Combining Dan Holmberg’s poetic cinematography with his own intense curiosity about everything American, director Jorgen Leth gives us a Whitmanesque ode to American workers and American spaces. Images of the Danish rocker Kim Larsen singing on a rooftop in New York City contrast with Andy Warhol carefully eating a Whopper hamburger. The filmmaker convincingly demonstrates that the essence of America can be found in something as simple as how we mix a Martini or eat potatoes and peas.

Karin Westerlund’s first feature was selected for Un Certain Regard at this year’s Cannes Film Festival. Lisanak Hosanak describes her breakup with her American boyfriend.

An American Army sergeant, a New York photographer, and Jesse Jackson struggle to maintain their bearings during the U.S. effort to return Haiti’s president Aristide to power in 1994. The film takes a fascinating look at how American political problem solving and good will are brought to a grinding halt amidst the complex realities of contemporary Haitian politics. The funeral scene is something not to be missed.