Movies I Want to See
It seems like I often come across movies that I would like to see but forget, so I decided it was time to start a catalog of all the movies I still want to see, from the acclaimed classics to any movie starring Christian Bale. This will also serve as a handy way to combine the movies I haven't seen yet from the AFI 100, IMDb Top 250, BFI Sight/Sound Poll and more. And I expect as I whittle away at it, the list will only continue to grow, as I stumble upon filmmakers or styles that I've never even heard of.
Recent Additions:
1945: Dead of Night
1963: Méditerranée
1968: Je T'aime, Je T'aime
1975: Deep Red
1978: The Foreigner
1981: Subway Riders
|
Pre-1920 All of the very
first films, those Lumičre or Edison clips, The Great Train Robbery. The
very first movies captured on film would be a great DVD, especially since many
of them are less than a minute. I know there's a famous one of someone
sneezing... Intolerance by DW
Griffiths (1916). This is the highest movie on the latest
AFI 100 that I haven't seen, and it's by the maker of
Birth of a Nation. Despite it's daunting length, I think I'll have to get
around to this at some point. Also, it made the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll and the
Emerson 100.
|
|
|
|
The Last of the
Mohicans by Clarence Brown and Maurice Tourneur. This Wallace Beery silent
film is an hour and fifteen minutes and has a 7.2 on IMDb right now. I'm
looking forward to seeing the depiction of Native Americans so long ago though.
|
|
1921 The Four Horsemen
of the Apocalypse by Rex Ingram. This epic sees a family endure
relationships, career pursuits, and eventually war, and it earned an 8.2 on IMDb
on top of being the highest-grossing movie of the year. The Phantom
Carriage (Körkarlen) by Victor Sjöström. This film by the Swedish master
is about a New Year's Eve horror legend about the last person to die each year
having to drive the Phantom Carriage to collect the souls of the dead.
|
|
|
|
1922 When
Knighthood Was in Flower by Robert G. Vignola. It's the
highest-rated film of the '20s on IMDb, and it was William Randolph
Hearst's pet project. It's a Tudor tale, apparently a visually
spectacular one, but I can't seem to find too much information on it.
|
|
1923 The Extra Girl by
F. Richard Jones. About a girl who is selected to be a star and
moves to Hollywood, only to discover that there was a mistake, and she's
relegated to the props department. It's just over and hour and has an 8.9
on IMDb, so I'll give it a shot. Zaza by
Allan Dwan. Gloria Swanson plays a French singer in this silent
film that lasts about an hour and has an 8.8 on IMDb.
|
|
|
|
1924 Greed by Erich von
Stroheim. It has an 8.5 on IMDb, made the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll, Ebert's Great
Movies, and was 15th on the Emerson
100. Plus it was directed by Norma Desmond's assistant in Sunset Blvd. The Last
Laugh (Der Letzte Mann) by FW Murnau. One of my favorite
silent directors shot this movie toward the end of the silent era, and
accordingly, though without sound, it features only one intertitle.
It's about a doorman who gets fired, and the expressionist shots have made it a
cult classic and one of Ebert's Great Movies.
|
|
1925 The Big Parade by
King Vidor. It's about a man who falls in love but goes off to war, and it
has an 8.8 on IMDb right now.
|
|
|
|
1926 Brown of Harvard by
Jack Conway. This silent film has a 9.0 on IMDb and has a tag of
homoeroticism. So obvies. But it's about a new Harvard recruit
competing with another Harvard student for athletic positions and the affections
of a girl. Ménilmontant
by Dimitri Kirsanoff. This silent film is acclaimed by cinephiles, and it
has no intertitles, so it is entirely visually told. It's about two
sisters going on the run after their parents are murdered by an unknown axe
murderer. Sparrows by
William Beaudine. Mary Pickford plays Molly, a girl who rescues
the children from an abusive orphanage and leads them out of a swamp. |
|
1927 The Jazz Singer by
Alan Crosland. The first talkie features very few words and Al Jolson in
blackface. Point of interest: FHS musicals had blackface into the
1990s. Anyway, it's on the AFI 100. The King of
Kings by Cecil B. DeMille. How many god-damn God epics did he have
to make? What's worse, this one's
Criterion, so it has some signficance, even if
I'm not quite ready to devote my next 34 hours to watching another
DeMille. Underworld by Josef
von Sternberg. A well-liked crime proto-noir by von Sternberg. Wings by
William A. Wellman. The first Best Picture winner is about a pair
of airmen fighting over a girl. |
|
|
|
1928 The Fall of the
House of Usher by Jean Epstein. It's a version of the Poe story adapted by
Buńuel, and it's one of Ebert's Great Movies.
The Last Command by
Josef von Sternberg. Not only does it have an acclaimed director, but it
was written by Mankiewicz and stars the first Best Actor as a Russian officer.
West of
Zanzibar by Tod Browning. It stars Lon Chaney and Lionel Barrymore
and is about a magician rivalry, African tribes, and revenge plots.
And it's just over an hour.
|
|
1929 Man with a Movie
Camera (Chelovek s Kino-Apparatom) by Dziga Vertov. This is literally an
hour-long documentary by a man with a movie camera walking around urban Russia.
It's acclaimed though, by the BFI Sight/Sound
Critics Poll. Pandora's
Box by Georg Wilhelm Pabst. The story of a showgirl's downward
spiral looks stunning and is in the
Criterion Collection and Ebert's
Great Movies.
|
|
|
|
The Blue Angel (Der
Blaue Engel) by Josef von Sternberg. Ever since The Dreamers, I've wanted
to see this. Under the
Roof of Paris by René Clair. A musical about a gangster and a
street singer vying for the affections of a girl, and one of the major
bridges between silent films and talkies. It's in the
Criterion Collection.
|
|
1931 A Nous la Liberté
by René Clair. A liberal satirical comedy that is
Criterion-approved. Le Million
by René Clair. René Clair is one of the first significant
directors, and this early musical/comedy is in the
Criterion Collection and the
Emerson 100.
|
|
|
|
1932 Freaks by Tod
Browning. A cult classic about circus freaks. I Am a Fugitive
from a Chain Gang by Mervyn Leroy. It's one of the major proto-noirs
(starring Paul Muni) I haven't seen, and Ryan recommends it. The Most
Dangerous Game by Irving Pichel and Ernest B. Schoedsack. Fay Wray
stars in this adaptation of one of my favorite short stories that even
made the Criterion Collection.
Scarface by
Howard Hawks. A gangster film starring Paul Muni whose ending I've
already seen! Also, Ryan recommends it. Trouble in Paradise
by Ernst Lubitsch. A high-class thief falls for a pickpocket posing as a
countess. This film is in the Criterion
Collection and Ebert's Great Movies.
|
|
1933 The Testament of
Dr. Mabuse by Fritz Lang. This work by the master of German expressionism
is about an investigation whose clues lead to a man who has been locked in a
mental asylum for some time. It is in the
Criterion Collection and has an 8.1 on IMDb.
|
|
|
|
1934 Of Human Bondage by
John Cromwell. An early, supposedly phenomenal Bette Davis performance.
