Time Out's list of the top 100 British films
Kingo Gondo
useful. I know there are so many great British films I have missed--this
could be a handy way to latch on to some of them.
Thanks, Time Out.
http://www.timeout.com/london/bestbritishfilms/
william
Tell Fleshy Brunhilde about #1. I don't like lists either but so many
of my fave Brit films are on the list that I'll overlook the usual
suspects.
William
Francis A. Miniter
This list definitely did not move me. A good number I had
not even heard of.
How can anyone have left off the following?
Rebecca
The English Patient
The Collector
Lifeboat
Dr. Zhivago
The Quiller Memorandum
A Dandy in Aspic
King Rat
The Night of the Generals
The Man Who Would Be King
Mona Lisa
Sleuth
The Ipcress File
The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie
and if Zulu is in, then surely Zulu Dawn should be there too.
--
Francis A. Miniter
In dem Lande der Pygmäen
gibt es keine Uniformen,
weder Abzeichen, noch irgend welche Normen,
Und Soldaten sind dort nicht zu sehen.
Siegfried von Vegesack, "Es gibt keine Uniformen"
from In dem Lande der Pygmäen
william
William
Mack A. Damia
Surely "A Christmas Carol" with Alastair Sim belongs in the top ten.
Francis A. Miniter
Well, Rebecca had a British author, British director,
British actors and actresses, and British setting, even
though it was filmed in the US, so I consider it mostly British.
Lifeboat had a British director - Hitchcock, and that is why
I have always thought of it as British, but I suppose it is
more American than British.
william
wrote:
>
> Well, Rebecca had a British author, British director,
> British actors and actresses, and British setting, even
> though it was filmed in the US, so I consider it mostly British.
>
is too bogged down with propaganda to be considered a "great" film. It
really isn't that much of a film.
William
tomcervo
Follow the money--I think that makes "Lawrence of Arabia" an American
film. And "The Third Man" British, even if the three iconic roles and
the one iconic speech are from somewhere else.
I think the Archers were victims of their own success--everyone had
their own best P & P movies that they canceled each other out for #1.
David O.
Lots of great stuff on the list, & lots of shit. The adjective
Shakespearean is mentioned no fewer than six times in the writeups, &
yet Laurence Olivier appears not once.
I mean, really. TWO Monty Python movies on the list, & no HENRY V, no
HAMLET, no RICHARD III?
keeno
> On Tue, 8 Feb 2011 18:10:38 -0500, "Kingo Gondo"
>
> >I normally hate this type of list. This one, however, I think I might find
> >useful. I know there are so many great British films I have missed--this
> >could be a handy way to latch on to some of them.
>
> >Thanks, Time Out.
>
> > http://www.timeout.com/london/bestbritishfilms/
>
> Lots of great stuff on the list, & lots of shit. The adjective
> Shakespearean is mentioned no fewer than six times in the writeups, &
> yet Laurence Olivier appears not once.
--
> I mean, really. TWO Monty Python movies on the list, & no HENRY V, no
> HAMLET, no RICHARD III?
Yes, that really stood out. No O Lucky Man? Gee. Or Pumpkin Eaters?
Man Who Knew Too Much? Browning Version? An Education easily fits. But
many great ones, too (though some seemed a stretch for 'British').
Only one Bond film is a little surprising given the influence of that
kind of film making. And no Harry Palmer. Glad to see Bad Timing.
Madara0806
Q: If you called a tail a leg, how many legs does a dog have?
A: Four. Calling a tail a leg doesn't make it a leg.
Calling a Hollywood film made 7000 miles from England "British"
doesn't make it a "British" film. We're not a colony of England
anymore. Maybe you heard about something called the American
Revolution.
Your homework (punishment) is to watch Mel Gibson's THE PATRIOT ten
times in a row.
Francis A. Miniter
I first saw Lifeboat as a kid. I found the ethical issue
very interesting. When I went to law school, I came across
a British case (probably another reason why I associate it
with the British) from the 19th century that involved the
same issues, in that case, they resulted in prosecution. I
would not be surprised if whoever came up with the movie
plot was familiar with the case. (I can probably dig up the
case; I actually still have the criminal law casebook we
used decades ago.)
Francis A. Miniter
That would be torture beyond anything that Saddam Hussein or
Bush's people ever dreamed up.
