Movies similar to My Dinner with Andre

I’d never heard of “My Dinner with Andre” until I happened upon it a few days ago. I thought it was FANTASTIC and now find myself in a mood to watch more like it.

For those who don’t know, the entire movie is essentially two friends talking at a dinner table on range of philosophical psychological topics. Nothing exciting happens but I was entranced.

Other movies I’ve heard about are:

The Man from Earth (which I’ve seen in the past and enjoyed tremendously….. although the sequel was utter rubbish).

Mindwalk (not streaming on any of my services so I suppose I’ll rent it….. although there is a low quality full movie on YouTube)

I heard of a trilogy (Before Sunrise, Before Sunset and Before Midnight but I think this set may have more of a romantic focus than I’m interested in but will definitely check them out).

I suppose the theme here is movies of people basically just talking and waxing philosophical.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Edit to add:
I forgot to mention Glengarry Glen Ross as a somewhat similar movie

a reply to: eluryh22

Coffee and Cigarettes is close, bunch of shorts that tie in together where the characters talk about a wide range of subjects in each vignette.

a reply to: eluryh22

Sounds interesting.

You made me curious about dialogue driven films and came across this.

The Sunset Limited
Samuel L. Jackson and Tommy Lee Jones

I love both actors and I'm looking forward to watching it at some point.

IMDB link with trailer

originally posted by: AugustusMasonicus
a reply to: eluryh22

Coffee and Cigarettes is close, bunch of shorts that tie in together where the characters talk about a wide range of subjects in each vignette.

This is the one with the celebrities, right? I sometimes hesitate when actors are sort of claiming to not be acting but nothing to lose by checking it out. Thanks

a reply to: Encia22

This looks really good and along the lines of Dinner with Andre

Not sure why I never heard of this before

a reply to: eluryh22

Ones off the top of my head have already been mentioned. Kind of why I joined ATS because that type of conversation is difficult to find on a daily basis. Now, mostly impossible to find on ATS as well.

I don't know as Glengarry fits that category of Andre but still is one of my top favorites of all time. The performances are as good as they come and the characters portrayed exemplify the sad mindset that permeates the ''big dog'' chemistry of modern sales and advertising.

a reply to: TerryMcGuire

Totally agree about the difficulty in finding people to have these types of conversations with.

Other than my wife (which counts but it’s not the same), I’ve only come across two people that can take journeys with me into those parts of our psyche over the past few years.

I actually have a lot to say about that but it would be for another thread.

I will say that I make sure to call them (not text or email) but actually TALK to them every couple of months, even if I have nothing specific to say, just to keep the connections alive. And of course more often than not it ends up in an hour long conversation. I say that just to emphasize that if you cross paths with any kindred spirits… which is rare…. it’s probably worthwhile to tend to the friendship.

Hmmm try 'Downhill Racer'.
Between Hackman and Redford there are a few
excellent settings for dialogue, and the film is not without
subtle infusions of existential wonder.
I don't believe there's a wasted sentence in the script.

Who wouldn't fall down for a guy rocketing 65 miles per hour down a slope?
And if he looks as good as Robert Redford,
that's a bonus.

- Joan Laurer

# 1591

'Duel' is about as good as it gets
for alternate realities.

Pay attention to unusual framings in camera work.

As to genre, setting, and popular zeitgeist, Spielberg may be a thief
but he is very good at it.

# 1592

Andy Kaufman's "My Breakfast With Blassie"

a reply to: eluryh22

See your PMs...

a reply to: eluryh22

There really is nothing like it in my opinion. Its unique.

a reply to: eluryh22

A must watch.

a reply to: eluryh22Indeed I do.

One thing that I have found in conversations like we are talking about. Years ago with two different friends who liked to engage in this manner we I found that our conversations were not conversations but rather ONE conversation. We would talk about this and talk about that circling many topics. Each occasion we had to engage like this always seemed similar and it dawned on me that as I said it wasn't numerous topics but rather one topic as approached from far corners of our own perspectives.

