The Criterion Collection

[Al_The_Strange]

Glad I got my copy of Pierrot Le Fou when it was still in-print. Still haven't seen many other Godard films, but that is one I can tolerate.

Wasn't a fan of Alphaville though, sorry.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Glad I got my copy of Pierrot Le Fou when it was still in-print. Still haven't seen many other Godard films, but that is one I can tolerate.

Wasn't a fan of Alphaville though, sorry.

[ravenus]

Originally Posted by bwdowiak

I pulled the trigger on a blind buy of My Neighbor Totoro this past summer. I still haven't seen it. The only anime film I have seen is Grave of the Fireflies and that was very good. Cool to hear that so many people love Totoro. Like other films I seek out, I'm hoping this is something I can share w/ my son when he gets a little older.

From what I've read on the internet, Totoro was shown as a double bill with GotF, as a happy antidote to the immense sadness induced by that film. Unless your child is too young to watch movies as such (less than 4-5 years?), you should be able to watch it with him.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by iScottie

Magnolia and Hard Eight wave hello.

Hard Eight almost never gets any love.

[Al_The_Strange]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

[Show spoiler]

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by Al_The_Strange

Yeah you better run!

...COWARDDDDD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[AaronJ]

Top Five Godard Films is very, very difficult. He's had multiple distinct eras to his career. Actually, I'm reading "Everything Is Cinema" right now (due to suggestions in this very thread, in fact), and he says in the Preface that he will eventually argue that his modern period is even stronger than what he did in the 60s. I find that hard to believe, but I will be quite interested to read the argument!

Anyways. For me, these would be my Top 5:

1. Contempt (also #1 or #2 -- goes back and forth with Three Colors: Red) for best picture of all-time, period.

2. Breathless

-- After those two, I'm not going to number them.

Vivre sa vie

Band of Outsiders

Alphaville


But there's so much of his work that, while many consider inaccessible or just plain frustrating, I adore. Weekend is a perfect example. Talk about a love-it-or-hate-it movie! I am 100% sure that I've never come across someone who thought that Weekend was "OK."

Then you have much of his modern work, a good amount of which is made up by shorts and video. Many of these (of the ones that I've seen, anyways) are didactic, experimental, or ... well, something else.

But I don't think you can really go wrong with any of his films from the 60s up to Weekend. Then things ... change.

[Ray Jackson]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Top Five Godard Films is very, very difficult. He's had multiple distinct eras to his career. Actually, I'm reading "Everything Is Cinema" right now (due to suggestions in this very thread, in fact), and he says in the Preface that he will eventually argue that his modern period is even stronger than what he did in the 60s. I find that hard to believe, but I will be quite interested to read the argument!

Anyways. For me, these would be my Top 5:

1. Contempt (also #1 or #2 -- goes back and forth with Three Colors: Red) for best picture of all-time, period.

2. Breathless

-- After those two, I'm not going to number them.

Vivre sa vie

Band of Outsiders

Alphaville


But there's so much of his work that, while many consider inaccessible or just plain frustrating, I adore. Weekend is a perfect example. Talk about a love-it-or-hate-it movie! I am 100% sure that I've never come across someone who thought that Weekend was "OK."

Then you have much of his modern work, a good amount of which is made up by shorts and video. Many of these (of the ones that I've seen, anyways) are didactic, experimental, or ... well, something else.

But I don't think you can really go wrong with any of his films from the 60s up to Weekend. Then things ... change.

Have you seen Masculine Feminine?

...that one's great.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Have you seen Masculine Feminine?

...that one's great.

Absolutely. I own it on DVD in fact along with A Woman is a Woman.

[pedromvu]

Here is the list I made based on the They Shoot Pictures list on living directors, I know this is wrong in many ways but I still thought would be fun, I did 3 top 5 lists based on different factors:

Top 5 based on amount of films in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie.

1-Jean-Luc Godard(15)
2-Martin Scorsese(9)
3-David Lynch(9)
4-Steven Spielberg(8)
5-Woody Allen(8)

Top 5 based on rank of his top 4 (4 is the minimun number of films in the list I used to add a director)

1-Francis Ford Coppola
2-Jean-Luc Godard
3-Martin Scorsese
4-Steven Spielberg
5-David Lynch

Top 5 based on ratio of films in list vs total output (feature length films only, no documentaries or made for TV, I know it's not fair since some of those are on the list, but just to make it easier)

1-David Lynch(9/11) 81.81% (even counting that Rabbits POS)
2-James Cameron(5/8) 62.5% (would be higher if not for Piranha 2)
3-Terrence Malick(4/7) 57.14%
4-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7) 57.14%
5-Wong Kar-wai(5/10) 50%

And here is the complete list based on amount of movies in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie (with a minimum of 4 titles in the list):

