1001 Films that ARE worth watching. [start new threads for new films please]

[vrailaine]

As much as I love Harold and Maude, I honestly thought Being There was just as good, quirky, sweet and so on, if not better.

[sirhenry]

As much as I love Harold and Maude, I honestly thought Being There was just as good, quirky, sweet and so on, if not better.

Almost, but not quite. I only came in here for my annual Harold and Maude eulogy, but it looks like last year's had an effect. Watch it and you'll never try suicide again.

[Ja'moke]

Into The Wild, watched it last night, talked about it in the thread over in Picture Box, its definitely worth watching.

Also, Howl, about the Allen Ginsberg poem, and the obscenity trial that followed. Great performance by James Franco.

[Icehaven]

I just had an email from the website I rent films from about some promotion they're doing whereby you supposedly get a prize if you add 10 to your rental list, so remembering the existence of this thread I've picked 10 of the films mentioned here and duly added them. It turns out you have to add recent releases or TV shows for the promo, which is kind of crap, but I'm leaving the films from here on the list, so I'll let you know if any of them change my life.
And yes yes yes to those bigging up Harold and Maude, it's frequently my favourite film.

[madhair60]

Into The Wild, watched it last night, talked about it in the thread over in Picture Box, its definitely worth watching.

Argh rrrgehghaaa I fucking hate Into The Bastard Wild.  Been a while since I saw it, but it came close to ruining a holiday. 

_{I don't have any real reasons, as they would be very ill-remembered and probably inaccurate, but I recall there being some massive flaws in the main character that grated with me, and some shit contrivances and plot logic.  Never wanted to hit a main character as much in my life, and I'm not a violent man at all.}

[Small Man Big Horse]

Come on folks, I need more recommendations to fill my lonely, lonely nights.

The list so far:
1. Black Narcissus
2. Super Troopers
3. Mesrine
4. Hot Rod
5. In Bruges
6. The Big Hit
7. Helen
8. Three Colours: White
9. Three Colours: Red
10. Three Colours: Blue
11. A Single Man
12. Scott Pilgrim Vs The World
13. Midnight Run
14. Speed Racer
15. Four Lions
16. Babe 2: Pig In The City.
17. Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
18. Deep Water
19. The Glass Key
20. Primer
21. Fresh
22. The 'Burbs
23. National Lampoon's Loaded Weapon 1
24. The Adventures Of Buckaroo Banzai Across The 8th Dimension
25. Sleeper
26. Repo Man
27. Used Cars
28. Play It Again, Sam
29. The Pawnbroker and The Sergeant
30. Dark City
31. League Of Gentlemen
32. Straight to Hell
33. Wall Street
34. The Man in the White Suit
35. I Married A Witch
36. Teeth
37. Freeway
38. May
39. Inside
40. The Hudsucker Proxy
41. Harold and Maude
42. Before Sunrise
43. Before Sunset
44. Save The Green Planet
45. Synecdoche, New York
46. Up
47. Wall-E
48. The Incredibles
49. Finding Nemo
50. Toy Story
51. Toy Story 2
52. Toy Story 3
53. A Town Called Panic
54. Kafka
55. Better Off Dead
56. Election
57. Spirited Away
58. Wet Hot American Summer
59. Black Dynamite
60. Lonesome Jim
61. Being There
62. Into The Wild
63. Howl

64. Sleeping Dogs Lie - A rather charming romantic comedy from Bobcat Goldthwait which revolves around a couple, and whether they can survive the revelation of what one of them got up to in their college days. Yes, it contains one shocking scene, but otherwise this is suprisingly sweet stuff, and very very funny.

65. World's Greatest Dad - As it turns out I'm secretly Bobcat's greatest fan. And because it's another film which takes a quite disturbing premise and then does really interesting things with it. The film also contains Robin William's best performance in the past 20 or so years, is funny, heartwarming, and comes complete with an incredibly enjoyable ending.

