"IT'S NOT EASY BEING CATHERINE DENEUVE!" - A Look at the Best Films of 1967

When looking at a year like 1967, this is what a consider an even bigger turning point away from what was Old Hollywood and what would eventually be dubbed, conveniently enough, New Hollywood. 

In Mark Harris' book Pictures at a Revolution, he talks extensively about the 5 films that received an Oscar nomination for Best Picture that year and when you really examine them, you can see how much the tides are turning...though, full disclosure, the flat-out erratic nature of 1969's list is even more bonkers so stay tuned for that.

Of the 5 films nominated for Best Picture, only two will make my list. Some of my readers who might follow this stuff more intently may already know which two of those films I will single out...but I also don't want to spoil more about it. I will bring up the other nominees at the very end.

Are we about to see an uptick for Hollywood films on this list? Truthfully no. I would say it's still about average based on how a lot of the years have been, but there will be a victory of sorts with this year. Could we finally have a film from the US actually make it to my #1 slot???? The last time I did that was for 1960, so maybe the time has come ;-)

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TWO HONORABLE MENTIONS:

The Jungle Book

Directed by Wolfgang Reitherman

Written by Larry Clemmons, Ralph Wright, Ken Anderson, & Vance Gerry

The significance of The Jungle Book in Disney's is that it was the last film Walt Disney supervised production on prior to his death in December of 1966. 

There have been some criticisms of racist interpretations, namely with the character of King Louie the ape. Disney himself wanted Louis Armstrong to voice him, but it was quickly nixed because of the horrendous implications. Italian jazz singer Louis Prima would be given the role, and a lot of the character's mannerisms were distinctly his style.

At the time, actor Gregory Peck was President of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences, AKA The Oscar people. He was very much a champion of embracing the idea of what would become "New Hollywood" and also calling attention to younger performers/artists/filmmakers and acknowledging that films not normally considered "worthy/prestige" were actually films they should consider. He lobbied hard for The Jungle Book to get a Best Picture nomination, which sadly did not happen. It would still take another 24 years until Beauty & The Beast would become the first animated film to achieve that feat.

Oh, and "The Bare Necessities" is an absolute banger and it's bonkers that it lost the Oscar to "Talk to the Animals" from freaking Doctor Doolittle.

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In Cold Blood

Written & Directed by Richard Brooks

While he doesn't get discussed much when it comes to other famous directors, I have always commended Richard Brooks for being one of the few filmmakers who came from the Hays Code era of Hollywood who jumped in headfirst towards the darker and far more intriguing material of New Hollywood.

As based on the nonfiction crime novel of the same name by Truman Capote, In Cold Blood shows us a glimpse into the world of Perry Smith and Dick Kickock (Robert Blake & Scott Wilson), two men who would murder a family of 4 in Kansas.

Due to Robert Blake eventually being found guilty in a civil court of murdering his wife Bonnie Lee Bakely in 2005, that does add an unfortunate and uncomfortable layer to this film...but aside from that, I do think this is quite the achievement in this kind of storytelling for this time period.

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#10 - COOL HAND LUKE

Directed by Stuart Rosenberg

Co-written by Frank Pierson & Donn Pearce

Well...Paul Newman is in it. Need I say more?

I have talked about the appeal of Paul Newman many times, but it isn't even necessarily from an attraction standpoint. He is simply one of the most captivating and charismatic performers to ever grace the screen, and I would say Cool Hand Luke is one of his peak efforts.

Set in an early 50s Florida prison, Luke Hanson (Newman) is beginning a 2 year sentence for damaging several parking meters. He is not willing to comply to anyone's rules, especially the prison's sinister warden whom we only know as The Captain (Strother Martin) and he also goes up against the power of the prison yard leader Dragline (George Kennedy).

However, Dragline and the other inmates begin respecting the will and grit of Luke...especially as he continues enduring a lot of abuse for not complying with The Captain ("What we've got here is...failure to communicate")

Nowadays, Cool Hand Luke plays really well, especially as more and more people have realized how heinous our prison system actually is. Even at the end, when it is clear that he has made a fool of these people, nothing changes. The Captain gets the last laugh...and it does hit you with a thud.

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#9 - MARKETA LAZAROVA

Written & Directed by Frantisek Vlascil

Co-written by Frantisek Pavlicek

This is admittedly one of those films that I am putting on a list from memory after only having seen it one time over a decade ago. While I clearly do think highly of the film based on my memories, this is also one that could use a rewatch for me.

Marketa Lazarova is the daughter of a feudal lord named Lazar. She had been planning on joining a convent, but shortly before this, she is kidnapped by two robber knights as an act of vengeance against him after he refused to help them with a defense pact against the potential wrath of the German king.

What I remember beyond that is how dreary the film was, but not exactly in a negative way. It is the mark of a good filmmaker to be able to immerse you fully in the world that they are creating onscreen and I would say Vlascil does that here.

One other thing I do want to mention is the setting itself. This is during the 13th century where Christianity had not fully replaced paganism, and the film clearly tries to create conflict in that way between the characters.

It is an unflinching look at how diabolical humanity can be, and how nothing may be exactly as it may seem.

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#8 - BOB DYLAN: DON'T LOOK BACK

Written & Directed by P.A. Pennebaker

Another instance of me including a documentary on one of my lists, but this is one of the truly iconic documentaries especially when coming from a musical standpoint. As conceived by documentarian legend D.A. Pennebaker, Don't Look Back follows Bob Dylan as he travels the UK for his 1965 tour.

Dylan has always had an allure and an air of mystery about him, and not surprisingly, Pennebaker still manages to keep that allure and mystery alive. This was right at that point where Dylan would be subjected to a lot of attention in the press for embracing more of a rock style seemingly at the expense of his folksier roots.

Dylan is also a man who marches to the beat of his own drummer, and we see him here in all of his unfiltered glory...even if he is often being a jackass to others. In the end, Pennebaker offers a very cinema-verité glimpse into the world of an artist experiencing peak success and how he offered something so new and fresh and remarkable in terms of his output. 

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#7 - PLAYTIME

Written & Directed by Jacques Tati

Co-written by Jacques Lagrange & 

He only made six feature films in his career, but Jacques Tati was able to make a name for himself and also a bit of a market that felt very different compared to the edgier and rough-around-the-edges work of his French New Wave contemporaries.

Tati had been a mime and really embraced the idea of the whimsical in a lot of ways. I will admit that I have never been as passionate a fan of Tati, but I do admire greatly the kind of energy and vibe he brought to his films, mainly because I do think of him in one particular way: the French Charlie Chaplin.

I still wouldn't say he matches that level in terms of the pathos, but Tati would star in his films as a character named Monsieur Hulot. He had a very distinctive look: overcoat, pipe, hat, but he was often clumsy and somewhat oblivious to the world around him. Tati would say that one major difference between him and Chaplin was that the latter was smaller and able to finagle himself more bombastic situations and could be very unassuming if he needed to be. Tati's stature and build made him far more susceptible to being noticed and maintains a certain level of subtlety. Even with how the two walked, Chaplin had that distinct sort of "waddle" while Hulot sort of glided.

Playtime is likely Tati's best work, but this is at a time when he was growing a bit resistant to playing Hulot as a fully central character in his work, so he toned down a lot of his immediate involvement. The sets for the film, which are massive, were built specifically for the film and they certainly do create a very fascinating and vast playing field.

