20 Favourite First-watches of 2013

I saw 256 films in 2013. 21 of them were re-watches. 49 of them were 2013 films and 20 from 2012 which I saw in first two months. 2012 movies got their due when I did my 'Best of' lists in March. 2013 movies will get theirs in this March. That leaves me with 166 films released previously that I watched for the first time this year. These are 20 of them that I liked the most:

20. The Breakfast Club(1985): A movie that is often called the best teenage film made ever. I don't know if I will call it best but it certainly was good one. First of all, I love the idea of choosing five characters from 5 different groups in high school giving representation to almost everyone in them. Secondly, and probably most important thing, there is nothing inorganic about the rest of the day these 5 completely different personalities spend with each other.

19. Nausicaa of the Valley of the Wind(1984): Film that helped Miyazaki launch Studio Ghibli and for that I will be forever indebted to this film. It also helps that I really like it too. You can easily see a lot of themes - Miyazaki's focus on environmentalist message, strong female protagonist, antagonist with redeeming qualities - that would go on to be trademark Studio Ghibli making this film just as great as what followed it.

18. True Romance(1993): I have seen all the films Tarantino directed already but I haven't seen any of those he just wrote. I still haven't got to the other two but this was a hell of a start. I am not much of a Tony Scott expert but if I didn't know QT just wrote this, I never would've known since QT is all over it. To Scott's credit, even though he had bunch of amazing characters, he assembled hell of a cast and got great performances out of them too.

17. Sweet Smell of Success(1957): This must have been the most quotable film I have seen last year. I knew about most of the popular ones before but my favourite was the one I had not heard before - "What do you think of the capital punishment, Senator? Because someone's just been sentenced to death". Overall, I actually didn't like it very much at first but it stuck with me for quite a while and more I thought about it, more I appreciated it.

16. Z(1969): I love political thrillers; they draw me in instantly. Z had an added advantage of it mirroring real events, another natural draw for me but it turned out to one of the best I have seen. What I like about it is sort of staged documentary feel of it. It doesn't add any melodrama to it but at the same time manages to keep viewer interested. It also doesn't muddle available data nor does it try to force it's own view.

15. The Long Goodbye(1973): It wasn't my first Altman(I had seen Gosford Park(2001) before) but it certainly was the one that made me go looking for his other films. I have been watching at least one film/month since then religiously. I haven't seen many noirs but it's got to be one of the best I have seen. Altman style almost makes it all look like he is taking a dig at it but at the same time being respectful by staying within the genre. And it all works!

14. It Happened One Night(1934): First and one of only three to win big five at Oscars. The more I think about this film, more I respect it. I mean, this movie is a simple, straight forward romantic comedy about two people on road who don't really want to be together. That's it! No heavy stuff. No deep implications, no high stakes at the end of line, no existential issues. But it's so good! Prime example of lightweight movie done properly being a good one.

13. From Here to Eternity(1953): It's one of those rare occasions where Academy seems to have got it right. Admittedly, there could have been better films this year though I haven't seen one and at least they didn't choose bad film which we all know that happens every so often. On another note, I have seen Burt Lancaster in 4-5 films and he has been the best part of every single one of them. I might be up to something, I guess!

12. Paris, Texas(1984): Like best films of year, if I did a list of my favourite scenes, Travis and Jane's conversation in her booth would easily top that list. No Contest there! There are very few things I have ever seen which are more beautifully devastating than that conversation. I love this film as a whole, I really do but that one scene has left such an impression on me that I scarcely remember anything else now.

11. The French Connection(1971): Out of 12 films I saw this year for Blind Spot series, 5 made this list. Friedkin's crime-action-thriller is considered one of the best BP winners and I certainly agree. What's more interesting is how many action films have done it since? or even crime films for that matter. Being what's now considered as one of the blockbuster-y films, it's great to see it still holding its candle among more drama oriented films.

10. Cool Hand Luke(1968): From the way this movie starts, I never in million years would have expected it to end the way it does. What's even more incredible is it isn't like you took couple of wrong turns and wound up somewhere unexpected. Now that I look back at it, I realize that all along it kept steering me little by little towards that end. But I was caught so unaware that the ending literally blew me.

9. Gentleman’s Agreement(1947): I want to watch every Best Picture winner there has ever been. Those who have already done it can attest to the fact that it means watching a lot of mediocre films, especially when you have seen most of what you really wanted to and are left with 'homework'. I still want to do this because that drive has led me to the discovery of this gem. It rekindled glimmer of hope in me that there could be another, just waiting for me to discover.

8. I Live in Fear(1955): After getting through most of Kurosawa's well known works, I continued getting deeper into his filmography. I still haven't seen a film I don't like but the best part of this exercise by far has been discovering gems like this. Toshiro Mifune is a great actor that often does great job with Kurosawa but he is at entirely different level here playing an old guy who wants his whole family to move to South America because he is paranoid of impending nuclear war.

