A City of Sadness
Recommendations Movies
The Voice of the Moon(it)
A parable on the whisperings of the soul that only madmen and vagabonds are capable of hearing. Odd couple Ivo Salvini, recently released from a mental asylum, and former prefect Gonnella wander through the countryside and discover a dystopia made of television commercials, beauty pageants, rock music, Catholicism, and pagan rituals.
Terrorizers(zh)
An uncompromising look into urban life from the eyes of a voyeuristic photographer, a rebellious teenager, and a married couple teetering on the edge of adultery.
I Hired a Contract Killer(en)
After losing his job and realizing that he is alone in the world, a businessman opts to voluntarily end his life. Lacking courage, he hires a contract killer to do the job. Then, while awaiting his demise, he meets a woman and promptly falls in love.
Only You(tr)
The passionate love between a former boxer and a beautiful blind woman.
The Time to Live and the Time to Die(zh)
An autobiographical film based on Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao-hsien's memories of his youth growing up in Taiwan after emigrating from mainland China.
A Better Tomorrow III: Love and Death in Saigon(cn)
The year is 1974. A young Hong Kong Chinese, Mark, travels to Saigon to make his fortune. There, he encounters a mysterious femme fatale, the lovely Kit. As he becomes more involved in her various underworld deals, a tragic romance develops. On the eve of the outbreak of war, Kit's past returns to endanger her, and Mark must risk everything for the one true love of his life.
What Time Is It There?(zh)
A street vendor with a grim home-life forges a connection with a young woman on her way to Paris.
Dust in the Wind(zh)
A-yuan and A-yun are both from the small mining town of Jio-fen. They move to Taipei, where A-yuan is an apprentice by day and goes to night school, and A-yun works as a helper at a tailors. Everyone thinks they are meant for each other, and so do they. They fail to see time and fate are beyond their control.
Sadako vs. Kayako(ja)
A girl, Yūri Kurahashi, after watching a cursed videotape together with her friend in a haunted house, becomes trapped in a conflict between the two murderous ghosts: Sadako Yamamura and Kayako Saeki
The Madness of Dr. Tube(fr)
A scientist develops a powder that he believes will have the effect of distorting reality for those who take it. To test its effect tries it out on his assistant, a dog, himself and two young couples.
A Woman Called Sada Abe(ja)
The young and beautiful Sada Abe, the daughter of a rich merchant, is banished for losing her virginity after being raped by a college student. Sada wanders the city, becoming a geisha and eventually meeting Kichizo, a posh restaurateur who falls under her spell. Together, they embark on a week-long sexual escapade filled with dangerous obsessions. Their complete descent into each others desires culminates in a shocking crime of passion which captures the city's headlines. Based on a real event from 1936.
Green Night(zh)
Two lone female fighters who have learned to rely on no one but themselves venture into Seoul's underworld. In search of the big hit that could mean liberation from their useless husbands, these disparate women grow closer.
The Colours(fa)
By showing a series of different-coloured objects, the film aims to familiarize very young children with the various colours, and ends with a shot of a blackboard, a symbol of learning.
The Cannibals(pt)
This odd film is a major representative of an even odder film genre: direct-to-celluloid opera. It was commissioned by the Portuguese master of style, director Manoel de Oliveira from composer João Paes. Musically, it ranges from 19th-century romanticism to popular, modernist and even "post-modernist" styles. In the initially tame story, a host-narrator tells the story of a wedding between the two lovebirds: Viscount d'Aveleda and the beautiful Marguerite. However, what happens in the bridal chamber is incredibly bizarre. The events after that are even stranger, and the wedding guests and family indulge in cannibalism, among other perversions.
Twenty(ko)
A story about three friends who just turned twenty; an age where you can do whatever you want, love whoever you want with opportunities abroad.
Alice(cs)
A quiet young English girl named Alice finds herself in an alternate version of her own reality after chasing a white rabbit. She becomes surrounded by living inanimate objects and stuffed dead animals, and must find a way out of this nightmare — no matter how twisted or odd that way must be. A memorably bizarre screen version of Lewis Carroll’s novel ‘Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland’.
Werckmeister Harmonies(hu)
A naive young man witnesses an escalation of violence in his small hometown following the arrival of a mysterious circus attraction.
Through a Glass Darkly(sv)
Karin hopes to recover from her recent stay at a mental hospital by spending the summer at her family's cottage on a tiny island. Her husband, Martin, cares for her but is frustrated by her physical withdrawal. Her younger brother, Minus, is confused by Karin's vulnerability and his own budding sexuality. Their father, David, cannot overcome his haughty remoteness. Beset by visions, Karin descends further into madness.
The Way Home(ko)
This is the story of a 7-year-old boy, Sang-woo, born and raised in the big city, and his mute grandmother, who has spent her whole life in a small rural village.