Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Existentialist Film Festival
Films to stimulate thought – whether provocative dramas, or
documentaries on abstract matters – containing existentialist philosophy.
Be sure also to visit our
Philosophy Film Festival
and the
Existentialism Page
 | "Existentialism and Contemporary Cinema: A Sartrean Perspective" [2011] Edited by Jean-Pierre Boulé & Enda McCaffrey Berghahn Books 9½x6¼ hardcover [10/2011] for $70.00 see also Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore's Jean-Paul Sartre [1905-80] Page |
 | "Existentialism and Contemporary Cinema: A Beauvoirian Perspective" [2012] by Jean-Pierre Boulé & Ursula Tidd Berghahn Books 8x6 hardcover [10/2012] for $70.00 |
"Being There"
[Lorimar/United Artists Dec 1979]
  | Perhaps Peter Sellers's best performance, earning him an Oscar nomination. This subtle black comedy is straight-faced commentary on politics, media, and celebrity in media-savvy America – strangely compelling and thought-provoking. Both movie & book brilliantly depict the precarious nature of power and influence. Directed by Hal Ashby, written by Jerzy Kosinski & Robert C. Jones; co-starring Shirley MacLaine, Melvyn Douglas & Jack Warden; won Oscar for Best Supporting Actor, BAFTA for screenplay
Warner Video color DVD [2/2002] for $15.99 Warner Video color VHS [2/2002] for $13.74 full credits from IMDb • theme music [2min:06sec] |
 | novel by Jerzy N. Kosinski [1970]
Grove Press 8¼x5½ pb [9/99] for $8.80 movie entry at Wikipedia |
"Bobby Deerfield"
[Columbia Pictures Sept 1977]
 | Based on the novel "Heaven Has No Favorites" by Erich Maria Remarque. The tale of an emotionally-remote racecar driver who falls in love with a woman who is terminally ill. Directed by Sydney Pollack; adaptation by Alvin Sargent; starring Al Pacino, Marthe Keller & Anny Duperey
Warner color VHS [1/94] for $14.99 full credits from IMDb novel by Erich Maria Remarque [1961] Ballantine 8¼x5¼ pb [6/98] out of print/used Harcourt hardcover [6/61] out of print/used |
"Breathless" aka 'À Bout de Souffle'
[France 1960, USA Feb 1961]
| One of the films that began the French 'Nouvelle Vague' [New Wave] movement, the story of a small-time crook who finds love (maybe) when his life is at its most dangerous point. This triumph of cinema noir reveals the truth behind our truths, thru the lives in the movie that are contaminated by American movies and avant garde posing. The viewer is left uncertain where truth may indeed exist. (The 1983 English-language color remake is only half as good as the original.) |
 | Directed by Jean-Luc Godard, written by Jean-Luc Godard & François Truffaut; starring Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg & Jean-Pierre Melville
27"x40" 'A Bout de Souffle' poster from Amazon for $17.99 Fox/Lorber b&w DVD w/Engl. subtitles [11/2001] for $21.49 Timeless Video b&w VHS w/Engl. subtitles [7/94] for $14.99 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"Catch-22"
[Filmways/Paramount June 1970]
| Based on the best-selling Joseph Heller novel. Captain Yossarian (Alan Arkin) tries desperately to get grounded so he will not have to fly any more bombing missions over Hitler's Europe: anyone who goes to war is crazy, but if he asks to be grounded for being crazy, then he's not crazy anymore and he has to keep flying – 'catch 22'. A gut-wrenching satire. |
 | Directed by Mike Nichols; screenplay by Buck Henry; all-star cast including Alan Arkin, Buck Henry & Orson Welles Paramount widescreen color DVD [5/2013] for $5.97 Paramount widescreen color DVD [5/2001] for $11.99 Paramount color VHS [8/2001] for $9.95 full credits from IMDb |
 |      novel by Joseph Heller [1961]
Kindle Edition from Simon & Schuster Digital Sales [10/2010] for $8.80 S&S 8½x5¾ pb [4/2011] for $9.32 Everyman's Library 8½x5¼ hardcover [10/99] for $18.30 |
 | "Closing Time: A Novel" [1994] the sequel to 'Catch-22'
Scribner 9x5¾ pb [9/95] for $10.40 S&S 9½x6½ hardcover [10/94] out of print/used |
"Cross of Iron" [Avco/EMI 1976]
 | Death, horror & futility – an anti-war film from the German Army point of view, as they retreat from the debacle of Stalingrad. And do not miss the very last freeze-frame, which is what makes Peckinpah's only war movie an existential masterpiece. Directed by Sam Peckinpah, adapted from Willi Heinrich's novel "The Willing Flesh"; starring James Coburn, Maximilian Schell, James Mason & David Warner
