Traveling at home

5 films

The city is a large map condensed onto our wall, a beautiful dream propelling us forward in our minds. We've all, at some point, relied on cities within films—their visuals acting like a museum of urban fragments. They allow us to escape the confines of everyday anxieties, focusing instead on urban wanderings, feeling the overlap of new discoveries and old routines. Space and city are intimately connected to the protagonist. If you haven't written the travelogue you hoped for, nor taken truly satisfying travel photos, then let the scenes unfold from your couch. Through film, we can once again confirm that the world is a bit detached, yet also full of new revelations about time, and the wellspring of surging desire keeps us relying on it.