God only knows why anyone would be interested in this post, but in an annual tradition I list the films I saw at the theater this year. As always, don’t see films on my account. But if you like foreign films, I’d say Winter Sleep (big screen only) and About Elly (TV is ok) are the two recent standouts.
2105 Films
Mulholland Drive (US, 2001) 4.0 Great the first time I saw it; seemed even darker, stranger and richer the second time. (How often does that happen?) Might be my new favorite film. Until the next classic I see.
2001 (US, 1968) 4.0 One of my absolute favorite films. I saw it at age 12, then in my 30s, and then at 59. It holds up very well, but age 12 was best.
Winter Sleep (Turkey) 3.8 Another first rate film by the Turkish director Ceylan. It seemed slightly more conventional than his earlier films, but I still liked it a lot. Four or five outstanding scenes of two people arguing.
Aparajito (India, 1959) 3.8 The middle film in the Apu trilogy, and the only one I had not seen. All three are available in newly restored prints. It would be an understatement to say that they don’t make films like this anymore. The world portrayed no longer exists.
The Quay Brothers in 35 mm. (US, 2015) 3.8 Christopher Nolan put together 3 of the Quay brothers short films, and then a 10 or 15 minute documentary of them working in their studio. Includes The Street of Crocodiles, which might be the greatest work of surrealism in the 20th century, in any medium. Nolan’s a huge fan, and so am I.
About Elly (Iran, 2009) 3.7 An earlier film by the director of A Separation. Both are excellent films, but this may be even a bit better.
Until the End of the World 3.7 (German, 1991) Captured a brief moment when there was lots of optimism about a coming global village, right after the Berlin Wall fell. The original 2½ hour film didn’t get good reviews, but the restored 5 hour version was lots of fun. Not really a great film in a technical sense, but very enjoyable, and evocative of an era. Good music too.
The Saragossa Manuscript (Polish, 1964) 3.6 A somewhat surreal film by the director Has, which has a sort of 1001 Nights feel to it. Three hours, and the last half is much better, so don’t give up at intermission. Has is another great director I had never heard of—how can I call myself a movie buff? Has Has directed anything else I should see? (Sorry, couldn’t resist)
The Long Voyage Home (US, 1940) 3.6 Really good John Ford film about sailors, with cinematography by Gregg Toland (who did Citizen Kane the following year.)
Rebels of a Neon God (Taiwan, 1992) 3.6 One of the classics of the Asian New Wave, by Tsai Ming-liang.
A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (Swedish) 3.5 As the title suggests, it may not be of interest to those who have seen all 7 Fast and Furious films, twice. Might appeal to Jim Jarmusch fans, but there’s also a bit of David Lynch and even Francis Bacon. Another good director I’d never heard of—Roy Andersson.
Inside Out (US) 3.5 A post-modern deconstruction of the Hollywood dream factory. Both a delightful animated film (from the group that produced Wall-e and Up) and also a sort of documentary on the making of the film. I’ve always kind of wondered if the net utility in life is positive or negative, and the fact that the film had four negative emotions and only one positive emotion tends to reinforce my skeptical view of life. Or (as the film suggests) am I wrong in assuming the “negative” emotions are actually negative?
Coming Home (China) 3.5 Zhang Yimou returns to form (sort of), with another tragedy starring Gong Li. The political implications of this film may have been much more profound that the Chinese censors assumed.
Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker’s Apocalypse (US) 3.5 As time goes by my appreciation for Apocalypse Now keeps increasing. The highlights of this documentary (directed by Coppola’s wife) were the clips from the 1979 film. I had forgotten about all the turmoil, such as Martin Sheen having a heart attack. And BTW, Sheen’s performance is superb, and underrated in a film with more famous actors—Coppola has the ability to get the best out of actors.
The Assassin (Taiwan/China) 3.5 Hou Hsiao Hsien directed an “action” film. Naturally there is very little action. But the film is a feast for the eyes.
