Being a dad to a newborn is intense and full of surprises, but eats into that precious time I once set aside for myself and my own interests. So something had to give and that meant I recently terminated my subscription to the Guardian's DVD home delivery service, Sofa Cinema, after 30 months of excellent service and 193 films. The ongoing Royal Mail strikes also helped my decision, with some films turning up a week after they were delivered.
Over the past few years, I've been able to fill some aching gaps in my film knowledge, and watch a variety of old and modern classics (and a fair few howlers!). So here's the exceptionally long list of films I've watched since March 2007 to the present in chronological order, with several of my own mini-reviews to start, and then scores out of 10:
Libertine, The - More a character study of a self-destructive hedonist than a conventional film with an engaging plot, The Libertine is only saved by excellent performances from Johnny Depp, John Malkovich and Samantha Morton. Charles II's reign is portrayed as an amoral and bankrupt age, which harks back to the golden period of the Elizabethan renaissance, but is only a pale imitation. Some scenes - such as the one depicting Lizzie Barry's dramatic training by Rochester - are excellently scripted and engrossing. Others are just dull and overdone. Just like there was no real genius in Rochester's life, there is not much genius in this film - 6
History of Violence, A - As with all Cronenberg films I've seen, this was gripping viewing from the outset, but as always there was a sense something unpleasant was about to unfold. The bright veneer of civilisation portrayed in the opening scenes was slowly being stripped away, much like the identity of Viggo Mortensen's character. What's left is the common heritage of all us primates - our history of violence. Cronenberg explores the sexual impulse, our aversion to outsiders - as portrayed by the watchful sheriff - and most importantly, identity. The latter is shown in a key scene to be so fragile that in certain situations it deserts us. As well as all round excellent performances, and sublime cinematography, this film is a real work of art - 9
Collateral - As far as action flicks go, Collateral was good viewing. Tom Cruise was almost convincing as a psychotic, unhinged assassin and the premise of the plot was simple but alluring. LA was the main star of the film though - ugly and sprawling by day, it becomes a labyrinth of intrigue and dark machinations by night. A perfect setting for the film's extended finale - 8
Last Days - A painstaking meditation on the final, uneventful 48 hours of a Cobain-like rock star, Last Days manages to grip the viewer with its dreamlike sequences, which proceed via subtle shifts in perspective and repetition, to the inevitable tragic denouement. Occasional comic episodes (visits from a Yellow Pages man and the Mormons) lighten the tone, but the overriding sensation is of a man detached irrevocably from the outside world, surrounded by people with an equally unsteady grip on reality who care little for Blake's welfare, but only the fruits of his success. Sublime camerawork, excellent snippets of music and dialogue, plus inspired editing, make for an unsettling but rewarding film experience - 7
Grizzly Man - 8
Underground - 9
Queen, The - 5
Tsotsi - 7
Passenger, The - 8
Kitchen Stories - 8
La Regle Du Jeu - 7
Burnt By The Sun - 9
Sunset Boulevard - 8
No Direction Home: Bob Dylan - 7
Meet Me In St. Louis - 6
L'Humanite - 7
