1- Summer Interlude – One of the best love stories ever filmed and Bergman’s most lyrical film. Absolute masterpiece.
2- Scenes from a Marriage – It is the exact opposite of summer interlude but its rawness and frankness somehow move me.
3- Wild Strawberries – It was the first Bergman movie I saw. Since then have seen it many times before and never failed to amaze me.
4-Monika – By far, the most sensual film of Bergman. It captures perfectly doomed love.
5-Winter Light – It is my favorite from the “God takes the rap”-period. The images are unforgettable and it has some really powerful moments.
Anthony Mann is such an underrated director that it kind of hurts. My favorite ones are
1 Naked Spur- Easily one of the best movies of all time. The salvation of James Stewart in the end by Janet Leigh has Dostoyevskian proportions. Monumental film.
2 Raw Deal – Pioneer noir film. Its visual style has been copied to the point of exhaustion .
3 Man of the West – Amazing western and the last one for Mann. It summons perfectly the recurrent family struggles that are seen in his movies. Most directors, given this screenplay, would botch it up with so many “character analysis” and psychological portraits that it would be unwatchable. Mann replaces psychology with violence and makes it a masterpiece.
4 Man from Laramie – Great Western. It has the same family conflicts as Man of the West. Jimmy Stewart character as the man from nowhere is quite amazing.
5 T-Men – Another amazing noir superbly shot by John Alton. Must see for any noir fan.
Naked Spur – One of the best movies of all time and easily the best western ever made. There are no words to describe the scene where Jimmy Stewart succumbs to Janet Leigh’s redeeming moral imperative.
The Man who Shot Liberty Valence – It is not his most influential movie (The Searchers, Stagecoah?), but it is my favorite one. Ranks as one of the best showings of Tragedy and Defeat ever made.
Johnny Guitar- Deeply poetic and intensely operatic, this is the western where “comboys circle and die like ballerinas” (Truffaut).
Unforgiven – “You better not cut up nor otherwise harm no whores, or I’ll come back and kill every one of you sons of bitches.” William Munny, by far among the darkest angel cinema has ever seen.
My Darling Clementine – Simply Henry Fonda being a cowboy. One of the first modern movies ever made. Pure contemplation.
Wild Bunch – “If they move, kill ’em!”. Violence taking movies to a all new level. And in the end, everyone dies.
High Noon – I enjoyed this movie so much that after I watched a all bunch of Fred Zinnemann movies. Nothing I saw ever came even close to it.
Rio Bravo – Considered overrated by many, I still think that it is one of the best westerns ever. Suicidal heroes singing “My pony, my riffle and me” in the face of death ranks among the best scenes I have seen.
Rancho Notorious – It has the best opening sequence of any Fritz Lang movie (beats the one in Big Heat). Murder, Love, and Revenge.
I Shot Jesse Jesse James – Fuller meets Western in great fashion. Awesome movie.
I am obsessed with any of these. I ranked them in order of plausibility from “You are so striking a chord” to “Only in movies, that’s why we loved them”
Voyage to Italy
In a Lonely Place
Scenes of a Marriage
Sunrise (1927)
Lust, Caution
Senso
Sommarlek
In the Mood for Love
The Quite Man
Paris, Texas
Letter from an Unknown Woman
The Crucified Lovers
They Live by Night
Vertigo
Solaris
Casablanca
I am glad you asked this, because Jim Jarmusch is one director that not only I find his movies highly secondary as I do not understand how can anyone put him as a favorite director. The most perplexing thing is that his characters are so void of anything remotely human that I always have the impression of seeing a 2 hour long commercial. Absolutely no one feels anything.
I must say that reading from what has been written here, I still do not understand what is there to like. I get the feeling that his admirers tend to be more impressed with the style than with the substance.
Coffee and Cigarettes: This one is a joke. A truly 2-hour long commercial.
Dead Man: Catastrophic marriage between Dances with the Wolves and art-house theater. Again, no one feels anything and no one says anything.
Night on Earth: Okay, I moderately enjoyed this one. The scene in Italy was quite funny and at least I got to see nice images of cities I like.
Ghost Dog: The soundtrack is great but the movie is more of the same. The characters are devoid of anything human and the movie takes boredom to a new level. I get the impression that Mickey Mouse is more complex than these guys.
Stranger than Paradise: I guess this was the one that started it all. Great photography, cartoonish characters, boring people and John Lurie. What could go wrong?
Broken Flowers: This is the one I hate the least. I was actually happily surprised to see some hints of life in it. Maybe we are starting to see light at the end of this long, long, long stylish, meaningless, and boring tunnel.
