Since the year's not officially over yet, and there's still at least a couple of movies I plan to see in the next couple of days, but here's a list of a different sort - the ten best movies I saw in 2004 that I'd never seen before, regardless of what year they were made or released.

1. Au Hasard Balthazar (Robert Bresson, 1966)

Bresson's simple tale about a donkey who lives its life as the subject of peoples' greed, anger, pettiness, love, and apathy was probably the most moving and life-changing film I've seen in a decade or more. The final scene broke my heart.


2. Late Spring (Yasujiro Ozu, 1949)

To my mind, the quintessential Ozu film (even moreso than Tokyo Story), and possibly the greatest Japanese film ever made. And to think I only paid $3 to see it, as part of the Wexner Center's "Secret Cinema" series...


3. Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003)

People are bad. Even the good ones.


4. Drifting Clouds (Aki Kaurismäki, 1996)

A couple struggles with loss, poverty, anger, and fear, yet their love sustains them throughout. Sounds maudlin, I know, but under the witty and humanistic direction of the Finn, you can rest assured this is no sappy Lifetime made-for-TV movie.


5. Playtime (Jacques Tati, 1967)

It's a science fiction slapstick comedy set in Paris during the Swinging 60s that's for all intents and purposes a silent (pracically no dialogue, but lots of diegetic sound). Quite possibly the spiritual heir of Modern Times, I think only Tati could make a cautionary tale about the dehumanizing potential of the modern technological society so light and fun, but at the same time so scary.


6. A Man Escaped (Robert Bresson, 1956)

Someone said once that Bresson, more than any other director, was able to present "the thingness of things", and this film is possibly the most insinuatingly physical and tactile work of cinema I've ever seen. From the opening shot of the prisoner's hands it draws you in and never lets you out of its grasp. Endlessly rewatchable as a simultaneously patriotic, humanist, and spiritual experience.


7. The Return (Andrei Zvyagintsev, 2003)

Eerie, disturbing, and beautiful, Zvyagintsev's debut film shows that Russian cinema has a new master, and it's not Sokurov.


8. Ocean's 12 (Steven Soderbergh, 2004)

Hardly a film at all, but some sort of humorous postmodern treatise on what film can do, populated with big stars and set in Amsterdam, Rome, and Lake Como. What's not to love?


9. The Five Obstructions (Jørgen Leth and Lars von Trier, 2003)

Von Trier puts his former teacher and mentor through the artistic ringer, and, much to von Trier's chagrin, his 'adversary' wins every round. Well played by all.


10. Elephant (Gus van Sant, 2003)

Last year's Palme d'Or winner was somewhat dissapointing (they all are these days), but van Sant's Tarr-inspired meditation on adolescent anomie and violence was engaging and creepy enough to suck you in and spit you back out.

Very nice list, wendersfan. And a good enough topic for me to come out of hiding. Here's my list:

L'Age d'Or (1930)

My eyes had been opened to Buñuel a few years ago, and since then I've been slowly acquiring or seeing the works in his prolific filmography. L'Age d'Or was my white whale, I eagerly awaited the moment it would show up or come out on DVD. Luckily, the Film Center in Chicago showed a print early in the year. And I was not disappointed. Watching the seeds of Buñuel's genius, already creating this masterpiece in 1930, was like re-witnessing this watershed in cinema. Also, the movie is damned funny and stings like the scorpians in the first scene.

Playtime (1967)

I had heard so much of Tati's film and its restored 70mm presentation. When it finally showed up in Chicago, I was not without a cynical mindset, daring the film to "impress me". Playtime sure did. Beautiful, tender, timely (even this day), Tati's melange of the monolithic urban setting displays the human animal surviving in the rat-race of modernism. This is modern life, no matter how stylized or odd. And I found myself in agreement with Johnathon Rosenbaum (of the Chicago Reader, Playtime being his favorite of all time) when he wrote that the audience's own ears and senses are heightened and so much more sensitive to our environments when the film's over.

Sans Soleil (1982)

Another subliminal documentation of the world we live, Chris Marker's doc spans Iceland, Tokyo, Hollywood and other settings displaying the beauty and promise of technology and culture, and how they reflect upon another. Of all the films I saw this year, Sans Soleil left the biggest afterimage. Not one particular shot, but the sense of vastness this world offers.

Rio Bravo (1958)

And now we get into two westerns. Rio Bravo was so special because it was the first time I witnessed the mastery of Howard Hawks on the big screen. This film, with standout performances by John Wayne, Dean Martin, Walter Brennan and even Ricky Nelson, is one of my examples of a perfect narrative based work. And that I learned at the screening that the film was Hawks' and Wayne's answer to the namby-pamby whining of Gary Cooper in High Noon, delighted me even further.