But this discussion raises an interesting question in our
ever evolving age of internationalism. I have been thinking
about it for some time, because of the way that I shelve my
book collection. Let me give you an example.
Take James Clavell. He was born in Australia to English
parents, became a US citizen, and wrote about the British in
China and Japan, and he died in Switzerland, where he was
then residing. I classify him as an English author, because
of his numerous attachments, including the central figures
in his works, to England.
Now you have a movie like Rebecca, where the author
(DuMaurier) is English, so are the director (HItchcock)
almost all the actors (Olivier, Fontaine, Sanders, Bruce,
Denny, Smith, Gladys Cooper, Melville Cooper, Carroll,
Carey) and the setting. But it is filmed in the US and the
production company is American. To me, that gives it far
more British contacts than American ones.
Francis A. Miniter
That would be worse than any torture devised at Abu Grabh.
But this discussion has raised an issue that I have been
thinking about for some time, an issue that has really
arisen in the 20th century for the first time. In an age of
international mobility, how does one classify someone or
something by nationality.
Example. I collect books. I have shelved James Clavell's
works with my English Literature books (rather than with
American Lit.) because - or even though - he was born in
Australia to English parents, served in the English
military, settled in California, became a US citizen, wrote
about Brits in Asia (mostly Japan and China), and died in
Switzerland, where he was then resident. His ties to
England seemed stronger than the other ties. On the same
basis, I treat T. S. Eliot as English, but Henry James as
American. Arthur Koestler? Born in Hungary, wrote Darkness
at Noon in German (as part of a trilogy, the first book of
which was written in Hungarian, the second in German and the
third in English), while living in France with an English
woman who translated it to English, and the original German
text was lost to the Nazis, before he escaped to England
himself. It boggles the mind.
As to Rebecca, the author (Du Maurier) was British. So was
the director (Hitchcock), and almost all the actors
(Olivier, Fontaine, Sanders, Bruce, Denny, Smith, Gladys
Cooper, Melville Cooper, Carroll, Carey - Anderson was
Australian by birth) and the setting was English. On the
American side, it was filmed in the US and the production
company was US. That still seems to me to be mostly
British. Brits made a British film in the US with US money.
So, it is not the same as dogs and tails and legs at all.
It is more a question of which color or flavor predominates
in a blend of colors or tastes.
moviePig
I believe classification is often easier when it has a point.
--
- - - - - - - -
YOUR taste at work...
http://www.moviepig.com
william
wrote:
>
> So, it is not the same as dogs and tails and legs at all.
> It is more a question of which color or flavor predominates
> in a blend of colors or tastes.
>
choices and there is a distinct difference between US and UK films in
that regard. "Rebecca" and "Lifeboat" were US films because of those
choices much as "Walkabout" is a UK film and not an Australian one.
William
Francis A. Miniter
I do not understand what you are saying. If an Italian
production company had been the producer of Rebecca in the
US with the same English director and actors, are you saying
it would be an Italian film? What distinct differences are
you talking about that makes Rebecca an American film?
What about Blow-Up? The list that started this thread shows
it as British. The author, Julio Cortazar, was Argentinian,
he wrote in Spanish, the original story was set in Paris,
the Director, Antonioni, was Italian, the production
company, Bridge Films, was American, the actors were
English, and it was shot in England. On the basis of what
you said, this would not be a British film.
william
>
> I do not understand what you are saying. If an Italian
> production company had been the producer of Rebecca in the
> US with the same English director and actors, are you saying
> it would be an Italian film? What distinct differences are
> you talking about that makes Rebecca an American film?
>
"For Hitchcock, being a director meant being the primary creative
source for the film—working on everything from the script to the
props. In Hollywood, however, the power of the studios put producers
in charge. For the Hollywood of the 1930s, screenwriters and directors
were interchangeable technicians, not given serious consideration in
the artistic decisions of the film. More than any other producer,
Selznick took advantage of this and controlled nearly every aspect of
his movies. Not surprisingly, Hitchcock and Selznick had difficulties
from the very first film they made, REBECCA (1940). Disagreements
began with Hitchcock’s adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s novel and
lasted through the film’s completion. For the final scene, Selznick
wanted smoke to form the shape of an “R” in the sky. Hitchcock was
appalled. He suggested a subtler metaphor: the memory of Rebecca
should go up in flames with an “R” embroidered on a bed pillow.