Richard, my comment was that Jarmusch films cause me the same reaction when I watch commercials: no scene lasts with me more than the seconds it is being played and no scene affects more than seeing a shampoo being advertised. I find his characters so void that I always get the same numbness on every frame. I agree that there might be some constrained emotions being underplayed, but if that is so they are pretty hard to read. In Stranger than Paradise I cannot recall a scene where John Lurie shows anything more than a strangers curiosity for his cousin. In the end he seems to go after her to budapest but he might as well have not, i.e., either outcome would be possible considering their indifferent relationship. This sense that displays of affection in this movie are not consonant with what is seen is what most puts me off.
It is one of my favorite directors. Some Came Running is definitely my favorite and one of the most tragic love stories ever made. The last scene in the amusement park is heartbreaking. I find him one of the most gifted directors of all time. Each movie of his as a unique and remarkable style which are totally consistent with image he wants to create: from the instant-love look of The Clock, the noir ambiance of The Bad and the Beautiful, the color palettes of Lust for Life, the Tennessee Williams south of Home from the Hill, the perfect Americana of Meet me in St. Louis, and so on.
Steve, Maybe you are right. Maybe the reason why he is overlooked it is because he did so many musicals. Which is kind of ironic given that it is in his musicals that he dares the most. The last 20 minutes of An American in Paris are among the most amazing and modern pieces of cinema I have ever seen. Gene Kelly is literally dancing nonstop through Impressionist Paris. I can hardly imagine any other director doing that. Also, I find The Bandwagon incredible abstract: the plot is nonexistent and we just see amazingly choreographed dance scenes one after the other.
If you like Bonnie and Clyde type of love I would suggest “Gun Crazy” (which I enjoyed a lot) or “Badlands”. A very unusual love story that I have seen many times is “Lilith” by Robert Rossen. It is one of my favorite films and a rather neglected masterpiece.
I agree with Drew. I think that the theme that Bergman is really obsessed with is the relationship between parents and children. In most of his movies that are strong confrontational scenes between father and son/daughter and in many interviews he refers the troubled relationship he had with his children caused by his indifference. Being Bergman a very sensorial director, it seems natural to use incest or suggestion of incest as a way to “extremize” the emotions felt by the audience. As far as I am concerned they do work for me. He is actually the only director I can recall that can bring such taboos onscreen in such a meaningful way. Can you imagine if Catherine Breillat was making Saraband? I guess the all room would be empty after the first 15 minutes of the explicit incest scene…
@Justin: Did I read “And he just looked more Jewish — all the hair framing his face made his very Jewish nose look all the more prominent, as opposed to the crewcut.”?
I find your comments in general insightful but you are probably the first person to single out his protruding nose as a possible cause for his fall from the Hippie paradise. By the same token, one would expect that after Dylan’s conversion to Christianity he would get back to be cherished by the same anti-semitic folks, which I believe did not happen.
Nonetheless, this has been a very interesting tread.
There is an over representation of Spanish films on this thread so I will just post my favorite Portuguese films.
Abraham’s Valley (Manoel de Oliveira) – I guess this is the movie that all non-unconditional fans of Oliveira love, myself included. Probably the Portuguese movie I have seen the most.
Patio das Cantigas (Francisco Ribeiro)- Okay, so this is REALLY the portuguese movie I have seen the most. It is impossible to grow up there and not have seen this at least twenty times. It is for sure among the most beloved movies in Portugal. If you are curious to see what a Portuguese Lubistch would be, this is it.
O Sangue (Pedro Costa)- Pedro Costa’s debut and my favorite. He was not a critic’s darling at the time and this movie is very different from his later ones. No neo-realistic stuff here.
A’ Flor do Mar (Cesar Monteiro)- Beautiful poetic film. It has the most gorgeous photography of Algarve (south of Portugal) I have ever seen.
Vai e Vem (Cesar Monteiro)- His last movie and what a farewell. I find it absolutely hilarious.
Corte de Cabelo (Joaquim Sapinho) – The movie of my adolescence. A fresh new look at urban life in Lisbon. Too bad it did not spark a movement because most of the young talented portuguese filmmakers (Costa, Villaverde) are still too engaged with social issues.
Mutantes (Teresa Villaverde) – Beautiful movie that shows the live of some outcasts roaming through Lisbon. It has a very intense ending that somehow put me off a bit but it is still an amazing movie.
Belarmino (Fernando Lopes) -Iconic Portuguese documentary about a former box champion which barely scrapes by. It is infused with neo-realism all over but Belarmino’s story is so representative of the hardship people endure around that time in Portugal that I find it very touching.
Os Verdes Anos (Paulo Rocha) – A classic from the same time as Belarmino. It had a tremendous impact in portuguese cinema because it was one of the first modern films to be made there. The soundtrack of Carlos Paredes is even better than the movie.
Aniki Bobo (Manoel de Oliveira) – The first neo-realistic film ever made (1942), it is a very tender look at the life of youngsters in Porto downtown. A true classic.