The film links two characters indirectly having similar experiences and crossing each other's paths: Hulot of course but also a young American tourist named Barbara who are having difficulty adjusting to the bustling new life filled with growing technology in Paris.

The film utilizes very little dialogue, and even when it does, a lot of it is background noise and a mix of various languages. In many ways, if someone likes very subtle and conceptual humor, Tati's work is a great gateway to foreign cinema since a lot of it doesn't require extensive use of subtitles.

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#6 - BELLE DE JOUR

Written & Directed by Luis Bunuel 

Co-written by Jean-Claude Carriere

We make our first stop upon the "Catherine Deneuve Looks for Love in All the Wrong & Even Colorful Places" train. 

Following the adoration and acclaim she received with her work in Jacques Demy's The Umbrellas of Cherbourg, Deneuve managed to solidify herself as an absolute icon with her work in Luis Bunuel's Belle de jour... which means "beauty of the day" as she is a married woman who does sex work during the day while her husband isn't home. 

I do have to add really quickly that despite how well the film turned out; Deneuve and Bunuel did not have the best working relationship. He felt he was forced to use her via the producers and the influence of her then-lover at the time, Francois Truffaut. He also said that he felt Deneuve was a bit of a prude about the sexual content. I do think that's a bit interesting considering she had already appeared in Playboy at that point. Deneuve felt that she was being used and that she wasn't fully being respected by Bunuel. 

Deneuve's character of Severine is married to Dr. Pierre Serizy (Jean Sorel). They both legitimately love and care deeply for one another, but Severine is unable to be intimate with him due to some past sexual trauma. Beyond that, Severine has sexual fantasies that are beginning to consume her such as exploring S&M and domination in general. 

She does eventually find her way into entertaining gentlemen callers, which surprisingly leads her into embracing more of a sex life with her husband. However, one of her "johns" named Marcel (Pierre Clementi) is able to provide her the thrills and excitement she craves...but at what cost?

Belle de jour is certainly one of the films I think of from this time that began pushing the envelope when it came to telling complex stories about sex and also the fact it came from the viewpoint of a woman. 

It also feels somewhat unique for a Bunuel film, but he is still able to give it his usual surreal edge at time, particularly with the use of fantasy sequences.

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#5 - THE PRODUCERS

Written & Directed by Mel Brooks

Considering most people didn't see this film until 1968, and it would win the Oscar for Best Original Screenplay for that year, I had always considered The Producers a 1968 film...but it seems as though everything lists it as 1967 these days so I will just go with that.

Mel Brooks had mainly worked as a comedy writer, but he was inspired to write something about an old Broadway producer he used to work for who had a very inspired way to try to raise money for his productions: seducing old ladies and having them write out checks to the title of his latest play - "Cash".

Originally, he wanted to do it is a play but was told that there were too many different locations to make it work. He tried it as a book but was told "too much dialogue, not enough narrative". Therefore - he made it into a movie script, and managed to weasel his way into directing it as well. How so? It would save the producer money.

The original title of the film mirrored the musical in the play: Springtime for Hitler. Not surprisingly, this freaked people out and they even suggested he call it Springtime for Mussolini. Thankfully, the biting power won out and all that changed was the film's title, the more banal The Producers.

Max Bialystock (Zero Mostel) has produced Broadway flop after Broadway flop but still has a catalog of horny old ladies that he prowls upon for money. His accounting firm sends over a new accountant to help do his books named Leopold Bloom (Gene Wilder), who by happenstance comments that under the right circumstances, a producer could wind up making more money with a flop than he could with a hit. If a play was a surefire flop, the producer would not have the means to pay the backers so he'd essentially walk off with a couple million.

While I would argue a lot of the structure of The Producers would be improved once it became a Broadway musical, namely the final third of the show after Springtime for Hitler premieres, there is still something so bold and invigorating about this. Many years later, South Park did a joke where it had been 23 years since the AIDS epidemic had been at its peak, so now it was able to be joked about. That sentiment came from The Producers, which had its peak success 23 years after Hitler was found dead.

If you truly want to see how well it is to tackle something that dabbles in shock value: The Producers is a forerunner in that subgenre.

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#4 - LE SAMOURAI

Written & Directed by Jean-Pierre Melville

Co-written by Georges Pellegrin

The term "film noir" is associated with crime/dark drama films from the 40s/50s that usually incorporated shadowy B&W cinematography and usually contain a femme fatale in some cases. We eventually would get the revamped version of this in "neo-noir", which incorporates those sensibilities, but the films are made in color and depict more explicit forms of violence and sexuality.

Examples of those would be Chinatown, Taxi Driver, Body Heat, and Blue Velvet. Although I would agree with the claim that Le Samourai was the granddaddy of this entire genre style shift.

A hitman named Jef Costello (Alain Delon) lives rather meagerly and goes about his work, creating alibis to keep himself out of harm's way. These are often given to him by his lover Jane (Nathalie Delon, then married to Alain). Jef is hired for a new contract but seemingly has someone trying to kill him, all while a commissaire (Francois Périer) is on his tail.

Everything about Le Samourai is cold in the best way. The cinematic palate is an array of gloomy grays and blues, everything feels sparse and ugly, while also somehow being pristine and eye-catching.

It is also doesn't hurt that we have Alain Delon as our lead, someone who has popped up multiple times in these posts from Rocco & His Brothers to Le Cercle Rouge. Delon was easily one of the coolest actors to have ever lived, up there with Paul Newman. His charisma level was off the charts, and he just had such a stunning face that could've been passed off as just "handsome but stupid", but Delon was as talented as he was attractive.

Le Samourai might not necessarily be his best, but this might very well be him at peak "cool".

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#3 - BONNIE & CLYDE

Directed by Arthur Penn

Written by David Newman & Robert Benton

I always talk about how Hollywood of the 60s inches closer and closer to the New Hollywood era of the 70s where we finally caught up with the rest of the world. In many ways, Bonnie & Clyde is the film that led that charge, and the mixed reviews that often got vitriolic at the time proved that so many people weren't ready for it.

The subject matter is certainly well-known: a true story based on two lovers by the names of Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow (Faye Dunaway and Warren Beatty) who go on a crime spree killing people and robbing banks left and right during the height of the Great Depression. 

It is kind of humorous to me that there was such an outcry about the depiction of violence onscreen considering that eventually violence seemed far more accepting than anything remotely sexual. With the push of films like Bonnie & Clyde and with 1966 giving us a bit of a jolt with films like Blowup and Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?, the Hays Code was officially dead and by the next year, the MPAA would be formed...for better and eventually for worse in a lot of ways.

The interesting thing about Bonnie & Clyde for me is that it was one of the big examples of a highly acclaimed film that I watched and didn't truly connect with at first...but despite that, it kept staying on my mind and building in esteem in the decades since I first watched it.

Obviously, Dunaway and Beatty are magical together, but I found a lot of enjoyment in the supporting players more. This was Gene Hackman's breakout role and still one of the true pinnacles of his career, which is saying a lot. You also have the rather infamous performance of Estelle Parsons as Blanche, who despite winning the Oscar (one of only two that the film received, which left Warren Beatty incensed after the ceremony), seems to divide fans down the middle as being perfect at capturing this distinct character or being way too shrill and obnoxious. I fall more in the "she was great" camp, because that is what Blanche Barrow needed to be...plus by the end, when she is left a blind shell of her former self, you almost pity her as much as you enjoy seeing her put in her place.

