Sane's Reviews & Lists

I find it interesting how some films stay with you whilst others fade almost immediately - sometimes irrespective of how good you thought they were at the time. I'm having that happen with Happy Times - my mind keeps returning to the two main characters and their relationship with each other. I tend to watch a lot of movies with dark themes so it's nice to occasionally watch something where people have a positive impact on each other.

Anyway, here is a list of my top 10 movies from the three Chinese movie industries:

1. In the Mood for Love (2000) - Wong Kar Wai 100/100
2. Hero (2002) - Zhang Yimou 94/100
3. Chungking Express (1994) - Wong Kar Wai 91/100
4. The Grandmaster (2013) - Wong Kar Wai 86/100
5. Happy Times (2000) - Zhang Yimou 83/100
6. What Time is it There? (2001) - Tsai Ming Liang 82/100
7. Fallen Angels (1995) - Wong Kar Wai 81/100
8. The Hole (1998) - Tsai Ming Liang 79/100
9. Happy Together (1997) - Wong Kar Wai 76/100
10. Red Cliff II (2009) - John Woo 75/100
10. Kekexili: Mountain Patrol (2004) - Lu Chuan 75/100

Looks like I really need to expand my list of directors from this part of the world. I have a couple of Edward Yang films to watch so I'll start there.

Have watched 22 movies since updating this thread and don't know which to write a long review about so here are some short ones ...


Toy Story 3 (2010) - Lee Unkrich

I'm one of the few people who don't think too highly of this trilogy. The first two were ok but I found them ultimately a bit shallow. However, the third instalment is by far the best. The story had more depth and, importantly, visually it was excellent.

79/100


Blackboards (2000) - Samira Makhmalbaf

First movie I've watched from the daughter of one of Iran's most famous directors (it was co-written with Mohsen). The title refers to a couple of travelling teachers who carry blackboards on their backs as they go looking for students. They split up and one meets up with a nomadic group (Kurds I think) making their way back to Irag and the other meets with children smuggling goods back and forth across the border. Stunning scenery and interesting from a cultural perspective but not as engaging as other Iranian movies due to not as much focus on likeable characters - the two main teachers were incredibly annoying. Still worth watching.

67/100


The Godfather Part II (1974) - Francis Ford Coppola

I liked this a bit better than the first one. I think the reason can be explained quite simply - James Caan out, Robert De Niro in I felt Caan was the biggest weakness of the first movie whilst in this one the scenes involving De Niro were the highlight (not just because of him - they were brilliantly filmed). Also really enjoyed John Cazale's performance here - he was such a great actor and a huge loss to the industry.

94/100


The Apartment (1960) - Billy Wilder

My favourite Wilder film thus far. Fantastic performances by the three leads - particularly MacLaine. Also worth mentioning MacMurray. I grew up watching My Three Sons re-runs and always thought of him as being a bit of a lightweight but whilst he doesn't exactly have a huge range, he does have the ability to make relatively subtle changes to his characters to take them from being likeable to not. I think he deserves a lot of credit for that.

86/100


The Sweet Hereafter (1997) - Atom Egoyan

Have been trying to watch the movies from the 90s countdown that I haven's seen. All About My Mother (81/100) and The Straight Story (73/100) were both good but this was the highlight. It is just a brilliantly told story. It's about a lawyer trying to build a compensation case after a school bus plunges into a lake killing almost all the children in a small town. It's use of the Pied Piper as a plot device is fantastic.

91/100


Vinyan (2008) - Fabrice du Welz

Belgian film (in English) about a couple who lose their child during the tsunami - but hope that he may still be alive. After they think they find out he has been kidnapped they journey into Burma to find him. Emmanuelle Beart is good but I've never been a fan of Sewell and he's not great here. This film is quite interesting but uses the whole descent into madness in SE Asia theme that we've seen before. In some places it's referred to as a horror movie but it really only becomes one in the last 10 minutes and that's part of the problem with the film - to me the ending seemed out of place. Anyway, it was OK but should have been better.

