Welcome to the sixth instalment of ‘3 films you need to see before you die!’ As you can probably anticipate, these lists will be unbelievably subjective and probably challenging for some people to read. With each small collection of films, I hope to shed light on the films that have captivated me in my own life and at the same time trying to sell them as an interest to you!
So, without waffling any further,
here are 3 Films you need to see before you die! In my humble and biased
opinion.
1. 500 Days of Summer (2009) Dir. Marc Webb
You should know upfront; this is not a love story. 500
Days of Summer focuses mainly on Tom (played by Joseph Gordon Levitt) the passionate
romantic who works for a greeting card company. He meets Summer (played by Zoey
Deschanel), the new starter at work and immediately believes that she is ‘The
One’, Summer is instantly attracted to Tom but is pretty cynical about love and
Tom’s obsession with the idea of ‘The One’. When cynicism meets romanticism, it
provides a remarkably interesting matchup between two people. 500 Days of
Summer is a romantic comedy that subverts most of the conventions we
usually associate with the genre. This mainly refers to Tom as the ‘nice guy’, Summer
only wants to be friends, but Tom wants to take things further. What does he
do? He persists, not in a stalker kind of way but a ‘nice guy’ kind of way, the
kind of way that romantic comedies of the past have taught us. The enthusiastic
male wins over his female love interest by his effort and persistence to exit
the friendzone. 500 Days of Summer is refreshingly different from that
kind of movie.
500 Days of Summer uses the notion of ‘The One’ in
regard to the expectations we place on our love life. When Tom meets Summer, he
instantly believes that she is ‘The One’ supposing that we are all destined for
one person and if fate doesn’t bring you together, you will never truly find
love. This means that Tom often places unrealistic expectations on his love life
and future, essentially setting himself up for failure. Summer is fun, easy-going
and a bit of a free spirit, Tom is deep, sensitive, and driven and this drive
leaves him clouded with his own experiences of their relationship. From the
outset, Summer informs Tom that no matter how perfect they may seem for each other
she is only looking for something casual. Initially Tom decides to go along
with it in the hope that he can persuade Summer to fall into something more
serious. Ultimately, this pressure proves to be too much for Summer and the
Relationship falters as a result. In his disappointment Tom projects his
sadness onto Summer, despite the fact that she was clear in her reservations
from the very start.
Often in relationships we remember what we want to remember, and although this is flawed it helps us to move on. In his reflection Tom believes that his relationship with summer was very one-sided stating “I loved you more than you loved me” a remark that many of us have pondered and maybe even said in the past. This hurts Summer, she loved Tom, but she begins to understand that Tom’s unrealistic expectations of love made them incompatible in the long run. 500 Days of Summer also poses the question of heroes and villains in the Rom-Com genre. Summer appears to be the villain who breaks the nice guys heart, but in general, relationships aren’t about heroes and villains or winners and losers. Relationships are only compatible when two people are equally invested in each other and it’s hard to fight this case for Tom and Summer.
500 Days of Summer’s story really is a breath of air, and it is amplified by it’s perfect score. From indie classics by the Smiths, to the subtle compositions of the film’s composer Mychael Danna, everything about the soundtrack feels appropriate for each twist and turn the film takes. On top of all of this is the sublime casting. Zoey Deschanel’s quirky attractiveness matched with Joseph Gordon Levitt whose charming persona effortlessly portrays a ‘nice guy’ in crisis. The crisis that shows Tom’s darker side or maybe even his true colours. A man with a delusional understanding of his own worth, A man who turns to bitterness when he doesn’t get his own way. Summer may be frustrating, but she always knew what she wanted. Tom still has a lot of work to do.
What makes
this film so magnificent is it’s relatability. When everything is considered,
Tom will learn a lot from his encounter with Summer. Everyone you meet has a
purpose.
2. Hunky Dory (2011) Dir. Marc Evans
Hunky Dory is the British musical film surrounding the sweltering summer of 1976 in South Wales where a drama teacher (Minnie Driver) brings together her adolescent students to perform a modern take on Shakespeare’s The Tempest for the end of term show. Vivienne is the drama teacher who wants to create an end of year show that the youngsters can have a real impact on, allowing them to express their glam rock inspired musical influences into one of Shakespeare’s classics. Music from 70’s icons like David Bowie, Electric Light Orchestra and 10cc to name a few dominate the agenda, and through Vivienne’s effort and enthusiasm she manages to get everyone on board. Not forgetting all of the teenage struggles that come with school drama shows. What makes Hunky Dory so authentic is no doubt it’s 15 certificate, allowing you to cast yourself back into your younger days with the unfiltered language that comes with life at school.