This is a film that has been written about so frequently that it is hard for me to truly feel like I can add anything new, but I will reiterate at the very least that I admire and respect what this film achieved and how it opened the door to more daring films to emerge from the Hollywood floodgates.

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#2 - THE YOUNG GIRLS OF ROCHEFORT

Written & Directed by Jacques Demy

I think what is remarkable about The Young Girls of Rochefort is that it could just be seen as some kind of attempt of Jacques Demy to capture the magic he had with The Umbrellas of Cherbourg. You take a noun and pair it with a place...and then cast Catherine Deneuve. 

And yet...The Young Girls of Rochefort does not feel like a rehash in any way. 

Considering that The Umbrellas of Cherbourg could be seen more as a bittersweet romantic tragedy despite the fact that one of them truly ended up finding happiness, Young Girls feels a bit brighter in its world of glorious colors of reds and yellows compared to the more pastel vibes of Umbrellas. There is a jovial nature to this one that might make it more of vibrant and, perhaps, more of a classic musical in the sense that we get choreographed numbers that are more reminiscent of the MGM musicals from the 30s and 40s.

It is pretty evident with a role like this plus her work in Belle de jour, Catherine Deneuve proved she had the range and was quickly becoming one of the more captivating screen presences of that era.

We meet twin sisters named Delphine and Solange, played by Deneuve and her real-life sister Francoise Dorleac. They live in the small seaside town of Rochefort off the Bay of Biscay. The two of them long to move to Paris with the goal of Delphine becoming a dancer and Solange becoming a composer.

There's a lot of chaos in their town currently as a carnival is passing through, and it is that type of atmosphere that gives this film such a glorious sense of place. While Umbrellas popped with color, the weather always seemed to be overcast and rainy or, famously, snowy in its last scene. Here, it is like we are living in a sun-soaked world that makes you want to jump right in.

It is hard to say which of the two I prefer. I honestly don't think that there is a firm consensus as I have seen a fair amount of people prefer one over the other...but if you were to ask me my personal opinion at this exact moment, I might say Umbrellas. This makes me want to watch Rochefort this coming weekend, because maybe that opinion will change. Both of them are very much their own distinct being and offer something special onto themselves.

In the span of just 3 years, Jacques Demy gave us two of the greatest musicals ever captured on film...and a lot of praise needs to be given to Michel Legrand for his compositions as his work here is simply infectious and jazzy to the nth degree.

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#1 - THE GRADUATE

 Directed by Mike Nichols

Written by Buck Henry & Calder Willingham

As I cheekily alluded to at the beginning, I am finally giving my #1 spot to a film that came from the US for the first time since 1960. 

What I find really interesting about The Graduate is that it is an example of a film that seemed highly acclaimed, but a lot of people have taken a step back from it. Even when looking at the infamous AFI Top 100 Films of All Time lists (that only included American films), The Graduate was #7 on the 1997 list but dropped to #17 when they redid it in 2007.

I was talking with one of my film buff friends yesterday (shout out to Dan) and he mentioned how he also felt the film was fine, and he didn't really respond to it.

I do think a lot of what helped The Graduate stick for me was seeing it during my formative years of becoming a film fanatic. I believe I was 12-13 when I first watched it, and I really took to the story and the very eccentric nature of it.

Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) just completed his undergrad studies and is planning to attend graduate school in the fall...but he is feeling a bit loss and uncertain about his future. During a welcome home party, a longtime family friend and neighbor Mrs. Robinson (Anne Bancroft) barges into Benjamin's room as he tries to escape from the cacophony downstairs and asks him to drive her home.

Benjamin eventually picks up on the cue: "Mrs. Robinson, you're trying to seduce me. Aren't you?"

So yes, Benjamin begins an affair with a woman twice his age, married to a guy who seems pretty respectful (the great character actor Murray Hamilton), and a daughter who is about to start college named Elaine (Katherine Ross). 

However, things become a bit more interesting for Benjamin when he takes a liking to Elaine.

The Graduate is interesting in that it sort of has moments that make it feel like it is still trapped in an early 60s aesthetic, but Mike Nichols' direction, the witty script, and particularly the use of Simon & Garfunkel's iconic score give this film such a unique vibe and it is clear to see why it was viewed as such a departure from the norm in 1967.

During the opening credits when we see Benjamin on the moving pathway at LAX as "The Sound of Silence" plays, it instantly puts you into this world and the mind of our protagonist...and it leads to a great bookend. 

While I would argue that Bonnie & Clyde, The Young Girls of Rochefort, and Le Samourai might be a bit more vibrant and a bit more widely bombastic in varying ways, I always find myself thinking about The Graduate and at how well it captures that sense of aimlessness that a lot of us felt when we entered adulthood. 

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

What I ended up finding fascinating about 1967 is that it was certainly a year that became a turning point for Hollywood...but at the same time, a lot of those films have been written up to the max that it almost made me feel less enthused to discuss them; as if I didn't think I could offer anything that new or insightful about them.

I do want to mention the other Best Picture nominees from that year like I said I would do at the beginning as they are a great example of what was happening within Hollywood at the time.

As I stated, Bonnie & Clyde and The Graduate represented the "New Hollywood" movement that would take off fully in the 70s, but it was the other three nominees that were rather fascinating.

You have Guess Who's Coming to Dinner? which certainly dealt with a very relevant and controversial topic for the time: interracial marriage. It came just half a year after the legendary Supreme Court case Loving v. Virginia which granted that all 50 states should recognize and allow interracial marriage. Aside from maybe one scant moment involving the maid played by Isabel Sanford, I would argue that there is a very glossy and classic Hollywood sheen over that film. It is certainly a relevant topic for the time, but it does feel a bit docile.

Then you have the eventual winner: In the Heat of the Night. In a lot of ways, I feel like this was the film that bridged between New and Old Hollywood in that it did have more bite than Guess, but it was still inherently a "racism bad/white southern racist becomes less racist" piece. 

But there is one more nominee to discuss, and it is easily one of the worst films to get a Best Picture nomination at least in the last 70 years: Doctor Doolittle.

The insane thing about this nomination is that 1) FOX had a big party to try to woo voters into nominating it and 2) It was a critical and box office dud and 3) It was the kind of over-bloated film that was starting to become less relevant. Even though My Fair Lady and The Sound of Music just won Best Picture 3 and 2 years prior, the movie musical was quickly on a decline. It's just a shame that if something more kid-friendly were getting in, they couldn't have just made history by nominating The Jungle Book.

We are now about to take a look at 1968 and I have to admit, I can't say for certain how this one will turn out. Yes, there are a couple of films that instantly make me think "that's a definite" but I wouldn't be shocked if I end up finding a couple of hidden gems or perhaps find myself a bit less enthralled. 

I will be back soon with '68!

"HUMP THE HOSTESS!!!!" - A Look at the Best Films of 1966

After a rather relatively weak 1965 that failed to live up to the strength of the early half of the decade, we get to enter 1966 with a bit more confidence. Considering the vast number of films that I felt compelled to discuss for 1960, 1962, and 1964, I will admit that I will not be making a large list for 1966.