Hen's Tooth Video color DVD [2/2000] for $25.49 Hen's Tooth Video color VHS [10/98] for $29.99 full credits from IMDb novel by Willi Heinrich Noontide hardcover [5/88] out of print/used Bantam pb [3/81] out of print/used |
"Cutter's Way" [United Artists 1981]
 | The poetic cinematography, the acting, and the music are superb. The murder mystery is merely back-ground for the existential mess of life in post-Vietnam America and the savagely heroic resolution in the last frame. Directed by Ivan Passer, starring Jeff Bridges [Cutter], John Heard [Bone], Lisa Eichhorn, Ann Dusenberry & Stephen Elliott; music by Jack Nitzsche
MGM/UA widescreen DVD [7/2001] for $17.98 MGM/UA color VHS [6/91] for $19.98 full credits from IMDb based on the novel "Cutter & Bone" [1976] by Newton Thornburg Serpents Tail 7¾x5 pb [7/2001] for $11.20 |
"Easy Rider" [Columbia Pictures July 1969]
 | Two long-haired bikers cross America and meet unusual people, including a drunken lawyer portrayed by Jack Nicholson. Co-written & directed by Dennis Hopper; co-written by Peter Fonda & Terry Southern; starring Peter Fonda, Dennis Hopper, Jack Nicholson & Karen Black; Oscar nominations for Best Supporting Actor [JN] & Best Original Script; added to National Film Registry (1998)
Sony Pictures widescreen color Blu-ray [10/2009] for $24.99 Columbia/TriStar 35th Anniv DVD [9/2004] 2 disks for $23.96 Columbia/TriStar DVD [3/2004] for $10.99 Hip-O remastered soundtrack CD [3/2004] 2 disks for $26.99 MCA soundtrack CD [6/2000] for $9.98 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
more details (synopsis, books, links) on the
"Easy Rider" 1969 Movie Page at Magic Lantern Video & Book Store
"Electra Glide In Blue"
[United Artists August 1973]
 | An Arizona motorcycle cop is promoted to Homicide and is confronted with his illusions about himself and his community. (Incidentally a visual feast by cinematographer Conrad Hall.)
Directed by James William Guercio; written by Robert Boris & Rupert Hitzig; starring Robert Blake, Billy Green Bush, Mitch Ryan, Elisha Cook Jr. & Royal Dano
M.G.M. widescreen color DVD [3/2005] for $12.99 MGM color VHS [9/98] out of stock/used full credits from IMDb |
"Falling Down" [Regency/Warner Feb 1993]
 | A divorced engineer loses his job and then enroute to his daughter's birthday party encounters further setbacks, turns psychotic and marches across Los Angeles shooting and smashing anyone who crosses him. The only possible end for such a tale is tragedy. Directed by Joel Schumacher; starring Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall, Barbara Hershey, Tuesday Weld, Rachel Ticotin & Frederic Forrest
Warner widescreen DVD [8/2000] for $13.48 Warner color VHS [3/96] for $9.94 full credits from IMDb |
"Fitzcarraldo" [Germany 1982]
 click to enlarge | Look at the video/poster image: I love this film for the Sisyphus aspect – in order to make the film, Herzog & crew had to repeat the accomplishment of hauling a real steamboat (of 320 tons!) up a real mountain slope with real ropes and chains and real indigenous laborers, far from civilization in a steaming South American jungle – while making a 35mm feature film, and on a budget! Co-produced, written & directed by Werner Herzog; starring Klaus Kinski & Claudia Cardinale Anchor Bay widescreen color DVD [11/99] for $31.48 Anchor Bay widescreen color VHS [10/99] for $14.99 full credits from IMDb |
"Fitzcarraldo: The Original Story" [1983] by Werner Herzog
Fjord Press pb [1/83] out of print/used
"Burden of Dreams" The Making of Fitzcarraldo" [1982] docufilm by Les Blank
Criterion color DVD [5/2005] for $35.99
Flowers Films & Video color VHS [5/92] out of prodn/used
full credits from IMDb
"Burden of Dreams: Screenplay, Journals, Reviews, Photographs" [1984] by Les Blank
North Atlantic Books 9x6¼ pb [9/84] out of print/used
North Atlantic Books hardcover [9/84] out of print/used
"Flight From Death: The Quest For Immortality"
[indep 2003 TV special]
 | Co-produced, co-written & directed by Patrick Shen; narrated by Gabriel Byrne; based on the works of Ernest Becker [1925-74] Go-Kart color DVD [9/2005] out of stock/rare full credits at IMDb • official movie site • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"The Last Wave" aka "Black Rain"
[Australia 1977]
 | An Australian lawyer (Richard Chamberlain) investigates a murder and collides with raw nature and the mysterious culture of the Aborigines, fulfilling his destiny in a haunting apocalyptic climax. Directed by Peter Weir, co-starring Olivia Hamnett & David Gulpilil