66. Rushmore - Somehow we've got this far without mentioning Wes Anderson, which is just crazy, honey. I could list all of his films here but I'm too lazy to do so, but for me Rushmore is his best effort so far (just edging out The Royal Tenenbaums, which I also love). It's packed with great performances, superb dialogue, and is all a bit of a must see.

67. Tron - Legacy - Probably a bit of a controversial choice, this one, but I watched it last night and was surprised by how enjoyable it was. Perhaps it's best to go in with low expectations, as some of the dialogue is pretty ropey, but it looks amazing, Bridges has a whale of a time in two different roles, and, erm, well, as mainstream blockbusters go, it's fairly great stuff.

[Junglist]

Martyrs - Probably well known by most, and a love/hate film, but to me, its the best horror of recent times. Brutal beyond belief, with an underlying, odd, bleak 'story' to parallel the gore mentalness.

Boy A - Don't really need to write much about this, it just needs to be seen, as does:

Dear Zachary - Never have I cried so much at a film. Well apart from:

Dancer in the Dark - Wonderful, inventive, powerful. As close to perfection as I may find in cinema, barring Old Boy and the like.

TalhotBlond - The film Catfish wishes it was.

[SavageHedgehog]

65. World's Greatest Dad - As it turns out I'm secretly Bobcat's greatest fan.

Be careful or I'll prove my peerless Bobcat fandom by unironically adding Burgular to the list. I haven't done it. But I could

[holyzombiejesus]

The Last Picture Show. Beautifully shot, coming-of-age drama set in 1950s Texas directed by Peter Bogdanovich. I really love this film; the way it's filmed in black and white, Timothy Bpttoms' performance, even the title has that kind of faded, end of an era feel to it.

Tears Of The Black Tiger. Brilliantly stylized, over the top Thai film.

Gregory's Girl.

[small_world]

Have you watched Endihiran? Indian action/love/drama/sci-fi thing...  Managed to get an hour into it until my gf cried. I'll watch the rest on my own though, it was very good.

[Ralph Cifaretto]

This should get us closer

ALL Hal Hartley, Soderbergh, von Trier, Malick, Winterbottom, Breillat, Wong Kar Wai, Loach, Coen's. Sorry, you cant be a film fan and not watch every film these directors have made.

Individual films: Redbelt, Royal Tenenbaums, Glengarry Glen ROss, Adaptation, Lone Star, Atlantic City, if..., Nil by Mouth, Drowning by Numbers, Loneliness of Long Distance Runner, Local Hero, Someone to Watch over me, The Insider, Heat, Mccabe and Mrs Miller, Graduate, underground, Talk to her, Quatre cents coups, On the waterfront, streetcar named desire, Another woman, some Claire Denis (sorry I cant narrow it down further)

[Famous Mortimer]

Can I avoid about half of von Triers', please?

[SavageHedgehog]

I would say you could miss a couple of Soderbergh and Winterbottom's films and call yourself a film fan and still sleep at night too, but that's just me.

[Johnny Townmouse]

I'll happily take your rejected Von Trier's and swap you a handful of Coen Bros. films.

[Ginyard]

Shattered Glass  -  preferred it to The Social Network which I'd watched the night before.

[danyulx]

For what it's worth: here's my Top 10 Favourite films I listed on some other site a few years ago. I'm sure it's different now (I may have matured in areas, I doubt it), but feel free to add them to your list..

01 Bruce Robinson -- Withnail & I (1987)   
02 Harmony Korine -- Gummo (1997)   
03 Rainer Werner Fassbinder -- Berlin Alexanderplatz (1980)   
04 Pier Paolo Pasolini -- Salò o le 120 giornate di Sodoma (1975)   
05 Mike Leigh -- Naked (1993)   
06 David Lynch -- Eraserhead (1976)   
07 Peter Greenaway -- The Cook the Thief His Wife & Her Lover (1989)   
08 Werner Herzog -- Stroszek (1977)   
09 Gaspar Noé -- Irréversible (2002)   
10 Lars von Trier -- Dogville (2003)   

[Johnny Townmouse]

Your tastes are rather similar to mine, which makes me realise that I need to revisit some Fassbinder films. It's been a couple of decades since I watched them all in a depressing weekend splurge. Interesting to see that Salò is the oldest film in your list. Any love for Carol reed or Powell/Pressburger, French New Wave or German Expressionism/Italian Neo-realism? What about Kubrick, Kurosawa, Leone, Polanski, Roeg, Hitchcock and Tarkovsky? Not criticising, just genuinely interested. I appreciate you could only fit in 10 films.