I am only going to single out one film as an Honorable Mention, but this list will contain 5 films that get the pinnacle 5-star ranking, and one more that I sort of go back and forth with. That's certainly a big boost considering 1965 only had 1, and that felt pretty sad after 1964's epic total of 9.

My Honorable Mention is a film that I would argue a lot of film fanatics would have on their top 10, but I can't say it is as easy for me to get swept up in the western genre.

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HONORABLE MENTION: 

THE GOOD, THE BAD, & THE UGLY 

Written & Directed by Sergio Leone

Co-written by Age & Scarpelli and Luciano Vincenzoni 

Arguably the pinnacle of the "spaghetti western" genre, I will say that this is one of the few westerns I do own up to enjoying even if it is likely at a tempered level than most.

If some may wonder why it is referred to as a "spaghetti western", that is simply due to the fact that there was a certain subsector of the western genre that kept getting churned out in this era led by Italian directors and producers, namely Sergio Leone.

However, one aspect of this film that I think a lot of us can agree on as being truly iconic is that of Ennio Morricone's score. This guy was an absolute legend who gave us some of the greatest film scores in history, such as one of my personal favorites: Cinema Paradiso.

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#10 - THE FACE OF ANOTHER

Directed by Hiroshi Teshigahara 

Written by Kobo Abe

As their follow-up to the masterpiece that was Woman in the Dunes, I would say that it was a bit of a tall order for Teshigahara and Abe to meet that high level. Even at the time, a lot of critics outside of Japan deemed the film to be a disappointment in comparison, and while I would certainly agree it isn't on the same level, there is a lot to really like about The Face of Another.

An engineer whom we only know as Mr. Okuyama (Tatsuya Nakadai) has his face disfigured following an explosion at his job. His life feels a bit aimless: he wears bandages to cover the burns, his wife is uncomfortable around him, and it leads him to consulting a psychiatrist. 

The psychiatrist suggests an idea: what if he partakes in a procedure that will get him an experimental prosthetic mask to wear? 

Okuyama does go through with it, but instead of becoming a potential source of embracing life again, he seemingly develops a new kind of identity which leads to further alienation from those he loves.

Yes, I can't deny that the film is as deep or profound as Woman in the Dunes, but I do think the film does play a lot into the ideas of identity...however, there is a film coming up next that also wants to give us its own take on the concept.

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 #10 - SECONDS

Directed by John Frankenheimer

Written by Lewis John Carlino

Oddly enough, we get another film that deals with the idea of altered appearances and new identities.

Director John Frankenheimer is one of those who does get brought up from time to time, but he has never been frequently listed as being among the best of all time. What I have always admired about his work...for reference, his most iconic work would likely be 1962's The Manchurian Candidate...is that he has this very interesting way of presenting his worlds often through dark and shadowy lenses and often placing his cameras at angles that can feel disorienting at times. He showed a lot of technical proficiency in a way that I don't think a lot of (Hollywood) directors attempted to achieve. 

Having said that, I can't say that I have loved a lot of his filmography despite appreciating his skill as a director. If anything, his directing skills are often what help buoy a film up. 

In the case of Seconds, the film was seen as a major bomb at the time. It did a bit better with critics, but its box office numbers were rather abysmal. Over time, it has developed quite the cult following mostly thanks to the resurgence it got from being selected for the Criterion Collection.

Rock Hudson, an inspired casting choice, plays banking executive who does his daily commute from Westchester to NYC and feels incredibly unfulfilled with his life. His marriage to his wife Emily is fading and his adult daughter has moved to the west coast with her own family.

He receives an anonymous letter that leads him to an agency known as "The Company", who have begun the procedure of faking someone's death and then giving them a new identity/life to pursue. As one might suspect, that isn't going to end up being all rosy for him.

Seconds does tackle this topic well from a true science fiction/almost dystopian standpoint. Elements from the storytelling almost remind of future films, such as Demi Moore getting a tip to try The Substance.

I do think this film has aged very well, but I will say when it comes to the concept of identity and psychology, we still have one more film later on this list that will give us a masterclass on the topic.

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#8 - ANDREI RUBELEV 

Written & Directed by Andrei Tarkovsky

Co-written by Andrei Konchalovsky

I do acknowledge how much I admire the work of Tarkovsky, but I will say of his most acclaimed films, I was not as enthused with Andrei Rublev. That isn't to say I hated it, clearly not since it is on a list like this, but it also just shows how many strong films he made.

The film is not exactly a true biography in the sense of the word, but it is loosely based on the life of 15th century Russian painter of the same name. Tarkovsky extensively tried to bring the world of 15th century Russia to life and used Rublev as a means to examine how the worlds of faith and artistry collide.

You often hear people refer to certain films as "a religious experience" in order to express how amazing it was to witness it, even when the film may not even have a thing to do with religion. In the case of Andrei Rublev, it does feel as though we are watching some kind of cosmic miracle that is almost otherworldly. Granted, this is something that Tarkovsky has always been a master at conveying, but Andrei Rublev is a film that requires multiple viewings to appreciate. I certainly liked it more upon a second viewing, so in that regard, it does make me wonder if I watched it a third time, would I end up giving it a higher ranking?

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#7 - BLOWUP

Written & Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni 

Co-written by Tonino Guerra

As his first foray into making an English-language film, Michelangelo Antonioni is not surprisingly often linked closely to this film, but I am still not sure it is his best work...though it has a very important distinction.

Blowup is one of the earliest examples of a film coming out that truly challenged the idea of the archaic Hays Code, which was already dying a slow and nowhere near fast enough death. MGM didn't even get approval from the production code upon its release, and it was condemned by the National Legion of Decency...AKA The Catholics. Hey, they stopped molesting young boys for a moment to condemn a film with explicit sexual content...how brave...

Thomas (David Hemmings) is a photographer who normally works with models and more artistic projects. One day, he wanders through a park and notices two lovers, an older man and a younger woman in her 30s, whom we soon learn is named Jane (Vanessa Redgrave). 

The older man departs quickly, but Jane pursues Thomas begging him for the images. He refuses and she rushes off as he continues to photograph her. Once Thomas looks at the footage, he realizes that something else is afoot. Jane appears to look a bit nervous in some of the photos as she glances towards the woods near her, which prompts Thomas to blow up the photos, and he believes he might have taken proof of a murder that occurred nearby...which explains why Jane was so concerned about there being a record of her also witnessing this crime.

Blowup is about the kind of a film one would expect from Antonioni, where the whole is better than the sum of its parts. The film has some of Antonioni's lagging sequences that bring the pacing to a halt, but in the end, the film manages to pull you back from it multiple times.

Ingmar Bergman, who normally hated Antonioni's work, referred to the film as a masterpiece. I wouldn't go that far, but I do admire it a lot.

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#6 - DAISIES 

Written & Directed by Vera Chytilova

Co-written by Pavel Juracek & Ester Krumbachova

Are you ready for a bit of a chaotic and colorful and zany romp? Well, hop in because we got ourselves quite the ride ahead of us.

Daisies was the work of Czech filmmaker Vera Chytilova, a rare case of a woman directing during this time period...and she gives us something fascinating. To start us off, our two leads are only known as Marie I (the brunette) and Marie II (the blonde) and both were played by non-actors named Jitka Cherova and Ivana Karbanova. The former had worked in retail, and the latter was still in college.

