The British Film Institute will unveil their Greatest films of all time list later this year, a list that is announced every ten years. All over the world, revered filmmakers and film critics get to pick what they think are the greatest films ever made, I guess they failed to ask me. Despite all that, I still wanted to share my list.
I've done top ten films before, but I like to think I'm always evolving as a film goer, my tastes to change from time to time, plus I wanted to give some films I haven't highlighted as prominently as others. Some favorites still and will always remain, but here is what I would submit if Sight and Sound had asked me. Because of my fondness for certain directors I've decided to stick to my rule by only choosing one film from each director.
Tokyo Story Struggling what Ozu to pick I actually considered putting in "Late Spring", to me both films are equally poignant and heartbreaking. Yet I tend to favor "Tokyo Story" as it was my introduction to Ozu's cinema, and it's probably the best example of what his work represents as a whole.
It's a Wonderful Life Because there really isn't a film quite like it, it's more complex than most people give it credit for. It's the story of a man always on the brink of desperation, he's hanging by a thread through the entire film. Then we get the other side of the coin seeing an alternate world had he never existed. It's probably the one film I think that can reconcile being heartwarming yet rather perverse at the same time. At the center is Jimmy Stewart giving his all.
Jules and Jim Brimming with youthful energy, a film about a love triangle that ends tragically should be by all accounts depressing, is anything but. Strangely enough, I feel a kinship with this film, much of my own philosophy as an artist is represented in this film. It's a film about youth, and made in the same spirit, perhaps the most joyful film experience I have seen.
The Double Life of Veronique Kieslowski's film about connection, a link to something that can't really be explained but only felt. When film is very much about showing the external, this along with Kieslowski's "The Decalogue" and "Three Colors Trilogy" attempt to show the internal, universal questions about who we are, and if we are all connected. Profound.
The Shop Around the Corner When I look on this list, I would probably pick one movie that I wish I could've made, and it would be this. It's just so very perfect in a very specific way, it's about people, relationships, done with the right amount of sophistication, coyness, and charm.
Sherlock Jr. Buster Keaton has made many great silent comedies, this is probably his crowning achievement. Barely a feature at 45 minutes yet full of as many gags and inventions as most two hour comedies. What am I saying?, Certainly more gags and invention than any other comedy ever. Keaton has become more fascinating to me as a grow older, he's like the zen master of comedy, he takes what comes, and doesn't flinch about it, has there been a more braver man in film?
Rear Window In this case, I can see how "Vertigo" could be considered the greater Hitchcock film, but after viewing "Rear Window" again recently, I felt a much bigger connection towards it. A film which asks the viewer to participate in fully. Jimmy Stewart is our stand in, we react to what he sees, in a nutshell it's the ultimate movie about movies.
City Lights Keaton was about space and movement, Chaplin was about faces and emotion. This has been called the best ending ever in a movie, and I wouldn't consider that an over statement. To me "City Lights" is all about capturing moments of pure emotion coming from actor's faces, and isn't that what simply film is all about?
My Dinner with Andre Why? Because it risks tampering with convention, no action, hardly any exteriors, one location. I was riveted. This never feels like a stunt, it's shot economically, not flashy. It's one of a kind, and can't really be repeated or equalled, it's its own genre.
Swing Time What is the ultimate escape in movies? Simple, it's the moment Fred Astaire begins singing "Never Gonna Dance" and he and Ginger Rogers dance their greatest number, when that happens, I am somewhere else, I'm out of my head, I'm in a dream.