As some who also adores Naked, I was wondering what you make of his other films?

[danyulx]

You'd need a good few weekends to get through all of Fassbinder's, and would indeed hang yourself at the end of it. He  openly admitted he was effectively making the same film over and over again, and seemed quite proud of the fact. Half of his films are a bit rubbish if you ask me.. but when he hits the mark he really does.

Here's two quote from him about filmmaking I love -

Every decent director has only one subject, and finally only makes the same film over and over again. My subject is the exploitability of feelings, whoever might be the one exploiting them. It never ends. It`s a permanent theme. Whether the state exploits patriotism, or whether in a couple relationship, one partner destroys the other.

I hope to build a house with my films. Some of them are the cellar, some are the walls, and some are the windows. But I hope in time there will be a house.

I like all of Mike Leigh's films from what I've seen, though Naked takes the biscuit. His first and almost-uknown (forgotten) film Bleak Moments is well worth a watch if you haven't seen it - it's pretty much the Mr. Benson (?) sketch from Jam protracted over an entire feature film, it's one of the most agonising films I've ever seen. Other than that, Meantime and High Hopes are two of his other greats I think (and I've a soft spot for Life is Sweet). Though they're all flawed and need a good editing, his films, even Naked.. well especially Naked.

Love pretty much all Tarkovsky's and Kubrick's films. Polanski and Roeg.. hit and miss to me, they've both made some right shite. Love Walkabout, Don't Look Now, Rosemary's Baby, The Tenant, and a few others. More for the list..

[danyulx]

If I were to draw up a new "Top 10 List" (which I won't) I'd definitely have to get a John Cassavetes film in there, I know that much, whose work I've only discovered over the last year or two..

Husbands, Minnie and Moskowitz, A Woman Under the Influence, The Killing of a Chinese Bookie, Opening Night - all fucking brilliant.

Check out this then for one of the funniest and best scenes in cinema history -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hIqSqbNuMTA

[Garam]

Cassavetes is the best. Read Cassavetes on Cassavetes, compiled by Ray Carney as soon as you can, even if you haven't seen any of his films. One of the greatest books I've ever read, fiction or non-fiction. Also, daryulx, watch Mikey and Nicky quick. An Elaine May film done in the Cassavetes style (indeed, Cassavetes being on set the whole time, he probably ended up directing a bit of it himself) starring Cass and Peter Falk. Most human gangster film in existence. His films are all heart. Even the ones about seedy strip-joint owners on the run from loan sharks. All heart, no flash, no trying to look cool.

[Johnny Townmouse]

You'd need a good few weekends to get through all of Fassbinder's, and would indeed hang yourself at the end of it. He  openly admitted he was effectively making the same film over and over again, and seemed quite proud of the fact. Half of his films are a bit rubbish if you ask me.. but when he hits the mark he really does.

I watched roughly a dozen of his films over a weekend after I was lent some video tapes by an odd dwarf film-buff I used to work with (different to the dwarf from Time bandits who owned my local video rental shop). It was invigorating but depressing as hell, and subsequently, for the reasons you give, all meld into one huge super-movie.

I like all of Mike Leigh's films from what I've seen, though Naked takes the biscuit. His first and almost-uknown (forgotten) film Bleak Moments is well worth a watch if you haven't seen it - it's pretty much the Mr. Benson (?) sketch from Jam protracted over an entire feature film, it's one of the most agonising films I've ever seen. Other than that, Meantime and High Hopes are two of his other greats I think (and I've a soft spot for Life is Sweet). Though they're all flawed and need a good editing, his films, even Naked.. well especially Naked.

