cruz) and her sister Sole (Lola Duenas) are visited by the apparition of their Mother (Carmen Maura), who has returned to reconcile with her daughters and resolve an issue that has haunted the family since her death. In Pedro Almodovar's latest critically-acclaimed film, the living and deceased co-exist without discord, creating a filmic experience which is at once hilarious and yet filled with a deep, genuine emotion. VOLVER is a film about life in Almodovar's native La Mancha; a film about the way the presence of the dead continues to add richness and humanity to the lives of those they leave behind. - Director:
- Pedro Almodóvar
- Cast:
- Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura, Lola Dueñas
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When 22 year old Sian O'Callaghan (Florence Howard) goes missing after a Friday night out with friends, Detective Superintendent Steve Fulcher (Martin Freeman) quickly realises that this is no ordinary missing persons case. A prime suspect is identified but when Fulcher questions him about Sian's whereabouts it sets both men on a journey which will change their lives forever as well as reveal the fate of Sian and another local girl, Becky Godden-Edwards (Stephanie Hyam). In his fight to get justice for the mothers, Elaine Pickford (Siobhan Finneran) and Karen Edwards (Imelda Staunton), Steve discovers that the rights of the victim are not always as valued as the rights of the suspect and that his actions have devastating consequences for his career and family. Based on a true story. - Director:
- Paul Andrew Williams
- Cast:
- Siobhan Finneran, Derek Riddell, Martin Freeman
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The Great Beauty (2013)La Grande Bellezza
Jep Gambardella, a 65-year-old journalist and once promising novelist, lives his easy life among Rome's decadent high society in a swirl of rooftop parties and late-night soirees. But when he learns of the death of his friend's wife - a woman he once loved as an 18-year-old - his life is thrown into perspective and he begins to see the world through new eyes... - Director:
- Paolo Sorrentino
- Cast:
- Toni Servillo, Christine Aubry, Carlo Verdone
- Formats:
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Lancelot of the Lake (1974)Lancelot Du Luc
Winner of the International Critics' Prize at Cannes in 1974, Bresson's masterpiece has lost none of its power and continues to cast a mystical spell. In this compelling and hypnotic film about the Arthurian legend, the Knights of the Round Table, their numbers depleted by their bloody and fruitless quest for the Holy Grail, return to King Arthur's court. Once there, Lancelot's passionate relationship with Queen Guinevere causes the Knights to fall out amongst themselves, eventually leading to their downfall. - Director:
- Robert Bresson
- Cast:
- Luc Simon, Laura Duke Condominas, Humbert Balsan
- Formats:
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Departures (2008)Okuribito
Professional cellist Daigo (Masahiro Motoki) is left jobless after the orchestra he plays in disbands. He and his wife Mika (Ryoko Hirosue) move back from Tokyo to the family home in rural Yamagata left by his mother, who passed away two years previously. Here he stumbles upon a vaguely-worded advert in a local newspaper for a job "assisting departures". He is hired on the spot by his new boss Sasaki (Tsutomu Yamazaki), only to discover the post is for an assistant nokanshi, or traditional mortician, performing the Buddhist rites of washing and preparing corpses for their final journey. Initially he keeps the nature of his employment hidden from Mika, but as his disgust for his work turns to pride, he soon finds himself coming to terms with his own life, and the past memories of the father who abandoned him as a child. - Director:
- Yôjirô Takita
- Cast:
- Masahiro Motoki, Ryôko Hirosue, Tsutomu Yamazaki
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It's 1943. The Allies are determined to break Hitler's grip on occupied Europe, and plan to launch an all-out assault on Sicily; but they face an impossible challenge - how to protect the invasion force from potential annihilation. It falls to two remarkable intelligence officers, Ewen Montagu (Colin Firth) and Charles Cholmondeley (Matthew Macfadyen) to dream the most inspired and improbable disinformation strategy of the war - centred on the most unlikely of secret agents: a dead man. Operation Mincemeat is the extraordinary and true story of an idea that hoped to turn the tide for the Allies - taking impossibly high risks, defying logic, and testing the nerves of its creators to breaking point. - Director:
- John Madden
- Cast:
- Colin Firth, Matthew Macfadyen, Kelly MacDonald
- Formats:
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Fiona Maye (Emma Thompson) is an eminent judge in the Family Division of the High Court, making daily decisions about complex family issues. But her workload is heavy, and her marriage to American professor Jack (Stanley Tucci) is at breaking point. In this moment of personal crisis, Fiona is asked to rule on the case of Adam (Fionn Whitehead), a brilliant and beautiful teenager who is refusing on religious grounds the blood transfusion which will save his life. Wanting to hear from Adam before making her decision, Fiona goes to his hospital bedside. Their extraordinary meeting releases strong emotions, with momentous consequences for both of them as Fiona decides whether Adam should live or die. - Director:
- Richard Eyre
- Cast:
- Emma Thompson, Stanley Tucci, Fionn Whitehead
- Formats:
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In 1961, Kempton Bunton (Jim Broadbent), a 60 year old taxi driver, stole Goya's portrait of the Duke of Wellington from the National Gallery in London. It was the first (and remains the only) theft in the Gallery's history. Kempton sent ransom notes saying that he would return the painting on condition that the government invested more in care for the elderly - he had long campaigned for pensioners to receive free television. What happened next became the stuff of legend. Only 50 years later did the full story emerge - Kempton had spun a web of lies. The only truth was that he was a good man, determined to change the world and save his marriage - how and why he used the Duke to achieve that is a wonderfully uplifting tale. - Director:
- Roger Michell
- Cast:
- Jim Broadbent, Heather Craney, Stephen Rashbrook
- Formats:
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