griggs's - Letterboxd Official Top 250 Narrative Feature Films List

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In Warsaw at the beginning of WWII, Maria Tura (Carole Lombard) and husband Joseph (Jack Benny) perform anti-Nazi plays with their theater troupe until they are forced to switch to Shakespeare's Hamlet. Lt.

Stanislav Sobinski (Robert Stack) falls for Maria and meets up with her during Joseph's famous "To Be or Not to Be" speech as Hamlet. When Stanislav is eventually dispatched for war, he implicates Maria with Professor Siletsky (Stanley Ridges), who has a secret plan to destroy the Warsaw resistance. The Polish theater troupe is then forced to use their theatrical skills to ensure their survival. Eventually, they turn to impersonating Nazi officers - and even Hitler himself - in order to outwit the enemy and keep the resistance safe from spies.

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Rookie cop Billy Costigan (Leonardo DiCaprio) grew up in crime. That makes him the perfect mole, the man on the inside of the mob run by boss Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson). It's his job to win Cosello's trust and help his detective handlers (Mark Wahlbery and Martin Sheen) bring Costello down.

Meanwhile, SIU officer Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon) has everyone's trust. No one suspects he's Costello's mole. Now these covert lives cross and collide is at the ferocious core of the widely acclaimed The Departed. Martin Scorsese directs, guiding a cast for the ages in a visceral tale of crime and consequences. This is searing, can't-look-away filmmaking: like into the eyes of a con - or a cop - with a gun.

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When her young son Minato (Soya Kurokawa) starts to behave strangely, single mother Saori (Sakura Andô) knows that there is something wrong. Discovering that one of his teachers might be responsible, she storms into the school demanding answers.

But as the story unfolds through the eyes of mother, teacher and child, shocking truths begin to emerge.

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When a man stumbles on a bloody crime scene, a pickup truck loaded with heroin, and two million dollars in irresistible cash, his decision to take the money sets off an unstoppable chain reaction of violence. Not even west Texas law can contain it.

Based on the novel by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Cormac McCarthy.

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A feverish collision of avant-garde aesthetics and grindhouse shocks 'Funeral Parade of Roses' takes us on an electrifying journey into the nether-regions of the late-'60's Tokyo underworld.

In Matsumoto's controversial debut feature, seemingly nothing is taboo: neither the incorporation of visual flourishes straight from the worlds of contemporary graphic-design, painting, comic-books, and animation; nor the unflinching depiction of nudity, sex, drug-use, and public-toilets. But of all the "transgressions" here on display, perhaps one in particular stands out the most: the film's groundbreaking and unapologetic portrayal of Japanese gay subculture. Cross-dressing club-kid Eddie (Pîtâ) vies with a rival drag-queen (Osamu Ogasawara) for the favours of drug-dealing cabaret-manager Gonda Passions escalate and blood begins to flow - before all tensions are released in a jolting climax.

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This film won the Palme D'Or at Cannes in 1997.

Taste of Cherry (1997)

A philosophical tale of a man so tired of life that he wants to commit suicide. Cruising the outskirts of Tehran, Mr. Badii (Homayon Ershadi) unsuccessfully searches for an accomplice who is willing to bury him after his death, until he finally strikes a bargain with a museum guard. But before the guard agrees to do the deed, he wants to know why Mr. Badii wants so desperately to die and dispense with the joys of nature, such as the taste of cherries. Internationally celebrated as one of the most important directors at work today, Kiarostami's road movie is a tale of self-discovery and an unexpected affirmation of the very things that make life worth living.
10 on Ten (2004)
Feature is an extraordinary cinema masterclass that proffers ten fascinating lessons on filmmaking by one of the world's most influential directors. With a single camera fixed inside a car, Kiraostami drives across the hills surrounding Tehran - the setting for 'Taste of Cherry' - and imparts a series of fascinating insights into his method of filmmaking including scripting, casting, and the tremendous liberating impact of digital photography. Illustrated with clips from 'Taste of Cherry', 'ABC Africa' and 'Ten', '10 on Ten' takes the viewer on an illuminating and inspirational journey to the heart of the creative process.

