Films Watched and Lessons learned
According to my Facebook these are the films I have seen for the first time over the past 100 days. One of my favorite teachers told me to keep a log of all the films I see and try to identify my viewing patterns. I have seen about 104 films which makes it about one a day which isn’t bad. Earlier I used to watch 3 a day but that was coz it was winter and NY was freezing and wet. The films are in the order of most recent to oldest.
Sorry for the nasty alignment.
Nomad the Warrior 1
Things we lost in the fire 5
The Man from Earth 5
Rendition 3
Ghosts of Citi Soleil 5
Goal 2:Living the Dream 2
Man on Fire 4.5
Before the Devil knows you’re Dead 5
I’m not There 5
I am Legend 2.5
The Invasion 1
Charlie Wilson’s War 3
Johnny Gaddar 4
Rise of the Footsoldier 3.5
Taare Zameen Par 5
Don’t Come Knocking 2
Two Lane Blacktop 5
Bad Education 3
Ichi the Killer (Anime) 5
Unleashed 3.5
No Country for Old Men 5
The Kite Runner 5
Surf’s Up 2
Chak de India 5
A Single Girl 4.5
It’s all gone Pete Tong 4.5
Sunflower 3
The Scent of Green Papaya 5
An Affair of Love 4.5
5×2 4
Destricted 1
Immoral Tales 1
The River King 3.5
My Life without Me 4.5
The Happiness of the Katakuris 4.5
Nobody Knows 4.5
She and her Cat 5
Ocean’s Thirteen 3.5
Scenes of a Sexual Nature 2
Closer 5
Invisible Waves 4.5
Shadowboxer 3
The Boys of St Vincent 4
Peaceful Warrior 1
Fist of the North Star 1
DarkBlueAlmostBlack 4.5
Heimat 5
Millenium Mambo 5
Foreign Land 4.5
December Boys 4.5
Private Fears in Public Places 3.5
Short Sharp Sock 4.5
Humanite 4
Angels of the Universe 5
Dirty Pretty Things 4.5
Walk on Water 4
Twentynine Palms 4
Deja Vu 4
When the Leeves Broke 5
Tale of an Osaka Love Thief 5
Catch a Fire 3.5
Mysterious Skin 5
The Lives of Others 5
Dhan Dhana Dhan Goal 3
Japanese Story 5
I Stand Alone 1
No Reservations 2
Shot Through the Heart 5
The Good German 3.5
Hard Candy 4.5
Fur 4
Bangkok Dangerous 4.5
Om Shanti Om 2
Open your Eyes 5
No Smoking 3
The Tiger’s Tail 3
Coal Miner’s Daughter 4.5
Khartoum 4
April Snow 3.5
O Jerusalem 3
Save the Green Planet 4
The Reflecting Skin 5
Head-On 5
Jaan-e-Mann 4
Bon Cop, Bad Cop 4
The Longest Yard 4
The Year my Parents went on Vacation 5
I am a Sex Addict 3
Bury my Heart at Wounded Knee 5
Tony Takitani 5
Dark Blue 3
Stardust 4.5
Reds 5
Three Times 5
Frazetta - Painting with Fire 3.5
American Gangster 5
The Piano Tuner of Earthquakes 5
The Devil’s Backbone 5
Tango 5
To Each His Cinema 4
Goya in Bordeaux 4.5
Days of Glory 4
War 1
The films have been rated on a scale of 1 to 5 with 1 being the minimum. I don’t claim to be a film critic so these ratings are highly personal and subjective. In some cases I tend to disagree with the general consensus which I think is a healthy sign.
The observations I make about my viewing habits in retrospect are :-
1) I don’t seem to watch a lot of comedy which is strange.
2) I don’t watch a lot of Hindi Films which is very strange.
3) I love to watch Indie, Arthouse and Foreign Films
4) I don’t tend to enjoy mainstream Hollywood films that much.
5) I absolutely enjoy edgy films which have the personal stamp of the filmmaker
6) I really enjoy well made films which try to depict the complexities of human behavior.
7) I hate to watch preachy films with a social message which do so in ham-fisted manner
Most of the films I enjoy the most have a very strong visual element which is expected.
9) Unconventional narrative structures really excite me.
Please feel free to add any questions, comments, suggestions etc etc.
We are open all week 
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I like that, nice analysis and I thought only we analyse stock
u didnt find Khartoum racist or ham handed or preachy?
@Harsha
Know Thyself
@Papai
Oddly enough no. Probably because Im have no clue about the Sudan in the 18th Century. Also if I remember correctly they did portray the British as calculating and self serving so I don’t think there was an attempt to glorify them. If they were my hackles would have been raised instantly.
