Best movies like Cocktail Party

Chronological look at the fiasco in Iraq, especially decisions made in the spring of 2003 - and the backgrounds of those making decisions - immediately following the overthrow of Saddam: no occupation plan, an inadequate team to run the country, insufficient troops to keep order, and three edicts from the White House announced by Bremmer when he took over.

Truncated adaptation of Stephen Crane's novel about a Civil War Union soldier who stuggles to find the courage to fight in the heat of battle.

Union soldiers march off to battle amid cheering crowds. After the battle turns against the Union Army, one soldier runs away, hiding in his girlfriend's house. Ashamed of his cowardice, he finds his courage and crosses enemy lines to bring help to his trapped comrades.

A chronicle of events that led to the British involvement in the Crimean War against Russia and which led to the siege of Sevastopol and the fierce Battle of Balaclava on October 25, 1854 which climaxed with the heroic, but near-disastrous calvary charge made by the British Light Brigade against a Russian artillery battery in a small valley which resulted in the near-destruction of the brigade due to error of judgement and rash planning on part by the inept British commanders.

Mentally ill. Deviant. Diseased. And in need of a cure. These were among the terms psychiatrists used to describe gay women and men in the 1950s, 1960s, and early 1970s. And as long as they were “sick”, progress toward equality was impossible. This documentary chronicles the battle waged by a small group of activists who declared war against a formidable institution – and won a crucial victory in the modern movement for LGBTQIA+ equality.

An Okinawan translator introduces U.S. occupation forces to the joys of local life.

A psychic father and daughter band together with an "angel" in an attempt to save Earth from an extraterrestrial Armageddon. This suspenseful thriller ties together strange occurrences from 1965 in the Bermuda Triangle (where an American fighter pilot supposedly encountered a spaceship) and government hush-up conspiracies.

Inspired by a true story, this drama is set in 1965, not long after passage of the Civil Rights Act. Despite the Act, the African-American citizens of Bogalusa are still treated like third-class citizens, their fundamental rights as human beings persistently trampled by the white power structure, in general, and the local branch of the KKK. The story follows the formation of local black men, particularly ex-war veterans who after the struggles become too overbearing organizes the group, "Deacons for defense", an all-black defense group dedicated to patrolling the black section of town and protecting its residents from the more violent aspects of "white backlash."

Set in 1869, after the Civil War, Texas had not yet been readmitted to the Union and carpetbaggers, hiding behind the legal protection of the Union Army of occupation, had taken over the state. Federal Captain Porter, a Texan, has to carry out orders against his own people. He brings in the rebel leader Ben Westman whom he knows is innocent of a murder that he is accused of. In trying to prove his innocence, Porter himself becomes a wanted man.

It's just after the Civil War in Kansas and Joan Randall and her troops are continuing the struggle. Jeff Conners is sent to bring her in and when he does she is found guilt and sentenced to hang. Earlier Jeff learned that her assistant Colonel Jedcott is the real culprit and rides to the Governor for a pardon only to be waylaid by Jedcott on the return trip.

Best-selling novelist Kosaku Igami has made a career out of using his family as fodder for his novels, much to their dismay. When his mother, the spirited family matriarch, is diagnosed with dementia, Igami must come to terms with the toll his own behavior has taken on his increasingly distant family and resolve his own long-simmering resentments. Evocative of classic Ozu, this gorgeously wrought epic family portrait explores the tenderness and trappings of familial bonds.

Black Snow tells the tale of a disturbed young man who, after spying on his mother with a black serviceman, finds himself unable to attain sexual arousal unless fondling a loaded gun. Later that night, he murders the GI before running amok through the building and finally slaying his mother's sister...

An ageing monarch. A kingdom divided. A child’s love rejected. As Lear’s world descends into chaos, all that he once believed is brought into question. One of the greatest works in Western literature, King Lear explores the very nature of human existence: love and duty, power and loss, good and evil.

Story of three people, a barber, a Christian and a graduate of the Tokyo Military Academy during the 2nd World War.

Biopic of General George Armstrong Custer from his rise to prominence in the Civil War through to his "last stand" at the Battle of the Little Big Horn.

With suicide rates among active military servicemen and veterans currently on the rise, this documentary brings urgent attention to the invisible wounds of war. Drawing on personal stories of American soldiers whose lives and psyches were torn asunder by the horrors of battle and PTSD, the documentary chronicles the lingering effects of combat stress and post-traumatic stress on military personnel and their families throughout American history, from the Civil War through today's conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan.

When the Viking space capsule suddenly returns to Earth from its long ago trip to Mars, it brings with it an intelligent visitor that is part "Alien" and part "ET". Encased in armor, it extends a human like form from its shell to examine its surroundings and shows an interest in humans including a soft caress of a female scientist prior to the Army killing it. This only enrages its sibling.

Three American businessmen have a problem with their Brazilian company: someone is embezzling millions of dollars. Michael is having an affair with Frank's wife Paige, but wants to end it. Paige is not so accommodating, and causes trouble with Michael's wife Kitty and his new interest, local artist Miranda. When someone is murdered Michael becomes a suspect, and must try to find the murderer and catch the embezzler while sorting out the wreckage of his personal life.

Miki is the daughter of an affluent family. She's an elegant and sophisticated girl who gets captured by a secret admirer.

During the Civil War, in Wyoming, horse dealers Joan Britton and Stephen Cook are competing to supply the Union Army with horses. A Cherokee is in the area to stir up the Sioux against the Union just as Cook decides to steal a herd of Sioux horses. Ex-army doctor Jonathan Westgate opposes Cook’s unscrupulous methods as well as being Cook’s rival for the affections of Joan. It seems Westgate is the only one able to prevent a new Indian war.

