The Eleven (give or take a few)

(Editor’s Note: Throughout this little project, I refer to “people thinking this…” or “some critics have said that...” etc. Normally, I detest such vague allusions to ethereal, semi-real “people.” But because this has taken longer to write than expected, I am no longer in the mood to find examples of what I claim. I absolutely could provide examples, and I guess you will just have to trust me on that point. Tough to do, I know, with a guy who doesn’t like the Sound of Music, but it’s either that or I fail a few classes…)


People are always asking me what my favorite movie is. When I tell them I can’t pick one, they ask me for a top five. I am unsure why they believe that after having failed to produce one, I could then produce five. Why so many people care about my favorite movie also baffles me. It does wonders for my ego but that particular abstract entity needs no foreign aid.

The essence of the question—what kind of movies do you like—is a valid query, one that I often pose to my own acquaintances. But even more important than what is why. For instance, if I divulge only that The Big Lebowksi is one of my favorite movies, you have as much evidence that I am a stoned hippie as that I enjoy film noir, neo-noir, homage to film noir, reflections on modern noir and the eclectic filmography of the Coens.

Maybe I just like bathrobes.

If I were to say that I love Manhattan, you might only think that I enjoy the complicated “modern” relationships portrayed, and in some way approve of the insecurities and uncertainties that the movie seems to suggest are inherent in a world where divorce is a necessity, commitment is passé, and so forth. In actuality, I enjoy the unabashedly esoteric humor and the utterly gorgeous depiction of New York. But you wouldn’t know that if I told you I liked Manhattan.

So in an effort to clear this up (in less than 15,000 words), I have compiled a list of my eleven favorite movies, as well as an honorable mention. Why eleven? Why not. What are the criteria? They are simple. If I were only allowed to watch a single movie for the rest of my life, which would it be? That is #1. If I were only allowed to watch two, which would the second be? That is #2, and so on.

Now, what exactly this list comprises, I am not sure. These are not the eleven movies I deem to be the “best”, although certainly many of those do find themselves on the list, and none of these movies are anything less than “great” in my not-so-humble estimation. Yet Citizen Kane and M are nowhere to be found, my lavish respect for them notwithstanding. As for favorite—I do not consider “replay value” to be a facet of favor, yet in this case some small attention must be paid to the worth of watching a movie repeatedly, since these are the only movies I am ever watching again.

So on each Sunday I will reveal the next spot in the order, with an explanation (ranging from a few paragraphs to a novella) as to why that particular film finds so much favor with me. If you don’t care about my particular cinematic pontification, you don’t have to read. But then stop asking me what my favorite films are. In all seriousness, I understand how little interest my favorite films might hold for you--so these little vignettes are supposed to be more interesting than simply why I like them. Maybe I fail, maybe I don't, but they combine what I like with what I see with what I have read and some historical context whenever I can throw it in there.

To start things off, a quickie...

Honorable Mention: Smultronstället (1957) (Wild Strawberries)

Had to Pick One

Choosing between Ingmar Bergman films is tantamount to choosing between a Ferrari, a Lamborghini and a Bugatti. One is the fastest, one is the prettiest, and one has the coolest name, but you can’t lose. This could have easily been the Seventh Seal or Fanny and Alexander. Persona is quite the film also, although it would probably not be one which I chose to watch more than five or six times. Given that I’ll be watching only these movies for the rest of my life, that is a bit of a handicap.

Regardless, every Bergman film I have seen is a masterful work. I can’t even say that about Stanley. Of course, I have seen every Kubrick film; I haven’t seen every Bergman film. What keeps Smultronstället from getting onto my main list is that as awe-inspiring as a Bergman film is, they are too profound for their own good. They rarely let you learn because they seem convinced that they need to teach. They do it well enough that Bergman is one of my favorite directors, his sometimes suffocating profundity notwithstanding.

Wild Strawberries is no exception to the rule that all Bergman films must be Biblical in their gravitas. But it has a heart that Seventh Seal would die for, characters that Persona doesn’t, and a relevance that Fanny and Alexander sometimes loses a hold on. As for all his other films… this is my list and I haven’t seen them, so too bad.


Next Week: We begin in earnest; at the top.

~Right Thumb~