57/100

My 10 favourite animated movies:

1. Grave of the Fireflies - Isao Takahata 99/100
2. Whisper of the Heart - Yoshifumi Kondo 97/100
3. Ponyo - Hayao Miyazaki 86/100
4. Toy Story 3 - Lee Unkrich 79/100
5. The Girl Who Leapt Through Time - Mamoru Hosada 72/100
5. Only Yesterday - Isao Takahata 72/100
7. Perfect Blue - Satoshi Kon 71/100
8. Princess Mononoke - Hayao Miyazaki 70/100
8. Spirited Away - Hayao Miyazaki 70/100
10. The Croods - Chris Sanders /Kirk De Micco 69/100

Autumn Sonata (1978) - Ingmar Bergman

Let me start off by saying this movie was very good. Problem is it should have been so much better. Excellent performances by Ullman and, in particular, Bergman, great visuals and characters with depth. Unfortunately these characters would not shut up ... ever ... for even five seconds ... to let you think about them and draw conclusions for yourself. Every second was spent with them telling each other, the camera and themselves exactly how they felt.

It tells the story of a strained relationship between a mother and daughter. They get together after not seeing each other for seven years and a lifetime of emotion comes out. It's an interesting enough story and one that should create a platform for interesting character studies - which it does to an extent. Unfortunately those character studies are delivered with a sledgehammer.

As I said, Ingrid Bergman is great, as is Ullman. I think if they had been allowed to they could have put together a couple of the all-time great performances thanks to their chemistry together. If they had been allowed to portray emotion rather than constantly talk about it.

I guess it shows what a great director Bergman is that I have so many issues with this movie but still give it such a high rating. I just feel that in many of his movies he leaves so much up to the actors to portray and for us to decide for ourselves yet in this movie we are told exactly what is going on from the first minute.

With the quality of everything else here, apart from the script, I should be giving this 95/100+.

81/100

My top 10 Scandinavian films:

1. Dancer in the Dark - Lars Von Trier 96/100
2. A Hijacking - Tobias Lindholm 85/100
3. Autumn Sonata - Ingmar Bergman 81/100
3. The Virgin Spring - Ingmar Bergman 81/100
5. Let the Right One In - Tomas Alfredson 79/100
5. Wild Strawberries - Ingmar Bergman 79/100
7. Into the White - Peter Naess 73/100
8. The Seventh Seal - Ingmar Bergman 72/100
8. Through a Glass Darkly - Ingmar Bergman 72/100
10. Antichrist - Lars Von Trier 70/100

I really feel like this area is producing a lot of quality lately so I hope to see a lot of movies by more contemporary Scandinavian directors soon.

2046 (2004) - Wong Kar Wai

I know I'm biased - I love WKW, Tony Leung, Gong Li, Zhang Ziyi, Faye Wong and I loved this film's predecessor - In the Mood For Love. So chances are I would love this movie - and I did. Some may find it slow but I find Wong's style and the acting of Tony Leung, and Zhang Ziyi in this role, to be completely absorbing.

89/100


The Song of Sparrows (2008) - Majid Majidi

Another very good film from Majidi. An ostrich farmer loses his job and starts working as a motorcycle taxi driver. It focuses on a loving family man who starts to lose his generosity and honesty as he becomes obsessed with money. He then suffers an accident which allows him to see the generosity of those around him. It felt like it should have been Majidi's masterpiece but fell short due to losing some focus through it's middle. When he gets everything right I feel as though he will produce a very high quality piece of art.

77/100


Beauty and the Beast (1991) - Gary Trousdale & Kirk Wise

Disney's ode to kidnapping and violence against women. It's weird how these old fairy tale's get turned into modern romances. They were generally very dark in nature but for some reason in movies like this the story is adapted to be a beautiful romance - depicting the scary elements as though they are just part of the courtship. Ignoring how terribly flawed the story is, so much of this is just a bad movie. At the point where the beast becomes romantic, the dude who has been chasing Belle suddenly goes from being an object of humour to being evil. And why is this set in France yet the main characters all have American accents - except the servants who have French and English accents? If this was a live action movie it would be laughable. As an animation it's not much better IMO.

