Listed by Spine Number - Title
1 - Grand Illusion
2 - The Seven Samurai
4 - Amarcord
5 - The 400 Blows
10 - Walkabout
11 - The Seventh Seal
12 - This Is Spinal Tap
13 - The Silence Of The Lambs
17 - Salo
20 - Sid & Nancy
23 - Robocop
25 - Alphaville
29 - Picnic At Hanging Rock
30 - M
33 - Nanook Of The North
34 - Andrei Rublev
35 - Diabolique
36 - The Wages of Fear
38 - Branded To Kill
40 - Armageddon
44 - The Red Shoes
45 - Taste of Cherry
47 - Insomnia
48 - Black Orpheus
49 - Nights of Cabiria
51 - Brazil
52 - Yojimbo
55 - The Unbearable Lightness of Being
58 - Peeping Tom
59 - The Night Porter
60 - Autumn Sonata
61 - Monty Python's Life of Brian
62 - The Passion of Joan of Arc
64 - The Third Man
65 - Rushmore
70 - The Last Temptation
73 - Cleo From 5 to 7
74 - Vagabond
75 - Chasing Amy
76 - Brief Encounter
80 - The Element of Crime
83 - The Harder They Come
90 - Kwaidan
93 - Black Narcissus
96 - Written On The Wind
97 - Do The Right Thing
98 - L'Aventurra
99 - Gimme Shelter
100 - The Beastie Boys Video Anthology
101 - Cries & Whispers
102 - The Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie
105 - Spartacus
107 - Mona Lisa
108 - The Rock
110 - M. Hulot's Holiday
111 - Mon Oncle
112 - Playtime
115 - Rififi
117 - Diary of a Chambermaid
123 - Grey Gardens
129 - Le trou
130 - The Shop On Main Street
131 - Closely Watched Trains
133 - The Vanishing
134 - Haxan
135 - Rebecca
137 - Notorious
138 - Rashomon
139 - Wild Strawberries
140 - 8 1/2
143 - That Obscure Object Of Desire
144 - Loves of A Blonde
145 - The Fireman's Ball
146 - The Cranes Are Flying
147 - In The Mood For Love
148 - Ballad Of A Soldier
149 - Juliet Of The Spirits
150 - Bob Le Flambeur
151 - Traffic
152 - George Washington
153 - General Idi Amin Dada
156 - Hearts And Minds
157 - The Royal Tenenbaums
162 - Ratcatcher
164 - Solaris
165 - Man Bites Dog
166 - Down By Law
171 - Contempt
172 - Pepe le Moko
173 - Life And Death of Colonel Blimp
174 - Band of Outsiders
175 - Fear And Loathing In Las Vegas
177 - The Lost Honor of Katharina Blum
178 - My Life As A Dog
190 - Throne Of Blood
191 - Jubilee
196 - Hiroshima Mon Amour
197 - Night And Fog
198 - Ali: Fear Eats The Soul
201 - Umberto D.
203 - The BRD Trilogy
204 - The Marriage Of Maria Braun
205 - Veronika Voss
206 - Lola
208 - A Film Trilogy By Ingmar Bergman
209 - Through A Glass Darkly
210 - Winter Light
211 - The Silence
215 - Knife In The Water
216 - Rules Of The Game
217 - Tokyo Story
218 - Le Cercle Rouge
219 - La Strada
220 - Naked Lunch
221 - Ikiru
222 - Diary Of a Country Priest
223 - Maitresse
226 - Onibaba
227 - Le Corbeau
228 -Salvatore Giuiliano
229 -Scenes From A Marriage
230 - 3 Women
231 - The Testament Of Dr. Mabuse
232 - Floating Weeds
233 - Stray Dog
234 - The Tin Drum
237 - Smiles Of A Summer Night
238 - A Woman Is A Woman
240 - Early Summer
247 - Slacker
248 - Videodrome
249 - The Battle of Algiers
259 - Fat Girl
260 - Eyes Without A Face
263 - Fanny & Alexander
265 - Short Cuts
267 - Kagemusha
270 - Casque d'Or
271 - Touchez Pas Au Grisbi
273 - Thieves' Highway
274 - Night And The City
276 - The River
277 - My Own Private Idaho
278 - L'Eclisse
279 - Young Torless
281 - Jules And Jim
286 - Divorce Italian Style
288 - F For Fake
289 - Hoop Dreams
297 - Au Hasard Balthasar
301 - An Angel At My Table
303 - Bad Timing
306 - Le Samourai
307 - Naked
314 - Pickpocket
315 - Shoot The Piano Player
316 - Ran
321 - The Virgin Spring
328 - Murmur Of The Heart
329 - Lacombe Lucien
330 - Au Revoir Les Enfants
331 - Late Spring
332 - Viridiana
333 - Fists In The Pocket
334 - Elevator To The Gallows
335 - Harlan County USA
336 - Dazed And Confused
339 - Yi Yi
340 - Koko: A Talking Gorilla
351 - The Spirit Of The Beehive
353 - Solo Con Tu Pareja
356 - Sweetie
359 - The Double Life Of Veronique
374 - Bicycle Thieves
380 - The Naked City
381 - La Haine
383 - Brute Force
385 - Army of Shadows
386 - Sansho The Bailiff
387 - La Jetee/ Sans Soleil
391 - If...
394 - Woman In The Dunes
400 - Stranger Than Paradise
401 - Night On Earth
407 - Mala Noche
408 - Breathless
417 - This Sporting Life
419 - La Pointe Courte
421 - Pierrot Le Fou
422 - The Last Emperor
426 - The Ice Storm
427 - Death Of A Cyclist
436 - Before The Rain
437 - Vampyr
443 - Le Ronde
444 - Le Plaisir
445 - The Earrings of Madame de...
453 - Chungking Express
454 - Europa
455 - White Dog
466 - In The Realm Of The Senses
469 - The Hit
476 - The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
478 - Last Year At Marienbad
483 - Repulsion
484 - Jeanne Dielman, 23, Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles
485 - Last Days Of Disco
488 - Howard's End
489 - Monsoon Wedding
490 - Wings of Desire
491 - Z
492 - A Christmas Tale
493 - Gomorrah
496 - Che
501 - Paris, Texas
502 - Revanche
504 - Hunger
513 - Summer Hours
519 - Close-Up
520 - Everlasting Moments
527 - The Secret Of The Grain
533 - Crumb
536 - The Thin Red Line
541 - Night Of The Hunter
542 - Antichrist
543 - Modern Times
549 - The Last Picture Show
552 - Broadcast News
553 - Fish Tank
557 - The Times of Harvey Milk
558 - Topsy-Turvy
560 - White Material
563 - Something Wild
576 - Secret Sunshine
582 - Carlos
587 - Three Colors Trilogy
588 - Blue
589 - White
590 - Red
591 - 12 Angry Men
593 - Belle de Jour
598 - World On A Wire
599 - Vanya On 42nd Street
608 - Harold & Maude
611 - Being John Malkovich
616 - Shallow Grave
619 - Le Havre
622 - Weekend
625 - Eating Raoul
627 - The Game
630 - Rosemary's Baby
638 - Following
646 - The Kid With A Bike
647 - On The Waterfront
650 - A Man Escaped
652 - Monsieur Verdoux
665 - Babette's Feast
666 - The Devil's Backbone
Thursday, April 25, 2013
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
Wednesday, January 2, 2013
Films Seen In 2013
ParaNorman (2012) Sam Fell and Chris Butler
The Central Park Five (2012) Ken and Sarah Burns & David McMahon
Pray The Devil Back To Hell (2008) - Gini Redtcker
The Impossible (2012) - Juan Antonio Bayona
Pitch Perfect (2012) - Jason Moore
Lincoln (2012) - Steven Spielberg
Cosmopolis (2012) - David Cronenberg
Compliance (2012) - Craig Zobel
Dark Shadows (2012) - Tim Burton
The Innkeepers (2012) - Ti West
World On A Wire (1973) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
The Imposter (2012) - Bart Layton
Zero Dark Thirty (2012) - Kathryn Bigelow
Argo (2012) - Ben Affleck
5 Broken Cameras (2012) - Emad Burnat & Guy Davidi
Warm Bodies (2013) - Jonathan Levine
Seven Psychopaths (2012) - Martin McDonaugh
Celeste & Jesse Forever (2012) Lee Toland Krieger
Detropia (2012) - Heidi Ewing
The Paperboy (2012) - Lee Daniels
Keep The Lights On (2012) - Ira Sachs
The Innkeepers (2012) - Ti West
Dark Shadows (2012) - Tim Burton
Frankenweenie (2012) - Tim Burton
Searching For Sugarman (2012) - Malik Bendjelloul
World On A Wire (1973) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Hermano (2012) - Marcel Rasquin
The Kid With A Bike (2012) - Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardennes
Girl Model (2012) - David Redmond
Bully (2012) -Lee Hirsch
Skyfall (2012) - Sam Mendes
Django Unchained (2012) - Quentin Tarantino
I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang (1932)
The Master (2012) - Paul Thomas Anderson
Holy Motors (2012) - Leos Carax
Chicken With Plums (2012) - Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
Nobody Walks (2012) - Ry Russo-Young
End Of Watch (2012) - David Ayer
Flight (2012) - Robert Zemekis
A Late Quartet (2012) - Yaron Zilberman
Wreck-It Ralph (2012) - Rich Moore
Lovers On The Bridge (1991) - Leos Carax
Smashed (2012) - James Ponsoldt
This Must Be The Place (2012) - Paolo Sorrentino
Rust & Bone (2012) Jacques Audiard
This Is Not A Film (2012) Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
Anna Karenina (2012) - Joe Wright
Killing Them Softly (2012) - Andrew Dominik
Beyond The Hills (2013) - Cristian Mungiu
Room 237 (2013) -
Mud (2013) - Jeff Nichols
The Other Son (2012) - Lorraine Levy
A Royal Affair (2012) - Nikolaj Arcel
Life of Pi (2012) - Ang Lee
A Man Escaped (1956) - Robert Bresson
The Devil's Playground (2002) - Lucy Walker
Memories of Murder (2003) - Joon-ho Bong
Delicatessen (1991) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Pina (2011) - Wim Winders
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) - Jalmari Helander
The Central Park Five (2012) Ken and Sarah Burns & David McMahon
Pray The Devil Back To Hell (2008) - Gini Redtcker
The Impossible (2012) - Juan Antonio Bayona
Pitch Perfect (2012) - Jason Moore
Lincoln (2012) - Steven Spielberg
Cosmopolis (2012) - David Cronenberg
Compliance (2012) - Craig Zobel
Dark Shadows (2012) - Tim Burton
The Innkeepers (2012) - Ti West
World On A Wire (1973) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
The Imposter (2012) - Bart Layton
Zero Dark Thirty (2012) - Kathryn Bigelow
Argo (2012) - Ben Affleck
5 Broken Cameras (2012) - Emad Burnat & Guy Davidi
Warm Bodies (2013) - Jonathan Levine
Seven Psychopaths (2012) - Martin McDonaugh
Celeste & Jesse Forever (2012) Lee Toland Krieger
Detropia (2012) - Heidi Ewing
The Paperboy (2012) - Lee Daniels
Keep The Lights On (2012) - Ira Sachs
The Innkeepers (2012) - Ti West
Dark Shadows (2012) - Tim Burton
Frankenweenie (2012) - Tim Burton
Searching For Sugarman (2012) - Malik Bendjelloul
World On A Wire (1973) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Hermano (2012) - Marcel Rasquin
The Kid With A Bike (2012) - Jean-Pierre & Luc Dardennes
Girl Model (2012) - David Redmond
Bully (2012) -Lee Hirsch
Skyfall (2012) - Sam Mendes
Django Unchained (2012) - Quentin Tarantino
I Am A Fugitive From A Chain Gang (1932)
The Master (2012) - Paul Thomas Anderson
Holy Motors (2012) - Leos Carax
Chicken With Plums (2012) - Marjane Satrapi and Vincent Paronnaud
Nobody Walks (2012) - Ry Russo-Young
End Of Watch (2012) - David Ayer
Flight (2012) - Robert Zemekis
A Late Quartet (2012) - Yaron Zilberman
Wreck-It Ralph (2012) - Rich Moore
Lovers On The Bridge (1991) - Leos Carax
Smashed (2012) - James Ponsoldt
This Must Be The Place (2012) - Paolo Sorrentino
Rust & Bone (2012) Jacques Audiard
This Is Not A Film (2012) Mojtaba Mirtahmasb
Anna Karenina (2012) - Joe Wright
Killing Them Softly (2012) - Andrew Dominik
Beyond The Hills (2013) - Cristian Mungiu
Room 237 (2013) -
Mud (2013) - Jeff Nichols
The Other Son (2012) - Lorraine Levy
A Royal Affair (2012) - Nikolaj Arcel
Life of Pi (2012) - Ang Lee
A Man Escaped (1956) - Robert Bresson
The Devil's Playground (2002) - Lucy Walker
Memories of Murder (2003) - Joon-ho Bong
Delicatessen (1991) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Pina (2011) - Wim Winders
Rare Exports: A Christmas Tale (2010) - Jalmari Helander
Tuesday, May 8, 2012
2012 Films Seen
5 Broken Cameras
21 Jump Street
The Amazing Spiderman
Amour
Arbitrage
Argo
The Avengers
Bachelorette
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Bernie
Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Brave
Bully
Butter
The Cabin In The Woods
The Campaign
Celeste & Jesse Forever
The Central Park Five
Chicken With Plums
Compliance
Cosmopolis
Damsels In Distress
The Dark Knight Rises
Dark Shadows
The Day
The Deep Blue Sea
Detropia
Django Unchained
Elena
End Of Watch
Entrance
Flight
Footnote
Frankenweenie
Friends With Kids
Girl Model
Goon
The Grey
Haywire
Head Games
Hermano
Holy Motors
How To Survive A Plague
The Hunger Games
Hyde Park On Hudson
The Impossible
The Imposter
The Innkeepers
The Invisible War
Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Jiro Dreams of Sushi
Keep The Lights On
The Kid With A Bike
Killer Joe
Klown
A Late Quartet
Lawless
Liberal Arts
Lincoln
Looper
The Loved Ones
Magic Mike
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present
The Master
Monsieur Lazhar
Moonrise Kingdom
Nobody Walks
Norwegian Wood
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Oslo, August 31st
The Paperboy
Paranormal Activity 4
ParaNorman
The Perks of Being A Wallflower
Pink Ribbons, Inc.