The Scarlet
Empress by Josef von Sternberg. This
Criterion sees Marlene Dietrich play
German Princess Sophia, who is brought to Russia to marry the son of the
Empress and quickly plots to become Catherine the Great. It is
also one of Ebert's Great Movies. The Thin Man by WS
Van Dyke. A retired detective and his rich wife solve crimes for fun.
And it's kind of something you have to see, and is one of
Ebert's Great Movies. |
|
1935 N/A |
|
|
|
1936 The Crime
of Monsieur Lange by Jean Renoir. A fairly short Renoir about a
man who is wanted and recognized near the Belgian border, but I didn't
want to spoil myself so that's all I know. Swing Time
by George Stevens. I've never seen a Fred Astaire/Ginger Rogers
musical, and according to the AFI 100, this
is the best. It's also on Ebert's
Great Movies. Things to Come by
William Cameron Menzies. This is based on an HG Wells story set after WWI,
and plots the future of civilization on Earth. It's said to be getting the
Criterion treatment, and I'm excited by a pre-WWII future prediction. |
|
1937 Pépé le Moko by
Julien Duvivier. The title character in this
Criterion is a Parisian gangster hiding out in
Algiers, where he falls in love while the police look for him. You Only Live Once
by Fritz Lang. An hour-and-a-half-long proto-noir starring Henry Fonda and
directed by Fritz Lang!
|
|
|
|
1938 Angels with Dirty
Faces. Michael Curtiz directs James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart in this
early crime film. Port of Shadows (Le
Quai des Brumes) by Marcel Carne. A gorgeous French crime story that
apparently obliterates all the hope in the world.
|
|
1939 Le Jour se Lčve by
Marcel Carné.
Marcel Carné's hour-and-a-half-long film is about a man who just killed someone
reflecting on how he got there. It's on the Emerson
100. The Story
of the Late Chrysanthemums (Zangiku Monogatari) by Kenji Mizoguchi.
It's about an actor in late 19th century Japan, and it made the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll.
|
|
|
|
The Bank Dick by
Edward F. Cline. I remember at New York seeing a picture of an old star
that I didn't know, and my grandma was astonished I didn't know who WC Fields
was. Well this comedy stars Fields and is in
Ebert's Great Movies and the
Criterion Collection , so I figure it's a
good place to start. Night Train to
Munich by Carol Reed. A Czech girl is used by a Gestapo agent in order to
get her father, while a British agent poses as a Nazi to help the Czech family
escape. I love war films, especially clandestine ones, made during the War
that aren't pure propaganda. |
|
1941 The Devil and
Daniel Webster by William Dieterle. This
Criterion sees a down-on-his-luck farmer
selling his soul to the Devil for 7 years of prosperity. Walter Huston
plays Satan, and I'm especially interested in what everyone else was doing while
Orson Welles was changing the world. Stormy Waters (Remorques)
by Jean Grémillon. A tugboat captain, whose wife has a heart disease,
meets a woman who wants to leave her husband during a sea rescue. Sullivan's Travels
by Preston Sturges. I still haven't seen a Preston Sturges film, and he's
a beloved American comedy director, so this'll be a good start. It made the 10th anniversary AFI
100. |
|
|
|
1942 Now, Voyager by
Irving Rapper. Bette Davis and the cast of Casablanca in this awesome
story about a spinster finding love. To Be or Not To Be by Ernst Lubitsch.
I've seen the Mel Brooks version, but this is much more highly regarded, and I
have yet to see a movie by the well-regarded Lubitsch.
|
|
1943 Day of Wrath (Vredens
Dag) by Carl Theodore Dreyer. This weird family drama about a witch having
an affair with the son of her husband, the pastor, is in the
Criterion Collection. Heaven Can Wait by
Ernst Lubitsch. A man must recount his history to Satan in order to get
into Hell in this Criterion comedy-romance
(not romantic comedy).
|
|
|
|
1944 Gaslight by George
Cukor. A drama-mystery-thriller starring Joseph Cotten, Ingrid Bergman and
Angela Lansbury! Ivan the Terrible
Part I by Sergei Eisenstein. It's only an hour and a half and has an 8.0
on IMDb, and it's on the Sight/Sound Critics Poll,
the Criterion Collection, and the
Emerson 100. Lifeboat by
Alfred Hitchcock. A bunch of survivors from a shipwreck on a boat
with the man who sunk it. And it's Hitchcock! Torment by Alf
Sjöberg. Ingmar Bergman's first screenplay. |
|
1945 Children of
Paradise (Les Enfants du Paradis) by Marcel Carné. Made during the war,
it's an extravagant love tragedy about mimes and actors and thieves. It's
in the Criterion Collection,
the Sight/Sound Critics Poll,
Ebert's Great Movies, and the
Sight/Sound Directors Poll. Dead of Night by
multiple directors. A group of dinner guests swap scary stories in a
mansion. Detour by Edgar G.
Ulmer. This obscure noir is about a hitchhiker who gets caught in a "net
of film noir trouble," and it's one of Ebert's
Great Movies. Even better, it's on that Film Noir DVD I bought.
|
|
|
|
1946 The Postman Always
Rings Twice by Tay Garnett. A film noir about a married woman falling for
a drifter, and they plot to murder her husband.
|
|
1947 Black
Narcissus by Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger. The acclaimed
Brits direct this story of nuns opening a convent in the Himalayas.
It's in the Criterion Collection.
The Devil
Thumbs a Ride by Felix E. Feist. A law-abiding citizen soon
regrets giving a ride to a fierce hit man played by Lawrence Tierney. It Always
Rains on Sunday by Robert Hamer. An escaped convict tried to hide
out at his former lover's house. Nightmare
Alley by Edmund Goulding. A circus-set film noir starring Tyrone
Power. Odd Man Out
by Carol Reed. A noir set in Ireland by Carol Reed that received
much acclaim. Panic (Panique)
by Julien Duvivier. A crime drama kicks off when an old lady is
killed, and the tangled story of an ex-con, her lover, and a
misanthropic old man unfolds. Pursued by
Raoul Walsh. A western-noir starring Robert Mitchum. Quai des
Orfčvres by Henri-Georges Clouzot. A noirish crime drama by
Clouzot that's in the Criterion
Collection. |
|
|
|
1948 La Terra Trema by
Luchino Visconti. An Italian neorealist film from the same year as Bicycle
Thieves. Made the Emerson 100. Louisiana
Story by Robert J. Flaherty. It's a story set in the Louisiana
bayous that's often taken for documentary, and in 78 minutes, it earned
enough acclaim to make the Emerson 100. Raw Deal by Anthony
Mann. A man who took the rap for a friend is getting broken out by him. The Search by Fred
Zinnemann. In postwar Germany, a mother and a son search for each other.
