Dark, eccentric, pessimistic
I’m looking for movies along the vibes of The Seventh Seal, Stalker, Raise the Red Lantern, The Passion of Joan of Arc.
Movies where the camera is a drill into the human soul somehow. Painful to watch, but enlightening.
The Mountain (2019) with Jeff Goldblum and Tye Sheridan might fit this. The cinematography definitely had intense drill-into-the-soul moments while also just being beautifully shot.
Kieślowski's The Decalogue should be right up your alley. It's ten episodes of one hour each, exploring the ten commandments and various ethical dilemmas set in a poor polish housing project in the 80s.
That’s perfect and easy to find, thank you.
I love when films have the Vatican seal of approval. It means that there’s at least some connection to the wonderful flaming Pasolini, director of freaking Salo, who also made The Gospel of Matthew.
[EDIT: Not sure if you were sarcastic about easy to find but they can be viewed here] If you enjoy them, Kieślowski also did an absolutely phenomenal film trilogy called Trois Colours, with each film exploring one of the themes of the french revolutionary slogan (liberty, equality, brotherhood) and named after the colors of the french flag: blue, white and red. Highly recommended, though not necessarily depressing, just very interesting explorations of these human themes and absolutely top tier filmmaking.
Wim Wenders' Paris, Texas should also fit the bill for your original request, I think. It has one of the best monologues in all cinema, beautifully shot and with an iconic soundtrack by Ry Cooder.
Das Experiment.
Genuinely one of the most unsettling films I've ever watched.
Saw?
“Drill into the human soul” was meant to be a metaphor.
I’d rather live through Saw than Red Lantern though.