Listmania!
Films I saw with my lover, at the Showroom, Sheffield 2003-4
Spider [2003]Spider [2003]
A pretty astonishing low budget British film, that it is both challenging and revealing.
The Hours [2003]The Hours [2003]
Buy new: £4.97 / Used from: £2.40
Spare me the pain. Didn't really enjoy it. There are far better celebrations of the female spirit.
The Kid Stays In The Picture [2003]The Kid Stays In The Picture [2003]
Buy new: £13.97 / Used from: £3.69
Ah, now this I enjoyed. A clever autobiographical piece that was inventively produced and entertaining. Still don't want to be in LA though...
Auto Focus [2003]Auto Focus [2003]
Buy new: £21.47 / Used from: £2.99
An occasionally disturbing account of how sexual fantasies can ruin a professional and family life.
Donnie Darko [2002]Donnie Darko [2002]
Buy used from: £0.39
A cult film that has become slightly (but not excessively) over-rated. Still a must see classic film of recent years. I love the dreamy camera-work and soundtrack that starts the film.
Revengers Tragedy [2003]Revengers Tragedy [2003]
Buy used from: £19.95
Fabulously inventive setting of this story - a complete surprise when I saw it, although far from perfect in terms of casting and visual potential.
Roger and Me [1989]Roger and Me [1989]
Buy new: £4.97 / Used from: £4.30
The liberal American that most yanks love to hate started it all off here; proof of consistent directorial skill rather than one-hit-wonder.
Wilbur Wants To Kill Himself [2003]Wilbur Wants To Kill Himself [2003]
Buy used from: £2.29
I left the cinema thinking that this Scottish film felt very Scandanavian. Sure enough, Danish director. Not perfect, but worth seeing for the good cast.
Girl With A Pearl Earring [2004]Girl With A Pearl Earring [2004]
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £2.25
A little too glammed up for me, but see the film and then go and see the paintings, which undoubtedly influenced the camera work.
A Mighty Wind [2004] (REGION 1) (NTSC)A Mighty Wind [2004] (REGION 1) (NTSC)
Buy used from: £1.49
Very funny - the trailer got me hooked about a month before I saw it in the cinema. Still can't take folk music seriously as a result.
Ghost World [2001]Ghost World [2001]
Buy used from: £1.55
Like DD, above, a cult film from that brief resurgence of genuinely free-thinking American cinema at the start of the century. This was one of many precursors to my interest in comix...
American Splendor [2004]American Splendor [2004]
Buy new: £3.98 / Used from: £2.00
...and so was this, although if you haven't sampled the comics, you might not immediately appreciate the cleverness of this film.
The DreamersThe Dreamers
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £3.99
I was frustrated by this one, but can't quite work out why. Perhaps it's because the 'I'm so beautiful and wonderful' attitude of the characters rubbed off on the rest of the production team?
The Barbarian Invasions [2004]The Barbarian Invasions [2004]
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £15.95
OK, NORMAL LISTMANIA BEHAVIOUR FOR JUST ONE ENTRY - I BELIEVE THIS TO BE ONE OF THE FINEST FILMS OF RECENT YEARS. BUY IT QUICK, AND WAIT AT THE LETTERBOX FOR THE POSTMAN. IT'S THAT GOOD.
Kitchen Stories [2003]Kitchen Stories [2003]
Buy new: £6.98 / Used from: £6.35
Light and somewhat surreal, but clever in that it properly explores the way in which men communicate with and behave around each other.
Dogville [2004]Dogville [2004]
Buy new: £3.98 / Used from: £1.89
Hard work, although I was impressed by the way in which the film was made, effectively like a stage play. Did this, however, become too much of a gimmick? I dunno, but it's unique and wonderful.
21 Grams [2004]21 Grams [2004]
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £1.99
A lightbulb will illuminate in your head when you grasp the unusual blending of different time periods. Another excellent 'alternative' movie from USA.
Zatoichi [2004]Zatoichi [2004]
Buy new: £5.78 / Used from: £3.25
I'm obsessed with how things look, and this looked spectacular. Weighty acting and directing, and will entertain even those who can't stand this type of film.
Fahrenheit 9/11 [2004] double disk extra featuresFahrenheit 9/11 [2004] double disk extra features
Buy new: £4.98 / Used from: £1.99
Well, being a liberal British citizen, I had to watch it, and wasn't at all surprised when the entire audience (in a provincial cinema several weeks after it was released) stood up and applauded.
Truly, Madly, Deeply [1992]Truly, Madly, Deeply [1992]
Buy used from: £120.00
If I were a woman, or even the opposite way inclined, I'm sure Alan Rickman would be the man to make my legs go weak. Tears will be shed, but it's a gorgeous picture. Watch it on your anniversary.