dmb's - Rented List
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Under the Sand (2000)Sous le sable
In Francois Ozon's absorbing and affecting drama, Charlotte Rampling gives one of the best performances of her career as Marie, a college lecturer who has been happily married to Jean for over 25 years. Whilst on holiday, they visit a deserted beach where Marie lazes in the sun while Jean sets out for a swim - from which he never returns. Some time later in Paris, Marie has resumed her life but refuses to accept that Jean has drowned, continuing to think of him in the present tense and resisting her friends' well-meaning attempts to interest her in other men. Ozon's most mature film to date, 'Under the Sand' is dominated by Rampling's astonishing and moving portrayal. - Director:
- François Ozon
- Cast:
- Charlotte Rampling, Bruno Cremer, Jacques Nolot
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A group of real-estate salesmen-cum-con artists live on the edge. All the time. Life is good for only one. For the rest, life hangs in the balance. There is no room for losers. The name of the game is simple: A-B-C. A-Always. B-Be. C-Closing. Always be closing. Sell or go under. Right under. Deep rock bottom under. That's the name of the game. It's simple. - Director:
- James Foley
- Cast:
- Al Pacino, Leigh French, Jack Lemmon
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Dazed and Confused (1993)Dazed & Confused
America, 1976. The last day of school. Bongs blaze, bell-bottoms ring, and rock and roll rocks. Among the best teen films ever made, 'Dazed and Confused' eavesdrops on a group of seniors-to-be and incoming freshmen. A launching pad for a number of future stars, the first studio effort by Richard Linklater also features endlessly quotable dialogue and a blasting, stadium-ready soundtrack. Sidestepping nostalgia, 'Dazed and Confused' is less about "the best years of our lives" than the boredom, angst, and excitement of teenagers waiting...for something to happen. - Director:
- Richard Linklater
- Cast:
- Jason London, Wiley Wiggins, Matthew McConaughey
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In the Mood for Love (2000)Hua yang nian hua
Hong Kong, 1962. Chow (Tony Leung) is a junior newspaper editor with an elusive wife. His new neighbour Li-zhen (Maggie Cheung) is a secretary whose husband seems to spend all his time on business trips. They become friends, making the lonely evenings more bearable. As their relationship develops they make a discovery that changes their lives forever... - Director:
- Kar-Wai Wong
- Cast:
- Roy Cheung, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Paulyn Sun
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Nowhere to Hide (1999)Injeong Sajeong Bol Geot Eobtda
Inchon, Korea. Citizens run for cover in the pouring rain while the mysterious Sungmin (Ahn Sung-Ki) walks up Forty Steps and stabs another man to death. He disappears with a briefcase full of cash while his accomplices finish off the dead man's subordinate. The police investigation reveals an underground drug world at war. Detective Woo (Park Joong-Hoon) is the determined police detective who pursues the elusive Sungmin in a chase through the maze of the city streets and hideaways. Along the way, Woo and his men hunt down the nefarious figures of the drug world. They also find Jugo (Choi Ji-Woo), the woman who loves Sungmin. But Sungmin remains at large, a master of disguise and elusiveness, until the final spectacular showdown with detective Woo in the suburbs of a coal-mining town. - Director:
- Myung-Se Lee
- Cast:
- Joong-Hoon Park, Sung-kee Ahn, Dong-gun Jang
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Battle Royale (2000)Batoru Rowaiaru
At the dawn of the new millennium, Japan is in a state of near-collapse. Unemployment is at an all-time high, and violence amongst the nation's youth is spiralling out of control. With school children boycotting their lessons and physically abusing their teachers, a beleagured and near-defeated government decides to introduce a radical new measure: the Battle Royale Act. Overseen by a former teacher, (Takeshi Kitano), and requiring that a randomly chosen school class be taken to a deserted island and forced to fight each other to the death, the Act dictates that only one pupil be allowed to survive the punishment. He or she will return, not as the victor, but as the ultimate proof of the lengths to which the government are prepared to go to curb the tide of juvenile disobediance. - Director:
- Kinji Fukasaku
- Cast:
- Tatsuya Fujiwara, Ai Maeda, Aki Maeda
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The Red Squirrel (1993)La Ardilla Roja
Contemplating suicide as he stands against the parapet of a pier one summer night, ex-pop star Jota is interrupted by a sudden motorcycle accident. Rushing to the scene he discovers that the injured biker is an attractive young woman suffering from amnesia. Masquerading as her boyfriend, he names her Lisa, invents a shared history for the two of them and whisks her off on a holiday to the Red Squirrel campsite. Here he reinforces his deception by keeping up the facade of their long-term relationship in front of the other campers. However, it is not long before Jota has to confront the surprising consequences of his lie, as there is more to Lisa than meets the eye... - Director:
- Julio Medem
- Cast:
- Emma Suárez, Nancho Novo, María Barranco
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Dog Days (2001)Hundstage
It's a stifling hot weekend in the suburbs of Vienna, somewhere between the autobahn and the exit roads, the hypermarkets and the new housing estates. During these "dog days" of summer, six interwoven stories unfold, revealing a world of disillusionment and lonely souls. With no respite from the oppressive heat of the day, the nights become fuelled with alcohol and steeped in seething aggression and abuse. Soon, tension builds to an uncontrollable level, and it is only a matter of time before lives become devastated. Ulrich Seidl's unique and extraordinary film takes an uncompromising look at the limits of existence, where life at its most vulnerable and intimate. - Director:
