Documentary
In the aftermath of a death, a home is cleaned out; the accumulation of a life is removed in bags and recycle bins. But what becomes of the collection of books? Laura Rantanen’s resoundingly moving and wistful documentary reflects on the end of life, what lingers behind, and the moments when a book breaks through the monotony to open the world around us.
MOVIE COMMENTS
SIMILAR MOVIES
Arthur Miller: Writer
To the Sea
Black Holes: The Edge of All We Know
7 Vidas
The Reality of Time
In Three Acts
Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead
Me voy. Me voy
The ABCs of Book Banning
Girls State
To Be Destroyed
Les Trésors de la Bibliothèque nationale de France
Midnight Kids
Behind the Doors of Umberto Eco
Ghuza da Sher
Kujang Sasaka Bwaga Sunda
Feeler
The Pulse Beneath the Steel
Pico Sacro [The Holy Mountain]
Uku Ukai
SIMILAR MOVIES
Arthur Miller: Writer
IMDB 7.1 | Dec , 2017
One of the greatest playwrights of the 20th century, Arthur Miller created such celebrated works as Death of a Salesman and The Crucible, which continue to move audiences around the world today. He also made headlines for being targeted by the House Un-American Activities Committee at the height of the McCarthy Era and entering into a tumultuous marriage with Hollywood icon Marilyn Monroe. Told from the unique perspective of his daughter, filmmaker Rebecca Miller, Arthur Miller: Writer is an illuminating portrait that combines interviews spanning decades and a wealth of personal archival material, and provides new insights into Miller’s life as an artist and exploring his character in all its complexity.To the Sea
IMDB 6.9 | Feb , 2010
Before leaving for Rome with his mother, five year old Natan is taken by his father, Jorge, on an epic journey to the pristine Chinchorro reef off the coast of Mexico. As they fish, swim, and sail the turquoise waters of the open sea, Natan discovers the beauty of his Mayan heritage and learns to live in harmony with life above and below the surface, as the bond between father and son grows stronger before their inevitable farewell.Black Holes: The Edge of All We Know
IMDB 6.6 | Mar , 2020
Black holes stand at the limit of what we can know. To explore that edge of knowledge, the Event Horizon Telescope links observatories across the world to simulate an earth-sized instrument. With this tool the team pursues the first-ever picture of a black hole, resulting in an image seen by billions of people in April 2019. Meanwhile, Hawking and his team attack the black hole paradox at the heart of theoretical physics—Do predictive laws still function, even in these massive distortions of space and time? Weaving them together is a third strand, philosophical and exploratory using expressive animation. “Edge” is about practicing science at the highest level, a film where observation, theory, and philosophy combine to grasp these most mysterious objects.7 Vidas
IMDB 0 | Jun , 2025
A community of cats lives in the Soledade Cemetery Park in Belém. "7 Vidas" follows these animals through a fictional letter written by one of them to his former owner. With real images of the cats among graves and trees, the film builds a sensitive narrative about abandonment, freedom and memory, revealing the poetry hidden in the coexistence between life and death.The Reality of Time
IMDB 10 | Aug , 2024
The Reality of Time takes viewers on an immersive journey through the mysteries of time, from the Big Bang to modern physics, ancient philosophy, and myth. Using groundbreaking generative AI to re-create scientific phenomena, historical epochs, and mythological concepts, the film brings to life complex ideas that bridge science and storytelling. It is the world's first feature length cinematic movie created with Generative AI.In Three Acts
IMDB 8 | Dec , 2015
When an 80 year old intellectual is confronted with issues of old age and death, she reminisces the death of her mother that happened 30 years earlier. With dialogue inspired by Simone de Beauvoir mixed with contemporary dance, the cycle of life is exposed in a poetic manner.Fat, Sick & Nearly Dead
IMDB 6.7 | Apr , 2010
100 pounds overweight, loaded up on steroids and suffering from a debilitating autoimmune disease, Joe Cross is at the end of his rope and the end of his hope. In the mirror he saw a 310lb man whose gut was bigger than a beach ball and a path laid out before him that wouldn't end well— with one foot already in the grave, the other wasn't far behind. FAT, SICK & NEARLY DEAD is an inspiring film that chronicles Joe's personal mission to regain his health.Me voy. Me voy
IMDB 0 | Nov , 2021
December 31, 2015. The Valencian bookstore Valdeska closed its doors permanently after forty years of activity. The result of four years of monitoring and filming, these 31 minuts of run time are part of a book unread, unknown and undiscovered. "Me voy. Me voy" it's not the story of a bookstore, not the portrait of an exceptional bookseller, it's a will to attach the things in the filmed image, to make something lasting showing the moment of its disappearence.The ABCs of Book Banning
IMDB 6.4 | Feb , 2024
In recent years, more than 2,500 books have been removed from school districts around the US, labeled as banned, restricted, or challenged, and made unavailable to millions of students. By no accident, the themes targeted are the usual scapegoats of the American Right—LGBTQ+ issues, Black History, and women’s empowerment—impeding the power of future generations to develop their own thoughts and opinions on critical social issues. By weaving together a lyrical montage of young readers and authors, THE ABCs OF BOOK BANNING reveals the voices of the impacted parties, and inspires hope for the future through the profound insights of inquisitive youthful minds.Girls State