The film is notable for actually showing postwar German ruins, and the son won a
special Oscar. |
|
1949 All the King's Men
by Robert Rossen. A great book made into a Best Picture. Prison (Fangelse)
by Ingmar Bergman. A director's old math teacher has an idea for a
movie--the Devil declares Earth is Hell--and the director starts noticing the
idea playing out in real life. Thieves Highway by
Jules Dassin. Rififi was great, and this is another film noir by the
French master. It's in the Criterion
Collection.
|
|
|
|
The Asphalt
Jungle by John Huston. One of the bigger film noirs I still
haven't seen, this one's about a heist gone wrong. Harvey by
Henry Koster. James Stewart has an imaginary friend that's a
humanoid rabbit. The play won the Pulitzer, and the movie's on the IMDb
Top 250. In a Lonely
Place by Nicholas Ray. A Bogey noir about a screenwriter who may
or may not have killed his hat-check girl. Panic in
the Streets by Elia Kazan. A crime noir by Kazan about the hunt
for a killer who has bubonic plague! |
|
1951 The Browning
Version by Anthony Asquith. This Criterion
is about a disillusioned professor reexamining his life. Diary of a Country
Priest by Robert Bresson. A new priest is rejected by his parishioners,
causing a crisis of faith that sounds like Winter Light in this
Criterion. Miss Julie (Fröken Julie) by Alf Sjöberg. A Strindberg play about an aristocrat's affair set in turn-of-the-century Sweden in this Criterion. A Place in the Sun
by George Stevens. Well it made the original AFI 100,
but it's one left that I'm actually looking forward to. The story looks
interesting, and Montgomery Clift is kinda hot. The River (Le
Fleuve) by Jean Renoir. Three girls growing up near a river in India fall
for the same man. This is one of Ebert's
Great Movies and the Criterion Collection.
The Tall Target by
Anthony Mann. A plot to assassinate Lincoln on a train! |
|
|
|
1952 Ikiru by Akira
Kurosawa. A non-samurai Kurosawa about a City Hall head finding out he has
terminal cancer and living the rest of his life intensely, fighting for a legacy
in the construction of a playground for kids. It's in the
Criterion Collection and
Ebert's Great Movies. Viva Zapata! by
Elia Kazan. Well, it's another Kazan-Brando team-up, and it's about a
Mexican revolutionary.
|
|
1953 The Big Heat by
Fritz Lang. One of the bigger noirs I still have left sees a cop take on a
crime ring. The Hitch-Hiker by
Ida Lupino. Two fishermen pick up a hitchhiking asylum escapee who tells
them he's going to kill them when the ride is over. Tokyo Story (Tokyo
Monogatari) by Yasujiro Ozu. Another highly rated Japanese film that
sounds like I may like it. It's about an elderly couple who visit their
kids in Tokyo to be confronted with the tragedy of the city: ingratitude,
indifference, selfishness, etc. It is in the
Criterion Collection,
Ebert's Great Movies, the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll, the
Sight/Sound Directors Poll and the
Emerson 100. The Tale of Ugetsu
(Ugetsu Monogatari) by Kenji Mizoguchi. I haven't taken to samurai films
yet, but this is by someone not named Kurosawa. It looks dreamy and
beautiful, and it's only an hour and a half. Also, it's on the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll,
Ebert's Great Movies, and is 30th on the
Emerson 100. Welcome Mr.
Marshall (Bienvenido Mr. Marshall) by Luis García Berlanga. A Spanish
village humorously prepares for the arrival of American visitors. |
|
|
|
1954 Senso by Luchino
Visconti. During the Austrian occupation of Venice, a young woman falls
for an Austrian leader while her cousin leads the resistance movement against
them. Touchez Pas au
Grisbi by Jacques Becker. A retired gangster must rescue his kidnapped
best friend in this Criterion. It is
also one of Ebert's Great Movies.
|
|
1955 The Big Combo by
Joseph H. Lewis. A film noir with some amazing cinematography (see right).
East of Eden by
Elia Kazan. The Steinbeck novel shot by master of b/w Kazan and Starring
James Dean. A Generation by
Andzej Wajda. The first of the Criterion
set of 3 War Films by Wajda is about coming of age during the German occupation.
Marty by Delbert
Mann. One of the acclaimed Best Actor performances, written by Paddy
Chayefsky, and only an hour and a half. It's on the
Emerson 100. Song of the Little
Road (Pather Panchali) by Satyajit Ray. The first film of the acclaimed
Apu trilogy is one of Ebert's Great Movies
and the Emerson 100. I've yet to see a single
Indian film, and this one is about a young boy in a poverty-stricken family in
turn-of-the-century India. Summertime
by David Lean. I freaking love his black and white movies (Great
Expectations, Oliver Twist, Brief Encounter), this one has star
Katharine Hepburn, and I've long awaited this
classic in the Criterion Collection.
The Word (Ordet)
by Carl Theodore Dreyer. This highly-acclaimed film is in the
Criterion Collection and the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll. |
|
|
|
1956 La Pointe-Courte by
Agnčs Varda. This is Varda's debut, and it intercuts social realist scenes
of the poor fishing village of La Pointe-Courte with a man from the town and his
girlfriend dealing with their changing relationship. IMDb says it
premiered in 1994, but Criterion says 1956,
and I'm banking on Criterion. A Man Escaped by
Robert Bresson. A French resistance operative held captive by the Nazis
plots an escape, but on the day he intends to get out, he is condemned to death
and given a cellmate. |
|
1957 Canal by Andrzej
Wajda. The second in the Criterion set
of Wajda's 3 War Films is about the final days of the Warsaw uprising. The Cranes are
Flying by Mikhail Kalatozov. This
Criterion is about a woman who meets up with her lover, who is then drafted
into WWII. The Tall T by Bud
Boetticher. A simple western about a stagecoach held hostage. White Nights by
Luchino Visconti. Based on a Dostoevsky novel, this
Criterion is about a man courting a woman
who waits by the window every night for the return of her lost lover. |
|
|
|
1958 Ashes and Diamonds
by Andrzej Wajda. The third war film by Andrzej Wajda in the
Criterion box set, this one's about a young resistance fighter deciding
whether to follow through on an order to kill a former comrade. Cat on a Hot Tin
Roof by Richard Brooks. Tennessee Williams wrote the play, and hot Paul
Newman stars with Elizabeth Taylor in this acclaimed family drama.
|
|
1959 Anatomy of a Murder
by Otto Preminger. A perennial occurrence on the IMDb Top 250, this murder
mystery stars James Stewart and is directed by a great. Ballad of a Soldier
by Grigori Chukhrai. This film has an 8.4 on IMDb and is about Soviet
soldier being rewarded for his heroism by getting a few days leave to visit his
mother, and while on the train, he falls in love. It's in the
Criterion Collection. Ben-Hur by William
Wyler. I trust Wyler's direction, but it's four hours long and stars
Charlton Heston. I believe I've already been there once.
Nevertheless, many love it, including the AFI 100,
both times, and it made the
Emerson 100. Kapň by Gillo
Pontecorvo. A young Jewish girl leads an escape attempt from a
concentration camp. Our Man in Havana
by Carol Reed. In Reed's last collaboration with Graham Green, Alec
Guinness plays an expat in Havana who joins an intelligence organization for
money, but makes up information because he has none. Pickpocket
by Robert Bresson. It's about a man who resorts to picking pockets
immediately after getting out of jail as a means of survival. It's
in the Criterion Collection,
Ebert's Great Movies, and the
Sight/Sound Directors Poll.
