#150 Bob le Flambeur 1956 // France // Jean-Pierre Melville Criterion Collection (LINK) Bob le Flambeur is ended with an irony, a tease of “uselessness of effort” in which Jean-Pierre Melville particularly liked. It reminds of the human’s futility in the sense of fatalism, a view that probably stands against a gambler’s code of practice: they… Continue reading #150 Bob le Flambeur (1956)
#891 La poison 1951 // France // Sacha Guitry Criterion Collection (LINK) With viewing only four of his works in the 1930s, I find myself having a hard time in appreciating Sacha Guitry (the only film I kind of like is The Story of a Cheat). Perhaps I’m too cynical to get into the mood of… Continue reading #891 La poison (1951)
#20 Sid & Nancy 1986 // UK // Alex Cox Criterion Collection (LINK) Before delving into the intoxicating film Sid & Nancy, I had never heard of Sex Pistols, I have zero interest on punk rock, and I had no idea it’s indeed a biopic, or sort of inspiration from real events. The first thing the film… Continue reading #20 Sid & Nancy (1986)
#163 Hopscotch 1980 // USA // Ronald Neame Criterion Collection (LINK) Hopscotch is the parody of espionage film, the comic essence of the ugly reality of the intelligence agency of the so-called “global police,” and above all a political satire that is as relevant today as it had been forty years ago. Still the most important part… Continue reading #163 Hopscotch (1980)
#890 Meantime 1984 // UK // Mike Leigh Criterion Collection (LINK) Meantime, and quite a few Mike Leigh films, are good films that I find no enjoyment out of watching. Unlike the filthiness permeated in John Waters films or the torturing cruelty displayed in films by Michael Haneke, I am simply being annoyed by the Leigh’s… Continue reading #890 Meantime (1984)
#889 The Breaking Point 1950 // USA // Michael Curtiz Criterion Collection (LINK) The world is unforgiving and full of sins, I learnt that from watching the global news and film-noir, a genre defined by its dark atmosphere. Many film critics deduced rules of this particular genre like the shadowy dark city setting, the presence of… Continue reading #889 The Breaking Point (1950)
#398 Les Enfants Terribles 1950 // France // Jean-Pierre Melville Criterion Collection (LINK) Two Heads of the Same Coin There’s a famous quote from François Truffaut commenting on the filmic adaptation of Les Enfants Terribles in which he firmly asserted “Jean Cocteau’s best novel became Jean-Pierre Melville’s best film.” I haven’t read the original novel published in 1929 by the… Continue reading #398 Les Enfants Terribles (1950)
#541 The Night of the Hunter 1955 // USA // Charles Laughton Criterion Collection (LINK) A Hard World for Little Things A self-proclaimed preacher, with H.A.T.E. tattooed on his left hand knuckles and L.O.V.E. on the other, speaks to the Lord humbly while driving a stolen car. He confesses his confusion over the number of widows… Continue reading #541 The Night of the Hunter (1955)
#755 Le Silence de la Mer 1949 // France // Jean-Pierre Melville Criterion Collection (LINK) Resist Against All Odds The name of Jean-Pierre Melville has been strongly alluded to the “cool” style heist/gangster film in my mind that I almost forget his three-time ventures into war film. Indeed, excluding his first short film, Melville’s debut feature Le… Continue reading #755 Le Silence de la Mer (1949)
The Films in My Life (OnCriterion) 