Stan burns down his home and takes a job as a carny with a traveling carnival. Stan is disturbed at how any man could sink to the level of performing as a geek. Clem explains that he seeks out alcoholic or drug-addicted men with troubled pasts, and lures them in with promises of a "temporary" job and opium-laced alcohol. He then uses their dependence until they sink into madness and depravity, thus creating a new geek. Stan also works with clairvoyant act "Madame Zeena" and her alcoholic husband, Pete. He and Zeena warn Stan not to ever use these skills otherwise people get hurt. Meanwhile Stan becomes attracted to fellow performer Molly and approaches her with an idea for a two-person act away from the carnival.

In Tokyo, the reckless single mother Keiko moves to a small apartment with her twelve years old son Akira Fukushima and his siblings Shigeru and Yuki. Kyoko, another sibling arrives later by train. The children have different fathers and do not have schooling, but they have a happy life with their mother. When Keiko finds a new boyfriend, she leaves the children alone, giving some money to Akira and assigning him to take care of his siblings. When the money runs out, Akira manages to find means to survive with the youngsters without power supply, gas or water at home, and with the landlord asking for the rent.

Dwelling on his past glory as a prize-winning author, Ryota (Hiroshi Abe) wastes the money he makes as a private detective on gambling and can barely pay child support. After the death of his father, his aging mother (Kirin Kiki) and beautiful ex-wife (Yoko Make) seem to be moving on with their lives. Renewing contact with his initially distrusting family, Ryota struggles to take back control of his existence and to find a lasting place in the life of his young son (Taiyo Yoshizawa) - until a stormy summer night offers them a chance to truly bond again.

2016 Japanese film directed by Hirokazu Koreeda

Lynn, a genius high school student who makes money by helping others cheat tests, receives a new task that leads her to Sydney, Australia. In order to complete the millions-Baht task, Lynn and her classmate have to finish the international STIC (SAT) exam and deliver the answers back to her friends in Thailand, before the exam takes place once again in her home country.

Jean (Chutimon Chuengcharoensukying) wants to convert her house into a home office and she needs to majorly declutter and reorganize her entire house. Anything that has been lying around unused, she just simply throws all. However, Jean faces a great challenge when she comes across some items that belonged to Aim (Sunny Suwanmethanont), her ex-boyfriend. Although she has no use for the items, each one reminds her of a story that brings back memories, along with unresolved feelings that cannot be easily discarded by just dumping them into the garbage bag. Jean has to decide what to do with Aim's stuff. Should she just throw everything, keep everything, or return the items to their rightful owner to clear them completely from her house and her heart?

2019 film directed by Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit

In the wake of the sexual revolution and the rise of the women's movement, the 1973 tennis match between women's world champion

2017 film directed by Valerie Faris and Jonathan Dayton

Deliveryman Jongsu is out on a job when he runs into Haemi, a girl who once lived in his neighbourhood. She asks if he'd mind looking after her cat while she's away on a trip to Africa. On her return, she introduces to Jongsu an enigmatic young man named Ben, who she met during her trip. One day Ben tells Jongsu about his most unusual hobby.

"Hamilton" is the story of America then, told by America now. Featuring a score that blends hip-hop, jazz, R&B, and show tunes, "Hamilton" has taken the story of American founding father Alexander Hamilton and created a revolutionary moment in theater--a musical that has had a profound impact on culture, politics, and education. Captured at the Richard Rodgers Theater on Broadway in June 2016, the film transports its audience into the world of the Broadway show in a uniquely intimate way.

2020 film of the 2015 Broadway musical of the same name

A spell of time in the life of a family living in rural Tochigi prefecture, north of Tokyo. Though her husband is busy working at an office, Yoshiko is not an ordinary housewife, instead working on an animated film project at home. Uncle Ayano has recently arrived, looking to get his head together after living in Tokyo for several years. Meanwhile, Yoshiko's daughter Sachiko is mainly concerned with why she seems to be followed around everywhere by a giant version of herself.

Two years after his wife's unexpected death, Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima), a renowned stage actor and director, receives an offer to direct a production of Uncle Vanya at a theater festival in Hiroshima. There, he meets Misaki Watari (Toko Miura), a taciturn young woman assigned by the festival to chauffeur him in his beloved red Saab 900. As the production's premiere approaches, tensions mount amongst the cast and crew, not least between Yusuke and Koshi Takatsuki, a handsome TV star who shares an unwelcome connection to Yusuke's late wife. Forced to confront painful truths raised from his past, Yusuke begins - with the help of his driver - to face the haunting mysteries his wife left behind.

To Watch

More lists by Persis Flores

Best Reads

To Read

Current Reads