Though Olivier’s shoe polish makeup was quite funny and very mildly offensive but I’m willing to chalk that to the paucity of ethnic actors at the time.
jaan-e-maan greater than no smoking !? this is really debatable..
anyways i ditto with you..i seem to watch art-house etc,less comedy and holly wood mainstream..
maybe i have some false belief that art house cinema is good cinema and a lot can be learned by watching it….
since borat, and khosla ka ghosla i haven’t seen one comedy i have liked…
i am struggling to watch dr strangelove…it hasnt made me laugh for 20 mins…
@Vivek
The ratings are totally subjective and need to be taken in context. I was pleasantly surprised by Jaan-e-Mann and kinda hoped for more from No Smoking.
I loved the use of theatrical lighting cues to signify emotions in Jaan-e-Maan. It was a new technique I hadn’t seen before so was quite impressed. Probably inspired by Storaro but innovative nonetheless.
I love the visual storytelling in No Smoking as well but the film itself was too intellectual for my level.
Very interesting mix of films there..am surprised with Deja vu at 4. agree with your thoughts on Jaan-e-man..pity it failed though.
Of all the unknown movies (which are many!) on the list i feel like watching “Goya in Bordeaux” just by the name..
@Sudhir
Ur uncanny dude. “Goya in Bordeaux” also has theatrical lighting cues and was shot by Storaro himself.
Why did I like Deja Vu ? Prob coz it was a date movie.
Nice, nice!!
Varied list for sure. One thing I noticed. Tony Scott’s movies are technically and visually amazing. I’m not an expert but I love his way of using those colors and somewhat gritty production designs. You gave Man on Fire and Deja Vu some high grades. I’ve only met a few people who really appreciate his work.
Is Nomad the Warrior that bad? I was expecting a lot from it ever since I saw the info and trailer at twitchfilm.com
Top of my films to watch from your list is The Man from Earth, O jerusalem, Save the Green Planet and Rendition.
2 film suggestions I would like to give since you mentioned that you watch edgy ones. One is Wayne Krame r’s Running Scared and the other is Ken Loach’s The Wind that Shakes the Barley. The latter is more dramtical in context. Oh, oh while I’m at it, Shane Meadow’s Dead Man’s Shoes is a nice pick. :d
Saad, I totally agree on The Wind that Shakes the Barley. What an amazing movie. I’m not really good in expressing what I like in particular about things. But TWTSTB just really worked for me. I like movies that deal with internal fights. There are 1 billion + 1 movies made on politics between different countries/religions but so few on differing ideologies between the ’same’ people.
Mithun, that’s a great list of movies watched actually. Almost reads like a recommendation list to me, considering I share your opinion on the movies I have managed to see from that list. Thanks.
And Jaan-e-man. Loved the movie. I think the director got it so perfectly right. To me, that was one of the few rare instances where I have actually seen experimentation in the Indian film industry. And for it to work so well is just a bonus. Imagine taking a story/theme that Bollywood prides itself on and completely doing your own thing with it.
And to think I expected nothing from it when I watched the promos.
Have you seen ‘The Lives of Others’? It’s a german film that I chanced upon recently.
I’m going all out recommending it.
hey Mithun…
a bit late for a welcome….
but good to have u here…
kite runner 5?!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Chele ! Eta ki chilo ? Tumi ki cinema dekheycho aar ogulo tomake keymon legeyche ! Why should your opinion or taste matter so much ? Eyrom post aabaar koro na kintu !
@Saad
Nomad is so bad it made my eyes water coz I was laughing so much. It’s got the shittiest script, acting and dialogs I have heard in a long long time.
The films was basically made in retaliation to Borat coz the Kazakh govt wanted to show that they are a serious filmmaking nation with a vibrant history. Dude the film cost 40 million and gross box office was 80 thousand dollars. Go figure :d
Thanks for the Running Scared tip. Barley and Dead Man’s Shoes are amongst my favorite films but they ain’t on the list coz I’d seen em before. Y
@Dal Fry
Barley is brilliant. I saw it at the IFC and I remember tearing up at the scene between the two brothers. Totally deserved the Palm d Or.
Lives of Others is in my opinion virtuoso filmmaking. It’s the only film I can remember watching in which a character who starts out as the antagonist becomes the protagonist by then end. The final scene in the bookstore is fucking amazing. Again totally deserved the Oscar. And to think it was the director’s debut film.
@Dpac
There is a way to be good again Dpac jan :d
What can I say ? I’m a sucker for foreshadowing and morally ambiguous characters.
@Playback
Sorry Dude but I can’t read/speak or write Bengali. Despite my moniker I’m a Bengali/Himachli
hybrid from Delhi. Please repost in English/Hindi/Punjabi
hmmmn…I was going to ask why there is no Bengali film in the list.
A bong who doesn’t understand bengali! :O I didn’t know such people existed but c’mon even I understand that much bengali.
@Neeraja
Haven’t you ever met any teetotaling Frenchmen? :d
But seriously I’ve gotten a lot of grief over the years for it. Lotsa people get really offended that I can’t speak the language esp with a really hardcore surname like Gangopadhyay. Most people in my family use the Ganguly variation but I stick to the uncut version.