Hitchcock/Truffaut (US/French) 3.5 The best parts were the in depth coverage of Psycho and Vertigo (my favorite film, forget what I said above). When I haven’t seen a Hitchcock film for a while they begin to seem like light entertainment in my memory. Seeing the clips jolted me into recalling how revolutionary they actually were. Some great clips from the underrated Sabotage, a filmed based on Conrad’s Secret Agent, and one of the few films to do justice to a great work of literature. Even a few good clips from Topaz, a film I hadn’t seen since I was young, and considered a weaker film. It’s ironic that Hitchcock stopped producing great art at almost exactly the moment he became recognized as a great artist. The coverage of his silent work was (unfortunately) rushed.
Kumiko, the Treasure Hunter (Japan/US) 3.4 Directed by a Westerner, and yet the movie has a very Japanese feel. Nothing special, but I enjoyed this film.
The French Connection (US, 1971) 3.4 A bit disappointing the second time around. Was there ever a bigger screw-up by film critics in the 1970s than rating The French Connection ahead of Sorcerer, which is a far superior film. But TFC wins the Best Picture Oscar and Sorcerer is forgotten. New York has never looked more run down.
Act of Violence (US, 1948) 3.4 As I get older I am increasing drawn to film noir from the late 1940s and 1950s, perhaps because as each year goes by it seems more and more like another world. One I was born into, but is now long gone.
The State of Things (German, 1982) 3.4 A Wim Wenders film about the making of a film. Or perhaps a nightmare where all attempts to complete the film are futile.
Tokyo-Ga (German, 1984) 3.3 Wenders searches for signs of Ozu in modern Tokyo. The film begins with the voice-over: “If there were still sanctuaries in our century . . . if there was something like a holy treasure of cinema, for me, that would be the work of Japanese director Yasujira Ozu.” Like Hearts of Darkness and Hitchcock/Truffaut, best when showing clips of the original.
Ex Machina (US) 3.3 Better than the average, but not as good as something like “Her.” The basic problem is that the ideas in the film are not as interesting as the director seems to assume. Still, the first 3/4th of the film held my interest.
Mad Max 4 (Australia) 3.3 I really enjoyed the first two films in this series. I suppose this was just as good, but as I get older I tend to lose interest in non-stop action.
The Tales of Hoffman (British) 3.3 Michael Powell films are always worth seeing, although this certainly isn’t my favorite. Very colorful for 1951.
Bridge of Spies (US) 3.3 Spielberg is a very talented filmmaker, but a bit too conservative (aesthetically, not politically) for my taste. It has many of the pluses and minuses that you expect from a Spielberg film. But the performance of the actor playing the Russian spy is outstanding, and almost single-handedly carries the film.
The Goalie’s Anxiety at the Penalty Kick/Alice in the Cities/Kings of the Road (German) 3.3 Three early Wim Wenders films from the 1970s. Each was a little bit better than the one before (say 3.2, 3.3 and 3.4) His next film “The American Friend”, was the breakthrough for Wenders, and is one of my favorite German films.
American Sniper (US) 3.3 The debate over the politics is a big yawn. It’s a movie, and certainly not “pro-war.” Not one of Eastwood’s best, but fairly engrossing.
Mr. Six (China) 3.2 A film about the generation gap among Beijingers.
Stars Wars (US) 3.2 Forget the rating I assigned, the film is essentially unreviewable. On a technical level everything seems right. Fine acting, good effects, a story very similar to the first couple films. So why does it lack the magic of the first two? I’m not sure:
- Maybe I’m too old. In that case you’d want to ask younger viewers.
- Maybe it’s not original enough. In that case you’d want to ask people who didn’t see the first few films.
- Maybe too much chronological time has gone by, and the special effects no longer seem impressive.
- Maybe it’s too full of stuff going on, lacking moments where the film would take a breath, create a sense of awe.
- Maybe the appearance of other planets is too Earth-like, lacking the mystery of visionary sci-fi.
