Golden Oldies of 2004
Now Playing: Best classics I saw for the first time
Well, it's a new year, as you all know, and while I'm far from ready to proclaim my top ten new films of 2004, there were also a number of classics I managed to catch in the past year, many of which are worth mentioning again here. Below are twenty films I saw for the first time (more or less) in 2004, with links to my blog entries for each.

1. Monsieur Verdoux (1947, Chaplin) [seen on DVD]
(I saw this during my unplanned hiatus in June, so I never got to write anything about it. To sum up: my favorite Chaplin, because he mostly sublimates his usual sentimentality in favor of a darker portrayal of man's capacity for evil. Is it just me, or did Mel Brooks crib Verdoux's look when he played President Skroob? Just see this in my opinion.)

2. Close-Up (1990, Kiarostami) [seen on DVD]
(Kiarostami's finest work. The already-legendary final sequence propels it into true greatness.)

3. The Man Who Laughs (1928, Leni) [seen on DVD]
(Watched this as preparation for a silent project I'm trying to write. Gwynplaine is a tragic hero for the ages.)

4. Late Spring (1949, Ozu) [seen in theatre]
(This was the year I finally got into Ozu. About damn time, I know. Setsuko Hara was so amazing.)

5. The Set-Up (1949, Wise) [seen on DVD]
(Stumbles a bit at the finish, but Wise's use of real time and some extremely tense boxing scenes make this a classic.)

6. (tie) California Split (1974, Altman) [seen on DVD]

6. (tie) 3 Women (1977, Altman) [seen on DVD]

(Two of Altman's seventies' classics, both less about a panorama of characters than creating a vibe.)

8. Don (1978, Barot) [seen on DVD]
(The most purely awesome movie I saw all year- sure, it's well-made, but you forget that when you're watching. There's someone credited for "Thrills" in the opening credits, fer chrissakes. The Walter Reade has a Bachchan retro booked for this year. Dear Chris- please be saying you're trying to bring it to town.)

9. (tie) Take Care of Your Scarf, Tatjana (1994, Kaurismaki) [seen in theatre]

9. (tie) Drifting Clouds (1996, Kaurismaki) [seen in theatre]

(Kaurismaki's awesomeness was my second big revelation this year, after Ozu. There's certainly some kinship between the two filmmakers- both drinkers, both utilizing uninflected camera work, casting actors over and over again- but Kaurismaki is one of a kind, really.)

11. Nightjohn (1996, Burnett) [seen in theatre]
(Whenever someone badmouths Disney, I'll still mostly agree, but now I've got an exception. An exception that proves the rule, I'll grant you- the film, made for the Disney Channel, has never quite gotten the audience it deserves- but an exception all the same.)

12. Duck, You Sucker! (1971, Leone) [seen in theatre]
(Vintage Leone from start to finish- not even an unintentionally jumbled [read the blog entry] presentation could detract from that. Morricone's score is mind-bending, particularly in the creepingly-slow-motion flashback scenes.)

13. Le Quai des Brumes (1938, Carne) [seen on DVD]
(A cracking proto-noir of the thirties/French variety, filled with smoke and fog and dampness. Gabin and Simon define the word "iconic.")

14. The President's Analyst (1967, Flicker) [seen on DVD]
(No blog entry, alas. Whatever happened to this director? The film is a hoot, pulling surreal twists out of nowhere with an exquisite deftness, leading up to a paranoid climax that doubles as a sixties time capsule.)

15. La Femme Infidele (1969, Chabrol) [seen on DVD]
(One of Chabrol's best, and far superior to the American remake, UNFAITHFUL due to its emphasis on calculation over heavy breathing. Also, Stephane Audran somehow manages to outdo Diane Lane for hotness. Don't ask me how.)

16. The Extraordinary Adventures of Mr. West in the Land of the Bolsheviks (1925, Kuleshov) [seen in theatre]
(A strange and wonderful early Soviet comedy about American misconceptions about the then-new USSR. Kuleshov proves to be an interesting filmmaker beyond the legacy of his "effect.")

17. U.S. Go Home (1994, Denis) [seen in theatre]
(Denis' telefilm is a warm but not sugar-coated look back at growing up in the sixties, highlighted by her always-great use of music. The kids are uniformly wonderful, though the sight of Vincent Gallo in uniform takes some getting used to.)

18. Body Double (1984, DePalma) [seen on DVD]
(Quintessential DePalma from the end of his fruitful period, full of that glorious DePalma artifice that just made his classics all the more infectious. The Frankie Goes to Hollywood-set porn centerpiece is a gem.)

19. One From the Heart (1982, Coppola) [seen in theatre]
(I can certain understand the puzzlement audiences had when this was released, but there's a boozy romanticism to the film that makes it linger in the brain. Tom Waits' song score has become part of my regular listening rotation.)

20. Play Time (1967, Tati) [seen in theatre]
(Okay, so I'd seen it before, but never on the big screen in 70mm. This makes all the difference, really- like seeing a fascinating building or painting up close when you've only seen photographs before.)