Sight & Sound Greatest Films of All Time 2022 list

[ravishingravi]

Jeanne Dielman  is an interesting selection. Meets the diversity quota, but also was a very nuanced Akerman film. 

[zen]

19 hours ago, zen said:

 

To answer my question on the 10 films, below is a list from the perspective of film-making (1950 onwards and 1 film per director): 

 

Joker (2019, Philips)

Persona (1966, Bergman) 

Vertigo (1958, Hitchcock)

In the Mood for Love (2000, Wong Kar-wai)

Godfather I & 11 (1972-74, Coppola) 

The Secret in Their Eyes (2009, Campanella) 

Seven Samurai (1954, Kurosawa)

Lawrence of Arabia (1962, Lean) 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968, Kubrick) 

Singin’ in the Rain (1952, Donen-Kelly)

 

* They are all good so anyone of the above can be #1. Here I have gone w/ Joker as it has incorporated various learnings/best practices to be seen as a modern masterpiece. 

4 of the films on my above list made it to critics’ top 10, and 5 to directors’!

[zen]

ART<--------------------o------------------->ENTERTAINMENT

       Jeanne Dielman

[zen]

"Sight and Sound conducts their once-a-decade poll by asking prominent film critics, academics, and programmers from all over the world to list their personal top ten films (ranking doesn’t matter)."

 

 

Jeanne Dielman could be the beneficiary of "ticking certain boxes". If the voters are supposed to or planned to have at least one film by a woman director on the list (does not matter if it is at #1 or #10 on their list), Jeanne Dielman would be a strong contender for that place due to limited competition/pool in that domain. If more voters included it, it would end up at #1. Similarly, Beau travail probably made it to the top 10 for similar reasons. 

 

"Ticking the boxes" has happened in the past too but in a different way. A big beneficiary of that is Citizen Kane, which has got into a virtuous cycle. Since its reputation gained (it was one of the groundbreaking films of its time) and came in at #1, more voters would include it on their list (it could be their #1 film or #10, it does not matter) as it would be at the top of the mind recall, ensuring that it came in at #1 for 5 decades, and still remains (maybe questionably) in the top 10.

[zen]

People are voicing their concerns:

 

From Paul Schrader’s Facebook post - “For seventy years the SIGHT AND SOUND POLL has been a reliable if somewhat incremental measure of critical consensus and priorities. Films moved up the list, others moved down; but it took time. The sudden appearance of "Jeanne Dielman" in the number one slot undermines the S&S poll's credibility. It feels off, as if someone had put their thumb on the scale. Which I suspect they did. As Tom Stoppard pointed out in Jumpers, in democracy it doesn't matter who gets the votes, it matters who counts the votes. By expanding the voting community and the point system this year's S&S poll reflects not a historical continuum but a politically correct rejiggering. Ackerman's film is a favorite of mine, a great film, a landmark film but its unexpected number one rating does it no favors. "Jeanne Dielman" will from this time forward be remembered not only an important film in cinema history but also as a landmark of distorted woke reappraisal.”

 

 

[zen]

More stuff is coming out including S&S hiring consultants (for voters) like the one below:

 

 

 

Edited December 3, 2022 by zen

[Vijy]

On 12/1/2022 at 2:17 PM, zen said:

RESULTS are OUT! LINK

 

Top 10

 

Jeanne Dielman
Vertigo
Citizen Kane
Tokyo Story
In the Mood for Love
2001: A SPace Odyssey
Beau travail
Mulholland Dr
Man with a Movie Camera
Singin' in the Rain

 

 

I like all these movies, but I think jeanne, beau travail, and movie camera all too high

[Vijy]

On 12/1/2022 at 4:27 PM, ravishingravi said:

Jeanne Dielman  is an interesting selection. Meets the diversity quota, but also was a very nuanced Akerman film. 

yes, it is fantastic, one of the greatest ever by a woman director, but... not the greatest film of all time in my opinion. should be in top 15-20, and maybe top 10, but not top 5.

 

my favorite akerman (which is different than the "greatest") film is Je Tu Il Elle, especially the last 20 mins. those who have watched it will know exactly what I mean

[zen]

Jeanne Dielman

 

 

[Vijy]

2 hours ago, zen said:

Jeanne Dielman

 

 

one thing about akerman's films is that I find the heroines to be very sexy even when they are not conventionally beautiful and even when they are doing mundane things. see my above post on Je Tu Il Elle, some of the greatest scenes of physical intimacy I have seen in that movie

[zen]

1 minute ago, Vijy said:

one thing about akerman's films is that I find the heroines to be very sexy even when they are not conventionally beautiful and even when they are doing mundane things. see my above post on Je Tu Il Elle, some of the greatest scenes of physical intimacy I have seen in that movie

This one has Seyrig, who was in Last Year in Marienbad and The Day of the Jackal. 
 

 

[Vijy]

5 minutes ago, zen said:

This one has Seyrig, who was in Last Year in Marienbad and The Day of the Jackal. 
 

