Tuesday 15 January 2013

The Cinéaste in Me - I should be so Lucky!

It has taken me a wee while, but I have finally drawn up a list of films that influenced me when I was growing up and those that I have enjoyed to the present day. These movies have thrilled me; cheered me; moved me to sob from heart-break; had my eyes streaming tears from laughter; had me singing along; perplexed me and strained my little grey cells. Moreover, even as I compiled the roll of honour, memories flooded back of friends or family who accompanied me to the cinema or with whom I shared a video evening. No doubt there will be folk who disapprove of my choices. I am no film-critic, and devout cinéastes will lament some of the tackier, camper films; but hey, they are MY selections and one is at liberty to draw up one's own list.

A surprise for me are the number of musicals on my list - how stereotypically gay! Perhaps my unconventional sexuality was shaped by the pictures I watched? Or was I simply attracted to movies that fitted my personality? Whatever, there is a distinct streak of homoeroticism, glamour and queer percolating my selection.

I have stated the year for each film so in those cases where the title has been used more than once the actual film to which I am referring can be readily determined. Additionally I have written the titles in the language in which I have viewed the film. I have not provided translations - one can always do an internet search if necessary.

Of the list my all-time top five favourites are "Gilda", "Blade Runner", "Cabaret", "Hable con ella" and "The Rocky Horror Picture Show".


The stunningly gorgeous Rita Hayworth
in her eponymous role in Gilda.

1900 (1976)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
42nd Street (1933)
9 to 5 (1980)
A Close Shave (1995)
A Grand Day Out (1989)
A Kiss in the Snow (1997)
A Little Night Music (1977)
A Matter of Life and Death (1946)
A Midsummer Night’s Dream (1999)

A Month in the Country (1987)
A Passage to India (1984)
A Room with a View (1985)
A Shot in the Dark (1964)
A Zed & Two Noughts (1985)
À toute vitesse (1996)
Æon Flux (2005)
Agatha (1979)
Airplane! (1980)
Akira (1988)

Alice in Wonderland (1951)
Alien Nation (1988)
Almost Angels aka Born to Sing (1962)
Always (1989)
Amadeus (1984)
American Beauty (1999)
American Gigolo (1980)
And Then There Were None (1945)
Another Country (1984)
Anything Goes (1936)

Arthur (1981)
As Good as it Gets (1997)
¡Àtame! (1990)
Bagdad Cafe (1987)
Banlieue 13 (2004)
Barbarella (1968)
Bare Necessities (1996)
*Batteries not Included (1987)
Beautiful Thing (1996)
Bedknobs and Broomsticks (1971)

Ben-Hur (1959)
Big Trouble in Little China (1986)
Blade Runner (1982)



Blithe Spirit (1945)
Blue Murder at St Trinian’s (1957)
Born Free (1966)
Boyfriends (1996)
Brazen Hussies (1996)
Breakfast at Tiffany’s (1961)
Brief Encounter (1945)

Broadway Damage (1997)
Broadway Melody of 1940 (1940)
Bullitt (1968)
Cabaret (1972)



Cachorro (2004)
Caravaggio (1986)
Carícias (1998)
Carne Trémula (1997)
Carry on Abroad (1972)
Carry on Camping (1969)

Carry on Screaming! (1966)
Carry on up the Khyber (1968)
Casino Royale (2006)
Castle in the Sky (1986)
Cat People (1942)
Charade (1963)
Chicken Run (2000)
Chitty Chitty Bang Bang (1968)
Chocolat (2000)
Cinderella (1950)

Cirque du Freak The Vampire’s Assistant (2009)
Clancy’s Kitchen (1996)
Clapham Junction (2007)
Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)
Closing Numbers (1993)
Cloverfield (2008)
Clue (1985)
Cocoon (1985)
Condorman (1981)
Coneheads (1993)

Conquest of the Planet of the Apes (1972)
Consenting Adults (1992)
Conversation Piece (1974)
Count Dracula (1977)
Cypher (2002)
Cyrano de Bergerac (1990)
Dalek’s Invasion Earth: 2150 AD (1966)
Dark City (1998)
Dave (1993)
Death in Venice (1971)

