Joachim Trier Picks: 5 Favorite Movies From the Director of 'Sentimental Value'

Joachim Trier's movies – Thelma, The Worst Person in the World, and Oslo, August 31st – have long been essential viewing for anyone studying filmmaking.

This is not because Trier is a genius, although he is, but because he is incredibly consistent and honest. On the eve of the Oscars, we decided to take a look at his favorite films.

1. 'High and Low', 1963

IMDb Score: 8.4/10

Mr. Gondo, an executive at a major shoe company, clashes with his partners while defending his vision. He secretly makes a risky deal to acquire a large stake in the company, mortgaging his entire family fortune.

The deal is jeopardized when he receives a phone call informing him that his son has been kidnapped and demanding an exorbitant ransom. Gondo is prepared to go bankrupt to save his son, but it becomes clear that the kidnappers have mistakenly abducted the son of the businessman's chauffeur.

Trier praises the movie for its flawless three-act structure – the first act, with its blackmail sequence, gives way to a long, gripping chase.

2. 'The Green Ray', 1986

IMDb Score: 7.6/10

Delphine is in trouble – she doesn't have anyone to spend her summer vacation with. She has plenty of friends, but she doesn't want to travel with any of them and is afraid to go alone.

It's not just the lack of company – Delphine seems insecure, lonely, and unhappy. She can't find her place, harboring romantic hopes and believing in signs of fate.

Trier admits that he never tires of watching Éric Rohmer's films. He calls Delphine his favorite movie character and Rohmer a mentor who taught him not to judge his characters.

3. 'Cleo from 5 to 7', 1962

IMDb Score: 7.8/10

The tarot cards reveal to Cleo that she has cancer and is destined to die. The fortune teller doesn't say this out loud, but Cleo already knows. Cleo from 5 to 7 is the story of a lost woman's journey through the streets of Paris while awaiting the doctor's answer.

This movie is important for Trier – he used it to trace the structure of his own film, Oslo, August 31st, in which the main character desperately travels through familiar places in her hometown in search of answers to personal questions.

4. 'The Age of Innocence', 1993

IMDb Score: 7.2/10

It is a story of complex love in old New York in the late 1870s, exploring the mores of its high society. Newland is about to marry the beautiful and innocent May just as May's free-spirited cousin, Ellen – Newland's longtime love – returns to town.

May isn't blind – she sees her future husband's doubts. Newland's feelings are caught in the tangled mores of his surroundings.

As Trier admits, the movie and the source novel by Edith Wharton, served as references for him and screenwriter Eskil Vogt when developing Sentimental Value. In his film, Trier also explores the boundary between societal standards and the protagonist's feelings.

5. 'Hiroshima Mon Amour', 1959

IMDb Score: 7.8/10

Trier has repeatedly professed his love for Hiroshima Mon Amour. In 1959, based on a screenplay by Marguerite Duras, Alain Resnais made a movie about a couple in love: a French woman from Nevers and a Japanese man from Hiroshima.

Both characters suffer from trauma related to their pasts. During the Occupation, the French woman fell in love with a German soldier in Nevers, and the Japanese man lost his parents in Hiroshima during the atomic bombing.