[Show spoiler]1-Jean-Luc Godard(15/42)
2-Martin Scorsese(9/23)
3-David Lynch(9/11)
4-Steven Spielberg(8/29)
5-Woody Allen(8/45)
6-Abbas Kiarostami(7/16)
7-Coen Brothers(7/16)
8-Hou Hsiao-hsien(6/19)
9-Roman Polanski(6/20)
10-Werner Herzog(6/18)
11-Francis Ford Coppola(5/26)
12-Wong Kar-wai(5/10)
13-Lars Von Trier(5/14)
14-James Cameron(5/8)
15-Michael Haneke(5/11)
16-Terrence Malick(4/7)
17-Wim Wenders(4/22)
18-Bernardo Bertolucci(4/16)
19-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7)
20-Milos Forman(4/13)
21-David Cronenberg(4/21)
22-Apichatpong Weerasethakul(4/8)
23-Agnes Varda(4/12)
24-Nicolas Roeg(4/13)
25-Zhang Yimou(4/20)

[Purplenoon]

Originally Posted by Ray Jackson

Haven't seen Hard Eight.

Didn't really like Magnolia.

Too over the top imo.

The raining frogs scene is one of the most ridiculous scenes I've seen in a movie.

...don't hate me.

Not that it really matters, but the "raining frogs scene" actually happened. I remember reading about it. A typhoon swept them up off some island in the South Pacific and deposited them in LA. It was an amazing scene, especially if you had seen it knowing it was a recreation. Great flick too imo.

[Edward J Grug III]

Originally Posted by pedromvu

Here is the list I made based on the They Shoot Pictures list on living directors, I know this is wrong in many ways but I still thought would be fun, I did 3 top 5 lists based on different factors:

Top 5 based on amount of films in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie.

1-Jean-Luc Godard(15)
2-Martin Scorsese(9)
3-David Lynch(9)
4-Steven Spielberg(8)
5-Woody Allen(8)

Top 5 based on rank of his top 4 (4 is the minimun number of films in the list I used to add a director)

1-Francis Ford Coppola
2-Jean-Luc Godard
3-Martin Scorsese
4-Steven Spielberg
5-David Lynch

Top 5 based on ratio of films in list vs total output (feature length films only, no documentaries or made for TV, I know it's not fair since some of those are on the list, but just to make it easier)

1-David Lynch(9/11) 81.81% (even counting that Rabbits POS)
2-James Cameron(5/8) 62.5% (would be higher if not for Piranha 2)
3-Terrence Malick(4/7) 57.14%
4-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7) 57.14%
5-Wong Kar-wai(5/10) 50%

And here is the complete list based on amount of movies in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie (with a minimum of 4 titles in the list):

[Show spoiler]1-Jean-Luc Godard(15/42)
2-Martin Scorsese(9/23)
3-David Lynch(9/11)
4-Steven Spielberg(8/29)
5-Woody Allen(8/45)
6-Abbas Kiarostami(7/16)
7-Coen Brothers(7/16)
8-Hou Hsiao-hsien(6/19)
9-Roman Polanski(6/20)
10-Werner Herzog(6/18)
11-Francis Ford Coppola(5/26)
12-Wong Kar-wai(5/10)
13-Lars Von Trier(5/14)
14-James Cameron(5/8)
15-Michael Haneke(5/11)
16-Terrence Malick(4/7)
17-Wim Wenders(4/22)
18-Bernardo Bertolucci(4/16)
19-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7)
20-Milos Forman(4/13)
21-David Cronenberg(4/21)
22-Apichatpong Weerasethakul(4/8)
23-Agnes Varda(4/12)
24-Nicolas Roeg(4/13)
25-Zhang Yimou(4/20)

Very interesting!

[AaronJ]

Hmm. Best living directors. Tough for me to do when I haven't, for instance, seen a single picture by Hou Hsiao-Hsien. But here are a number that have had the most impact on me. Also, these are in no order, other than Godard at the top. That seems beyond question.

Jean-Luc Godard

David Lynch

David Fincher

Terrence Malick

Woody Allen

Sofia Coppola

Wong Kar-Wai

Steven Soderbergh

Martin Scorcese

Francis Ford Coppola

Lars Von Trier

Spike Jonze

Paul Thomas Anderson

Werner Herzog

Christopher Nolan

Quentin Tarantino


For me, off the top of my head, that's it.

ETA: Oh, and I'd add Jonathon Glazer if he had made more than three movies -- all of which were kickass, by the way. But jeez, man. Get to work!

[Sifox211]

Originally Posted by adamhopelies

There's a store in London that specialises in Totoro merchandise. It's a strange, magical place. Totoro ranks as one of my favourite Ghibli films, alongside Spirited Away, but I'd probably have to go with The Wind Rises as their outright best. That absolutely broke me.

The Wind Rises is a magnificent film. Where is this store in London? I think I need to visit it

Originally Posted by filmmusic

... Also, 5 centimeters per second, Makoto Shinkai's masterpiece... This could be trully a Criterion material release!

I've had this on my rental list for years and now they've relegated it to the "we can't get it anymore" list - sounds like I might need to buy a copy.