- Ulrich Seidl
- Cast:
- Maria Hofstätter, Elke Kreiseder, Alfred Sild
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Forty-two-year-old Manhattan native Isaac Davis (Allen) has a job he hates, a seventeen-year-old girlfriend (Mariel Hemingway) he doesn't love, and a lesbian ex-wife Jill (Meryl Streep) who's writing a tell-all book about their marriage... and whom he'd like to strangle. But when he meets his best friend's sexy, intellectual mistress, Mary (Diane Keaton), Isaac falls head over heels in lust! Leaving Tracy, bedding Mary and quitting his job are just the beginning of Isaac's quest for romance and fulfillment in a city where sex is as intimate as a handshake - and the gate to true love... is a revolving door. - Director:
- Woody Allen
- Cast:
- Woody Allen, Diane Keaton, Mariel Hemingway
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"Old Joy" is the story of two old friends, Kurt and Mark, who reunite for a weekend camping trip in the mountains in Portland, Oregon. The trip signifies different things to them - for Mark a respite from imminent fatherhood, for Kurt a part of along series of adventures. As the trip progresses and the landscape changes, the friends begin to examine their lives and their friendship. - Director:
- Kelly Reichardt
- Cast:
- Daniel London, Will Oldham, Tanya Smith
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The Family Friend (2006)L'amico di famiglia
Paolo Sorrentino's effortlessly stylish film centres on Geremia di Geremei, a sleazy and misanthropic small-time loan shark who lives in a dingy apartment with his invalid mother. When a cash-strapped couple approach him for a loan to pay for the wedding of their daughter Rosalba, Geremia finds himself helplessly obsessed by the bride-to-be's stunning beauty and takes full advantage of his self-proclaimed position as 'a friend of the family' to get as close to her as possible. But in the icily disdainful Rosalba, he may finally have met his match... - Director:
- Paolo Sorrentino
- Cast:
- Giacomo Rizzo, Laura Chiatti, Luigi Angelillo
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Carax's debut, shot in black and white to magnificent effect, blends dark humour with a gentle love story. Frequent Carax collaborator Denis Lavent plays Alex, who wanders the streets at night after his girl has jilted him in favour of his best friend. Elsewhere, Mireille is having problems with her boyfriend; their parents are destined to cross. - Director:
- Leos Carax
- Cast:
- Denis Lavant, Mireille Perrier, Carroll Brooks
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The Green Butchers (2003)De Gronne Slagtere
Director Andres Thomas Jensen bring us a darkly funny tale from cutthroat world of small town butchers. Sitting in the same macabre drawer as "Delicatessen", "The Green Butchers" tells the story of Bjarne – an emotionally damaged stoner, and Svend – an unloved tyrannical nerd, who decide to go into business together with the sharpest skill they possess: butchery. - Director:
- Anders Thomas Jensen
- Cast:
- Nikolaj Lie Kaas, Dany Verissimo-Petit, Mads Mikkelsen
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Married for 50 years, Grant (Gordon Pinsent) and Fiona's (Julie Christie) life together is full of tenderness and humour, their serenity broken only by Fiona's occasional, restrained references to the past, complicated further by her increasingly evident memory loss. As the lapses become more obvious and dramatic, it is no longer possible for either of them to ignore the fact that Fiona is suffering from Alzheimer's disease. Moving Fiona into a nursing home specializing in the disease, Grant is not allowed to visit for the first month so she can "adjust". When he sees her again, Fiona has forgotten him and turned her affection to Aubrey (Michael Murphy), another resident in the home. Heartbroken, Grant visits daily, bearing witness to the growing bond between her and Aubrey. When Aubrey's wife (Olympia Dukakis) takes Aubrey home, Fiona becomes deeply depressed, and Grant embarks on the greatest act of self-sacrifice of his life. - Director:
- Sarah Polley
- Cast:
- Julie Christie, Michael Murphy, Gordon Pinsent
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Duck Season (2004)Temporada de patos
Creating a clamour first at Cannes and then at Edinburgh, Fernando Eimbcke's Duck Season (Temporada de patos) is a beguiling first feature that is wise and wonderful way beyond its director's tender years. Written by Eimbcke in collaboration with Paula Markovitch and veteran Mexican filmmaker Felipe Cazals, the film opens on a Sunday morning in a run down estate with childhood friends Flama (Daniel Miranda) and Moko (Diego Catano) preparing for a day without parents. Arming themselves with junk food, porn and video games, the pair order pizza and settle down to let the fun begin. However, they soon find their plans interrupted by Ulises (Enrique Arreola), a pizza deliveryman who refuses to leave, and by Rita (Danny Perea), a voluptuous 16-year-old neighbour who wants to use their oven to bake a cake. Making a virtue of the naturalistic, deadpan performances of his first time actors and using his minimal budget to striking effect, Eimbcke crafts a profoundly moving and insightful meditation on adolescence, friendship, sexuality and familial strife. Evoking the gently comic work of Jim Jarmusch, Duck Season also offers evidence of the continued renaissance of Mexican cinema. - Director:
- Fernando Eimbcke
- Cast:
- Carolina Politi, Daniel Miranda, Diego Cataño
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