The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Its been 6 years of watching films on a regular (and unhealthy) basis. As most of you know by now, I'm especially interested in the arthouse and the classics. I will make another list for guilty pleasures and popcorn movies sometime later.... but for now, its 101 movies of arthouse fare. Do note that I am still very unsatisfied with myself; I will admit that I simply have not seen enough movies to be considered a true cinephile like mark f, linespalsy, holden, honeykid and many others on this forum. Hopefully this list will serve to inspire me to continue viddying films.

101. The Colour Of Pomegranates (Parajanov, 1968)
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A highly esoteric and opaque movie with creative use of close-ups, though its pretentiousness is what makes this movie stands out.

100. Fantasia (1940)
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Music and image merge harmoniously to create a timeless movie for the ages.

99. Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders (Jires, 1970)
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Watching this is like watching Alice In Wonderland in Eastern Europe. Wonderfully surreal with dreamlike landscapes and a beautiful titular character undergoing a highly sensual journey.

98. The Holy Mountain (Jodorowsky, 1973)
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New Agey metaphysical odyssey that screams of creativity and originality.

97. My Man Godfrey (La Cava, 1937)
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"May I be frank?"
"Is that your name?"
"No, my name is Godfrey."
"Alright, be Frank."

96. Orpheus (Cocteau, 1950)
http://medias.unifrance.org/medias/2...he/orpheus.jpg
Mirrors are central to the imagery of Orpheus. Characters pass through the worlds of the living and the dead using mirrors. Look at yourself in a mirror all your life and you'll see death at work.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

95. Make Way For Tomorrow (McCarey, 1937)
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_T6QNT39-Hn...orrowCover.bmp
Before Tokyo Story, America had its own version of conflict between the generations- Make Way For Tomorrow. A deeper film that explores reasons and consequences of neglecting one's parents, this film surpasses Tokyo Story in poignancy and complexity. The ending is the BEST I've ever seen from any film.

94. The Battle Of Algiers (Pontecorvo, 1966)
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There is one sequence that will stick with me forever... The scene of an angry Algerian crowd protesting vehemently against colonial rule that parts as a tank rolls along the streets. Absolutely haunting.

93. Man Bites Dog (Poelvoorde, 1996)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...s_Dog_film.jpg
The most shocking scene of the film in my opinion is the one involving the so called "visit" and "interview" with an eldery lady.

92. The Big Sleep (Hawks, 1946)
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If I recall correctly, the most dense noir that keeps the viewer always guessing.

91. I Am Cuba (Kalatozov, 1966)
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One of the most brilliant camerawork in Soy Cuba is the scene of farmers hacking sugar cane. The camera does not stay stationary, but tilts, zooms, pans, etc. such that the viewer could almost feel the back breaking work.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Very interesting list so far

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Great to see Fantasia

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

81-90

90. The Hole (Tsai, 1998)
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I love all the musical numbers in this rather bleak portrait of Taiwanese urban dwellers.

89. M (Lang, 1931)
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One of the first ever black & white movies I saw was Fritz Lang's M. I'm surprised that it has not lost its relevance even to today.

88. El Verdugo (1963)
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A darkly comical movie about a grim subject: capital punishment. While I hated Death By Hanging (1968), El Verdugo does not suffer from tediousness and uneven pacing that plagued Oshima's film.

87. Drowning By Numbers (Greenaway, 1988)
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Perverse and diabolical movie that is both surreal and weird.

86. Le Trou (Becker, 1960)
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My favourite prison escape movie. Its ending is open to interpretation.

85. Sonatine (Kitano, 1993)
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I have only seen 2 of Kitano's movies (this and Hanabi). Sonatine is the better of the two with better pacing and a brilliant subversion of the gangster genre.

84. The Shop Around The Corner (Lubitsch, 1940)
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Utterly charming about two lovers who dont realise that they love each other.

83. Scarface (Hawks, 1932)
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Along with White Heat (1949), my favourite gangster classic.

82. Blade Runner (Scott, 1982)
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Los Angeles looking like a maze of murk, filled with eternal night steam, narrow streets, growling garbage trucks... Ridley recruited 200 punks, 100 Chinese and 100 Mexicans for the movie.