The film's satirical themes are pretty clear: attacking authoritarian communism and the patriarchy while messing with the ideas of what exactly are feminine stereotypes.

Having said that though, how does one actually describe Daisies? Is there anything to properly convey what an absolutely bonkers experience this is?

The Maries are both teenagers and they are both fed up with the world around them. They acknowledge that the world is spoiled, therefore they should likely just accept it. From there, they go around playing pranks and preying upon those who come across them. 

They even end up preying upon themselves as one ponders suicide, they also self-harm each other with scissors...and eventually they tire of this. They no longer wish to be spoiled and be so carefree, so they decide to clean up their act and surroundings...until life decides to crash on them anyway.

Daisies is a destructive film that feels as liberating as it does a bit unsettling at times, but it does prove to be highly successful in giving a spotlight to women in the kinds of gregarious roles that would likely be seen as more acceptable for a man to play. 

Chytilova would continue to make films, although for a while she had to work under her husband's name when stronger censorship rules came about. Despite attacking the idea of communism, Chytilova was a devout socialist and it is a shame that a lot of her work and ideals got stifled because of censorship.

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#5 - A MAN & A WOMAN

Directed by Claude Lelouch

Written by Pierre Uytterhoeven (w/ uncredited work by Lelouch)

Not to necessarily date this post, but as I am writing this, A Man & A Woman just got a Criterion release, and it is one of the prime examples of me going "Oh okay, I assumed that got into their collection a while ago".

A Man & A Woman is a beacon of the romantic drama. In fact, even the idea that I am ranking the film at #5 is a testament to how strong this year is because if this had come out in 1965, it would likely be a very strong #2 nipping at the heels of The Shop on Main Street. 

We have Anouk Aimee, in her Oscar-nominated performance, starring as a young widow named Anne. Working as a script supervisor, she witnessed the death of her husband on set in a stunt accident gone wrong. She now divides her time between Paris and Deauville, where her daughter Francoise is attending boarding school.

Then we have widower Jean-Louis (Jean-Louis Trintignant), whose wife Valerie committed suicide when she suspected he was going to die following a car crash during Le Mans. He also divides his time between both cities as his son Antoine is going to same boarding school as Francoise. 

A Man & A Woman is an examination of how one deals with grief over the death of a spouse and how that affects the possibility of finding love again...but what I do appreciate about the film is that it doesn't diminish the grief while simultaneously still allowing the characters to work through and find bliss despite of it all. 

Lelouch gives the film such vibrant life by experimenting with various styles, such as switching cinematography between color, B&W, and sepia. It only adds to the strong emotions we are witnessing in the film, which is also aided by the wonderful musical score by Francis Lai.

A Man & A Woman is one of those foreign films I would say is a solid entry point if you want to try checking something out in that manner. Its themes are relatively universal in that respect, and it also doesn't hurt that the acting is phenomenal and the film is beautiful all around.

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#4 - THE BATTLE OF ALGIERS 

Directed by Gillo Pontecorvo

Written by Franco Solinas/Story by Pontecorvo

Gillo Pontecorvo is another filmmaker where I have to admit that I have only seen one of his films, but when it comes to that, The Battle of Algiers is quite the doozy.

As the title suggests, the film revolves around the rebels acting out against the French government in North Africa amidst the Algerian War. In order to make the film seem as realistic as possible, Pontecorvo embraced the Italian Neorealist movement that had sort of faded by this point, utilizing a documentary/newsreel style cinematography that was reminiscent of neorealist legend Roberto Rossellini. He also utilized non-professional actors who had lived through the actual war for further authenticity...something that does usually pay off well, like using Harold Russell in The Best Years of Our Lives or Haing S. Ngor in The Killing Fields.

Not surprisingly, the French government banned the film at first and even when the ban was lifted, no distributor there seemed to want to release it...but the truth is Pontecorvo felt the film didn't necessarily demonize any side, he felt it was more "politically neutral".

In the end though, this is a true masterwork and one that I feel should be seen by everyone at some point in their lives. It would prove to be a strong influence on many iconic filmmakers, with a personal assistant of Stanley Kubrick's stating that he once told him that if he really wanted to understand what cinema could be, he needed to watch The Battle of Algiers.

I also like to think of the melding of non-fiction/fiction as a forerunner to the work of the late Iranian filmmaker Abbas Kiarostami who is certainly not a moral figure, but I can't argue he did make some fascinating films that owe a debt to what Pontecorvo accomplished here.

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#3 - WAR & PEACE

Written & Directed by Sergei Bondarchuk

Co-written by Vasily Solovyov 

I honestly wasn't entirely sure where I wanted to place War & Peace. When I devised my 1965, I originally included it there...especially because that year needed an additional boost. However, the majority of the film was not released to the public until 1966 and 1967...so I decided to consider 1966 as a middle ground to include the film series as it had been released in 4 parts: two in '66 and two in '67.

War & Peace is a film of epic, glorious, and opulent proportions. It is truly as if someone took the scope of Gone with the Wind, Andrei Rublev, Barry Lyndon, and The Leopard and gave them a 5-hour Energy Shot and a prescription of steroids. 

As was often the case for a while, the Soviets were looking to put Hollywood (and the US) in its place, and they concocted a sweeping epic that honestly put many of ours to shame. It would've been the most expensive film ever made during the era of the USSR, totaling about $70 million in today's money. 

The film also had extensive support from the Soviet Army, which allowed over TEN-THOUSAND SOLDIERS and HUNDREDS OF HORSES to be utilized for various scenes, namely anything containing a battle. 

Considering War & Peace is one of the most well-known and discussed pieces of literature in existence, I am not really feeling like I need to dig that deep into the story. While I would argue that maybe little pieces could've been trimmed here and there, this is a prime example of a true successful film series and a rarer case of a strong "Quadrilogy".

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#2 - WHO'S AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF?

Directed by Mike Nicohols

Written by Ernest Lehman (even though the text is primarily that of Edward Albee's)

Stunt casting. We all hate it right?

Sure, sometimes it does pay off rather well...often leading to comments of shock. Perhaps the ultimate example of this was the casting of then acting power couple Richard Burton and Elizabeth Taylor as the irascible George and Martha in the film adaptation of Edward Albee's masterpiece Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? which, I must say, was a play that I said was my personal favorite for many years. I do still think very highly of it to this day.

Now, Burton isn't exactly a stretch to play George. Albee did claim that he felt he was a tad too old, but he eventually relented that he turned out to be incredible in the role. The real issue was the casting of Taylor, who did prove to be a very good actress prior to this...ironically not counting her Oscar winning performance in the schlock that was Butterfield 8. Martha is supposed to be a woman in her 50s: middle-aged, graying, frumpy. Taylor was only 33 when she was approached to play the role, and she knew the truth. She expressed that she felt playing this role would be a stretch and that she did not have the skills to properly play it, but she would be coerced.

Also, to her credit, she was adamant a strong director of actors be used because she wanted to have someone challenge her and make her get to the dramatic levels necessary. This led to highly accomplished theatre director and former comedian Mike Nichols to make his film debut, and the results were splendid to say the least.