Hitchcock won, but he felt battered by Selznick and resented his
producer’s complete command of post-production."
So the whole way that Hitchcock had worked -- the British way -- was
gone. What replaced it was money and fame.
William
moviePig
Good christ, an 'R' in the sky? ...to call Ratman? I'd heard Selznick
was something of a genius...
william
>
> Good christ, an 'R' in the sky? ...to call Ratman? I'd heard Selznick
> was something of a genius...
>
connected to the word "Rosebud" on a sled surrounded by flames?
William
tomcervo
Can't be bothered navigating:
100 In This World (2002) Dir Michael Winterbottom (Jamal Udin Torabi,
Enayatullah)
99 The Railway Children (1970) Dir Lionel Jeffries (Dinah Sheridan,
William Mervyn, Jenny Agutter)
98 School for Scoundrels (1960) Dir Robert Hamer (Ian Carmichael,
Alastair Sim, Terry-Thomas)
97 28 Days Later… (2002) Dir Danny Boyle (Cillian Murphy, Naomie
Harris, Brendan Gleeson)
96 Theatre of Blood (1973) Dir Douglas Hickox (Vincent Price, Diana
Rigg, Ian Hendry)
95 London to Brighton (2006) Dir Paul Andrew Williams (Lorraine
Stanley, Johnny Harris, Georgia Groome)
94 24 Hour Party People (2002) Dir Michael Winterbottom (Steve Coogan,
Rob Brydon, Ron Cook)
93 Zulu (1964) Dir Cy Endfield (Stanley Baker, Jack Hawkins, Michael
Caine)
92 Dead Man’s Shoes (2004) Dir Shane Meadows (Paddy Considine, Gary
Stretch, Toby Kebbell)
91 Land and Freedom (1995) Dir Ken Loach (Ian Hart, Icíar Bollaín, Tom
Gilroy)
90 Blue (1993) Dir Derek Jarman (voices of Tilda Swinton, John
Quentin, Nigel Terry)
89 The Go Between (1970) Dir Joseph Losey (Julie Christie, Alan Bates,
Dominic Guard)
88 This Is England (2006) Dir Shane Meadows (Thomas Turgoose, Stephen
Graham, Jo Hartley)
87 Night and the City (1950) Dir Jules Dassin (Richard Widmark, Gene
Tierney, Googie Withers)
86 The Bridge on the River Kwai (1957) Dir David Lean (Alec Guinness,
William Holden, Jack Hawkins)
85 I’m Alright Jack (1959) Dir John Boulting (Peter Sellers, Ian
Carmichael, Terry-Thomas)
84 Fish Tank (2009) Dir Andrea Arnold (Katie Jarvis, Kierston Wareing,
Michael Fassbender)
83 A Cottage on Dartmoor (1929)Dir Anthony Asquith (Hans Adalbert von
Schlettow, Uno Henning, Norah Baring)
82 Orlando (1993) Dir Sally Potter (Tilda Swinton, Billy Zane, John
Wood)
81 Dr No (1962) Dir Terence Young (Sean Connery, Ursula Andress,
Joseph Wiseman)
80 Under the Skin (1997) Dir Carine Adler (Samantha Morton, Claire
Rushbrook, Rita Tushingham)
79 The Offence (1972) Dir Sidney Lumet (Sean Connery, Trevor Howard,
Vivien Merchant)
78 Billy Liar (1963) Dir John Schlesinger (Tom Courtenay, Julie
Christie, Wilfred Pickles)
77 Piccadilly (1929) Dir EA Dupont (Anna May Wong, Gilda Gray, Jameson
Thomas)
76 Penda’s Fen (1974) Dir Alan Clarke (Spencer Banks, John Atkinson,
Ian Hogg)
75 A Room for Romeo Brass (1999) Dir Shane Meadows (Paddy Considine,
Andrew Shim, Ben Marshall)
74 Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994) Dir Mike Newell (Hugh Grant,
Andie MacDowell, Kristin Scott Thomas)
73 The Man in the White Suit (1951) Dir Alexander Mackendrick (Alec
Guinness, Joan Greenwood, Cecil Parker)
72 The Long Day Closes (1992) Dir Terence Davies (Marjorie Yates,
Leigh McCormack, Anthony Watson)
71 Edvard Munch (1974) Dir Peter Watkins (Geir Westby, Gro Fraas,
Iselin von Hanno Bart)
70 Bad Timing (1980) Dir Nicolas Roeg (Art Garfunkel, Theresa Russell,