22/100


Calvaire (2004) - Fabrice du Welz

Second film by du Welz I have watched in the last week or so. This one is flawed as well but I think this director has a big future. This film was pretty creepy but still very beautiful at times. It's essentially a Belgian version of a hillbilly horror movie. None of it is particularly original, apart from it being in Belgium, but it's pretty well done. There is one particular scene, hillbillies dancing with each other in a bar, which makes the whole thing worthwhile on it's own

71/100


Jaws 3-D (1983) - Joe Alves

Yeah, I'm not sure why I watched it either.

27/100

Babel (2006) - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu

I've always like this style film - essentially a collection of shorts that are connected in some way. I think they combat my inability to concentrate for long periods. At times I wish all movies were a maximum of 90 minutes long so by having multiple stories a longer movie can keep my interest.

In regards to having a bunch of connected stories running together, this didn't actually work too well. It tells the story of a couple in Morocco (Pitt & Blanchett), their children and nanny back in the US and a deaf and mute Japanese girl in Tokyo. Blanchett is shot by a child playing with a gun and the idea is that all the stories are influenced by this one moment. Well, they aren't.

The Japanese story has a tenuous link at best but interestingly it is actually the most engaging of the stories. It felt like the writer probably envisioned this as a movie on it's own and just made it fit in with the other stories. Still, it is a very well told story - both in terms of plot and acting. The performance of Rinko Kikuchi being a real highlight.

Pitt and Blanchett are good as always and overall I really liked the movie. The only thing really stopping it from being a masterpiece is the stories themselves felt a bit forced in terms of their relationship with each other.

I think it's worth singling our Brad Pitt. I mentioned in another thread that you can almost always trust him to be in a good movie. I still wouldn't call him a great actor but again with his performance here he is getting closer and I really like the fact that I can go into a movie knowing that if he is in it, it will probably be good. Have to give him credit for being perhaps one of the only movie "superstars" who is happy not to be in the lead role in his movies. He seems to pick movies and roles based on quality - not many big stars seem to do that.

88/100

Watched Apocalypse Now this week so thought I would list my Top 10 war movies:

1. Grave of the Fireflies - Isao Takahata 99/100
2. Apocalypse Now - Francis Ford Coppola 87/100
2. The Deer Hunter - Michael Cimino 87/100
2. Hotel Rwanda - Terry George 87/100
5. Saving Private Ryan - Steven Spielberg 85/100
6. Schindler's List - Steven Spielberg 83/100
7. Inglourious Basterds - Quentin Tarantino 82/100
8. Full Metal Jacket - Stanley Kubrick 81/100
9. Paths of Glory - Stanley Kubrick 78/100
10. Red Cliff II - John Woo 75/100

American Psycho (2000) - Mary Harron

In the top 5 best American movies of the last 20 years IMO - and probably behind only Pulp Fiction in terms of writing. The first 80 minutes is brilliant - the scenes involving Bateman talking about 80s pop music before killing his victims are amongst the most memorable ever (particularly the Huey Lewis one). Unfortunately it loses it's way in the last 20 minutes but overall it's a great movie.

89/100


Eros (2004) - Wong Kar Wai/Steven Soderbergh/Michelangelo Antonioni

A collection of short films about, you guess it, sex. I quite liked the Antonioni film (although if I'm honest with myself it was probably mainly due to all the nudity ) - I know he is a widely loved director but I've not seen any of his films before. Planning to get hold of some now. The Soderbergh film, with Alan Arkin & Robert Downey Jr, didn't really work - it was interesting but not overly good. The WKW film was the highlight with Chang Chen and Gong Li doing their best Tony Leung and Maggie Cheung impersonations. It really looked like a part of the In The Mood For Love/2046 world and overall worked well.