Death on the Nile (1978)
Demolition Man (1993)
Der bewegte Mann (1994)
Dial M for Murder (1954)
Dick Tracy (1990)
Die Another Day (2002)
Die Sehnsucht der Veronika Voss (1982)
Diva (1981)
Django (1966)
Doña Herlinda y su hijo (1984)

Down and Out in Beverly Hills (1986)
Drowning by Numbers (1988)
Dune (1984)
Easter Parade (1948)
Edward II (1991)
El cielo dividido (2006)
El espinazo del diablo (2001)
Elektra (2005)
Emil and the Detectives (1964)
Enemy Mine (1985)

Entre tinieblas (1983)
Equilibrium (2002)
Equus (1977)
Escape from New York (1981)
Escape from the Planet of the Apes (1971)
Europa Europa (1990)
Evolution (2001)
Excalibur (1981)
Eyes of Laura Mars (1978)
Fahrenheit 451 (1966)

Fame (1980)
Father Christmas (1991)
Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within (2001)
Flight of the Navigator (1986)
Flying Down to Rio (1933)
Footlight Parade (1933)
Footloose (1984)
Foul Play (1978)
Frantic (1988)
Funny Face (1957)

Funny Girl (1968)
Funny Lady (1975)
Futureworld (1976)
Galaxy Quest (1999)
Gattaca (1997)
Genevieve (1953)
Gentlemen Prefer Blondes (1953)
Get Real (1999)
Gilda (1953)
Godzilla (1998)

Gold Diggers of 1933 (1933)
Good Bye Lenin! (2003)
Gosford Park (2001)
Grand Hotel (1932)
Grave of the Fireflies (1988)
Grease (1978)
Great Expectations (1946)
Gremlins (1984)
Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)
Hable con ella (2002)



Hair (1979)
Hans Christian Andersen (1952)
Happy, Texas (1999)
Hellboy (2004)
Hellboy II: The Golden Army (2008)
Hello, Dolly! (1969)
Hercules (1958)
High Society (1956)
Highlander (1986)
Highlander II: The Quickening (1991)

Hocus Pocus (1993)
Holiday Inn (1942)
Howards End (1992)
Howl’s Moving Castle (2004)
I Love You to Death (1990)
I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry (2007)
Il Decameron (1971)
In & Out (1997)
In Which We Serve (1942)
Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull (2008)

Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade (1989)
Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (1984)
Innerspace (1987)
Insignificance (1985)
Invasion of the Body Snatchers (1978)
Iron Man (2008)
Iron Man II (2010)
It’s in the Water (1997)
I’ve Heard the Mermaids Singing (1987)
Jamón, jamón (1992)

Jeffrey (1995)
Jesus Christ Superstar (1973)
Jésus de Montréal (1989)
Johnny Mnemonic (1995)
Jubilee (1977)
Jumanji (1995)
Jumper (2008)
Jurassic Park (1993)
Jurassic Park III (2001)
J’ai tué ma mère (2009)

Kika (1993)
Kismet (1955)
Kiss Me, Guido (1997)
Knowing (2009)
Kondom des Grauens (1996)
Kung Fu Hustle (2004)
La femme de mon pote (1983)
La flor de mi secreto (1995)
La ley del deseo (1987)
Lady in the Water (2006)

Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (2003)
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (2001)
Last Night (1998)
Latter Days (2003)
Le dîner de cons (1998)
Le Nozze di Figaro (1975)
Legend (1985)
Les amours imaginaires (2010)
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Little Shop of Horrors (1986)

Logan’s Run (1976)
Lola Rennt (1998)
Loot (1970)
Love Story (1970)
Love! Valour! Compassion! (1997)
Ludwig (1972)
Mambo Italiano (2003)
Mamma Mia! (2008)
Man of the Year (1995)
Mar Adentro (2004)

Mary Poppins (1964)
Matador (1986)
Maurice (1987)
Max Headroom: 20 Minutes into the Future (1985)
Men in Black (1997)
Mephisto (1981)
Metropolis (2001)
Midnight Cowboy (1969)
Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil (1997)
Million Dollar Mermaid (1952)

