Subscribe to watch - 14-day free trial, then £6.99 a month
A Moment in the Reeds
The world’s troubles recede, at least for a moment, in this intimate drama about an affair between a Finnish man and a Syrian immigrant.
Director: Mikko Mäkelä
Overview
Mikko Makela’s stunning debut explores the relationship between two men, set against an idyllic Finnish summer. Whilst visiting his estranged father, Leevi meets Tareq, a handsome Syrian immigrant employed to restore the family lake house. Leevi’s father departs for the city, leaving the two men alone in the beautiful remote countryside and enabling them to act on their impulses and the chemistry that clearly exists between them. Far removed from their everyday lives, the only immediate threat to the men’s relationship is the eventual return of Leevi’s father. But there’s also Tareq’s complex relationship with his family back in Syria.
Makela sensitively explores the perspectives of both men, who long for some human connection, acceptance and a place to call home. Locating marginalised characters at the forefront of the story, Makela’s film (which is almost entirely in English language) is a very welcome and refreshingly frank portrait of contemporary Finnish society.
Related
Les Amants du Pont-Neuf Les Amants du Pont-Neuf
Drama 1991 126 mins Director: Léos Carax
A homeless addict (Denis Lavant) and a young painter (Juliette Binoche) with failing eyesight forge a bond on the streets of Paris.
Portrait of a Lady on Fire Portrait of a Lady on Fire
Romance 2019 121 mins Director: Céline Sciamma
Céline Sciamma’s BAFTA-nominated film about the tentative love between a painter and her subject in 18th-century France.
The Deep Blue Sea The Deep Blue Sea
Drama 2011 99 mins Director: Terence Davies
Buried passions boil over in a buttoned-up postwar Britain in Terence Davies acclaimed adaptation of Rattigan's play, starring Rachel Weisz.
Amour Amour
Drama 2012 127 mins Director: Michael Haneke
Michael Haneke’s Palme d’Or-winner, about an octogenarian couple trying to cope when a stroke leaves the wife partly paralysed and speechless.
Student Services Student Services
Drama 2010 103 mins Director: Emmanuelle Bercot
A cash-strapped student becomes an escort exposing the stark realities of economic exploitation in this uncompromising gritty French drama.
My Favourite Cake My Favourite Cake
Romance 2024 97 mins Director: Maryam Moghadam and Behtash Sanaeeha
Life begins at 70 for Mahin, who decides to shake her life up in this charming, quietly subversive tale from Iran.
Swimming Pool Swimming Pool
Drama 2003 102 mins Director: François Ozon
A crime novelist seeks peace but gets a dangerous muse in this twisted bilingual thriller from François Ozon.
Beach Rats Beach Rats
Drama 2017 98 mins Director: Eliza Hittman
Gripping account of repressed sexual desire in a masculine environment, with British newcomer Harris Dickinson as a virulently macho Brooklyn teen.
Àma Gloria Àma Gloria
Drama 2023 84 mins Director: Marie Amachoukeli
Six-year-old Cléo spends a final summer with her beloved nanny Gloria, in this profoundly moving story of chosen family, duty and innocence lost.
Bottle Rocket Bottle Rocket
Comedy 1995 91 mins Director: Wes Anderson
Wes Anderson's debut ditches kitsch in favour of surprisingly subtle comedy, in this tale of a criminally inept gang led by Owen Wilson.
The Balconettes The Balconettes
Comedy 2024 104 mins Director: Noémie Merlant
Co-written with Céline Sciamma, Noémie Merlant’s bold film follows three friends as they dispose of the body of an abuser they’ve accidentally killed.
Swimming Home Swimming Home
Comedy 2024 96 mins Director: Justin Anderson
A family finds a stranger floating naked in their swimming pool in this sensual, sun-baked drama starring Christopher Abbott
Sebastian Sebastian
Drama 2024 110 mins Director: Mikko Mäkelä
A young London-based writer begins a double life as a sex worker to research his debut novel, in this gripping psychological drama.
20th Century Women 20th Century Women
Drama 2016 118 mins Director: Mike Mills
Annette Bening stars as a mum enlisting two friends (Greta Gerwig and Elle Fanning) to help her son navigate adolescence in Mike Mills’s comedy-drama.
Stan & Ollie Stan & Ollie
Biopic 2019 98 mins Director: Jon S. Baird
Steve Coogan and John C Reilly give delightful performances as Laurel & Hardy - comedy’s most famous double act - as they enter their twilight years.
Urchin Urchin
Drama 2025 99 mins Director: Harris Dickinson
The debut feature from actor Harris Dickinson sees a homeless addict get a shot at recovery and redemption.
Malpertuis Malpertuis
Fantasy 1971 125 mins Director: Harry Kümel
Orson Welles stars in this labyrinthine mythological fantasy set in a baroque mansion, from the director of Daughters of Darkness.
Daughters of Darkness Daughters of Darkness
Horror 1970 100 mins Director: Harry Kümel
A newlywed couple is entangled by the spellbinding aura of a vampire in Harry Kümel’s seductive horror.
Godland Godland
Drama 2022 143 mins Director: Hlynur Pálmason
Breathtakingly inventive and ambitious historical epic about a young Danish priest travelling to a remote Icelandic outpost to establish a church.