Shadows by
John Cassavettes. Based on my first Cassavettes film, I think I
love this director, and this is an early, shorter film about interracial
friendships in the Beat era. It's in the
Criterion Collection. |
|
|
|
Black Sunday by
Mario Bava. An evil witch and her servant come back to life in order to
possess a young woman that she looks like. Jigoku by Nobuo
Nakagawa. This Criterion horror is a
surreal work about a theology student who experiences Hell. It's supposed
to have memorably arresting imagery. La Dolce Vita by
Federico Fellini. One of Fellini's best-loved works, it made the
Sight/Sound Critics Poll,
Ebert's Great Movies, and the
Sight/Sound Directors Poll. Macario by Roberto
Gavaldón. An acclaimed Mexican film about a guy who visits God, Satan, and
Death on the Day of the Dead, acquires a vial which heals any wound, and faces
the Spanish Inquisition. The Magnificent
Seven by John Sturges. I'm not too terribly thrilled to see this one, but
it is a western about seven guys saving a village (yet another western based on
a samurai film), so it can't be all bad. The Truth (La
Vérité) by Henri-Georges Clouzot. A man is on trial for murdering a girl,
and that's all I want to know. |
|
1961 The Exiles by Kent
Mackenzie. A Cassavettes-like look at Native Americans in LA. La Notte by
Michelangelo Antonioni. Marcello Mastroiani (8 1/2) and Jeanne Moreau
(Jules et Jim) are a married couple who spend a night while their friend lies on
his deathbed. Victim by Basil
Dearden. A powerful closeted lawyer blackmails gay men threatening to out
them at a time when homosexual acts were still illegal. This is one of
Ebert's Great Movies. Viridiana by Luis
Buńuel. An hour and a half drama about a woman who's going to become a
nun. It's in the Criterion Collection.
|
|
|
|
1962 Cape Fear
by J. Lee Thompson. Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum star in this
story of revenge. Eclipse (L'Eclisse)
by Michelangelo Antonioni. A typical-sounding Antonioni about a
woman who begins a doomed affair. It's in the
Criterion Collection. Keeper of
Faith by Anselmo Duarte. A Brazilian kid test his faith by
carrying a cross all the way to a nearby town. This Palme D'or winner
currently has an 8.8 on IMDb. Le Doulos
by Jean-Pierre Melville. A Melville crime movie about
double-crossing starring Jean-Paul Belmondo. Lolita by
Stanley Kubrick. The Nabokov classic has been called the second
greatest fiction book ever, and I've always been curious to see what
Kubrick did with it. What Ever
Happened to Baby Jane? by Robert Aldrich. Bette Davis and Joan
Crawford as two aging film stars isolated together in a dying mansion.
|
|
1963 Autumn Days (Días de Otońo) by Roberto Gavaldón. A little-known psychological thriller with a 9.5 on IMDb compared to Hitchcock. The Birds by Alfred
Hitchcock. One of the major Hitchcocks I still haven't seen. Then
again, it's not one of his mystery thrillers, so it's not as important to me.
Ladybug Ladybug by
Frank Perry. Students and faculty at a rural school react to news of an
imminent nuclear attack, dread growing as the day wears on. The Leopard (Il
Gattopardo) by Luchino Visconti. In 1860s Sicily, a dying aristocracy
struggles to assert itself in this foreign classic that has been heralded by the
Criterion Collection and
Ebert's Great Movies.
Méditerranée
by Jean-Daniel Pollet and Volker Schlöndorff |
|
|
|
1964 Culloden by Peter
Watkins. A well-received reenactment of the last battle on British soil
(in 1764) as if camera crews were embedded with the soldiers. My Fair Lady by
George Cukor. I tried this once and failed. But come on, it's almost
three hours long! Anyway, it's on the original AFI 100,
Ebert's Great Movies,
and the Emerson 100. Not on Your Life
(El Verdugo) by Luis García Berlanga. An undertaker who marries the
daughter of an executioner is forced to follow in his footsteps. Red Desert by
Michelangelo Antonioni. The director followed up his acclaimed trilogy of
modern ennui with his first color film. Seven Up! By Paul
Almond. The Up documentaries by Michael Apted start here! |
|
1965 Doctor Zhivago by
David Lean. The highest film on the first AFI 100
that I haven't yet seen. The Fifth Horseman
is Fear by Zbynek Brynych. A Czech New Wave masterpiece about the
Holocaust's effects on a Jewish doctor. Juliet of the
Spirits by Federico Fellini. Fellini's first color film is supposed to be
a surreal delight. Pierrot Le
Fou by Jean-Luc Godard. It's about a guy with a girl on the run,
and it's in the Criterion Collection
and the Sight/Sound Critics Poll.
Repulsion by Roman
Polanski. A woman goes crazy hallucinating about violent sexual
encounters. The Shop on Main
Street (Obchod na Korze) by Jan Kadar and Elmar Klos. A Czech film about a
kid placed in a Jewish woman's sewing shop in WWII who has to deal with the
consequences when the Nazis decide to remove the Jews. It has an 8.6 on
IMDb and is in the Criterion Collection.
The War Game by
Peter Watkins. A fictional look (using documentary footage) at how a
nuclear bomb strike on British soil would play out. |
|
|
|
1966 The Big Gundown by
Sergio Sollima. Widely regarded as the best zapata western, and it stars
Lee Van Cleef. Closely Watched
Trains by Jirí Menzel. This Czech classic features a kid joining his
father's train company and entering adulthood. It's in the
Criterion Collection. Cul-de-Sac by Roman
Polanski. Two criminals hide out at a beachfront castle until their
relationships with the family there turn bizarre. Hunger (Sult) by
Henning Carlsen. A highly rated film about a guy trying to get his book
published and looking for love while maintaining dignity in 1890 Denmark. Is Paris Burning?
by René Clément. Brace yourself. This is a drama set in the final
days of WWII Paris about the French resistance trying to take the city.
Meanwhile, the Nazi general has orders to burn the town rather than let the
Allies take it. The final main character? Orson Welles as the
Swedish ambassador! Also starring Kirk Douglass and Glenn Ford. I
cannot freaking wait to see this movie. Le Deuxičme Souffle
by Jean-Pierre Melville. An awesome, pulpy-sounding crime movie about a
criminal who escapes from jail, kills someone else, and must avoid detection
while preparing to leave the country. A Man for All
Seasons by Fred Zinnemann. Orson Welles co-stars in this adaptation of the
story of Thomas More standing up to Henry VIII. It currently has an 8.1 on
IMDb. Masculin Feminin by
Jean-Luc Godard. An examination of youth culture in Paris told through the
relationship between a would-be intellectual and a pop star. It's in the
Criterion Collection. The Naked Prey by
Cornel Wilde. An African tribe kidnaps colonialists, and releases the
marksman naked in order to hunt him Most Dangerous Game-style in this recent
Criterion. |
|
1967 Belle de Jour by
Luis Buńuel. A housewife spends weekday afternoons as a prostitute.