Piranha 3DD
Pitch Perfect
Polisse
Prometheus
The Queen of Versailles
The Raid: Redemtion
The Revisionaries
Ruby Sparks
Rust & Bone
Safety Not Guaranteed
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen
Savages
Searching For Sugarman
The Secret World Of Arrietty
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World
The Sessions
Seven Psychopaths
Silent House
Silver Linings Playbook
Sinister
Skyfall
Sleepwalk With Me
Smashed
Sound of My Voice
Take This Waltz
Ted
This Is Not A Film
This Means War
This Must Be The Place
V/H/S
Wanderlust
Wreck-It Ralph
Your Sister's Sister
Zero Dark Thirty
21 Jump Street
The Amazing Spiderman
Amour
Arbitrage
Argo
The Avengers
Bachelorette
Beasts of the Southern Wild
Bernie
Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
Brave
Bully
Butter
The Cabin In The Woods
The Campaign
Celeste & Jesse Forever
The Central Park Five
Chicken With Plums
Compliance
Cosmopolis
Damsels In Distress
The Dark Knight Rises
Dark Shadows
The Day
The Deep Blue Sea
Detropia
Django Unchained
Elena
End Of Watch
Entrance
Flight
Footnote
Frankenweenie
Friends With Kids
Girl Model
Goon
The Grey
Haywire
Head Games
Hermano
Holy Motors
How To Survive A Plague
The Hunger Games
Hyde Park On Hudson
The Impossible
The Imposter
The Innkeepers
The Invisible War
Jeff, Who Lives At Home
Jiro Dreams of Sushi
Keep The Lights On
The Kid With A Bike
Killer Joe
Klown
A Late Quartet
Lawless
Liberal Arts
Lincoln
Looper
The Loved Ones
Magic Mike
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present
The Master
Monsieur Lazhar
Moonrise Kingdom
Nobody Walks
Norwegian Wood
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia
Oslo, August 31st
The Paperboy
Paranormal Activity 4
ParaNorman
The Perks of Being A Wallflower
Pink Ribbons, Inc.
Piranha 3DD
Pitch Perfect
Polisse
Prometheus
The Queen of Versailles
The Raid: Redemtion
The Revisionaries
Ruby Sparks
Rust & Bone
Safety Not Guaranteed
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen
Savages
Searching For Sugarman
The Secret World Of Arrietty
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World
The Sessions
Seven Psychopaths
Silent House
Silver Linings Playbook
Sinister
Skyfall
Sleepwalk With Me
Smashed
Sound of My Voice
Take This Waltz
Ted
This Is Not A Film
This Means War
This Must Be The Place
V/H/S
Wanderlust
Wreck-It Ralph
Your Sister's Sister
Zero Dark Thirty
Monday, January 2, 2012
Films Seen In 2012
Another Earth (2011) - Mike Cahill
Young Adult (2011) - Jason Reitman
Beautiful Boy (2011) - Shawn Ku
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) - Tomas Alfredson
Contagion (2011) - Steven Soderbergh
Attack The Block (2011) - Joe Cornish
Moneyball (2011) - Bennett Miller
Hot Coffee (2011) - Susan Saladoff
The Debt (2011) - John Madden
Paris, Texas (1984) - Wim Wenders
Dirty Girl (2011) - Abe Sylvia
50/50 (2011) - Jonathan Levine
Submarine (2011) - Richard Ayoade
Higher Ground (2011) - Vera Farmiga
Hell And Back Again (2011) - Danfung Dennis
Take Shelter (2011) - Jeff Nichols
Shame (2011) - Steve McQueen
The Ides of March (2011) - George Clooney
The Guard (2011) - John Michael McDonagh
Make Way For Tomorrow (1937) - Leo McCarey
A Separaion (2011) - Asghar Farhadi
The Interrupters (2011) - Steve James
Texas Killing Fields (2011) - Ami Canaan Mann
Resurrect Dead: The Mystery Of The Toynbee Tiles (2011) - Jon Foy
The Whistleblower (2011) - Larysa Kondracki
Carnage (2011) - Roman Polanski
Hugo (2011) - Martin Scorsese
Tower Heist (2011) - Brett Ratner
Aurora (2011) - Cristi Puiu
My Week With Marilyn (2011) - Simon Curtis
The Fallen Idol (1948) - Carol Reed
Like Crazy (2011) - Drake Doremus
The Descendants (2011) - Alexander Payne
Senna (2011) - Asif Kapadia
The Sitter (2011) - David Gordon Green
In The Land Of Blood And Honey (2011) - Angelina Jolie
Hall Pass (2011) - Bobby and Peter Farrelly
If A Tree Falls: A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front (2011) - Marshall Curry & Sam Cullman
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) - David Fincher
This Sporting Life (1963) - Lindsay Anderson
The Double Hour (2011) - Giuseppe Capotondti
Paul Goodman Changed My Life (2011) - Jonathan Lee
Miss Bala (2011) - Gerardo Naranjo
Into The Abyss (2011) - Werner Herzog
Haywire (2012) - Steven Soderbergh
Tyrannosaur (2011) - Paddy Considine
Cabin In The Woods (2012) - Drew Godard
Insiang (1976) - Lino Brocka
Rampart (2011) - Oren Moverman
Pariah (2011) - Dee Rees
Coriolanus (2012) - Ralph Fiennes
This Means War (2012) - McG
Prometheus (2012) - Ridley Scott
Piranha 3DD (2012) - John Gulager
Jeff, Who Lives At Home (2012) - Jay & Mark Duplass
The Grey (2012) - Joe Carnahan
Charlotte Rampling: The Look (2011) - Angelina Maccarone
21 Jump Street (2012) - Phil Lord
The Amazing Spiderman (2012) - Marc Webb
Floating Weeds (1959) - Yasujiro Ozu
Poetry (2011) - Changdong Lee
The Way I Spent The End Of The World (2006) - Catalin Mitulescu
Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) - Colin Trevorrow
Wanderlust (2012) - David Wain
Friends With Kids (2012) - Jennifer Westfeldt
If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle (2006) - Florian Serban
The Fountain (2006) - Darren Aronofsky
Eating Raoul (1982) - Paul Bartel
Tomboy (2011) - Celine Sciamma
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen (2012) - Lasse Hallstrom
Margaret (2012) - Kenneth Lonergan
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) - Benh Zeitlin
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2012) - David Gelb
The Deep Blue Sea (2012) - Terence Davies
The Hunger Games (2012) - Gary Ross
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011) - Joe Berlinger
Lawless (2012) - John Hillcoat
Footnote (2012) - Joseph Cedar
Silent House (2012) - Chris Kentis and Laura Lau
The Train (1964) - John Frankenheimer
Bernie (2012) - Richard Linklater
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - Christopher Nolan
Norwegian Wood (2012) - Anh Hung Tran
Goon (2012) - Michael Dowse
Killer Joe (2012) - William Friedkin
Bachelorette (2012) - Leslye Headland
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia (2012) - Nuri Bilge Ceylan
The Raid: Redemption (2012) - Gareth Evans
The Secret World of Arriety (2012) - Hiromsa Yonebayashi
Klown (2012) - Mikkel Norgaard
The Avengers (2012) - Joss Whedon
Pink Ribbons, Inc. (2012) - Lea Pool
The Loved Ones (2012) - Sean Byrne
Damsels In Distress (2012) - Whit Stillman
Looper (2012) - Rian Johnson
Oslo, August 31st (2012) - Joachim Trier
Sinister (2012) - Scott Derrickson
Butter (2012) - Jim Field Smith
Paranormal Activity 4 (2012) - Henry Joost & Ariel Schulman
The Perks of Being A Wallflower (2012) - Stephen Chbosky
Neo Ned (2005) - Van Fischer
Monsieur Lazhar (2012) - Phillipe Falardeau
How To Survive A Plague (2012) - David France
Magic Mike (2012) - Stevn Soderbergh
Take This Waltz (2012) - Sarah Polley
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) - John Madden
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present (2012) - Matthew Akers
The Revisionaries (2012) - Scott Thurman
The Sessions (2012) - Ben Lewin
Head Games (2012) - Steve James
Hyde Park On Hudson (2012) - Roger Michell
Sound Of My Voice (2012) - Sal Batmanglij
Amour (2012) - Michael Haneke
The Invisible War (2012) - Kirby Dick
Elena (2012) - Andrey Zvyagintsev
Polisse (212) - Maiwenn Le Bosco
Your Sister's Sister (2012) - Lynn Shelton
They Drive By Night (1940) - Raoul Walsh
The Queen of Versailles (2012) - Lauren Greenfield
Brave (2012) - Mark Andrews
Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - Wes Anderson
Entrance (2012) - Dallas Hallam and Patrick Horvath
The Day (2012) - Doug Aarniokoski
V/H/S (2012) - Adam Wingard, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, David Bruckner, Ti West, Radio Silence
Savages (2012) - Oliver Stone
Sleepwalk With Me (2102) - Mike Birbiglia
Ruby Sparks (2012) - Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
Straw Dogs (1972) - Sam Peckinpah
Arbitrage (2012) - Nicholas Jarecki
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World (2012) - Lorena Scafaria
Ted (2012) - Seth MacFarlane
Young Adult (2011) - Jason Reitman
Beautiful Boy (2011) - Shawn Ku
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011) - Tomas Alfredson
Contagion (2011) - Steven Soderbergh
Attack The Block (2011) - Joe Cornish
Moneyball (2011) - Bennett Miller
Hot Coffee (2011) - Susan Saladoff
The Debt (2011) - John Madden
Paris, Texas (1984) - Wim Wenders
Dirty Girl (2011) - Abe Sylvia
50/50 (2011) - Jonathan Levine
Submarine (2011) - Richard Ayoade
Higher Ground (2011) - Vera Farmiga
Hell And Back Again (2011) - Danfung Dennis
Take Shelter (2011) - Jeff Nichols
Shame (2011) - Steve McQueen
The Ides of March (2011) - George Clooney
The Guard (2011) - John Michael McDonagh
Make Way For Tomorrow (1937) - Leo McCarey
A Separaion (2011) - Asghar Farhadi
The Interrupters (2011) - Steve James
Texas Killing Fields (2011) - Ami Canaan Mann
Resurrect Dead: The Mystery Of The Toynbee Tiles (2011) - Jon Foy
The Whistleblower (2011) - Larysa Kondracki
Carnage (2011) - Roman Polanski
Hugo (2011) - Martin Scorsese
Tower Heist (2011) - Brett Ratner
Aurora (2011) - Cristi Puiu
My Week With Marilyn (2011) - Simon Curtis
The Fallen Idol (1948) - Carol Reed
Like Crazy (2011) - Drake Doremus
The Descendants (2011) - Alexander Payne
Senna (2011) - Asif Kapadia
The Sitter (2011) - David Gordon Green
In The Land Of Blood And Honey (2011) - Angelina Jolie
Hall Pass (2011) - Bobby and Peter Farrelly
If A Tree Falls: A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front (2011) - Marshall Curry & Sam Cullman
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2011) - David Fincher
This Sporting Life (1963) - Lindsay Anderson
The Double Hour (2011) - Giuseppe Capotondti
Paul Goodman Changed My Life (2011) - Jonathan Lee
Miss Bala (2011) - Gerardo Naranjo
Into The Abyss (2011) - Werner Herzog
Haywire (2012) - Steven Soderbergh
Tyrannosaur (2011) - Paddy Considine
Cabin In The Woods (2012) - Drew Godard
Insiang (1976) - Lino Brocka
Rampart (2011) - Oren Moverman
Pariah (2011) - Dee Rees
Coriolanus (2012) - Ralph Fiennes
This Means War (2012) - McG
Prometheus (2012) - Ridley Scott
Piranha 3DD (2012) - John Gulager
Jeff, Who Lives At Home (2012) - Jay & Mark Duplass
The Grey (2012) - Joe Carnahan
Charlotte Rampling: The Look (2011) - Angelina Maccarone
21 Jump Street (2012) - Phil Lord
The Amazing Spiderman (2012) - Marc Webb
Floating Weeds (1959) - Yasujiro Ozu
Poetry (2011) - Changdong Lee
The Way I Spent The End Of The World (2006) - Catalin Mitulescu
Safety Not Guaranteed (2012) - Colin Trevorrow
Wanderlust (2012) - David Wain
Friends With Kids (2012) - Jennifer Westfeldt
If I Want To Whistle, I Whistle (2006) - Florian Serban
The Fountain (2006) - Darren Aronofsky
Eating Raoul (1982) - Paul Bartel
Tomboy (2011) - Celine Sciamma
Salmon Fishing In The Yemen (2012) - Lasse Hallstrom
Margaret (2012) - Kenneth Lonergan
Beasts of the Southern Wild (2012) - Benh Zeitlin
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2012) - David Gelb