Home Vision color VHS [11/2001] for $19.95 Rhino color VHS [10/92] for $19.95 Home Vision color DVD [11/2001] for $25.49 full credits from IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"The Mechanic"
[Chartoff-Winkler/U.A. Nov 1972]
 | An aging professional assassin who is ready to retire is pressured to take on and train an apprentice, who may not be exactly what he seems. Directed by Michael Winner; script by Lewis John Carlino; starring Charles Bronson, Jan-Michael Vincent, Keenan Wynn, Jill Ireland & Frank DeKova M.G.M. color DVD [10/2002] for $13.01 M.G.M./U.A. color VHS [2/93] out of stock/used full credits from IMDb |
remake 2015?
"The Nature of Existence"
[indep June 2010]
 | Filmmaker Nygard roamed the globe to find the source of each of the world's philosophies, religions, and belief systems, interviewiung spiritual leaders, scholars, scien-tists, artists, pizza chefs, wrestlers, swamis, nuns & others.
Co-produced, directed by & featuring Roger Nygard; interviewees include Rob Adonis, Amiri Baraka, Geoffrey Bolt, Orson Scott Card, Richard Dawkins, Daniel Gilbert, Irvin Kershner, Larry Niven, Leonard Susskind & Julia Sweeney
DVD/Blu-ray not yet available • full credits at IMDb • official movie site |
"No Exit"
based on the 1944 stageplay by Jean-Paul Sartre [1905-80]
 | "Huis Clos de Jean-Paul Sartre" feature film [France Dec 1954] Directed by Jacqueline Audry; adapted by Pierre Laroche; starring Arletty, Franck Villard, Gaby Sylvia & Yves Deniaud Region 1 DVD not available; full credits at IMDb |
 | "No Exit" aka "Sinners Go To Hell" [Zenith Intl. Dec 1962] Directed by Tad Danielewski (with help from Orson Welles); adapted by George Tabori; starring Morgan Sterne, Viveca Lindfors, Rita Gam, Elsa Dorian, Mario Horna, Miguel A. Irarte, Mirta Miller & Ben Piazza; won Silver Berlin Bear Award for Best Actress shared by Rita Gam & Viveca Lindfors DVD/Blu-ray not available • full credits at IMDb • movie entry at Wikipedia |
"No Exit Suite In Six Parts" plus 7 tracks of 'Line of Apogee' by Vladimir Ussachevsky
New World Records music CD [12/92] 13 tracks for $17.99
"The Passenger" aka "Professione: Reporter"
[M.G.M. April 1975]
 | A bored television reporter on location in Africa switches identity with a dead man. He moves on with the man's passport, luggage, and appointment schedule, expecting a life more exciting than his own. Things seem to improve when he meets a sexy young woman, but this new life soon delivers more than he can handle. Co-written & directed by Michelangelo Antonioni; starring Jack Nicholson, Maria Schneider, Jenny Runacre & Ian Hendry
Sony color DVD [4/2006] for $17.49 Warner color VHS [8/90] out of prodn/used full credits from IMDb |
"The Plague" aka 'La Peste' [1992]
 | Written & directed by Luis Puenzo; starring William Hurt, Sandrine Bonnaire, Robert Duvall & Raul Julia Lions Gate/Artisan color VHS [10/94] out of prodn/used full credits from IMdb |
 | 1947 novel by Albert Camus; translation by Stuart Gilbert
Vintage 8x5 pb [5/91] for $10.80 French original NTC/Contemporary pb [6/47] for $8.95 |
"Rhinoceros" [American Film Theatre 1974]
based on the Eugène Ionesco play, starring Zero Mostel, Gene Wilder & Karen Black
"Sartre vs. Camus" short film [Aeon Feb 2017]
 | Abstract view of the friendship of French existentialist philosophers Jean-Paul Sartre [1905-80] and Albert Camus [1913-60] and their breakup in 1951 • Directed by Andrew Khosravani
no entry found at IMDb • watch short video [3:26] online at YouTube |
"Vanishing Point" [Fox 1971]
 | Anti-hero Kowalski (Barry Newman) bets that he can drive a new Dodge Challenger from Denver, Colorado to San Francisco in 15 hours. This existential car-chase proceeds to its inevitable conclusion – just like life (to the existentialist). Directed by Richard C. Sarafian; co-starring Cleavon Little, Dean Jagger & Victoria Medlin Fox Video widescreen color Blu-ray [2/2009] for $20.99 Fox Video widescreen color DVD [2/2004] for $7.99 Fox Video color VHS [1/99] for $33.95 full credits from IMDb |
there is a TV movie remake of this film
"Waiting For Godot"
This existential stageplay by Samuel Beckett [1906-89] was first performed in January 1953 at the Théâtre
de Babylone in Paris, France. It has been filmed once, and broadcast on television eight times. Two tramps
wait on a hill for a man named Godot, but instead meet a pompous man and his stooped-over slave.