All I know is that the director (JJ Abrams) is no Stanley Kubrick. I was never really immersed in the film, rather I was watching it as an outsider. Don’t get me wrong, I also noticed many of the things the critics were impressed by, but a few days later the film no longer resonated with me. (I should add that I liked the first two films a lot, and the other 4 were a fairly pleasant way to pass the time. But I haven’t seen them for years, and am not a Star Wars junkie, so my opinion is pretty worthless.)
Tigrero: A Film That Was Never Made (Brazilian/Finnish 3.2) A 1994 documentary by Kaurismaki, where Jim Jarmusch interviews Sam Fuller about an unrealized film project that was supposed to be produced in the Amazon rain forest, using native tribes. Forty years later Fuller returns, and the highlight of the film is when he shows some film clips to the same tribe–how they used to live 40 years ago. It’s hard not to be moved.
The Hateful Eight (US) 3.2 The first half was very amusing and enjoyable, but after intermission it became a long slog through multiple bloodbaths. I lost interest. Tarantino’s weakest film (and I’m a big fan of his films).
Mission Impossible: Rogue Nation. (US) 3.0 The second half of the film was actually pretty decent. Of course it was still an utterly forgettable piece of Hollywood fluff. Tom Cruise may be losing his edge; he no longer seems to have that aura.
Love and Mercy (US) 2.9 As a drama it’s not all that impressive, but if viewed as a documentary it was kind of interesting.
Mockingjay, Part 2. (US) 2.8 I’m too old for this sort of film.
Shanghai (China, 2010) 2.8 Wonderful actors and nice cinematography, but a very lame effort by the director. See it for Gong Li, Chow Yun-fat and Ken Watanabe (Plus John Cusack, the “star”). Or better yet, don’t bother.
Spectre (UK) 2.8 Lots of sound and fury, signifying nothing. Some of the individual scenes were handsomely filmed, but otherwise utterly forgettable.
The New Rijksmuseum (Dutch) 2.8 More pictures! Show more pictures in the film, and also show more in the actual museum, (which somehow shrank after a $500 million renovation.) Depressing.
The Left Ear (China) 2.5 Routine coming-of-age drama. If you want something in that genre, see Summer Palace.
Goodbye to Language (French) 2.0 I never really cared about anything in this Godard film. In 3-D. It probably went over my head.
On TV our whole family watched the entire Twin Peaks on Blue-ray, which was even better than the original. My all-time favorite TV show (especially the parts filmed by Lynch, as you’d expect). Episode 1 is a masterpiece. After Twin Peaks I tried Breaking Bad, but gave up after the first two episodes. I just can’t get interested in TV, except for a few comedies. TV is mostly about people, which tend to bore me. I’m interested in visual images. That’s why I like film better.
I no longer have much time to read books, but did read a few. In social science I read the Hive Mind, which I liked a lot, and The Moral Foundation of Economic Behavior, which had some very interesting ideas. For pleasure I read lots of books that were loosely related to Japan, including as Seiobo There Below, Glimpses of Unfamiliar Japan, Kissing the Mask, and Eleven Dark Tales. Among other books my favorites were Bartleby & Co. by Enrique Vila-Matas, and The Lycian Shore by Freya Stark. It was my first book by each author, but I’ll certainly read more. And of course Knausgaard, who I can’t get enough of. I love travel writing, and Shadows of the Silk Road was another masterpiece by Colin Thubron. Biggest disappointment was Ghost Train to the Eastern Star. What once was a lovable curmudgeon has turned into a grouchy bigot. I also read a few books by R.L. Stevenson that I’d never read before (The Wrecker, The Wrong Box, and the Ebb Tide.) My vision of retirement has always been to move someplace hot, and sit out on a patio reading (or re-reading) 19th century Anglo-American books (Stevenson, Melville, Conrad, Hawthorne, Kipling, Chesterton, etc.) That’s all I want to do.