Battle Of Algiers, The - 7
Piano Teacher, The - 6
Last Kiss, The - 5
Wind That Shakes The Barley, The - 7
Bob Dylan - Don't Look Back - 6
Life Is Sweet - 8
United 93 - 8
Pan's Labyrinth - 7
Little Children - 7
Last King Of Scotland, The - 8
Bright Young Things - 6
Brokeback Mountain - 7
In The Mood For Love - 8
Constant Gardener, The - 8
Jerk, The - 6
Laurel And Hardy - Sons Of The Desert - 7
Pirates Of The Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest - 4
Hukkle - 7
Squid And The Whale, The - 9
Hot Fuzz - 7
Hope And Glory - 8
London - 8
Infernal Affairs - 7
Kind Hearts and Coronets - 8
If.... - 7
Prestige, The - 8
Notes On A Scandal - 6
Red Road - 8
Miss Potter - 5
Apocalypto - 9
Cold Comfort Farm - 6
Becoming Jane - 6
Lives Of Others, The - 9
Venus - 7
Black Book, The (Zwartboek) - 8
When The Levees Broke - A Requiem In Four Acts - 8
Ratcatcher - 8
Lilya 4 Ever - 7
Apartment, The - 6
Andrei Rublev - 7
Searchers, The - 8
Babel - 7
Prairie Home Companion, A - 6
Ten Canoes - 8
Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, The - 6
Persona - 7
Breaking And Entering - 6
Jindabyne - 8
Noises Off! - 5
Science Of Sleep, The - 6
Lost Highway - 8
Barton Fink - 7
Mulholland Drive - 6
After The Wedding - 8
Lage Raho Munnabhai - 6
Black Narcissus - 8
Brother - 7
Requiem For A Dream - 8
Fitzcarraldo - 7
Simpsons Movie, The - 7
Alice In Wonderland - 5
El Topo - 8
Downfall - 8
Knocked Up - 6
Ma Mere - 6
La Vie En Rose - 8
Spellbound - 7
This Is England - 7
Captive, The - 7
Sacrifice, The - 8
Control - 8
Atonement - 7
Faust - 7
Tickets - 8
Hidden - 9
Belle De Jour - 7
Paris, Je T'aime - 7
This Sporting Life - 8
Anchorman - 8
The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser - 7
Stroszek - 8
Fog Of War, The - 7
Michael Clayton - 8
Ugetsu Monogatari - 7
Tokyo Story - 9
Oyu-Sama - 6
Breaking The Waves - 9
London to Brighton - 7
Darjeeling Limited, The - 7
Blue Velvet - 8
Jesus Camp - 6
Conversation, The - 8
Once - 7
No Country for Old Men - 8
Sicko - 6
4 Months, 3 weeks And 2 Days - 8
Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - 6
L'Avventura - 7
Paths Of Glory - 8
I'm Not There - 6
Night Of The Hunter, The - 8
1900 - Novecento - 6
Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford - 8
Free Cinema - 7
St. Trinian's - 5
Dark Is Rising, The - 5
Italian For Beginners - 8
Apu Trilogy, Pather Panchali - 7
Blood Diamond - 7
Oz - Series 1 - 5
Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The - 8
Great Expectations - 7
Persepolis - 8
Juno - 6
Humphrey Jennings Collection, The - 7
La Grande Illusion - 8
Distant Voices, Still Lives - 8
Sex and the City - 4
Singing Detective, The - 9
Child, The (L'enfant) - 7
Killer of Sheep - 7
Elephant - 6
Uzak - 7
Paranoid Park - 6
Man Without A Past, The - 9
Dead Set - 7
Mamma Mia! - 6
General, The - 8
Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The - 7
Happy-Go-Lucky - 6
Kung Fu Panda - 7
Royal Tenenbaums, The - 8
Henry V - 7
King Lear - 6
Zoolander - 8
Man For All Seasons, A - 9
Duck Soup - 8
Ghostbusters - 9
Stir Crazy - 7
Clerks - The First Cut - 6
Other Boleyn Girl, The - 5
Crucible, The - 8
Love And Death - 6
Becket - 8
Hunger - 8
Gomorrah - 8
Hester Street - 5
Idiots, The - 7
Kwaidan - 6
Last Resort - 8
Linha De Passe - 6
Burn After Reading - 7
Babylon - 7
Hearts And Minds - 8
Mahabharata, The - 6
American Gangster - 7
Of Time And The City - 8
Naked - 9
Man Who Would Be King, The - 7
Vera Drake - 8
I've Loved You So Long - 7
Mad Men - Season 1 - 8
Kite Runner, The - 6
Class, The - 8
Hiroshima Mon Amour - 8
