Embedded Files
Here is a list of movies with a poly or open/honest multiple-relationship theme somewhere in there but NOT movies about cheating (unless the cheating leads to a more honest relationship style). A movie qualifies for this list if it shows a poly-ish relationship structure in a positive light, regardless of how the movie ends. If the moral of the movie is "poly relationships are doomed to failure, just watch this train wreck to see that you should be monogamous", it doesn't count. But if a movie shows the genuine difficulties with non-monogamous relationships, up to and including breaking up due to social pressure, where the problem is the society around the characters or the character's are incompatible, not the multi-partnership itself, then it qualifies for this list.
These are movies I have personally watched and verified for the appropriate criteria. There may be more movies that fit the criteria that I haven't seen, most of which are listed on the rather intimidatingly long Movies To Review page, which is being hosted on Listal. If you know of a movie that is not on the To Review list and would like for me to review it, ask me. The verified movies can almost all be found on Netflix-USA.
FICTION
Amelia
Bound by ambition and love, their enduring marriage could not be broken by Amelia's determination to fly -- nor her passionate affair with Gene Vidal (Ewan McGregor). Equal parts gripping drama, stirring romance and epic adventure, Amelia will take your breath away and send your spirit soaring! | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Bandits
Two bank robbers, charming Joseph (Bruce Willis) and neurotic Terry (Billy Bob Thornton), battle over the affections of Kate (Cate Blanchett), a housewife they kidnapped before one of their big heists in this quirky love triangle from director Barry Levinson. Gaining notoriety as the "Sleepover Bandits," the partners then force a reality TV show host to cover their 15 minutes of fame while they go on a crime spree -- Kate in tow. | IMDB | Streaming | Tubi | Amazon | Review |
Belle Epoque
Handsome young soldier Fernando (Jorge Sanz) deserts from the army during the Spanish Civil War and befriends a free-thinking artist. But when he meets his new friend's four daughters, he finds himself in a romantic dilemma -- which woman should he romance? In a neat twist, the women do the deciding, as each in her turn tries to seduce him. Penelope Cruz co-stars in this passionately comic romp. | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
The Blood Oranges
Husband and wife Cyril and Fiona explore new ground and new relationships when they take a vacation in the tropics. While on holiday, the pair meets another couple, Hugh and Catherine, and their three children. Relationships become intertwined when Cyril and Fiona lose their inhibitions and seek sexual intimacy with Hugh and Catherine in this erotic drama. Based on the 1970s novel by John Hawks | IMDB |Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Blow Dry
As the National Hair Championships descend upon a small town in England, the country's top stylists aren't expecting much from the local talent. But they didn't count on Phil Allen, the retired golden boy of the competition circuit, entering the fray! Laugh along as the locals dazzle the out-of-towners with some hair dos ... and don'ts. | IMDB |Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Bob & Carol & Ted & Alice
Paul Mazursky's 1969 classic puts two couples and their relationships under the unforgiving lens of society's microscope in this unflinching examination of marriage. After one liberal group therapy session, Bob (Robert Culp) and his wife, Carol (Natalie Wood), are convinced they're open-minded enough to embrace a no-guilt approach to fidelity. But can they convince their best friends, Ted (Elliott Gould) and Alice (Dyan Cannon), to do the same? | IMDB |Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid
Butch and Sundance are the two leaders of the Hole-in-the-Wall Gang. Butch is all ideas, Sundance is all action and skill. The west is becoming civilized and when Butch and Sundance rob a train once too often, a special posse begins trailing them no matter where they run. Over rock, through towns, across rivers, the group is always just behind them. When they finally escape through sheer luck, Butch has another idea, "Let's go to Bolivia". Based on the exploits of the historical characters. | IMDB |Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Cafe au Lait