I think that when conversations and debates and arguments can take this form, of being one topic viewed from different perspectives rather than little battles of conquest of right and wrong we are all the better for it. That battering ram approach is pretty useless I think. Things take time to percolate I think. I also think there's way to much me/us vrs you/them in our approach to communicating. To much emotion.

That percolate notion. If you have the time.

When I was much younger I had read a book called the Primal Scream. The quick gist of it was that all of us are to one extent or another neurotic. This stems from a ''split'' in our emotional and logic being when we are way to young to know what is happening to us, commonly between 3 and 5. That a child encounters a situation where their total being can no longer make sense of a situation or confrontation with the rest of the world. Until that time it was suggested, there was no real differentiation between the child and the rest of the world. That's to simplistic but I hope it works for this so far.

At that point the child has the choice of admitting that the world it exists in is not a unified world OR that the child itself is somehow not capable as a single consciousness of dealing with that apparent unified environment. Again pretty general.

However having read that book I took it upon myself to carefully watch my children as they passed through this period.
Well one day I came home from work, tired and shagged out and needed only to take a nap. My 4 year old son approached me with something he felt was of great importance. He wanted my attention past his first attempt to get it and I rebuffed him a second time, this time more soundly than the first and sent him to his room.

Moments later, I realized that I had taken a step to far and went and found him in his room. And here I am very clear on what had happened. One of his eyes was askew, that it when he looked at me, one eye did and the other didn't. This had never been the case prior to that moment.

So I took him on to my bed and we talked. I talked to him as if he was a fully conscious being, even being a young child, and asked him questions about how he was feeling. I didn't tell him what he was feeling or what I thought had happened to him. I explained slowly what was going on with me in general and talked about the bigger world of an older person. I waited and waited as he would make small grasps at understanding what the hell I was going on about but somehow he was engaging with me. Then I could see that he was somehow coming to grasp my points to understand them both logically and emotional when all of a sudden that one eyeball did a spin around, almost like an eye roll, and looked back at me in unison with the other eye. And I knew he was back together. That conversation, after only a brief moment of rebuff earlier took over an hour and a half. Hence my notion of ''time to percolate.''

Imagine adults trying to unify our selves with one another. Much time to percolate.

a reply to: ColeYounger

Kaufman always walked a fine line between genius and complete jerk. It's hard to tell about him. Was he really having everybody on? Was he having Freddie in this video on? Hard to tell if he was the greatest troll of all time or genuine from stuff like this. His wrestling period. Serious mental deformity or just a big con gone to his head.

So do you think that video was an honest video, that is it was just what it was or do you think Kaufman set the whole think up as a troll on Blassie? The guy at the end puking on the table? Real or set up. I just can't tell as I never saw him other than through the camera. Maybe he was just all about the camera. I wonder what effect that watching camera has on all of us, especially now a days with so many people videoing themselves all the time, eating and walking down the street. Everybody with that camera smile....

I always liked Freddie. Great hair huh? Pretty honest guy in this video and a hell of an entertainer. He wonders if he ''put it in his kester if it would look like hemorrhoids. '' That's classy Freddy Blassie.

Anyway Cole, I was unaware of this video as I always liked those two so thanks very much. .

a reply to: alldaylong

Sleuth, the original. One of my top ten favs all time. The acting superb and the interplay between the two very cutting and the dialogue precise. I just loved this movie an watch it every few years or so.

a reply to: eluryh22

Got a GREAT one for you...

The Big Kahuna.

3 great actors...all dialogue.

originally posted by: alldaylong
a reply to: eluryh22

A must watch.

Also...

DEATHTRAP

originally posted by: incoserv
a reply to: eluryh22

See your PMs...

Many, many thanks.

I just watched Everything Everywhere All at Once and it's really cerebral and in my opinion great. It gets very very weird though, just a heads up.