TOP 15 FAVORITE FIRST WATCHES OF 2017
In this first post I want to talk about my 15 favorite new film discoveries of 2017. These are all films that I watched for the first time during 2017. It was, like always, a heartbreaking mission to leave out all the other films that deeply touched me, but one has to make choices. Here we go!
15) Diva (1981)
One of the most beautiful pieces of entertainment I've witnessed in 2017. The style of this picture is absolutely amazing, but there's also a deliciously complex plot to keep the viewer busy. I don't see how anyone could not enjoy this marvelous film.
14) My Night at Maud's (1969)
This was my first Rohmer experience and his style immediately clicked with me. He's one of the filmmakers I'll further look into in 2018, as this film was a real treat.
13) Women in Love (1969)
This is the first of two Ken Russell films that reached this top 15. It's pretty much a film that's totally in synch with what I love so much about the medium. Marvelous decors, stunning performances, emotional manipulation through editing and music... It's all mastered here in this tale of psychological decadence.
12) Youth of the Beast (1963)
Suzuki is basically one of the most stimulating directors of all time for me. After discovering his work in 2016 with
Tokyo Drifter and
Branded to Kill, I watched this fantastic film this year. It was able to entertain me just as much as the other two. I'm having difficulties finding good copies of his other work, but if I can find some, I'll definitely try and watch them in 2018.
11) The Terrorizers (1986)
This was my introduction to Edward Yang, another director I'll try to delve into a little more in 2018. This lovely Taiwanese film with its mosaic narrative hasn't left my mind all year. It's obviously created by a ridiculously talented filmmaker. Can't wait to see more of his!
10) Anatomy of a Murder (1959)
This was one of the first films I watched this year and I immediately knew it would remain one of my very favorites. It's a film that's able to be both very jazzy and laid-back, while remaining intense and erudite all the way through.
Jimmy Stewart versus George C. Scott... What else could a cinephile wish for?
9) Out of the Blue (1980)
This was one of the most emotionally resonant pictures for me. A film about forgotten people who have themselves forgotten how to live. The film's signature song by Neil Young was my "most listened to" number of the year according to Spotify. I wasn't at all surprised...
8) Under the Volcano (1984)
This film proved to me that John Huston would have been just as great if he had been born 30 years later. He could be just as remarkable as a "New Hollywood" director. This film and
The Dead proved to me this year that Huston died as the great artist he always was.
This film's ending is legitimately one of the most unsettling I've ever seen, by the way. Astonishing.
7) The Stunt Man (1980)
This film has some of the most impressive setpieces I've ever seen and on top of that, it has Peter O'Toole flying through them on a director chair. It's a piece of work that needs to be seen to be believed, one of the craziest adventures I've ever witnessed. Don't miss this one!
6) Street of Shame (1956)
This was a very memorable introduction to Mizoguchi, one of the many directors I want to explore further in 2018. Who would've known that the most humanist cinematic experience I'd have in 2017 would be set in a brothel?
5) Bring Me the Head of Alfredo Garcia (1974)
After this film's opening scene, I already knew I was witnessing a legendary piece of cinema. That feeling only got confirmed by the rest of the picture. This is undoubtedly one of the coolest and most intense flicks I've ever seen.
4) Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid (1973)
This was my introduction to 'Bloody' Sam Peckinpah and I immediately knew he would become one of my favorite new "discoveries" this year. He's a man who makes films with all the passion he has. I love the stories about him on the set of this film. SPOILER ALERT! There's a story of a drunk Peckinpah starting to cry because he didn't want to kill a certain character. The fact that he didn't really want to kill that character while knowing it was necessary proves to me how deeply he understood the character of Pat Garrett. It's perhaps the reason why it's the film character that I felt closest to in 2017. He's a man who understands the joy and happiness of freedom, while realizing it will never truly exist. This western is cinematic poetry at its finest.
3) The Rules of the Game (1939)
After watching this wild, hilarious and highly intelligent masterpiece by Renoir, I immediately thought that this would be the number one film on my "2017 favorite first watches" list at the end of the year. Miraculously there were two films that I wanted to put even higher, though. It proves how special a year this was for me. I can't wait to further delve into Renoir's work in 2018. I'm pretty sure he won't be able to match this film, though. That would be glorious.
2) The Devils (1971)
When I finished
The Devils, I kept staring at the screen in disbelief. After
Women in Love, I thought that I had seen Ken Russell's peak, but this film operates on a completely different level. It's one of those films whose sheer genius I'll keep admiring for years to come. I genuinely believe it's one of THE greatest achievements the cinematic medium has ever produced. It's almost a crime that this isn't number one on this list or on any list.
1) Walkabout (1971)
Despite my (almost) unlimited love for some of the aforementioned films, there was this one film that slowly made itself master over me. It moved me to tears when I first watched it and it only got more powerful in my head during the months that followed. In the end, I had to admit to myself that Nicolas Roeg's beautiful film about a girl, her little brother and an aboriginal in the Australian desert was my ultimate cinematic experience in 2017. I've been listening to John Barry's magnificent score for this film every two days for the past few weeks again now and I'm sporadically feeling compelled to revisit scenes from it.
The poem that's recited near the end of the film constantly clouds and clears my thinking and this film's themes will undoubtedly keep resonating with me for a long time to come.
Into my heart an air that kills
From yon far country blows:
What are those blue remembered hills,
What spires, what farms are those?
That is the land of lost content,
I see it shining plain,
The happy highways where I went
And cannot come again.
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