It's in the Criterion Collection and
Ebert's Great Movies. Guess Who's Coming
to Dinner by Stanley Kramer. It's on the original AFI
100. Hombre by Martin
Ritt. Paul Newman is a stagecoach driver who works with his passengers to
defend against an attack, by the director of Hud and The Spy Who Came in from
the Cold. I am
Curious (Yellow) by Vilgot Sjöman. It's a
Criterion classic that was
outrageously controversial at the time due, I suppose, to the graphic
sex scenes. Marketa Lazarová
by Frantisek Vlácil. In Medieval
Czechoslovakia, a Czech clan kidnaps a German whose father alerts the king.
Both sides prepare for war as Czechoslovakia shifts from paganism to
Christianity. Privilege by Peter
Watkins. A British rock star's handlers pimp him out to the highest bidder
in this look at conformity. |
|
|
|
1968 I am
Curious (Blue) by Vilgot Sjöman. It's a
Criterion followup to the
controversial original. Je t'aime,
Je t'aime by Alain Resnais. I try to stay away from descriptions
of Resnais, but this one was recommended to me and involves a time
machine. Which means it will rock. The Lion in
Winter by Anthony Harvey. Katharine Hepburn as Eleanor of
Aquitaine and Peter O'Toole as Henry II in this medieval castle drama.
Night of
the Living Dead by George Romero. The first of Romero's zombie
flicks looks better than Dawn of the Dead, if only due to the black and
white cinematography. Planet of
the Apes by Franklin J. Schaffner. Well, I've been to an
incredible lecture about it, I watched a documentary about it, and I've
seen that surprise ending a billion times. It's time to watch the
actual movie. |
|
1969 L'Amour Fou by
Jacques Rivette. A very highly rated film about the dissolution of the
marriage. I have yet to see a Rivette, but I have a feeling I'm going to
love him. Last Summer by
Frank Perry. Two guys and a girl become close friends a la The Dreamers,
and when a new girl tries to join, they plot to oust her. My Night at Maud's
by Eric Rohmer. His best-loved moral tale is in the
Criterion Collection and sounds awesome.
The Prime of Miss
Jean Brodie by Ronald Neame. Maggie Smith plays a young schoolteacher who
has affairs with two other teachers. Putney Swope by
Robert Downey, Sr. One of the director's most beloved movies is this
satire of black-phobia, about a black man accidentally being put in charge of a
company. Z by Costa-Gavras.
The movie that started the political thriller genre made the
Emerson 100. |
|
|
|
The Ballad of Cable
Hogue by Sam Peckinpah. A western comedy about a hobo who finds a water
spring in the desert and profits off it. The Butcher (Le
Boucher) by Claude Chabrol. As a butcher begins a relationship with a
repressed schoolteacher, a series of grisly murders occurs in a rural French
town. It's one of Ebert's Great Movies.
The Conformist (Il
Conformista) by Bernardo Bertolucci. An assassination thriller that
made the Sight/Sound Directors Poll. Investigation of a
Man Above Suspicion by Elio Petri. A police chief murders his mistress and
deliberately leaves clues that he killed her to see if he can get away with it. The Red
Circle (Le Cercle Rouge) by Jean-Pierre Melville. This is the last
Melville in the Criterion Collection
I have yet to see, and it's a crime thriller starring Alain Delon.
The White Sun of
the Desert by Vladimir Motyl. It's an ostern with an 8.4 on IMDb.
|
|
1971 Deep End by Jerzy Skolimowski. An
acclaimed, hard-to-find story of a boy working at a bathhouse. Dirty Harry by Don Siegel. The film
adaptation of the Zodiac case starring Clint. The Hired Hand by Peter Fonda. A
mysterious plot about a drifter returning home in this acid western. Millhouse by Emile de Antonio. A
trenchant documentary of Nixon during the man's administration! Murmur of the Heart (Le Souffle au
Coeur) by Louis Malle. The first story by Louis Malle in the
Criterion Collection box set, this
sounds like your basic coming-of-age story, albeit assuredly beautiful.
Out 1, Noli Me Tangere by Jacques Rivette.
The New Wave experimenter delivers a fascinating, well-liked (by those who have
seen it) twelve-hour-plus film of interweaving subplots. Punishment Park by Peter Watkins. A
group of soldiers escort counterculture types across the desert accompanied by a
camera crew as tensions begin to rise. THX-1138 by George Lucas. I
started this once, but quickly gave up. Still, it's the debut of
the mind behind Star Wars, so it's gotta be worth a look at least.
|
|
|
|
1972 Bad Company by
Robert Benton. A group of young men try to eke out an existence in the
West but find it more difficult than they imagined. The Bitter Tears of
Petra von Kant (Die Bitteren Traenan der Petra von Kant) by Rainer Werner
Fassbinder. All I know is it has something to do with a whorehouse, and
it's gorgeous. Deliverance by John
Boorman. A classic adventure thriller. The Discreet Charm
of the Bourgeoisie by Luis Buńuel. A surreal series of dreams had by six
people at dinner. It's in the Criterion
Collection and Ebert's Great Movies.
Greaser's Palace by
Robert Downey, Sr. A surreal retelling of the passion of the Christ as a
westernish comedy. Jeremiah Johnson by
Sydney Pollack. Robert Redford plays a trapper trying to get away from
civilization. |
|
1973 Day for Night (La
Nuit Americaine) by Francois Truffaut. Said to be Truffaut's last great
film, the plot description reminds me of 8 1/2, as it's about a director coping
with crises while trying to complete his film. It's in the
Criterion Collection,
Ebert's Great Movies, and the
Emerson 100. Don't Look Now by
Nicholas Roeg. Donald Sutherland and Julie Christie play a married couple
in Venice after the death of their daughter, and after an encounter with a
psychic, Sutherland starts having visions of his daughter that coincide with
murders in the city. It's one of Ebert's
Great Movies. High Plains Drifter
by Clint Eastwood. Clint's hired by a town to protect them from three
outlaws. The Last Detail by
Hal Ashby. Jack Nicholson gave one of Premiere's greatest performances as
a sailor in this movie about two sailors escorting someone to prison but showing
him one last good time. Pat Garrett and
Billy the Kid by Sam Peckinpah. An acclaimed western about bringing Billy
the Kid to justice. |
|
|
|
1974 Alice in the Cities
(Alice in den Staedten) by Wim Wenders. A man who is left with a friend's
child takes her on a trip through Europe in search of the girl's grandmother. Bring Me Head of
Alfredo Garcia by Sam Peckinpah. One of the most violent westerns of its
time, this one follows bounty hunters in Mexico. Given my love for
Peckinpah and westerns, and this being one of
Ebert's Great Movies, I can't wait Celine and Julie Go
Boating (Celine et Julie Vont en Bateau) by Jacques Rivette. One of the
French New Wave directors shot this strange-sounding, lengthy
Criterion about two linked women. Lacombe
Lucien by Louis Malle. The second of the 3 Stories in the
Criterion Collection, this one's on
my computer right now and deals with the French resistance and
collaborators. The Phantom of
Liberty by Luis Buńuel. A surrealist work of vaguely related episodes that's in the Criterion Collection. Thieves Like Us by
Robert Altman. Keith Carradine and Shelley Duvall pull a Bonnie and Clyde. |
|
1975 At Home Among
Strangers by Nikita Mikhalkov. It's supposed to be one of the best Russian
westerns (osterns) with some remarkable cinematography. Barry Lyndon by
Stanley Kubrick. It looks great, and it's acclaimed, as evidenced by
the Sight/Sound Critics Poll. Black Moon by Louis
Malle. An apocalyptic Alice in Wonderland. Deep Red (Profondo
Rosso) by Dario Argento. A musician and a reporter team up to solve a
murder mystery in one of Argento's most loved works. Night Moves by
Arthur Penn. A Gene Hackman thriller by the director of Bonnie and Clyde
about a PI looking for a missing girl. The
Passenger (Professione: Reporter) by Michelangelo Antonioni. Jack
Nicholson plays a journalist who assumes the identity of a man that
looks like him who was just assassinated. It's Antonioni, and Ryan
liked it. Picnic at Hanging
Rock by Peter Weir. It sounds like an awesome movie about a group of
students and a teacher who disappear on a trip to the beach, and as we follow
them and the people looking for them, the movie takes more pleasure in asking
questions. It's in the Criterion
Collection and Ebert's Great Movies. The Rocky Horror
Picture Show by Jim Sharman. It's a cult classic. |
|
|
|
1976 Cria Cuervos by
Carlos Saura. A little girl mourns her grandmother amidst Franco Spain in
this Criterion. The Killing of a
Chinese Bookie by John Cassavettes. A
Criterion Cassavettes neo-noir. Kings of the Road (Im
Lauf der Zeit) by Wim Wenders. The running time of three hours is the only
thing putting me off this German road trip to old theaters by a projector
mechanic and a young depressed guy. Google images this one. The Man Who Fell to
Earth by Nicholas Roeg. David Bowie plays an alien in this
Criterion. |
|
1977 The Ascent by
Larisa Shepitko. Two Soviet soldiers go behind enemy lines in this film
that has an 8.8 on IMDb and won the Golden Bear. The Model Couple
(Le Couple Témoin) by William Klein. A couple is chosen to take part in an
experimental city of the future project while observed by government officials.
