monsieurk's - Rented List
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Underground (1995)Bila jednom jedna zemlja / Once Upon a Time There Was a Country
This extraordinarily dramatic black tragicomedy is an epic tale of love, friendship and betrayal set against the complex historical backdrop of the former Yugoslavia. The story follows two likeable crooks - Marko (Miki Manojlovic), a charmer who manipulates everyone within his reach, and the foolish but loveable Blacky (Lazar Ristovski) - and Natalija (Mirjana Jokovic), an actress of easy virtue with whom they are both in love. The three become embroiled in a world of conflict, self-delusion and deceit - but where there are also moments of tenderness and love - in this visionary allegory of Balkan vitality, energy, humour and the will to survive. - Director:
- Emir Kusturica
- Cast:
- Predrag 'Miki' Manojlovic, Lazar Ristovski, Mirjana Jokovic
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Two Women (1960)La Ciociara
"Two Women" tells the story of a young widow, Cesira (Sophia Loren) and her 12 year old daughter who flee war-ravaged Rome to Cesira's native village in Ciociaria. Yet, as the allied forces push back the German occupation, the two women fall victim to a devastatingly brutal act at the very hand of the country's liberators. - Director:
- Vittorio De Sica
- Cast:
- Sophia Loren, Jean-Paul Belmondo, Raf Vallone
- Formats:
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Atlantic City (1980)Atlantic City, USA
On the Boardwalk of Dreams, everyone has a fantasy. Once the Queen of Resorts, Atlantic City has become the seedy Queen of Rackets. And with the legalisation of gambling, small-time gangsters like Lou (Burt Lancaster) are the losers; running numbers for the Mob can no longer offer a livelihood. But aging Lou's life changes abruptly when he becomes involved with Dave (Robert Joy), a young dope dealer, and his estranged wife, the beautiful and ambitious Sally (Susan Sarandon). Working at the Casino oyster bar whilst taking a rigorous course in blackjack dealing, she dreams of a glamorous new life in the casinos of Monte Carlo. When Dave is killed, Lou and Sally find themselves thrown together in a real-life escapade involving love, money, dope and danger. - Director:
- Louis Malle
- Cast:
- Burt Lancaster, Susan Sarandon, Kate Reid
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Funeral Parade of Roses (1969)Bara No Sôretsu
A feverish collision of avant-garde aesthetics and grindhouse shocks 'Funeral Parade of Roses' takes us on an electrifying journey into the nether-regions of the late-'60's Tokyo underworld. In Matsumoto's controversial debut feature, seemingly nothing is taboo: neither the incorporation of visual flourishes straight from the worlds of contemporary graphic-design, painting, comic-books, and animation; nor the unflinching depiction of nudity, sex, drug-use, and public-toilets. But of all the "transgressions" here on display, perhaps one in particular stands out the most: the film's groundbreaking and unapologetic portrayal of Japanese gay subculture. Cross-dressing club-kid Eddie (Pîtâ) vies with a rival drag-queen (Osamu Ogasawara) for the favours of drug-dealing cabaret-manager Gonda Passions escalate and blood begins to flow - before all tensions are released in a jolting climax. - Director:
- Toshio Matsumoto
- Cast:
- Pîtâ, Osamu Ogasawara, Yoshimi Jô
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Sawako Decides (2010)Kawa no soko kara konnichi wa
Sawako's (Hikari Mitsushima) life has hit a dead end. Five years ago she left her hometown to head to Tokyo, an impulsive move precipitated by her love for a handsome tennis player. That relationship soon went sour and Sawako found herself on her own, trying to make ends meet in the nation's capital. One low-paying day job after another has kept Sawako housed and fed, but one deadbeat boyfriend after another has left her disillusioned, swilling beer and with a nasty case of constipation. Her latest beau Kenichi is no better than his predecessors - he's unemployed, plus he has a young daughter in two, the child of a previous failed marriage. Something has to change in Sawako's life, but she soon learns that you can't always choose the form of that change. When her father is diagnosed with terminal cirrhosis of the liver Sawako has no other choice but to return to her hometown. Will this unhappy event be the one that will finally kick start her existence? - Director:
- Yûya Ishii
- Cast:
- Hikari Mitsushima, Kôtarô Shiga, Ryô Iwamatsu
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When Viviane (Bulle Ogier), a chic diplomat's wife, meets an intriguing adventurer (Michael Gothard) and his hippy friends in the wilds of Papua New Guinea different worlds collide. The group, led by enigmatic visionary Gaetan (Jean-Pierre Kalfon), convince Viviane to join their expedition in search of a mysterious uncharted Valley. - Director:
- Barbet Schroeder
- Cast:
- Jérôme Beauvarlet, Monique Giraudy, Michael Gothard
- Formats:
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His Girl Friday (1940)Howard Hawks' His Girl Friday
Chicago Morning Post editor Walter Burns (Cary Grant) is about to lose his ace reporter and former wife Hildy Johnson (Rosalind Russell) to Bruce Baldwin (Ralph Bellamy). Then a late breaking story involving the impending execution of an anarchist who escapes and is hidden from the police by the former husband and wife throws the pair together once again. - Director:
