December 19, 2002
The Best Movies You've Never Seen
[Film Discussion]A list of little known gems that are worth hunting for. These are all beautiful films, each is unique and worth seeing.
Being at Home With Claude (1991) - A very beautiful and simple quebequois film.
or
Exotica (1992) - One of Atom Egoyan's best pieces and another great quebequois film.
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Delicatessen (1991) - By Caro and Jeunet. Great example of fantastic French film
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Drowing by Numbers (1988)
or
Prospero's Books (1991) - Both directed by Peter Greenaway with Sacha Vierny as cinematographer. These films are both great examples of wonderful cinematography.
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Conversation, The (1974) - Little remembered film staring Gene Hackman and Harrison Ford. This was the seed for 'Enemy of the State' (1998) and many other great suspense movies.
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Baraka (1992) - Just see it! If you find out someone is showing it on 35mm or even better, the elusive 70mm Dolby Digital print DRIVE THERE AND SEE IT!
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El Mariachi (1992) - You thought Desperado was good? Get the DVD and learn how Robert Rodriquez made a great flick with a minimal budget. This is a must see for any aspiring filmaker.
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Some Like it Hot (1959) - Marilyn Monroe, Jack Lemmon and Toni Curtis!
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Glengarry Glenn Ross (1992) - Speaking of Jack Lemmon this is an excellent David Mammet film that was too soon forgotten.
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Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels (1998) - Hey, it was good enough to get in Madonna's pants!
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The Shawshank Redemption (1994) - I know it got acclaim but it is still worth mentioning.. Very possibly a perfect movie.
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The Third Man (1949) - The very epitome of film noir.
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Zentropa (1991) - Before he made Dancer in the Dark, Breaking the Waves or The Kingdom he made this wonderful film.
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Vanishing, The (1988 aka Spoorloos) - NOT the stupid 1993 US remake, but the original French/Dutch/English production!
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Cage Aux Folles (1978) - While we are at it 'The Bird Cage' was an insult to this wonderful French comedy.
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Orlando (1992) - Sally Potter's masterpiece.
I don't know if Some Like It Hot should make the list. Same with Shawshank. They've been watched. Orlando? Yuck!
Definitely have some great ones, though. I've see The Conversation about 10 times staying up all night coding with just AMC playing (back when it didn't have commercials). Great movie, and Coppola directed it, too, I think. Back when he didn't make crap. I love the ending, everything unravelling. The '70s was the best decade of film ever. The '70s, then probably the '30s, I'd say.
Third Man may be my favorite film ever. I understand Welles improved his dialogue and you can definitely feel it: "And what did Switzerland invent? The cuckoo clock." Classic.
The Vanishing. That's a spooky movie. Out Hitchcocks Hitchcock. So, so, so much better than the American remake. Guess which one has the happy ending?
Can you believe El Mariachi was made for like $10,000 (I think $50k if you include the development or something like that). Anyway, get the DVD and listen to the director's commentary. Rodriguez teaches a film school class in his commentaries. The Desperado commentary is almost as good.
A few there I'll have to put on my list. Thanks.
Posted by: Nick on January 4, 2003 01:49 AMI love Some Like It Hot, and I don't think it gets enough attention.
Shawshank is a favorite of mine because it is so perfectly captivating. The movie has some magical quality that sucks me into it every time I see it. I always get involved with the characters, even knowing what will happen to each one.
Orlando I stand by as another favorite.
I do love The Conversation, but then again I love movies about con games. As for the 70s thing I actually dislike a lot of the movies made in the 70s. Movies like Coal Miners Daughter (1980) (released in 80 but made in the 70s ultra-realistic style) The Deer Hunter (1978) and Silkwood (1983) (huh, I guess it is more of a late 70s, early 80s phenomena) are all arguably great films... but the style is one that does not work for me. What movies from the 70s do you like? Why? I can think of a some greats that were made in the 70s: One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nets, The Godfather... but when I think of the 70s I do not think of great movies.
The full line from 'The Third Man' is great and bears repeating:
"In Italy for 30 years under the Borgias they had warfare, terror, murder, and bloodshed, but they produced Michelangelo, Leonardo da Vinci, and the Renaissance. In Switzerland they had brotherly love - they had 500 years of democracy and peace, and what did that produce? The cuckoo clock."
El Mariachi and The Vanishing are neither great films in the epic classic sense, but what they are, is very good cinema. Both showcase what a small production with some strong values can accomplish.