The movie with the best images from Douro I have seen is actually “Rio do Ouro” from Paulo Rocha. The afternoon daylight he captures of Douro is outstanding. The movie is actually quite good.
I believe Pedro Costa, Manoel de Oliveira, and Cesar Monteiro are somewhat represented outside Portugal, even if not extensively. These are the Portuguese filmmakers with the most distinctive style of their own.
I am happy you liked Patio das Cantigas!That’s as portuguese as it gets. I guess you are ready to become a citizen :)
During childhood, due to the constant reruns of Vasco Santant movies on tv, I loved those movies tremendously. Later on, I understood that the idea of Portugal displayed there was, not only inaccurate, but also instrumental for propaganda purposes. That warmth and coziness fitted perfectly the tastes of Salazar, the ruling dictator. Some years ago, and many movies later, I re-watched those movies with a detached look and was surprised to see that they are actually quite funny. There is another one from the same period “Pai Tirano” which is also widely seen. Some folks prefer that to Patio das Cantigas.
Rufino is indeed the director. The pair Vasco Santana and Antonio Silva is IMMENSELY popular in Portugal. I doubt you will ever find anyone with more than 40 yrs old that hasn’t watched any their movies.
I never met Salazar but I would expect him to be fonder of Patio das Cantigas than Aniki-Bobo. In Patio the characters are straight out goofy and its their naivety that fills the screen with tenderness. In Aniki-Bobo the kids, due to their lack of means, are already well rounded and have no qualms in breaking the law, which is not the type of behavior that dictatorial regimes like to see.
I believe the reason why Oliveira stopped making films was because he hat to find ways of fully supporting his family, which would be hard to do directing films unless he took a more nationalistic approach. An episode which is regularly cited in Portugal is the fact that the only time Pessoa (our best poet ever) got some statewide recognition was when he publish Mensagem, which on a superficial level can be read as an exaltation of patriotic values. I do find Aniki incredible in tune with the style of Ossesione and Rome, Open City.
My knowledge of british comedies is all post Benny Hill, which I found hilarious. I have never seen La Belle Epoque so I guess now it is a good time to put that into order. Thanks for the tip.
Initially I did not paid attention to this post because I cannot imagine the answer not being the 50’s. In no other period there were some many different visions and ideas being shown. The creativity of that decade inspired so many directors that it is impossible to image modern cinema without those films. Just a quick sample
Rashomon
Sunset Blvd.
Diary of a Country Priest
In a Lonely Place
Tokyo Story
Ugetsu monogatari
Voyage in Italy
Rear Window
La Strada
Sansho the Bailiff
Johnny Guitar
Ordet
The Night of the Hunter
The Searchers
A Man Escaped
Aparajito
Wild Strawberries
The Seventh Seal
The Cranes Are Flying
Vertigo
Ashes and Diamonds
Some Came Running
400 Blows
Breathless
Pickpocket
Hiroshima mon amour
Shadows
The World of Apu
Mike, let me then know what you thought about the movie because I would expect that for the movie to make sense one would need to be well versed in the portuguese “epopeia”. Essentially he covers portuguese victories and defeats throughout the ages.Everywhere else this would be a normal topic but in Portugal this issue takes an extra dimension due to the foundational myth of D. Sebastiao.
He was our child king that, lured by the idea of greater glory, tried to conquer north of africa and end up being killed in battle.That had a tremendous impact because he left no heir and so the spanish king claimed the throne and Portugal was indeed ruled by Spain for about 80 years. Historically, this is seen as the begin of the Portuguese decline. The myth is then that D. Sebastiao will come back (out of a fog mist, literally) and lead our nation to greater glories, higher achievements and redeem us from all our defeats. Pessoa himself took on this myth and, on a outstanding book “Mensagem”, declared that D . Sebastiao would come back and lead us on a 5th empire, where poetry and all forms of human genius will rule. As of now, we are still waiting.
If I remember well, the D. Sebastiao episode is covered by Oliveira. Later he made a movie about D. Sebastiao but i haven’t seen it yet.
I tried to find translations of poems in Mensagem to put them here but was unsuccessful…
Mike, let me then know what you thought about the movie because I would expect that for the movie to make sense one would need to be well versed in the portuguese “epopeia”. Essentially he covers portuguese victories and defeats throughout the ages.Everywhere else this would be a normal topic but in Portugal this issue takes an extra dimension due to the foundational myth of D. Sebastiao.