70/100


Crows Zero (2007) - Takashi Miike

A Japanese version of the high school gang movie. Very entertaining and for the first hour, very funny. Nothing too deep here but if you want 2 hours of fun then this is for you. There are a couple of things that stop me rating it too highly and both are really cultural issues - the use of some horrible J-pop songs doesn't work (including one in the middle of the big final battle) and because this is very much a modern movie with Japanese teenagers it all looks a bit like a Spandau Ballet & Duran Duran doing a West Side Story remake. Anyway, Miike is good with violence and his movies always look good so overall I enjoyed it.

70/100


The Road Home (1999) - Zhang Yimou

The story of a guy returning home after the death of his father. His mother wants the coffin carried along the road back to their village so the father remembers his way home. It then tells the story of how his mother and father got together 40 years earlier. I'll be honest, this movie really affected me and I'm not ashamed to admit I just got tears in my eyes thinking about the story. Zhang Ziyi in her first major role plays the young version of the mother. She's an actress I'm gaining new respect for all the time. I'm not sure you would call this a great performance but she was able to depict one thing perfectly - love. You can't help but believe her performance.

I read a post by someone here that they never cried watching a movie until they had children. Where we are in our lives has a major effect on how we connect with movies. I have never been into romantic movies but I've noticed lately that many of my favourites are just that. This is in line with meeting someone myself and getting married. Now when I watch romantic movies I "get it".

So, if you want a romantic story that might make you cry, watch this film. If that doesn't sound like what you are after, don't watch it, you'll hate it

87/100

My top 10 American films of the last 20 years (1994 - 2013)

1. Pulp Fiction - Quentin Tarantino 98/100
2. Avatar - James Cameron 93/100
3. Django Unchained - Quentin Tarantino 91/100
4. Detachment - Tony Kaye 90/100
5. American Psycho - Mary Harron 89/100
6. Babel - Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu 88/100
6. Memento - Christopher Nolan 88/100
6. Cloverfield - Matt Reeves 88/100
6. Seven - David Fincher 88/100
10. Fargo - Coen Brothers 87/100
10. Hotel Rwanda - Terry George 87/100
10. There Will Be Blood - Paul Thomas Anderson 87/100

Felicia's Journey (1999) - Atom Egoyan

After watching the brilliant Egoyan film The Sweet Hereafter I've been trying to watch more of his films. This week I watched Exotica and Felicia's Journey.

Egoyan is quickly becoming one of my favourite story tellers. The three films that I've seen are quite similar in terms of how the plot and the relationships between the characters come together. They build over the course of the movies with us gradually learning how the characters came to be the way they are and what their role is in the central theme of the movie.

Felicia's Journey is a flawed film in some ways but I found the first half to be as good as The Sweet Hereafter. It's about an Irish girl who travels to England to find her boyfriend after he leaves her to get work - without leaving a forwarding address. There she meets the manager of a catering company (Hoskins) who seems to be trying to help her ...

This is essentially a thriller because we gradually learn more about the dark side of Hoskins character - and this is where Egoyan excels by using memories, flashbacks and video recordings to tell us more about him.

Unfortunately we learn almost everything we need to know in the first half and the second half evolves into more of a basic thriller which is a touch disappointing. Hoskins character also seemed to become more of your basic crazy guy as things went on. His character started to remind me of Richard Attenborough's character in a movie called 10 Rillington Place towards the end.

Overall it was a good movie and I'll keep adding Egoyan films to my watchlist.

76/100

The Conversation (1974) - Francis Ford Coppola

Not as good as a some other Coppola films that some may have heard of but still good. Can't help thinking, as I watch more American films from the seventies, how much "Hollywood" has changed. Would Gene Hackman be a star today? Would one of Hollywood's top directors of today put out a film with guys like Hackman and Cazale as the "stars"? I'm not 100% sure of the answer but I can't help but think that today the big roles go to the bankable stars and the quality actors are relegated to supporting roles.

78/100


RIPD (2013) - Robert Schwentke

I'll be honest, I quite like Ryan Reynolds. I've always found him to be quite funny - so I found this movie to be slightly awkward. In almost every scene, if you look closely, you can see the realisation on his face that his movie career is almost over ... I'm really not sure what anyone was thinking here. Why does it rip off Ghostbusters and Men in Black so obviously, why (in a $130 million movie) are the special effects so bad, why does Jeff Bridges reprise his role from True Grit??? To be honest it's actually mostly watchable - just remarkably stupid.

