movies I love
Some of these I regard as beautifully accomplished works of cinematic art.
Some of them are works that are significantly flawed but whose redeeming features far outweigh their shortcomings for me.
Some just tickle my fancy (there's no accounting for taste).
I will be adding more movies from time to time. Eventually (God willing
My Brilliant Career
Saw this in the theater 16 times as I became a teenager. It's gorgeous and smart -- except that one stupid mis-step line near the end, dammit, and the moment when a little Black child/extra seems to be working for the grand estate (sh*t!).
Stranger Than Paradise
1984 was such a great year for movies! This one opened my brain to what independent film can be and the idea that I might someday make them. Forty years later, it has been copied again and again, but still stands supreme.
On the Waterfront
This is one of the best movies ever made (the icky dated forced-kiss sequence notwithstanding). Brando is in top form. It's not anti-union, as some have said; it's absolutely pro-union, just anti-corruption -- anti "crucifixion."
Banshees of Inishrin
This film is not for the faint of heart or anyone looking for an "escape" film. I thought it was brilliant, though. Like Bird, it knows the life it's "discussing" deeply and broadly.
Sorry to Bother You
Just watching the trailer as I posted this made me want to see it again. It has an authenticity and sense of purpose that is rare. I can't WAIT for Boots Riley to make another!
Bird
Andrea Arnold knows how to portray the realities of living in poverty like no other filmmaker I know - not just sad/bad things but the tiny little daily details that make up life.
I Heart Huckabee's
So much to love -- not least Dustin Hoffman's hair and Mark Wahlberg hitting himself in the face.
Margaret
Forget Black Swan, this is your movie about mothers and daughters. Choose the director's extended cut.
Tangerine
Refreshingly different, touching, and real. Baker "shot it on his phone," yes, plus thousands of dollars of attachments.
La Belle et la Bête (Beauty & the Beast)
I saw this in the theater when I was 8 or 9 because the baby-sitter canceled and my mom was going. I was enthralled and pretended to be Beauty afterward for days. I'm grateful to have been introduced for subtitles so young.
Hollywood Shuffle
I saw this in college when it came out and it energized and fascinated me; it was basically my introduction to "critical race theory" in Media Studies. It's one of the films that made me want to become a filmmaker.
Lone Star
One of the top-most John Sayles films -- the weaving together of stories that at first seem unconnected (as he likes to do) works exceptionally well here. I used a couple of clips from this in my lesson on camera movement.
Clue
It's far from perfect (missed opportunites, at times oddly paced, occasionally sexist), but it's just so much fun to watch this incredible collection of comedic talent have fun together that it's my go-to "cheer me up" film.
To Catch a Thief
Back in the day, we watched movies like this on 12" B&W TVs on rainy Saturday afternoons (with commercials!). When I was about 8 or 9, that's how I saw this - and fell permanently in love with both Cary Grant & Grace Kelly.
Diva
I remember at the time it came out, one review claimed that sometimes it was too much like watching a painting, and I was mystified why this was a bad thing. The mystery's a little confusing, but it's worth it.