The Deep Blue Sea (2012) - Terence Davies
The Hunger Games (2012) - Gary Ross
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory (2011) - Joe Berlinger
Lawless (2012) - John Hillcoat
Footnote (2012) - Joseph Cedar
Silent House (2012) - Chris Kentis and Laura Lau
The Train (1964) - John Frankenheimer
Bernie (2012) - Richard Linklater
The Dark Knight Rises (2012) - Christopher Nolan
Norwegian Wood (2012) - Anh Hung Tran
Goon (2012) - Michael Dowse
Killer Joe (2012) - William Friedkin
Bachelorette (2012) - Leslye Headland
Once Upon A Time In Anatolia (2012) - Nuri Bilge Ceylan
The Raid: Redemption (2012) - Gareth Evans
The Secret World of Arriety (2012) - Hiromsa Yonebayashi
Klown (2012) - Mikkel Norgaard
The Avengers (2012) - Joss Whedon
Pink Ribbons, Inc. (2012) - Lea Pool
The Loved Ones (2012) - Sean Byrne
Damsels In Distress (2012) - Whit Stillman
Looper (2012) - Rian Johnson
Oslo, August 31st (2012) - Joachim Trier
Sinister (2012) - Scott Derrickson
Butter (2012) - Jim Field Smith
Paranormal Activity 4 (2012) - Henry Joost & Ariel Schulman
The Perks of Being A Wallflower (2012) - Stephen Chbosky
Neo Ned (2005) - Van Fischer
Monsieur Lazhar (2012) - Phillipe Falardeau
How To Survive A Plague (2012) - David France
Magic Mike (2012) - Stevn Soderbergh
Take This Waltz (2012) - Sarah Polley
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2012) - John Madden
Marina Abramovic: The Artist Is Present (2012) - Matthew Akers
The Revisionaries (2012) - Scott Thurman
The Sessions (2012) - Ben Lewin
Head Games (2012) - Steve James
Hyde Park On Hudson (2012) - Roger Michell
Sound Of My Voice (2012) - Sal Batmanglij
Amour (2012) - Michael Haneke
The Invisible War (2012) - Kirby Dick
Elena (2012) - Andrey Zvyagintsev
Polisse (212) - Maiwenn Le Bosco
Your Sister's Sister (2012) - Lynn Shelton
They Drive By Night (1940) - Raoul Walsh
The Queen of Versailles (2012) - Lauren Greenfield
Brave (2012) - Mark Andrews
Moonrise Kingdom (2012) - Wes Anderson
Entrance (2012) - Dallas Hallam and Patrick Horvath
The Day (2012) - Doug Aarniokoski
V/H/S (2012) - Adam Wingard, Glenn McQuaid, Joe Swanberg, David Bruckner, Ti West, Radio Silence
Savages (2012) - Oliver Stone
Sleepwalk With Me (2102) - Mike Birbiglia
Ruby Sparks (2012) - Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris
Straw Dogs (1972) - Sam Peckinpah
Arbitrage (2012) - Nicholas Jarecki
Seeking A Friend For The End Of The World (2012) - Lorena Scafaria
Ted (2012) - Seth MacFarlane
Sunday, January 2, 2011
2011 Films Seen
13 Assassins
30 Minutes Or Less
50/50
The Adjustment Bureau
Another Earth
The Artist
Attack The Block
Aurora
Bad Teacher
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest
Beautiful Boy
Beginners
Bellflower
A Better Life
Bill Cunningham New York
Bridesmaids
Carnage
Cave of Forgotten Dreams
Cedar Rapids
Charlotte Rampling: The Look
Colombiana
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
Contagion
Coriolanus
Crazy, Stupid, Love
Curling
A Dangerous Method
The Debt
The Descendants
Dirty Girl
The Double Hour
Drive
Everything Must Go
Fright Night
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
The Guard
Hall Pass
Hanna
Hell And Back Again
The Help
Higher Ground
Horrible Bosses
Hot Coffee
Hugo
The Ides of March
If A Tree Falls: A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front
In A Better World
In The Land Of Blood And Honey
Incendies
Insidious
The Interrupters
Into The Abyss
Jane Eyre
Kill The Irishman
The Last Rites of Joe May
Le Havre
Like Crazy
The Lincoln Lawyer
Margaret
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Melancholia
Meet Monica Velour
Midnight In Paris
Miral
Miss Bala
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Moneyball
Monogamy
My Week With Marilyn
Of Gods And Men
Oranges And Sunshine
Our Idiot Brother
Over The Hill Band
Page One: Inside The New York Times
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pariah
Paul
Paul Goodman Changed My Life
Pina
Poetry
Point Blank
Potiche
Rampart
Red State
Ressurect Dead: The Mystery of The Toynbee Tiles
Sarah's Key
Senna
A Separation
Shame
Shit Year
The Sitter
The Skin I Live In
Source Code
Submarine
Super 8
The Swell Season
Tabloid
Take Shelter
Tales From The Golden Age
Terri
Texas Killing Fields
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Tomboy
Tower Heist
The Tree Of Life
The Trip
Tuesday, After Christmas
Tyrannosaur
Warrior
Water For Elephants
Weekend
We Need To Talk About Kevin
The Whistleblower
Win Win
Young Adult
30 Minutes Or Less
50/50
The Adjustment Bureau
Another Earth
The Artist
Attack The Block
Aurora
Bad Teacher
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest
Beautiful Boy
Beginners
Bellflower
A Better Life
Bill Cunningham New York
Bridesmaids
Carnage
Cave of Forgotten Dreams
Cedar Rapids
Charlotte Rampling: The Look
Colombiana
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
Contagion
Coriolanus
Crazy, Stupid, Love
Curling
A Dangerous Method
The Debt
The Descendants
Dirty Girl
The Double Hour
Drive
Everything Must Go
Fright Night
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo
The Guard
Hall Pass
Hanna
Hell And Back Again
The Help
Higher Ground
Horrible Bosses
Hot Coffee
Hugo
The Ides of March
If A Tree Falls: A Story Of The Earth Liberation Front
In A Better World
In The Land Of Blood And Honey
Incendies
Insidious
The Interrupters
Into The Abyss
Jane Eyre
Kill The Irishman
The Last Rites of Joe May
Le Havre
Like Crazy
The Lincoln Lawyer
Margaret
Margin Call
Martha Marcy May Marlene
Melancholia
Meet Monica Velour
Midnight In Paris
Miral
Miss Bala
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol
Moneyball
Monogamy
My Week With Marilyn
Of Gods And Men
Oranges And Sunshine
Our Idiot Brother
Over The Hill Band
Page One: Inside The New York Times
Paradise Lost 3: Purgatory
Pariah
Paul
Paul Goodman Changed My Life
Pina
Poetry
Point Blank
Potiche
Rampart
Red State
Ressurect Dead: The Mystery of The Toynbee Tiles
Sarah's Key
Senna
A Separation
Shame
Shit Year
The Sitter
The Skin I Live In
Source Code
Submarine
Super 8
The Swell Season
Tabloid
Take Shelter
Tales From The Golden Age
Terri
Texas Killing Fields
Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy
Tomboy
Tower Heist
The Tree Of Life
The Trip
Tuesday, After Christmas
Tyrannosaur
Warrior
Water For Elephants
Weekend
We Need To Talk About Kevin
The Whistleblower
Win Win
Young Adult
Films Seen in 2011
The Oath (2010) - Laura Poitras
Soul Kitchen (2010) - Fatih Akin
Wild Grass (2010) - Alain Resnais
Catfish (2010) - Ariel Schuman & Henry Joost
Machete (2010) - Robert Rodriguez & Ethan Manquis
The Damned United (2009) - Tom Hooper
The Last Seduction (1994) - John Dahl
Missing (1982) - Costa-Gavras
Dinner For Schmucks (2010) - Jay Roach
The Wild And Wonderful Whites of West Virginia (2010) - Julien Nitzberg
Piranha (2010) - Alexandre Aja
Cyrus (2010) - Jay and Mark Duplass
Alamar (2010) - Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio
The City of Lost Children (1995) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
The American (2010) - Anton Corbijn
Salt (2010) - Phillip Noyce
The Fighter (2010) - David O. Russell
Vampyr (1932) - Carl Theodor Dreyer
Animal Kingdom (2010) - David Michod
Buried (2010) - Rodrigo Cortes
Jack Goes Boating (2010) - Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Army of Crime (2010) - Robert Guediguian
Knight And Day (2010) - James Mangold
Despicable Me (2010) - Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud
The King's Speech (2010) - Tom Hooper
Enter The Void (2010) - Gaspar Noe
Dogtooth (2010) - Yorgos Lanthimos
Let Me In (2010) - Matt Reeves
The Tillman Story (2010) - Amir Bar-Lev
Nowhere Boy (2010) - Sam Taylor-Wood
Monsters (2010) - Gareth Edwards
RED (2010) - Robert Schwentke
The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Next (2010) - Daniel Alfredson
Tamara Drewe (2010) - Stephen Frears
Inhale (2010) - Baltasar Kormakur
Night Catches Us (2010) - Tanya Hamilton
Gasland (2010) - Josh Fox
It's Kind Of A Funny Story (2010) - Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck
Wild Target (2010) - Jonathan Lynn
Lebanon (2010) - Samuel Maoz
Vincere (2010) - Marco Bellocchio
Waiting For "Superman" (2010) - Davis Guggenheim
You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger (2010) - Woody Allen
Blue Valentine (2010) - Derek Cianfrance
Last Train Home (2010) - Lixin Fan
Kings of Pastry (2010) Chris Hegedus & D.A. Pennebaker
Fish Tank (2010) - Andrea Arnold
The Life And Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger
Client 9: The Rise And Fall Of Eliot Spitzer (2010) - Alex Gibney
Mesrine Part I: Killer Instinct (2010) - Jean-Francois Richet
Racing Dreams (2010) - Marshall Curry
Get Low (2010) - Aaron Schneider
Carlos (2010) - Olivier Assayas
Inside Job (2010) - Charles Ferguson
Four Lions (2010) - Christopher Morris
A Film Unfinished (2010) - Yael Hersonski
The Bridges of Madison County (1995) - Clint Eastwood
No One Knows About Persian Cats (2010) - Bahman Ghobadi
The Horde (2010) - Yannick Dahan & Benjamin Rocher
Mrs. Brown (1997) - John Madden
Viridiana (1961) - Luis Bunuel
Brief Encounter (1945) - David Lean
All Good Things (2010) - Andrew Jarecki
Fair Game (2010) - Doug Liman
Made In Dagenham (2010) - Nigel Cole
Hopscotch (1980) - Ronald Neame
Hanna (2011) - Joe Wright
Burlesque (2010) - Steve Antin
Death Of A Cyclist (1955) - Juan Antonio Bardem
The Music Lovers (1970) - Ken Russell
White Material (2010) - Clair Denis
Bridesmaids (2011) - Paul Feig
Smiles Of A Summer Night (1955) - Ingmar Bergman
Somewhere (2010) - Sofia Coppola
Bluebeard (2010) - Catherine Breillat
24 City (2008) - Zhang Ke Jia
Biutiful (2010) - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Violent Summer (1959) - Valerio Zurlini
Horrible Bosses (2011) - Seth Gordon
Barney's Version (2010) - Richard J Lewis
Insidious (2011) - James Wan
Another Year (2010) - Mike Leigh
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - John Ford
Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011) - Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Source Code (2011) - Duncan Jones
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) - Ronald Neame
Cedar Rapids (2011) - Miguel Arteta
The Trial (1962) - Orson Welles
Colombiana (2011)- Olivier Megaton
The Adjustment Bureau (2011) - George Nolfi
In A Better World (2011) - Susanna Bier
Of Gods And Men (2011) - Xavier Beauvois
Everything Must Go (2011) - Dan Rush
Drive (2011) - Nicolas Winding Refn
Paul (2011) - Greg Mottola
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) - Brad Furman
Win Win (2011) - Thomas McCarthy
Jane Eyre (2011) - Cary Fukunaga
Incendies (2011) - Denis Villeneuve
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop (2011) - Rodman Flender
Topsy Turvy (1999) - Mike Leigh
Potiche (2011) - Francois Ozon
Meet Monica Velour (2011) - Keith Bearden
Miral (2011) - Julian Schnabel
Melancholia (2011) - Lars Von Trier
The Circus (1928) - Charlie Chaplin
Weekend (2011)- Andrew Haigh
Kill The Irishman (2011) - Jonathan Hensleigh
Tabloid (2011) - Errol Morris
Red State (2011) - Kevin Smith
