Films like The Art of Happiness.

The Art of Happiness (2013) reads as Sombre, slow-burn, gentle animation / drama, inventive in texture. Ambivalent, intimate, measured. Every film below is ranked by distance across the same twelve hand-scored axes — with what it keeps, and where it walks away. Not a genre dump.

Marjorie Prime (2017) poster
1. Marjorie Prime2017

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

Postcards from the Zoo (2012) poster
2. Postcards from the Zoo2012

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the bone-dry seriousness; trades toward a cold, bleak undertow.

Year Without a Summer (2010) poster
3. Year Without a Summer2010

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

On Body and Soul (2017) (2017) poster
4. On Body and Soul2017

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

The Edge of the Empire (2010) poster
5. The Edge of the Empire2010

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow; trades toward a heightened unreality.

Cu Li Never Cries (2024) poster
6. Cu Li Never Cries2024

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

The Fits (2016) poster
7. The Fits2016

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the bone-dry seriousness; trades toward a cold, bleak undertow.

You Burn Me (2024) poster
8. You Burn Me2024

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the cold, bleak undertow — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

The Man Who Laughs (2012) poster
9. The Man Who Laughs2012

Keeps the cold, bleak undertow and the bone-dry seriousness; trades toward a patient, unhurried pace.

Nymph (2009) poster
10. Nymph2009

Keeps the cold, bleak undertow and the bone-dry seriousness — one of the nearest reads in the catalogue.

The Last Step (2012) poster
11. The Last Step2012

Keeps the cold, bleak undertow and the intimate, personal stakes; trades toward a pitch-dark outlook.

Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus (2006) poster
12. Fur: An Imaginary Portrait of Diane Arbus2006

Keeps the patient, unhurried pace and the bone-dry seriousness; trades toward a cold, bleak undertow.

These are The Art of Happiness’s neighbours — where are yours?

Rate five posters and the same twelve axes read you — then tonight’s pick comes from your own centre of taste.

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