81. The Double Life Of Veronique (Kieslowski, 1991)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...%A9ronique.jpg
A confusing movie about double identity.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

I'm glad Tsai is here, will there be more? Also you should check out Dolls for a totally left-field Kitano flick.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

I have to admit that I enjoy the combo of art house flicks and the weird choices of '30s socialism.

No, The Hole is the only one of his on this list. I've also seen Tsai's Goodbye Dragon Inn, What Time Is It Over There? and Vive l'amour.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

71-80

80. The Thin Red Line (Malick, 1998)
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One of the best movies of the 1990s. A meditation on man and nature.

79. Distant Voices, Still Lives (Davies, 1988)
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A film about time and memory, a British classic.

78. The Conformist (Bertolucci, 1970)
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Visually dazzling with a brilliant murder in the forest scene. The train sequence is also spectacular. The only Italian movie on my list.

77. Spring, Summer, Autumn, Winter... And Spring (Kim, 2003)
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I'm not sure if its true about Buddhist philosophy but I like its simple premise about the continuity of life and the importance of suffering.

76. Rear Window (Hitchcock, 1954)
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A masterpiece of suspense cinema that cleverly builds up tension in a single setting.

75. Sunrise (Murnau, 1927)
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Exquisite.

74. Grave Of The Fireflies (Takahata, 1988)
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The movie that makes me bawl like a baby everytime I watch it.

73. Unforgiven (Eastwood, 1992)
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Actually its a tie between Unforgiven and A Perfect World. Eastwood's best.

72. Raging Bull (Scorsese, 1980)
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Robert De Niro's and Martin Scorsese' finest hour came in Raging Bull.

71. Wings Of Desire (Wenders, 1987)
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A movie about love, longing, and what it's like to be human.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Don't care for Davies, at all, but I understand why others do.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

61-70

70. Les Diaboliques (Clouzot, 1954)
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Heart-pounding suspense movie.

69. Butch Cassidy And The Sundance Kid (Roy Hill, 1969)
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68. Downfall (Hirschbiegel, 2004)
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The Hitler parodies on youtube have not diminished its status as one of the finest war movies of the last decade.

67. The 36th Chamber Of Shaolin (Liu, 1978)
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What sets this apart from most other kung fu movies is that its not about the fights but the process (both physical and spiritual) of transformation which is true to the essence of martial arts.

66. Harakiri (Kobayashi, 1962)
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(Refer to my Japanese Canon thread for the review)

65. Spirit Of The Beehive (Erice, 1973)
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Another movie with beautiful cinematography.

64. The Earrings Of Madame De... (Ophuls, 1953)
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Im running out of superlatives :D.... Graceful camerawork here.

63. Freaks (Browning, 1932)
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Oh my goodness... Did the freaks cast a spell to turn her into a FREAK?!?!

62. A Woman Under The Influence (Cassevetes, 1974)
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The most compelling performance by an American actress, Gena Rowlands.

61. The 400 Blows (Truffaut, 1959)
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A film that holds sentimental value for me since its the first arthouse movie I saw.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Some great picks here. I love Rear Window, Blade Runner, and Les Diaboliques, and you've given me quite a lot of films to check out. :)

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Tidy list.

Out of interest, what's the criteria to classify for the list?

1. For a film to qualify, I must have seen it at least twice.
2. Some films that score high in entertainment as well as artistic value are unfortunately not included. Eg. Mr. Vampire (1985), Save The Green Planet (2003)
3. I usually need at least a week or two before I reconsider each film. Generally, I tend to rate a movie I've just watched either too high or too low. Its a problem that I have on my part; my opinion of a movie can change drastically on a second viewing. :rolleyes:

Pretty slick list, Tyler. Love Unforgiven Blade Runner and The Big Sleep. Will always have big respect for The Battle Of Algiers and 400 Blows and Raging Bull. However, there is a big load I have yet to see from this list, so will add them to my Films To See BeFore I Die pad. Not sure what to start with.

As far as criteria goes, I would need to have seen a film four times myself, but I guess some people only need convincing twice.