He was our child king that, lured by the idea of greater glory, tried to conquer north of africa and end up being killed in battle.That had a tremendous impact because he left no heir and so the spanish king claimed the throne and Portugal was indeed ruled by Spain for about 80 years. Historically, this is seen as the begin of the Portuguese decline. The myth is then that D. Sebastiao will come back (out of a fog mist, literally) and lead our nation to greater glories, higher achievements and redeem us from all our defeats. Pessoa himself took on this myth and, on a outstanding book “Mensagem”, declared that D . Sebastiao would come back and lead us on a 5th empire, where poetry and all forms of human genius will rule. As of now, we are still waiting.
If I remember well, the D. Sebastiao episode is covered by Oliveira. Later he made a movie about D. Sebastiao but i haven’t seen it yet.
I tried to find translations of poems in Mensagem to put them here but was unsuccessful…
My favorite Pessoa’s poetry is the poems he wrote under the heteronym Alvaro de Campos. It is possibly the book that I have read more times in my life and never ceased to amaze me.
I wonder why The Flower of My Secret is not cited more often as among the best Almodovar films. I think it is the movie where he really took it to a next level. I surely enjoyed his prior movies but this was the first one that he handled melodrama perfectly. I haven’t seen a more tender movie from him.
From the old days I like to read Andrew Sarris at the New York Observer and check Rosenbaum blog to see what he is saying. I like both a lot even if Rosenbaum seems to have some hang-ups with mainstream american movies.
The online critics I read regularly are Michael Sicinsk www.academichack.net/, which could be the most enlightening critic in the US, Kevin Lee at alsolikelife.com/shooting/, even if he talks most about older films, and Mike D’Angelo at www.panix.com/~dangelo/.
I also check Slant magazine now and then because they cover almost all releases.
It’s okay, we can repeat ourselves countless many times. In general I have no issues with either violence or sex regardless of being gratuitous or not. What really gets me is human degradation or abuse. For me seeing Breillat movies is pure torture.
Dave, I looked at your notes on the 5th empire and they are pretty accurate. Have you read the Mensagem? That’s like the last incarnation of the myth.
In general I am a bit put off by the long static shots of Oliveira and the endless dialogues. His movies I enjoy the most are the ones where that is somehow less evident (Vale Abraao being the prime example).
Guess I am a privileged guy compare to what has been written here. Everyone in my family is a movie fanatic and so I discuss with them regularly about the films we see. To give you an idea, when I was about 7 or 8 my parents had no one to babysit me at some point and so took me to see Paris Texas with them. I remember not understanding anything at all but it was a remarkable experience. The upshot was that Bergman, Fellini, Dreyer, Bresson, Visconti and so on were always household names, so no discovery was involved for me.
What came as a true surprise was to find out about American cinema from the 40’s and 50’s which occurred later when I went to college.
I always felt the analogy between Solaris and 2001 purely formal, i.e., they are both sci-fi movies and that’s it. What really dazzled me on Solaris is his take on the Orpheus myth and so, for that end, I think the accurate comparison is with Vertigo. The problem of Kris was that he was given a chance to stay with his dead wife and he did not take it. I cannot imagine a deeper pain than this.
I was considering putting this post as some point and I am neither a huge fan of Seven Samurai or Seventh Seal. So far it seems that we have agreed on Casblanca and early Disney (any Pinocchio hater out there?). I would purpose Wild Strawberries, Late Spring and finally Sunrise (Murnau). I would be surprised if anyone had seen Sunrise and not loved it.
Nathan, I am fascinated by the idea of a fixed point among all the users here and I am aware of the borderline absurdity of the quest. I agree that there is no movie that EVERYONE will like which makes the search for a universal movie even more fun.
TOP BERGMAN over 3 years ago
1- Summer Interlude – One of the best love stories ever filmed and Bergman’s most lyrical film. Absolute masterpiece.
2- Scenes from a Marriage – It is the exact opposite of summer interlude but its rawness and frankness somehow move me.
3- Wild Strawberries – It was the first Bergman movie I saw. Since then have seen it many times before and never failed to amaze me.
4-Monika – By far, the most sensual film of Bergman. It captures perfectly doomed love.
5-Winter Light – It is my favorite from the “God takes the rap”-period. The images are unforgettable and it has some really powerful moments.
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Best Anthony Mann movies over 3 years ago
Anthony Mann is such an underrated director that it kind of hurts. My favorite ones are
1 Naked Spur- Easily one of the best movies of all time. The salvation of James Stewart in the end by Janet Leigh has Dostoyevskian proportions. Monumental film.
2 Raw Deal – Pioneer noir film. Its visual style has been copied to the point of exhaustion .
3 Man of the West – Amazing western and the last one for Mann. It summons perfectly the recurrent family struggles that are seen in his movies. Most directors, given this screenplay, would botch it up with so many “character analysis” and psychological portraits that it would be unwatchable. Mann replaces psychology with violence and makes it a masterpiece.
4 Man from Laramie – Great Western. It has the same family conflicts as Man of the West. Jimmy Stewart character as the man from nowhere is quite amazing.
