Summer Film Screening List 2022
When people find out that I went to film school and now teach filmmaking, I always get the question: “What’s your favorite film?” That’s a little like asking a parent which of their children is their favorite–we modestly refuse to reply, but not so deep down know the answer.
A few weeks ago, my daughter, who has similar cinematic tastes as me, was flipping through my DVD collection, hoping to find lighter fare than Night And Fog and Chinatown. My cabinet does skew toward the existential angst of Chris Marker and Kurosawa, Antonioni, Tarkovsky, and the Cohen Brothers (I’d rather not talk about ‘The Dude’). But I do have comedies in my collection: Dark ones like Election, and ridiculous docs like Exit Through The Giftshop and King of Kong: A Fistful Of Quarters. One of Maya’s favorite films when she was 10 even gets heavy rotation in our family: Some Like It Hot.
My Cinema students think there’s something wrong with me because I’m not a fan of Stranger Things or Ted Lasso (Aw shucks American naivete solves fancy foreigners’ problems yet again, but this time with a simple phrase: “Believe”–why didn’t THEY think of that?!). And I’m not sure I’ve convinced them about the Star Wars franchise’s infinite missed opportunities to create innovative and provocative science fiction instead of threadbare family drama set in space. I mean, they didn’t even try with Obi Wan–its film school production values and matching script are almost a test of the audience’s threshold of how bad a show can be before we unsubscribe to Disney+ (this close!).
It’s not a bad thing to want courage and creativity–or even art–in something I’m paying money and two hours of my life for. There are many great films and TV shows that are doing just that, and I’m eager to share them with you. We should never have to make the choice between art and ‘entertainment’ — studios have the money to hire good writers, so let’s start expecting it.
Kids These Days
When I first started working on this list, I realized that I should instead rely on the hive mind of smart, well-read filmmakers to come up with ideas instead. So I gave my Cinema students the challenge, and they developed a series of thought-provoking lists with imaginative themes. You can read some of them here:
LGBTQ+ animated series for kids
Movies defined by their soundtracks
Below are some of my own favorite films that I think are worth a look this summer, and might just alter your metaverse.
Real superhero movies
I refuse to follow the Marvel multiverses and keep track of all the SpiderMans (it’s a cheap marketing ploy to get you to keep watching an unending series of movies with the hope you’ll be able to make sense of it someday–if only you watch enough of them!). Unlike the Christ-like savior syndrome of Superman and Captain Marvel (let’s let someone else solve our problems instead of taking responsibility for our own actions!), I’m a big fan of three dimensional characters and stories that explore important topics that help us solve the problems we all face today. Here are a couple that I like.
Unbreakable (2000)
M. Night Shyamalan’s (Sixth Sense) first in a series of superhero films starring Bruce Willis as a man who, as the lone survivor of a train crash, may or may not have the superpower of immortality. In typical Shyamalan fashion, the dialogue is weak, and some of the acting is over the top, but I love the idea of a superhero movie as psychological drama–we’re not sure if he’s really indestructible, although Glass (Samuel L. Jackson) seems to be sure, and the only way to test his theory is to create a situation where this would-be superhero risks dying.
X-Men First Class (2011)
I’ve been an X-Men fan since the Chris Claremont days of the 80’s, and have always appreciated the twist on Stan Lee’s 1963 creation that uses pop culture as a way to address racism, genocide, and their relation to totalitarian power wielded by oligarchs–something that’s as pertinent today as it was 40 years ago. Unlike the new, Disney-owned Marvel superhero franchises populated with unsympathetic characters and who-cares plots, this pre-Disney film builds on the comic series’ tradition of meaty topics like how/if we can overcome the past, the powerful lure of revenge, and if it’s possible to feel empathy for (and save) those who hate you.
Film As Literature
I never liked films until I went to college and saw Raise the Red Lantern, Delicatessen, and Cinema Paradiso. Growing up in Fresno, I never had access to films that strived to be more than a distraction, and I was consistently uninspired by movies (although there was that one time I had my 10 year old mind blown by Time Bandits!). Here are two of my favorite love stories that read like visual poetry and the greatest literature.
Cold War (2018)
Writer/director Pawel Pawilkowski (of Oscar-winning, Ida) crafts a stunning multi-year romance as allegory for the depression and malaise of cold war-era Poland. The story follows musician, Wiktor, as he assembles a folk music ensemble, and falls for Zula, who auditions for the troupe. The film follows the two as their powerful, obsessive romance spans decades as they move between Poland and Paris, and their painful attempts to save one another.
In The Mood For Love (2000)
“We won’t be like them…”
So says the woman (Maggie Chung) as she grows closer to her neighbor (Tony Leung) after they discover their spouses are having an affair with each other in Wong-Kar Wai’s 1960’s Hong Kong romance. One of the most poignant portraits of desire and loss, the film should resonate with everyone who’s ever known what it feels like to read between lines, and who speaks the language of the unspoken. The film also has one of my favorite endings of all time.
Must watch
Everything Everywhere All At Once (2022)
Stop reading this article, put down your phone, and watch this movie. NOW.
I was so excited to find this continually unexpected, fun and thought-provoking film, and I can’t get enough of it. It’s rare to have any film with Asian characters as the lead, especially an immigrant family like in EEAAO. Michelle Yeoh stars as the matriarch whose family laundromat business is being audited by the IRS, then finds out that her husband, played by Ke Hy Quan (Short Round from Indiana Jones 2 and Data from The Goonies) is filing for divorce. She soon discovers that she’s the only one who can save the multiverse from a mysterious threat, and she’s off to save life as we know it. Jamie Lee Curtis kills it in her role as the IRS auditor, too.
This political film, disguised as a sci-fi kung fu family drama, takes the political and social problems of our times and offers a solution. If you have (older) children, watch it with them. If you have parents, watch it with them. If you have friends, watch it with them. Be ready to laugh, cry, and have your mind blown.
Next, I’ll share some of my favorite TV shows I’m streaming right now. Stay tuned.