Lift to the Scaffold - 8
Che - Part 1 - 8
Che - Part 2 - 6
Mad Men - Season 2 - 8
Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The - 6
Mona Lisa - 8
Milk - 8
Watchmen - 6
Wrestler, The - 7
This Is Spinal Tap - 8
My Beautiful Laundrette - 8
Over the past few years, I've been able to fill some aching gaps in my film knowledge, and watch a variety of old and modern classics (and a fair few howlers!). So here's the exceptionally long list of films I've watched since March 2007 to the present in chronological order, with several of my own mini-reviews to start, and then scores out of 10:
Libertine, The - More a character study of a self-destructive hedonist than a conventional film with an engaging plot, The Libertine is only saved by excellent performances from Johnny Depp, John Malkovich and Samantha Morton. Charles II's reign is portrayed as an amoral and bankrupt age, which harks back to the golden period of the Elizabethan renaissance, but is only a pale imitation. Some scenes - such as the one depicting Lizzie Barry's dramatic training by Rochester - are excellently scripted and engrossing. Others are just dull and overdone. Just like there was no real genius in Rochester's life, there is not much genius in this film - 6
History of Violence, A - As with all Cronenberg films I've seen, this was gripping viewing from the outset, but as always there was a sense something unpleasant was about to unfold. The bright veneer of civilisation portrayed in the opening scenes was slowly being stripped away, much like the identity of Viggo Mortensen's character. What's left is the common heritage of all us primates - our history of violence. Cronenberg explores the sexual impulse, our aversion to outsiders - as portrayed by the watchful sheriff - and most importantly, identity. The latter is shown in a key scene to be so fragile that in certain situations it deserts us. As well as all round excellent performances, and sublime cinematography, this film is a real work of art - 9
Collateral - As far as action flicks go, Collateral was good viewing. Tom Cruise was almost convincing as a psychotic, unhinged assassin and the premise of the plot was simple but alluring. LA was the main star of the film though - ugly and sprawling by day, it becomes a labyrinth of intrigue and dark machinations by night. A perfect setting for the film's extended finale - 8
Last Days - A painstaking meditation on the final, uneventful 48 hours of a Cobain-like rock star, Last Days manages to grip the viewer with its dreamlike sequences, which proceed via subtle shifts in perspective and repetition, to the inevitable tragic denouement. Occasional comic episodes (visits from a Yellow Pages man and the Mormons) lighten the tone, but the overriding sensation is of a man detached irrevocably from the outside world, surrounded by people with an equally unsteady grip on reality who care little for Blake's welfare, but only the fruits of his success. Sublime camerawork, excellent snippets of music and dialogue, plus inspired editing, make for an unsettling but rewarding film experience - 7
Grizzly Man - 8
Underground - 9
Queen, The - 5
Tsotsi - 7
Passenger, The - 8
Kitchen Stories - 8
La Regle Du Jeu - 7
Burnt By The Sun - 9
Sunset Boulevard - 8
No Direction Home: Bob Dylan - 7
Meet Me In St. Louis - 6
L'Humanite - 7
Battle Of Algiers, The - 7
Piano Teacher, The - 6
Last Kiss, The - 5
Wind That Shakes The Barley, The - 7
Bob Dylan - Don't Look Back - 6
Life Is Sweet - 8
United 93 - 8
Pan's Labyrinth - 7
