10 movies i love that you've ( probably) never heard of

[darwinbulldog]

Originally Posted by the 'stache

Hmm. Ten might be a tall task, but here goes. All of these are highly recommended.

Charade (1963). dir. Stanley Donen, starring Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Walter Mathau, George Kennedy and James Coburn. A lively homage to the Hitchcock suspense-thriller. One of my favorite movies of the early 60s.

Der Untergang (2004). Downfall in English. dir. Oliver Hirschbiegel, starring the great Bruno Ganz, Ulrich Matthes, Alexandra Maria Lara, and Corinna Harfouch. The final days of Adolf Hitler in the Wolf's Den, from the perspective of his secretary Traudl Junge. Ganz deserved an Oscar nomination for his performance.

The Night of the Hunter (1955). dir. Charles Laughton, starring Robert Mitchum, Shelley Winters, Lillian Gish and Peter Graves. Initially, this film was panned by critics, and the negative press was so injurious to Charles Laughton that he never directed again. Now it's consider a classic. One of Mitchum's greatest, most unnerving performances.

The Asphalt Jungle (1950). dir. John Huston, starring Sterling Hayden, Jean Hagen, Louis Calhern, James Whitmore, Sam Jaffe, and the one of the first credited performances by Marilyn Monroe. Classic noir film. I've been petitioning Warner Brothers to release this film on Blu-ray through their Warner Archives Collection. It deserves to be in any classic film enthusiast's library.

The Public Enemy (1931). dir. William A. Wellman, starring James Cagney and Jean Harlow. Initially cast in the lesser role of Matt Doyle, director Wellman saw one of Cagney's stage performances, and knew he was better fit for the Tom Power lead role; it served as a career breakthrough for Cagney. Silent film star Louise Brooks was cast to play the lead female part of Gwen Allen, but she refused. It fell to a then 20 year old Jean Harlow. While she'd not yet perfected her craft as an actress, "Baby's" screen presence was already undeniable. Together with Edward G. Robinson's Little Caesar, The Public Enemy set the blueprint for prohibition era gangster movies.

Paths of Glory (1957). dir. Stanley Kubrick, starring Kirk Douglas, Ralph Meeker and Adolphe Menjou. Kubrick's fourth feature is an unnerving anti-war film set in the trenches of World War I. Douglas, a French army colonel, is forced to defend his men against charges of cowardice, and refusal to obey orders, when they retreat rather than attempt a suicidal rush of a German fortification.

Trois couleurs: Bleu (1993). dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski, starring Juliette Binoche, Benoît Régent, Emmanuelle Riva, Julie Delpy. The first film in Polish auteur Kieślowski's Three Colors trilogy, Blue is a powerful drama about a woman who is forced to go on after surviving a car crash that takes the life of her husband, a world renowned composer, and her young daughter. For anybody who has never experienced Kieślowski's work before, this is a great starting point. His work of light, and color, is incredibly poetic. Watching a Kieślowski film makes you shake your head when contemplating the crap coming out of Hollywood now.

I'll think up three more for later today. Right now, I need some sleep.

I've seen every one of these. Charade is a damn masterpiece, as is Paths of Glory and pretty much everything else by Stanley Kubrick. I'm amazed by how few people who have seen the Trois Couleurs films seem to think Blanc is the best. It's not even close for me.

[darwinbulldog]

My own top 10 list of at least moderately obscure films:

1. 4 Months, 3 Weeks, and 2 Days (Romania)
2. Raise the Red Lantern (China)
3. The Hudsucker Proxy (USA)
4. Wages of Fear (France)
5. Cinema Paradiso (Italy)
6. The Conversation (USA)
7. Y Tu Mama Tambien (Mexico)
8. Cyrano de Bergerac (1990 version) (France)
9. Take the Money and Run (USA)
10. Happiness (USA)

This stuff will change your life.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by darwinbulldog

I've seen every one of these. Charade is a damn masterpiece, as is Paths of Glory and pretty much everything else by Stanley Kubrick. I'm amazed by how few people who have seen the Trois Couleurs films seem to think Blanc is the best. It's not even close for me.

Glenn, I guess, for me, Bleu is my favorite because of Juliette Binoche. I absolutely adore her. Fantastic actress, and when she was younger, few women in the world were more beautiful. I'll watch anything she's in. She could fart "La Marseillaise" and I would be riveted.


I have a real thing for French women. Catherine Deneuve was just jaw droppingly beautiful. Laetitia Casta still has "it". And now, it's Léa Seydoux, Melanie Laurent and Eva Green doing France proud. But Juliette's face was drawn by the finger of God. And he gave her a pair of legs to die for. Juliette and Sophie Marceau are my favorites.

Wages of Fear is high on my to-watch list. I've been on a singular mission to build my collection, and the movies have been coming in so fast, there's no way I could keep up. Henri-Georges Clouzot did Diabolique, too. Both classics, imo.

Originally Posted by brian1961

Bill, I adore CHARADE as well. In particular, I love the scene when Audrey Hepburn, her friend and little son rush to visit Monsieur Felix, the honest stamp dealer, who knew there must have been some mistake when he was able to trade a jumbo packet of stamps worth 10 francs to the little boy for "only three" stamps. I can watch that scene a dozen times, as Monsieur Felix lovingly describes those rare priceless stamps in words that mirror how I feel about the elite of my own baseball card and coin collection.

I sincerely hope and pray you're able to get away from "the knife", and back on with your life, my friend.

Best wishes and regards, Brian Powell

Brian, I love the scene with the guignol. It immediately took me back to high school French class. I love everything about that film. Stanley Donen did a masterful job. And, I will like anything Cary Grant or Audrey Hepburn are in. They were so good together.

Thank you for the well wishes. I'm hanging in there. Going a tad stir crazy, perhaps, but still breathing!