36/100


Last Train Home (2009) - Lixin Fan

This is a documentary that, on the surface, is about the huge migration of people in China around New Year's. 130 million people try to get home to see their families. I say on the surface because it's really about one family and their struggles in a changing China. Struggles between parents who leave their children behind to find work to give their kids the future they think is important, and the children who have no relationship with their parents. This is very difficult to watch in parts (particularly a fight between the father and his daughter) but it does a great job of portraying the issues that are affecting real people in a changing country. It is almost a drama rather than a documentary - there is a bit of narration but no real talking to the camera - and is mostly completely non-judgemental. Fascinating.

89/100


Heavenly Creatures (1994) - Peter Jackson

I'm probably one of the few people who actually saw Jackson's first film, Bad Taste, in a movie theatre when it came out. Some friends and I accidently saw it late one night thinking it was something completely different - a stand up comedy movie from memory. I also saw Braindead at the movies - on my own because no-one wanted to see it with me. So I feel I've played a major role in Jackson's success Anyway, decided to re-watch this after seeing it in the 90s countdown. Still a good movie and shows that Jackson has the talent to tell a good story as well as make blockbusters.

77/100

Time to update my favourite Directors and Actors lists. Going to do Top 20 directors - mainly because I'm disappointed that Wong Kar Wai has dropped out of the top 10

Directors - 3 Movies min.

1. Francis Ford Coppola - 4 movies @ 87.25
2. Kim Ki Duk - 4 @ 84.50
3. Tetsuya Nakashima - 4 @ 83.75
3. Abbas Kiarostami - 4 @ 83.75
5. Martin Scorsese - 4 @ 83.50
6. Atom Egoyan - 3 @ 82.67
7. Quentin Tarantino - 8 @ 81.88
8. Zhang Yimou - 6 @ 79.50
9. Isao Takahata - 3 @ 78.67
10. Ingmar Bergman - 6 @ 78.50

11. The Coen Brothers - 4 @ 77.75
12. James Cameron - 3 @ 77.67
13. Wong Kar Wai - 11 @ 76.91
14. Majid Majidi - 4 @ 76.25
15. Krzysztof Kieslowski - 4 @ 76.00
16. Takashi Miike - 4 @ 75.25
17. Billy Wilder - 6 @ 75.17
18. John Woo - 3 @ 74.67
19. Charles Chaplin - 3 @ 74.00
20. Akira Kurosawa - 4 @ 73.75

Actors - 5 movies min.

1. Tony Leung Chiu Wai - 10 @ 82.60
2. Brad Pitt - 6 @ 81.83
3. Robert De Niro - 9 @ 80.22
4. Bruce Willis - 5 @ 78.80
5. Quentin Tarantino - 6 @ 78.50
6. Chang Chen - 8 @ 78.00
7. Takeshi Kaneshiro - 5 @ 77.00
8. Kevin Spacey - 7 @ 76.00
8. Robert Duvall - 6 @ 76.00
10. Matt Damon - 6 @ 75.67

Wuthering Heights (1939) - William Wyler

I mentioned earlier in this thread that I'm not a fan of the more theatrical style of acting - which was perhaps quite prevalent prior to 1950. I also said that there were some exceptions to this and I watched two movies this week that would definitely qualify as that - both starring Laurence Olivier which is perhaps apt as he was an exponent of that style but also completely capable of being more realistic. I guess that's why he is considered great ...

I have always loved the Wuthering Heights story since reading the novel when I was at school. It is the dark side of the story that perhaps most appeals to my sensibilities. Combine that with my new found respect for romances (I've mellowed in my "middle" age) and in many ways it is, for me, the perfect story. I have actually always loved the Kate Bush song of the same name also and whenever I have heard it over the years it has reminded me of the story so I've never really forgotten it.