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest (2011) - Michael Rapaport
Bad Teacher (2011) - Jake Kasdan
The Tree Of Life (2011) - Terrence Malick
A Dangerous Method (2011) - David Cronenberg
Shit Year (2011) - Cam Archer
Terri (2011) - Azazel Jacobs
We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011) - Lynne Ramsay
Oranges And Sunshine (2011) - Jim Loach
Tales From The Golden Age (2011) - Cristian Mungiu
Curling (2011) - Denis Cote
Le Havre (2011) - Aki Kaurismaki
A Better Life (2011) - Chris Weitz
Bellflower (2011) - Evan Glodell
In A Lonely Place (1950) - Nicholas Ray
Page One: Inside The New York Times (2011) - Andrew Rossi
The Last Rites of Joe May (2011) - Joe Maggio
The Swell Season (2011) - Nick August-Perna, Chris Dapkins, Carlo Mirabella-Davis
The Artist (2011) - Michel Hazanavicius
Super 8 (2011) - J.J. Abrams
Sarah's Key (2011) - Gilles Paquet-Brenner
The Trip (2011) - Michael Winterbottom
Bill Cunningham New York (2011) - Richard Press
Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) - T. Sean Durkin
Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011) - Werner Herzog
Our Idiot Brother (2011) - Jesse Peretz
The Skin I Live In (2011) - Pedro Almodovar
30 Minutes Or Less (2011) - Ruben Fleischer
The Help (2011) - Tate Taylor
Beginners (2011) - Mike Mills
Point Blank (2011) - Fred Cavaye
Fright Night (2011) - Craig Gillespie
Water For Elephants (2011) - Francis Lawrence
Shoeshine (1946) - Vittorio De Sica
13 Assassins (2011) - Takashi Miike
Midnight In Paris (2011) - Woody Allen
Warrior (2011) - Gavin O'Connor
Margin Call (2011) - J.C. Chandor
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) - Brad Bird
Tuesday, After Christmas (2011) - Radu Muntean
Soul Kitchen (2010) - Fatih Akin
Wild Grass (2010) - Alain Resnais
Catfish (2010) - Ariel Schuman & Henry Joost
Machete (2010) - Robert Rodriguez & Ethan Manquis
The Damned United (2009) - Tom Hooper
The Last Seduction (1994) - John Dahl
Missing (1982) - Costa-Gavras
Dinner For Schmucks (2010) - Jay Roach
The Wild And Wonderful Whites of West Virginia (2010) - Julien Nitzberg
Piranha (2010) - Alexandre Aja
Cyrus (2010) - Jay and Mark Duplass
Alamar (2010) - Pedro Gonzalez-Rubio
The City of Lost Children (1995) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
The American (2010) - Anton Corbijn
Salt (2010) - Phillip Noyce
The Fighter (2010) - David O. Russell
Vampyr (1932) - Carl Theodor Dreyer
Animal Kingdom (2010) - David Michod
Buried (2010) - Rodrigo Cortes
Jack Goes Boating (2010) - Phillip Seymour Hoffman
Army of Crime (2010) - Robert Guediguian
Knight And Day (2010) - James Mangold
Despicable Me (2010) - Pierre Coffin & Chris Renaud
The King's Speech (2010) - Tom Hooper
Enter The Void (2010) - Gaspar Noe
Dogtooth (2010) - Yorgos Lanthimos
Let Me In (2010) - Matt Reeves
The Tillman Story (2010) - Amir Bar-Lev
Nowhere Boy (2010) - Sam Taylor-Wood
Monsters (2010) - Gareth Edwards
RED (2010) - Robert Schwentke
The Girl Who Kicked The Hornet's Next (2010) - Daniel Alfredson
Tamara Drewe (2010) - Stephen Frears
Inhale (2010) - Baltasar Kormakur
Night Catches Us (2010) - Tanya Hamilton
Gasland (2010) - Josh Fox
It's Kind Of A Funny Story (2010) - Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck
Wild Target (2010) - Jonathan Lynn
Lebanon (2010) - Samuel Maoz
Vincere (2010) - Marco Bellocchio
Waiting For "Superman" (2010) - Davis Guggenheim
You Will Meet A Tall Dark Stranger (2010) - Woody Allen
Blue Valentine (2010) - Derek Cianfrance
Last Train Home (2010) - Lixin Fan
Kings of Pastry (2010) Chris Hegedus & D.A. Pennebaker
Fish Tank (2010) - Andrea Arnold
The Life And Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger
Client 9: The Rise And Fall Of Eliot Spitzer (2010) - Alex Gibney
Mesrine Part I: Killer Instinct (2010) - Jean-Francois Richet
Racing Dreams (2010) - Marshall Curry
Get Low (2010) - Aaron Schneider
Carlos (2010) - Olivier Assayas
Inside Job (2010) - Charles Ferguson
Four Lions (2010) - Christopher Morris
A Film Unfinished (2010) - Yael Hersonski
The Bridges of Madison County (1995) - Clint Eastwood
No One Knows About Persian Cats (2010) - Bahman Ghobadi
The Horde (2010) - Yannick Dahan & Benjamin Rocher
Mrs. Brown (1997) - John Madden
Viridiana (1961) - Luis Bunuel
Brief Encounter (1945) - David Lean
All Good Things (2010) - Andrew Jarecki
Fair Game (2010) - Doug Liman
Made In Dagenham (2010) - Nigel Cole
Hopscotch (1980) - Ronald Neame
Hanna (2011) - Joe Wright
Burlesque (2010) - Steve Antin
Death Of A Cyclist (1955) - Juan Antonio Bardem
The Music Lovers (1970) - Ken Russell
White Material (2010) - Clair Denis
Bridesmaids (2011) - Paul Feig
Smiles Of A Summer Night (1955) - Ingmar Bergman
Somewhere (2010) - Sofia Coppola
Bluebeard (2010) - Catherine Breillat
24 City (2008) - Zhang Ke Jia
Biutiful (2010) - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Violent Summer (1959) - Valerio Zurlini
Horrible Bosses (2011) - Seth Gordon
Barney's Version (2010) - Richard J Lewis
Insidious (2011) - James Wan
Another Year (2010) - Mike Leigh
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - John Ford
Crazy, Stupid, Love (2011) - Glenn Ficarra, John Requa
Source Code (2011) - Duncan Jones
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie (1969) - Ronald Neame
Cedar Rapids (2011) - Miguel Arteta
The Trial (1962) - Orson Welles
Colombiana (2011)- Olivier Megaton
The Adjustment Bureau (2011) - George Nolfi
In A Better World (2011) - Susanna Bier
Of Gods And Men (2011) - Xavier Beauvois
Everything Must Go (2011) - Dan Rush
Drive (2011) - Nicolas Winding Refn
Paul (2011) - Greg Mottola
The Lincoln Lawyer (2011) - Brad Furman
Win Win (2011) - Thomas McCarthy
Jane Eyre (2011) - Cary Fukunaga
Incendies (2011) - Denis Villeneuve
Conan O'Brien Can't Stop (2011) - Rodman Flender
Topsy Turvy (1999) - Mike Leigh
Potiche (2011) - Francois Ozon
Meet Monica Velour (2011) - Keith Bearden
Miral (2011) - Julian Schnabel
Melancholia (2011) - Lars Von Trier
The Circus (1928) - Charlie Chaplin
Weekend (2011)- Andrew Haigh
Kill The Irishman (2011) - Jonathan Hensleigh
Tabloid (2011) - Errol Morris
Red State (2011) - Kevin Smith
Beats, Rhymes & Life: The Travels Of A Tribe Called Quest (2011) - Michael Rapaport
Bad Teacher (2011) - Jake Kasdan
The Tree Of Life (2011) - Terrence Malick
A Dangerous Method (2011) - David Cronenberg
Shit Year (2011) - Cam Archer
Terri (2011) - Azazel Jacobs
We Need To Talk About Kevin (2011) - Lynne Ramsay
Oranges And Sunshine (2011) - Jim Loach
Tales From The Golden Age (2011) - Cristian Mungiu
Curling (2011) - Denis Cote
Le Havre (2011) - Aki Kaurismaki
A Better Life (2011) - Chris Weitz
Bellflower (2011) - Evan Glodell
In A Lonely Place (1950) - Nicholas Ray
Page One: Inside The New York Times (2011) - Andrew Rossi
The Last Rites of Joe May (2011) - Joe Maggio
The Swell Season (2011) - Nick August-Perna, Chris Dapkins, Carlo Mirabella-Davis
The Artist (2011) - Michel Hazanavicius
Super 8 (2011) - J.J. Abrams
Sarah's Key (2011) - Gilles Paquet-Brenner
The Trip (2011) - Michael Winterbottom
Bill Cunningham New York (2011) - Richard Press
Martha Marcy May Marlene (2011) - T. Sean Durkin
Cave of Forgotten Dreams (2011) - Werner Herzog
Our Idiot Brother (2011) - Jesse Peretz
The Skin I Live In (2011) - Pedro Almodovar
30 Minutes Or Less (2011) - Ruben Fleischer
The Help (2011) - Tate Taylor
Beginners (2011) - Mike Mills
Point Blank (2011) - Fred Cavaye
Fright Night (2011) - Craig Gillespie
Water For Elephants (2011) - Francis Lawrence
Shoeshine (1946) - Vittorio De Sica
13 Assassins (2011) - Takashi Miike
Midnight In Paris (2011) - Woody Allen
Warrior (2011) - Gavin O'Connor
Margin Call (2011) - J.C. Chandor
Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol (2011) - Brad Bird
Tuesday, After Christmas (2011) - Radu Muntean
Monday, April 19, 2010
2007 Foreign Film Submissions
Awhile back, I decided it might be interesting to try catching all of the foreign films that were submitted in a given year, if for no other reason that to have an education opinion on the matter. I chose 2007 since that was a year they just got colossally wrong based on what little I had seen.
So, I went and caught everything I could, and as it turns out, there's just not a whole lot of the films that are available. I did manage to catch 32 of the 63 films, so just over half, and I think I've finally exhausted every avenue and just have to resign myself to the fact that I caught everything I could get my hands on.
So, if I were to have been on the nomination committee, here is how I would have ranked at least those 32 films:
1. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days - Romania
2. Persepolis - France
3. XXY - Argentina
4. Secret Sunshine - South Korea
5. Takva: A Man's Fear of God - Turkey
6. Katyn - Poland
7. Eklavya: The Royal Guard - India
8. The Edge of Heaven - Germany
9. Shadows - Macedonia
10. Satanas - Colombia
11. The Unknown Woman - Italy
12. 12 - Russia
13. The Counterfeiters - Austria
14. The Trap - Serbia
15. Exiled - Hong Kong
16. Island Etude - Taiwan
17. Beaufort - Israel
18. Jar City - Iceland
19. Ben X - Belgium
20. Taxidermia - Hungary
21. Silent Light - Mexico
22. The Pope's Toilet - Uruguay
23. I Served The King of England - Czech Republic
24. The Year My Parents Went On Vacation - Brazil
25. The Silly Age - Cuba
26. Caramel - Lebanon
27. Love Sickness (aka Maldeamores) - Puerto Rico
28. You, The Living - Sweden
29. The Orphanage - Spain
30. Belle Toujours - Portugal
31. Kings - Ireland
32. Mongol - Kazakhstan
So, I went and caught everything I could, and as it turns out, there's just not a whole lot of the films that are available. I did manage to catch 32 of the 63 films, so just over half, and I think I've finally exhausted every avenue and just have to resign myself to the fact that I caught everything I could get my hands on.
So, if I were to have been on the nomination committee, here is how I would have ranked at least those 32 films:
1. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days - Romania
2. Persepolis - France
3. XXY - Argentina
4. Secret Sunshine - South Korea
5. Takva: A Man's Fear of God - Turkey
6. Katyn - Poland
7. Eklavya: The Royal Guard - India
8. The Edge of Heaven - Germany
9. Shadows - Macedonia
10. Satanas - Colombia
11. The Unknown Woman - Italy
12. 12 - Russia
13. The Counterfeiters - Austria
14. The Trap - Serbia
15. Exiled - Hong Kong
16. Island Etude - Taiwan
17. Beaufort - Israel
18. Jar City - Iceland
19. Ben X - Belgium
20. Taxidermia - Hungary
21. Silent Light - Mexico
22. The Pope's Toilet - Uruguay
23. I Served The King of England - Czech Republic
24. The Year My Parents Went On Vacation - Brazil
25. The Silly Age - Cuba
26. Caramel - Lebanon
27. Love Sickness (aka Maldeamores) - Puerto Rico
28. You, The Living - Sweden
29. The Orphanage - Spain
30. Belle Toujours - Portugal
31. Kings - Ireland
32. Mongol - Kazakhstan
Monday, April 12, 2010
Films Watched in 2010
I'm just going to keep a running count of every film I watch during the 2010 calendar year, just out of my own personal curiosity...