 | "Waiting For Godot" episode of "Play of The Week" [N.E.T. April 1961] Directed by Alan Schneider; presented by Milo O'Shea, with Barney Rosset, publisher at Grove Press; starring Burgess Meredith, Zero Mostel, Kurt Kasznar, Alvin Epstein & Luke Halpin Applause Books b&w VHS [undated] out of prodn/scarce full credits at IMDb |
video not available • bare credits at IMDb
"Waiting For Godot (I Väntan på Godot)" [Swedish TV 1971]
video not available • credits at IMDb
"Waiting For Godot (Wachten op Godot)" [Belgian/Dutch TV 1973]
video not available • credits at IMDb
"Waiting For Godot (Warten auf Godot)" [German TV 1976]
Directed by Samuel Beckett • video not available • credits at IMDb
"Waiting For Godot" [TV 1977]
Starring Dana Elcar, Bruce French, Donald Moffat & Ralph Waite
video not available • bare credits at IMDb
"Beckett Directs Beckett: Waiting For Godot" [TV 1988]
Directed by Samuel Beckett & Robert Bilheimer; starring Lawrence Held, Bud Thorpe, Alan Mendell,
Rick Cluchey & Louis Beckett-Cluchey • video not available • bare credits at IMDb
"Waiting For Godot" [U.K. TV 1991]
Starring Leslie Grantham, Brian Blessed & Clive S. Hunt
video not available • bare credits at IMDb
 | "Waiting For Godot" [R.T.E./Film Four Feb 2001] Filmed as part of the 'Beckett On Film Project' at the Dublin Gate Theatre in Ireland Directed by Michael Lindsay-Hogg; starring Barry McGovern, Johnny Murphy, Alan Stanford, Stephen Brennan & Sam McGovern Ambrose Video widescreen color DVD set [7/2002] 19 plays on 4 disks for $149.95 full credits at IMDb • official Beckett On Film Project site |
Visit Our Other Online Film Festival Pages
Afro-American Film Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
Atomic Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Auto-Racing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Ayn Rand Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Baseball Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Beatnik Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
'Biker Movies' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Boxing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Circus Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Classic Movies & Cinema Masters Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Culver City, California Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Cyber Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Economics Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Education Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore's Existentialist Film Festival «« you are here
Films Noir Festival at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
Football Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
47 Rônin / Chüshingura Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Gangster Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Hollywood Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Horse-Racing Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Human Rights Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Kings & Queens Film Festival at Magic Lantern
'Knights of Yore' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Labor Movement Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Movie Musicals Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Muscle-Head Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Native American Film Festival at 'Readers of The Purple Sage' Bookstore
Oscar-Winning Western Movies Page at 'Readers of The Purple Sage' Bookstore
Philosophy Film Festival at Maison d'Être Philosophy Bookstore
Pirate Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Political Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Railroad Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
'Rat Race' Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Road Movies Film Festival at Magic Lantern
Rock Music Film Festival at Spirit of America Bookstore
Samurai Films Page at Magic Lantern
Science Fiction Film Festival at Magic Lantern
'Shakespeare On Film' Pages at Magic Lantern
Sherlock Holmes Film Festival at BlackHat Mystery Bookstore
Sports Film Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
War [& Anti-War] Film Festival Pages at Magic Lantern
Western Movies Film Festival at 'Readers of The Purple Sage' Bookstore
... and others on the Online Film Festivals Index Page
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