Winchester '73 (1950)

Seeing this western, on the big screen was treat. I had become a big fan of Anthony Mann's craggy, vertical landscapes upon seeing The Naked Spur. And the print shown for Winchester was flawless, showing Mann's unique sense of landscape as a subconcious battle ground. The script is noir, only set in the past. Also I found great respect for the work of James Stewart in Mann's movies.

demonlover (2002)

These next two pics, I first saw last year, but it was the moments of seeing them again this year that were extraordinary. For demonlover, a film I truly feel to be a landmark in the cinema of the new millenium, I had the joy of meeting director Olivier Assayas as he answered questions after the screening at Northwestern University.

A Talking Picture (2003)

I feel that A Talking Picture, along with demonlover above are 2 films that reflect profoundly upon the world and our place in it. Stylistically, they exist on opposite sides of the spectrum. 95-year-old Portugese director Manoel de Oliveira professes subtlety to Assayas bombardment. And where demonlover looks to the future at this point, Oliveira looks to the past to inform the present. He doesn't make grand statements, instead, is content with showing the audience his view, and letting them make judgments. I saw it for the second time with 2 friends this year. And seeing their reactions was great.

Blissfully Yours (2002)

This Thai film from Apichatpong Weerasethakul, like Sans Soleil, sits in my memory not for the details or certain devices (like placing the opening credits in the middle of the film) but for the sum of its parts. An odd meditation on desire and communication, Blissfully Yours floats like an apparition and is mesmerizing.

La Dolce Vita (1961)

I had seen parts of Fellini's ode to decadence. But never the whole thing in one sitting. And seeing how the various parts connect (or disconnect) with a clean print and in a large theater really demonstrated how Fellini can be so impressive. By the time the film ended I had no idea I sat for 3 hours.

The Taste of Tea (2004)

And the last film on my list is the first "current" film on the list. This played at the Chicago International Film Festival, and while I don't place it as the best thing I saw there, it certainly was a surprising and delightful discovery. Katsuhito Ishii, who did the animated sequence in Kill Bill Vol. 1, wanders through myriad instances of the art of animation, from computer to hand-drawn as a family of artists cope with various issues. The film is lush visually and surprisingly abstract as it is silly. It also features the finest moment of my cinema-going year with a shot, that could have been sentimental and overbearing, that truly warmed my heart.

A Very Long Engagement
As intense as the first 30 minutes of Saving Private Ryan, AVLE is ultimately both more touching and affirmative of the human capacity for love.

Hotel Rwanda
While it stylistically owes a lot to films like The Killing Fields, Don Cheadle and an excellent cast elevate the movie to greatness. The horror depicted made me want to leave the theater, but the movie's ultimate effect made me glad I didn't.

Kinsey
Great movie with great performances, that casts a strong light on our current sexual reality.

Wenders,

Have you seen An Autumn Afternoon? Ozu's reexamination of Late Spring in the twilight of his life? I think it's even more brilliant.

From my estimation, quite a bit.

No, I haven't had the pleasure. Maybe in the new year.

I totally agree with you Sundog on Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003). That movie was intense in the portrayal of people. People are indeed bad, even the good ones. I was so happy with the ending. Those people totally deserved it.

IN NO ORDER:

Tropical Malady (2004) - The trials and tribulations of getting this film on-screen was enough to make me tear my hair out! Thankfully, it went off without a snitch, and the main actors really enjoyed our festival.

The films of Hiroshi Shimizu - the forgotten Japanese master. CHILDREN OF THE BEEHIVE is undoubtedly one of the best Japanese films in history. The compatriot of Ozu's is a master at making films with children, and the pathos he draws out of them is uncanny, as are the magnificent cinematogaphy of hills,v alleys and countryside (how the hell did he do it?!?!)

The films of Ernst Lubitsch - damn if I didn't laugh so hard all year. And to think - before this, I've never seen a film by him before!

The Man with a Movie Camera - with live accompaniment by Michael Nyman and his string quartet. What else is there to say?

Stan Brakhage retrospective - again, another hair-pulling experience, with so many technical glitches to drive me off the wall (I don't know how many times I had to run to the projectionist's). Even worse, I flubbed on-stage while Ann Hui was watching! But it was well worth it, especially talking with Fred Camper and seeing rare Brakhage films not on the Criterion set.

