© BrunoPress

‘Her’ (2013) -

Joaquin Phoenix puts on a wonderful performance as a man who seeks love. He falls in love with a computer operating system (Scarlett Johansson) to relieve his loneliness.

© NL Beeld

‘Cast Away’ (2000) -

It can't get more lonely than this. Tom Hanks plays Chuck Noland. He is stranded on a desert island alone for years. When he is rescued, he experiences alienation from other people because they can't understand his experience.

© NL Beeld

‘Leaving Las Vegas’ (1995) -

Nicolas Cage plays a man in the last stages of alcoholism. His loneliness runs deep until he meets a woman who can share the pain of his addiction. Is love enough to help him escape himself?

© NL Beeld

‘Taxi Driver’ (1976) -

Travis Bickle (Robert De Niro) is the embodiment of loneliness and disillusionment with reality. Martin Scorsese's brilliant film is essentially a study of this young man's feelings of urban alienation.

© NL Beeld

'The Machinist' (2004) -

Christian Bale puts on an incredible performance as a sleep-deprived and anorexic metal worker. In his solitude, he starts to believe that there is a conspiracy against him. He spends so much time alone that there is no one to convince him otherwise.

© NL Beeld

‘Lost in Translation’ (2003) -

Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson star in this heartwarming film about friendship. They are both lost souls in Japan, and find solace from their loneliness in each other's company.

© NL Beeld

‘Cinema Paradiso’ (1988) -

This masterpiece follows the story of a boy becoming a successful man in the world of cinema. The price of his success is that he leaves behind the people in his life. When he returns, he realizes how big a cost it was.

© NL Beeld

‘Wild Strawberries’ (1957) -

Ingmar Bergman (1918-2007) is the director of this fantastic film. It's about an old man who is forced to revisit his past. From lonely old age, he travels back to his youth and those tender relationships.

© NL Beeld

‘Where the Wild Things Are’ (2009) -

A little boy runs away from his home during a fight with his mother. He is dissatisfied and lonely with life, but finds mystical friends on an island. They help him to come to terms with his emotions.

© NL Beeld

‘Out of Africa’ (1985) -

Where both characters are isolated from their home environments, Karen (Meryl Streep) and Denys (Robert Redford) find a connection. They wash away each other's loneliness and find love. However, they encounter many challenges down the line.

© NL Beeld

‘Red Desert’ (1964) -

Giuliana (Monica Vitti) plays a woman who is alone a lot of the time. While her husband works in the day, she stays home with her newborn baby in isolation. It beautifully follows the intricacy of the emotions behind loneliness.

© NL Beeld

‘Into the Wild’ (2007) -

Some people just yearn for solitude. Emile Hirsch plays a young adult who leaves behind his prospects after college to become a wanderer. He meets many people along the way. When he reaches his final destination of isolation in nature, does he really want to be alone?

© NL Beeld

‘Mary and Max’ (2009) -

This story is profoundly moving. Max is a middle-aged man from New York and Mary is a little girl from Australia. In their mutual loneliness, they exchange letters to brighten up each other's lives.

© NL Beeld

‘Repulsion’ (1965) -

Catherine Deneuve stars in Roman Polanski's first English language film. Deneuve plays Carole Ledoux. When Carole's sister goes away, she is left alone in an apartment. Her loneliness spirals into a dangerous situation as she begins to lose her mind.

© NL Beeld

‘My Blueberry Nights’ (2007) -

Urban alienation is the main topic in this colorful film. Starring Norah Jones, Natalie Portman, Rachel Weisz, Jude Law, and David Strathairn, these brilliant stars put on an entertaining performance.

© NL Beeld

‘Crash’ (2004) -

This is not a particularly happy film at all. It follows several storylines across Los Angeles. Every character has to face their own problems and battle with personal loneliness. The main message is that everyone experiences pain because we are human.

© NL Beeld

‘Shame’ (2011) -

A man suffers from sexual addiction. In an effort to suppress his urges, he isolates himself from everyone in his life. He ultimately finds that loneliness is not the cure that will help him.

© NL Beeld

‘The Conversation’ (1974) -

Francis Ford Coppola directs this fantastic thriller. Gene Hackman stars as Harry Caul, a lonely man who works for a surveillance company. He has to listen to the conversation of a couple in their house. He soon becomes attached to them and wishes to protect them from danger.

© NL Beeld

‘Silent Running’ (1972) -

Of all the sci-fi films out there, this one has one of the most interesting plots. Freeman Lowell (Bruce Dern) goes into space to look after plants that are meant to reinvigorate Earth's nature. He is the only one on the team who shows emotion or interest in this important task. The rest of the team alienate him.

© NL Beeld

‘The 400 Blows’ (1959) -

This is a seminal work of cinema. A little boy is isolated by all the people who should love him. His mother, his friends, and his teachers. He is sent to a disciplinary school on the edge of Paris where he has to grow up fast.

© NL Beeld

‘Solaris’ (1972) -

In space, a psychologist (Donatas Banionis) is sent to check up on the ship's crew. When he is there, he becomes trapped in his own emotions and loneliness. The lines between reality and his imagination become blurred.

© NL Beeld

‘Wings of Desire’ (1987) -

Wim Wenders directs this wonderful exploration of loneliness. Two angels are invisible in Berlin but can hear the thoughts of people close by. One yearns for love and touch, the other remains aloof to human reality.

© NL Beeld

‘Naked’ (1993) -

Johnny (David Thewlis) plays a man who feels outside of society. His sexual desires draw him towards women but the connection never seems solid. The film is an interesting take on the differences between physical and emotional connection.

© NL Beeld

‘Three Colours: Blue’ (1993) -

Julie is played by the excellent Juliette Binoche. When she faces the tragedy of losing her husband and child, she exiles herself from society. However, running away from the situation and compounding her loneliness only makes it worse.

© NL Beeld

‘Chungking Express’ (1994) -

This story is split into two parts. The first deals with a heartbroken lonely cop and the second part with a new relationship. It tackles the descent into loneliness and the slow departure from it beautifully.

© NL Beeld

‘Dear Frankie’ (2004) -

A mother struggles to give her deaf son a normal childhood. When he begins to ask about his father, she has no answers. She hires a man to pretend to be his father but, to her surprise, he becomes important to both of them.

© NL Beeld

‘Fish Tank’ (2009) -

This is an honest depiction of someone struggling with family problems, societal isolation, and an ambitious dream. It is not particularly uplifting, but accurately portrays the realities of loneliness.

© NL Beeld

‘Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter...and Spring’ (2003) -

A monk and his trainee live high up in the mountains in a Buddhist monastery. The apprentice does not even realize that he might feel lonely until he meets a girl and falls in love with her.

© NL Beeld

'Le Samouraï' (1967) -

This critically acclaimed movie follows the life of professional hitman Jef Costello (Alain Delon). He lives with and for no one but himself. When the police start getting on his case, is he able to escape them?

Sources: (Taste of Cinema) (Resource Magazine)

See also: How being alone can affect our social skills

© NL Beeld