31 January 2013

31/365 Wandâfuru raifu

Set at a way station between Heaven and Earth, the newly dead must select one defining memory to take with them to Heaven.

Cert: PG

UK Release: 1999

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0165078/?ref_=sr_1


30 January 2013

30/365 Politist, adjectiv

Crime and the law are examined in contemporary Romania, as a young police officer is reluctant to ruin the life of a teenager involved in a petty crime.

Cert: 12A

UK Release: 2010

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1337051/?ref_=sr_1


29 January 2013

29/365 También la lluvia

My favourite film of 2012 for my birthday :-) Drama and reality cross paths in this story of a film about exploitation of locals and Spanish conquest.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2012

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1422032/?ref_=sr_2


28 January 2013

28/365 Låt den rätte komma in

Swedish film which features a vampire girl, and a lonely boy but don't be fooled - it's not a horror film, and it's not actually about vampires.  It's much deeper than any of that.

PS, don't even think about watching the Hollywood remake :-)

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2009

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1139797/?ref_=sr_1

27 January 2013

27/365 Sukkar banat

Uplifting story which shares the lives and loves of a group of women who work and congregate in a beauty salon in Beirut.

Cert: PG

UK Release: 2008

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0825236/?ref_=sr_1


26 January 2013

26/365 Abre los Ojos

Remade by Hollywood as the Cruise/Cruz film Vanilla Sky, this original version is hugely superior and very, very clever.

Cert: 15

UK release: 2000

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0125659/?from_app=ios&mode=desktop


25 January 2013

25/365 El laberinto del fauno

Alternating between her unpleasant home life during the Spanish Civil War and a fantasy world, a young girl's experiences and attempts to escape them reflect Spain's turmoil and choices in the 1930s.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2006

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0457430/?ref_=sr_2


24 January 2013

24/365 Las Acacias

A quiet truck driver gives a ride to a young woman as a favour to his boss on the long journey from Paraguay to Buenos Aires. Very few words are spoken, but a relationship slowly develops between the two.

Absolutely charming.

Cert: 12A

UK Release: 2011

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1754078/?ref_=sr_2


23 January 2013

22 January 2013

22/365 Jean de Florette

Classic tale of a corrupt landowner who tries to put Gérard Dépardieu out of business. Follow-up to this is Manon des Sources.

Cert: PG

UK release: 1986

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091288/?from_app=ios&mode=desktop

21 January 2013

21/365 Monsieur Lazhar

Lovely story of an Algerian immigrant in Montreal who takes on a role as a substitute teacher following the suicide of a previous teacher, whilst keeping his own troubles hidden.

Cert: 12A

UK Release: 2012

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt2011971/


20 January 2013

20/365 Volver

Pedro Almodóvar directs Penélope Cruz, Carmen Maura and a host of his regular muses in a film which shared the Cannes prize for Best Actress with its entire female cast.

Cert: 15

UK release: 2006

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0441909/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


19 January 2013

19/365 Caché

Daniel Auteuil and Juliet Binoche's settled middle-class life is thrown into turmoil when they begin to receive video tapes from someone who has been secretly filming their family in their daily lives. Undertones of racism pervade this Michael Haneke-directed film.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2006

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0387898/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


18 January 2013

18/365 Partir

Kristen Scott Thomas is a bored, well-to-do housewife who falls passionately in lust with a builder working at her home. Her life will never be the same ...

Cert: 15

UK release: 2010

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1315962/


17 January 2013

17/365 Potiche

Trophy wife Catherine Deneuve ends up running her husband's umbrella factory while he recuperates. It's 1977, and women should be looking after the home, not the factory ...

Cert: 15

UK release: 2011

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1521848/


16 January 2013

16/365 Mýrin

If you like The Killing, I think you'll like this. Icelandic police thriller, in which a worn-out detective begins to find links between two deaths which occurred 30 years apart.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2008

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0805576/


15 January 2013

15/365 Ai no korîda

Highly controversial, and in some countries banned as it was regarded as too pornographic for the censors.  A story of sexual obsession in Japan in 1936, based on true events. Warning - it is very explicit.

Cert: 18

UK Release: 1991 (original Japanese release 1976)

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074102/

Note: The director, Nagisa Oshima, died today, which is why I chose this film. Read The Guardian's obituary.


14 January 2013

14/365 Gomorra

The violence and 'family ethics' of The Godfather, but based on real organised crime families of the Camorra in Naples. Based on a book by Roberto Saviano, who is now under constant police protection following death threats after the book was published.

Cert: 15

UK release: 2008

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0929425/


13 January 2013

13/365 Mesrine: L'ennemi public n°1

Second part of the Mesrine story, also featuring a mean Vincent Cassel. For the first part, see Mesrine: L'instinct de mort.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2009

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0411272/


12 January 2013

12/365 Mesrine: L'instinct de mort

A magnificent Vincent Cassel plays French gangster Jacques Mesrine in his early years. For a look at what happened after this, see Mesrine: L'ennemi public n°1.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2009

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1259014/


11 January 2013

11/365 Des hommes et des dieux

A group of monks in the mountains of North Africa must decide whether to accept protection from the army, or stay to face the threat of an Islamic fundamentalist group. Beautiful, contemplative, with a hint of menace.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2010

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1588337/?ref_=fn_al_tt_1


10 January 2013

10/365 Jamón, Jamón

A 16 year old Penelope Cruz and a not-much-older Javier Bardem in his underwear, directed by Bigas Luna.

Cert: 18

UK release: 1993

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0104545/



9 January 2013

9/365 35 Rhums

Gentle (or slow, opinions vary)  but insightful observation of the life of a widowed father and his student daughter. Also a good example of how not every Parisian is a skinny white woman in heels.

Cert: 12

UK Release: 2009

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1100048/


8 January 2013

8/365 Werckmeister harmóniák

Horror? Black Comedy? Allegory? One for the film purists; un film de Bela Tarr.

Cert: 12A

UK release: 2003

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0249241/


7 January 2013

7/365 L'enfer

Jealousy, paranoia and a whole load of red lipstick for Emmanuelle Béart and François Cluzet. Directed by Claude Chabrol.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 1994

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0109731/


6 January 2013

6/365 Nosferatu, eine Symphonie des Grauens

Allowed because, although silent, a) it's a German-made film, b) it's a total classic, and c) it's my list and I can do that :-)

Cert: PG

UK Release: Unknown (German release 1922)

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0013442/


5 January 2013

5/365 En Kongelig Affære

Completely absorbing film based on true life historical, political and social issues.

Cert: 15

UK Release: 2012

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1276419/


4 January 2013

4/365 Lola rennt

A total classic - Lola tries to help her boyfriend by running lots. Three times.

Cert: 15

UK release: 1999

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0130827/


3 January 2013

3/365 La Fille du Puisatier

1940s rural drama set in Provence, adapted from, directed by and starring Daniel Auteuil, from the novel by Marcel Pagnol.

Cert: PG

UK release: 2011

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1473063/


2 January 2013

2/365 Il Postino

A simple Italian postman learns to love poetry while delivering mail to Pablo Neruda. Quite lovely.

Cert: U

UK Release: 1995

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0110877/


1 January 2013

1/365 El secreto de sus ojos

Haunting, thrilling and romantic - a deserving Oscar winner.

Cert: 18

UK release: 2010

More info: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1305806/