David Farnor | On 22, Aug 2015

Not getting your arthouse fix from Netflix? Wish there were more indie films on Amazon Prime? Every week, we round up the new releases on MUBI, a subscription VOD service that hand-picks films from around the world and adds one a day, with each film available to stream or download for a month. (Current titles include Away We Go and The Swimmer.)

Here’s what’s new and coming soon to MUBI UK:

Stolen Desire – Monday 17th August

Shohei Imamura directs this 1958 comedy about a troupe of travelling actors alternating highlights of kabuki theatre with strip shows in a rambunctious journey across Japan.

Available until: 16th September

Goodbye Solo – Tuesday 18th August

Almost a companion piece to Kiarostami’s Taste of Cherry, this 2008 indie follows a Senegalese cab driver in North Carolina, who is hired to take an old man to a place where he plans to commit suicide – and decides to talk him out of it.

Available until: 17th September

NEDS – Wednesday 19th August

Peter Mullan’s drama, inspired by his own childhood, is a harrowing and violent journey through adolescence with obnoxious, scrotey Glaswegians. Which is as fun – and as powerful – as it sounds.

Available until: 18th September

Shoah – Thursday 20th August

Claude Lanzmann’s essential, 10-hour documentary recounts the story of the Holocaust through interviews with witnesses – the perpetrators as well as survivors.

Available until: 19th September

El Mariachi – Friday 21st August

The first part of a Robert Rodriguez triple-bill on MUBI, the director made his Western-tinged debut with no more than a fistful of dollars. The result has become a legendary example for film students everywhere. A small scale taster for the outrageous action to come later in his career, this is proof that all you need to entertain an audience is a guitar case, 7 grand and a whole heap of ambition.

Available until: 20th September

Desperado – Saturday 22nd August

MUBI’s Robert Rodriguez triple-bill continues with the bigger, louder remake of El Mariachi. From the casting of Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek – and a cameo from Steve Buscemi – to the explosions of a large budget, this is a wonderful example of how fun it is to simply watch a director enjoying himself.

Available until: 21st September

Once Upon a Time in Mexico – Sunday 23rd August

Robert Rodriguez turned things up from 11 to 12 with this equally outrageous sequel, which sees Johnny Depp as a CIA agent added to the mix of guitars, guns and girls. If it marked the start of the period where Rodriguez’s work became familiar, though, there’s still some excitement in the director’s bag of overblown tricks. The final part of MUBI’s triple-bill.

Available until: 22nd September

Bicycle Thieves – Monday 24th August

From Rodriguez to Vittoria de Sica, the arrival of 1948 classic Bicycle Thieves on MUBI is a reminder not just of Italy’s neo-realism movement but also a demonstration of how versatile the subscription VOD service can be.

Available until: 23rd September

Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow – Tuesday 25th August

MUBI continues a Vittoria de Sica double-bill with Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow. The anthology of three stories, starring a cast that includes Sophia Loren and Marcello Mastroianni, bagged the Oscar for Best Foreign Language Film in 1965.

Available until: 24th September

White Elephant – Wednesday 26th August

Ricardo Darin Stars in this powerful drama about the giant building site sitting in the middle of Buenos Aires, which has gone from being Latin America’s biggest hospital to a shanty town. Darin stars as parish priest Julian, whose new assistant and the young kids under his watch bring trouble into the slums. After Carancho’s car-crash immediacy, director Pablo Trapero captures the sprawling location with a raw style that feels closer to documentary than fiction.

Available until: 25th September

Dog Days – Thursday 27th August

Ulrich Seidl’s 2001 film is an anthology that follows six interwoven stories in the suburbs of Vienna, all taking place over a summer weekend.

Available until: 26th September

Julie and Julia – Friday 28th August

Written and directed by Nora Ephron, this 2009 comedy drama stars Amy Adams as a New York blogger determined to cook all of Julia Childs’ recipes. Meryl Streep as the chef in a series of intercut flashbacks is the icing on the cake.

Available until: 27th September

 

Upcoming release dates are subject to change. For more information or to sign up, visit www.MUBI.com.
 

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