Harvey Keitel)
69 Oliver! (1968) Dir Carol Reed (Ron Moody, Shani Wallis, Oliver
Reed)
68 Dead of Night (1945) Dirs Alberto Cavalcanti, Charles Crichton,
Basil Dearden, Robert Hamer (Mervyn Johns, Michael Redgrave, Roland
Culver)
67 Whisky Galore! (1949) Dir Alexander Mackendrick (Basil Radford,
Joan Greenwood, Jean Cadell)
66 Wonderland (1999) Dir Michael Winterbottom (Gina McKee, Shirley
Henderson, Molly Parker, John Simm)
65 Dracula (1958) Dir Terence Fisher (Peter Cushing, Christopher Lee,
Michael Gough)
64 Topsy-Turvy (1999) Dir Mike Leigh (Jim Broadbent, Allan Corduner,
Timothy Spall)
63 Nuts In May (1976) Dir Mike Leigh (Roger Sloman, Alison Steadman)
62 Deep End (1970) Dir Jerzy Skolimowski (Jane Asher, John Moulder-
Brown, Diana Dors)
61 Walkabout (1971) Dir Nicolas Roeg (Jenny Agutter, David Gulpilil,
Lucien John)
60 The Long Good Friday (1980) Dir John Mackenzie (Bob Hoskins, Helen
Mirren, Derek Thompson)
59 Blackmail (1929) Dir Alfred Hitchcock (Anny Ondra, Sara Allgood,
John Longden)
58 Gregory’s Girl (1981) Dir Bill Forsyth (John Gordon Sinclair, Dee
Hepburn, Claire Grogan)
57 2001: A Space Odyssey (1968) Dir Stanley Kubrick (Keir Dullea, Gary
Lockwood, William Sylvester)
56 Caravaggio (1986) Dir Derek Jarman (Nigel Terry, Sean Bean, Tilda
Swinton)
55 Radio-On (1980) Dir Chris Petit (David Beames, Lisa Kreuzer, Sandy
Ratcliff)
54 Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1974) Dirs Terry Gilliam, Terry
Jones (Graham Chapman, Michael Palin, John Cleese, Eric Idle et al)
53 This Sporting Life (1963) Dir Lindsay Anderson (Richard Harris,
Rachel Roberts)
52 Robinson in Space (1997) Dir Patrick Keiller (Paul Scofield
(voice))
51 Local Hero (1983) Dir Bill Forsyth (Burt Lancaster, Peter Riegert,
Denis Lawson)
50 Culloden (1964) Dir Peter Watkins (George McBean, Alan Pope, the
people of Inverness)
49 Gallivant (1996) Dir Andrew Kötting (Andrew Kötting, Eden Kötting,
Gladys Morris)
48 Hunger (2008) Dir Steve McQueen (Michael Fassbender, Liam
Cunningham)
47 Blow-Up (1966) Dir Michelangelo Antonioni (David Hemmings, Vanessa
Redgrave, Paul Bowles)
46 The Fallen Idol (1948) Dir Carol Reed (Ralph Richardson, Michèle
Morgan, Bobby Henrey)
45 Repulsion (1965) Dir Roman Polanski (Catherine Deneuve, Yvonne
Furneaux)
44 Sabotage (1936) Dir Alfred Hitchcock (Oscar Homolka, Sylvia Sidney,
John Loder)
43 Fires Were Started (1941) Dir Humphrey Jennings
42 Listen to Britain (1942) Dir Humphrey Jennings
41 Witchfinder General (1968) Dir Michael Reeves (Vincent Price,
Patrick Wymark, Ian Ogilvy)
40 Ratcatcher (1999) Dir Lynne Ramsay (William Eadie, Tommy Flanagan,
Mandy Matthews)
39 London (1994) Dir Patrick Keiller (voice of Paul Scofield)
38 Went the Day Well? (1942) Dir Alberto Cavalcanti (Leslie Banks,
Elizabeth Allan, Frank Lawton)
37 It Always Rains on Sunday (1947) Dir Robert Hamer (Googie Withers,
Edward Chapman, John McCallum)
36 The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner (1962) Dir Tony
Richardson (Tom Courtenay, James Bolam, Julia Foster)
35 The Servant (1963) Dir Joseph Losey (James Fox, Dirk Bogarde, Sarah
Miles, Wendy Craig)
34 A Clockwork Orange (1971) Dir Stanley Kubrick (Malcolm McDowell,
Patrick Magee, Michael Bates)
33 Secrets and Lies (1996) Dir Mike Leigh (Brenda Blethyn, Timothy
Spall, Marianne Jean-Baptiste)