Minority Report (2002)
Monte Carlo or Bust (1969)
Moonraker (1979)
Mrs. Doubtfire (1993)
Mrs. Miniver (1942)
Mujeres al borde de un ataque de nervios (1988)
Murder Ahoy! (1964)
Murder at the Gallop (1963)
Murder by Death (1976)
Murder Most Foul (1964)

Murder, She Said (1961)
My Fair Lady (1964)
My Neighbour Totoro (1988)
My Night with Reg (1996)
My Own Private Idaho (1991)
Nanny McPhee (2005)
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
Night Watch (2004)
Nosferatu the Vampyre (1979)
Numéro deux (1975)

Oberst Redl (1985)
Obsession (1976)
Oh! What a Lovely War (1969)
One Hundred and One Dalmatians (1961)
Opera (1987)
Ordinary People (1980)
Outrageous Fortune (1987)
Overboard (1987)
Parting Glances (1986)
Philadelphia (1993)

Pinocchio (1940)
Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End (2007)
Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man’s Chest (2006)
Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)
Planet of the Apes (1968)
Poison (1991)
Powaqqatsi (1998)
Prick Up Your Ears (1987)
Priest (1994)
Princess Mononoke (1997)

Private Benjamin (1980)
Proof (1991)
Prospero’s Books (1991)
Quartet (1981)
¿Qué he hecho yo para merecer esto? (1984)
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
Rear Window (1954)
Rebecca (1940)
Renaissance (2006)
Return of the Jedi (1983)

Rhapsody in Blue (1945)
Robin Hood (1973)
RoboCop 2 (1990)
Roommates (1994)
Rosalie Goes Shopping (1989)
Rose Marie (1936)
Roxanne (1987)
Ruthless People (1986)
Salmonberries (1991)
Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987)

Samson & Delilah (1949)
Sebastian (1995)
Sebastiane (1976)
Segunda Piel (1999)
Serenity (2005)
Shall We Dance (1937)
Silent Running (1972)
Sing As We Go (1934)
Sitcom (1998)
Sleeping Beauty (1959)

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs (1937)
Some Like It Hot (1959)
Someone to Watch Over Me (1987)
Soylent Green (1973)
Spider-Man (2002)
Spider-Man 2 (2004)
Spider-Man 3 (2007)
Spirited Away (2001)
Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home (1986)
Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

Star Trek: Generations (1994)
Star Trek: Insurrection (1998)
Star Trek: Nemesis (2002)
Star Wars (1977)
Stardust (2007)
Starman (1984)
Starship Troopers (1997)
Stonewall (1995)
Subway (1985)
Summer Holiday (1963)

Sunday Bloody Sunday (1971)
Sunday in New York (1963)
Superman: The Movie (1978)
Supernova (2000)
Swallows and Amazons (1974)
Swing Time (1936)
Tacones lejanos (1991)
Tank Girl (1995)
Tarzan and His Mate (1934)
Tarzan and the Leopard Woman (1946)

Tarzan Escapes (1936)
Tarzan Finds a Son! (1939)
Tarzan the Ape Man (1932)
Tarzan’s New York Adventure (1942)
Tarzan’s Secret Treasure (1942)
Tell Me That You Love Me, Junie Moon (1970)
Tenue de soirée (1986)
Teorema (1968)
The 39 Steps (1935)
The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert (1994)

The Adventures of Robin Hood (1938)
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1939)
The Adventures of Tintin (2011)
The Aristocats (1970)
The Belles of St. Trinian’s (1954)
The Belly of an Architect (1987)
The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011)
The Birds (1963)
The Blues Brothers (1980)
The Boy Friend (1971)

The Castle of Cagliostro (1979)
The Christmas Gift (1986)
The Company of Wolves (1984)
The Cook, the Thief, his Wife & her Lover (1989)
The Damned (1969)
The Day the Earth Caught Fire (1961)
The Devil’s Playground (1976)
The Draughtman’s Contract (1982)
The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
The Fifth Element (1997)

The Fisher King (1991)
The Gay Divorcee (1934)
The Glenn Miller Story (1954)
The Goodbye Girl (1977)
The Goonies (1985)
The Great Caruso (1951)
The Great Escape (1963)
The Great St. Trinian’s Train Robbery (1966)
The Halfway House (1944)
The Handmaid’s Tale (1990)

