Film, glorious film — the butter to a hotel stay’s bread. Here to lift your stay-in-with-us-in-the-tub affair is our carefully curated, acutely observed off-the-radar travel film list. Now, these films may not necessarily depict travel, but rather take viewers elsewhere, places with cosy kitchens or lush pastures. A carefully laid film-and-room service plan will enhance your Old Clare stay’s experience 12-fold. Load on up, inhale the sandalwood of your Triumph & Disaster bathtub bubbles, sip your crisp in-room Louis Roederer and get pruney.
The Great Beauty, by Paolo Sorrentino
A glistening Tiber river, perfect-pitch opera seria, op-pu-lence. The Italian high life is not one we may all be privy to, but it’s one we can immerse ourselves in via the televisioné. Paolo’s depiction of jaded Jep is breathtaking, vibrant and a big ol’ posterboard for Life In Rome. Take us there, tout suite!
Fact: lolling around Milan is a must-do for us all. Tilda, Tilly among friends, slinks around metro Milan and country-side Tuscany with the ease of someone far more stylish than most. While the scenery is fantastico, the content is … tumultuous, especially for Emma. Bustling, evocative, a transeasonal masterpiece. Watch at your leisure.
Big Night, by Stanley Tucci, Campbell Scott
A Stanley Tucci restaurant is close to godliness, and Paradiso, his fictional restaurant, is precisely that. Watch the chaos unravel as Primo and Secondo try to out-compete a competitor. It’s equally nostalgic for Italy and tipico New Jersey — a love story to both and essential no-excuse-needed-cation watching.
The Lost Daughter, by Maggie Gyllenhaal
Not travel, per se, but where else shall one have an emotional breakdown than seaside Greece? Ms. Gyllenhaal’s directorial debut depicts flat, polished Mediterranean seas, perfect for floating, Cornettos on the beach, beside flashbacks of a mother’s creeping, haunted past. While not precisely jovial, it’s a must-watch film to be accompanied by a Torres Truffle chip or two, in a Super King, goose-down dressed bed.
Only Yesterday, by Isao Takahata (Studio Ghibli)
Oh the beauty of Studio Ghibli! — beguiling insights into Japanese culture and often food, yes please! Taeko Okajima, our late-twenties protagonist swivels into country Japan life, from the blinding lights of Tokyo, with wistful nostalgia and yesteryear musings. It poses the age-old dilemma: country or city, while flitting between the worldover experiences of lost love, life as a young’un and first-time disappointment.
Ready to make your bath-movie occasion a reality? Every Old Clare room boasts HD TV and Chromecast. Book here.