5 T-Men – Another amazing noir superbly shot by John Alton. Must see for any noir fan.
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Best Westerns over 3 years ago
Naked Spur – One of the best movies of all time and easily the best western ever made. There are no words to describe the scene where Jimmy Stewart succumbs to Janet Leigh’s redeeming moral imperative.
The Man who Shot Liberty Valence – It is not his most influential movie (The Searchers, Stagecoah?), but it is my favorite one. Ranks as one of the best showings of Tragedy and Defeat ever made.
Johnny Guitar- Deeply poetic and intensely operatic, this is the western where “comboys circle and die like ballerinas” (Truffaut).
Unforgiven – “You better not cut up nor otherwise harm no whores, or I’ll come back and kill every one of you sons of bitches.” William Munny, by far among the darkest angel cinema has ever seen.
My Darling Clementine – Simply Henry Fonda being a cowboy. One of the first modern movies ever made. Pure contemplation.
Wild Bunch – “If they move, kill ’em!”. Violence taking movies to a all new level. And in the end, everyone dies.
High Noon – I enjoyed this movie so much that after I watched a all bunch of Fred Zinnemann movies. Nothing I saw ever came even close to it.
Rio Bravo – Considered overrated by many, I still think that it is one of the best westerns ever. Suicidal heroes singing “My pony, my riffle and me” in the face of death ranks among the best scenes I have seen.
Rancho Notorious – It has the best opening sequence of any Fritz Lang movie (beats the one in Big Heat). Murder, Love, and Revenge.
I Shot Jesse Jesse James – Fuller meets Western in great fashion. Awesome movie.
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Favorite Romances of all time over 3 years ago
I am obsessed with any of these. I ranked them in order of plausibility from “You are so striking a chord” to “Only in movies, that’s why we loved them”
Voyage to Italy
In a Lonely Place
Scenes of a Marriage
Sunrise (1927)
Lust, Caution
Senso
Sommarlek
In the Mood for Love
The Quite Man
Paris, Texas
Letter from an Unknown Woman
The Crucified Lovers
They Live by Night
Vertigo
Solaris
Casablanca
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Someone have Jim Jarmusch, like the best Director? over 3 years ago
I am glad you asked this, because Jim Jarmusch is one director that not only I find his movies highly secondary as I do not understand how can anyone put him as a favorite director. The most perplexing thing is that his characters are so void of anything remotely human that I always have the impression of seeing a 2 hour long commercial. Absolutely no one feels anything.
I must say that reading from what has been written here, I still do not understand what is there to like. I get the feeling that his admirers tend to be more impressed with the style than with the substance.
Coffee and Cigarettes: This one is a joke. A truly 2-hour long commercial.
Dead Man: Catastrophic marriage between Dances with the Wolves and art-house theater. Again, no one feels anything and no one says anything.
Night on Earth: Okay, I moderately enjoyed this one. The scene in Italy was quite funny and at least I got to see nice images of cities I like.
Ghost Dog: The soundtrack is great but the movie is more of the same. The characters are devoid of anything human and the movie takes boredom to a new level. I get the impression that Mickey Mouse is more complex than these guys.
Stranger than Paradise: I guess this was the one that started it all. Great photography, cartoonish characters, boring people and John Lurie. What could go wrong?
Broken Flowers: This is the one I hate the least. I was actually happily surprised to see some hints of life in it. Maybe we are starting to see light at the end of this long, long, long stylish, meaningless, and boring tunnel.
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Someone have Jim Jarmusch, like the best Director? over 3 years ago
Richard, my comment was that Jarmusch films cause me the same reaction when I watch commercials: no scene lasts with me more than the seconds it is being played and no scene affects more than seeing a shampoo being advertised. I find his characters so void that I always get the same numbness on every frame. I agree that there might be some constrained emotions being underplayed, but if that is so they are pretty hard to read. In Stranger than Paradise I cannot recall a scene where John Lurie shows anything more than a strangers curiosity for his cousin. In the end he seems to go after her to budapest but he might as well have not, i.e., either outcome would be possible considering their indifferent relationship. This sense that displays of affection in this movie are not consonant with what is seen is what most puts me off.
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Vincente Minnelli over 3 years ago
It is one of my favorite directors. Some Came Running is definitely my favorite and one of the most tragic love stories ever made. The last scene in the amusement park is heartbreaking. I find him one of the most gifted directors of all time. Each movie of his as a unique and remarkable style which are totally consistent with image he wants to create: from the instant-love look of The Clock, the noir ambiance of The Bad and the Beautiful, the color palettes of Lust for Life, the Tennessee Williams south of Home from the Hill, the perfect Americana of Meet me in St. Louis, and so on.
