THEME EXPLORATION

urban escapism

44 films · 3 directors

Tracing the thread…

FILMS THAT EXPLORE THIS
Touki Bouki
Touki Bouki
1973 · Djibril Diop Mambéty
Dodes’ka-den
Dodes’ka-den
1970 · Akira Kurosawa
Tasogare Sakaba
Tasogare Sakaba
1955 · Tomu Uchida
The Lovers
The Lovers
1958 · Louis Malle
Breathless
Breathless
1960 · Jean-Luc Godard
Miracle in Milan
Miracle in Milan
1951 · Vittorio De Sica
The Battle of Algiers
The Battle of Algiers
1966 · Gillo Pontecorvo
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
1998 · Guy Ritchie
Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans
Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans
1927 · F. W. Murnau
Under the Skin
Under the Skin
2013 · Jonathan Glazer
71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance
71 Fragments of a Chronology of Chance
1994 · Michael Haneke
Die Hard
Die Hard
1988 · John McTiernan
Alles dreht sich, alles bewegt sich
Alles dreht sich, alles bewegt sich
1929 · Hans Richter
Chungking Express
Chungking Express
1994 · Wong Kar-wai
The Death of Mr Lazarescu
The Death of Mr Lazarescu
2005 · Cristi Puiu
The Raid Redemption
The Raid Redemption
2011 · Gareth Evans
After Hours
After Hours
1985 · Martin Scorsese
Amores Perros
Amores Perros
2000 · Alejandro González Iñárritu
Capernaum
Capernaum
2018 · Nadine Labaki
Heavenly Creatures
Heavenly Creatures
1994 · Peter Jackson
Manila in the Claws of Light
Manila in the Claws of Light
1975 · Lino Brocka
City of God
City of God
2002 · Fernando Meirelles
Rocco and His Brothers
Rocco and His Brothers
1960 · Luchino Visconti
The Lunchbox
The Lunchbox
2013 · Ritesh Batra
The Man Without a Past
The Man Without a Past
2002 · Aki Kaurismäki
Tony Manero
Tony Manero
2008 · Pablo Larraín
West Beirut
West Beirut
1998 · Ziad Doueiri
25 Watts
25 Watts
2001 · Juan Pablo Rebella
7 Boxes
7 Boxes
2012 · Juan Carlos Maneglia
Ali Zaoua Prince of the Streets
Ali Zaoua Prince of the Streets
2000 · Nabil Ayouch
Cabaret Balkan
Cabaret Balkan
1998 · Goran Paskaljević
From Afar
From Afar
2015 · Lorenzo Vigas
Cosmopolis
Cosmopolis
2012 · David Cronenberg
Laberinto de pasiones
Laberinto de pasiones
1982 · Pedro Almodóvar
Malee and the Boy
Malee and the Boy
1999 · Apichatpong Weerasethakul
Jagte Raho
Jagte Raho
1957 · Amit Mitra & Sombhu Mitra
Better Go Mad in the Wild
Better Go Mad in the Wild
2025 · Miro Remo
Khaled
Khaled
2002 · Asghar Massombagi
Rosemary's Baby
Rosemary's Baby
1968 · Roman Polanski
The Garden
The Garden
1995 · Martin Šulík
You Have to Come and See It
You Have to Come and See It
2022 · Jonás Trueba
24 City
24 City
2008 · Jia Zhangke
Aquarius
Aquarius
2016 · Kleber Mendonça Filho
A Confucian Confusion
A Confucian Confusion
1994 · Edward Yang
DIRECTORS WHO EXPLORE THIS
Wong Kar-wai Hong Kong

His neon-soaked films create dreamlike urban spaces where characters escape into romance, memory, and visual aesthetics to transcend the chaos of metropolitan life.

 Michelangelo Antonioni Italy

His work explores urban alienation and the search for meaning in modern cities, using architecture and landscape as characters that reflect existential escape and disconnection.

 Sofia Coppola United States

Her films depict characters seeking refuge in isolation, introspection, and intimate moments within sprawling cities, capturing the melancholy beauty of urban withdrawal.