As I expected as soon as I saw the title of the thread there are lots and lots of films here not seen (many I've not even heard of). The art house scene isn't one I'm overly familiar with yet. Depressingly I could probably contribute more to a discussion of the films of Martin Lawrence! :D

Only seen a very few you've listed so far. Favourite so far is the stunning and beautiful Spring, Summer, Autumn... Only just watched Sonatine recently, and while I didn't love it found it very interesting and could see myself really growing into it with further viewings. Conformist was visually striking at points but I struggled to really connect with it, similar story for Thin Red Line. And finally, while it's considered an absolute classic Blade Runner just didn't do much for me at all, left me cold.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

Great list Tyler :yup:

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

A big thank you to everyone who replied on this thread :D

51-60

60. Synecdoche, New York (Kaufman, 2008)
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Charlie Kaufman is probably the best contemporary American screenwriter with Eternal Sunshine of the spotless mind, Adaptation, Being John Malkovich and Synecdoche, New York all credited to his name. This is my favourite of them all.

59. All About My Mother (Almodovar, 1999)
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Eye-popping visuals with a most absurd storyline that only Almodovar can pull off.

58. Network (Lumet, 1976)
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A satire about television and the corporations that is still relevant today.

57. Kind Hearts And Coronets (Hamer, 1949)
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Besides having a very witty script, it also boasts of Alec Guiness playing EIGHT different roles.

56. A Matter Of Life And Death (Powell, 1946)
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Since I was but a child I have always loved this British classic.

55. Viridiana (Bunuel, 1961)
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Possibly the most blasphemous movie by surrealist Bunuel, images like a pocket knife shaped like a cross, and a last supper scene played by beggars will forever remain in my memories. Be wary of charity, thats the message of the film.

54. The Marriage Of Maria Braun (Fassbinder, 1978)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...aria-braun.jpg
Okay, Ive only seen 2 of Fassbinder's movies (the other is Fear Eats The Soul). I still havent got the time to watch Berlin Alexanderplatz...

53. Inglorious Basterds (Tarantino, 2009)
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Inglorious Basterds owes itself to Lubitsch's To Be Or Not To Be. Tarantino's capable of pulling off long conversations whilst heightening the tension of the scene.

52. Eyes Wide Shut (Kubrick, 1999)
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Watching the masked ball scene itself is worth the price of the movie dvd.

51. The Wind Will Carry Us (Kiarostami, 1999)
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Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

41-50

50. Centre Stage (Kwan, 1992)
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There are some images in Centre Stage that will make your heart stop- they are simply perfect. My favourite biography movie thus far.

49. Five Easy Pieces (Rafelson, 1970)
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Jack Nicholson's finest performance in a movie about the American Dream gone bad.

48. City Of God (Meirelles, 2003)
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47. Memories Of Murder (Bong, 2003)
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Forget about Se7en or Zodiac, Memories of Murder is honestly the best serial killer movie.

46. A Summer At Grandpa's (Hou, 1984)
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I've seen almost all of Taiwanese director Hou Hsiao Hsien's films. This one is his most memorable before he started to become more minimalist.

45. Red Cliff (Woo, 2008)
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedi...liffposter.jpg
Alright this is an exception of a highly entertaining movie that made my list because its jaw-droppingly ambitious and achingly beautiful.

44. Branded To Kill (Suzuki, 1967)
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Japanese film noir with lots and LOTS of style. Ubercool rating is off the charts.

43. Dead Man (Jarmusch, 1995)
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A surreal movie is already a big plus from me, but a surreal WESTERN gets a perfect score and shoots right up near the top of my list.

42. The Blue Kite (Tian, 1993)
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Not only the best chinese movie from mainland China but also a great history lesson about the impact of Mao Zedong's iron fisted reign over China. Highly recommended!

41. Werckmeister Harmonies (Tarr, 2001)
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A disquieting sense of unfathomable evil pervades ever frame of Bela Tarr's Hungarian countryside.

Re: The 101 favourite/top (arthouse) films of Tyler1
 

City Of God, Inglourious Basterds and Eyes Wide Shut? :up: