It started as a game on Facebook to nominate your friends asking them to list down their top 10-20 films that had an impact on them in their status update. As I was finishing up mine (I was nominated by Omkar Divekar and Kritika Suroliya), it was turning into more like a blogpost. So I thought of actually making it one.
Though I haven't seen enough films, here are the ones that taught me what cinema or life is:
1. Anand Gandhi's Ship Of Theseus
When you stop thinking that cinema cannot change your life, this film has the power to change it every time you watch it and makes you sit and think about why do you even exist in this universe.
2. Asghar Farhadi's A Separation
A seemingly simple story of a couple getting separated spins into being a powerful showcase of human emotions captured so effectively by a handheld camera which in this case separates as well as connects cinema and life, keeping you on that borderline.
3. Imtiaz Ali's Rockstar
Yes, Rockstar. With this film I go on a journey...
4. Imtiaz Ali's Highway
If you believe that journeys can change your life!
5. Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise/ Before Sunset/ Before Midnight
I mature a bit- as do Jesse and Celine (the characters)- every time I watch this trilogy. It is a meditation on love, process of living an ideal life in this imperfect world.
6. Brad Bird's Ratatouille
Oh yes, that Disney-Pixar's animated film. A film with no real humans in it teaches you so much about life and art. As its food critic Anton Ego says, "... in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful..."
7. Roberto Benigni's Life Is Beautiful
If possible, watch this film keeping a mirror alongside the screen, you'll see all kinds of emotion a human face can exhibit- all in that one-and-a-half hours. Life is beautiful, as is cinema.
8. Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur
If I've ever been around you even for an hour, I would have used at least one of its colorful dialogues somewhere in the conversation.
9. Rajat Kapoor's Ankhon Dekhi
I fear watching this film again. It took me to certain kind of mental nowhereness (where the film's protagonist currently is, I believe) when I had seen it first; had stopped consuming any kind of information (had seen it during this year's General Elections); had stopped watching films for a long time. That was the impact this film had on me!
I think that's it for whatever limited cinema I have watched in my little life so far. Though there are still quite a few that keeps me thinking about them forever- like, Vikramaditya Motwane's Udaan, Mahesh Bhatt's Saaransh, Peter Weir's The Truman Show, I would like to end the list here coz an odd figure like 9 makes it look like a Buzzfeed-listicle-soon-to-go-viral. LOL, JK.
Hoping more films to change my life ahead!
Thanks, Omkar and Kritika; a Sunday evening spent well. ;) I'll go back watching some of the films I just talked about now.
If you reached till here, consider yourself nominated to list down films that had an impact on your life as your Facebook status update or in a blogpost or in comments below! Cheers!
Though I haven't seen enough films, here are the ones that taught me what cinema or life is:
1. Anand Gandhi's Ship Of Theseus
When you stop thinking that cinema cannot change your life, this film has the power to change it every time you watch it and makes you sit and think about why do you even exist in this universe.
 |
| A still from opening scene of Asghar Farhadi's A Separation |
A seemingly simple story of a couple getting separated spins into being a powerful showcase of human emotions captured so effectively by a handheld camera which in this case separates as well as connects cinema and life, keeping you on that borderline.
3. Imtiaz Ali's Rockstar
Yes, Rockstar. With this film I go on a journey...
4. Imtiaz Ali's Highway
If you believe that journeys can change your life!
5. Richard Linklater's Before Sunrise/ Before Sunset/ Before Midnight
I mature a bit- as do Jesse and Celine (the characters)- every time I watch this trilogy. It is a meditation on love, process of living an ideal life in this imperfect world.
6. Brad Bird's Ratatouille
Oh yes, that Disney-Pixar's animated film. A film with no real humans in it teaches you so much about life and art. As its food critic Anton Ego says, "... in the grand scheme of things, the average piece of junk is probably more meaningful..."
7. Roberto Benigni's Life Is Beautiful
If possible, watch this film keeping a mirror alongside the screen, you'll see all kinds of emotion a human face can exhibit- all in that one-and-a-half hours. Life is beautiful, as is cinema.
8. Anurag Kashyap's Gangs of Wasseypur
If I've ever been around you even for an hour, I would have used at least one of its colorful dialogues somewhere in the conversation.
9. Rajat Kapoor's Ankhon Dekhi
I fear watching this film again. It took me to certain kind of mental nowhereness (where the film's protagonist currently is, I believe) when I had seen it first; had stopped consuming any kind of information (had seen it during this year's General Elections); had stopped watching films for a long time. That was the impact this film had on me!
I think that's it for whatever limited cinema I have watched in my little life so far. Though there are still quite a few that keeps me thinking about them forever- like, Vikramaditya Motwane's Udaan, Mahesh Bhatt's Saaransh, Peter Weir's The Truman Show, I would like to end the list here coz an odd figure like 9 makes it look like a Buzzfeed-listicle-soon-to-go-viral. LOL, JK.
Hoping more films to change my life ahead!
Thanks, Omkar and Kritika; a Sunday evening spent well. ;) I'll go back watching some of the films I just talked about now.
If you reached till here, consider yourself nominated to list down films that had an impact on your life as your Facebook status update or in a blogpost or in comments below! Cheers!
1 comment:
Movies that had huge impact on my life.
1) Well I don't watch English movies often. But The pursuit of happyness had huge impact on my life. I got motivated to do work and earn money to keep family happy.
2) I still live in Wasseypur. I too still use the dialogues of the Wasseypur series in almost every conversion.
3) Ship of Theseus. What a movie. It has huge impact on my life. Every time I see the movie I cry. Lots of emotions.
4) Baghban. Love parents. They deserve love and affection in this age.
5) Iqbal. Nothing is impossible if you are determined to do it.
6) Midhunam. Telugu movie starring SP Balasubramaniyam. There are only 2 characters in this movie. A retired couple spend their life together in a village. Absolutely brilliant movie.
7) Yet another telugu movie. Seetamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu. This movie explains the how 2 brothers have different views. Prakash raj played their father, he showed us how life is to be lived.
Recommend u to watch these both telugu movies with subtitles.
8) Bombay. Communal riots are really bad. Never imagined before the movie that people fight for cast and creed.
9) Namaste London. One can really to that extend for their love?
10) Gulaal. Politics and Power, both r injurious to life.
11) Tere Naam. Madness for ones love.
12) Udaan. How bad can our own people be. Inspiring movie.
13) Waqt. Father and son relationship has a different place in this world.
14) Zindagi na mileage dobara. Life is so beautiful. Live every moment.
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