Im actually sort of a black sheep / oddity for the predominantly Bengali crew on Parineeta and Eklavya. Pradeepda in particular was horrified. :d
Ohh so you are Mithun Gangopadhyay from Parineeta, eklavya whose all time favousite film is ‘Gattaca’?
We are in the same boat dude! My Marathi friends/family say similar things about my non-marathiness. I have watched more Bengali films, read more Bengali literature(translated) than Marathi!
But I spare junta from the effort of pronouncing/reading my hardcore surname
@Neeraja
It is I. :d
And the extra long name has its advantage when it stands out in the rolling credits.
jaan-e-maan gets 4??????????????????????/:):-?:-w[-(
thats rubbish….. absolute rubbish….
Aah the sweet joys of Freedom of Speech and the right to disagree. :d
Might I add I just saw “Gone Baby Gone” and I think it’s fucking brilliant. Next on the agenda is a Lukas Moodysson retrospective. Don’t you just love it when a film called “Fucking Amal” is changed to “Show me Love” ?
u n ur subjective interpretations of movies!!!!
gone baby gone is pathetic
@DPac
You found ‘Gone Baby Gone’ pathetic? :O
would you like to explain, why?
@Mithun
Let me join the club: Jaan-e-mann gets 4! :O
theatrical lighting cues or not…Jaan-e-mann getting 4 is beyond my sensibilities.
Also, Ocean’s thirteen 3.5?
@Dpac
Im surprised Casey Affleck wasn’t nominated in the Best Actor category. He beats Tommy Lee Jones hollow in Elah any day. Surprised you didn’t like it. It’s amazingly shot and has a wonderful script.
@Neeraja
J gets 4 coz of various reasons which Im not willing to disclose on an open forum. I liked the film and it’s cool if you didn’t. No big deal.
Unlike some people on this forum I believe that difference of opinion is a sign of a healthy democracy. Sure some of the old timers are nostalgic bout the emergency where you were told what to think. :d
Ocean’s 13 is repetitive, derivative and not really entertaining either. The actors seem to go through the motions but it’s a small price to pay if it allows Soderbergh to shoot his more personal and intimate films. Any revolution is much more effective from the inside than from the outside.
J gets 4 coz :)) ok! nothing funny about it but I just read it aloud. I always find chat-abbreviations funny.
I agree with you but what else do you expect on a post like this?
I found Ocean’s Thirteen maha-boring.
This has nothing to do with you rating Jaan-e-mann 4/5 but don’t you think stretching this ‘apna apna taste and opinion’ thing too far is a bit tricky? I mean, there has to be a line. A line which differentiates ummn say music from noise.
@Neeraja
Listen to this obscure piece from REM. It’s atonal, the guitars are detuned and even REM fans don’t like it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I8WGCg4aIYA
I happen to find it one of the most beautiful and stirring pieces of music I’ve ever heard. So what’s signal and what’s noise is open to interpretation.
I’m completely tone deaf so it makes it really hard for me to like music which doesn’t have a really strong rhythm yet there is absolutely no rhythm in this song. Im sure you will issue a fatwa on me but in my limited experience 2+2=4 isn’t always the case.
Cassey Affleck is brilliant in whatever he does. Esp Gone Baby Gone. He deserved a nomination. But it was a very good year at the movies.
But Tommy was great in Valley of Elah. That was a movie I didn’t wanna watch. Watched 2 months after recieving the DVD & was very happy with the direction Haggis took with the film. He went the opposite way from CRASH. Tommy had a brilliant act in NO COUNTRY also but they had to nominate Javier Bardem for that…so Tommy for Valley of Elah. Fine by me. I have become a Tommy lee Jones fan this year. Have you seen the film he directed?
The THREE BURIALS of Melquiades Estrada. Its a beautiful film.
Did you know he is a Harvard graduate? Al Gore was his roommate there.
Mithun, Neeraja..
i was just taking a digg at mithun and his ‘well i like it so go figure” ways
GBG is good.
Cassey is unlucky. bad luck and bad timing to come up with this in a year with a lot of great performances
this is the way the oscars work. you do well in a year and they give it to someone else. rest assured, he will win it next year for something mediocre.
exactly dabba
What’s wrong here?
Thought I’d update the list
Trade 4
Gone Baby Gone 5
Springsteen : Live in Dublin 5
Running Scared 3
The Hunting Party 4
Slaves of Hollywood 1
Cocaine Cowboys 3.5
Sweeney Todd 5
Cashback 4.5
Into the Wild 5
There will be Blood 5
Bodysong 5
Charlie 1
Young @ Heart 5
Elizabeth The Golden Age 3.5
A guide to recognizing your saints 2
Cronicas 3.5
Somersault 4.5
The Upside of Anger 4
Shanghai Kiss 4
Butterfly on a wheel 1
Amen 4.5
The Fog of War 5
I have never forgotten you 4.5