7. Broadcast News(1987): Couple of years ago, I wasn't even aware of existence of this film and then suddenly I found so many people calling it one of their favourite films. Now that I have seen it, I can certainly see why as I have become one of them. It was pure joy watching this film. I don't remember the last time I had so much fun or felt such an excitement watching any film. Finally, at the risk of sounding little sadist, Holly Hunter crying is the funniest thing ever!

6. Mulholland Drive(2001): Even though I haven't seen most of David Lynch's stuff, I know it isn't up my alley. I've seen two of his most revered works from film and television and absolutely hate it. So it came as a definite surprise to me when I found myself completely engrossed into this one, despite having distinct Lynchian qualities to it. Sure, Naomi Watts giving phenomenal performance going from wide-eyed beauty to drugged up white trash proved a very useful gateway but I even found the story utterly fascinating.

5. Junebug(2005): I might have seen a few films before but Enchanted(2007) was the first film I noticed Amy Adams in. Like I was introduced to her in Enchanted, I am sure Junebug was her introduction to the world. In my books this woman can do no wrong. I love the variety she has brought in her roles ever since and it would be almost impossible for me to choose one role over the other. But if I have to choose, I think her work here is superior than anything she has done since. If anyone have any doubts, they only need to watch her hospital scene.

4. Through a Glass Darkly(1961): The thing with Bergman films is I have seen a good dozen of them and you would think I'd have gotten hang of them now. Truth is, even now I often leave with a feeling that I have seen something great; I just don't know what? If you can get to that 'what', they can be real memorable experiences(I will never forget how I felt after watching Wild Strawberries(1957) the first time). Through a Glass Darkly got very close to that and Harriet Anderson's phenomenal lead turn played significant part in it.

3. The Treasure of the Sierra Madre(1948): Humphrey Bogart was a great actor. He was a great Phillip Marlowe in The Big Sleep(1946), a wisecracking, hard drinking private eye successfully repelling the charms of femme fatales. He was probably even better in his first truly romantic part in Casablanca(1942), the greatest love story of all time. But nothing prepared for me for raw, manic, almost deranged performance he gives in this film. He is spectacular even at his most pathetic and Walter Huston was just a cherry on top.

2. Tokyo Story(1953): This completes the trifecta of films from Blind Spots series last year that made it to the near top of this list. This was my introduction to Ozu and there are not many things that have blown me away like this. What's even more impressive is Ozu does that by being subtle and understated. With that almost bare-bone of a story, he manages to get maximum emotional response out of you. It may not be the most pleasant experience watching this but all I can say is everyone needs to watch this.

1. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days(2007): First time I heard about Cristian Mungiu was after Beyond the Hills(2012) debuted at Cannes in 2012. I saw it earlier this year and quite liked it as well. Then I went back and got hold of his first film soon after. Saying I was even more impressed by that would be an understatement of the year! There is so much intensity in every frame of this film that it almost suffocates the viewer as much as the characters we see on screen are suffocating. I thought Anamaria Marinca was utterly fascinating in that role and would absolutely LOVE to see more of her work. And then there is that one image in this film that I desperately want to un-see. If ever you could do that!

Here is to hoping that 2014 will bring many more great discoveries just like those on this list!!

March Blind Spot: Through a Glass Darkly(1961)

I am kind of obsessive compulsive about making lists. Not that I make lists about everything but when I do, I have to make them in a certain way. Off course, that habit seeps into my movie watching as well. Even in a simple case like Wrapping up post that I do at the end of month comprising of that month's watching, I try to keep my movie watching as dispersed as possible. If you have noticed it, it wasn't a coincidence. I make sure it happens. Almost every month, you will find that batch to be a fair mixture of Classics and contemporaries, English and Foreign movies. I have purposely tried to break that pattern, just to see if I can and have returned to it every single time. When I made this list of 12 movies last December, off course, I made sure that I am including movies from every decade and give good weightage to foreign and classic films. Now when it comes to watching them, I have seen a classic and I have seen an English movie before. So its time for a Foreign movie - I am slave to my habit, I am telling you and when it comes to foreign movies, there is hardly a better choice than Bergman. 

First and foremost, what makes this a Blind Spot movie? In other words, why is this film essential?
I have already told you - Two Words, One Name, Ingmar Bergman. I have seen quite a few of so-called 'Essential' films from his armada. What still remains to be an unventured territory for me in his filmography is his Faith trilogy and his TV Mini-Series Scenes From a Marriage(1973). The reason I wanted to include a Bergman film in the Blind Spot line-up was to force myself get back to his remaining films and I could not think of another movie than first film of his trilogy. 

