Cinema! (and more)

My 10 best moviewatching experiences of 2005

Since I so rarely see "new" movies, I did this last year in lieu of a "best of" list, and I thought I'd continue the tradition. Below is a list of my ten most enjoyable filmwatching experiences of the past year, regardless of format. The only condition is that they had to all be films I'd never previously seen.

1. Les Enfants du Paradis (Marcel Carne, 1945)
   
   Yet another classic I'd never seen... Weirdo that I am, I have a tendency to put off seeing highly-regarded films such as this, just so I have something to look forward too in coming years. I was not disappointed. This is, I suppose, the French Gone With the Wind, in the sense that it's huge, grand, epic, and magnificent. There's tremendous subtlety and pathos as well.



2. Masculin, féminin: 15 faits précis (Jean-Luc Godard, 1966)
   
   I say this with some reserve, but this is possibly the quintessential 60s film. Godard makes a big statement here, about youth culture, consumerism, and the naivete of radical politics, but he makes it entertaining as well.



3. Les Parapluies de Cherbourg (Jacques Demy, 1964)
   
   Take a trite plot, make a musical of it overlay a beautiful set and possibly the best score Michel Legrand ever composed, and top it off with Catherine Deneuve.



4. Five Easy Pieces (Bob Rafelson, 1970)
   
   Nicholson's best ever performance, and probably the best attempt by an American to capture the style of Ingmar Bergman. This film captures America, c. 1970 better than any other I've seen.



5. Rois et Reine (Arnaud Desplechin, 2004)
   
   Desplechin's masterpiece. It''l rip your guts out. I've given up trying to explain how or why this film is so great, so instead I just tell everyone to see it. Now.



6. Histoire(s) du Cinema (Jean-Luc Godard, 1989-1998)
   
   Forget what I wrote above. THIS is Godard's big statement, about damn near everything - art, literature, war, fascism, sex, and yes, even film.



7. Keane (Lodge Kerrigan, 2004)
   
   Maybe the best film by an American director made so far this decade. It's a shame it never gets screened anywhere.



8. Serenity (Joss Whedon, 2005)
   I'm an obsessive Whedon-phile, so this was a no-brainer. I actually saw it twice on the same day. As das put it, proof that entertainment doesn't have to be stupid. (I think that's what he said).



9. La Maison des bois (Maurice Pialat, 1971)
   
   A miniseries made for French TV, I caught it over two consecutive at the Cleveland Museum of Art. Yet more evidence that, in the hands of a great filmmaker, the miniseries format can be the most rewarding for the viewer.



10. Star Wars Episode 3: The Revenge of the Sith (George Lucas, 2005)
    
    Don't get me wrong - the movie sucked ass, but I was at least content in the knowledge I'd never have to sit through another shitty Star Wars movie for the rest of my life...