32 Get Carter (1971) Dir Mike Hodges (Michael Caine, Britt Ekland,
John Osborne)
31 The Lady Vanishes (1938) Dir Alfred Hitchcock (Margaret Lockwood,
Michael Redgrave)
30 The Ladykillers (1955) Dir Alexander Mackendrick (Alec Guinness,
Peter Sellers, Katie Johnson)
29 Peeping Tom (1960) Dir Michael Powell (Karl Böhm, Anna Massey,
Maxine Audley)
28 The Wicker Man (1973) Dir Robin Hardy (Edward Woodward, Christopher
Lee, Britt Ekland)
27 The Bill Douglas Trilogy (1972, 1973, 1978) Dir Bill Douglas
(Stephen Archibald, Hughie Restorick, Jean Taylor-Smith)
26 I Know Where I’m Going! (1945) Dirs Michael Powell, Emeric
Pressburger (Wendy Hiller, Roger Livesey)
25 Great Expectations (1946) Dir David Lean (John Mills, Valerie
Hobson, Martita Hunt)
24 Brazil (1985) Dir Terry Gilliam (Jonathan Pryce, Robert De Niro,
Katherine Helmond)
23 Lawrence of Arabia (1962) Dir David Lean (Peter O’Toole, Omar
Sharif, Alec Guinness)
22 Saturday Night and Sunday Morning (1960) Dir Karel Reisz (Albert
Finney, Rachel Roberts, Shirley Anne Field)
21 Nil by Mouth (1997) Dir Gary Oldman (Kathy Burke, Ray Winstone)
20 Monty Python’s Life of Brian (1979) Dir Terry Jones (Graham
Chapman, John Cleese, Michael Palin, Eric Idle et al)
19 Barry Lyndon (1975) Dir Stanley Kubrick (Ryan O’Neal, Marisa
Berenson, Patrick Magee)
18 The Innocents (1961) Dir Jack Clayton (Deborah Kerr, Michael
Redgrave)
17 A Canterbury Tale (1944) Dirs Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
(Eric Portman, Sheila Sim, John Sweet, Dennis Price)
16 Black Narcissus (1947) Dirs Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
(Deborah Kerr, Sabu, David Farrar)
15 Withnail and I (1987) Dir Bruce Robinson (Richard E Grant, Paul
McGann, Richard Griffiths)
14 The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp (1943) Dirs Michael Powell,
Emeric Pressburger (Roger Livesey, Deborah Kerr)
13 The 39 Steps (1935) Dir Alfred Hitchcock (Robert Donat, Madeleine
Carroll, Godfrey Tearle)
12 Brief Encounter (1945) Dir David Lean (Trevor Howard, Celia
Johnson)
11 Naked (1993) Dir Mike Leigh (David Thewlis, Lesley Sharp, Karin
Cartlidge)
10 Trainspotting (1996) Dir Danny Boyle (Ewan McGregor, Robert
Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller)
9 If… (1968) Dir Lindsay Anderson (Malcom McDowell, David Wood,
Richard Warwick)
8 Kind Hearts and Coronets (1949) Dir Robert Hamer (Dennis Price, Alec
Guinness, Joan Greenwood)
7 Performance (1970) Dirs Nicolas Roeg, Donald Cammell (James Fox,
Mick Jagger, Anita Pallenberg)
6 A Matter of Life and Death (1946) Dirs Michael Powell, Emeric
Pressburger (David Niven, Kim Hunter, Roger Livesey, Raymond Massey)
5 The Red Shoes (1948) Dirs Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger (Moira
Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring)
4 Kes (1969) Dir Ken Loach (David Bradley, Lynne Perrie, Freddie
Fletcher)
3 Distant Voices, Still Lives (1988) Dir Terence Davies (Pete
Postlethwaite, Freda Dowie)
2 The Third Man (1949) Dir Carol Reed (Joseph Cotten, Orson Welles,
Alide Valli)
1 Don’t Look Now (1973) Dir Nicolas Roeg (Julie Christie, Donald
Sutherland)
I can't understand the prominence of "The Third Man" as an icon of
British film. The three major roles were played by foreigners; the
speech everyone remembers was written by one of them. The
cinematography looks like something John Alton did months before.
