You are there but no one is registering you. Not dramatically -- just that persistent sense of not quite landing in the world. These films are full of characters who know that feeling from the inside.
At an elite, old-fashioned boarding school in New England, a passionate English teacher inspires his students to rebel against convention and seize the potential of every day, courting the disdain of the stern headmaster.
The central character is not seen by the world around them. The film sees them anyway.
Sees its character clearly
George Bailey has spent his entire life giving to the people of Bedford Falls. All that prevents rich skinflint Mr. Potter from taking over the entire town is George's modest building and loan company. But on Christmas Eve the business's $8,000 is lost and George's troubles begin.
The central character is not seen by the world around them. The film sees them anyway.
Sees its character clearly
A bumbling tramp desires to build a home with a young woman, yet is thwarted time and time again by his lack of experience and habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time..
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Recognised
A hack screenwriter writes a screenplay for a former silent film star who has faded into Hollywood obscurity.
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Sees its character clearly
At the height of the Vietnam war, Captain Benjamin Willard is sent on a dangerous mission that, officially, "does not exist, nor will it ever exist." His goal is to locate - and eliminate - a mysterious Green Beret Colonel named Walter Kurtz, who has been leading his personal army on illegal guerrilla missions into enemy territory.
The central character is not seen by the world around them. The film sees them anyway.
Sees its character clearly
Recognised
Best watched alone. This is between you and the film.
A commanding officer defends three scapegoats on trial for a failed offensive that occurred within the French Army in 1916.
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Recognised
Young lion prince Simba, eager to one day become king of the Pride Lands, grows up under the watchful eye of his father Mufasa; all the while his villainous uncle Scar conspires to take the throne for himself. Amid betrayal and tragedy, Simba must confront his past and find his rightful place in the Circle of Life.
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Recognised
A tramp falls in love with a beautiful blind flower girl. His on-and-off friendship with a wealthy man allows him to be the girl's benefactor and suitor.
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Recognised
Young musician Zach Sobiech discovers his cancer has spread, leaving him just a few months to live. With limited time, he follows his dream and makes an album, unaware that it will soon be a viral music phenomenon.
Something about being in the company of a character who knows this feeling makes it easier.
Recognised
A 17 year old finds out that his girlfriend is dying, so he sets out to give her an entire life, in the last year she has left.
The central character is not seen by the world around them. The film sees them anyway.
Sees its character clearly
The right film for the right state is a specific thing. These are specific.