Little Children - 7
Last King Of Scotland, The - 8
Bright Young Things - 6
Brokeback Mountain - 7
In The Mood For Love - 8
Constant Gardener, The - 8
Jerk, The - 6
Laurel And Hardy - Sons Of The Desert - 7
Pirates Of The Caribbean - Dead Man's Chest - 4
Hukkle - 7
Squid And The Whale, The - 9
Hot Fuzz - 7
Hope And Glory - 8
London - 8
Infernal Affairs - 7
Kind Hearts and Coronets - 8
If.... - 7
Prestige, The - 8
Notes On A Scandal - 6
Red Road - 8
Miss Potter - 5
Apocalypto - 9
Cold Comfort Farm - 6
Becoming Jane - 6
Lives Of Others, The - 9
Venus - 7
Black Book, The (Zwartboek) - 8
When The Levees Broke - A Requiem In Four Acts - 8
Ratcatcher - 8
Lilya 4 Ever - 7
Apartment, The - 6
Andrei Rublev - 7
Searchers, The - 8
Babel - 7
Prairie Home Companion, A - 6
Ten Canoes - 8
Umbrellas Of Cherbourg, The - 6
Persona - 7
Breaking And Entering - 6
Jindabyne - 8
Noises Off! - 5
Science Of Sleep, The - 6
Lost Highway - 8
Barton Fink - 7
Mulholland Drive - 6
After The Wedding - 8
Lage Raho Munnabhai - 6
Black Narcissus - 8
Brother - 7
Requiem For A Dream - 8
Fitzcarraldo - 7
Simpsons Movie, The - 7
Alice In Wonderland - 5
El Topo - 8
Downfall - 8
Knocked Up - 6
Ma Mere - 6
La Vie En Rose - 8
Spellbound - 7
This Is England - 7
Captive, The - 7
Sacrifice, The - 8
Control - 8
Atonement - 7
Faust - 7
Tickets - 8
Hidden - 9
Belle De Jour - 7
Paris, Je T'aime - 7
This Sporting Life - 8
Anchorman - 8
The Enigma of Kaspar Hauser - 7
Stroszek - 8
Fog Of War, The - 7
Michael Clayton - 8
Ugetsu Monogatari - 7
Tokyo Story - 9
Oyu-Sama - 6
Breaking The Waves - 9
London to Brighton - 7
Darjeeling Limited, The - 7
Blue Velvet - 8
Jesus Camp - 6
Conversation, The - 8
Once - 7
No Country for Old Men - 8
Sicko - 6
4 Months, 3 weeks And 2 Days - 8
Sweeney Todd - The Demon Barber of Fleet Street - 6
L'Avventura - 7
Paths Of Glory - 8
I'm Not There - 6
Night Of The Hunter, The - 8
1900 - Novecento - 6
Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford - 8
Free Cinema - 7
St. Trinian's - 5
Dark Is Rising, The - 5
Italian For Beginners - 8
Apu Trilogy, Pather Panchali - 7
Blood Diamond - 7
Oz - Series 1 - 5
Diving Bell and the Butterfly, The - 8
Great Expectations - 7
Persepolis - 8
Juno - 6
Humphrey Jennings Collection, The - 7
La Grande Illusion - 8
Distant Voices, Still Lives - 8
Sex and the City - 4
Singing Detective, The - 9
Child, The (L'enfant) - 7
Killer of Sheep - 7
Elephant - 6
Uzak - 7
Paranoid Park - 6
Man Without A Past, The - 9
Dead Set - 7
Mamma Mia! - 6
General, The - 8
Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou, The - 7
Happy-Go-Lucky - 6
Kung Fu Panda - 7
Royal Tenenbaums, The - 8
Henry V - 7
King Lear - 6
Zoolander - 8
Man For All Seasons, A - 9
Duck Soup - 8
Ghostbusters - 9
Stir Crazy - 7
Clerks - The First Cut - 6
Other Boleyn Girl, The - 5
Crucible, The - 8
Love And Death - 6
Becket - 8
Hunger - 8
Gomorrah - 8
Hester Street - 5
Idiots, The - 7
Kwaidan - 6
Last Resort - 8
Linha De Passe - 6
Burn After Reading - 7
Babylon - 7
Hearts And Minds - 8
Mahabharata, The - 6
American Gangster - 7
Of Time And The City - 8
Naked - 9
Man Who Would Be King, The - 7
Vera Drake - 8
I've Loved You So Long - 7
Mad Men - Season 1 - 8
Kite Runner, The - 6
Class, The - 8
Hiroshima Mon Amour - 8
Lift to the Scaffold - 8
Che - Part 1 - 8
Che - Part 2 - 6
Mad Men - Season 2 - 8
Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The - 6
Mona Lisa - 8
Milk - 8
Watchmen - 6
Wrestler, The - 7
This Is Spinal Tap - 8
My Beautiful Laundrette - 8
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