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Vincente Minnelli over 3 years ago
Steve, Maybe you are right. Maybe the reason why he is overlooked it is because he did so many musicals. Which is kind of ironic given that it is in his musicals that he dares the most. The last 20 minutes of An American in Paris are among the most amazing and modern pieces of cinema I have ever seen. Gene Kelly is literally dancing nonstop through Impressionist Paris. I can hardly imagine any other director doing that. Also, I find The Bandwagon incredible abstract: the plot is nonexistent and we just see amazingly choreographed dance scenes one after the other.
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Vincente Minnelli over 3 years ago
I have found these on youtube
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qfU1gJR7PJw&feature=related (part of the last scene in American in Pari, 7 minutes or so to the sound of Pop Music)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9NrwwkMUPI (Final scene in Some came running. Uau.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yuJxYmJlEHY (Favorite scene in Bandwagon)
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YOUR FAVORITE SILENT FILM, PLEASE. over 3 years ago
My 10 favorite ones are:
Sunrise
Passion of Joan of Arc
City Lights
7th Heaven
Pandora’s Box
The General
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
Nosferatu
Safety Last!
Metropolis
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Unusual Love Stories over 3 years ago
If you like Bonnie and Clyde type of love I would suggest “Gun Crazy” (which I enjoyed a lot) or “Badlands”. A very unusual love story that I have seen many times is “Lilith” by Robert Rossen. It is one of my favorite films and a rather neglected masterpiece.
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Can someone explain to me... over 3 years ago
I agree with Drew. I think that the theme that Bergman is really obsessed with is the relationship between parents and children. In most of his movies that are strong confrontational scenes between father and son/daughter and in many interviews he refers the troubled relationship he had with his children caused by his indifference. Being Bergman a very sensorial director, it seems natural to use incest or suggestion of incest as a way to “extremize” the emotions felt by the audience. As far as I am concerned they do work for me. He is actually the only director I can recall that can bring such taboos onscreen in such a meaningful way. Can you imagine if Catherine Breillat was making Saraband? I guess the all room would be empty after the first 15 minutes of the explicit incest scene…
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Todd Haynes' "I'm Not There" about 3 years ago
@Justin: Did I read “And he just looked more Jewish — all the hair framing his face made his very Jewish nose look all the more prominent, as opposed to the crewcut.”?
I find your comments in general insightful but you are probably the first person to single out his protruding nose as a possible cause for his fall from the Hippie paradise. By the same token, one would expect that after Dylan’s conversion to Christianity he would get back to be cherished by the same anti-semitic folks, which I believe did not happen.
Nonetheless, this has been a very interesting tread.
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Poll of the month, June: Top 10 films from Spain and Portugal about 3 years ago
There is an over representation of Spanish films on this thread so I will just post my favorite Portuguese films.
Abraham’s Valley (Manoel de Oliveira) – I guess this is the movie that all non-unconditional fans of Oliveira love, myself included. Probably the Portuguese movie I have seen the most.
Patio das Cantigas (Francisco Ribeiro)- Okay, so this is REALLY the portuguese movie I have seen the most. It is impossible to grow up there and not have seen this at least twenty times. It is for sure among the most beloved movies in Portugal. If you are curious to see what a Portuguese Lubistch would be, this is it.
O Sangue (Pedro Costa)- Pedro Costa’s debut and my favorite. He was not a critic’s darling at the time and this movie is very different from his later ones. No neo-realistic stuff here.
A’ Flor do Mar (Cesar Monteiro)- Beautiful poetic film. It has the most gorgeous photography of Algarve (south of Portugal) I have ever seen.
Vai e Vem (Cesar Monteiro)- His last movie and what a farewell. I find it absolutely hilarious.
Corte de Cabelo (Joaquim Sapinho) – The movie of my adolescence. A fresh new look at urban life in Lisbon. Too bad it did not spark a movement because most of the young talented portuguese filmmakers (Costa, Villaverde) are still too engaged with social issues.
Mutantes (Teresa Villaverde) – Beautiful movie that shows the live of some outcasts roaming through Lisbon. It has a very intense ending that somehow put me off a bit but it is still an amazing movie.
Belarmino (Fernando Lopes) -Iconic Portuguese documentary about a former box champion which barely scrapes by. It is infused with neo-realism all over but Belarmino’s story is so representative of the hardship people endure around that time in Portugal that I find it very touching.
Os Verdes Anos (Paulo Rocha) – A classic from the same time as Belarmino. It had a tremendous impact in portuguese cinema because it was one of the first modern films to be made there. The soundtrack of Carlos Paredes is even better than the movie.
Aniki Bobo (Manoel de Oliveira) – The first neo-realistic film ever made (1942), it is a very tender look at the life of youngsters in Porto downtown. A true classic.