Hunky Dory isn’t just charming in its creation of the end of term show, it’s profound in portraying the many different kinds of issues that teenagers have to deal with at that time in their lives. Whether it’s love, loyalty or even sexuality these are the challenges that mean so much to teenagers in the most formative periods of their lives and Hunky Dory really drives this home. Marc Evans as a child of the 70’s also manages to harness a real sense of relatability for kids of that time, I’ll never forget the sincere effect the film had on my parents, reminding them of a time of great music, hot summers, making mistakes and in essence being free. Marc Evans genuinely cares about this subject matter and you can feel it all the way through this hidden gem.
The most special thing about Hunky Dory is undoubtedly the
music. From the outside in you might be reluctant to watch a group of teenagers
take on classics like David Bowie’s ‘Life on Mars’ or even Electric Light
Orchestra’s ‘Livin Thing’ but they truly make it their own. Unlike the cheesy High
School Musical style of musicality where the youngsters display a pitch
perfect tone accompanied with professional music production, Hunky Dory
has an overwhelming amount of authenticity to its musical numbers. It just has
the feeling of a genuine school production with a couple of exciting nuances
thrown in. This authenticity works perfectly with the fact that Hunky Dory
is also a true story. As the credits sequence rolls you learn about the lives of
the students and teachers alike, a heart-warming end to what is a real hidden
gem of British cinema.
As fun as Hunky Dory is, there are a number of noteworthy storylines
bubbling away underneath the main story arc. Most notably Davey (Aneurin
Barnard), who has to juggle family life at home looking after a brother who is being
bullied and a drunken father who is jobless and alone after the separation with
Davey’s mother. Along with these issues Davey has to fight the teasing from his
family and friends who call him a ‘puff’ for being interested in drama, highlighting
the toxic masculinity of working-class Britain in the 1970’s. Nevertheless,
Davey stays strong through all of this, helping his father onto a path of recovery
and taking the leading role in the end of term performance, a role in which
excels in.
What Hunky Dory shows is that you don’t always need a
huge budget, accompanied with a blockbuster cast in order to convey a great
story. All you need is a director that cares and a cast that gives you that ‘something
special’.
3. Big Fish (2003) Dir. Tim Burton
From the always distinctive Tim Burton is Big Fish the
movie where a dying man tells the story of his remarkable life. Edward Bloom is
the eccentric storyteller who has a reputation of stretching the truth with his
distant son Will (Played by Billy Crudup). Edward (Played by Albert Finney,
Ewan McGregor & Perry Walston at different stages of his life) has a
turbulent relationship with Will who becomes frustrated with the elaborate stories
about his father’s past. Will states that he didn’t see any of himself in his
father, feeling like strangers who knew each other very well. The story of
Edward’s life is told through flashbacks from Edward himself and the various
characters he met along the way. The characters of Big Fish are all
larger than life and help you to understand why Will was so sceptical about his
fathers past. Will must remove his scepticism if he is able to understand his
past and in turn look forward to a brighter future with kids of his own.
In Big Fish there are no complicated messages and
themes that you have to work out, what you see is what you get. This film has
the essence of cinema running through it and when you take away Burton’s
exceptional visuals you uncover a simple story. That in essence is what cinema
is all about, a director taking a simple story and cultivating it into a beautiful
piece of art. To strengthen a great story, you need a cast to match and this movie
certainly has that with Ewan McGregor stealing the show as a younger Edward
Bloom. McGregor’s charisma and inherent goodness help you to understand why Edward
became the legend of his own legacy.
Throughout life we meet people who are considered a big fish
in a small pond and vice versa but what Big Fish really teaches us is
that life is essentially one big learning opportunity. Each person and each
experience can be a lesson if you want to take note. Edward was never a rich
man in the direct sense, but he had a profound effect on the people he met
during his travels, he was able to understand the true riches in life – Helping
others. A lesson most of us can take on.
Big Fish reminds you of the stories told by your
older relatives, they seem so far from reality, but isn’t that the beauty of a
story? Expanding on the truth in order to remember life how you want it to be
remembered, I think deep down all of us want to be remembered in the best way
possible and Edward Bloom sure was. Through Edward Bloom's optimistic approach
to life, it allows you to find genuine movie magic from a master filmmaker who
has been underappreciated for far too long.
“A man tells his stories so many times he becomes the stories. They live on after him, and in that way he becomes immortal.” Big Fish is a remarkable film with a wonderful imagination that is surely one of Tim Burton’s best kept secrets.
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