Hard to say what my favorite films are because there are so many of them! But with some restraint, here I go:
-DELICATESSEN
-8 1/2
-NIGHTS OF CABIRIA
-LA STRADA
-CRIES AND WHISPERS
-INTERIORS
-LOVE AND DEATH
-HUSBANDS AND WIVES
-ANNIE HALL
-SLEEPER
-ZELIG
-A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
-BARRY LYNDON
-DR. STRANGELOVE
-ADAPATION
-BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
-BREAKING THE WAVES
-THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (EXPANDED VERSION)
Posted by: Chantal Root on July 27, 2003 01:03 AMHard to say what my favorite films are because there are so many of them! But with some restraint, here I go:
-DELICATESSEN
-CITY OF LOST CHILDREN
-AMELIE
-8 1/2
-NIGHTS OF CABIRIA
-LA STRADA
-CRIES AND WHISPERS
-INTERIORS
-LOVE AND DEATH
-HUSBANDS AND WIVES
-ANNIE HALL
-SLEEPER
-ZELIG
-A CLOCKWORK ORANGE
-BARRY LYNDON
-DR. STRANGELOVE
-ADAPATION
-BEING JOHN MALKOVICH
-BREAKING THE WAVES
-THE FELLOWSHIP OF THE RING (EXPANDED VERSION)
-THE PRODUCERS
-YOUNG FRANKENSTEIN
-HIROSHIMA, MON AMOUR
Posted by: Chantal Root on July 27, 2003 01:04 AMAgain, thank you for contributing :-) Some feedback.
8 1/2 - This is one of those hard movies for me where I know I am supposed to love it being a Fellini masterpiece and all.. but somehow I never did manage to like it much.
Nights of Cabiria - Wow, great acting
Cries and Whispers - Huh, I had not heard of this movie before.. which is odd since I am such a big Bergman fan and thought that at one point I hit most of his films. Just went on my to-watch list, thank you Chantal!
Interiors, Husbands and Wives, Love and Death - I used to really love Woody Allen, but got disillusioned some while back and stopped watching his movies. I may want to check this one out though.
Sleeper and Zelig - Now these are the Woody Allen movies that made me love his work! Great comedy.
A Clockwork Orange - Great film.. I considered it for the list but decided to exclude it because it is so well known and I was trying to compile a list of less known titles
Barry Lyndon - A great title for the list!
Adaptation - I liked it but not as much as most people did.
Breaking the Waves - I was a HUGE fan of Lars Von Trier after 'Zentropa' and 'The Kingdom' and was hugely disappointed by Breaking the Waves. mostly because the constant handheld camera literarily made me motion sick. it was film watching ad nauseum for me. He made up for it with 'Dancer in the Dark'.
The Fellowship of the Ring - Again a great movie, but again too well known for 'The Best Movies You've Never Seen'
City of Lost Children - How did I miss that? I must have thought it too well known at the time.. great movie!
Amelie - Loved it.. maybe not enough for a top 20 type list, but I highly recommend it.
Young Frankenstein - For some reason I did not like this one when I first saw it.. it grew on me though and by now I think of it as a comedy classic.
Posted by: Leopoldo on July 29, 2003 02:59 PMDelicatessan:
A totally brilliant dark comedy by the same director that gave us Amelie. Think post WWII France where food is scarce any cannibalism isn't. very funny
Purple Rose of Cairo:
I'm a Woody Allen fan, and I think this is one of his funniest and most accessible movies (for non-woody fans - especially since woody doesn't appear in the movie). Great cast (Danny Aiello, Mia, Jeff Daniels). To escape an abusive relationship, Cecelia (Mia) escapes to the movies, until one day when one of the movie characters jumps off the screen and into her life. Very funny and no Hollywood ending to spoil it.
Shawshank Redemeption:
The long title and hype over Forest Gump, pushed this movie from the limelight. This is one of my all time favs...features a great cast (morgan Freeman, Tim Robbins). A must see
High Fidelity
An obsessive record collector in his mid-thirties struggles to reconcile his adolescent enthusiasm for pop music with adult responsibilities. Is there really more to love in life than a good mix tape? This romantic comedy provides a touching and whimsical glimpse into the male view of the affairs of the heart.
Starring:
John Cusack and Jack Black (who steal the film)
The Big Lebowski:
The cohen brother's best film. Great characters (jeff Bridges as the Dude definitely deserved an oscar). Very funny in an odd kind of way
Toto Le Hero:
A nice french comedy about an elderly man whoreflects back on his life and his belief that he was switched at birth and was denied his true destiny
Kingpin:
A onehanded former probowler (woody Harrelson)takes on an Amish farmhand as his protege. You will laugh til it hurts.
About a Boy
Based on a novel by the same writer who wrote High Fidelity (see above). A self-obsessed slacker (Hugh Grant) is forced to grow up when he becomes friends with a fatherless boy. Funny but with a message.
The Italian Job:
The 60's version with Michael Caine, not the more recent version with Mark Wahlberg. A witty caper movie of the highest order.
Koyla:
What happens when a 55-year-old perennial bachelor suddenly "inherits" a young boy through a sham wedding? What if the man only speaks Czech and the boy only speaks Russian? What if at the same time his country is in political upheaval and the authorities are breathing down his back? Czech out this touching film for the answers?
Tampopo:
Japanese comedy about rival noodle soup rsetauranteurs