Reed and Graham made a better, and more British movie the year before,
"The Fallen Idol", with Ralph Richardson's best screen work. Here it's
#46.
OTOH, I can't complain too much about a list with two places for Peter
Watkins--except to note that nearly 50 years later, people are still
afraid of "The War Game".
tomcervo
wrote:
> On 2/8/2011 22:11 PM, william wrote:
>
> > On Feb 8, 10:07 pm, "Francis A. Miniter"<famini...@comcast.net>
> > wrote:
>
> >> Well, Rebecca had a British author, British director,
> >> British actors and actresses, and British setting, even
> >> though it was filmed in the US, so I consider it mostly British.
>
> > So Repulsion is a French film? Just playing devil's advocate. Lifeboat
> > is too bogged down with propaganda to be considered a "great" film. It
> > really isn't that much of a film.
>
> > William
>
> I first saw Lifeboat as a kid. I found the ethical issue
> very interesting. When I went to law school, I came across
> a British case (probably another reason why I associate it
> with the British) from the 19th century that involved the
> same issues, in that case, they resulted in prosecution. I
> would not be surprised if whoever came up with the movie
> plot was familiar with the case. (I can probably dig up the
> case; I actually still have the criminal law casebook we
> used decades ago.)
You may be thinking here of "Abandon Ship", about an overloaded
lifeboat whose officer starts putting people over the side--1957,
Tyrone Power. "Souls at Sea" from 1937 included the same dilemma.
Not many many ethical questions about killing the Nazi who's trying to
take you prisoner and killing off the other passengers to save water.
tomcervo
Zanuck did the same thing to Ford at Fox. Even when Ford tried to edit
in the camera--shooting footage that could only be assembled one way
to assure continuity--Zanuck shot new footage. He was even doing it in
1946 for "My Darling Clementine", when Ford was by any standard the
most honored director working in Hollywood; when Selznick did it,
Hitch was a new guy on the lot. Not long after that, Ford (and
Hitchcock) started doing their own production.
keeno
> Take James Clavell. He was born in Australia to English
> parents, became a US citizen, and wrote about the British in
> China and Japan, and he died in Switzerland, where he was
> then residing. I classify him as an English author, because
> of his numerous attachments, including the central figures
> in his works, to England.
I agree that Clavell is hard to categorize. But how many like him are
there really?
_______
> Now you have a movie like Rebecca, where the author
> (DuMaurier) is English, so are the director (HItchcock)
> almost all the actors (Olivier, Fontaine, Sanders, Bruce,
> Denny, Smith, Gladys Cooper, Melville Cooper, Carroll,
> Carey) and the setting. But it is filmed in the US and the
> production company is American. To me, that gives it far
> more British contacts than American ones.
Not to me, sir or madam. To me, this is American because it was made
here by an American producer. It would not be eligible for a BAFTA, I
don't believe.
tomcervo
The 20’s (Actually 1929)
Blackmail
Piccadilly
A Cottage on Dartmoor
The 30’s
The 39 Steps
Sabotage
The Lady Vanishes
The 40’s
Fires Were Started
Went the Day Well?
Listen to Britain
The Life and Death of Colonel Blimp
A Canterbury Tale
Brief Encounter
I Know Where I’m Going!
Dead of Night
A Matter of Life and Death
Great Expectations
Black Narcissus
It Always Rains on Sunday
The Red Shoes
The Fallen Idol
The Third Man
Kind Hearts and Coronets
Whisky Galore!
The 50’s
Night and the City
The Man in the White Suit
The Ladykillers
The Bridge on the River Kwai
Dracula
I’m Alright Jack
The 60’s
Saturday Night and Sunday Morning
Peeping Tom
School for Scoundrels
The Innocents
Lawrence of Arabia
The Loneliness of the Long Distance Runner
Dr No
The Servant
This Sporting Life
Billy Liar
Culloden
Zulu
Repulsion
Blow-Up
If…
Witchfinder General
2001: A Space Odyssey
Oliver!
