griggs's - 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die List
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Come and See (1985)Idi i smotri / Ubit Gitlera
"Come and See" is one of the greatest war films ever made and one of the finest achievements of Soviet cinema. A devastating account of the Nazi occupation of Belarussia during World War II, it tells the story of a young boy's abrupt loss of innocence when he joins the Soviet resistance and is thrust headlong into the brutal horrors of combat. Featuring terrifyingly authentic battle scenes and poetic, almost surreal imagery, director Elem Klimov has fashioned a vivid and unforgettably powerful portrait of the terrible atrocities committed by men in the name of war. - Director:
- Elem Klimov
- Cast:
- Aleksey Kravchenko, Olga Mironova, Liubomiras Lauciavicius
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Kiss of the Spider Woman (1985)O Beijo da Mulher Aranha
A dreary prison cell is shared by two men who, in terms of lifestyle, could not be further apart. Molina (William Hurt) is a homosexual convicted for obscene behaviour, the other, Valentin (Raul Julia), is a revolutionary who has been continually tortured by the same totalitarian authorities. As the minutes slowly pass, Molina invents a story based on the glamorous cinema of yesteryear - a Nazi propaganda film involving an unlikely love affair. At first, this extravagant display of personality doesn't bode well for the cellmates' relationship but as time and the story progresses a new kind of friendship begins to blossom. - Director:
- Hector Babenco
- Cast:
- William Hurt, Raul Julia, Sonia Braga
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A Time to Live, and Time to Die (1985)Tóngnián wangshì
This depiction of childhood and adolescence draws heavily from the filmmaker's own boyhood. Like many of their compatriots, Hou's family moved from the mainland to Taiwan in 1948 and was unable ever to return. The film focuses on the widening generation gap in a family cut off from its cultural heritage. The film is a coming of age story of Ah-Ha, whom we meet as a boy of about seven, and whose life we follow until his late teen years. Ah-Ha's family fled China in 1947, and now live in Taiwan. At first, there was still talk about recapturing the mainland, although those discussions faded away as the reality became clear. Still, Ah-Ha's grandmother (Ru-Yun Tang) is convinced that she can walk back to the mainland, and frequently asks people to help her to get there. - Director:
- Hsiao-hsien Hou
- Cast:
- Chia-bao Chang, Neng Chang, Chih-Chen Chen
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Vagabond (1985)Sans toit ni loi
Sandrine Bonnaire won a Best Actress Cesar for her portrayal as Mona - a young and defiant drifter in this tragic story. Using a largely non-professional cast Varda recollects Mona's story through flashbacks of those who encountered her, producing a splintered portrait of an enigmatic woman. She's not a kind girl but courageous while wandering in the winter. She announces in 1984 the collective conciousness of homeless people dying from the cold. - Director:
- Agnès Varda
- Cast:
- Sandrine Bonnaire, Macha Méril, Stéphane Freiss
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Sherman's March (1986)Sherman's March: A Meditation on the Possibility of Romantic Love in the South During an Era of Nuclear Weapons Proliferation
Filmmaker Ross McElwee grew up in the South and always marveled at how the folks there were affected by Union general William Tecumseh Sherman's legacy. Aiming to delve deeper into the region's interest, McElwee revisits the path of the general's march that took down the Confederacy. But the tone of his documentary changes when he learns his girlfriend has left him, causing him to second-guess himself with each woman he meets during the shoot. - Director:
- Ross McElwee
- Cast:
- Ross McElwee, Dede McElwee, Ross McElwee Jr.
