2008 Woodie Awards
Rewarding movies round out final top 10
Bill Fech
Issue date: 8/14/08 Section: Features
In May, I wrote what I thought was my last "Top Billing" column for the Daily Nebraskan. It was an impassioned plea for film fans to branch out of the air-conditioned comfort of Hollywood and watch more foreign or independent fare, an attitude I still would impart on my readers.
I thought it would be my swan song, something I could tell the grandkiddies about, and I signed off appropriately with inspirational words more akin to Facebook "favorite quotes" entries.
Well, it turns out graduating seniors can write for the DN the summer after they toss the cap, thus voiding my goodbye wave from the sailing ship. Wah wahhh.
But I'm thankful. This time, the real final word, I'd like to depart from the contemptuous castigations that too often constituted my film reviews. Let's face it, there's a lot of crap out there, and it gets old kneading your hands through it every week.
So, what follows is unequivocal praise for several great films. Giving in to my odd little fetish for lists, I've made up my personal current list of the Top 10 Films of All-Time.
Lists are morphing things, and these ten are just the ones that fell into place at the moment I wrote this. Ask me again in a month and things might be different.
These aren't necessarily the films I would pop in every day, but they are those that give me the most emotionally and cinematically rewarding experiences. It goes without saying that I recommend you check them out.
Honorable Mentions
"The Seventh Continent" (Michael Haneke, 1989, Austria)
"Days of Heaven" (Terrence Malick, 1978, U.S.)
"Glengarry Glen Ross" (James Foley, 1992, U.S.)
"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" (Cristian Mungiu, 2007, Romania)
"Elephant" (Gus Van Sant, 2003, U.S.)
Top Ten
10. "Ikiru" (Akira Kurosawa,
1952, Japan)
The title means "to live," and though Kurosawa made a name in the West for his samurai action-adventures, this quiet ode to a Tokyo cancer victim searching for meaning in his last days is the director's most accomplished film I've seen. Drifting through the bustling city - isn't it funny how we feel most alone when surrounded by people? - Kanji, the protagonist, can't help but feel like he's wasted his life and squandered what few relationships he had. If you don't tear up at the famous "Swing in the Snow" scene, check your pulse.
I thought it would be my swan song, something I could tell the grandkiddies about, and I signed off appropriately with inspirational words more akin to Facebook "favorite quotes" entries.
Well, it turns out graduating seniors can write for the DN the summer after they toss the cap, thus voiding my goodbye wave from the sailing ship. Wah wahhh.
But I'm thankful. This time, the real final word, I'd like to depart from the contemptuous castigations that too often constituted my film reviews. Let's face it, there's a lot of crap out there, and it gets old kneading your hands through it every week.
So, what follows is unequivocal praise for several great films. Giving in to my odd little fetish for lists, I've made up my personal current list of the Top 10 Films of All-Time.
Lists are morphing things, and these ten are just the ones that fell into place at the moment I wrote this. Ask me again in a month and things might be different.
These aren't necessarily the films I would pop in every day, but they are those that give me the most emotionally and cinematically rewarding experiences. It goes without saying that I recommend you check them out.
Honorable Mentions
"The Seventh Continent" (Michael Haneke, 1989, Austria)
"Days of Heaven" (Terrence Malick, 1978, U.S.)
"Glengarry Glen Ross" (James Foley, 1992, U.S.)
"4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days" (Cristian Mungiu, 2007, Romania)
"Elephant" (Gus Van Sant, 2003, U.S.)
Top Ten
10. "Ikiru" (Akira Kurosawa,
1952, Japan)
The title means "to live," and though Kurosawa made a name in the West for his samurai action-adventures, this quiet ode to a Tokyo cancer victim searching for meaning in his last days is the director's most accomplished film I've seen. Drifting through the bustling city - isn't it funny how we feel most alone when surrounded by people? - Kanji, the protagonist, can't help but feel like he's wasted his life and squandered what few relationships he had. If you don't tear up at the famous "Swing in the Snow" scene, check your pulse.
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