Tony Takitani, This Charming Girl & Kekexili (2004) - all slated for Sundance 2005 competition. All fantastic films, especially the first two.

The Big Durian (2003) - "The next Muslim filmmaker everyone will be talking about, from the next Southeast Asian cinema every festival programmer will be claiming to have discovered: Malaysia's Amir Muhammad." CHUCK STEPHENS, Village Voice. Ahem, can I take credit?

Henri Langlois: Phantom of the Cinematheque (2004) - should be a required viewing - a magnificent look into the history of films, against the persona of an almost mythical figure.

And many more....

did they all fall asleep out of boredom like I did?


It's difficult for me to say what my 10 list would be because I just don't remember the cut-off between 2003 and 2004 and which movies I saw which year. However, here's a few off the top of my head.

Eternal Sunshine for the Spotless Mind
Oldboy
Garden State
Napoleon Dynamite
2046
spring, summer, winter, fall and spring
tae guk gi
sympathy for mr vengance

Not to take anything away from Sundog (wonderful list BTW), but I think that was my comment.

Interesting thread. I think I'll use my soapbox for a few movies I actually didn't see at the theater, rather at home on DVD regardless of their release year. These are movies I either had never seen or had not seen since their original release to the theaters but thanks to the wonder of DVD can now enjoy in all their OAR, pristine print glory....in most cases better than I could have ever HOPED to see them on the screens of 10-30 years ago. When people (myself included) complain that this or that movie isn't on DVD I go looking in my collection at just how many movies I love DO find their way to DVD each year!

Straw Dogs- Hoffman in a Pekinpah film. Very intense watching, stark, grim, a thinking man's vigilante movie.

Two Of Us- and odd what-if movie from VH1 about a supposed meeting of Lennon and McCartney after the Beatles breakup circa 1976. In some places the film wishes for a bit too much, but the premise is good and the acting was excellent.

Firefly:The Complete Series- A friend of mine kept trying to persuade me to check this hybrid out, and once I did I fell in love with it. Sci-fi western civil war x-files drama......cool.

The Day After- I had not seen this since its original television release and in my mind Threads had always made it pale in comparison. Having watched it a few weeks ago, I certainly shortsold it. Unforgiving and while watered down, probably a pretty realistic scenario. Robards was wonderful in this movie.

Gods And Generals- Yeah, much has been trashed, lamented and panned about the prequel to Gettysburg, but I wanted to like it because I'm a Civil War buff, and while I think we got waaay too much Jackson in this movie, I still liked it for the sets, the return of many of the principal actors from the first film, and a telling of the early war years when the South was having a much better time of it.

Battle Royale- Finally got to see this movie during the summer. What a ride.

The Super- No, it's not My Cousin Vinny, but I thought this was a winning vehicle for Pesci and an underloved precursor.

Superman- I hadn't pulled this out since buying it till Reeve's death this year. Still the epitome of superhero movies, and this great looking and sounding release does the movie justice.

The Terminal- I've read that Hanks goes unappreciated as being a better actor now than he was when he won his two Oscars. I'm a Hanks fan and biased, but I have to agree. This was a part he played in a way that utterly convinced me. He's aging and it shows on his face- I think there are lots of parts he could play now that he was simply too youthful looking to play 10 years ago, and think he could make his performance in Saving Private Ryan much more believable with the added milage on his features.

The Beverly Hillbillies- BIG dumb fun to be had here, with a little something and someone for everybody. Another movie I hadn't seen for 10 years till it's DVD release last month. Jim Varney as Jed Clampitt? Inspired. As Varney said, "Thousands of actors have played Hamlet.......but there have been only two Jed Clampitts!" Oddly enough, add in three fourths of the 9 To 5 cast- Lily Tomlin, Dolly Parton and Dabney Coleman, then Cloris Leachman of all people as Granny, and Erica Eleniak to ogle......with a cameo by Buddy Ebsen. Yeah, it could have been better, but the casting was super.

Three Days Of The Condor- A super suspense movie with a Redford still in his thirties, this one reeked of Reagan years type politics, and a political pessimism that was common in the day. A good watch and a good cast.

Stanley & Iris- One of those movies I've ALWAYS loved but had waited for years to watch again, patiently waiting for the DVD release it got last January. A super little story about two unnotable people in a world full of them meeting, going through a long painful process of trust, friendship, appreciation and love. Okay, Fonda looked a little too good to be a factory worker. She was still very believable and did her best to physically embody the role, and DeNiro fell into the part of Stanley as if it were a second skin. I could watch this movie 10 times a year and not tire of it.

