Burn After Reading
2008USA★ 6.73.5 pt match
Both circle the same ground: class and money and corrupt institutions. Both move the same way too, dark comedy, absurdist, and escalating.
Delicatessen
1991FranceLanguage: frDirected by Jean-Pierre Jeunet★ 7.3
Available in English: subtitled
In a post-apocalyptic world, the residents of an apartment above the butcher shop receive an occasional delicacy of meat, something that is in low supply. A young man new in town falls in love with the butcher's daughter, which causes conflicts in her family, who need the young man for other business-related purposes.
Themes and style
Tone
dark comedysurrealabsurdistwhimsicalbleak
Pacing
episodicescalating
Story
survivalescapeunraveling
Emotion
all-consuming lovebelongingguiltthe family you choose
Themes
class and moneypovertycorrupt institutions
Feel
rewatchablediscussion startercerebralcrowd pleaser
Violence
moderateWhere to watch
Hollywood films like Delicatessen
If Delicatessen hit you the right way, here are Hollywood films that share its DNA. Same emotional weight, same kind of stories, same kind of payoff.
The Princess Bride
1987USA★ 7.73.5 pt match
What ties these together is all-consuming love and belonging. They share the same lens on class and money. The feel is the same: whimsical, dark comedy, episodic, and escalating.
Rushmore
1998USA★ 7.43 pt match
Both films sit with all-consuming love and belonging. The world both films live in revolves around class and money. Same energy: dark comedy, whimsical, episodic, and escalating.
Dr. Strangelove
1964USA★ 8.13 pt match
The world both films live in revolves around corrupt institutions. Both move the same way too, dark comedy, absurdist, and escalating.
Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri
2017USA★ 8.13 pt match
What ties these together is guilt. They share the same lens on corrupt institutions, class and money, and poverty. The feel is the same: dark comedy, bleak, and escalating.