The Mubi Forum User's Top 20 Movie List -- 2012 ed.

I’m thrilled with the final list. Early on in the game I thought to myself that if I get 5 of my favorite films in the final 20 I’ll be ecstatic, 4 would make me very happy, 3 would be mildly satisfactory, 2 would be disappointing, and 1 would be terrible. I got 4 (Sansho the Bailiff, The Cameraman, A Brighter Summer Day, and Celine and Julie Go Boating), but the fact that 3 of those are in the top 4 and the other one in the top 4 (Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors) is the film I wanted highest after those 4 makes the feeling equivalent to having gotten 5 films. I am a little sad that The Time To Live and the Time To Die, Come and See, Tale of Tales, and Satantango dropped just short of the top 20, but I guess that’s really asking for too much.

I’ve seen 13 of the top 20 and don’t dislike any of those. Now I’ll seek out the other 7. Anyone know where one can get Tie Xi Qu online?

Thanks again, DiB!

+2,000,000 Polarisdib

So who’s got the most out of their 20 into the final 20?

I got none :(

I have seen 14 from the list and regard all of them as masterpieces.

A Brighter Summer Day, Cloud Capped Star, Charulatha could have snuck in to the 20 any day but others are off by a mile from being personal favorites.

City of Pirates and We Won’t Grow Old Together are right at the top of my watchlist.

My “hahaha” comment was originally directed at Odi’s “Mother of All Films” suggestion but I think it also can apply to Jerry’s assessment about Mubi and sex. :)

I wasn’t involved in this at all, but it’s pretty cool to see what came out! Congrats!

Well with all the drama surrounding the creation of this list, I must say its pretty good. Have seen 12/20 and I’m sure, from what I know of the others, they’re well deserved too. So glad Pialat made it which is the only one of my original 20 that made it.

Seen 5/20, looking forward to the rest.

I’ve seen 9/20, and two of them are among my favorites of all time, so I can consider that a good result. Good to see Brighter Summer Day and Age of the Earth make it.

I’ll have to make sure to see the other 11 that aren’t by directors I’ve seen other stuff by I didn’t like.

I have seen 16/20 films on the list and only one I didn’t take a fancy too (A Man Escaped), so I would say this list is a pretty decent top twenty. Extremely happy that one of my selections Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors came 3rd in the poll!!! Paradjanov with his small filmography is a true visionary and poet and I would encourage anyone unfamiliar with his work to take a look and prepare to be amazed. There are some really interesting inclusions on here and The Executioner is a film I wasn’t aware of before, and I must watch some Lav Diaz when I have a spare ten hours!

I would definitely be interested in a poll specifically for silent films next time around. My knowledge is sorely lacking in this area of cinema and I think there could be many fascinating discoveries using this format….

that sounds like a great idea ^

@Brad

We haven’t decided on what if any ‘Cup’ we’re doing in 2012. I think the general feeling is that we want to do smaller cups this year and maybe go back to a larger cup like a World Cup or Director’s Cup in 2013.

I suppose this is the time to start having the conversation.

Hey, Silent Cup!

Rather than strictly silent, pre 1950 might be interesting.

nt

I am happy enough with the list and even happier that Yeelen (one of my original picks, although a new account prevented me from posting my list in time) nearly made it. I thought no one had seen this except a few participants in the World Cup, where it was featured for Africa – and was a star. So, thanks for the support and for getting it so high. Like many films that are on the list or just slipped off, it deserves to be seen by any serious cinephile. Sorry an African film didn’t make the final cut, but fine with the results. Interesting how Sansho managed to top this. Kenji’s special pleading must have helped it along. Like DiB, I will always be an Ugetsu man, but Sansho is so well-made, authentic to its time period, and full of tense melodrama, it deserves the recognition here. Well done to its supporters!

We all have films we would have loved to see higher on the list or into the finals. I was also promoting some British fare earlier (like Ladykillers, The Browning Version, and Monty Python and the Holy Grail) just to add some British levity – but it was not to be. I would have liked an Angelopoulos on the list, too, like Travelling Players, but it was getting voted down too often to make it – and we all know why. It wouldn’t be Mubi if we didn’t have contentious debates, rants, dirty plays, and sneaky behavior.

However, it was all for a good cause – the promotion of an alternative to the big Sight & Sound polls, earlier the auteurs/Mubi polls, and TSPDT lists. It is truly a Mubi-type list. I can’t improve on Jerry’s description of it.