Get Him To The Greek (2010) - Nicholas Stoller
True Grit (2010) - Joel and Ethan Coen
Map Of The Sounds Of Tokyo (2010) - Isabel Coixet
I Love You Phillip Morris (2010) - John Requa & Glenn Ficarra
The Art of The Steal (2010) - Don Argott
Prodigal Sons (2010) - Kimberly Reed
Mother And Child (2010) - Rodrigo Garcia
Mugabe and The White African (2010) - Lucy Baily and Andrew Thompson
Micmacs (2010) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Joan Rivers: A Piece of work (2010) - Ricki Stern & Annie Sundberg
Exit Through The Gift Shop (2010) - Banksy
2:37 (2006) - Murali K. Tharulli
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010) - Edgar Wright
Restrepo (2010) - Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington
Head-On (2005) - Fatih Akin
Cairo Time (2010) - Ruba Nadda
Fox And His Friends (1975) - Rainer Werner Fassbender
The Expendables (2010) - Sylvester Stallone
Everyone Else (2010) - Maren Ade
Branded To Kill (1967) - Seijun Suzuki
Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? (1966) - Mike Nichols
Pierrot le Fou (1965) - Jean-Luc Godard
Best Worst Movie (2010) - Michael Stephenson
Kick-Ass (2010) - Matthew Vaughn
Black Swan (2010) - Darren Aronofsky
Sons of Perdition (2010) - Tyler Meason and Jennilyn Merten
Toy Story 3 (2010) - Lee Unkrich
Waste Land (2010) - Lucy Walker
Over The Hill Band (2011) - Geoffrey Enthoven
Samson and Delilah (2010) - Warwick Thorton
127 Hours (2010) - Danny Boyle
Rabbit Hole - (2010) - John Cameron Mitchell
Marwencol (2010) - Jeff Malmberg
Monogamy (2011) - Dana Adam Shapiro
Double Take (2010) - Double Take
Due Date (2010) - Todd Phillips
Toy Story 2 (1999) - John Lasseter
Winter's Bone (2010) - Debra Granik
Splice (2010) - Vincenzo Natali
Agora (2010) - Alejandro Amenabar
Holy Rollers (2010) - Kevin Asch
Please Give (2010) - Nicole Holofcener
The Dinner Game (1998) - Francis Veber
Dark Days (2000) - Marc Singer
The Last House On The Left (1972) - Wes Craven
Doghouse (2009) - Jake West
Passing Strange (2009) - Spike Lee
Easy A (2010) - Will Gluck
The Night of the Hunter (1955) - Charles Laughton
The Secret of Kells (2010) - Tomm Moore
The Human Centipede (2010) - Tom Six
Never Let Me Go (2010) - Mark Romanek
Ajami (2010) - Scandar Copti & Yaron Shani
The Social Network (2010) - David Fincher
The Greatest (2010) - Shana Feste
The Killer Inside Me (2010) - Michael Winterbottom
Chungking Express (1994) - Wong Kar Wai
Days of Being Wild (1990) - Wong Kar Wai
Ashes of Time Redux (2008) - Wong Kar Wai
Ondine (2010) - Neil Jordan
Strangers On A Train (1951) - Alfred Hitchcock
The Town (2010) - Ben Affleck
Notorious (1946) - Alfred Hitchcock
North By Northwest (1959) - Alfred Hitchcock
The Iron Giant (1999) - Brad Bird
Vertigo (1958) - Alfred Hitchcock
Friday Night (2002) - Claire Denis
Solitary Man (2010) - Brian Koppelman
Chocolat (1988) - Claire Denis
Red Riding Trilogy: 1983 (2010) - Anand Tucker
Red Riding Trilogy: 1980 (2010) - James Marsh
Red Riding Trilogy: 1974 (2010) - Julian Jerrold
Survival of the Dead (2010) - George Romero
The Square (2010) - Nash Edgerton
Mosieur Verdoux (1947) - Charlie Chaplin
Le Corbeau (1943) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
Diabolique (1954) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
The Wages of Fear (1953) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
8: The Mormon Proposition (2010) - Reed Cowan
I Am Love (2010) - Luca Guadagnino
The Ghost Writer (2010) - Roman Polanski
Sunrise (1927) - F.W. Murnau
The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsburg and the Pentagon Papers (2010) - Judith Ehrlich & Rick Goldsmith
Nosferatu (1922) - F.W. Murnau
The Girl Who Played With Fire (2010) - Daniel Alfredson
The Kids Are All Right (2010) - Lisa Cholodenko
Man With A Movie Camera (1929) - Dziga Vertov
Green Zone (2010) - Paul Greengrass
The Runaways (2010) - Floria Sigismondi
Ballad of a Soldier (1959) - Grigori Chukhrai
Inception (2010) - Christopher Nolan
The River (1951) - Jean Renoir
Chloe (2010) - Atom Egoyan
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2010) - Niels Arden Oplev
Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) - Alain Resnais
Querelle (1982) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Bad Timing (1980) - Nicholas Roeg
Europa (1992) - Lars Von Trier)
Barton Fink (1991) - Joel & Ethan Coen
Mrs. Parker And The Vicious Circle (1994) Alan Rudolph
Mala Noche (1985) - Gus Van Sant
Swoon (1992) - Tom Kalin
The Maid (2009) - Sebastian Silva
Close-Up (1990) - Abbas Kiarostami
Babette's Feast (1987) - Gabriel Axel
Burma VJ (2009) - Anders Ostergaard
The Celebration (1998) - Thomas Vinterberg
Shutter Island (2010) - Martin Scorsese
Crimson Gold (2004) - Jafar Panahi
Hukkle (2003) - Gyorgy Palfi
Damnation (1988) Bela Tarr
Kontroll (2005) - Nimrod Antal
Primo Amore (2005) - Matteo Garrone
Howard's End (1992) - James Ivory (REVISIT)
In The Name Of The Father (1993) - Jim Sheridan (REVISIT)
California Dreamin' (Endless) (2009) - Cristian Nemescu
Orlando (1992) - Sally Potter (REVISIT)
Tetro (2009) - Francis Ford Coppola
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) - Terry Gilliam
The Horse Boy (2009) - Rupert & Kristin Isaacson
35 Shots of Rum (2009) - Claire Denis
Uncertainty (2009) - Scott McGehee
Shadows (2009) - Milcho Manchevski
Date Night (2010) - Shawn Levy
The Piano (1993) - Jane Campion (REVISIT)
Brothers (2005) - Susanna Bier
Brothers(2009) - Jim Sheridan
The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros (2006) - Auraeus Solito
A Single Man (2009) - Tom Ford
Summer Hours (2009) - Oliver Assayas
The Secret of The Grain (2008) - Abdel Kechiche
Antibodies (2007) - Christian Alvart
Hunger (2008) - Steve McQueen
The Portrait of a Lady (1996) - Jane Campion
The Messenger (2009) - Oren Moverman
Crazy Heart (2009) - Scott Cooper
A Serious Man (2009) - Joel and Ethan Coen
Where The Wild Things Are (2009) - Spike Jonze
Noi The Albino (2003) - Dagur Kari
Cop Out (2010) - Kevin Smith
The Crazies (2010) - Breck Eisner
The Milk of Sorrow (2010) - Claudia Llosa
The Secret In Their Eyes (2010) - Juan Jose Campanella
Mother (2010) - Joon-ho Bong
Police, Adjective (2009) - Corneliu Porumboiu
Seraphine (2009) - Martin Provost
Broken Embraces (2009) - Pedro Almodovar
A Prophet (2010) - Jacques Audillard
The Book of Eli (2010) - Albert & Allen Hughes
Edge of Darkness (2010) - Jochen Richter
Hot Tub Time Machine (2010) - Steve Pink
Of Time And City (2009) - Terence Davies
Revanche (2009) - Gotz Spielmann
Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (2009) - John Krasinski
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) - William A. Wellman
The White Ribbon (2009) - Michael Haneke
Secret Sunshine (2007) - Chang-dong Lee
Yojimbo (1961) - Akira Kurasowa
Taxidermia (2009) - Gyorgy Palfi
The Men Who Stare At Goats (2009) - Grant Heslov
Kwaidan (1964) - Masaki Kobayashi
Last Year At Marienbad (1961) - Alain Resnais
The Beaches of Agnes (2009) - Agnes Varda
The Stoning of Soraya M. (2009) - Cyrus Nowrasteh
Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) - Michael Moore
La Pointe Courte (1954) - Agnes Varda
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009) - Rebecca Miller
Vagabond (1985) - Agnes Varda
Ponyo (2009) - Hayao Miyazaki
The Gleaners and I (2000) - Agnes Varda
The House of Mirth (2000) - Terence Davies
Bronson (2009) - Nicholas Refn
The September Issue (2009) - R.J. Cutler
The Invention of Lying (2009) - Ricky Gervais
Coco Before Chanel (2009) - Anne Fontaine
Good Hair (2009) - Jeff Stilson
The Best of Youth (2003) - Marco Tullio Giordana
The New World (2005) - Terrence Malick
An Angel At My Table (1990) - Jane Campion
Sweetie (1989) - Jane Campion
Bright Star (2009) - Jane Campion
Whip It! (2009) - Drew Barrymore
My Winnipeg (2008) - Guy Maddin
The Weight of Water (2002) - Kathryn Bigelow
Everlasting Moments (2009) - Jan Troell
The Juniper Tree (1990) - Nietzchka Keene
Top Hat (1935) - Marck Sandrich
101 Reykjavik (2000) - Baltasar Kormakur
The Headless Woman (2009) - Lucretia Martel
Outrage (2009) - Kirby Dick
Moon (2009) - Duncan Jones
Departures (2009) - Yojiro Takita
You, The Living (2009) - Roy Andersson
Funny People (2009) - Judd Apatow
Lorna's Silence (2009) - Jean-Pierre Dardenne
Paranormal Activity (2009) - Oren Peli
Anvil: The Story of Anvil (2009) - Sacha Gervasi
Get Him To The Greek (2010) - Nicholas Stoller
True Grit (2010) - Joel and Ethan Coen
Map Of The Sounds Of Tokyo (2010) - Isabel Coixet
I Love You Phillip Morris (2010) - John Requa & Glenn Ficarra
The Art of The Steal (2010) - Don Argott
Prodigal Sons (2010) - Kimberly Reed
Mother And Child (2010) - Rodrigo Garcia
Mugabe and The White African (2010) - Lucy Baily and Andrew Thompson
Micmacs (2010) - Jean-Pierre Jeunet
Joan Rivers: A Piece of work (2010) - Ricki Stern & Annie Sundberg
Exit Through The Gift Shop (2010) - Banksy
2:37 (2006) - Murali K. Tharulli
Scott Pilgrim Vs. The World (2010) - Edgar Wright
Restrepo (2010) - Sebastian Junger and Tim Hetherington
Head-On (2005) - Fatih Akin
Cairo Time (2010) - Ruba Nadda
Fox And His Friends (1975) - Rainer Werner Fassbender
The Expendables (2010) - Sylvester Stallone
Everyone Else (2010) - Maren Ade
Branded To Kill (1967) - Seijun Suzuki
Who's Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? (1966) - Mike Nichols
Pierrot le Fou (1965) - Jean-Luc Godard
Best Worst Movie (2010) - Michael Stephenson
Kick-Ass (2010) - Matthew Vaughn
Black Swan (2010) - Darren Aronofsky
Sons of Perdition (2010) - Tyler Meason and Jennilyn Merten
Toy Story 3 (2010) - Lee Unkrich
Waste Land (2010) - Lucy Walker
Over The Hill Band (2011) - Geoffrey Enthoven
Samson and Delilah (2010) - Warwick Thorton
127 Hours (2010) - Danny Boyle
Rabbit Hole - (2010) - John Cameron Mitchell
Marwencol (2010) - Jeff Malmberg
Monogamy (2011) - Dana Adam Shapiro
Double Take (2010) - Double Take
Due Date (2010) - Todd Phillips
Toy Story 2 (1999) - John Lasseter
Winter's Bone (2010) - Debra Granik
Splice (2010) - Vincenzo Natali
Agora (2010) - Alejandro Amenabar
Holy Rollers (2010) - Kevin Asch
Please Give (2010) - Nicole Holofcener
The Dinner Game (1998) - Francis Veber
Dark Days (2000) - Marc Singer
The Last House On The Left (1972) - Wes Craven
Doghouse (2009) - Jake West
Passing Strange (2009) - Spike Lee
Easy A (2010) - Will Gluck
The Night of the Hunter (1955) - Charles Laughton
The Secret of Kells (2010) - Tomm Moore
The Human Centipede (2010) - Tom Six
Never Let Me Go (2010) - Mark Romanek
Ajami (2010) - Scandar Copti & Yaron Shani
The Social Network (2010) - David Fincher
The Greatest (2010) - Shana Feste
The Killer Inside Me (2010) - Michael Winterbottom
Chungking Express (1994) - Wong Kar Wai
Days of Being Wild (1990) - Wong Kar Wai
Ashes of Time Redux (2008) - Wong Kar Wai
Ondine (2010) - Neil Jordan
Strangers On A Train (1951) - Alfred Hitchcock
The Town (2010) - Ben Affleck
Notorious (1946) - Alfred Hitchcock
North By Northwest (1959) - Alfred Hitchcock
The Iron Giant (1999) - Brad Bird
Vertigo (1958) - Alfred Hitchcock
Friday Night (2002) - Claire Denis
Solitary Man (2010) - Brian Koppelman
Chocolat (1988) - Claire Denis
Red Riding Trilogy: 1983 (2010) - Anand Tucker
Red Riding Trilogy: 1980 (2010) - James Marsh
Red Riding Trilogy: 1974 (2010) - Julian Jerrold
Survival of the Dead (2010) - George Romero
The Square (2010) - Nash Edgerton
Mosieur Verdoux (1947) - Charlie Chaplin
Le Corbeau (1943) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
Diabolique (1954) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
The Wages of Fear (1953) - Henri-Georges Clouzot
8: The Mormon Proposition (2010) - Reed Cowan
I Am Love (2010) - Luca Guadagnino
The Ghost Writer (2010) - Roman Polanski
Sunrise (1927) - F.W. Murnau
The Most Dangerous Man In America: Daniel Ellsburg and the Pentagon Papers (2010) - Judith Ehrlich & Rick Goldsmith
Nosferatu (1922) - F.W. Murnau
The Girl Who Played With Fire (2010) - Daniel Alfredson
The Kids Are All Right (2010) - Lisa Cholodenko
Man With A Movie Camera (1929) - Dziga Vertov
Green Zone (2010) - Paul Greengrass
The Runaways (2010) - Floria Sigismondi
Ballad of a Soldier (1959) - Grigori Chukhrai
Inception (2010) - Christopher Nolan
The River (1951) - Jean Renoir
Chloe (2010) - Atom Egoyan
The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (2010) - Niels Arden Oplev
Hiroshima Mon Amour (1959) - Alain Resnais
Querelle (1982) - Rainer Werner Fassbinder
Bad Timing (1980) - Nicholas Roeg
Europa (1992) - Lars Von Trier)
Barton Fink (1991) - Joel & Ethan Coen
Mrs. Parker And The Vicious Circle (1994) Alan Rudolph
Mala Noche (1985) - Gus Van Sant
Swoon (1992) - Tom Kalin
The Maid (2009) - Sebastian Silva
Close-Up (1990) - Abbas Kiarostami
Babette's Feast (1987) - Gabriel Axel
Burma VJ (2009) - Anders Ostergaard
The Celebration (1998) - Thomas Vinterberg
Shutter Island (2010) - Martin Scorsese
Crimson Gold (2004) - Jafar Panahi
Hukkle (2003) - Gyorgy Palfi
Damnation (1988) Bela Tarr
Kontroll (2005) - Nimrod Antal
Primo Amore (2005) - Matteo Garrone
Howard's End (1992) - James Ivory (REVISIT)
In The Name Of The Father (1993) - Jim Sheridan (REVISIT)
California Dreamin' (Endless) (2009) - Cristian Nemescu
Orlando (1992) - Sally Potter (REVISIT)
Tetro (2009) - Francis Ford Coppola
The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus (2009) - Terry Gilliam
The Horse Boy (2009) - Rupert & Kristin Isaacson
35 Shots of Rum (2009) - Claire Denis
Uncertainty (2009) - Scott McGehee
Shadows (2009) - Milcho Manchevski
Date Night (2010) - Shawn Levy
The Piano (1993) - Jane Campion (REVISIT)
Brothers (2005) - Susanna Bier
Brothers(2009) - Jim Sheridan
The Blossoming of Maximo Oliveros (2006) - Auraeus Solito
A Single Man (2009) - Tom Ford
Summer Hours (2009) - Oliver Assayas
The Secret of The Grain (2008) - Abdel Kechiche
Antibodies (2007) - Christian Alvart
Hunger (2008) - Steve McQueen
The Portrait of a Lady (1996) - Jane Campion
The Messenger (2009) - Oren Moverman
Crazy Heart (2009) - Scott Cooper
A Serious Man (2009) - Joel and Ethan Coen
Where The Wild Things Are (2009) - Spike Jonze
Noi The Albino (2003) - Dagur Kari
Cop Out (2010) - Kevin Smith
The Crazies (2010) - Breck Eisner
The Milk of Sorrow (2010) - Claudia Llosa
The Secret In Their Eyes (2010) - Juan Jose Campanella
Mother (2010) - Joon-ho Bong