That Obscure Object
of Desire by Luis Buńuel. A man throws a bucket of water on a woman on a
train platform, and then we see in flashback how he became fascinated by her.
It's in the Criterion Collection.
|
|
|
|
1978 The Foreigner by
Amos Poe. A European agent comes to the US and waits for his contact to
tell him his assignment in this punk/No Wave icon. Jubilee by Derek
Jarman. Queen Elizabeth is transported by her alchemist 400 years in the
future to a postapocalyptic London in this
Criterion. Koko:
A Talking Gorilla by Barbet Schroeder. I've wanted to see this
Criterion documentary for a
while now. |
|
1979 Kramer vs. Kramer
by Robert Benton. Somehow it beat Apocalypse Now for Best Picture, but it
stars Dustin Hoffman and Meryl Streep. It's on the
Emerson 100. The Marriage of
Maria Braun (Die Ehe der Maria Braun) by Rainer Werner Fassbinder. Nosferatu the
Vampyre (Nosferatu: Phantom der Nacht) by Werner Herzog. Herzog's take on
Dracula with Klaus Kinski. Stalker by
Andrei Tarkovsky. This one's on the IMDb Top 250 right now, but I
mostly want to see it because it's a beloved Tarkovsky film. The Tin Drum (Die
Blechtrommel) by Volker Schlöndorff. A beloved
Criterion about a boy growing up during the
rise of the Nazis. Wise Blood by John
Huston. A young, poor Southerner decides the only way to make a name for
himself is to open a church. It's based on a Flannery O'Connor story (so,
yay), and Brad Dourif is the star! Also, Criterion may be producing a DVD
soon. |
|
|
|
Gates of Heaven by
Errol Morris. This documentary about pet cemeteries is one of
Ebert's Great Movies due to its philosophical
depth. The Long Good
Friday by John Mackenzie. Bob Hoskins plays a British gangster in this
Criterion-approved crime drama.
|
|
1981 My Dinner with
Andre by Louis Malle. Andre Gregory and Wallace Shawn chat over dinner
about their lives in one of Ebert's Great Movies.
The Oil, the Baby,
and the Transylvanians by Dan Pita. It's a Romanian Red Western, and it
has an 8.5 on IMDb. On Golden Pond by
Mark Rydell. Katharine Hepburn and Henry Fonda as really old lovers.
The Postman Always
Rings Twice by Bob Rafaelson. A remake of the original noir with about the
same plot description (and in the same year) as Body Heat. Poor rating on
IMDb, but it stars Jack Nicholson and Jessica Lange. Subway Riders by
Amos Poe. A psycho saxophone player lures victims with his music to
deserted areas to kill them! |
|
|
|
1982 Fanny and Alexander
by Ingmar Bergman. Everyone loves this film, and after Bergman died, it
was the one everyone said they watched in memoriam. It's in the
Criterion Collection, the
Sight/Sound Directors Poll,
Ebert's Great Movies, and the
Emerson 100. Sophie's
Choice by Alan J. Pakula. One of the early major Meryl Streep
films. The State of Things
by Wim Wenders. A film director runs out of money so he goes to LA looking
for the producer. I don't know any more than that, other than it's a
beautiful b/w film that won the Golden Lion. |
|
1983 The Big Chill by
Lawrence Kasdan. A group of old friends reunite after one of their deaths.
The Dead Zone by
David Cronenberg. I don't know, it's a Cronenberg starring Christopher
Walken as a psychic. It can't be that bad, right? El Sur by Victor
Erice. It's about a girl in North Spain who learns her father is still in
love with his mistress in the South, and it looks great and has an 8.4 on IMDb. The King of Comedy
by Martin Scorsese. Ryan recommends this story about stalking a late night
talk show host. Scarface by Brian
De Palma. I have yet to see any proof that De Palma is worthy of his
reputation. I'd say he's second-string on a good day. Regardless,
this is a cult classic that I pretty much have to see, and it made
Ebert's Great Movies.
|
|
|
|
1984 The Killing Fields
by Roland Joffé. Sam Waterston plays a journalist trapped in Cambodia
during ethnic cleansing. Nothing Lasts
Forever by Tom Schiller. It starts out like a '30s sci-fi serial and
eventually fades to color, and it's about a NYC artist who fails a test and is
forced to have a job he hates. He falls in love with a woman who takes him
to the Moon. It's just 82 minutes, stars Bill Murray and Dan Aykroyd, and
has a cult following. Paris, Texas by Wim
Wenders. An amnesiac starts to get his memory back while encountering
various people from his past in this Palme D'or winner which also made
Ebert's Great Movies. |
|
1985 The Color Purple by
Steven Spielberg. Oprah and Whoopi! Come and See (Idi i
Smotri) by Elem Klimov. It's one of the IMDb Top 250 picks, and it's about
a boy working for the resistance in WWII Belarus, which sounds awesome.
