THEME EXPLORATION

debt and obligation

31 films · 3 directors

Tracing the thread…

FILMS THAT EXPLORE THIS
Skin of Roses
Skin of Roses
1978 · Katsuhiko Fujii
Tokyo Story
Tokyo Story
1953 · Yasujirō Ozu
A Separation
A Separation
2011 · Asghar Farhadi
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
2006 · Gore Verbinski
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
Sympathy for Mr. Vengeance
2002 · Park Chan-wook
A Delicate Balance
A Delicate Balance
1973 · Tony Richardson
An Arcadian Maid
An Arcadian Maid
1910 · D.W. Griffith
A River Called Titas
A River Called Titas
1973 · Ritwik Ghatak
El verdugo
El verdugo
1963 · Luis García Berlanga
Blazing Days
Blazing Days
1927 · William Wyler
The Man of the Day
The Man of the Day
1937 · Julien Duvivier
Where is the Friend’s House?/Where is the Friend’s Home?
Where is the Friend’s House?/Where is the Friend’s Home?
1987 · Abbas Kiarostami
Farewells
Farewells
1958 · Wojciech Has
Three Days of Fish
Three Days of Fish
2024 · Peter Hoogendoorn
A Greek woman in a Harem
A Greek woman in a Harem
1971 · Yannis Dalianidis
Atrocious Tales of Love and Death
Atrocious Tales of Love and Death
1979 · Sergio Corbucci
Drifters
Drifters
2003 · Wang Xiaoshuai
Remorse at Death
Remorse at Death
1948 · Fei Mu
Searchers 2.0
Searchers 2.0
2007 · Alex Cox
The Lady Pays Off
The Lady Pays Off
1951 · Douglas Sirk
Only God Forgives
Only God Forgives
2013 · Nicolas Winding Refn
Contraband
Contraband
2012 · Baltasar Kormákur
Repo Men
Repo Men
2010 · Miguel Sapochnik
Boyka: Undisputed IV
Boyka: Undisputed IV
2016 · Todor Chapkanov
A Dirty Carnival
A Dirty Carnival
2006 · Yoo Ha
Bamako
Bamako
2006 · Abderrahmane Sissako
Ballad of a Small Player
Ballad of a Small Player
2025 · Edward Berger
Confidence
Confidence
2003 · James Foley
I Am the End of the World
I Am the End of the World
2025 · Gennaro Nunziante
Nirvana
Nirvana
2008 · Igor Voloshin
The Serpent's Way
The Serpent's Way
1986 · Bo Widerberg
DIRECTORS WHO EXPLORE THIS
Yasujirō Ozu Japan

His films explore the quiet weight of familial obligation and intergenerational debt, particularly in how tradition and duty shape individual identity.

 Chloé Zhao China/USA

She examines how economic systems create inescapable cycles of debt and obligation that trap individuals in precarious survival.

 Michael Haneke Austria

His work scrutinizes moral obligation and psychological debt between characters, questioning complicity and responsibility in violent or corrupt systems.