Three's a crowd, especially when it comes to love. Actor-director Mathieu Kassovitz's bold film epitomizes this mystery as it tells the story of Lola (Julie Mauduech), a West Indian woman who's torn between two very different lovers: witty Jewish messenger Felix (Kassovitz) and the rich and reserved Jamal (Hubert Kounde). But there's an additional wrinkle: Lola's pregnant, and she has no idea which of the men is the father. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Carrington
Talented young painter Dora Carrington (Emma Thompson) forges a deep, complex bond with shy homosexual writer Lytton Strachey (Jonathan Pryce) across the vibrant backdrop of the trendy, bohemian scene of London's famed Bloomsbury group. Pryce won the Best Actor Award at the 1995 Cannes Film Festival for his work in this absorbingly nuanced character study written and directed by esteemed playwright Christopher Hampton. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Design for Living
Emmanuelle
Young, naïve Emmanuelle (Sylvia Kristel) is en route to Bangkok to join her new husband, a wealthy diplomat who works for the French Embassy. But once she arrives, her husband initiates her into a world of sexual ecstasy beyond anything she'd ever imagined. Kristel became an international star as a result of this titillating French screen adaptation of Emmanuelle Argan's controversial novel of the same name. | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
Emmanuelle 2
Sylvia Kristel reprises her role as the sexually insatiable title character in this sequel to the erotic 1974 hit. After joining her husband, Jean (Umberto Orsini), in Hong Kong, Emmanuelle takes advantage of her open marriage and seduces their hunky American houseguest (Frédéric Lagache) while her spouse is busy bedding the lovely Laura (Florence Afuma). And that's only the beginning of Emmanuelle's and Jean's amorous escapades! | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
Esmeralda Comes By Night (De Noches Vienes, Esmeralda)
Bewitching, passionate and beautiful, Esmeralda (Maria Rojo) is happily married -- to five husbands! But just as she's about to marry groom No. 6, she's charged with polygamy. She reveals her reasons for marrying each husband to stern Judge Solorio (Claudio Obregon), who -- like Esmeralda's spouses -- is no match for her charms. Meanwhile, her husbands conspire to break her out of jail, and feminists demonstrate in her defense. | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
Ethical Slut
Loosely inspired by the instructional book, "The Ethical Slut," the show follows two newbies as they explore the world of polyamory. This lifestyle of practicing open relationships is not what it appears, and is guaranteed to take our characters and viewers to new places. Join Dotty and Jackie as they see what more life can have to offer. | IMDB | YouTube | Review
Futurama: The Beast with a Billion Backs
The crew at Planet Express must work overtime to seal a portal between their universe and an alternate universe ruled by the gargantuan alien Yivo (David Cross), whose Earth-conquering plans include making Fry the pope of the alternate realm. Bender, Leela, Amy, Farnsworth and the gang are back in this tentacle-packed feature spinoff of the hit animated series. Other guest voices include Brittany Murphy and Stephen Hawking. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
The Harrad Experiment
Several of the steamiest scenes -- most notably a full-frontal view of a young Don Johnson -- have been edited out of this cleaned-up version of the 1973 film about an experimental college that encourages its students to cram when it comes to sex. James Whitmore and Tippi Hedren co-star as the married couple who run the school, with Hedren's daughter, Melanie Griffith, making one of her first film appearances as an extra. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Head in the Clouds
John Duigan helmed this sexy film starring Academy Award-winning actress Charlize Theron as Gilda, a flighty-but-charming socialite who finds her true match in Guy (Stuart Townsend), an intellectual Irishman who wants to battle in the Spanish Civil War. Guy convinces Mia (Penélope Cruz), Gilda's confidante, to join him in Spain. But Gilda has other plans that could endanger her life more than supporting the war. | IMDB | Streaming | Tubi | Amazon | Review |
A Husband, A Wife and a Lover (aka A Strange Affair)
