I agree with you I like that list, I have seen both Tristana and Milky Way which fit into 6th and 7th place I think. I have only seen two other Bunuel films, The Young One and The Exterminating Angel both of which I found rubbish, I think Carriere massively important to the cinema of Bunuel.
Everything about Tristana except Deneuve is Spanish.
1. Obscure Object
2. Belle de jour
3. Discreet Charm
4. Diary
4. Phantom
5. Milky Way
1. Le charme discret de la bourgeoisie
2. Belle de Jour
3. L’âge d’or
4. Cet obscur objet du désir
5. Le journal d’une femme de chambre
6. Le fantôme de la liberté
7. La voie lactée
8. Un chien andalou
1. That Obscure Object of Desire 10/10
2. The Phantom of Liberty 10/10
3. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie 10/10
4. Un Chien Andalou 9/10
5. Diary of a Chambermaid 9/10
6. Belle de Jour 8/10
7. L’age d’or 8/10
8. The Milky Way 8/10
I have to say…even though Discreet Charm and Obscure Object are witty masterworks of farcical European cinema, Bunuel can be a little gimmicky at times with films, such as Viridiana and The Exterminating Angel.
I found Viridiana to be a little gimmicky, as was The Exterminating Angel. I thought it was a bit silly to be perfectly honest. It lacked the wit, which was so prevalent in Discreet Charm and Obscure Object. The Phantom of Liberty was simply over the top. Belle de Jour was entertaining but rather conventional in my opinion.
Can you elaborate on what do you find so conventional about ‘’Belle de Jour’‘? From the Bunuel films I have seen I think that one could make that same argument about any of the films other than ’’Un chien andalou’’. That can also be applied to the gimmicky speculation (but with ‘’Un chien andalou’’ included as well) :))
1. L’Age D’Or
“even though Discreet Charm and Obscure Object are witty masterworks of farcical European cinema, Bunuel can be a little gimmicky at times with films, such as Viridiana and The Exterminating Angel.”
Viridiana is hardly a gimmick. There’s a craving force for liberty unlike his conventional “surrealism” in Discreet Charm which is more of a rehash of his Exterminating Angel and Archibaldo de la Cruz aristocracy satires. To think that Viridiana is a gimmick means you haven’t “seen” the film. Belle de Jour isn’t conventional but it’s languid enough to be called a masterpiece, which is why The Young One gets no credit at all. Los Olvidados, Nazarin, Ascent to Heaven, now that’s the true Bunuel that many wanted to lynch him afterwards, hahaha.
@ALLAN: The Exterminating Angel = Rubbish? Dude you must be kidding!
Calling something “gimmicky” is pretty vague and dismissive, do you mean that the idea of angels bug-spraying invisible lines that people cannot cross is bad, or do you mean that it just “gets old”?
I rather like the idea in concept, and I thought it was applied with a good measure of grace and tact, and it set up for some very interesting scenarios and interactions.
I mean it would be one thing if the film relied to heavily on said “gimmick”, or that the “gimmick” was the only thing, if it was totally the focus and too much the point. I don’t feel like The Exterminating Angel suffered from any of these, to me it used this “idea” as a springboard and tried to take the viewer somewhere.
This as opposed to something that is just more of a “hey look at me look how clever I am” sort of idea. For example, a film like Memento could easily be said to be “gimmicky”. But the Gimmick in that film is not the point, that is only the surface and there is a lot going on there besides. Whereas if that gimmick was all that film had going on… then yeah, valid critique.
Point being I don’t think having a “gimmick” is an inherent flaw, there have been some brilliant films with a gimmick , and some really poor films with gimmicks as well.
I read an interview a while back in which Bunuel said his favorite film of his was TRISTANA. It’s a beguiling film. Not as immediately satisfying as Belle du Jour or That Obscure Object of Desire or The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie but one that stays in the memory long after it is over.
Phantom of Liberty 10/10-
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
Diary of a Chambermaid
That Obscure Object of Desire
The Exterminating Angel
Death in the Garden- is this a French production?
Belle de Jour- after seeing this a few times, it’s fairly conventional.
Rossi
I have not seen either The Milky Way or Tristana, but of the ones I have seen
1. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
2. That Obscure Object of Desire
3. Diary of a Chambermaid
4. Belle de Jour-for some reason, this film strikes me as rather conventional.
5. The Phantom of Liberty-I thought it was a little excessive, since Bunuel seems to take his own style of film making to the point of inanity. It struck me as rather offensive to make fun of a dozen people getting killed in and around Montparnasse by a sniper and a man being diagnosed with cancer.