In Norway a military plane crashes under mysterious circumstances: in his last message the pilot reported many lights falling from the sky. NATO wants to play down the incident, but the famous TV moderator George Abbot and the no less persistent journalist Milker sense a sensational story about UFOs and start snooping around in the area with help of pilot "Bird" McNamara. Inspired by the suspiciously rigorous isolation of the whole area around the crash point and cases of an unknown disease they have a closer look at the military's activities...

An aging King invites disaster when he abdicates to his corrupt, toadying daughters and rejects his one loving, but honest one.

A boss from a trucking company has run-ins with evil yakuza during the American occupation of Okinawa. Her hometown is threatened by usurers, gangsters and indirectly by American GI influences. She must battle a yakuza organization with her employees to help settle things.

Canada, the summer of 1898. A group of German settlers travel towards the far north in covered wagons with packhorses and their few possessions in tow. The seven travellers set off from Ashcroft, the final railway station. Along with their leader, flamboyant businessman Wilhelm Laser, they are hoping to find their fortune in the recently discovered goldfields of Dawson, but they have no idea of the stresses and dangers which lie ahead on their 2,500 kilometre journey. Before long uncertainty, cold weather and exhaustion begin to take their toll and conflicts escalate. The journey leads these men and women deeper and deeper into a menacing wilderness. (Berlinale.de)

When her niece is cast in The Philadelphia Ballet’s production of the Nutcracker, a jaded ex-ballerina is forced to come to terms with the life and love she left behind.

Frank Darwin needs to convince Muriel he didn't kill her Father, as claimed by Jasper and Oneta.

During the Vietnam War era, the influx of American soldiers to Okinawa boosted the local economy and introduced many bars and nightclubs. With exhausting displays of energy, Sai presents a whirlwind romance between a local rocker and the daughter of a mixed American-Okinawan marriage.

Go Takamine's first theatrical feature is a pioneering work of Okinawan cinema, filmed almost entirely in Okinawan dialect. Taking place shortly before the resumption of Japanese sovereignty over Okinawa, Takamine’s film tacitly addresses the island prefecture's complicated history of occupation and feelings of dislocation through the story of a small community and its preparations for a wedding between a local girl and a Japanese teacher. On the periphery of these events is Reishu (Kaoru Kobayashi), who quits his job on a US military base and uses the extra time to catch snakes and play with ants – and get the bride-to-be pregnant. Takamine’s leisurely-paced film is full of uniquely Okinawan touches that mix in aspects of the island's folklore, accompanied by Haruomi Hosono’s spare and evocative score.

Daisy Gomez is a family counselor in South L.A. married to Max, a gang interventionist. They have a baby daughter, Sarah. They are doing what they can to reduce violence in their troubled neighborhood. But one night, Max is arrested in an FBI and LAPD raid. He faces an extended prison term. County social services take charge of the child. How can Daisy prove her innocence and regain custody of her baby?

Kaji is sent to the Japanese army labeled Red and is mistreated by the vets. Along his assignment, Kaji witnesses cruelties in the army and revolts against the abusive treatment against the recruit Obara. He also sees his friend Shinjô Ittôhei defecting to the Russian border, and he ends in the front to fight a lost battle against the Russian tanks division.

The Americans are swiftly closing on Okinawa, an island just south of the Japanese mainland. The Imperial command sends top generals and several army divisions to defend it at all costs. The mission quickly degenerates as vital resources and troops are diverted to other islands. After a civilian evacuation ends in tragedy most of non-combatants are forced to remain on the island. Many convert to soldier status. Tokyo sends mixed messages that squander time and resources, as when they order the defenders to build an airstrip for aircraft that never come. The truth soon becomes obvious: the high command decides that the island cannot be held and effectively abandons the Okinawan defenders. When the Americans land many troops are deployed in the wrong places. As the slaughter mounts, a suicidal attitude takes hold. Okinawa becomes a death trap, for civilian volunteers and non-combatants as well.

Set at the beginning of the Civil War, Tap Roots is all about a county in Mississippi which chooses to secede from the state rather than enter the conflict. The county is protected from the Confederacy by an abolitionist and a Native American gentleman. The abolitionist's daughter is courted by a powerful newspaper publisher when her fiance, a confederate officer, elopes with the girl's sister. The daughter at first resists the publisher's attentions, but turns to him for aid when her ex-fiance plans to capture the seceding county on behalf of the South.

U.S. Army Captain Clark Allen gains attention by walking back and forth, the length of Japan, gambling with U.S. servicemen in order to raise funds to rebuild an orphanage. Suspicious of Allen's motives, a Japanese newsman, Hiroshi Kitabayashi, traces the American's background until he discovers the motive behind Allen's long walk.

In the 1960s, Okinawa was under American military occupation. Young Takeshi leads a passive go-with-the-flow existence, working as a bartender at a bar called Sekai where his ex-girlfriend Michi also worked. When Takeshi launches a flare bomb during a military blackout, expressing his frustration with the American military as well as himself, he encounters a mysterious boy with no name. He undergoes various changes living with him, but then an event occurs which will destroy Takeshi's identity to the very roots.

Inspired by the unguarded animosity that the mere mention of Toronto incites among the majority of Canadians, filmmakers Albert Nerenberg and Rob Spence follow a character named "Mister Toronto" as he launches a coast-to-coast Toronto Appreciation tour. Along the way, the crew will encounter everyone from those claiming to be "recovering Torontonians" to folks who have vowed never to set foot in the city cited by the United Nations as the world's most culturally diverse. Could this seething resentment be something as simple as envy, or have the denizens of this worldly metropolis truly done something to offend their embittered fellow countrymen?