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Poll of the month, June: Top 10 films from Spain and Portugal about 3 years ago
The movie with the best images from Douro I have seen is actually “Rio do Ouro” from Paulo Rocha. The afternoon daylight he captures of Douro is outstanding. The movie is actually quite good.
I believe Pedro Costa, Manoel de Oliveira, and Cesar Monteiro are somewhat represented outside Portugal, even if not extensively. These are the Portuguese filmmakers with the most distinctive style of their own.
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Poll of the month, June: Top 10 films from Spain and Portugal about 3 years ago
I am happy you liked Patio das Cantigas!That’s as portuguese as it gets. I guess you are ready to become a citizen :)
During childhood, due to the constant reruns of Vasco Santant movies on tv, I loved those movies tremendously. Later on, I understood that the idea of Portugal displayed there was, not only inaccurate, but also instrumental for propaganda purposes. That warmth and coziness fitted perfectly the tastes of Salazar, the ruling dictator. Some years ago, and many movies later, I re-watched those movies with a detached look and was surprised to see that they are actually quite funny. There is another one from the same period “Pai Tirano” which is also widely seen. Some folks prefer that to Patio das Cantigas.Rufino is indeed the director. The pair Vasco Santana and Antonio Silva is IMMENSELY popular in Portugal. I doubt you will ever find anyone with more than 40 yrs old that hasn’t watched any their movies.
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Poll of the month, June: Top 10 films from Spain and Portugal almost 3 years ago
I never met Salazar but I would expect him to be fonder of Patio das Cantigas than Aniki-Bobo. In Patio the characters are straight out goofy and its their naivety that fills the screen with tenderness. In Aniki-Bobo the kids, due to their lack of means, are already well rounded and have no qualms in breaking the law, which is not the type of behavior that dictatorial regimes like to see.
I believe the reason why Oliveira stopped making films was because he hat to find ways of fully supporting his family, which would be hard to do directing films unless he took a more nationalistic approach. An episode which is regularly cited in Portugal is the fact that the only time Pessoa (our best poet ever) got some statewide recognition was when he publish Mensagem, which on a superficial level can be read as an exaltation of patriotic values. I do find Aniki incredible in tune with the style of Ossesione and Rome, Open City.
My knowledge of british comedies is all post Benny Hill, which I found hilarious. I have never seen La Belle Epoque so I guess now it is a good time to put that into order. Thanks for the tip.
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What was the best decade for film? 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's, 80's, 90's, or our present decade? almost 3 years ago
Initially I did not paid attention to this post because I cannot imagine the answer not being the 50’s. In no other period there were some many different visions and ideas being shown. The creativity of that decade inspired so many directors that it is impossible to image modern cinema without those films. Just a quick sample
Rashomon
Sunset Blvd.
Diary of a Country Priest
In a Lonely Place
Tokyo Story
Ugetsu monogatari
Voyage in Italy
Rear Window
La Strada
Sansho the Bailiff
Johnny Guitar
Ordet
The Night of the Hunter
The Searchers
A Man Escaped
Aparajito
Wild Strawberries
The Seventh Seal
The Cranes Are Flying
Vertigo
Ashes and Diamonds
Some Came Running
400 Blows
Breathless
Pickpocket
Hiroshima mon amour
Shadows
The World of Apu
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What Do You Know About Portuguese Cinema? almost 3 years ago
Mike, let me then know what you thought about the movie because I would expect that for the movie to make sense one would need to be well versed in the portuguese “epopeia”. Essentially he covers portuguese victories and defeats throughout the ages.Everywhere else this would be a normal topic but in Portugal this issue takes an extra dimension due to the foundational myth of D. Sebastiao.
He was our child king that, lured by the idea of greater glory, tried to conquer north of africa and end up being killed in battle.That had a tremendous impact because he left no heir and so the spanish king claimed the throne and Portugal was indeed ruled by Spain for about 80 years. Historically, this is seen as the begin of the Portuguese decline. The myth is then that D. Sebastiao will come back (out of a fog mist, literally) and lead our nation to greater glories, higher achievements and redeem us from all our defeats. Pessoa himself took on this myth and, on a outstanding book “Mensagem”, declared that D . Sebastiao would come back and lead us on a 5th empire, where poetry and all forms of human genius will rule. As of now, we are still waiting.
If I remember well, the D. Sebastiao episode is covered by Oliveira. Later he made a movie about D. Sebastiao but i haven’t seen it yet.
I tried to find translations of poems in Mensagem to put them here but was unsuccessful…
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What Do You Know About Portuguese Cinema? almost 3 years ago
Mike, let me then know what you thought about the movie because I would expect that for the movie to make sense one would need to be well versed in the portuguese “epopeia”. Essentially he covers portuguese victories and defeats throughout the ages.Everywhere else this would be a normal topic but in Portugal this issue takes an extra dimension due to the foundational myth of D. Sebastiao.