 

correct, I have always liked delphine. she has the typical french features, which are best described as alluring even if not "beautiful" in the classic sense

 

marienbad is a great film IMO

Edited December 5, 2022 by Vijy

[zen]

Man with a Movie Camera (1929) ... an excellent "experimental" documentary film depicting everyday life in the Soviet Union (almost a 100 years ago!): 

 

 

 

Edited December 6, 2022 by zen

[Vijy]

On 12/6/2022 at 2:11 PM, zen said:

Man with a Movie Camera (1929) ... an excellent "experimental" documentary film depicting everyday life in the Soviet Union (almost a 100 years ago!): 

 

 

 

prefer einsenstein and dovzhenko myself, but vertov was great too. soviet cinema was radically diff than East/west for some period of time.

[zen]

Of the critics' top 20, I am probably ok with 75-80% of films: 

 

Jeanne Dielman  Good film and I respect the experimental nature of the film but probably not a top 10 film yet 
Vertigo
Citizen Kane  One of the great films but removed it as it is in a virtuous cycle since 1962, benefiting from American/Hollywood voting over the decades. It can now move out of top 10 
Tokyo Story
In the Mood for Love
2001: A Space Odyssey
Beau travail  Quota pick
Mulholland Dr 
Man with a Movie Camera
Singin' in the Rain

Sunrise
Godfather
Rules of the Game
Cleo from 5 to 7
The Searchers
Meshes of the Afternoon  This is less than 15 minutes long 
Close Up  A docustyle film about a person pretending to be a film director in Iran. Good but not sure if it belongs to top 20
Persona
Apocalypse Now
Seven Samurai

 

 

 

 

Edited December 8, 2022 by zen

[zen]

 

[zen]

One of the best ways to watch Jeanne Dielman is at 2x speed, which works for the most part!  

Edited December 9, 2022 by zen

[zen]

My top 10 from the critics' top 20: 

 

 

Man with a Movie Camera (1929) - If I include documentaries, this one is right up there with the best films. Probably serves as an inspiration for films such as Baraka and Samsara. 

 

Persona (1966) - For its relative experimental nature where it attempts to combine various genres, leaning towards the psychological drama genre. 

 

Vertigo (1958) - A noir-psychological thriller with intelligent cinematography esp. the use of colors and space, and an impactful score. 

 

In the Mood for Love (2000) - An amazing film at many levels - sophisticated acting (where glances and eyes convey emotions), cinematography (use of frames within frames for e.g.), and score. Good to see it in the top 10.

 

Godfather (1972) - A timeless film showcasing some of the best in direction, screenplay, acting, cinematography (lighting), score, etc. 

 

Tokyo Story (1953) - There are not too many films like this one in terms of emotional impact and message. The cinematography is notable where the camera remains static (characters do movement) and mostly in a low(maybe to replicate the sitting positions in the Japanese environment) or eye-level position. Tokyo Story is an example of a film where simplicity/minimalism keeps a film timeless.

 

Seven Samurai (1954) - Every shot can be a good photograph. An inspiration for many films. 

 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - A unique experience that provides a glimpse of an AI influenced future. 

 

Singin' in the Rain (1952) - This film is a triumph of cinema, combining a musical with comedy in a film about films. It is also one of the best feel-good movies.

 

Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962) - I have picked this for its experimental nature, excellent choice of subject, and striking B&W photography. Also provides a brief tour of 1960s Paris!

Edited December 8, 2022 by zen

[Vijy]

5 hours ago, zen said:

My top 10 from the critics' top 20: 

 

 

Man with a Movie Camera (1929) - If I include documentaries, this one is right up there with the best films. Probably serves as an inspiration for films such as Baraka and Samsara. 

 

Persona (1966) - For its relative experimental nature where it attempts to combine various genres, leaning towards the psychological drama genre. 

 

Vertigo (1958) - A noir-psychological thriller with intelligent cinematography esp. the use of colors and space, and an impactful score. 

 

In the Mood for Love (2000) - An amazing film at many levels - sophisticated acting (where glances and eyes convey emotions), cinematography (use of frames within frames for e.g.), and score. Good to see it in the top 10.

 

Godfather (1972) - A timeless film showcasing some of the best in direction, screenplay, acting, cinematography (lighting), score, etc. 

 

Tokyo Story (1953) - There are not too many films like this one in terms of emotional impact and message. The cinematography is notable where the camera remains static (characters do movement) and mostly in a low(maybe to replicate the sitting positions in the Japanese environment) or eye-level position. Tokyo Story is an example of a film where simplicity/minimalism keeps a film timeless.

 

Seven Samurai (1954) - Every shot can be a good photograph. An inspiration for many films. 

 

2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) - A unique experience that provides a glimpse of an AI influenced future. 

 

Singin' in the Rain (1952) - This film is a triumph of cinema, combining a musical with comedy in a film about films. It is also one of the best feel-good movies.

 

Cleo from 5 to 7 (1962) - I have picked this for its experimental nature, excellent choice of subject, and striking B&W photography. Also provides a brief tour of 1960s Paris!

I would put kane in there somewhere, but most of the rest is the same