So, what is the story about?
Through a Glass Darkly(1961) chronicles 24 hours in the life of one Family of 4 people. Our main focus is on the sole woman in the group - Karin. Karin has a problem; she is schizophrenic and has been recently released from an institution. This seems to be their first gathering after she got out. Other three men in the group are her Brother Minus, who seems to have some some problems of his own, Her Husband Martin who has been told by Karin's therapist that there is a very good possibility that she may never recover from her disease completely and hence is always protective, sometimes maybe over-protective of her. However Her father, David, who has just returned from his trip to Switzerland, is the most interesting character of these men or the most intricate. As the movie progresses, we become privy to the various parts of their personalities where they keep their deepest secrets that they have never shared with anyone. Karin understands that her condition is complicated and serious. She also understands that this has made Martin overprotective and her father seems often not to be there. So she confides in her brother who, to her, is a stronger person since he can take any news and right away doesn't think there is something wrong about her. Minus himself seems to go through patches of anger and depression which he has kept secret from his father as well. 

Of all the relations in this movie, Karin and Minus have the most interesting interactions, probably because they both are the birds of similar feather and hence prefer to sail together. It makes their interaction much more direct, frank and honest. Karin and Martin are kind to each other and try to be as good as possible. But their relationship as Husband-Wife is almost non-existent. Karin has lost her desire due to her treatment and Martin's over-protectiveness seems to repel her further. Her father, again good and kind man but Martin hates the fact that David always seems to have some selfish, hidden agenda and Karin and especially Minus think of him as emotionally unavailable. He almost seems surprised when David listens to him in the end but David is the character that reveals himself the most in these twenty hours, for better or for the worse.

What did I think of it? What did I like the most about it and what didn't I like?
It's dark, it's melancholic and it's depressing but it's an Ingmar Bergman film. You don't exactly sign up for them expecting a comedy(You didn't, right?). Existential angst with a bit of religious back current that we see here is Ingmar Bergman at his best. I am not sure if I will call it Bergman's The Best, that might still be one of his 1957 double punch - Wild Strawberries or The Seventh Seal, but it sure is one of the best I have seen and I have to say Harriet Anderson and her Karin is probably the biggest reason. Even though she was my favourite part of Smiles of Summer Night(1955), probably Bergman's only lighter film, I think this is the best role I have seen her in. Yup, even better than Cries and Whisper(1972) though these two roles are a little similar. Anderson handles all the ups and downs of Karin really well and as you can expect, this is hell of a bumpy ride. Of the other three, another Bergman regular, Gunnar Bjornstrand was the one I liked the most. His David is a regular guy on the surface but is much complicated beneath. Bjornstrand brings all the complexities of David to surface with such honesty that you can't help getting hooked. Lars Passgard also did a good job in Minus' role but Max von Sydow was little annoying, especially in comparison to such fine performances otherwise.

I have no idea if the two films really have something more fundamental in common but from the very first minute, I was thinking about Sidney Lumet's Long Day's Journey into Night(1962). Similarities in the two movies are uncanny - both came at around the same time, both revolve around only 4 characters of one family with a woman at center, both chronicle single day in their life, take place at a single location and bring a lot of skeletons out of the closet. Both are dialogue heavy, character driven movies that boast some amazing performances with leading ladies heading from the front. Long Day's Journey into Night is much more explosive though whereas Through a Glass Darkly leaves lot of things unsaid and being a Bergman film has some religious undertones that Long Day's Journey lacks. 

After having seen it, do I agree with its 'essential' status? and why? 
Ingmar Bergman has been immensely influential; over the years he has become one of the directors that has inspired generations of directors that followed him. To be consideredas one of the best in his oeuvre itself is a huge compliment. Add to the fact that Bergman's Faith trilogy, or Silence Trilogy as some might want to call it, is often considered as one of the Best trilogies in world cinema. I have never been able to answer 'Which is your favourite trilogy' question because there are far too many options to choose from but if the other two are as good as this, I can see myself agreeing to it being one of the best. Apart from that, it is one of the two films that won him back-to-back Foreign Film Oscars, if that means anything to you. I do believe that for those who are even remotely interested in the works of Ingmar Bergman or want to get into it, this is one of the films that you do not want to miss.

Does it open few new doors for me? Does this inspire to watch any other movies?
The driving force behind getting Through a Glass Darkly onto Blind Spot line-up was to get back on Bergman bandwagon. By now, I have seen about 10 movies he directed. I am hoping this would be the push I need to get some of those remaining essentials, including the next two installments of Faith Trilogy Winter Light(1962) and The Silence(1963) along with others such as only Bergman and Bergman collaboration Autumn Sonata(1978) and The Virgin Springs(1956), off my list that I have always meant to but for some reason or the other, never got to. I would also like to check some of his work before 1957, the year he made two legendary films.