A failed London musician meets once a week with a woman for a series of intense sexual encounters to get away from the realities of life. But when he begins inquiring about her, it puts their relationship at risk.
Although deeply in love with her boyfriend - and indeed sleeping in the same bed with him - a schoolteacher cannot handle the almost complete lack of intimacy he will allow. Increasingly ... See full summary »
Director:
Catherine Breillat
Stars:
Caroline Ducey,
Sagamore Stévenin,
François Berléand
In London, intense sexual encounters take place between an American college student, named Lisa, and an English scientist, named Matt, between attending rock concerts.
Director:
Michael Winterbottom
Stars:
Kieran O'Brien,
Margo Stilley,
Black Rebel Motorcycle Club
An outgoing, sexually aggressive young woman meets and begins a torrid affair with an equally aggressive young man in which their affair begins to bring a strain on their personal lives.
Director:
Clement Virgo
Stars:
Lauren Lee Smith,
Eric Balfour,
Polly Shannon
In a social context deteriorated by a countrywide economic crisis, the life of several people will be turned upside down after they meet Cecile, a character who symbolizes desire.
Angela an illegal immigrant living in Los Angeles stumbles across Bill, a disgraced banker on the run.Through sex, conversation ranging from politics to philosophy, and other worldly pleasures, Angela introduces Bill to another worldview.
Director:
Philippe Diaz
Stars:
Keller Wortham,
Shari Solanis,
Luis Fernandez-Gil
A deadly car crash sets off three parallel stories of women at crisis points, faltering behind the doors of the same, plain Vienna apartment block. A bored nurse with a stable, comfortable ... See full summary »
A young single mother drops her son of at the bus stop to visit his dad in Paris. After being late for work, she almost gets fired. At the end of her duties she gets into a tricky situation which she handles, with the advice her colleague gave her.
Director:
Sergej Moya
Stars:
Saralisa Volm,
Clemens Schick,
Jan-Gregor Kremp
Can strangers connect? Can casual sex become something else? In Santiago, Daniela and Bruno, both about 30, meet at a party, go to another and end up in a hotel. We join them there as ... See full summary »
One day at a colleague's going away party, Anna meets Domenico, a virile, slightly older chap who's married with two small kids. Passion's flames are rapidly kindled and result in steamy encounters.
Director:
Silvio Soldini
Stars:
Alba Rohrwacher,
Pierfrancesco Favino,
Teresa Saponangelo
Three generations of a French family open up about their sexual experiences and desires after young Romain is caught masturbating in his biology class.
Directors:
Pascal Arnold,
Jean-Marc Barr
Stars:
Mathias Melloul,
Valérie Maës,
Stephan Hersoen
Two young women find themselves struggling to survive in Paris, street-wise Nathalie, a stripper, and naïve Sandrine, a barmaid. Together, they discover that sex can be used to their ... See full summary »
Director:
Jean-Claude Brisseau
Stars:
Coralie Revel,
Sabrina Seyvecou,
Roger Miremont
Jay, a failed musician, walked out of his family and now earns a living as head bartender in a trendy London pub. Every Wednesday afternoon a woman comes to his house for graphic, almost wordless, sex. One day Jay follows her and finds out about the rest of her life (and that her name is Claire). This eventually disrupts their relationship.Written by
Will Gilbert
The first mainstream English language film with an unsimulated sex scene to be passed uncut in Great Britain. See more »
Quotes
Ian:
You know when you're with someone there's only a very short time when you can really give each other things for free... with neither of you having to ask. Because later on all you do is make demands of each other. Perhaps the only difference between her and all the rest is that she's asking you for nothing.
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Alternate Versions
Fully uncut version runs 122 minutes and includes a graphic scene of oral sex that was cut in most releases. See more »
Like most films either adapted from Hanif Kureishi's fiction or having screenplays written by him (`My Beautiful Laundrette', `Sammy And Rosie Get Laid' as well as this film, which lists Kureishi as a co-writer along with Anne-Louise Trividic and director Patrice Chereau), `Intimacy' circles its subject in an indirect manner, never declaring what it's truly about but leaving a distinct impression. This can make for difficult viewing, requiring an inordinate amount of concentration to keep up (and which wears you down after a while) and it only sinks in long after it's over. But that's the film's strong point: the writers prefer to have you draw your own conclusions, with dialogue that forces you to read between the lines of an affair in which both participants seem to be using it to address their individual demons. Chereau and Kureishi are more interested in their characters' circumstances than their actions but it's precisely their circumstances that make their actions compelling. Mark Rylance and Kerry Fox are the lovers (and they're excellent, even though the fact their trysts are presented in explicit detail may overshadow their performances), with Rylance as a bitter bartender who has spontaneously abandoned his family and Fox as a drama teacher stifled in her marriage to a cabbie (Mike Leigh favorite Timothy Spall, also very fine) whom Rylance befriends in an attempt to understand her; it's the tensions that build around the trio that drives the narrative. It's an unhappy yet sensitive film that may distance some audiences and push others into uncomfortable areas they may not want to visit, yet there's no denying its inquisitive, intelligent presence.
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Like most films either adapted from Hanif Kureishi's fiction or having screenplays written by him (`My Beautiful Laundrette', `Sammy And Rosie Get Laid' as well as this film, which lists Kureishi as a co-writer along with Anne-Louise Trividic and director Patrice Chereau), `Intimacy' circles its subject in an indirect manner, never declaring what it's truly about but leaving a distinct impression. This can make for difficult viewing, requiring an inordinate amount of concentration to keep up (and which wears you down after a while) and it only sinks in long after it's over. But that's the film's strong point: the writers prefer to have you draw your own conclusions, with dialogue that forces you to read between the lines of an affair in which both participants seem to be using it to address their individual demons. Chereau and Kureishi are more interested in their characters' circumstances than their actions but it's precisely their circumstances that make their actions compelling. Mark Rylance and Kerry Fox are the lovers (and they're excellent, even though the fact their trysts are presented in explicit detail may overshadow their performances), with Rylance as a bitter bartender who has spontaneously abandoned his family and Fox as a drama teacher stifled in her marriage to a cabbie (Mike Leigh favorite Timothy Spall, also very fine) whom Rylance befriends in an attempt to understand her; it's the tensions that build around the trio that drives the narrative. It's an unhappy yet sensitive film that may distance some audiences and push others into uncomfortable areas they may not want to visit, yet there's no denying its inquisitive, intelligent presence.