A woman who is about to divorce her philandering husband of 23 years finds he's had a debilitating stroke, and comes home only to care for him. She finds companionship with a friend, which leads to romance. The three must then deal with the complex feelings on all sides. | IMDB | Streaming| Tubi | Xumo | Amazon | Review |
Hyde Park on Hudson
As Great Britain faces an imminent war with Germany, US President Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife, Eleanor, invite the King and Queen of England for a weekend at their home in upstate New York. But during the first-ever visit of a reigning British monarch to America, international affairs must be juggled with the complexities of FDR's domestic establishment, as wife, mother, and mistresses all conspire to make the royal trip an unforgettable one. Hyde Park of Hudson is a charming and fresh look at true events and the mysteries of love and friendship, from the acclaimed director of Notting Hill. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Kiss Me Again
Helmed by William Tyler Smith, this cautionary tale stars Jeremy London and Katheryn Winnick as liberal spouses trying to add zest to their sex life via a ménage à trois. When self-seeking college professor Julian (London) persuades his wife, Chalice (Winnick), to let lovely coed Elena (Mirelly Taylor) share their bed, the physical coupling leads to emotional repercussions. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
The Magicians
Based upon Lev Grossman's best-selling books, The Magicians centers around Brakebills University, a secret institution specializing in magic. There, amidst an unorthodox education of spellcasting, a group of twenty-something friends soon discover that a magical fantasy world they read about as children is all too real— and poses grave danger to humanity. | IMDB | Streaming | Tubi | Review |
Micki and Maude
TV reporter Rob Salinger (Dudley Moore) is so lucky he's about to become a father ... to babies born to two different women. With his marriage to lawyer Micki (Ann Reinking) unraveling due to their hectic careers, Rob starts up a dalliance with Maude (Amy Irving), a cellist. When Maude announces she's pregnant, Rob decides to divorce Micki; but when she returns from a trip and says she, too, is expecting, he tries to juggle both relationships. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
My Wife Got Married
It all started with football. Deok-hoon falls in love with In-ah, who shares his love and passion for the sport. They quickly become lovers and he proposes. After her initial refusal, they are eventually happily married. Marriage is like a dream until one day In-ah declares her wish to marry another man. She doesn't want a divorce, as she truly loves Deok-hoon but she wants to be free to love another man at the same time. Even with Deok-hoon unable to handle being the third side of a triangle, In-ah marries her new man and sets up a bizarre, bigamous romance. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Paint Your Wagon
In this adaptation of the 1951 musical of the same name, California prospectors Ben Rumson (Lee Marvin) and Sylvester "Pardner" Newell (Clint Eastwood) try to tame their gold fever by sharing Ben's wife (Jean Seberg), and kidnap a stagecoach full of working girls on their way to a new town. To help the rest of the male-dominated town keep their hands off his property, Ben sets up a brothel. As business booms, so does the competition for gold. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
Same Time, Next Year
Although they're married to other people, New Jersey accountant George (Alan Alda) and housewife Doris (Ellen Burstyn) engage in a 25-year affair after a chance encounter at a California inn. Meeting only once a year for a romantic weekend together, the otherwise mismatched couple's forbidden relationship evolves with the turbulent and ever-changing times, but never loses momentum. Based on Bernard Slade's play of the same name. | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
Savages
Laguna Beach entrepreneurs Ben, a peaceful and charitable marijuana producer, and his closest friend Chon, a former Navy SEAL and ex-mercenary, run a lucrative, homegrown industry - raising some of the best weed ever developed. They also share a one-of-a-kind love with the extraordinary beauty Ophelia. Life is idyllic in their Southern California town ... until the Mexican Baja Cartel decides to move in and demands that the trio partners with them.