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Tampopo (1985)Dandelion
The tale of an eccentric band of culinary ronin who guide the widow of a noodle-shop owner on her quest for the perfect recipe, this rapturous "ramen western" by Japanese director Juzo Itami is an entertaining, genre bending adventure underpinned by a deft satire of the way social conventions distort the most natural of human urges - our appetites. Interspersing the efforts of Tampopo (Nobuko Miyamoto) and friends to make her cafe a success with the erotic exploits of a gastronome gangster and glimpses of food culture both high and low, the sweet, sexy, and surreal 'Tampopo' is a lavishly inclusive paean to the sensual joys of nourishment, and one of the most mouthwatering examples of food on film ever made. - Director:
- Jûzô Itami
- Cast:
- Ken Watanabe, Tsutomu Yamazaki, Nobuko Miyamoto
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The Color Purple (1985)Moon Song
Celie. "Mr." Sofia (Oprah Winfrey). Nettie (Akosua Busia). Shug (Margaret Avery). The unforgettable characters of Alice Walker's Pulitzer Prize novel brighten the screen in this rhapsodically cinematic adaptation directed by Steven Spielberg. At the center of the tale is Celie (Whoopi Goldberg), whose search for fulfillment in a world closed to her becomes a triumph of cruelty overcome by love, of pain eclipsed by joy. - Director:
- Steven Spielberg
- Cast:
- Danny Glover, Whoopi Goldberg, Oprah Winfrey
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Out of Africa (1985)África mía
Out Of Africa follows the true life story of Karen Blixen (Meryl Streep), an amazingly strong-willed woman who moves from Denmark to run a coffee plantation with her philandering husband (Klaus Maria Brandauer) in Kenya around 1914. To her astonishment she soon discovers herself falling in love with the land, its people and a mysterious British adventurer and idealist (Robert Redford). - Director:
- Sydney Pollack
- Cast:
- Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer
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The Horse Thief (1986)Dao ma zei
Norbu's (Rigzin Tseshang) little son died of illness. Therefore, he expressed the deep regret for his thieving horse in the "ghost dancing". Later, his second son was born. Nevertheless, by force of livelihood, he had to thieve horses again. Unfortunately, he was hit to death when he stole horses for the last time.The film shows the unique culture of Tibet and the influence that religion has on the modern people as well as the society with the help of the new and rich film language and the expressive force of the film image. - Director:
- Zhuangzhuang Tian
- Cast:
- Daiba, Jiji Dan, Drashi
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The eldest daughter of show-biz parents, Hannah (Mia Farrow) is a devoted wife, loving mother and successful actress. A loyal supporter of her two aimless sisters (Barbara Hershey) and Holly (Dianne Wiest), she's also the emotional backbone of a family that seems to resent her stability almost as much as they depend on it. But when Hannah's perfect world is quietly sabotaged by sibling rivalry, she finally begins to see that she's as lost as everyone else, and in order to find herself, she'll have to choose - between the independence her family can't live with… and the family she can't live without. - Director:
- Woody Allen
- Cast:
- Mia Farrow, Dianne Wiest, Michael Caine
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Derek Jarmam struggled for seven years to bring his portrait of the seventeenth-century Italian artist Michelangelo de Caravaggio (Nigel Terry / Dexter Fletcher) to the screen. The result was well worth the wait, and was greeted with critical acclaim: a freely dramatised portrait of the controversial artist and a powerful mediation on sexuality, criminality and art - a new refreshing take on the usual biopic. The film centres on an imagined love-triangle between Caravaggio, his friend and model Ranuccio (Sean Bean), and Ranuccio's low-life partner Lena (Tilda Swinton). Conjuring some of the artist's most famous paintings through elaborate and beautifully photographed tableaux vivants, those works are woven into the fabric of the story, providing a starting point for its characters and narrative episodes. - Director:
- Derek Jarman
- Cast:
- Noam Almaz, Dexter Fletcher, Nigel Terry
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A harrowing drama set during the Salvadoran Civil War, 'Salvador' is one of director Oliver Stone's most underrated films, a thrilling and violent look at the chaos of war as seen through the lens of an amoral photojournalist. In 1980, young men, women and children are being brutally killed in a bloody civil war in El Salvador. A horrific setting, but a perfect one for Richard Boyle (James Woods), a sleazy journalist whose career needs a jumpstart. Armed with his camera, Boyle joins the front lines in an attempt to capture atrocious-but-valuable images of pain and horror. But with each picture he takes, he catches a tragic side of humanity that ignites his long-buried compassion. And he unexpectedly discovers something that will change him forever: his soul. - Director:
- Oliver Stone
- Cast:
- James Woods, Jim Belushi, Michael Murphy
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Set in Florence and the English countryside, the film tells the story of a young English couple, Lucy Honeychurch (Helena Bonham Carter) and George Emerson (Julian Sands), who encounter passion whilst on holiday in Italy. Defying the Victorian conventions of their elders they dare to be true to their feelings, each other and true love. - Director:
- James Ivory
- Cast:
- Maggie Smith, Helena Bonham Carter, Denholm Elliott
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The Decline of the American Empire (1986)Le déclin de l'empire américain
Witty and provocative look at the battle of the sexes. Four men gather at a country retreat to prepare a gourmet supper, while in the city their female companions are working out at a health club. Both groups discuss their sex lives, affairs and seduction techniques and when they finally meet for dinner, the knives are out, revelations are made and an uncomfortable night is in store for all. - Director:
- Denys Arcand
- Cast:
- Dominique Michel, Dorothée Berryman, Louise Portal
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"Top Gun" takes a look at the danger and excitement that awaits every pilot at the Navy's prestigious fighter weapons school. Tom Cruise is superb as Maverick Mitchell, a daring young flyer who's out to become the best. And Kelly McGillis sizzles as the civilian instructor who teaches Maverick a few things you can't learn in a classroom. - Director:
- Tony Scott
- Cast:
- Tom Cruise, Tim Robbins, Kelly McGillis
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