Many excellent titles I could support on the final list, of those I have seen. I need to watch 5 that I haven’t seen – including Cameraman, which I have somehow missed. Also need to see the rest of the great doc. Tie Xi Qu – as I have only seen part one. Very happy for its inclusion in the final list.

Great game, thanks DiB and all participants. I think Three Godless Years deserves a special prize for the film that really brought this game to life. It is also now on my ‘must see’ list.

Let the canon/non-canon battles begin in the next Mubi poll – which I hope is awhile away…Better luck to Ishtar in the next version of this. And for the next Mubi poll: Let a thousand films contend, let a thousand battles be fought, let a thousand heads roll

Yeah, unfortunately it seems the only films I haven’t seen available on Netflix are Charulata and Shadows of Forgotten Ancesotrs. (Well, and 3 Women and The Cameraman, but I’ve already seen plenty by Altman and Keaton.)

Congratulations Polaris, very nice work!!! It was a great game and the outcome is very very peculiar, a greta list for cinephiles around the globe.
The only inconvenience was to stand the pseudo “democratic” but real fascist Dimitris during all the game, but what the hell it his shouting, groaning and insulting was part of the color of the game.

Great job again, and until the next game!!

Sansho the Bailiff is the only eye sore for me in the list. Rest is pretty awesome. Good job Polaris!

DiB, thanks for the event and your amazing hosting, which added a lot to the fun. Many discoveries, both in cinema and the mubi community. I’ve seen 10/20 (Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors just yesterday) and now, as a handy and lazy NY resolution, have plenty to watch from the top and the fallen ones.

Hey, Silent Cup!

I’d be happy with silents or with the shorts (as an extension of kenji’s poll) and something on a lesser scale preferably. The big DC this year was a great experience, but overwhelming.

It was fun!

Excellent work DiB!

Only one of my original 20 made the final list.
I’ve only seen 8 of the final list – looking forward to the rest.
So when does the next one start…..

Wait, come back…

Thanks Polaris! I enjoyed this tremendously.

I tried to get a Rohmer on the list but I failed! (He is not my favorite director, but he never seems to make any “lists” so I thought I’d try.) My strategy did not work! It was to keep three of his films as high as possible but not let them turn into the bold font of the top twenty (because that seemed like the kiss of death to any but the most obscure film) I thought that by having three high up I would split enough of the anti-Rohmer vote. But there weren’t enough positive votes in the end, so Rohmer is again not invited to any of the fun parties.

I am very happy Charulatha made it, as it was the only one left for which I had a passion (my knowledge is not as extensive as other Mubians) , and boy did it teeter on the precipice…. I hope that someone starts a thread called Charulatha (I don’t have enough to say about it yet) because I find it also to be a strange discussion-worthy film, unlike say Pather Pancialli (my favorite Ray) which is a little more straight forward and lyrical.

I am curious about these four films:Third Part of the Night , We Won’t Grow Old Together, Death in the Land of Encantos, The Executioner All these are new to me, and I expect to other Mubis. Can anyone who voted for these give us an insight into how they managed to get them on this list? Did people just keep voting for them continally, form a pact with others, or…?

Also, any comments re the merits of any of these films by those who voted them up would be appreciated. I have seen a few Zulawski (who was featured in the 2010 DC), but not really familiar with any of the other directors. I am not doubting the merits of any of these, but just curious how they survived the on-slaught. These would all qualify, I think, as ‘obscure’ recommendations for any cinephile.

Also, are any of these available anywhere (legitimately, that is?

Edit: OK, just found the Zulawski, so will search for the others. Thanks, Ruby.

re: we won’t grow old together -pialat is brilliant! see tommy’s thread here
it was the first film i watched from the list during the game due to the great ratings of my friends here and a fantastic discovery. it’s now in my favorites list; an amazing film!!

:-)

Pialat’s We Won’t Grow Old Together was on my must watch list before this game ever started, recommended to me by Jerry Johnson. I can’t wait to see it! :)

Pialat has the only pair of balls in the whole list.

I’ve only seen Woman in the Dunes and I just watched it last night….guess I’ve got a lot of catching up to do…..

Haha yes!

I’m so glad that people are and will use this game to lead them to new discoveries. It’s not about canon vs non. It’s about cinema and that’s all that should matter.

Jerry—Best not to underestimate Wang Bing’s balls. He might be listening.

Say that while walking a straight line, under threat of gunfire, Tommy.

:D