Let's Do It Again- my favorite of the Cosby/Portier comedy trilogy, Cosby at his Cosby-est and Portier a lovable foil.

The Rose- Bette Midler in the one movie it seemed she was born to play. Got Janis Joplin written all over the screen.

Falling From Grace- Its pretty much hometown for me, with a hometown boy who made the big time, trying to branch out into acting and doing an okay job. A bit too soap opera-ish but still homey, patient and fun to see. Add in fellow hometown boy Claude Akins and if you're from my area it's a good watch. A guilty pleasure (as are many of the movies on my list!).

1) Playtime - techincally nods aside (the 70mm print was pristine), I fell in love with this film, I smiled throughout the entire film.

2) Wild Strawberries - This year's DC city wide retrospect cemented my love of Bergman's films and this was undoubtably my favourite film of his. Still trying to find the time to watch the entire mini-series cut of Fanny & Alexander which might supercede 'Strawberries'.

3)Original Child Bomb - an absolutely riveting docu screened at this SilverDoc's festival that left many viewers including myself with their mouth left opened in astonishment. An emotionally overwhelming film that uses stock footage, and animation to illustrate that the nuclear arms race and it's destructive nature still and must be heeded.

4) Duck Soup - got to go old school comedy here, the Marx brother's best and funniest, a friend and I had a ball with this film. Added to the film going experience, the many parents who brought in their kids to show how Hollywood at one point could deliver A-grade comedy.

5) Sideways - having seen a sneak of the film, and not seen any of the film's footage before hand (I thought the trailer gave way too much away). Great, great film.

6) Shaun of the Dead - sneak again, with a great fantastic audience, the icing on the cake was the post screen Q&A with the Nick, Simon and director.

7) Heaven's Gate - discovering that the critcally maligned film, isn't as bad as many have said, seeing it on the huge screen also did significant benefit to the film's stunning cinematography.

8) Festival Express - along with 9) Santa Domingo Blues these two were the best music documentaries I had seen last year.

10) Illusive Tracks - a truly crazy Swedish hybrid of a film that combined the film styles and techniques of the Coen Brothers, Bergman, Jean-Pierre Jeunet, and Tati. A rare fun movie that relished in it's manic storyline and multiple characters.

You guys are lucky to be able to see classic films on the big screen. Here in lowly central Florida I cannot. Ocean's 12 wendersfan? I would have expected better from you.

I think Soderbergh is America's best active filmmaker. Nearly everything he makes is magic - Sex, Lies, and Videotape, Out of Sight, The Limey, you name it...

People forget that it was Soderbergh, and not Tarantino nor the Coens, that kicked of the current American fascination with 'indie' film.

Seeing Bubba Ho-Tep at E Street Cinema in D.C. followed right after with a Q and A with Bruce Campbell. Hail to the king!

BEST OF '04

1. Collateral
2. The Aviator
3. Kill Bill Vol. 2
4. Garden State
5. The Terminal
6. Sideways
7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
8. Before Sunset
9. Spider-man 2
10. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow

Honourable mentions: Closer, The Bourne Supremacy, Ray, Harry Potter, Girl Next Door, Dawn of the Dead, Hidalgo, Finding Neverland, Lemony Snicket, Shaun of the Dead, Napoleon Dynamite, Team America, National Treasure.

edit: in the rank them as you see them thread i posted my top ten but I totally forgot BEFORE SUNSET from my list...because I didn't see it in the theatre...but that has been rectified here and closer gets the boot.

MATT

1. Garden State (amazing movie)
2. Kill bill volume 2
3. The terminal
4. Leon: the professional (never seen it until the new dvd just came out)
5. Dawn of the dead
6. Girl next door
7. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
8. Spider-man 2
9. Discovering Firefly and Roswell on DVD
10.Hellboy


I couldnt really think of movies so my list would probably be different. but Garden State would be number #1 still.

I like to see myself as a decent film viewer, a connessieur with somewhat discriminating taste. I feel that I can tell a good film from a bad one, and explain why one was good. But then I read sundogs and wenderfans posts and realize that there is a great deal of cinema that I am missing (and apparently not hearing much about).

BTW, sundog, you have a fantastic writing style.

bothan, you are being far, far too kind.

and hey man, I've tried to get you to some of the movies I see. It would be a lot easier if you still lived in the city . . .

10. Garden State
9. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
8. The Girl Next Door
7. Spider-Man 2
6. The Butterfly Effect
5. Team America: World Police
4. Million Dollar Baby
3. The Aviator
2. Sideways
1. In Good Company