A few recs that'll surely make my top ten and may need more of a plug than, say,
Apocalypse Now or
Stalker, though I expect they're on many radars/lists already:
Arrebato: If Pedro Almodóvar set out to make a Raul Ruiz film inspired by the core idea around
Infinite Jest’s titular subplot, this might be in the vicinity of the product we'd get: one of the most uniquely vibrant, unpredictable, and self-reflexive horror films I've ever seen. Anyways, those are my lazily reposted initial thoughts from a longer writeup/brief discussion
here.
Buffet froid: The apotheosis of Blier's worldview of psychosocial perversity, and easily my favorite and the funniest of all his works. I wrote a longer thing in Blier's thread, but it doesn't really make much sense without comparing to his other works. Especially given the seeming resurgence of antisocial, absurdist comedy gaining popularity of late (Lanthimos, Dupieux et al), this feels ripe for commercial re-appraisal.
Sauve Qui Peut (la vie): Speaking of.. How else could Godard return to "commercial" narrative cinema than by concocting a confessional, fragmented anti-narrative that oscillates between bouts of desperate self-focus and aggressive elisions of the self - and back to the sociopolitical consequences of commerce that drove him both into and away from himself in the decade prior! It's an announcement that, even if he and the climate and the context have all changed a bit, they also haven't really, or not 'enough' for a part (certainly enough for another part to feel motivated to transition his approach to engaging with the medium). There's a despondent but lucid surrender in this work that makes sense as a re-entry point because that also signifies a sense of loss. But it's also active and stimulated and interested enough to predict Godard's enthusiasm to continue his artistic ventures. He may get sad and mad and confused, but never bored, and the definition of "excitement" is quite elastic for this cheekily self-conscious seeker of Truth.
Starting Over: I've expressed my love for this one a fair amount, but I don't think I've really mentioned why. So I'll just lazily repost my LB writeup from years ago:
A few decades before
Punch-Drunk Love, Pakula and Brooks collaborated on this muted comic riot with a perfect cast, matching their career-best work to create the most beautiful iteration of the authentic eccentricities and universal phases that mesh together clumsily to build relationships. The real ones, the weird ones, the ones of piercing vulnerabilities that bring out the crazy in us. Burt Reynolds downplays himself into a mode that breeds deadpan humor and empathy for a state of numbed emotional apathy, but also emits an energy of what self-actualization really looks like.
The film fires on all cylinders. It's a perfect comedy, deep romance, and a very honest drama that depicts the behavior of the emotionally confused with validation - and allows that to be everyone. The humor finds its way into practically every scene because the glee stems from natural signifiers of social comparison, painful loss, awkwardness, fear, absurdist logic, maladaptive perspectives clashing, and inside jokes that we're graciously allowed to be a part of for a little while.
A movement as subtle as Reynolds' nonchalant step into the shower fully clothed is incredibly sweet, comical, and overwhelmingly inspiring as a reminder of how we can step further outside of our comfort zones to seize life in unique ways, showing our affection for another and showing up for ourselves at once. It's so much easier than we think. For scenes like this (which is every scene), I don't know whether to laugh, weep, or just nod in affirmation.
Admirably, the representations of our slippages into dysfunctional behaviors are just as tenderly received as the moments of blundering joy; and in a mature stance, even after people fuck up and break promises, imperfections are permissible. This is as close as I've seen the medium get to using the power of the movies to reflect real life's idiosyncrasies, and it still won't settle for anything but the best. "I need terrific, I need wonderful, I need love!"
West Indies: I was bowled over by this historical musical, noted in response to DI's less enthused reaction
here