The Hanging Garden (1997)
The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (2005)
The Honey Pot (1967)
The Hound of the Baskervilles (1939)
The Hound of the Baskervilles (2002)
The Ice Storm (1997)
The Incredibles (2004)
The Jungle Book (1967)
The King and I (1956)
The Lady Vanishes (1938)

The Last Starfighter (1984)
The Last Voyage (1960)
The Littlest Rebel (1935)
The Living End (1992)
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring (2001)
The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King (2003)
The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002)
The Lost Boys (1987)
The Lost Language of Cranes (1991)
The Lost World: Jurassic Park (1997)

The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh (1977)
The Matrix (1999)
The Matrix Reloaded (2003)
The Matrix Revolutions (2003)
The Mummy (1999)
The Mummy Returns (2001)
The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor (2008)
The Music Lovers (1970)
The Nun's Story (1959)

The Omega Man (1971)
The Pearl of Death (1944)
The Pink Panther (1964)
The Private Life of Sherlock Holmes (1970)
The Pure Hell of St. Trinian’s  (1960)
The Rocketeer (1991)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)



The Rose (1979)
The Shadow (1994)
The Shooting Party (1985)

The Singing Nun (1966)
The Snowman (1982)
The Spider Woman (1944)
The Spy Who Loved Me (1977)
The Student Prince (1954)
The Sum of Us (1994)
The Sword in the Stone (1963)
The Tempest (1979)
The Thief of Bagdad (1940)
The Third Man (1949)

The Thomas Crown Affair (1968)
The Towering Inferno (1974)
The Virgin and the Gypsy (1970)
The Way We Were (1973)
The Wedding Banquet (1993)
The Wrong Trousers (1993)
The X-Files (1998)
The Young Ones (1961)
Thoroughly Modern Millie (1967)
Those Magnificent Men in their Flying Machines (1965)

Three Days of the Condor (1975)
Threesome (1994)
THX 1138 (1971)
Titan A.E. (2000)
To Catch a Thief (1955)
To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything! Julie Newmar (1995)
Todo Sobre Mi Madre (1999)
Together Alone (1991)
Top Hat (1935)
Torch Song Trilogy (1988)

Total Recall (1990)
Touch of Pink (2004)
Transformers (2007)
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (2009)
Tremors (1990)
Trevor (1994)
Tron (1982)
Trop belle pour toi (1989)
Truly, Madly, Deeply (1990)

Ultraviolet (2006)
Up (2009)
V For Vendetta (2005)
Vertigo (1958)
Voices from the Shadows (2011)
Volver (2006)
WALL-E (2008)
Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-rabbit (2005)
Watchmen (2009)
Westworld (1973)

What’s Up, Doc? (1972)
White Christmas (1954)
Who Framed Roger Rabbit? (1988)
Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory (1971)
Without A Clue (1988)
Women in Love (1969)
X-Men (2000)
X-Men Origins: Wolverine (2009)
X-Men: First Class (2011)
X-Men: The Last Stand (2006)

X2: X-Men United (2003)
You Were Never Lovelier (1942)
You’ll Never Get Rich (1941)
Zardoz (1974)

There are approximately 474 films listed. How many have you seen? How many would be on your list of favourite/influential movies, if any?

%)

NB. Please note that the five images of the posters are all likely under © to the poster artists and/or film companies/studios. Their use here is to highlight my choice of favourite films. Images will be removed if requested to do so by the copyright-holder(s).



3 comments:

  1. great list there, though I was surprised to see the omission of Hedwig and the Angry Inch, especially since you like musicals.
    And Godzilla!!!?? NOOOOOO! Gojira is the only Godzilla film worthy of a mention in any top film list.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Hee, hee. Well we all like different films! %D

    ReplyDelete
  3. Updated April 2013: some film titles corrected and placed in the right alphabetical order.
    The following films were added:
    Charade (1963)

    Gremlins (1984)
    
Gremlins 2: The New Batch (1990)

    Overboard (1987)

    Private Benjamin (1980)
    The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel (2011)

    ReplyDelete