The feeling of being seen in a film is one of the stranger pleasures of cinema.
In 1927 Hollywood, a silent film star falls for a chorus girl just as he and his paranoid screen partner struggle to make the difficult transition to talking pictures.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
After the insane General Jack D. Ripper initiates a nuclear strike on the Soviet Union, a war room full of politicians, generals and a Russian diplomat all frantically try to stop it.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Four inseparable friends try to face their midlife crisis with daytrips and pranks at the expense of their families and the people around them.
There's something in here that will feel very specifically aimed at you. That's not an accident.
A card shark and his unwillingly-enlisted friends need to make a lot of cash quick after losing a sketchy poker match. To do this they decide to pull a heist on a small-time gang who happen to be operating out of the flat next door.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Best friends Peppe and Mario are thieves, but they're not very good at it. Still, Peppe thinks that he's finally devised a master heist that will make them rich. With the help of some fellow criminals, he plans to dig a tunnel from a rented apartment to the pawnshop next door, where they can rob the safe. But his plan is far from foolproof, and the fact that no one in the group has any experience digging tunnels proves to be the least of their problems.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Being understood is a complicated feeling. These films produce it reliably.
Observational comedy recognises your experience. Immediate connection.
Good paired viewing. Worth pausing to discuss.
In Prohibition-era Chicago, musicians Joe and Jerry witness a mob hit, and flee the state in an all-female band disguised as Josephine and Daphne, but further complications set in.
There's something in here that will feel very specifically aimed at you. That's not an accident.
In postwar Rome, a working-class woman dreams of a better future for herself and her daughter while facing abuse at the hands of her domineering husband. When a mysterious letter arrives, she discovers the courage to change the circumstances of her life.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Two employees at a gift shop can barely stand one another, without realising that they are falling in love through the post as each other's anonymous pen pal.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
A film projectionist longs to be a detective, and puts his meager skills to work when he is framed by a rival for stealing his girlfriend's father's pocketwatch.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Forcibly separated from her twin brother when they are orphaned, a melancholic misfit learns how to find confidence within herself amid the clutter of misfortunes and everyday life.
It articulates something you've felt but never quite had words for. That's the whole effect.
Some films earn their effect. These do.