Taylor gained weight to play the role, which is certainly in line with the idea of "de-glamming" that Oscar voters often love, but that is really just a secondary factor. She gives the goods when it comes to the dramatics and passes fairly well for someone that is supposed to be older than her age. I have even said in the past on this blog that despite my love for this material, I've never been overly fond of the final line "I am, George. I am". Having seen several actresses do this line, I actually think Taylor is the one who sold it best and didn't try to overdramatize it. 

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is revolves around two couples, the aforementioned George and Martha, he is a professor at the college that Martha's father is the president of. Late one night after a party, Martha tells George she invited a young couple to come have a nightcap with them: new professor Nick (George Segal) and his unassuming wife Honey (Sandy Dennis) ...and let's just say...they have quite the evening.

In terms of pure acting, this quartet is stellar. Segal may be the one who seems to disappear into the scenery, but that is not truly the case. Nick is a character who is supposed to be the one most connected to reality as an audience stand in and he does that very effectively, but MY GOD is Sandy Dennis fantastic in this! Her awkward laughs and outbursts and her twirling around singing "I dance like the WIND!" or yelling out "HUMP THE HOSTESS!" during what is more of a tense moment between George and Martha is a prime example of how effective a good supporting performance can be.

I love the play, and I love the film. I never tire of it.

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#1 - PERSONA 

Written & Directed by Ingmar Bergman

I have said on multiple occasions that my favorite film of Bergman's in terms of the emotional and artistic expression has to be Wild Strawberries. Although, if I were to say what I objectively think is his magnum opus is based on the sheer level of reshaping what a film could be and for being such an all-around mindfuck, let me single out Persona. In a lot of ways, if you were to approach me on a random day and ask me what his best film is, I might honestly just say Persona.

A young nurse named Alma (Bibi Andersson) has taken on a new patient, a stage actress named Elisabet (Liv Ullman) who has suddenly become mute. In order to treat her, she takes Elisabet to a cottage located on the island of Faro (one of Bergman's favorite filming locales) ...but while there, Alma begins to develop an intense psychosis where she can't seem to distinguish here own identity from that of Elisabet's. 

When I first saw Persona, I could honestly say I didn't get it. That isn't necessarily saying I fully get it now, but this is very much the kind of film that is rife for analysis and coming up with what you think is your own interpretation. There is even a famous quote from film historian Peter Cowie who said of the film: "Everything one says about Persona may be contradicted; the opposite will also be true".

Many have linked the idea of Persona to that of Jungian theory of "Persona": "a kind of mask, designed on the one hand to make a definite impression upon others, and on the other to conceal the true nature of the individual".

There is also a clear undercurrent of homosexuality here, even if perhaps the representation of lesbian homoeroticism is certainly of the toxic variety. You even have the film seemingly diving into the possibly of an Oedipus Complex with Elisabet's young son desperate for her love, but instead, that all gets overshadowed by the duality and complicated relationship between Alma and Elisbaet. That isn't even going into the concept of vampirism which leads one to believe that Elisabet is some kind of vampire and that Alma is what she seeks to consume both body and mind...which I cheekily like to compare the last part of that to Colin Robinson from What We Do in the Shadows. 

 I could go on and on with the analysis/topics that have come forth over the last few decades, but I did want to mention what Bergman himself had to say about the film in terms of his career: "Today I feel that in Persona - as later in Cries & Whispers - I had gone as far as I could go." He later even stated that the film saved his life and that had he not been able to finish it, he would've felt "washed up". 

I have talked a lot about how Bergman is my favorite filmmaker of all-time. This isn't necessarily to say that I go back to watch his films several times, because admittedly most of his work can take a lot out of a person. I do think that in the grand scheme of things, Persona is one of those fascinating films that the older I get, the more I feel compelled to live through its spell again...I don't know what exactly that says about me but so be it.

In terms of the performances, Bergman's frequent muse of Ullman does great work here as usual, but it is Bibi Andersson who gives the performance of a lifetime. It is the kind of performance that just felt raw and brave and exposed and unnerving to witness and also felt so uniquely new to the cinema landscape of that era...especially compared to most performances that would've been in English.

Persona is a film that is as beautiful as it is unsettling, as frustrating as it is captivating...this is a singular effort and truthfully one of the greatest and most daring films ever made. It was watching Persona that truly made me want to explore Bergman's filmography more deeply even though I certainly couldn't comprehend what the hell was often happening at such a young age, but considering the types of works Bergman made at the beginning of his career, he is a prime example of not knowing what to fully expect as an artist grows within his craft.

Persona is truly...and I have used this phrase before, but I do sincerely mean it here...an absolute work of cinematic art.

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

It certainly did feel a lot better to write this list in comparison to 1965, which did delay me a tad in getting that posted. Sure, I did have work taking up a lot of that time which...ugh...but I will admit that the passion was hard to find with some of those films; especially coming off of a stellar year like 1964.

I do think 1966 is relatively compact, but I didn't even go into films I do enjoy but didn't feel like singling out here, such as Alfie. I always try to single out films that deserve a mention in some capacity and usually those are films that get either a 5 star or 4.5-star rating...so in that case, 1965 was one of the few anomalies.

Luckily, 1967 will keep roughly the same consistency so that is a major plus as I move to tackle that year next.

IS "CLIMB EV'RY MOUNTAIN" A SEXUAL ALLEGORY?? - A Look at the Best Films of 1965

Well...I warned all of you. 1965 is going to feel a bit lifeless compared to 1964...and even 1960-1962. The only year that it might compare with is 1963, but even that year had 4 films that I gave a 5-star rating: 1965 only gives us one.

That doesn't mean to say I think very little about these films, but I would be lying if I said I didn't feel a tad uncertain when coming up with this list. I felt pretty solid about my top 7 but then bounced around at least 6 films for my bottom 3 and yet now of them truly felt right.

I will that one of the "films" on this list is technically a film series that released multiple installments, but I decided to place them altogether here for the hell of it since the first part premiered at a film festival in 1965. Plus, this list needed something else to spice it up.

With that said, let's go into the list. We do have a couple of very famous films here...one likely very evident considering the title of this post...

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#10 - SIMON OF THE DESERT

Written & Directed by Luis Bunuel

Co-written by Julio Alejandro

While highly acclaimed by most, I still feel as though Simon of the Desert is not as talked about compared to Bunuel's other works. A lot of his reputation mostly stems from the work he would do upon moving to France shortly after the release of this film, which marks his last work done in Mexico.

Simon (Claudio Brook) is an ascetic who has spent a little over 6 years (6 years, 6 weeks, and 6 days to be exact...) on top of a platform and pillar in the middle of a Syrian desert. His goal is that he wants to be nearer to God, but The Devil (Silvia Pinal) appears and tries to get him to come down via seduction.

Simon of the Desert is, admittedly, a film that I do like but I wouldn't say I love it. Truthfully, I battled putting a couple of films in this slot not because it was difficult to separate them, but rather I didn't feel like any of them felt like a top 10 film.

However, this is very likely the shortest film I have yet to discuss on any of my lists: 45 minutes. It does serve its purpose and doesn't outstay its welcome so I will give it that at the very least.

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#9 - I KNEW HER WELL

Written & Directed by Antonio Pietrangeli

Co-written by Ruggero Maccari & Ettore Scola

Amidst the alluring dreamy landscapes of Fellini and the darker, abstract concept films of Antonioni, there was also the frothy & naughty Italian comedy scene of the 60s that I briefly mentioned in previous post known as commedia all'italiana.

