15 Film I Must Own - Pt 3

Least I forget some foreign favorites:

11) Amarcord (1973) – Fellini, Fellini, Fellini! How could I pull up a list of “must-haves” with at least one! (I own over a half dozen btw) When I recently upgraded to a Blu-Ray player this was the second disc I upgraded (see the next entry for the first)! This heartfelt memoir of the filmmaker’s hometown and family is so charming and affecting I dare anyone to say it isn’t the Maestro’s masterpiece. His meticulous recreation of place, his synthetic imagination, the music, the characters… How can you argue against it? Magali Noël, is ageless as the eternal Grandisca, Pupella Maggio and Armando Brancia as the filmmaker’s mother and father and the gorgeous Bruno Zanin, make Fellini’s past gorgeous, impeccable and heartfelt! A masterpiece!!

12) Topsy-Turvy (1999) – Mike Leigh is without doubt the renaissance of English Cinema. I have been watching this director for some time and I knew I had to include a film by him. My gut instinct was to go with “Secrets and Lies”, with Brenda Blethyn, Timothy Spall and Marianne Jean-Baptiste. But when I go to my DVD library, the very first film I updated to Blu-Ray was Leigh’s “Topsy-Turvy”. Leigh is an actors’ director if ever there was one. Most of his work is placed in the present or near distant past, so to undertake a serious piece of historical drama for this filmmaker was unconventional, at least. This amazing piece of history re-creates the moment in time when W. S. Gilbert (Jim Broadbent) and Sir Arthur Sullivan IAllan Corduner) come to a crossroads in their collaboration only to overcome the obstacles and produce, perhaps, their most endearing work, The Mikado. Period detail, incisive performances and love of the music helps the director to produce a monument to a faded empire. Hats off to the two stars as well as Leslie Manville as Gilbert’s stifled wife and Shirley Henderson.

13) Mon Oncle (1972) Of all the French masters, Jacque Tati is France’s pre-eminent director. A French Hitchcock with a comic bent and Welles’ misfortune. My early film memories have Tati tattooed all over them. It doesn’t really matter what “version” of this film you see (there was an “International” edition in the States), it’s a true synthesis of mise en scene. What the characters say is unimportant, the humor plays out on a simple pantomime level, but also rises above mere physical comedy to social commentary through its longing for a France that was rapidly disappearing. Mr. Hulot’s relatives and their comically cold house are consuming the land that Tati loves (by the time that Tati made “Playtime” Paris is a memory reflected in windows). Gorgeously shot and played it, it has some of the best performances by dogs in a film in the 20th Century!

14) Russian Ark (2002) – A technical marvel and a monument to a people and a culture that I will never see in my lifetime. Aleksandr Sokurov’s journey through time, space, and Russia’s Winter Palace and Hermitage is a testament to the long rich history of the country. With over 2000 actors and three orchestras, this seamless 100 minute journey was shot in one take over a 36 hour period (it took three tries to complete the film), utilizes historical characters that mingle with those in other eras and well as current times. The cinematography by Tilman Büttman is seamless, dizzying at moments, and allows the majesty of the building to unfold before the viewers eyes kaleidoscopicall! I’m sure serious Russian aficionados might find flaw in it, but I continue to find this film stunning. Do NOT miss the last twenty minutes of this film: they are luscious, amazing and unforgettable.

15) Grey Gardens (1975) – The Maysles Brothers (along with Ellen Hovde and Muffie Meyer) created an epic documentary when they wandered into the lives of two women, Edith Bouvier Beale and her daughter Edith (aka Little Edie). A study of a mother and daughter, famous and infamous, once high in society, by the mid-70’s forgotten by most everyone. Though shot on a “documentary budget” this little film provides more drama and “real life” than any Hollywood creation. Frightening, hilarious, sad and scary, the mother and daughter open up to the camera with a heartfelt desperation at real “actor” can only hope to achieve. A horrid musical and 2009 film adaptation by HBO pay poor homage to this steely eyed look into an American window. Perhaps the echt-reality show, it will always make you feel better about your life after watching it.