Just a few days left for us to stay at home. Still, for a slow and easier comeback, I recommend keeping the habit even after May 15, as hard as it may be. And because I want to see everyone get through this isolation period more easily, I’ve put together a series of online platforms where you can watch movies, documentaries and short films for free. As a bonus, I also recommend three movies that can be watched on TV this weekend.

CINEPUB

On cinepub.ro you can find a lot of Romanian films, both feature and short. Old and new, of all genres and for all tastes. Some examples include Cigarettes and Coffee (short film by Cristi Puiu) or Somewhere in Palilula (feature film by Silviu Purcărete).

OPEN CULTURE

A collection of 1,150 productions, mostly classic feature films. They are sorted by genre and you can choose from  thrillers, comedies, Hitchcock movies, Oscar movies, by Tarkovsky or with Charlie Chaplin. They all have a Youtube link where they can be watched for free.

IDFA

Here you have access to all kinds of documentaries that were screened at IDFA – International Documentary Film Festival Amsterdam. There are around 350 titles, so you’ll definitely find something that you like.

SXSW 2020

75 short films that can be watched for free, now that the 2020 edition of SXSW (South by Southwest) festival has been canceled. They are divided into categories such as animation or documentary.

BONUS: MOVIES YOU CAN WATCH ON TV THIS WEEKEND

– The Lobster (dir. Yorgos Lanthimos; romance, S.F.) – A love story set in a dystopian near future where single people are arrested and transferred to a creepy hotel. There they are obliged to find a matching mate in 45 days. If they fail, they are transformed into an animal and released into the woods.

The movie can be seen on Saturday, 9th of May, on AXN starting 22:40.

– Forrest Gump (dir. Robert Zemeckis; drama, comedy) – Forrest Gump is one of those movies that have become a real phenomenon. Here, Tom Hanks plays an exceptional role as Forrest, an ordinary man whose disarming innocence comes to embody a generation. Awarded with 6 Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director (Robert Zemeckis) and Best Actor in a Leading Role (Tom Hanks), Forrest Gump is a must-see classic.

The movie can be seen on Saturday, 9th of May, on Paramount Channel starting 16:50.

– Nostalghia (dir. Andrei Tarkovsky; drama) –  Another classic on our list. The Russian poet Andrei Gorchakov, accompanied by guide and translator Eugenia, is traveling through Italy researching the life of an 18th-century Russian composer. In an ancient spa town, he meets the lunatic Domenico, who years earlier had imprisoned his own family in his house for seven years to save them from the evils of the world. Seeing some deep truth in Domenico’s act, Andrei becomes drawn to him. In a series of dreams, the poet’s nostalgia for his homeland and his longing for his wife, his ambivalent feelings for Eugenia and Italy, and his sense of kinship with Domenico become intertwined.

The movie can be seen on Sunday, 10th of May, on FilmBox Arthouse starting 19:50.

Romina Banu

Photographer and editor; she co-founded Dissolved Magazine together with Melissa. For Films in Frame she gathers film and TV series recommendations for lazy weekends and she writes about interesting projects from the film industry. Other than that, she likes traveling, chilling with her cats and sleeping.