Dr. Malcolm Sayer, a shy research physician, uses an experimental drug to "awaken" the catatonic victims of a rare disease. Leonard is the first patient to receive the controversial treatment. His awakening, filled with awe and enthusiasm, proves a rebirth for Sayer too, as the exuberant patient reveals life's simple but unutterably sweet pleasures to the introverted doctor.
Sam, a neurodivergent man, has a daughter with a homeless woman who abandons them when they leave the hospital, leaving Sam to raise Lucy on his own. But as Lucy grows up, Sam's limitations as a parent start to become a problem and the authorities take her away. Sam convinces high-priced lawyer Rita to take his case pro bono and in turn teaches her the value of love and family.
Set during a long, hot summer on the Thamesmead Estate in Southeast London, three teenagers edge towards adulthood.
With their father away as a chaplain in the Civil War, Jo, Meg, Beth and Amy grow up with their mother in somewhat reduced circumstances. They are a close family who inevitably have their squabbles and tragedies. But the bond holds even when, later, male friends start to become a part of the household.
Shallow, rich and socially successful Cher is at the top of her Beverly Hills high school's pecking scale. Seeing herself as a matchmaker, Cher first coaxes two teachers into dating each other. Emboldened by her success, she decides to give hopelessly klutzy new student Tai a makeover. When Tai becomes more popular than she is, Cher realizes that her disapproving ex-stepbrother was right about how misguided she was -- and falls for him.
Chantal Akerman was commissioned by Visions to make this short film for £20,000. It was first shown on 21 November 1984, on Channel 4. Akerman herself plays the role of a director visiting Hollywood to find financing from an uncle she hardly knows. Very little goes to plan… Also stars Aurore Clement and Colleen Camp.
It's winter in a suburb. A housewife is brutally raped. A young woman becomes a victim of attempted rape. The Police tighten noose on Anders, a young road worker who was seen on the site in both cases. The two women think they recognize him in the lineup, and police investigators use all their strength to solve the case. Anders is a common and simple individual. He could be any youth. The meeting with the ongoing investigation and the solid judiciary, forces him out of a seemingly monotonous, habitual life and forces him to react and think.
When average 13-year-old Tracy befriends Evie, the most popular girl in school, Tracy's world is turned upside down as Evie introduces her to a world of sex, drugs and cash. But it isn't long before Tracy's new world and attitude finally takes a toll on her, her family, and old friends.
A road movie that follows a solitary man as he sets of on a journey to the south of Brazil. The strange characters and absurd situations he encounters along the way present an extraordinary portrait of human relations.
Desmond has a secret he cannot share with anyone. His grades are slipping, rumors are swirling and he feels powerless, especially when he sees his sister being hurt, too. With the support of his father and a new friend, Desmond is able to tell his story of being sexually assaulted and end the cycle of abuse. Desmond regains his power when he uses his voice.
A woman who desperately wants a baby asks a girl who is considering abortion to give her the baby instead. The two arrive at an isolated vacation home to spend time in seclusion until the girl gives birth to a baby, but they unexpectedly encounter a mysterious young painter and some criminal hunters.
After a phone call ends in despair, a young woman faces a fatal decision.
A mother and daughter dispute is resolved by the "Yaya sisterhood" - long time friends of the mother.
A young woman invites her literature teacher to a discussion on a story about a man who wants to freeze the moment. She suggests that he is writing to disguise his own inner desires. They fall in love, and life takes an unexpected turn.
A foster family in South Central a few weeks before the city erupts in violence following the verdict of the Rodney King trial in 1992.
Six filmmakers present six short films about the experiences of Chinese immigrants. Shot across Malaysia, Thailand, Singapore and Myanmar, the anthology depicts the crisis of identity that accompanies international migration.
A man becomes lured into a fictional game his ex-girlfriend has initiated. Sexually ensnared by her, and now realizing the fragility of the border between the real and the imagined, he begins to unravel. He convinces himself that if he can only write an ending to his life story, he can regain control of his life. But playing with fiction is not an innocent game…
Following the gruesome murder of a young woman in her neighborhood, an English teacher living in New York City — as if to test the limits of her own safety —propels herself into an impossibly risky sexual liaison with a police detective.
Nicolas, an aimless adolescent who hasn't yet found his way in life leaves his grandparent's home, hitchhikes to a small town, and befriends, Charly an outspoken and slightly older prostitute, a red-headed beauty who appears to ply her trade in the same no-nonsense way she clears the breakfast dishes. She seems to find something endearing about Nicolas' mussed hair and dopey face, so she puts him up in the teeny trailer home that she maintains with such hilarious fussiness. As their unusual domestic arrangement evolves, each stumbles vulnerably into new emotional territory.
Two girls clean places after somebody dies there. Sometimes they sell the belongings of the dead at a flea market. When they meet an odd guy who has a passion for boxes, a strange game unfolds. An unconventional love story about the oddity of ordinary things. Eccentric and natural at once.