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Following on from the success of 'Les Parapluies de Cherbourg' comes 'Les Demoiselles de Rochefort' - Jacques Demy's large-scale tribute to the Hollywood musical featuring screen legend Gene Kelly The story centres on twin sisters Delphine and Solange (played by real-life sisters Catherine Deneuve

and Frangoise Dorleac) who, tired of their humdrum existence, dream of finding success and romance in Paris. The superb ensemble, also featuring Danielle Darrieux, Michel Piccoli, Jacques Perrin, George Chakiris and Grover Dale, weave and wander around the town, looking for and just missing the love of their lives.

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It's 1938 and Rome comes to a standstill as Hitler visits Mussolini for the first time. Antonietta is left in her tenement home whilst her fascist husband and the rest of her family leave to attend the historic event.

The whole building is empty apart from one man, Gabriele, a radio announcer sacked because of his homosexuality and his political views. Unaware of this Antonietta flirts with Gabriele as they meet by chance in the empty building. They strike up a conversation and the rather naive housewife is surprised by his opinions and shocked when she finally realises his sexual orientation. As the day progresses they develop a very special relationship that will radically alter both their outlooks on life forever...

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American judge, Daniel Haywood (Spencer Tracy), presides over the trial of four German jurists accused of "legalising" Nazi atrocities.

But as graphic accounts of sterilisation and murder unfold in the courtroom, mounting political pressure for leniency forces Haywood into making the most harrowing and difficult decision of his career. His actions - and those of the other trial participants - make for fascinating, poignant and continuously exciting entertainment!

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Yesterday strangers, today inseparable soulmates. But separate they must in just a few hours. Jesse and Celine are making every moment count, pouring as much living as they can into the time 'Before Sunrise'. From Richard Linklater comes another smartly observed tale of young people at a crossroads.

Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy play twenty-somethings who meet on a train in Europe, sense a connection and explore after-hours Vienna together. The people, places and allure of the city become their sudden itineraries. Love is their destination. On the way there's the mutual sharing of hopes, jokes, dreams, worry and wonder. It's a day to linger in their memories. And a valentine to young love forever.

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Alfred Hitchcock's landmark masterpiece of the macabre stars Anthony Perkins as the troubled Norman Bates, whose old dark house and adjoining motel are not the place to spend a quiet evening.

No one knows that better than Marion Crane (Janet Leigh), the ill-fated traveller whose journey ends in the notorious "shower scene". First a private detective, then Marion's sister (Vera Miles) searches for her, the horror and the suspense mount to a terrifying climax where the mysterious killer is finally revealed.

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'Pather Panchali' tells the story of a family living in the grip of poverty in a small Bengali village, focusing on the experiences of a young boy, Apu (Subir Banerjee), and paying careful attention to a series of ordinary events: Apu's father sets off to the city in search of work, leaving his

wife to take care of the children and an elderly aunt; a frugal meal is prepared; rains flatten the landscape; a train passes by; someone dies.

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A bunch of lazy and unmotivated schoolgirls are thrown into the extracurricular music club of their school and not exactly voluntarily.

They are trying to cut out the hard stuff - yes, mathematics - and become the replacement crew for the actual musicians in the school club, but slowly come into their own as they learn to handle the instruments and themselves better. Craziness and zaniness ensues, but how is the swing music delivery at the end?

When 15 year-old Steve is thrown out of a juvenile centre, his single mother Diane takes on the daunting task of home schooling her troubled son. Struggling to make ends meet and rocked by Steve's livewire temperament, a shy, reclusive neighbour may prove to be the duo's unlikely saviour.

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When charismatic English professor John Keating (Robin Williams) arrives at a strict boys academy, his unconventional teaching methods breathe new life into the curriculum steeped in tradition.

With his wit and wisdom, Keating inspires his students to pursue individual passions and make their lives extraordinary.