Harold and Maude. And. Matilda
Come on, we can do better than that!
A clockwork orange, citizen kane, the third man, band of outsiders, battle of algiers, wages of fear, mean streets, the southland express, short cuts, the philadelphia story, eraserhead, reservoir dogs. That should help you get started.
What is a cinephile? Here I thaught it was a movie for a kid. you know like, a 7 year old. oups
400 Blows, El Topo, Vertigo, Shoot the Piano Player, Hukkle, Breathless, Touch of Evil, The Searchers, Buffalo 66, Seven Samurai, Rashomon, Andrei Rublev
Alphaville, Being John Malcovich, Mulholland drive, My Own Private Idaho, Frida, Trouble every day, the Piano Teacher, The lives of others, American Beauty
I think the list should include a range of countries and time periods. Just a few that I would include: “In the Mood for Love”, “Annie Hall”, “La Dolce Vita”, “Seven Samurai”, “The Seventh Seal”, “Breathless” or “Contempt” (or both), “The Rules of the Game”, “Rear Window”, something from Chaplin/Keaton, something from Griffiths/Melies. And would I get laughed at if I included “Breakfast at Tiffany’s”?
I think Breakfast at Tiffany’s is a very good movie, but some people that I know like it so much and don’t even really get it.
The Great Dictator and Modern Times
Any Billy Wilder really
Good Sidney Lumet like Dog Day Afternoon, 12 Angry Men, The Pawnbroker, Network
Treasure of The Sierra Madre
All Akira Kurosawa and Ingmar Bergman
A no-fail way to cultivate the tastes of a budding cinephile is to expose her, at the earliest possible age, to the less-reputable avenues of classic Hollywood cinema of the 1930s-40s. Hold off on Cukor, Lubitsch and even Ford for now. Toss in the occasional Hawks and Hitchcock to see what they think. But unleash a torrent of Marx Brothers, Astaire-Rodgers, any and all Universal horror films, ‘30s FLASH GORDON serials, the wilder film noirs, Abbott and Costello films (and let me tell you, kids love Abbott and Costello, its like some strange brand of universal kid humor that crosses all possible social boundaries. I’ve seen children who didn’t understand a single word of English literally cry with laughter at (un-subbed, un-dubbed) A&C MEET THE INVISIBLE MAN) and, congratulations, you’ve planted the seeds of future cinephilia, if not cinemania. I was exposed to this kind of stuff at a very young and impressionable age and it taught me that there were particular pleasures to be found outside of contemporary mainstream fare. Once your protegee realizes that there’s fun to be had by seeing what was out there 60 or 70 or 80 years ago, the job of getting them to watch foreign or silent films becomes much easier.
But once they get to a certain age, and once they start delving into more, well, Criterion-type films, I think the budding film-lover would do well to spend as much time in the library as in front of their Blu-ray player. I ran across a copy of the HITCHCOCK-TRUFFAUT book when I was 12, and it taught me to pay attention to films in a way that I might not have deduced on my own without it. Eisenstein’s and Bazin’s books are also essential, though they might be tough for beginners. To my mind, FILM ART by Bordwell and Thompson (followed by the subsequent solo books of each) is the best intro for someone who wants to not only sample what the past 100+ years of cinema has to offer, but also have some context for understanding what they’re seeing.
After that? Print out the Criterion list, tear the entries into little strips and toss them in a hat. See the first ten titles you pull out.
Thanks for the help – these should keep me busy over the holidays
Kubrick, Kubrick, Kubrick.
I’ve often felt that “The Exorcist” should be studied in intricate detail in film school courses. I mean, those courses that focus on the craft of filmmaking. The film is a master’s class with regards to almost every formal element of filmmaking (cinematography, directing, editing, sound design, music, acting, special effects, screenwriting).
For me, its an absolutely flawless work. I think its another nominee for our “perfect films” thread.
All the films by the following directors:
Bresson, Tarkovsky, Ozu, Bergman, Dreyer, Antonioni.
Only then are you a proper young Cinephile.
Specifc suggestions:
Bresson – Au Hasard Balthazar, Diary of A Country Priest, Pickpocket, L’Argent
Tarkovsky – Andrei Rublev, Mirror, Stalker, The Sacrifice, Solaris
Ozu – Tokyo Story, Late Spring, Floating Weeds, Early Summer
Bergman – Winter Light, Persona, Through a Glass Darkly, The Silence
Dreyer – The Passion of Joan of Arc, Ordet, Day of Wrath, Gertrud
Antonioni – L’Avventura, La Notte, Red Desert, L’Eclisse
In terms of films that brought forth a new film aesthetic, I’d suggest the following films:
1, Birth of a Nation
2. Greed
3. Citizen Kane
4. 2001
Otherwise, I would refer buddying cinemphiles to study the films, life, and philosophy of Luis Bunuel (if I had to pick two, I’d choose Viridiana and The Exterminating Angel). Also, read his autobiography “My Last Sigh.” For me, it was Bunuel that turned me from being just a cinemaphile to becoming OBSESSED with cinema.
Finally, I watched Louisiana Story the other night. On the disk was an interview with Robert Flaherty’s widow and collaborator: Frances Flaherty. Listening to her opine about the origins of Louisiana Story, and her husbands approach to filmmaking was one of the most mesmerizing moments I’ve ever experienced in terms of film theory and aesthetics. I strongly recommend all of you watch both the film and the documentary. You’ll thank me for it later.
I’m going to limit myself to five different directors, five films a piece. I’m also going to avoid overlapping with Fernando, because I pretty much agree with him completely.
Ingmar Bergman
-Seventh Seal
-Virgin Spring
-Wild Strawberries
-Smiles of a Summer Night
-Torment (actually directed by Alf Sjoberg, but Bergman did a little work behind the camera as well as writing the script)
Jean-Luc Godard
-Vivre Sa Vie
-Breathless
-Pierrot le Fou
-Contempt
-Bande Apart
Akira Kurosawa
-Seven Samurai
-Rashomon
-The Bad Sleep Well
-Ran
-Ikiru
Louis Malle
-Elevator to the Gallows
-The Fire Within
-The Lovers
-My Dinner With Andre
-Au Revoir Les Enfants
Orson Welles
-Citizen Kane
-Chimes At Midnight
-F For Fake
-The Magnificent Ambersons
-Touch of Evil
If you are thinking of young as in kids or teenagers, I think the work of Terry Gilliam is a pretty accessible place to start. Holy Grail, Time Bandits, Life of Brian, Brazil, Fear and Loathing, Baron Munchausen, 12 Monkeys. All pretty cool and appealing to young guys anyway, if my (now young adult) sons are a reliable gauge.
Hmmm…. Citizen Kane, Psycho, City Lights, Gone with the Wind, Cache, and Memory of a Killer
Terra em transe, for everyone in Latinoamerica in these times
Laura
What are some of the films that every young cinephile should see?