IMDB 7.4 | Jan , 2024
What would American democracy look like in the hands of teenage girls? In this documentary, young female leaders from wildly different backgrounds in Missouri navigate an immersive experiment to build a government from the ground up.To Be Destroyed
IMDB 0 | Aug , 2024
A 30-minute documentary on book banning and censorship that follows author Dave Eggers as he investigates why a Rapid City, SD school board wanted to ban his book.Les Trésors de la Bibliothèque nationale de France
IMDB 9 | Dec , 2020
The National Library of France is the guardian of priceless treasures that tell our history, our illustrious thinkers, writers, scholars and artists. Telling the story of the exceptional treasures of the National Library of France is like opening a great history book rich in many twists and turns. Without the love of the kings of France for books and precious objects, this institution would never have seen the light of day. The story begins in the 14th century under the reign of a passionate writer, Charles V, who set up a library in his apartments in the Louvre. But it was not until the 17th century, and the reign of Louis XIV, a lover of the arts and letters, that the royal library took over its historic quarters in the rue Vivienne in Paris, which it still occupies.Midnight Kids
IMDB 0 | Oct , 2020
Utquiagvik is the northernmost city in Alaska, located 555 km beyond the Arctic Circle. This meditative documentary follows its young Inuit inhabitants, who explore the desolate snowy landscape under the midnight sun and transform their home into a vast playground full of melting glaciers and abandoned ships.Behind the Doors of Umberto Eco
IMDB 8 | Oct , 2012
Umberto Eco, the author of best-selling novels who passed away in February 2016, unveils the secrets behind his undertakings and novels.Ghuza da Sher
IMDB 0 | Feb , 2026
The story of Nisar Ahmed Khan, told through his children and the people he served, a spiritual guide whose followers still visit his tomb on his birth and death anniversaries. And alongside how his family spends a few days at the village keeping his traditions alive.Kujang Sasaka Bwaga Sunda
IMDB 6.2 | Nov , 2024
Kang Aries and Kang Oca are two cultural observers of Kujang who try to provide a justification perspective on the Kujang Philosophy made by one of the blacksmiths named Abah Jajang, where the general public often considers that Kujang is a sharp weapon. The two of them "Kang Aris & Kang Oca" entered the realm of the trial to defend the essence of Kujang, so as not to be considered misunderstood by the general public.Feeler
IMDB 7.5 | Jun , 2016
16mm film by Paul Clipson, and music by Sarah Davachi. Filmed in New York, Los Angeles, Hong Kong, Brisbane, Krakow, Sidney, Portland, Napa, Oakland and San Francisco.The Pulse Beneath the Steel
IMDB 0 | Jul , 2025
Once the beating heart of Beijing’s steel industry, Shougang was a leviathan forged from iron and fire. Its blast furnaces once echoed with labour and ambition, embodying the raw force of China’s industrial might. Today, these same structures are repurposed into spaces of digital innovation and Olympic legacy, marking one of the most ambitious urban transformations in modern China. This documentary traces the metamorphosis of Shougang Park through three poetic chapters: its industrial past, the deliberate reinvention of its architecture, and its re-emergence as a tech-driven ecosystem. Through immersive visuals and the voices of those who once toiled within its furnaces and those now forging its future, The Pulse Beneath the Steel is more than a portrait of place. It is a meditation on memory and transformation at the heart of a city that bridges heritage and modernity.Pico Sacro [The Holy Mountain]
IMDB 9 | Nov , 2024
In a leafy forest, a Galician sovereign who longs to attain wisdom meets a sorcerer, who tells him: “Go back to your country and study the Earth and the Stars in the sky; anywhere in the world reflects an image of it. You will ride on this arrow, which you must keep for a hundred years and a day. After this time, stick it in the widest valley of all those you possess, with the tip facing the sky. Then the Moon will come and, just as it exerts its action on the waters of the sea, it will act on the arrow, turning it into a holy mountain." - Legend about the Pico Sacro Inspired by Hokusai's views of Mount Fuji and Cézanne's paintings of Mont Sainte-Victoire, "Pico Sacro [The Holy Mountain]" aims to reveal the mystery and the magic that underlie reality.Uku Ukai
IMDB 6.2 | Nov , 2006
Sorrow does not come merely from contemplating death, which forces us to look into Eternity, but also from life, which compels us to confront Time", wrote Russian philosopher Nikolai Berdyayev. Renowned Lithuanian documentarist Audrius Stonys took these words as a motto for his latest film, a meditative visual essay which portrays old people undertaking all kinds of activities, meditation and group laughter therapy. Without a single word of commentary, he creates from sophisticated, aesthetic images a compelling study of human corporeality which, in an ideal union with spiritual equilibrium, can sustain us with the pledge that old age doesn't have to be a painful wait for the last breath.