More films like this?

A very interesting list from you, indeed! I would add any of Wim Wenders' early films (I see you have Paris, Texas here), especially Wrong Move, The Goalie's Anxiety at the Penalty Kick, Alice in the Cities and his masterpiece Kings of the Road.

Of course the films you're mentioning have little obvious things in common (especially compared to epic scale movies like Deer Hunter), but I too am attracted to character-driven, subtle dramatic pieces like these. Essentially they are poles apart from the trendiness and gimmickry that typifies modern cinema -the audience hankering for bombast and effects. That is why the most popular directors of the current era are laughingly called "visionaries" (Fincher etc.) and all-flash/no-content types like Tarantino now are strong Oscar bait the way "square" filmmakers (most notably Stanley Kramer) used to be.

My favorite short story writer is the great Brit talent H.E. Bates, and any film based on his material is worth your time. Ironically, his writing is intentionally gimmicky in the O Henry tradition (his stories almost always have a shocking twist you don't see coming) but they are fabulous character studies nonetheless.

Your first entry on the list, Whistle Down the Wind, reminds me that Bryan Forbes was notable for his work in this subtle vein: you should see many of his classics like The Whisperers, Seance on a Wet Afternoon and King Rat.

Here are a few that I consider little gems:

Holiday Affair (1949)
Lili (1953)
Mister Buddwing (1966)
Up the Down Staircase (1967)
I Never Sang For My Father (1970)
Waiting For Guffman (1996)