watched-3's - Rented List
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Happy Times (2002)Xingfu shiguang
Zhao is an economically challenged, ageing bachelor who hasn't had much luck in love and so he enlists the help of matchmaker to find a wife. Thinking he has finally met the woman of his dreams, he leads her to believe he is wealthy and agrees to a wedding far beyond his means. Desperate for funds, he turns to his friends and together they hatch the scheme to raise the money by refurbishing an abandoned bus they will rent out by the house - the 'Happy Times Hotel' to young couples starved for privacy. But this plan goes awry when the bus is hauled away to the dump. Believing he is a wealthy hotelier, his fiancee persuades Zhao to hire her blind stepdaughter, Wu Ying, as a masseuse at his hotel. Creating a tangled and hilarious mess of lies in order to employ her, Zhao must create a fake hotel environment in an abandoned factory, so she believes he has a legitimate job. Finally, he is forced to come clean, which turns out to be both a heartbreaking and hilarious life lesson for all involved. - Director:
- Yimou Zhang
- Cast:
- Lifan Dong, Benshan Zhao, Jie Dong
- Formats:
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Shoot the Pianist (1960)Tirez Sur Le Pianiste / Shoot the Piano Player
Having left behind his life as a gifted concert pianist, Charlie (Charles Aznavour) sees out his downcast days tinkling the ivories in a dingy Parisian jazz bar. One day his brother Chico (Albert Rémy) arrives, searching for sanctuary from a gang of crooks that he's double-crossed. Charlie offers to help but soon finds his murky past catching up with him and before long is embroiled in an affair that he can no longer control. - Director:
- François Truffaut
- Cast:
- Charles Aznavour, Marie Dubois, Nicole Berger
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Memories of Matsuko (2006)Kiraware Matsuko no isshô
When the body of a female tramp is found in the park, her nephew, Shou, is called upon to clean out her abandoned apartment. He unwittingly embarks upon a surprising journey through the extraordinary life of his aunt, Matsuko, a starry-eyed female searching for her prince. A collision of visually stunning hues and Bob Fosse-like musical set pieces, this Amelie-esque fairytale gracefully glides through the decades from the 50s to the 80s. Miki Nakatani displays an award winning performance as Matsuko, engaging the audience with her touching portrayal of life. - Director:
- Tetsuya Nakashima
- Cast:
- Miki Nakatani, Eita, Yûsuke Iseya
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Le Corbeau (1943)The Raven
A veritable masterpiece of French cinema, Henri-Georges Clouzot's 'Le Corbeau' is a dark and subversive study of human nature. A wave of hysteria sweeps the small provincial town of St. Robin when a series of poison-pen letters signed "Le Corbeau" appear, denouncing several prominent members of society. Starting with the village doctor, the slow trickle of sinister letters soon becomes a flood and no one is safe from their mysterious accusations. Condemned by the political left and right and the church upon its release in 1943, Clouzot was banned from filmmaking for two years after making the film. - Director:
- Henri-Georges Clouzot
- Cast:
- Pierre Fresnay, Ginette Leclerc, Micheline Francey
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Casey (Haley Lu Richardson) lives with her mother, a recovering addict, in a little-known Midwestern town haunted by the promise of modernism. Jin (John Cho), a visitor from the other side of the world, attends to his estranged, dying father. Burdened by the future, they find respite in one another and the architecture that surrounds them. - Director:
- Kogonada
- Cast:
- John Cho, Haley Lu Richardson, Parker Posey
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The Woman Next Door (1981)La Femme D'a Cote
Bernard Coudray has a beautiful family and is happy with his life. That is until Philippe and Mathilde Bauchard move into the house next door. Bernard and Mathilde know each other, they were once passionately in love but went their separate ways. Once reunited, the pair starts a fervent but turbulent affair. Torn between their unyielding lust for each other and the comfort and stability that is their marriages, this really is a case of can't live with and can't live without. - Director:
- François Truffaut
- Cast:
- Gérard Depardieu, Fanny Ardant, Henri Garcin
- Formats:
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"I, Tonya" tells the outrageous and at times hilarious true story of one of the biggest scandals in sporting history. Tonya Harding (Margot Robbie) was a champion figure skater who's rebel attitude pushed the sport to new heights. However, as Olympic pressure mounted, her life began to unravel - culminating in an alleged attack on her fiercest rival, un-paralleled press attention and a legacy no one would wish for. - Director:
- Craig Gillespie
- Cast:
- Margot Robbie, Sebastian Stan, Allison Janney
- Formats:
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Arrival (2016)Story of Your Life