When the merciless head of the BC, Elena, and her brutal enforcer, Lado, understimate the unbreakable bond among these three friends, Ben and Chon - with the reluctant, slippery assistance of a dirty DEA agent - wage a seemingly unwinnable war against the cartel. And so begins a series of increasingly vicious ploys and maneuvers in a high stakes, savage battle of wills. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Joreth's Review |
Shortbus
Director John Cameron Mitchell (Hedwig and the Angry Inch) delivers an unbridled look at the New York City underground, focusing on a group of hipsters who frequent a downtown club renowned for its lascivious ways. Through graphic polymorphous sexual couplings -- and using an ensemble cast composed largely of first-time actors -- the film chronicles each character's erotic journey of self-discovery in a raw and riveting fashion. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
A Small Circle Of Friends
Brad Davis, Karen Allen and Jameson Parker star as three college students transformed by the turbulent '60s in this endearing illuminating and haunting (After Dark) film that delivers a convincing, evocative (Films in Review) portrait of an unforgettable era. A bright future appears in store for Harvard freshmen Leo (Davis), Jessica (Allen) and Nick (Parker). The dynamic Leo loses no time in wooing Jessica and making a name for himself on the campus paper. But romance and political idealism clash with reality when Jessica takes up with Nick and Leo's draft number comes up. As their 'small circle becomes an unorthodox love triangle, each must face up to events that will change their lives forever. | IMDB | Amazon |
Summer Lovers
Michael and Cathy (Peter Gallagher and Daryl Hannah), a young American couple, travel to the Greek Isles for what they hope will be a quiet and isolated summer vacation. But when they meet a lovely French archaeologist named Lina (Valerie Quennessen), their plans are pleasantly altered. Lina arouses Michael's interest immediately, and before they know it, both Michael and Cathy find themselves seduced by Lina's sensuous charms. | IMDB | YouTube | Amazon | Review |
Swingtown
As America celebrates its 200th birthday, two generations of friends and neighbors in a Chicago suburb explore new freedoms and seek connections with each other in the midst of the socio/sexual revolution. This new period drama takes viewers back to the 1970s for a look at suburban households testing the murky waters of sexual revolution following swingers throughout open marriages, "key parties" and other swingers extravaganzas. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon |
Vicky Cristina Barcelona
Javier Bardem stars in this Golden Globe-winning dramedy from legendary director Woody Allen as a flamboyant painter who finds himself in the middle of a unique relationship with Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Christina (Scarlett Johansson), a pair of American tourists. Penélope Cruz earned her first Oscar for her portrayal of Bardem's insanely jealous ex-wife, Maria Elena, whose emotional instability leads her to her former lover's guest room. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon |
The Wedding Banquet
Successful New Yorker Wai Tung and his partner Simon are blissfully happy, except for one thing: Wai Tung's conservative Taiwanese parents are determined he find a nice girl to marry! To please them and get a tax break he arranges a sham marriage to Wei Wei, a sexy go-getter in need of a green card. But when his family swoops down for the extravaganza, Wai Tung would do well to remember that at a traditional Chinese wedding banquet, sexual repression takes the night off! | IMDB | Amazon | Review |
Whatever Works
Meet New Yorker Boris Yellnikoff: a sarcastic, bitter, and brilliant misanthrope who almost won the Nobel Prize. Boris, admittedly, is not a likeable guy. That is, until he meets Melody St. Ann Celestine, a charmingy naíve runaway who finds shelter on his doorstep. As he lets her into his home and his heart, he discovers that in this cruel world sometimes it's worthwhile to get a little happiness doing Whatever Works. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon | Review |
NON-FICTION
Cat Dancers
After inheriting a black leopard from actor William Holden, acclaimed adagio dancers Ron and Joy Holiday began working big cats into their routine. The story of the famously known Cat Dancers turns tragic after a younger trainer joins the team. Masterfully composed from archival footage of the duo's four-decade career, this documentary juxtaposes the allure and glamour of the Las Vegas show scene with the raw brutality of the ferocious felines. | IMDB | Amazon |
Three of Hearts: A Postmodern Family
Shot over an eight-year span, filmmaker Susan Kaplan's absorbing documentary follows the domestic struggles of three consenting adults: bisexuals Sam Cagnina and Steven Margolin and their live-in straight partner, Samantha Singh. After building an unconventional life together, the threesome decides to conceive a child, which changes the emotional dynamics and sets the stage for -- ironically -- degeneration into traditional family dysfunction. | IMDB | Streaming | Amazon |
Women in Love
Award-winning documentarian Karen Everett turns the camera on herself in this highly intimate portrait of her own love life. Drawing from her circle of lesbian, bisexual and polyamorous friends and lovers, Everett fashions a collective biography set in the vivid San Francisco lesbian scene. Subjects include erotica video makers Jackie Strano and Shar Rednour, as well as photographer Phyllis Christopher, who specializes in lesbian erotica. | IMDB | Amazon |
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