Police, Adjective (2009) - Corneliu Porumboiu
Seraphine (2009) - Martin Provost
Broken Embraces (2009) - Pedro Almodovar
A Prophet (2010) - Jacques Audillard
The Book of Eli (2010) - Albert & Allen Hughes
Edge of Darkness (2010) - Jochen Richter
Hot Tub Time Machine (2010) - Steve Pink
Of Time And City (2009) - Terence Davies
Revanche (2009) - Gotz Spielmann
Brief Interviews With Hideous Men (2009) - John Krasinski
The Ox-Bow Incident (1943) - William A. Wellman
The White Ribbon (2009) - Michael Haneke
Secret Sunshine (2007) - Chang-dong Lee
Yojimbo (1961) - Akira Kurasowa
Taxidermia (2009) - Gyorgy Palfi
The Men Who Stare At Goats (2009) - Grant Heslov
Kwaidan (1964) - Masaki Kobayashi
Last Year At Marienbad (1961) - Alain Resnais
The Beaches of Agnes (2009) - Agnes Varda
The Stoning of Soraya M. (2009) - Cyrus Nowrasteh
Capitalism: A Love Story (2009) - Michael Moore
La Pointe Courte (1954) - Agnes Varda
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee (2009) - Rebecca Miller
Vagabond (1985) - Agnes Varda
Ponyo (2009) - Hayao Miyazaki
The Gleaners and I (2000) - Agnes Varda
The House of Mirth (2000) - Terence Davies
Bronson (2009) - Nicholas Refn
The September Issue (2009) - R.J. Cutler
The Invention of Lying (2009) - Ricky Gervais
Coco Before Chanel (2009) - Anne Fontaine
Good Hair (2009) - Jeff Stilson
The Best of Youth (2003) - Marco Tullio Giordana
The New World (2005) - Terrence Malick
An Angel At My Table (1990) - Jane Campion
Sweetie (1989) - Jane Campion
Bright Star (2009) - Jane Campion
Whip It! (2009) - Drew Barrymore
My Winnipeg (2008) - Guy Maddin
The Weight of Water (2002) - Kathryn Bigelow
Everlasting Moments (2009) - Jan Troell
The Juniper Tree (1990) - Nietzchka Keene
Top Hat (1935) - Marck Sandrich
101 Reykjavik (2000) - Baltasar Kormakur
The Headless Woman (2009) - Lucretia Martel
Outrage (2009) - Kirby Dick
Moon (2009) - Duncan Jones
Departures (2009) - Yojiro Takita
You, The Living (2009) - Roy Andersson
Funny People (2009) - Judd Apatow
Lorna's Silence (2009) - Jean-Pierre Dardenne
Paranormal Activity (2009) - Oren Peli
Anvil: The Story of Anvil (2009) - Sacha Gervasi
Monday, March 22, 2010
Top 100 Films Of The Decade: Intro and 100-91
I originally thought I would start in on this whole list upon seeing 1,000 movies from 2000 through 2009, but I've found that my viewing habits have become focused a bit more on watching older films as well as catching up on films from the current year, so I figured now would be as good a time as any. Besides, since I'm just about 20 films shy of 1,000, it seems unlikely that I'd find something that would crack the top 100 anyway. Especially when I had to leave so many films I really like off this list.
Since I'm linking in friends and family from Facebook who might not be quite as familiar with my tastes in film, I figure I might try to give you a little idea of what to expect here. I've been a bit of a movie dork all of my life, and as a kid, would ride my bike down to the local movie theater at Seminole Mall and see pretty much everything that was playing (those of you who worked at the movie theaters in high school can probably attest to this!)
But with so much time spent watching movies in my teens, I just saw a lot of trends come and go, and every time an interesting film came along, the studios tripped all over themselves to remake that same movie over and over again to see if lightning struck twice (...or more often, three, four, or ten times). For example, remember all the "Tarantino-esque" movies that came along in the wake of Pulp Fiction? Or how about all of the teen horror flicks that came along in the wake of the first Scream revitalizing that genre?. I guess, one part of developing my tastes was born out of that, and I stopped going for the obvious cash-grabbing ploys. And sort of going hand-in-hand with that, I've stopped listening to a lot of the mainstream hype. It seems like each summer, one big special effects extravaganza comes along after the next, and roughly 80% of the time, the people I know who saw that weekend's "event" film would tell me how much it sucked later that night at the bar or at work on Monday. Mostly, it seems like the hype exists to get as many people into the theater opening weekend before word of mouth spreads. This isn't to say all of these films suck, but think about it... for every Dark Knight that comes along, there are a lot more Transformers 2.
While I've learned to avoid a lot of films, I've also learned to seek out the sorts of films that I never had access to growing up... foreign films, documentaries, micro-budget indies and such that simply weren't available at our little AMC or at Blockbuster. This isn't to say that any of those genres are necessarily better. I've seen a lot of terrible foreign films and documentaries too. And while there will be quite a strong number of foreign films on this list, you have to consider just how many different countries there are around the world putting out film, and the U.S. is merely one of them. But don't fret... American filmmaking is more than amply represented here.
So, the 100 films I picked here are all films that made me think, struck a personal connection, lingered in the brain, entertained me in a way that I found smart, felt innovative, or even appalled me to the core in some cases... but all of have managed to stick with me in one way or another. Where available, I've linked to trailers, so you can watch the trailer for most of these films by clicking on the film's title.
100. Fat Girl
(2001) Catherine Breillat - France
This one is one I went back and forth on including honestly. When I first saw it, I found it ballsy, unnerving, and completely unflinching in it's look at sexuality and it's willingness to go to places I never imagined. Yet, with subsequent films by Breillat, I'm starting to think of her as someone whose main purpose is crass shock value, and it has somewhat diminished my appreciation for this film to a certain extent. I know people who love this one to pieces, and I know others who find this film absolutely abhorrent. I understand both sides of the argument. But, I decided to include this one because I think to retroactively dismiss it would be to deny the impact I felt.
This one is about a couple of sisters vacationing with their family and discovering their sexuality as well. The elder sister is young, thin, and conventionally attractive. The younger sister is chubby and plain and doesn't attract the boys. But beyond their physical differences, the sisters also have very different views about romance and sex as well. The ending here is shockingly abrupt, graphic, and disturbing, and I think it's probably the reason most people either love it or hate it. At the time, I loved it for it's boldness. I'm not quite sure where I fall on it now.
99. Sangre de mi Sangre
(2008) Christopher Zalla - USA/Argentina
There've been a few films as of late that have delved into illegal immigration and the immigrant experience, some successful, others less so, but I this is the one that I found to be the most interesting of the bunch, and interestingly enough, one I caught entirely by accident.
This two young men sneaking into the country - one is meet up with the father he never knew when his mother dies, the other a criminal who is fleeing to escape some hoodlums who want him killed. The two become friendly, but their friendship is short lived as the criminal steals the other guy's backpack with everything he had and shows up on the father's doorstep assuming the other's identity. The real son is left to wander New York City alone with no resources. The film follows what becomes of these two boys and both halves of the story are equally compelling.
98. Best In Show
(2000) Christopher Guest - USA
One thing I've come to discover is that my taste in comedy doesn't seem to match up with the majority. There always seems to be one big breakout comedy that comes along each year that breaks box office records and people endlessly quote or become sort of cult classics. But I've watched them, and I simply don't understand. The Hangover, Wedding Crashers, Borat, Napoleon Dynamite... all these films seem to make people laugh, and well, I wish I was in on the joke. I just never found myself laughing or even amused. But Christopher Guest's mockumentaries... THESE make me laugh.
This one follows a bunch of pet-obsessed eccentrics who compete in the dog show circuit and it really sort of spoofs and mocks the whole culture of these little stage parent-like kooks that obsess about their dogs and these contests. And I crack up every time.
97. Werckmeister Harmonies
(2001) Béla Tarr - Hungary
Curiously intriguing would probably be the best way I could describe this one. It's one of those films that's rather ambiguous in nature, but manages to evoke a mood and a feeling like few others I've seen, and it's managed to linger ever. I recall watching this one, and experiencing such a feeling of dread, even though I had no idea what lied ahead or if I was even supposed to be feeling that way. There's just such an odd and ominous air about the film the builds and grows, and mostly through Tarr's use of music and uncomfortably long takes (I recall reading that there were only 33 takes or something like that in the entire two-and-a-half hours). If a largely dialogue-free, black-and-white Hungarian film sounds like it would be a chore to you, than it quite likely will be. But for the few who think that the above sounds interesting, I would encourage you to check it out. Although I couldn't find a trailer with English subtitles, I think this clip does a pretty good job of succinctly giving you a feel for the film.
95. The Gleaners And I
93. Minority Report
(2002) Steven Spielberg - USA
Since I'm linking in friends and family from Facebook who might not be quite as familiar with my tastes in film, I figure I might try to give you a little idea of what to expect here. I've been a bit of a movie dork all of my life, and as a kid, would ride my bike down to the local movie theater at Seminole Mall and see pretty much everything that was playing (those of you who worked at the movie theaters in high school can probably attest to this!)
But with so much time spent watching movies in my teens, I just saw a lot of trends come and go, and every time an interesting film came along, the studios tripped all over themselves to remake that same movie over and over again to see if lightning struck twice (...or more often, three, four, or ten times). For example, remember all the "Tarantino-esque" movies that came along in the wake of Pulp Fiction? Or how about all of the teen horror flicks that came along in the wake of the first Scream revitalizing that genre?. I guess, one part of developing my tastes was born out of that, and I stopped going for the obvious cash-grabbing ploys. And sort of going hand-in-hand with that, I've stopped listening to a lot of the mainstream hype. It seems like each summer, one big special effects extravaganza comes along after the next, and roughly 80% of the time, the people I know who saw that weekend's "event" film would tell me how much it sucked later that night at the bar or at work on Monday. Mostly, it seems like the hype exists to get as many people into the theater opening weekend before word of mouth spreads. This isn't to say all of these films suck, but think about it... for every Dark Knight that comes along, there are a lot more Transformers 2.
While I've learned to avoid a lot of films, I've also learned to seek out the sorts of films that I never had access to growing up... foreign films, documentaries, micro-budget indies and such that simply weren't available at our little AMC or at Blockbuster. This isn't to say that any of those genres are necessarily better. I've seen a lot of terrible foreign films and documentaries too. And while there will be quite a strong number of foreign films on this list, you have to consider just how many different countries there are around the world putting out film, and the U.S. is merely one of them. But don't fret... American filmmaking is more than amply represented here.
So, the 100 films I picked here are all films that made me think, struck a personal connection, lingered in the brain, entertained me in a way that I found smart, felt innovative, or even appalled me to the core in some cases... but all of have managed to stick with me in one way or another. Where available, I've linked to trailers, so you can watch the trailer for most of these films by clicking on the film's title.
100. Fat Girl (2001) Catherine Breillat - France
This one is one I went back and forth on including honestly. When I first saw it, I found it ballsy, unnerving, and completely unflinching in it's look at sexuality and it's willingness to go to places I never imagined. Yet, with subsequent films by Breillat, I'm starting to think of her as someone whose main purpose is crass shock value, and it has somewhat diminished my appreciation for this film to a certain extent. I know people who love this one to pieces, and I know others who find this film absolutely abhorrent. I understand both sides of the argument. But, I decided to include this one because I think to retroactively dismiss it would be to deny the impact I felt.
This one is about a couple of sisters vacationing with their family and discovering their sexuality as well. The elder sister is young, thin, and conventionally attractive. The younger sister is chubby and plain and doesn't attract the boys. But beyond their physical differences, the sisters also have very different views about romance and sex as well. The ending here is shockingly abrupt, graphic, and disturbing, and I think it's probably the reason most people either love it or hate it. At the time, I loved it for it's boldness. I'm not quite sure where I fall on it now.
99. Sangre de mi Sangre(2008) Christopher Zalla - USA/Argentina
There've been a few films as of late that have delved into illegal immigration and the immigrant experience, some successful, others less so, but I this is the one that I found to be the most interesting of the bunch, and interestingly enough, one I caught entirely by accident.