He was our child king that, lured by the idea of greater glory, tried to conquer north of africa and end up being killed in battle.That had a tremendous impact because he left no heir and so the spanish king claimed the throne and Portugal was indeed ruled by Spain for about 80 years. Historically, this is seen as the begin of the Portuguese decline. The myth is then that D. Sebastiao will come back (out of a fog mist, literally) and lead our nation to greater glories, higher achievements and redeem us from all our defeats. Pessoa himself took on this myth and, on a outstanding book “Mensagem”, declared that D . Sebastiao would come back and lead us on a 5th empire, where poetry and all forms of human genius will rule. As of now, we are still waiting.
If I remember well, the D. Sebastiao episode is covered by Oliveira. Later he made a movie about D. Sebastiao but i haven’t seen it yet.
I tried to find translations of poems in Mensagem to put them here but was unsuccessful…
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Poll of the month, June: Top 10 films from Spain and Portugal almost 3 years ago
My favorite Pessoa’s poetry is the poems he wrote under the heteronym Alvaro de Campos. It is possibly the book that I have read more times in my life and never ceased to amaze me.
I wonder why The Flower of My Secret is not cited more often as among the best Almodovar films. I think it is the movie where he really took it to a next level. I surely enjoyed his prior movies but this was the first one that he handled melodrama perfectly. I haven’t seen a more tender movie from him.
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Laptop screen or flat TV? How do you watch films online? almost 3 years ago
I project them on a 100’’ screen. I always watch movies at night and so curtains are not an issue. Best spent money in years.
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Who is the BEST critic in the business right now? almost 3 years ago
From the old days I like to read Andrew Sarris at the New York Observer and check Rosenbaum blog to see what he is saying. I like both a lot even if Rosenbaum seems to have some hang-ups with mainstream american movies.
The online critics I read regularly are Michael Sicinsk www.academichack.net/, which could be the most enlightening critic in the US, Kevin Lee at alsolikelife.com/shooting/, even if he talks most about older films, and Mike D’Angelo at www.panix.com/~dangelo/.
I also check Slant magazine now and then because they cover almost all releases.
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What are your thoughts on explicit sex and violence on a film? almost 3 years ago
It’s okay, we can repeat ourselves countless many times. In general I have no issues with either violence or sex regardless of being gratuitous or not. What really gets me is human degradation or abuse. For me seeing Breillat movies is pure torture.
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What Do You Know About Portuguese Cinema? almost 3 years ago
Dave, I looked at your notes on the 5th empire and they are pretty accurate. Have you read the Mensagem? That’s like the last incarnation of the myth.
In general I am a bit put off by the long static shots of Oliveira and the endless dialogues. His movies I enjoy the most are the ones where that is somehow less evident (Vale Abraao being the prime example).
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IT'S HARD OUT HEEEERE FOR A ..... YOUNG CINEPHILE almost 3 years ago
Guess I am a privileged guy compare to what has been written here. Everyone in my family is a movie fanatic and so I discuss with them regularly about the films we see. To give you an idea, when I was about 7 or 8 my parents had no one to babysit me at some point and so took me to see Paris Texas with them. I remember not understanding anything at all but it was a remarkable experience. The upshot was that Bergman, Fellini, Dreyer, Bresson, Visconti and so on were always household names, so no discovery was involved for me.
What came as a true surprise was to find out about American cinema from the 40’s and 50’s which occurred later when I went to college.
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Tarkovsky, Kubrick, and Wise almost 3 years ago
I always felt the analogy between Solaris and 2001 purely formal, i.e., they are both sci-fi movies and that’s it. What really dazzled me on Solaris is his take on the Orpheus myth and so, for that end, I think the accurate comparison is with Vertigo. The problem of Kris was that he was given a chance to stay with his dead wife and he did not take it. I cannot imagine a deeper pain than this.
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In your opinion is there a movie everybody 'has to like'? almost 3 years ago
I was considering putting this post as some point and I am neither a huge fan of Seven Samurai or Seventh Seal. So far it seems that we have agreed on Casblanca and early Disney (any Pinocchio hater out there?). I would purpose Wild Strawberries, Late Spring and finally Sunrise (Murnau). I would be surprised if anyone had seen Sunrise and not loved it.
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In your opinion is there a movie everybody 'has to like'? almost 3 years ago
and no one has bitched about Psycho so maybe it has no haters…
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In your opinion is there a movie everybody 'has to like'? almost 3 years ago
Nathan, I am fascinated by the idea of a fixed point among all the users here and I am aware of the borderline absurdity of the quest. I agree that there is no movie that EVERYONE will like which makes the search for a universal movie even more fun.
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