- Howard Hawks
- Cast:
- Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy
- Formats:
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This is Rollin at his best; visual delights, sensual lesbian lovemaking, and the beautiful Eva (Brigitte Lahaie) as a scythe-wielding avenger, and a group of castle dwelling bourgeois women blood-drinkers. Two women chosen by the group must find a man that they must slaughter and communally consume in a canibalistic vampire feast. - Director:
- Jean Rollin
- Cast:
- Franca Maï, Brigitte Lahaie, Jean-Marie Lemaire
- Formats:
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Jane (Julia Garner) is a recent college graduate and aspiring film producer, who has recently landed her dream job as a junior assistant to a powerful movie mogul. Her day is much like any other assistant's, but as Jane follows her daily routine, she grows increasingly aware of the questionable behaviour of her boss toward her female peers. She decides to take a stand, only to discover the true insidious nature of the system into which she has entered. - Director:
- Kitty Green
- Cast:
- Julia Garner, Karen Stewart, Owen Holland
- Formats:
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After her debut feature Wadjda (2012) broke new ground as the first-ever film shot entirely in Saudi Arabia - and the first made by a Saudi woman - director Haifaa Al Mansour returns to the kingdom with The Perfect Candidate. A determined young Saudi doctor's surprise run for office in the local city elections sweeps up her family and community as they struggle to accept their town's first female candidate. - Director:
- Haifaa Al-Mansour
- Cast:
- Mila Al Zahrani, Reema Mohammed, Dae Al Hilali
- Formats:
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The Housemaid (2010)Hanyo
Eun-yi (Jeon Do-youn) is hired as a nanny in an opulent mansion owned by the wealthy and handsome businessman Hoon Goh (Lee Jung-jae). He wastes no time in seducing his alluring young employee who seemingly has little choice but to comply with his sexual advances. Soon the vengeful women of the family, including a villainous matriarch and a heavily pregnant wife, plot against Eun-yi who must fight an equally devious battle to protect herself. - Director:
- Sang-soo Im
- Cast:
- Do-yeon Jeon, Jung-Jae Lee, Yeo-jeong Yoon
- Formats:
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Douglas's magnificent, award-winning Trilogy My Childhood (1972), My Ain Folk (1973) and My Way Home (1978) is the product of an assured, formidable artistic vision. These are some of the most compelling films about childhood ever made. Presented here in a High-Definition restoration, the Trilogy follows Jamie (played with heart-breaking conviction by Stephen Archibald) as he grows up in a poverty-stricken mining village in post-war Scotland. This is cinematic poetry: Although shot in bleak monochrome and featuring minimal dialogue, the warmth and unexpected humour mean the Trilogy brims with clear-eyed humanity, and affection for an ultimately triumphant young boy. - Director:
- Bill Douglas
- Cast:
- Stephen Archibald, Hughie Restorick, Jean Taylor Smith
- Formats:
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Les Enfants Terribles (1950)The Terrible Children / The Strange Ones
In this compelling tale of obsession, teenage siblings Paul (Edouard Dermithe) and Elisabeth (Nicole Stéphane) create an intense, private world in their shared room. They live, sleep, bicker and play out erotically charged games within their chambre, without heed to the world around them. However, when outsiders intrude into their disturbingly private realm, the scene is set for tragedy. - Director:
- Jean-Pierre Melville
- Cast:
- Jean Cocteau, Nicole Stéphane, Edouard Dermithe
- Formats:
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The King of Staten Island (2020)Untitled Judd Apatow / Pete Davidson Project
Scott (Pete Davidson) has been a case of arrested development ever since his firefighter father died when he was seven. He's now reached his mid-20's having achieved little, living with his mother (Marisa Tomei) and spending his days hanging with his buddies and secretly hooking up with his childhood friend Kelsey (Bel Powley). When his mother starts dating a loudmouth firefighter Ray (Bill Burr), it sets off a chain of events that will force Scott to grapple with his grief and take his first tentative steps toward moving forward in life. - Director:
- Judd Apatow
- Cast:
- Pete Davidson, Bel Powley, Ricky Velez
- Formats:
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The County (2020)Héraðið
Inga (Arndís Hrönn Egilsdóttir) runs a dairy farm with her husband in a remote valley of Iceland where they work long hours for a tight income due to their buyers, a money-grubbing monopoly known as the co-op. However, when Inga's husband tragically dies she learns her debts are even greater than she thought and takes it upon herself not to repay them but to expose the co-op's greed and corruption by any means necessary. - Director:
- Grímur Hákonarson
- Cast:
- Arndís Hrönn Egilsdóttir, Sveinn Ólafur Gunnarsson, Þorsteinn Bachmann
- Formats:
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