This two young men sneaking into the country - one is meet up with the father he never knew when his mother dies, the other a criminal who is fleeing to escape some hoodlums who want him killed. The two become friendly, but their friendship is short lived as the criminal steals the other guy's backpack with everything he had and shows up on the father's doorstep assuming the other's identity. The real son is left to wander New York City alone with no resources. The film follows what becomes of these two boys and both halves of the story are equally compelling.
98. Best In Show(2000) Christopher Guest - USA
One thing I've come to discover is that my taste in comedy doesn't seem to match up with the majority. There always seems to be one big breakout comedy that comes along each year that breaks box office records and people endlessly quote or become sort of cult classics. But I've watched them, and I simply don't understand. The Hangover, Wedding Crashers, Borat, Napoleon Dynamite... all these films seem to make people laugh, and well, I wish I was in on the joke. I just never found myself laughing or even amused. But Christopher Guest's mockumentaries... THESE make me laugh.
This one follows a bunch of pet-obsessed eccentrics who compete in the dog show circuit and it really sort of spoofs and mocks the whole culture of these little stage parent-like kooks that obsess about their dogs and these contests. And I crack up every time.
97. Werckmeister Harmonies(2001) Béla Tarr - Hungary
Curiously intriguing would probably be the best way I could describe this one. It's one of those films that's rather ambiguous in nature, but manages to evoke a mood and a feeling like few others I've seen, and it's managed to linger ever. I recall watching this one, and experiencing such a feeling of dread, even though I had no idea what lied ahead or if I was even supposed to be feeling that way. There's just such an odd and ominous air about the film the builds and grows, and mostly through Tarr's use of music and uncomfortably long takes (I recall reading that there were only 33 takes or something like that in the entire two-and-a-half hours). If a largely dialogue-free, black-and-white Hungarian film sounds like it would be a chore to you, than it quite likely will be. But for the few who think that the above sounds interesting, I would encourage you to check it out. Although I couldn't find a trailer with English subtitles, I think this clip does a pretty good job of succinctly giving you a feel for the film.
(2002) Lynne Ramsay - Scotland
Lynne Ramsay was one of my favorite directors to emerge at the turn of the decade, so it's been disappointing to me that she hasn't made another film since this one, though I recently read that she is teaming up with Tilda Swinton to adapt the novel We Need To Talk About Kevin into a film, which makes me very happy. I find this one a little more difficult to discuss regarding the whole plot, but I find this one fascinating mostly because of the character and the actress who plays her. Samantha Morton stars as the title character, and I believe her to be among the best actresses of her generation (she'll be in quite a few of these films, including another in this segment). I don't think many actresses could have played such a damaged character like Morvern quite so effectively, especially since much of the performance (and the film, by extension) is so internal, and I think that her performance fuses beautifully with Ramsay's style of filmmaking.
Lynne Ramsay was one of my favorite directors to emerge at the turn of the decade, so it's been disappointing to me that she hasn't made another film since this one, though I recently read that she is teaming up with Tilda Swinton to adapt the novel We Need To Talk About Kevin into a film, which makes me very happy. I find this one a little more difficult to discuss regarding the whole plot, but I find this one fascinating mostly because of the character and the actress who plays her. Samantha Morton stars as the title character, and I believe her to be among the best actresses of her generation (she'll be in quite a few of these films, including another in this segment). I don't think many actresses could have played such a damaged character like Morvern quite so effectively, especially since much of the performance (and the film, by extension) is so internal, and I think that her performance fuses beautifully with Ramsay's style of filmmaking.
95. The Gleaners And I (2000) Agnès Varda - France
While Varda is probably best known for her films from the French new Wave, such as Cleo From 5 to 7, she's one of those directors whose documentary work I find infinitely more fascinating. In part because I find Varda herself so fascinating. One of the biggest lessons I learned in college was that a fascinating professor could make even the dullest of subjects interesting, and I think that sort of applies here as well. Inspired by a painting of a woman gleaning (or, scavenging) wheat, she set off to make a documentary about people who live off the land scavenging to survive, both in rural and in urban settings. But Varda is very much a part of this film, as she mingles with the subjects she speaks with and scavenges along side of them. And while in her 70's at the time the film was made, she's a complete free spirit and her childlike enthusiasm for what she's doing makes this such an enjoyable watch.
While Varda is probably best known for her films from the French new Wave, such as Cleo From 5 to 7, she's one of those directors whose documentary work I find infinitely more fascinating. In part because I find Varda herself so fascinating. One of the biggest lessons I learned in college was that a fascinating professor could make even the dullest of subjects interesting, and I think that sort of applies here as well. Inspired by a painting of a woman gleaning (or, scavenging) wheat, she set off to make a documentary about people who live off the land scavenging to survive, both in rural and in urban settings. But Varda is very much a part of this film, as she mingles with the subjects she speaks with and scavenges along side of them. And while in her 70's at the time the film was made, she's a complete free spirit and her childlike enthusiasm for what she's doing makes this such an enjoyable watch.
94. The Weather UndergroundWhile this group drew more attention later in the decade, I'd not been familiar with them at the time this film came out, and I found this to be an interesting and well-researched look at the group who despite lofty ideals, imploded in on itself by adopting the wrong tactics to convey their message.
93. Minority Report(2002) Steven Spielberg - USA
See, I like mainstream stuff too! It's not all artsy-fartsy existential documentaries about Bolivian ox herders and stuff :)
But seriously, I've always appreciated this one quite a bit and find it a bit underrated among the decade's science fiction films, and I find the moral implications of the story interesting. Though I'm no Tom Cruise fan and I think the supporting cast (Max Von Sydow, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton) is much better, he didn't annoy me, so there's that. This one might have come in just outside of the top 100, but I actually happened to catch this one again not too long ago, and found it held up rather well and I found myself reconsidering it for this list.
(2006) Jeff Feuerzeig - USA
I wouldn't necessarily consider myself a fan of Johnston's music, but I did find this documentary about this man and his career to be a rather amazing look at mental illness. I can't say I knew much about the man beforehand, though I'd heard of him and was aware that he had a small but devoted cult following, I was unaware of the man's battle with severe bipolar disorder that has both shaped his work and undermined any hopes for success he would ever have.
91. The Virgin Suicides
(2000) Sofia Coppola - USA
Back when this came out, I saw the trailer, and I didn't recall thinking too much of it (I think it had somewhat of a teeny bopper chick-literature appeal), but I caught it later on DVD and was interested to find it had more depth than I imagined it to have. The story focuses more on the group of young boys in the film who now, 25 years later, are recalling the events that occurred one summer when the Lisbon sisters - the object of all the boys affections - offed themselves, and the memory that lingers for them all these years later. Coppola gives the film a very moody, mysterious aura and manages to imbue the whole film with a very distinct feeling of time and place that makes this film work so well. I was happy that my preconceived notions were wrong.
91. The Virgin Suicides(2000) Sofia Coppola - USA
Back when this came out, I saw the trailer, and I didn't recall thinking too much of it (I think it had somewhat of a teeny bopper chick-literature appeal), but I caught it later on DVD and was interested to find it had more depth than I imagined it to have. The story focuses more on the group of young boys in the film who now, 25 years later, are recalling the events that occurred one summer when the Lisbon sisters - the object of all the boys affections - offed themselves, and the memory that lingers for them all these years later. Coppola gives the film a very moody, mysterious aura and manages to imbue the whole film with a very distinct feeling of time and place that makes this film work so well. I was happy that my preconceived notions were wrong.
90-81 will be up soon...
Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 90-81
90. Burn After Reading(2008) Joel and Ethan Coen - USA
In conversation, I've discovered that this falls into that "love it or hate it" category that so many Coen Brothers films seem to fall into. Quite obviously, I'm on the "loved it" side of that debate. I don't think Brad Pitt or Frances McDormand have ever been funnier or more endearing, and while it may be a screwball comedy that doesn't add up to much, it's one hell of an entertaining ride.
89. The Death of Mr. Lazarescu
(2006) Cristi Puiu - Romania
This one's a bit more difficult to pigeonhole... a darkly comedic tragedy, perhaps? Anyway, this tale of a dying man being shuffled from hospital to hospital all over Bucharest is among the best of a great crop of films coming out of Romania these days.
88. (2009) Ruben Fleischer - USA
For whatever reason, I have a strange affection for zombie films, and seeing this in a crowded theater certainly added to that experience (it doesn't fare quite as well at home for me). It provided me with one of the most flat out entertaining theater-going experiences of the past year. And although Woody Harrellson earned an Oscar nomination for his performance in The Messenger I actually prefer his performance in this one, as the wisecracking Tallahassee, who gave the movie some of it's best laughs, along with the surprise celebrity cameo (which I won't ruin for you).
81. The Aura
For whatever reason, I have a strange affection for zombie films, and seeing this in a crowded theater certainly added to that experience (it doesn't fare quite as well at home for me). It provided me with one of the most flat out entertaining theater-going experiences of the past year. And although Woody Harrellson earned an Oscar nomination for his performance in The Messenger I actually prefer his performance in this one, as the wisecracking Tallahassee, who gave the movie some of it's best laughs, along with the surprise celebrity cameo (which I won't ruin for you).
(2008) Matteo Garrone - Italy
Five different stories interweave in this film with one common bond: The Camorra, a Naples-based crime syndicate that controls the city and whose tentacles extend far beyond just the seedy criminal underworld. The stories are based on an exposé done by Roberto Saviano, who now lives under 24-hour government protection because of what he managed to expose about the Camorra's operations. If you're fond of films like The Godfather series or Scarface (which serves as the inspiration for the two young wanna-be gangsters at the center of one story), you may want to give this one a go.
Five different stories interweave in this film with one common bond: The Camorra, a Naples-based crime syndicate that controls the city and whose tentacles extend far beyond just the seedy criminal underworld. The stories are based on an exposé done by Roberto Saviano, who now lives under 24-hour government protection because of what he managed to expose about the Camorra's operations. If you're fond of films like The Godfather series or Scarface (which serves as the inspiration for the two young wanna-be gangsters at the center of one story), you may want to give this one a go.
86. The Magdalene Sisters(2003) Peter Mullan - Ireland
The Magdalene Laundries in Ireland were a place where "wayward" girls were sent for punishment, forced to work mercilessly while enduring cruel abuse at the hands of the nuns that headed the laundries. This is the story of one group of girls sent to live there back in the 1960's, many of whom found themselves there for wrongs that would even be considered slight by 60's standards. I don't much care for the trailer (Miramax went through a period where they had to make all of their films look like "triumphs of the human spirit," and this is one example). It's a lot grittier than the trailer suggests.
The Magdalene Laundries in Ireland were a place where "wayward" girls were sent for punishment, forced to work mercilessly while enduring cruel abuse at the hands of the nuns that headed the laundries. This is the story of one group of girls sent to live there back in the 1960's, many of whom found themselves there for wrongs that would even be considered slight by 60's standards. I don't much care for the trailer (Miramax went through a period where they had to make all of their films look like "triumphs of the human spirit," and this is one example). It's a lot grittier than the trailer suggests.
(2006) Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden - USA
As a devoted educator and teen basketball coach by day and a crack addict by night, Ryan Gosling deservingly garnered an Oscar nomination for his performance in this one. Matching him every step of the way was young Shareeka Epps, as a street smart young girl finding herself at a crossroads - she's clearly capable of so much more than what her surroundings offer her, yet in danger of becoming another statistic of those surroundings. An incredibly smart and insightful character study.
As a devoted educator and teen basketball coach by day and a crack addict by night, Ryan Gosling deservingly garnered an Oscar nomination for his performance in this one. Matching him every step of the way was young Shareeka Epps, as a street smart young girl finding herself at a crossroads - she's clearly capable of so much more than what her surroundings offer her, yet in danger of becoming another statistic of those surroundings. An incredibly smart and insightful character study.
84. Together(2001) Lukas Moodysson - Sweden
Set in the mid-70's, the story starts off with a young mother of two leaves her alcoholic abusive husband and takes her two kids with her to go and live with her brother, who lives in a hippie commune with a group of friends. And what follows is a film about a lot of things, really.
But, what I most took away from this film was how human each character is made to feel. The group of hippies might constantly espouse ideals that they don't always live up to; the concept of "free love" isn't without unintended consequences; the characters who might seem unfathomable aren't portrayed as saints, but aren't beyond redemption either. And what I think most impressed me about Moodysson's first two films (1998's Show Me Love being the other) was that he has a remarkable knack for depicting children. While I felt that there were a lot of great storylines here, the one that strikes the most resonant chord was that of the little girl forced to move in with this commune of people she doesn't understand and her blossoming friendship with the chubby kid from across the street whose ultra-conservative parents despise everything the commune represents.
(2006) Billy Corben - USA
I've found that some of my favorite documentaries from the past decade aren't necessarily the most well-made films in the world in terms of filmmaking gifts, but the stories they tell are so compelling that I'm more than willing to overlook some of their shortcomings, and this would certainly be one of them. Cocaine Cowboys takes an uncompromising look at the cocaine trade that exploded in Miami in the 70s and 80s and the gruesome violence that came along with it. Some of the reenactments they use are kind of corny, but the stories presented were compelling enough to inspire a number of films and television shows, like Scarface and Miami Vice. Cocaine Cowboys takes a long hard look at the true stories of what went on, and it's horrifying but completely compelling.
(2004) Alexander Payne - USA
I have to admit that my reaction to this one wasn't one of immediate adoration. Upon first viewing, it was one of those cases where the hype that built during limited release elevated my expectations to unrealistic levels, so I left a little disappointed. Thankfully, I gave it a second chance down the road, and I think it helped me revel in the nuances that I was unable to when burdened with lofty expectations. I found so many relatable characteristics in each of the four main characters, and I found Virginia Madsen's dialogue with Paul Giamatti in the scene paralleling wine with life to be one of the more sly and fascinating insights on life articulated on screen during the past decade.
