I have seen this film and loved it. It was a mesmerizing look into the lives of ordinary people. what other films are there like this one? and what are other good works of this director?
shareIf you like this, you may enjoy the films of Yasujiro Ozu, to whom the film was dedicated. I'd recommend The Flavour of Green Tea over Rice, Tokyo Story, actually, any of his films you can get your hands on.
Other good works of Hou Hsiao Hsien are:
Puppetmaster
Dust in the Wind
Good Men, Good Women
A Time to Live and a Time to Die
Nobody Knows by Hirokazu Koreeda
This film has the same pace and is a glimpse of one of the best contemporary japanese film directors.
Buffalo '66 by Vincent Gallo
I know this suggestion might raise the eyebrow's of those familiar with Vincent the renegade, however Gallo is greatly influenced by Ozu, of which Cafe Lumiere was dedicated to. Gallo uses many of Ozu's trademark camera techniques and although it is a bit dark, the film is very funny. Buffalo '66 also contains similar themes of generation gaps and tension between parents and children.
Also I would suggest any movie by Jim Jarmush, my favorites being "Ghost Dog" and "Stranger than Paradise". Jarmush is interested in how different cultures interface.
shareI would also suggest the equally brilliant and maybe more narrative and embodied "Be With Me" by Eric Khoo. It also talks about communication, the lack or impossibility of it, as well as the alternatives to oral communication. Then Jarmusch's films are also close to that, as well as some Kitano's films (like "A Scene at the Sea" or "Aniki Brother").
Happy to see that people can still be moved by such films...
If you liked this, i strongly recommend Tokyo.sora.
shareRiding Alone for Thousands of Miles is another slow paced flick from a Chinese director observing the intergenerational disconnect between Japanese folks. It focuses on the father's POV & the backdrop is rural China but the 2 movies have a very similar vibe.
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I agree that WKW and HHH are very different directors.
shareThe two directors whom HHH really paved the way for were Edward Yang and Tsai Ming-Liang. While Tsai is only similar to HHH in his quiet style, the two are very different otherwise. I can't speak much for Yang, though from what I've heard he tends to deal with similar subject matter as HHH, though the only film of his that I know is available here is Yi-Yi.
Also, Hirokazu Koreeda is quite similar. He uses highly composed, static takes and emphasizes emotion, rhythm, and mood over narrative. His films are also very haunting. I recommend all that you can find (Maborosi, After Life, and Nobody Knows).
Last Films Seen:
Sybil 7/10
The Magnificent Ambersons 8.5/10
Scannners 5/10
For other Asian cinema with a similarly reserved, slow and quiet style check out Apichatpong Weerasethakul's "Blissfully Yours", films by Tsai Ming Liang, and Jia Zhangke. Once you start watching more stuff like this, you start finding more. While this more current wave may have started in Asia, there are many other filmmakers who make films in this style, such as Pedro Costa.
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Similar but not as dull and vacuous as this film:
Carlos Reygadas "Silent Light"
Anh Hung Tran "The Vertical Ray of the Sun"
Kar Wai Wong "In the Mood for Love"
Nuri Bilge Ceylan "Clouds of May"
and of course the works by the masters: Bresson, Dreyer, Tarkovsky, Bergman, Kiarostami, etc.
get some later jon jost
later takeshi kitano
goodbye dragon inn and wayward cloud
taste of tea
currently untitled by adam cooley
most Hsia Hsien Hou films
a lot of Apichatpong Weerasethakul's films
satantango
still life
anything by antonioni
all ozu
I LOVE the static camera style.
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pre·ten·tious: characterized by assumption of dignity or importance.
I second the earlier mention of Edward Yang's Yi Yi.
A director I don't think was mentioned yet in the thread is Abbas Kiarostami. I think you might find "a mesmerizing look into the lives of ordinary people" describes a lot of his work, as well as that of some other well-known directors from Iran such as Jafar Panahi, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Dariush Mehrjui, etc.
For beautifully composed shots and a contemplative pace, you might also enjoy Sergei Parajanov and Theo Angelopoulos.
last 2 dvds: Titicut Follies (1967) & Flesh for Frankenstein (1973)