To be honest, I'm actually not sure if I've seen the movie before - if I have it would have been about 30 years ago and because it is, from memory, a reasonably accurate rendition of the book I wasn't really able to tell if I actually remembered it or it was just the memory of the book mixed with images from the movie that I'm sure everyone has come across over the years.

Anyway, I'm sure I'm over-rating this movie because of my love for the story but this is a great film. Oberon is fantastic as the extremely flawed Cathy and depicts her various "issues" very well. Olivier is great of course but is perhaps the only weakness in the movie - playing the pre-makeover Heathcliff doesn't quite work for me. Having one of the most "suave" actors ever playing a perpetually unwashed gypsy was a bit much of a stretch.

I should also mention David Niven as well. His character was someone who you weren't supposed to like - but weren't supposed to dislike either. He was kind of like the innocent bystander who got caught up in Cathy and Heathcliff's romance. Whilst there were elements of his character that were unpleasant you actually ended up empathising with him.

That perhaps sums up what is so great about this movie. There is depth to all of the characters - whilst you are obviously pushed towards wanting Cathy and Heathcliff to be together, they are depicted in such a way that you often find your self not liking them or disagreeing with their choices.

Just like real life

Add to that a perfect ending and you have ...

97/100

Rebecca (1940) - Alfred Hitchcock

I mentioned I had watched two Olivier films this week - this was the other one. In my opinion it's the best Hitchcock movie I have seen - marginally netter that Psycho and much better that Vertigo or North by Northwest. To be honest, I'm not completely sure why critics love Vertigo so much when a film like this is, to me, vastly superior. Don't get me wrong, Vertigo is a good film but when a romance is at the centre of a movie and it is portrayed by two actors with zero chemistry, the movie can't be considered great. IMO of course. Anyway, Olivier and Fontaine have a chemistry that Stewart and Novak could only dream of Excellent movie.

88/100


Dog Day Afternoon (1975) - Sidney Lumet

I have watched some great movies this week - including this. Fantastic performances by Pacino and Cazale as usual and brilliantly directed by Lumet. It's actually hard to point to specific reasons for why this is a great film - it's just a perfectly told story with great characters.

91/100


Pather Panchali (1955) - Satyajit Ray

Wikipedia doesn't seem to have a poster for this movie so just used a screenshot. I've been meaning to get more into Indian cinema but have found it difficult due to I guess the cultural difference. I've quite liked most films I've seen but get a bit distracted by the "fairy tale" nature of some of them. So, decided to get a hold of Ray's Apu trilogy, of which this is the first and I'm certainly glad I did. In simple terms it's about a family in India struggling with poverty and focuses on the two children, Apu and his sister Durga. It's actually a bit hard to describe what is great about this movie without spoiling it so I'll just say it is a beautiful film.

91/100


The Abyss (1989) - James Cameron

This movie sums up why I can't rate movies from memory. This was a bit of a favourite about 23 years ago. I would rate it around 85 based on my memories. Watching it this week, it is still pretty good to look at but that's about all. The script is just plain bad - it is a bit sad watching Ed Harris, who is a fine actor, struggling to deliver some of the lines. The acting in general isn't great from the supporting cast. But what really ruins it, and is perhaps the reason for a lot of the hate that Cameron gets, are the ridiculously sentimental scenes from which Cameron tries to generate misplaced emotion. Sigh ...

36/100

Here are my top 10 romance movies.

1. In the Mood for Love - Wong Kar Wai 100/100
2. 3-Iron - Kim Ki Duk 99/100
3. Whisper of the Heart - Yoshifumi Kondo 97/100
3. Wuthering Heights - William Wyler 97/100
5. Hero - Zhang Yimou 94/100
6. Chungking Express - Wong Kar Wai 91/100
7. 2046 - Wong Kar Wai 89/100
8. Breathless - Jean-Luc Godard 88/100
8. Rebecca - Alfred Hitchcock 88/100
10. The Apartment - Billy Wilder 86/100

Watched 23 movies since my last update. Will just talk about some of those I considered very good:


The Passion of Joan of Arc (1928) - Carl Th. Dreyer

Obviously a very well known film - and for good reason. Acting by Falconetti is great but I just felt a little detached from the whole thing. It should have been emotional but I just didn't connect with it. Still, overall very good.

