A Pro-Choice Top 10
The reason I'm doing it? A little of the first reason and a little of the second I suppose. In regards to the second, it frustrates me that most movies on my list were never released in the majority of the country, my parents in Ohio for example, didn't have the chance to see 4-6 of the movies that I loved the most this year (if they were released they probably played once without any publicity). We live in a society that pre-packages our entertainment and has ultimately decided that as a country we can only handle the easiest, the most cliched of movies. In that same way, they pre-package most foreign countries only providing people with fear - when people think of Iran, they think of the words that the Bush administration has fed us, but nobody knows who Kiarostami is (do you?).
And people for the most part seem OK with this, OK with choices that suggest they aren't smart enough to work a little bit while they are entertained. With this, I give you a list of films that I think are worth seeing, that for the most part weren't at suburban multiplexes and while there a lot of US films on the list, half are from across the globe. The amazing thing about today, is that despite a lack of control on what gets shown in the theater, with Netflix and online retailing, anyone, anywhere has access to tons of DVDs.
So take this for what you will - and maybe try something you've never heard of. I've included a trailer for each and a link to what I think is a representative review. Enjoy!
1. There Will Be Blood (directed by Paul Thomas Anderson) USA
David Denby's review in The New Yorker
2. Killer of Sheep (directed by Charles Burnett) USA
Jonathan Rosenbaum's review in the Chicago Reader
3. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford (directed by Andrew Dominik) USA
Andrew Sarris' review in the New York Observer
4. Private Fears in Public Places (directed by Alain Resnais) France
Jonathan Rosenbaum's review in the Chicago Reader
5. After the Wedding (directed by Suzanne Bier) Denmark
Kenneth Turan's review in the Los Angeles Times
6. Syndromes and a Century (directed by Apichatpong Weerasethakul) Thailand
A.O. Scott's review in The New York Times
7. I'm Not There (directed by Todd Haynes) USA
J. Hoberman's review in the Village Voice
8. Regular Lovers (directed by Philippe Garrel) France
Manohla Dargis' review in The New York Times
9. Bamako (directed by Abderrahmane Sissako) Mali
Nathan Lee's review in the Village Voice
10. Sweeney Todd (directed by Tim Burton) USA
A.O. Scott's review in The New York Times
No comments:
Post a Comment