Shelter
Two homeless strangers in Manhattan find love and the possibility of a future while confronting the painful histories that drove them onto the streets.
Ember's analysis
- Pacing
- Measured
- Intensity
- Strong
- Complexity
- Layered
- Violence
- Mild
- melancholic
- intimate
- compassionate
- reflective evening
- social issue film night
What critics said
Critics broadly found the film earnest and emotionally committed, but considered its social drama uneven and conventional.
What sets it apart
May contain story progression spoilers
Hannah and Tahir’s relationship develops while both are homeless in New York, making emotional intimacy inseparable from material survival.
The film explores how Hannah and Tahir became homeless by unfolding details of their pasts as their relationship develops.
Manhattan streets, homelessness, shelters, and precarious urban survival form the film’s central physical and social environment.
The premise and keywords connect heroin use, immigrant experience, homelessness, and the characters’ struggle to rebuild their lives.
Films like Shelter, and why
The Pursuit of Happyness
shared intimate homelessness drama, urban precarity, and emotionally serious romantic relationship
The Saint of Fort Washington
shared New York homelessness, social marginalization, and compassionate character-driven drama
Leaving Las Vegas
shared melancholic urban romance centered on vulnerable outsiders and difficult personal histories
Movie Details
- Director
- Paul Bettany
- Release Date
- 2014-09-12
- Runtime
- 105 min
- Rating
- 5.9 / 10 (115)
Cast
- Jennifer Connelly
- Anthony Mackie
- Amy Hargreaves
- Bruce Altman
- Andrew Polk
- Paul Urcioli
- Teddy Cañez
- Scott Johnsen
- Rob Morgan
- Kevin Geer
Where to watch in United States
- Streaming
- fuboTV
- Rent
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
- Buy
- Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home
Streaming options come from TMDB and change over time.
Common questions
- What is Shelter about?
- Two homeless strangers in Manhattan find love and the possibility of a future while confronting the painful histories that drove them onto the streets.
- What is Shelter like to watch?
- Ember's analysis rates the pacing of Shelter as measured, its intensity as strong and its storytelling as layered.
- Is Shelter violent?
- Only mildly. Ember rates the violence in Shelter as mild.
- What did critics think of Shelter?
- Critics broadly found the film earnest and emotionally committed, but considered its social drama uneven and conventional.
- Which films are like Shelter?
- Films with a similar feel include The Pursuit of Happyness, The Saint of Fort Washington, and Leaving Las Vegas.
- How long is Shelter?
- Shelter runs 105 minutes.
- Where can I watch Shelter?
- In United States, Shelter streams on fuboTV.