Antonio Pietrangeli was a frequent devotee when it came to that particular artform.

I can't say that I have been an avid lover of some of these kinds of films, but one of the few that did stand out to me was I Knew Her Well. Our lead Adriana is played by Stefania Sandrelli, who was mostly known as the rather young love interest of Marcello Mastroianni in Divorce Italian Style.

Here, Sandrelli's Adriana just wants one thing: she moved to Rome with the goal of becoming a celebrity. There isn't a lot of clear motivation or too deep of inner thought which does make the film lose some of its potential power...but Sandrelli is a captivating presence, and she is a joy to watch.

However - the film's ending following Adriana attending a party in which she is mocked by a bunch of men there and she's left feeling like maybe she isn't worthy of any kind of life is an abrupt gut-punch, but honestly, it lands so much for me and helps buoy the film up a bit despite the fact it isn't a moment of levity. 

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#8 - LOVES OF A BLONDE

Written & Directed by Milos Forman

Co-written by Jaroslav Papousek, Ivan Passer, & Vaclav Sasek

Czech filmmaker Milos Forman would go on to make a name for himself winning two Oscars for directing One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest and Amadeus, and he was clearly a worthy winner in my eyes...but I do find a lot of his early work fascinating in comparison.

I can't say that I find Loves of a Blonde to be a masterpiece by any means, but I do very much like a lot about it. Forman took a real-life incident from his past as inspiration and sort of took heed from the auteurs of the French New Wave by embracing a rougher around the edges filming style, even incorporating a lot of non-professional actors into the film.

Andula (Hana Brejchova) is a young working-class woman living in a small factory town where women outnumber the men at fairly lopsided rate. We then follow her routine while working at a shoe factory and the various attempts she makes at forging relationships with the limited number of men around her.

I do admire a lot of what Forman achieves here, but I will agree with some of the criticisms that perhaps the film doesn't truly dig in enough to what makes Andula tick. I do wish we would learn more about her, which is also a similar criticism some have given Anora in that she could've been given a bit more backstory and depth...which likely could've been added at the expense of 10-15 minutes of that group driving around South Brooklyn...but I still really like Anora, don't come at me!

At any rate, Loves of a Blonde does feel a bit fresh in that it is nice to see a film like this with a female protagonist, which is certainly a major point for the time period.

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#7 - FISTS IN THE POCKET

Written & Directed by Marco Bellocchio

This is a case where I actually don't recall if I have even seen another film of a director beyond just a single on. In the case of Marco Bellocchio, I am pretty sure I've only seen Fists in the Pocket which also just happened to be his debut.

A young man named Alessandro (Lou Castel), who is an epileptic, lives with his blind widowed mother along with brother Leone who is also an epileptic, the eldest brother Augusto who appears to be the only one left with any sanity in the family, and their sister Giulia who is a bit mentally disturbed. Alessandro is certainly not in the right frame of mind as he actually finds himself attracted to his own sister, even though he is appalled by her behavior.

Augusto has a fiancée named Lucia who receives an anonymous letter from a woman claiming that he got her pregnant, which Alessandro finds out Giulia actually wrote. Wanting his brother to live a life of peace with Lucia and not have his dysfunctional family involved, he decides he is going to plan to kill them all.

Not surprisingly, the film had a lot of detractors, namely from the religious sector in Italy. It was even seen by some critics for being a rather unpleasant and sinister film, and even by two of Bellocchio's favorite filmmakers: Luis Bunuel and Michelangelo Antonioni.  I don't think the film is perfect or even close to it, but it has a lot of style, and I do appreciate when a filmmaker comes out of the gate ready to tackle a clearly diabolical topic and manages to pull it off rather successfully.

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#6 - DOCTOR ZHIVAGO

Directed by David Lean

Written by Robert Bolt

We are back in the world of sweeping epics courtesy of David Lean and Robert Bolt, but this one gives us a bit of romance amidst the chaos of war.

Doctor Zhivago, based on the Boris Pasternak novel that had been banned in the Soviet Union for decades following, was set during WWI and the Russian Civil War that we would also see depicted in films like Reds. The titular doctor (Omar Sharif) is married, but falls in love with Lara (Julie Christie), the wife of a political activist. 

Side note: "Lara's Theme" or as it would come to be known when Paul Webster added lyrics, "Somewhere My Love", is one of my favorite pieces of music from a film. Easily one of the best of Maurice Jarre's career. (I do prefer it as an instrumental, though)

At the time of the film's release, some critics did take issue with the film's treatment of the revolution at the expense of the love story...and sure, perhaps something like the aforementioned Reds would do better at balancing the idea of a romance amidst a revolution, but there is hard to deny that Lean is able to give us something really sumptuous here. 

While it certainly isn't of the same level of Lawrence of Arabia and even more so of The Bridge on the River Kwai or the intimate Brief Encounter, there is a lot to get swept up in with Doctor Zhivago. Plus, one has to wonder if Maya Hawke's Robin from Stranger Things calling Julie Christie in this film "ba-ba-ba-bonkers hot!" intrigued someone to check the film out. 

Maybe there was a niche overlap in terms of the market...

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#5 - TOKYO OLYMPIAD

Written & Directed by Kon Ichikawa

Co-written by Natto Wada, Yoshio Shirasaka, & Shuntaro Tanikawa

Any time a documentary comes along on this blog, I find myself feeling as though perhaps I don't acknowledge them enough. Sometimes they will stand out like a beacon in a year where perhaps a lot of the narrative films aren't up to snuff...but I always say that I think my mind unfairly puts documentaries in a class by themselves.

I have never exactly been one for sports. I will enjoy the occasional sports film, like the silly but heartwarming Cool Runnings up to the sappy ones like Rudy...but despite some of the problems surrounding the idea of the Olympics, watching Olympic coverage was perhaps the only example of watching sports with interest growing up. I was born the year of the Seoul Olympics, but it was the 1992 Barcelona Olympics that I vaguely remember coverage for...and even more so the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, complete with Kerri Strug's gymnastic miracle and the terrifying pipe bombing.

Going into Tokyo Olympiad, which covers the 1964 games held in the titular city, I did have an interest especially considering it seemed as though there was a lot more fervor for these games in decade's past. You could see this as a newer update of the documentary form following Leni Riefenstahl's documentary Olympia which chronicled the 1936 Berlin games.

However, I think what really pulled me in (and I would argue a lot of people felt the same way who perhaps aren't as immersed in sports as I am) is that this documentary doesn't necessarily on the sporting aspects but rather the pomp & circumstance of the games and also trying to connect more with the athletes as human beings who just so happen to have a kind of skill that very few will ever truly have.

I would've first seen Tokyo Olympiad on what would've been the 50th anniversary of those games: during the 2004 Athens Olympics not long after Criterion released the film commercially in the US for the first time. They actually took it out of print not long after, but it is back to being far more accessible today.

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#4 - THE SOUND OF MUSIC

Directed by Robert Wise

Written by Ernest Lehman

Hear me out: I want to beliveve that the song "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" is about lust turning into love for Maria and the Captain. "Climb Ev'ry Mountain" is the captain's...umm...member; "ford every stream" is Maria getting worked up; "follow every rainbow" is the consummation", and "'til you find your dream!" would be the climax.

ANYWAY - The Sound of Music!!

