It’s official – I’m a snob. A cinema snob, that is. I’ve always suspected this, but it’s finally been confirmed. Allow me to explain. I’ve always liked art house and indie films. I love their creativity, their off-the-wall humour, their use of colour (think Jean-Pierre Jeunet, the master of colour) and their messages. They get me thinking and most of the films that have changed my life have actually been art house films.
I don’t watch art house cinema exclusively though. I do enjoy the odd Hollywood blockbuster, just like everyone else. Recently though, I seem to be becoming increasingly intolerant of mainstream cinema. My friend Kirstan invited me to go watch “Transformers 2” on Tuesday night, and I really felt as if I would rather have my wisdom teeth removed instead. I watched “Transformers 1” a couple of months ago with Duncan, and I suspect that I ruined the entire movie for him (despite the fact that this was the third time that he had watched it). I just can’t take action movies seriously. The plot was as thin as the paper of a comic book (sorry. Graphic novel) and the acting was ludicrous. Yes, the transforming cars were cool and the CGI was flawless, but I really can’t watch an entire film based on the special effects. And so I spent the entire movie laughing at the poor characterization and awful script, and nearly caused Duncan to want to throw something at me by the time the guy had got the girl and they watched the sunset together (while the weird transformed robot/car watched them make out. Creepy!).
I’ve even become fussy about art house films. My friend Granville lent me “The City of Lost Children” a couple of weeks ago. It’s a Jean-Pierre Jeunet film, and is thus French. I started watching it and within 4 minutes I felt as if something was seriously wrong. I couldn’t work out what it was, until I realized that I was watching it with the English dubbing on. I had to stop the film and flip back to the DVD language menu so that I could watch the rest of the film in French with English subtitles!
So, I have come to the conclusion that I can’t watch mainstream films. The occasional romantic comedy (as long as it doesn’t have Matthew McConaughey in it) is okay, provided that it’s actually funny and vaguely plausible, and most Dreamworks/Pixar animated films seem to be immune to my disdain. But other than that, I remain a dedicated cinema snob. The problem I now face is that I don't have terribly many friends who enjoy art house or indie films, and so I end up watching "Hell Boy" with Luke and Duncan (although they have been very good and have allowed me to expose them to some art house stuff).
Just for fun, here are 10 art house/ indie movies that have changed my life. Please feel free to add yours!
1. Garden State (the first real indie film that I ever watched. I love every second of it).
2. Amelie (Jeunet is a genius)
3. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (Jim Carey doing serious stuff and Kate Winslet being lovely. Bliss!)
4. The Darjeeling Limited
5. Across the Universe (mixed reactions from most people, but I loved it so much that I bought the DVD).
6. Juno
7. Little Miss Sunshine
8. Be Kind, Rewind
9. Hero
10. The Hours
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