I do think Naked is his best film by some way, and I agree that the other films you give are his strongest (I would add All or Nothing). I think the caricature nature of the characters in his films can make him a difficult director to enjoy, but Naked succeeds despite of this, not because of it. Johnny is the best character he has ever conjured/help to create.

[danyulx]

Funny you should say that, as I lent the very book from the library just last week. Will soon get cracking on it. 'Herzog on Herzog' is a great read from that series.. Hilarious.

I've seen all of Cassavetes' films now (even his two early "Hollywood" efforts, both quite good) and the only one that left me a bit of cold was his penultimate, 'Love Streams'. I've heard a lot of people describe it as his masterpiece.. I thought it was a bloody mess myself, and not a touch on the films I mentioned in the previous post, but an interesting mess nevertheless.'Gloria' and 'Big Trouble' are hardly brilliant, but a lot of fun.

Will definitely have to check out 'Mikey and Nicky', soon.

Re: 'Naked'. I think it would have been a much better film if the film focused exclusively on Johnny's odyssey through London, and the rubbish "subplot" with the landlord was fucked right off (a good half an hour or so of running time) perhaps, though I see what Leigh was trying to do - "parallelism" and that, but it falls flat on its arse. There's probably the greatest 90 minute film ever made within the 2 hour-odd running time.

[Johnny Townmouse]

I agree with you completely - I find myself incapable ot recommending it to people because of the awful Cartlidge/Landlord dynamic which sucks the realism out of the film. It becomes important only when Johnny starts to think that he is

Spoiler alert

his Dad, and also for the incredibly jarring and extremely disturbing jump-cut to him raping Cartlidge. It comes out of nowhere (in a sense).

[close]

Beyond that, they are unncessary. I would love for it to have been a kind of Ulysses thing, where Johnny is going on a episodic adventure through the parts of London that most people never see, or avoid.

One of the greatest endings to a film too, in my opinion. Not so much a climax as an extended shot that lets the visuals do the talking.

[Ralph Cifaretto]

Can I avoid about half of von Triers', please?

OK. Dont watch, The Kingdom, The Idiots, Boss of it All and Breaking the Waves.

[Ralph Cifaretto]

Shattered Glass  -  preferred it to The Social Network which I'd watched the night before.

Social Network quality.

[Ralph Cifaretto]

Forgot about Walkabout, add that.

[Ralph Cifaretto]

I would say you could miss a couple of Soderbergh and Winterbottom's films and call yourself a film fan and still sleep at night too, but that's just me.

OK. Miss off King of the Hill, The Underneath and Schizopolis. And miss off Jude, With or Without You and The Trip.

But then you'll always be wondering what you were missing. And HAVE to watch them.

[kidsick5000]

Shattered Glass  -  preferred it to The Social Network which I'd watched the night before.

The film that constantly makes you ask yourself the question: Is Hayden C really a good actor trapped by  subsequent poor scripts or was this him shooting his entire load of acting ability in one film?

[danyulx]

'Naked': definitely has one of the most perfect final scenes of any film, yeah. You can't whack a good ending - that puts a crafty bomb up the arse of all that came before.

Jesus christ.. have you ever seen the offical trailer, released at the time? Talk about bloody false advertising!.. The distributors must've went to a first screening and shit a brick. One of the most devastating lines in the whole film ("Yer look like m'mother..") presented as a gag, amongst everything else...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ttq8JHdujCg

[Sir Humphrey Appleby]

Withnail & I
Rosencranz and Guildenstern are dead
Four Rooms
Snatch
Made in Britain
Meantime
Rob Roy
Leon
Deadman (by Jim Jarmush)
Control
In the Loop (obviously)
Benny & Joon (been called gay by jocks for saying that in college)
Freddy Krueger stuff. They are some of my favourite films, but also I think they are good enough to be regarded as some of the best ever.