Kiss of the Spider
Woman by Hector Babenco. A homosexual and a political prisoner make
friends in jail cell in South America. Mala Noche by Gus
Van Sant. A Portland deadbeat falls for an illegal immigrant, but the
immigrant doesn't even speak English or like the deadbeat. A recent
Criterion addition. Pale Rider by Clint
Eastwood. I started this one, and it was great. Plus, my mom loves
it. The Quiet Earth by
Geoff Murphy. It's supposed to be a great last-man-on-earth movie, and
basically some guy wakes up and he's alone on the planet. Prizzi's Honor by
John Huston. Two professional killers are in love, and then they are hired
to kill each other. Vagabond by Agnčs
Varda. Considered one of her best films, Vagabond won the Golden Lion and
is in the Criterion Collection. |
|
|
|
1986 Down by Law
by Jim Jarmusch. Jon Lurie, Tom Waits, and Robert Benigni in a
Louisiana prison. It's in the
Criterion Collection. The Fly by
David Cronenberg. Jeff Goldblum turns into a man-fly. The Mission
by Roland Joffe. Robert De Niro and Jeremy Irons in this tale of
conquistadors in South America. A Room with
a View by James Ivory. Maggie Smith, Judi Dench, Denholm Elliott,
Daniel Day-Lewis, and Helena Bonham Carter. Sid and
Nancy by Alex Cox. A Criterion
about the Sex Pistols with Gary Oldman playing Sid Vicious. |
|
1987 Au Revoir, Les
Enfants by Louis Malle. One of the three stories by Louis Malle included
in the Criterion Collection and
Ebert's Great Movies, this Oscar
nominee's about a French boarding school during WWII. Broadcast News by
James L. Brooks. Holly Hunter, Albert Brooks and William Hurt in a love
triangle at the news studio. Empire of the Sun
by Steven Spielberg. Young Christian Bale trying to survive under Japanese
occupation. Matewan by John
Sayles. Ryan recommended it. Wings of Desire (Der
Himmel über Berlin) by Wim Wenders. Two angels, invisible to the world,
wander Berlin for centuries, until one eventually falls in love. It sounds
glorious, and it won Wenders Best Director at Cannes. |
|
|
|
1988 Dead Ringers by
David Cronenberg. A creepy twin movie by Cronenberg that was selected for
the Criterion Collection. Thin Blue Line by
Errol Morris. This is a Criterion
documentary investigating capital punishment in America.
|
|
1989 High Hopes by Mike
Leigh. Apparently it plays with structure and expectations, so I
deliberately avoided reading about it once I learned that. However, since
Naked, I've been looking for more great Mike Leigh. Santa Sangre by
Alejandro Jodorowsky. A mental patient (whose father cut off his mother's
arms in a childhood argument that caused his stay in the asylum) breaks out to
find his mother.
|
|
|
|
The Godfather, Part
III by Francis Ford Coppola. It's taken me long enough.
|
|
1991 Boyz N the Hood by
John Singleton. About black kids growing up in the LA ghetto, this one's
pretty well-regarded as one of the early '90s race films. Cape Fear by Martin
Scorsese. A popular remake starring De Niro, Nick Nolte, Jessica Lange,
and Juliette Lewis. City of Hope by
John Sayles. Apparently a good version of Crash. The Doors by Oliver
Stone. I don't know, I like Val Kilmer, and I've had this on my computer a
while. Hearts of Darkness
by Fax Bahr and George Hickenlooper. The infamous Apocalypse Now doc. JFK by Oliver
Stone. This Stone film, however, is both a part of culture now and one of
Ebert's Great Movies. Poison by Todd
Haynes. Three intercut stories that earned Haynes a name and entered his
work into the New Queer Cinema movement. |
|
|
|
1992
Chaplin by Richard Attenborough.
Robert Downey, Jr. as Charlie Chaplin!
The Crying Game by Neil Jordan.
A British soldier held hostage by the IRA befriends one of his captors in this
well-received thriller/romance.
Malcolm X by Spike Lee. I
guess.
Passion Fish by John Sayles.
Mary McDonnell's Best Actress nomination!
A Winter's Tale by Eric Rohmer.
In a story reminiscent of Before Sunrise, a man and a woman having an affair
agree to meet up again, but mix up their addresses. Five years later, the
woman has a baby from that encounter and is unable to escape what could have
been. It's one of Ebert's Great Movies. |
|
1993 The Age of Innocence by
Martin Scorsese. A film legend bringing to life Edith Wharton's
novel about society starring Daniel Day-Lewis is a must-see. Plus
it's one of Ebert's Great Movies. Baraka by Ron Fricke.
A plotless documentary of life on Earth. Calendar by Atom Egoyan.
A man and his wife photograph churches in Armenia for a calendar, and
the wife gets cozy with their driver, as flash-forwards flesh it out.
The Piano by Jane
Campion. Holly Hunter, Harvey Keitel, Sam Neill and Anna Paquin
star in this Australian story that I've long had a desire to see. |
|
|
|
1994 Akumulátor 1 by Jan
Sverák. A Czech fantasy-comedy about a world where when someone is filmed,
their double then lives in the TV showing them, and the doubles live off the
original's life force. So when people start dying in front of their TVs,
one person must learn to fight it. Hoop Dreams by
Steve James. This documentary about urban youth basketball stars comes
highly recommended from Ryan, Ebert's Great
Movies, and the Criterion Collection.
Sátántangó by Béla
Tarr. This is a 450 minute movie with a 9.0 on IMDb. I think it
looks amazing, although that running time is more than daunting. Wild Reeds by André
Téchiné. I heard about it because it's on the
Emerson 100 (meaning it's received a fair amount of
award recognition), but it's about a group of French teenagers in various love
triangles in 1962, including, in the great tradition of Les Enfants Terribles, a
gay relationship. |
|
1995 Clean, Shaven by
Lodge Kerrigan. A Criterion about a
schizophrenic. I'm a little afraid it will be too disturbing for me.
Crumb by Terry
Zwigoff. Supposedly hilarious documentary about the comic artist. Shallow Grave by
Danny Boyle. Three flatmates interview for a fourth. After picking
one, the fourth locks himself in his room and isn't seen, until they break in to
find that he's dead...but rich.
|
|
|
|
1996 Lone Star by John
Sayles. It's a modern western murder investigation in a rural Texas town
with dark secrets. That sounds pretty cool, but it's also well-liked by
people I respect, and 1996 wasn't a great year, so I'm hoping it'll be really
good. Secrets and Lies by
Mike Leigh. A black woman traces her roots to a white family, and everyone
deals with this in their own way. I love Mike Leigh's Naked, and this
scored a lot of acclaim and awards. Sydney by Paul
Thomas Anderson. PTA's first feature sees Philip Baker Hall as a hitman.
|
|
1997 The House of Yes by
Mark Waters. Parker Posey plays a woman who thinks she's Jackie O who
flips out in a murderous rage when she learns her brother is engaged. Mark
Waters directed Mean Girls, btw. In the Company of
Men by Neil LaBute. Aaron Eckhart and Matt Malloy play two misogynists who
attempt to take revenge on women by finding an innocent girl and ruining her
life. In this "comedy." Insomnia by Erik Skjoldbjćrg.