I don't think I even have to say much about this one. I would say it's easily the film on this list that I would bet most of you have seen, although I know that Doctor Zhivago was immensely popular at the time in terms of making close to the same numbers of Sound of Music did.

One thing I find very interesting about this film adaptation is what it is able to fix that didn't work in the stage show. For example, I much prefer how "My Favorite Things" is used to calm down the children instead of "The Lonely Goatherd" and that they refrain from using "Do-Re-Mi" when Maria first meets the children.

Also - everyone seems to agree that "An Ordinary Couple" is a slog, so therefore, "Something Good" is instantly better.

HOWEVER - I think the film suffers with the elimination of the two songs that utilize the Baroness and Max: "How Can Love Survive?" and "No Way to Stop It". I feel as though these moments gave the musical a bit more of a bite and reduced some of the more saccharine edges.

Having said that though, The Sound of Music is pretty iconic and beloved for a reason. I still revisit it nearly every Christmas or every other Christmas. I know it isn't technically a Christmas film in any way, but it certainly fits the festive mood...despite the Nazis.

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#3 - PIERROT LE FOU

Written & Directed by Jean-Luc Godard

I have already talked about how Godard was never my favorite of the French New Wave clique, but I do think one of his top films is Pierrot Le Fou, which received some boos when it first premiered at the Venice Film Festival.

However, that response soon changed. It's funny how different audiences can be at film festivals. I think after seeing how well Emilia Perez was received at Cannes, we can't exactly trust them...

Ferdinand Griffon (Jean-Paul Belmondo) had been fired from his job at a TV station and is feeling rather aimless due to that, along with his struggling marriage. His lifestyle had been pretty ritzy, and he finds it has become shallow and suffocating, so he tells his wife that he will be leaving her and their children to start a new life with his ex-girlfriend Marianne (Anna Karina).

Sounds like the kind of moral grey area romance that one might be used to seeing, but the film takes an abrupt turn when Ferdinand goes over to Marianne's apartment and a corpse is there. It turns out Marianne is being chased by members of the OAS, a far-right group that had been formed during the Algerian War. Now they must go on the run together as something of a crime duo, with her referring to him being a nickname he hates: "Pierrot", which translates to "sad clown".

Pierrot le Fou is a bonkers film, quite possibly the most bonkers film to come out of the French New Wave movement and easily the first glimpse into the more abstract territory that Godard would become known for as his career progressed. 

It is arguably one of only two films of him that I hold in fairly high regard, only with Vivre sa vie, and that isn't to say I necessarily hate his work...but I do find myself at a bit of a distance with Godard compared to his other contemporaries.

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#2 - RED BEARD

Written & Directed by Akira Kurosawa

Co-written by Masato Ide, Hideo Oguni, & Ryuzo Kikushima

Welcome back to the Magical World of Kurosawa!

Like quite a bit of Kurosawa's works, Red Beard is certainly highly acclaimed and respected, but I do feel it is talked about far less than a lot of his filmography; particularly his work during the 50s.

One major bit of significance for this film is that it marks Kurosawa's final collaboration with actor Toshiro Mifune, with whom he made 16 films dating back to 1948's Drunken Angel. When one thinks about famous director/actor pairings like Scorsese/DeNiro, Scorsese/DiCaprio, Lanthimos/Stone, or Bergman/Ullman, I do think Kurosawa/Mifune is in contention of being one of the absolute best. The reasoning behind the split was due to Kurosawa falling ill twice and then Mifune and co-star Yuzo Kayama falling ill. The actual production was spread out over two years and it infuriated Mifune as it cost him other opportunities he wanted to pursue in both film and television. 

Red Beard almost feels like a blending of the types of period samurai films Kurosawa had been making for a little over a decade at that point, along with the more somber humanist pieces he'd make like Ikiru.  

A hot-headed doctor fresh out of medical school named Noboru (Yuzo Kayama) is rather upset when his first assignment is being sent to work for a doctor at rural clinic named Dr. Kyojo Niide (Mifune), or rather his nickname Akahige ("Red Beard"). The dynamic is about what you'd expect: the younger, stubborn one doesn't want to learn from the wise, patient, older figure...but then a bond begins to form. Noboru's stubborn shell begins to crack as he sees the various hardships the people of this village undergo from families in poverty to one young woman who was saved from a brothel. 

When it was first released, it did quite well in Japan but was not well received abroad. Its reputation has since grown over time, and I do think a lot of its more sentimental elements play better than people gave them credit for at the time.

I still think of this as one of Kurosawa's most underrated works, even though many have seen it and loved it as much as I did.

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#1 - THE SHOP ON MAIN STREET

Written & Directed by Jan Kadar & Elmar Klos

Co-written by Ladislav Grosman

My introduction to The Shop on Main Street was thanks to the nomination it received for its leading lady Ida Kaminska. Much like a lot of the foreign films I have talked about, this was yet another example where the rules of the Academy strangely led to it winning Best Foreign Film for 1965 but then Kaminska was nominated for Best Actress 1966.

It was one of the earliest examples I can remember of stumbling into a film and realizing that I could end up finding a masterpiece when I least expect it.

The Shop on Main Street focuses on a meek Slovak carpenter named Tono (Jozef Kroner) who is asked to take on being something of an authority figure watching over an elderly woman named Rozalia (Kaminska), who owns a button shop. He is to take over a lot of the duties, essentially acting as a haberdasher. 

Why exactly?

This is the First Slovak Republic during WWII which became a Nazi-occupied state, and Rozalia is Jewish. She also happens to be close to complete deafness and almost oblivious to everything going on around her, including why exactly Tono is there.

As one might expect, Tono and Rozalia develop a friendship during this process...which promptly means that those Nazis are going to rear their fascist heads and ruin something beautiful.

I think one thing that is truly remarkable about The Shop on Main Street is that you do see some of the character beats coming, but they are very effective thanks to how glorious of a job this team does at having this quaint village become a cesspool of fascist activity...and then in the end, it leaves you feeling devastated but not entirely in the way you expected it to. 

It also works so well at not entirely being a slog-fest of absolute tragedy every possible second. One key aspect of serious dramas is to try to inject moments of levity, so you aren't drowning in misery every possible second. This is something the film achieves very well, as moments of dark humor punctuate the true horrors happening around them...and then the dramatic moments hit even harder.

The Shop on Main Street is highly acclaimed, but I don't feel like it is talked about as often. I consider it one of the true gems of the 60s and among the finer films of the whole decade.

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FINAL THOUGHTS:

Yeah, I can't say that this wasn't a bit of a disappointment for me.

Ot this list, only The Shop on Main Street achieved a 5-star rating and for the first time in a long time, I didn't even have another 4.5 rated films to fill out the rest of my top 10. I would only give 4 stars to Loves of a Blonde, I Knew Her Well, and Simon of the Desert. 

The contrast between the rest of the output from the 60s thus far is rather striking, especially following the immense wealth of cinematic greatness we got in 1964. 

As we approach 1966, I realized how fascinating it is that despite the comments I made about the latter half of the decade, I already foresee that I won't have years with many (if any) Honorable Mentions. We do have some strong outings and a bigger number of 5-star films returning, but it does feel like things are going to quiet down some before everything would explode in the 1970s.

1966 will be coming up soon, but we do have some stellar entries for that year and more than one 5-star film thankfully.