79/100


Bicycle Thieves (1948) - Vittorio De Sica

This, on the other hand, did connect with me. I mentioned in another thread that you can see where Iranian cinema gets it's influences - and I love Iranian cinema. It's the realistic and honest portrayal of characters and their ups and downs that I really enjoy. This movie also built as it went along - for some of it I was thinking "yeah, it's not bad, but I don't get what all the fuss is about" but I gradually got hooked.

86/100


Lust, Caution (2007) - Ang Lee

As far as I know, Ang Lee is one of the few Taiwanese directors to have made mainland Chinese movies. This is probably largely due to his fame and the fact he is perhaps more viewed as an American filmmaker. With this movie, apart from the entire cast being Asian, it does actually feel like an American film - just in terms of how it is made and what it focuses on. This was an extremely controversial film in China - as far as I know there has never been a Chinese film so sexually explicit. In fact, it was so controversial that the female lead, Tang Wei, didn't act again until 2010.

What is interesting is that the sex scenes actually detract from what is a very good war film - and I think the controversy has stopped people viewing it for what it is - just a really well told story.

82/100


Downfall (2004) - Oliver Hirschbiegel

Depicts the final few days of Nazi Germany. Everyone has different things that they want to get out of a film. For me, I want to feel something and I want to think. For others, they want to be entertained and sometimes not have to think. When I see other people talking about a movie like, for example, Raiders of the Lost Ark and saying it's great, I can't agree. Sure, it's fun, but it doesn't make me feel anything and doesn't leave me thinking about the issues it raised for days after. But that's just me. Everyone is different. My wife doesn't watch movies with sad endings because they make her unhappy and that's not something she wants to feel. That's completely understandable. But that's not how I approach movies. I want to feel joy, anger, sadness, etc.

Downfall is a movie that made me feel and think. What I found most interesting is that for a lot of it what it made me feel was confusion - in regards to how I felt about the characters. It depicts the characters as human beings. In fact, I'm pretty sure it's the first time I've ever seen Hitler portrayed as anything other than pure evil. However, it doesn't make you feel for him - the pure evil is still there - but it makes you think about him as a person and what was going through his head. There are other scenes where I was really conflicted, particularly those involving children. Is it OK to feel sad for a mother who feels driven towards having to make an unbelievably horrible decision in regards to her children - when her husband is in part responsible for the deaths of millions of people?

I will possibly rate this higher when I watch it again but that feeling of being conflicted actually, in the end, perhaps stopped me from completely loving this movie. I'm sure that was the director's goal ...

89/100

I have similar feelings to The Passion of Joan of Arc as you, Bicycle Thieves I liked too, but a little less, but two essential films and good watches definitely Not seen the others unfortunately.

__________________

My top war movies list is very similar to yours:

1. Apocalypse Now
2. Grave of the Fireflies
3. The Human Condition Trilogy
4. Paths of Glory
5. Schindler's List
6. Downfall
7. Full Metal Jacket

Inglourious Basterds and Saving Private Ryan are in my top 20 war movies.

My top 10 French films. This is a list based on very limited experience. I'm currently trying to add more European films onto my watchlist and have watched German, French, Italian and Turkish movies in the last week. I'm sure the following list will change a lot in the future.

1. Intouchables - Olivier Nakache/Eric Toledano 90/100
2. Breathless - Jean-Luc Godard 88/100
3. Three Colors: Red - Krzysztof Kieslowski 84/100
4. La Haine - Mathieu Kassovitz 83/100
5. Three Colors: Blue - Krzysztof Kieslowski 82/100
6. Amelie - Jean-Pierre Jeunet 81/100
7. Indigenes - Rachid Bouchareb 80/100
8. The Passion of Joan of Arc - Carl Th. Dreyer 79/100
9. Certified Copy - Abbas Kiarostami 74/100
10. The Double Life of Veronique - Krzysztof Kieslowski 70/100