81. The Aura(2006) Fabián Belinsky - Argentina
Belinsky only got a chance to make two films before his untimely death, and both of them are worth the watch. While Nine Queens got a little more ink upon its release, I prefer his later film. The story centers on an epileptic whose otherwise a relatively simple, normal man, but he often fantasizes about pulling off heists. He has no intention of actually carrying them out, but simply enjoys thinking about the various angles and formulating the plans. However, an ill-fated camping trip sets off a chain of events that lands him right in the middle of a heist in the works. While there are a lot of coincidences you need to suspend belief for, somehow Belinsky makes it all work.
80-71 coming this weekend...
Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 80-71
80. Katyn(2009) Andrzej Wajda - Poland
Andrzej Wajda’s epic tale surrounding the massacre of 20,000 Poles in the Katyn Forest was one of the nominations they got right in the 2007 foreign film race at the Oscars. While it seems to have come and gone on these shores during 2009 with little notice, it’s an incredible tale, looking at the everything that led to the massacre and what was left in its wake. Wajda makes some smart moves in letting the tale unfold and I found it to be one of the more interesting epics of the past few years by focusing less on the war itself and more on it’s aftermath.
79. Jesus' Son(2000) Alison Maclean - USA
This is a strange little film, but one that managed to stick with me over the course of the decade. It's based on a compilation of short stories written by Denis Johnson that follows a character referred to only as Fuckhead (or "FH" for polite company) as he hits the ups and downs of heroin addiction and recovery. It has sort of a strange beatnik quality about the whole thing, and it's a bit rough around the edges. But somehow, it managed to get lodged in the brain and hasn't left since.
78. Ratatouille(2007) Brad Bird & Jan Pinkava - USA
While many folks I know love the crap out of the Pixar movies, I don't really have the same enthusiasm (I thought Wall-E and The Incredibles were also really good. Up and Finding Nemo, not so much). Even though it might just be the foodie in me saying this, I did really like this one a lot. The animation was perfect (not to mention how difficult it would be to make Paris look bad), and I just found myself wrapped up in this one just like I was a kid again.
(2001) Kinji Fukasaku - Japan
This is probably better described as a guilty pleasure than a "great" film, but damn if it isn't a lot of fun. Set in the not-too-distant future, a class of Japanese students take a class trip where they discover that they've been selected for a special competition. One where they have three days to kill off the rest of their classmates until there is one student left standing.
(2005) Ang Lee - USA
I don't think I need to give you much of a synopsis with this one since it was a pretty big touchstone of pop culture, and I think it will always be looked upon as such. Although I may not hold it in quite the same esteem as many do, I still think it's a damn fine movie with great performances from Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Michelle Williams (who'd have thunk the girl from "Dawson's Creek" would emerge as one of the most interesting actresses of the latter half of the decade?), beautiful cinematography, and a really solid story.
I don't think I need to give you much of a synopsis with this one since it was a pretty big touchstone of pop culture, and I think it will always be looked upon as such. Although I may not hold it in quite the same esteem as many do, I still think it's a damn fine movie with great performances from Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Michelle Williams (who'd have thunk the girl from "Dawson's Creek" would emerge as one of the most interesting actresses of the latter half of the decade?), beautiful cinematography, and a really solid story.
(2008) Bryan Bertino - USA
While this decade saw the birth of "torture porn" where anything and everything went, I much prefer a film like this, which is a lot more like a throwback to the horror films I grew up with. A pretty simple story really, but one executed quite well and with surprisingly good performances (and a pretty great one from Liv Tyler of all people... go figure!) I think as far as this genre is concerned, less is usually more.
While this decade saw the birth of "torture porn" where anything and everything went, I much prefer a film like this, which is a lot more like a throwback to the horror films I grew up with. A pretty simple story really, but one executed quite well and with surprisingly good performances (and a pretty great one from Liv Tyler of all people... go figure!) I think as far as this genre is concerned, less is usually more.
74. Offside(2007) Jafar Panahi - Iran
Since women are forbidden from attending sporting events in Iran, a group of young girls who want to see the game dress up like boys and sneak in. While it's implied that many did get through, this one focuses on the girls who didn't, detained and held within a tiny area within the stadium. It's a small film that makes as big of a political statement as one could possibly hope to make under such a strict regime. Sadly, Jafar Panahi, who has been a pretty outspoken detractor of the Iranian government and their policies, was arrested along with his family and houseguests earlier this month amid a sweeping crackdown of the opposition, and few details have emerged since. I hope he is still alive and will someday be able to make some additional contributions to world cinema.
Since women are forbidden from attending sporting events in Iran, a group of young girls who want to see the game dress up like boys and sneak in. While it's implied that many did get through, this one focuses on the girls who didn't, detained and held within a tiny area within the stadium. It's a small film that makes as big of a political statement as one could possibly hope to make under such a strict regime. Sadly, Jafar Panahi, who has been a pretty outspoken detractor of the Iranian government and their policies, was arrested along with his family and houseguests earlier this month amid a sweeping crackdown of the opposition, and few details have emerged since. I hope he is still alive and will someday be able to make some additional contributions to world cinema.
(2005) Terrence Malick - USA
I put this one off for a few years... I think it was because of Malick's dreadfully dull previous film, The Thin Red Line. It's a shame that I waited as long as I did to finally sit down and watch it, but I'm glad I did. It's a great retelling of the tale of John Smith and Pocahontas and hands down one of the most beautifully shot films of the decade. The pacing may be a bit slow, but it never bothered me and it's a shame that Q'orianka Kilcher hasn't graced the screen since. She was quite a find and carried the film on her shoulders admirably for her first film.
72. (2006) Pedro Almodóvar - Spain
Almodóvar's films are always somewhat of an event for me, especially with his last five films. He's become a master at jumping from one genre to the next and even blending multiple genres into a great experience, and Volver is certainly no exception. There is a very fine line between saying too much or too little about this one, so I'll err on the side of vagueness, but it's a partly tragic/partly comic tale about two sisters who are revisited by their long dead mother who returns to fix the things she couldn't necessarily do the first time around.
Almodóvar's films are always somewhat of an event for me, especially with his last five films. He's become a master at jumping from one genre to the next and even blending multiple genres into a great experience, and Volver is certainly no exception. There is a very fine line between saying too much or too little about this one, so I'll err on the side of vagueness, but it's a partly tragic/partly comic tale about two sisters who are revisited by their long dead mother who returns to fix the things she couldn't necessarily do the first time around.
71. (2009) Quentin Tarantino - USA
Leave it to old Quentin to make WWII exciting to watch on screen again. Not to sound callous about such a hugely tragic event, but I don't think any historical event has generated more films than WWII and the Holocaust, and I'm progressively finding that it's getting more and more difficult to find something new to say about it. So, in that regard alone I found Tarantino's revisionist take on the war pretty refreshing. But even beyond that, Tarantino brings his usual verve to the film, making a nearly two and a half hour film go by in a flash, and I loved that he used he was able to bring a little more exposure to some consistently reliable foreign actors like Daniel Brühl while introducing me to a few like Christoph Waltz and Mélanie Laurent. And if I'm being totally honest, I kind of love the fact that he was able to lure a lot of people into the theater who wouldn't ordinarily give a subtitled film a chance.
Top 100 Films Of The Decade: 70-61
70. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang(2005) Shane Black - USA
One of the decade's most overlooked comedies. This one tanked hard when it opened and it was in and out of theaters very quickly, so it never quite found an audience. A shame, because it's quite a bit funnier than what passes as comedy these days. Written and directed by the same guy who wrote Lethal Weapon, Black kind of toys with all of the cliches he created 20 years earlier. Robert Downey, Jr.'s bumbling idiot con man and Val Kilmer's wisecracking gay detective made for one of the best comedic teams this decade.
69. Dogville (2003) Lars Von Trier - Denmark
For the uninitiated, I would have to say that Von Trier's works are not the easiest to get into but they're certainly ones that you won't walk away from with a feeling of indifference. He's very much a provocateur in every sense and his films can be nihilistic (as an aside, if you've not seen The Onion spoofing his works, it's an absolute must see) but I find them pretty fascinating, at least in most cases. In Dogville, he assembles a stellar cast including Nicole Kidman, Lauren Bacall, Patricia Clarkson and this one plays unlike any other film I'd seen before. The best way to describe it is that it looks like watching the dress rehearsal to a stage production, with chalk outlines on the floor taking the place of structures. It's an absolutely uncompromising film, and while I think I think he's made his points a little more effectively in the past, his condemnation on xenophobia here is quite compelling.
68. Memento(2001) Christopher Nolan - USA
Earlier this decade, I might've told you that this one would go down as one of the decade's classics. While I still think it's a well made and inventive thriller, it hasn't held up quite as well as I thought it might. But, I think that once you move past the timeplay gimmick, there is a pretty interesting revenge thriller underneath it all.
67. You Can Count On Me(2000) Kenneth Lonergan - USA
At the outset, we learn that two siblings are orphaned at an early age, but we get to know them as adults. The brother, played by Mark Ruffalo in his breakthrough performance, comes home to stay with the sister, Laura Linney in the role that singlehandedly reversed my opinion of her as an actress. They're both screwups in their own ways... he's been in and out of trouble his whole life while she's a single mother who puts on the facade of having things figured out, but isn't any better. It's a fascinating take on sibling relationships that has some interesting insights.
66. Juno(2007) Jason Reitman - USA
While I'm aware that this one elicited just as many groans from people over the too-snappy dialogue and it's annoying soundtrack (on that point, I'll agree), I still think this movie happens to be funny as hell and filled with a lot of great moments. Sure, it may have a "trying-too-hard" feel about it for the first 20 minutes or so, but I think once it finds its groove, it's pretty great and has just the right amount of heart.
A couple are attacked at their isolated vacation home, leaving him severely injured and her dead. Though he cleared his name in the matter, the police have their suspicions, especially when eight years later, two more bodies are discovered on the property. Meanwhile, he begins to receive e-mails from an unknown sender showing clips of what appears to be his wife... still alive. It's a pretty great thriller filled with twists and turns and it's one of those films that hooks you in pretty easily and never gets dull.
64. The White Ribbon(2009) Michael Haneke - Germany
Along with Von Trier, who I discussed earlier, Haneke is another of modern cinema's great provocateurs, but I think his films manage to provoke in a different way. He's a little less "in your face" and takes a bit more of a cerebral approach. He seems to love nothing more than to toy with his audience and not give you the easy answers that you've come to expect from most films. Instead of hand delivering you quick resolutions, he's much more content to let you come up with those on your own and allow you to walk away interpreting the film in your own way and that might be entirely different from what the person next to you thought. And while that seems to be maddening to many, it's precisely what I love about Haneke.
This one takes place in a small German village just before the first world war, and strange things are afoot. Misdeeds committed against neighbors and we don't know who and we don't know why. A lot of carrots get dangled in your face, but just far enough out of reach to not grasp them immediately. For my fellow Tampa residents, this one is playing over at the Tampa Theater as we speak, so if you want a break from the norm and want a film that you could sit down and discuss with an intelligent friend afterward, this should be a priority.
(2004) Chang-dong Lee - South Korea
Probably the most unconventional romantic relationship of the decade plays out here between a complete social misfit and a woman stricken with cerebral palsy. He's a complete mess, but takes a shine to her... maybe it's because she's a fellow outcast or his only option, but it seems horrifying at first and then in time becomes completely endearing. And mostly because of the high-wire act that Moon So-ri pulls off here. Until the fantasy sequences begin, you would have no idea that the actress in the role is not afflicted with the condition. She plays it so authentically it's almost scary.
62. The Descent
(2006) Neil Marshall - UK
Horror is a genre I totally grew up on and love, but it just seems to be a genre that nowadays doesn't really get it right for me, outside of a few instances, and this would be one of those instances that did get it right. It's about a group of women who are adventure sport enthusiasts who decide to take a spelunking trip. And right off the bat, I should tell you that if you have even the slightest claustrophobia, it's only going to heighten the terror for you. They get caved in and are desperate to find a way out. Soon enough though, they realize that their fear isn't so much that they are trapped in, but what they are trapped in with.
61. Elegy
(2008) Isabel Coixet - USA/Spain
Probably the most unconventional romantic relationship of the decade plays out here between a complete social misfit and a woman stricken with cerebral palsy. He's a complete mess, but takes a shine to her... maybe it's because she's a fellow outcast or his only option, but it seems horrifying at first and then in time becomes completely endearing. And mostly because of the high-wire act that Moon So-ri pulls off here. Until the fantasy sequences begin, you would have no idea that the actress in the role is not afflicted with the condition. She plays it so authentically it's almost scary.
62. The Descent (2006) Neil Marshall - UK
Horror is a genre I totally grew up on and love, but it just seems to be a genre that nowadays doesn't really get it right for me, outside of a few instances, and this would be one of those instances that did get it right. It's about a group of women who are adventure sport enthusiasts who decide to take a spelunking trip. And right off the bat, I should tell you that if you have even the slightest claustrophobia, it's only going to heighten the terror for you. They get caved in and are desperate to find a way out. Soon enough though, they realize that their fear isn't so much that they are trapped in, but what they are trapped in with.
61. Elegy (2008) Isabel Coixet - USA/Spain
There's so much I love about this film. First off, to take a novel from an author (Phillip Roth) who is most often associated with misogyny and make it seem like a more balanced take takes a special gift, but she could never pull it off without coaxing some great performances out of her main characters. Under Coixet's direction, Penélope Cruz, Ben Kingsley, and Patricia Clarkson all gave their finest performances of the decade here in a tale about a womanizing college professor who goes after his young female students for a quick bang until he meets Consuela, a Cuban grad student who invokes feelings he never bothered to feel before. It's a very smart film about commitment and accepting it or running away from it.
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