When mysterious spacecraft touch down across the globe, an elite team - led by expert linguist Louise Banks (Amy Adams) - are brought together to investigate. As nations struggle to coordinate a response, mankind teeters on the verge of global war, leaving Banks and the team in a race against time for answers - and to find them, she will take a chance that could threaten her life, and quite possibly humanity's very existence. - Director:
- Denis Villeneuve
- Cast:
- Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, Forest Whitaker
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After the Storm (2016)Umi yori mo mada fukaku
Author turned private detective, Ryota (Hiroshi Abe), struggles to make ends meet as he flitters away all the money he earns on gambling, barely able to pay child support for his son. After his father passes away his mother (Kiki Kirin) seems to have moved on, but family tensions are high with both Ryota and his sister believing each other is taking advantage of their mother. When a typhoon hits, holed-up in his mother's house with his estranged wife and son, Ryota attempts to rekindle his relationships with his family. A sensitive and powerful story of family ties remade, 'After the Storm' stands with the best of Kore-eda's work. - Director:
- Hirokazu Koreeda
- Cast:
- Hiroshi Abe, Yôko Maki, Satomi Kobayashi
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The Road Home (2000)Wo de fu qin mu qin
Upon the death of his father, city businessman Luo Yusheng returns to his home village to arrange the funeral. Luo's elderly mother is insistent that all of the traditional customs be observed, despite the reservations the village mayor has about the expenses and practicalities of this. Her extreme obstinacy in the matter causes Luo to think back to childhood memories of the stories he heard of his parents' courtship - a romance that captured the attention of the whole village. - Director:
- Yimou Zhang
- Cast:
- Ziyi Zhang, Honglei Sun, Hao Zheng
- Formats:
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Four teenagers in detention discover an old video game console with a game they've never heard of. When they decide to play, they are immediately sucked into the jungle world of Jumanji in the bodies of their avatars (Dwayne Johnson, Jack Black, Kevin Hart, and Karen Gillan). They'll have to complete the adventure of their lives filled with fun, thrills and danger or be stuck in the game forever! - Director:
- Jake Kasdan
- Cast:
- Dwayne Johnson, Karen Gillan, Kevin Hart
- Formats:
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The Soft Skin (1964)La peau douce
When renowned TV personality Pierre Lachenay attends a conference in Lisbon, Portugal he meets Nicole a young, beautiful air hostess. He returns home to his wife. Franca, and their daughter in Paris, but he cannot get the dazzling Nicole off his mind and they soon start an affair. But Franca is not willing to let another woman have her husband. - Director:
- François Truffaut
- Cast:
- François Truffaut, Jean Desailly, Françoise Dorléac
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Alien: Covenant (2017)Alien: Paradise Lost
Ridley Scott returns to the universe he created, with 'Alien: Covenant', a new chapter in the groundbreaking Alien franchise. The crew of the colony ship Covenant, bound for a remote planet on the far side of the galaxy, discovers what they think is an uncharted paradise, but is actually a dark, dangerous world. When they uncover a threat beyond their imagination, they must attempt a harrowing escape. - Director:
- Ridley Scott
- Cast:
- Michael Fassbender, Lorelei King, Katherine Waterston
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Not One Less (1999)Yi ge dou bu neng shao
In The Crushing Poverty of rural China, a young woman is ordered to a remote village to be their substitute teacher. Barely older than her students, the shy girl is charged with keeping the class intact for one month or she won't be paid. Faced with overwhelming family debt, her biggest little troublemaker disappears into the city to find work. The stubborn teacher, however, is determined to follow the boy and bring him back to school. Once in the city, her simple peasant pleas fall on deaf ears, and only when the local television station sympathizes does her search bear fruit. - Director:
- Yimou Zhang
- Cast:
- Minzhi Wei, Huike Zhang, Zhenda Tian
- Formats:
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Potiche (2010)Potiche (Trophy Wife)
Suzanne (Deneuve) is a "Potiche"; a beautiful, subservient wife dedicated to serving the selfish whims of her tyrannical husband. But after the exploited workers of his umbrella factory decide to strike, Suzanne takes on the role as head of the company to great success. Although business and personal politics are about to collide with the arrival of Maurice (Depardieu), a charming union leader and a former lover of Suzanne's. - Director:
- François Ozon
- Cast:
- Catherine Deneuve, Gérard Depardieu, Fabrice Luchini
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