Kes
The 70’s
Performance
Deep End
The Go Between
The Railway Children
Get Carter
A Clockwork Orange
Walkabout
The Offence
Don’t Look Now
The Wicker Man
Theatre of Blood
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Edvard Munch
Penda’s Fen
Barry Lyndon
Nuts In May
Monty Python’s Life of Brian
The Bill Douglas Trilogy
The 80’s
Radio-On
The Long Good Friday
Bad Timing
Gregory’s Girl
Local Hero
Brazil
Caravaggio
Withnail and I
Distant Voices, Still Lives
The 90’s
The Long Day Closes
Naked
Orlando
Blue
London
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Land and Freedom
Trainspotting
Secrets and Lies
Gallivant
Nil by Mouth
Robinson in Space
Under the Skin
Ratcatcher
Topsy-Turvy
Wonderland
A Room for Romeo Brass
The 0’s
Hour Party People
Days Later…
In This World
Dead Man’s Shoes
This Is England
London to Brighton
Hunger
Fish Tank
Every time they do a list like this, they end up with Stuff I've Seen
and/or My Battle For The Future. Forget whether or not they're really
"British", even though "2001" is as British as "Lawrence" is
Jordanian--they're mostly all new or within the critic's cultural
lifetime.
No "Queen of Spades" or "Gaslight"? Must be something terribly outre
about Anton Walbrook's mad scenes--how British of them.
Francis A. Miniter
You may indeed be correct. I saw the movie about that time
at the theater, and could not remember the name. Later, I
decided that Lifeboat must be it. But the plot you describe
fits better.
tomcervo
> tomcervo <paradisfa...@gmail.com> wrote:
> > I can't understand the prominence of "The Third Man" as an icon of
> > British film.
>
> "Repulsion," as others have already mentioned.
>
> Plenty of good suggestions for me, though...I don't think I've seen more
> than, um...48 of those films? Give or take.
I don't say it isn't a great film--just not that particularly
"British", the way that "The Fallen Idol" is--with many of the same
creative elements, and Richardson's performance.
A few years back Len Deighton wrote an article about the transition in
British cinema from personal dramas to epic films. His contrasts were
"The Cruel Sea" and "Lawrence of Arabia". the first was a story about
a couple of officers fighting the battle of the Atlantic in a small
ship. It's cold, dirty drudgery, with moments of sheer terror mixed
in, the experience of ten of thousands of men. "Lawrence" is a color
epic about one man changing the course of history in the Middle East,
amid staggeringly picturesque vistas and Homeric warriors, one man's
atypical story. Somewhere along that timeline British cinema began to
stop telling stories about ordinary lives, and started to die.
keeno
---
> Somewhere along that timeline British cinema began to
> stop telling stories about ordinary lives, and started to die.
Very interesting insight. I just got a copy of The Cruel Sea (book),
which I want to get to soon.
william
>
> But the '60s were FULL of British films about ordinary lives. Tony
> Richardson, Lindsay Anderson, John Schlesinger, etc. And I think the UK
> still does "ordinary life" films better than the US does.
The so-called "Angry Young Men" or "Kitchen Sink" films. Great stuff.
Those films helped dissolve the Hays Code in Hollywood. Some of my
favorite films. More of them should be on the list.
William
tomcervo
> Richardson, Lindsay Anderson, John Schlesinger, etc. And I think the UK
> still does "ordinary life" films better than the US does.
By my lights, "Distant Voices, Still Lives" would at the top of that
list, and Mike Leigh is allowed to make one movie a year, but the
presiding spirit of British Film still seems to be Hugh Hudson. "The
King's Speech" may be a well crafted film, but has anyone noticed that
the events depicted are simultaneous with those depicted in "Homage to
Catalonia"?
william
> One of the big movies on my "see" list is a Clive Donner film I read
> about on the Web called "Nothing but the Best"...have you seen this?
> Seems strangely obscure for a film starring well-known actors like Alan
> Bates and Denholm Elliott. It's probably not in the "Kitchen Sink"
> category, but at least in the nearby vicinity.
It's a comedy, or that's what I just found out and no, I haven't seen
it.
William