Originally Posted by pedromvu

Here is the list I made based on the They Shoot Pictures list on living directors, I know this is wrong in many ways but I still thought would be fun, I did 3 top 5 lists based on different factors:

[Show spoiler]Top 5 based on amount of films in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie.

1-Jean-Luc Godard(15)
2-Martin Scorsese(9)
3-David Lynch(9)
4-Steven Spielberg(8)
5-Woody Allen(8)

Top 5 based on rank of his top 4 (4 is the minimun number of films in the list I used to add a director)

1-Francis Ford Coppola
2-Jean-Luc Godard
3-Martin Scorsese
4-Steven Spielberg
5-David Lynch

Top 5 based on ratio of films in list vs total output (feature length films only, no documentaries or made for TV, I know it's not fair since some of those are on the list, but just to make it easier)

1-David Lynch(9/11) 81.81% (even counting that Rabbits POS)
2-James Cameron(5/8) 62.5% (would be higher if not for Piranha 2)
3-Terrence Malick(4/7) 57.14%
4-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7) 57.14%
5-Wong Kar-wai(5/10) 50%

And here is the complete list based on amount of movies in top 1000, followed by rank of his movies were it is a tie (with a minimum of 4 titles in the list):

[Show spoiler]1-Jean-Luc Godard(15/42)
2-Martin Scorsese(9/23)
3-David Lynch(9/11)
4-Steven Spielberg(8/29)
5-Woody Allen(8/45)
6-Abbas Kiarostami(7/16)
7-Coen Brothers(7/16)
8-Hou Hsiao-hsien(6/19)
9-Roman Polanski(6/20)
10-Werner Herzog(6/18)
11-Francis Ford Coppola(5/26)
12-Wong Kar-wai(5/10)
13-Lars Von Trier(5/14)
14-James Cameron(5/8)
15-Michael Haneke(5/11)
16-Terrence Malick(4/7)
17-Wim Wenders(4/22)
18-Bernardo Bertolucci(4/16)
19-Paul Thomas Anderson(4/7)
20-Milos Forman(4/13)
21-David Cronenberg(4/21)
22-Apichatpong Weerasethakul(4/8)
23-Agnes Varda(4/12)
24-Nicolas Roeg(4/13)
25-Zhang Yimou(4/20)

Nice work - I'm out of thanks for today, so - thanks!

[filmmusic]

Originally Posted by jw007

I consider The Piano possibly one of the greatest films ever made actually. It's a movie with one of the greatest scores (Michael Nyman) and most majestic cinematography (Stuart Dryburgh). I'd love this film to be in the Criterion Collection, I must say. It's almost the female version of Terrence Malick, but in some ways even better, with her woman's touch and elegance. It's so haunting, soooo haunting.

I thought it was a bit embarrasing for the Academy that they didn't nominate the music score!

it's one of my favourite films too. Still I remember the time I saw it at the theater..
I was 13-14 years old, and this was something new and different to me.
Perhaps my first contact with more artistic films.

I own the UK Bluray which is remastered with better detail and more extras, but I would prefer the non-teal colors of the US version, which is how I remember the film at the theater.

[Polaroid]

Originally Posted by AaronJ

Hmm. Best living directors. Tough for me to do when I haven't, for instance, seen a single picture by Hou Hsiao-Hsien. But here are a number that have had the most impact on me. Also, these are in no order, other than Godard at the top. That seems beyond question.

Jean-Luc Godard

David Lynch

David Fincher

Terrence Malick

Woody Allen

Sofia Coppola

Wong Kar-Wai

Steven Soderbergh

Martin Scorcese

Francis Ford Coppola

Lars Von Trier

Spike Jonze

Paul Thomas Anderson

Werner Herzog

Christopher Nolan

Quentin Tarantino


For me, off the top of my head, that's it.

ETA: Oh, and I'd add Jonathon Glazer if he had made more than three movies -- all of which were kickass, by the way. But jeez, man. Get to work!

I'd add have to add Park Chan-wook, Lynne Ramsay, Xavier Dolan, and Godfrey Reggio.

[filmmusic]

Originally Posted by Sifox211

I've had this on my rental list for years and now they've relegated it to the "we can't get it anymore" list - sounds like I might need to buy a copy.

Well, the complete film is on youtube in HD with English subtitles if you want to check it there..

[I KEEL YOU]

Anyone know what place Uwe Boll came in?

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by Polaroid

I'd add have to add Park Chan-Wook, Lynne Ramsay, Xavier Dolan.

Yeah, like I said there are a number of filmmakers whose work I am just not familiar with, either at all or enough.

I also forgot Richard Linklater.

It's late, and I've been drinking beer all night. Mistakes are bound to happen.

[AaronJ]

Originally Posted by I KEEL YOU

Anyone know what place Uwe Boll came in?

Uwe Boll is so awesome that he can't even show up on a list. He's beyond that sort of thing. He's transcended this plane.