A crime mystery set in bleak Norway that's in the
Criterion Collection. Jackie Brown by
Quentin Tarantino. My final Tarantino. Open Your Eyes (Abre
Los Ojos) by Alejandro Amenábar. The basis for Vanilla Sky. The Sweet Hereafter
by Atom Egoyan. A bus accident affects a town. Lots of people like
it. |
|
|
|
1998 Gods and Monsters
by Bill Condon. Ian McKellen plays James Whale. Happiness by Todd
Solondz. Intertwining love stories by three sisters starring Philip
Seymour Hoffman, Dylan Baker, and Jon Lovitz, among others.
|
|
1999 All About My Mother
(Todo Sobre Mi Madre) by Pedro Almodovar. Ryan recommended this to
me, and it sounds pretty awesome. Plus, Volver was great. The Cider House
Rules by Lasse Hallström. I'm not really sure what it's about, but it was
written by John Irving and has a terrific cast. The Insider by
Michael Mann. Russell Crowe has, according to everyone, never been better
than in this movie about a 60 Minutes journalist doing an expose on Big Tobacco
also starring Al Pacino. Plus, Ryan really loves it. Titus by Julie
Taymor. One of my favorite Shakespeare plays in an imaginative retelling
starring Anthony Hopkins. It doesn't hurt that Jonathan Rhys Meyers and
Matthew Rhys play the hot, but evil Goth brothers. |
|
|
|
Amores Perros by
Alejandro Gonzáles Ińárritu. One of the IMDb faves, this drama sees
divergent storylines affected by a car crash. I loved Babel, and I've had
this one for a while. Nine Queens
(Nueve Reinas) by Fabian Bielinsky. It's a funny Brazilian crime
thriller by the director of The Aura, which I very much enjoyed. Quills by Philip
Kaufman. The Unbearable Lightness of Being director presents the story of
the Marquis de Sade starring Kate Winslet, among others. Snatch by Guy
Ritchie. I can't believe I still haven't seen this. You Can Count on Me
by Kenneth Lonergan. Ryan loved this Sundance winner starring Laura Linney,
Matthew Broderick, and Mark Ruffalo. |
|
2001 The Devil's
Backbone (El Espinazo del Diablo) by Guillermo Del Toro. It's like the
Pan's Labyrinth for boys, and lots of people love it. Iris by Richard
Eyre. A writer and her husband share a lifelong romance from school
through her battle with Alzheimers. Kate Winslet and Judi Dench star!
|
|
|
|
2002 24 Hour Party
People by Michael Winterbottom. The rise and fall of Factory Records, with
Steve Coogan playing Tony Wilson. Insomnia by
Christopher Nolan. It always looked awesome to me, but I want to see the
original first. Nolan rules, and the cast of Al Pacino, Hilary Swank, and
Robin Williams is great.
|
|
2003 All the Real Girls
by David Gordon Green. George Washington was visual poetry, and this one,
again, features Paul Schneider with the fabulous Zooey Deschanel. Good Bye Lenin! by
Wolfgang Becker. I had a prof rave about this to me, and it's a pretty
acclaimed indie about a kid whose mother comes out of a coma in 1990, and to
protect her from shock, he lies about East Germany crumbling. House of
Sand and Fog by Vadim Perelman. I still haven't seen this lauded
drama with Ben Kingsley and Jennifer Connelly, but I've wanted to since
it came out. Melvin Goes to
Dinner by Bob Odenkirk. Odenkirk's enough, but the cast is phenomenal, and
it's fairly well-received. |
|
|
|
2004 2046 by Wong Kar
Wai. For the longest time, I had Wong Kar Wai confused with Chan-wook
Park, and I thought this was in the Oldboy/Lady Vengeance series. It turns
out, this is actually a weird, fantastical movie about a writer working on a
novel that may be real. I don't want to know more, because after My
Blueberry Nights, I'm convinced of Wong Kar Wai's potential. Bad Education by
Pedro Almodovar. Sexual abuse at a religious school under Franco. DiG! by Ondi
Timoner. A well-received doc about the friendship and rivalry between the
Dandy Warhols and the Brian Jonestown Massacre. Laurel Canyon by
Lisa Cholodenko. Christian Bale and Frances McDormand. Nuff said.
Night Watch by
Timur Bekmambatov. The awesome Russian vampire movie! The Sea
Inside by Alejandro Amenábar. Javier Bardem stars as a paraplegic
in this Oscar-nominated Italian film. I've wanted to see this
since seeing the trailer. Spartan by
David Mamet. If I recall, this is supposed to have a great twist.
Even better, it's Mamet, and stars Val Kilmer and Kristen Bell.
Yes by Sally
Potter. Made Ebert's list that year, and it sounds pretty cool. |
|
2005 The Child
(L'Enfant) by the Dardenne Brothers. This Palme D'Or winner is about a
young couple dealing with their new baby. House of Sand (Casa
de Areia) by Andrucha Waddington. This Brazilian film got a lot of
accolades at the time, and it seems to be about a woman inheriting her husband's
passions after he dies. Into Great
Silence by Philip Gröning. This lengthy, mostly silent documentary
about a French cathedral got some rave reviews. No Direction Home:
Bob Dylan by Martin Scorsese. An incredibly well-received music doc about
Dylan by Scorsese. |
|
|
|
2006 A Cock and Bull Story by Michael
Winterbottom. I've warmed up to this one finally. Dance Party, USA by Aaron Katz.
Dennis Cozzalio gave it
this glowing review, and I've been looking for actual independent movies
from modern America. Days of Glory (Indigčnes)
by Rachid Bouchareb. This Oscar nominee is supposed to be an
excellent war drama set in WWII North Africa. Exiled by Johnny To. I
believe I heard about this from a rave in Premiere, and I've had it
since. Letters from Iwo Jima by Clint
Eastwood. I liked Flags of Our Fathers, but this one was an Oscar
nominee and generally praised as the better half. The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes by the
Brothers Quay. IMDb calls it a dark fairytale about a demonic doctor who
abducts a beautiful opera singer in order to transform her into a mechanical
nightingale. It also has a 6.0, but I recall good reviews (sounds like a
love it or hate it thing), it looks like I'd love it, and the visuals are
extraordinary. The Wind that Shakes the Barley by
Ken Loach. It won Cannes, Ryan liked it, and it stars Cillian
Murphy, but for some reason, it's just not a priority for me. |
|
2007 4 Months, 3 Weeks, 2 Days by
Cristian Mungiu. The latest Palme D'or winner is generally acknowledged as
one of the best foreign films of the year, and further support of Romania's
rising film industry. Brand Upon the Brain by Guy Maddin.
A modern day silent movie that I've had for a while. The first 10
minutes are quite glorious. Colossal Youth by Pedro Costa. This
Portuguese director had an exhibition last year, and if I have to hear one more
time how brilliant his impossible-to-find movies are, independent clause.
Fade to Black by Oliver Parker. An
obscure fictional tale of Orson Welles getting caught up in a noir plot abroad
with Rita Hayworth. Grace is Gone by James C. Strouse. A
Sundance darling that people have turned against due to its sentimentality.
Still, looks pretty great. The Legend of God's Gun by Mike Bruce.
Cast and crew are entirely musicians on this pomo acid western that had an
awesome trailer. I've read two reviews of it, and both loved it, one
calling it a triumph for underground cinema. Now to get a hold of it... Quiet City by Aaron Katz.
The mumblecore follow-up to Dance Party, USA hasn't been quite as
well-received, but I'm still interested.
Reservation Ro |
