A Film Recommendation for Every Letter of the Alphabet
S is for Safe (1995) dir. Todd Haynes
Whereas it took a mass global movement to fully hit home the damage humans have been inflicting on the environment, Safe was ahead of the curve. And yet the issue here is resituated to the individual: Carol, played devastatingly well by Julianne Moore, an unremarkable housewife who is diagnosed with ‘environmental illness’ after experiencing varied unexplained symptoms. Todd Haynes shoots this like a horror film – half-empty frames which you expect him to fill with a jumpscare; a pervasive, invisible threat.
T is for Tomboy (2011) dir. Céline Sciamma
Firmly establishing herself in 2019 as the master of naturalism with Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Sciamma’s sophomore feature Tomboy also contains many of the elements people have learn to love about her work. In it, Zoé Héran one of the finest ever performances by a child actor as Laure, a 10-year-old who, despite being born female, decides to present as male to a group of other children in her neighbourhood.
U is for The Untouchables (1987) dir. Brian De Palma
There’s only so many iconic actors that can be packed into one movie: Robert De Niro, Sean Connery, a devilishly handsome young Andy Garcia. In The Untouchables, a treasury agent is tasked with the not-so-simple job of bringing down Al Capone. Coupled with De Palma’s penchant for split diopters and stylized storytelling, it remains a classic of its genre.
V is for Vox Lux (2019) dir. Brady Corbett
Despite its lukewarm release last year, Vox Lux definitely made an impact on me when I saw it in a spookily empty cinema. In it, Natalie Portman plays a troubled popstar who skyrocketed to fame after becoming embroiled in a terrorist attack as a teenager. The film’s manipulation of sound – guns, beats, pop, cries, eerie choral harmonies – is so unsettling.
W is for Weekend (2011) dir. Andrew Haigh
This low-budget feature is a delicate and beautifully rendered drama that packs an emotional punch in its 90-minute run time. Diving into the flexible postures within gay identity, it tackles its themes with nuance and naturalism.
X is for (E)x Machina (2014) dir. Alex Garland
Artistic license, okay? Alex Garland’s debut directorial venture about artificial intelligence won the Academy Award for Best Visual Effects. But most will remember the haunting star power of Alicia Vikander’s Ava, and how her robot toys with the affection of Domhnall Gleeson’s lovestruck Caleb.
Y is for Young & Beautiful (2013) dir. François Ozon
François Ozon is known by his contemporaries as monsieur extreme, with his films often taking a look at the darker side of love, eroticism and humour. Young & Beautiful is no exception; the gorgeous Marine Vacth plays Isabelle, a seventeen year old who ventures into high-class prostitution as a way to take control of her own desire and sexual agency.
Z is for Zodiac (2007) dir. David Fincher
Showing us how scenes can be equally as fear-inducing in the stark light of day as it is in the dark, David Fincher’s slow-burn murder mystery asks more questions that it deigns to solve. Tracking the infuriating manhunt for the Zodiac Killer, the three lead performances from Jake Gyllenhaal, Mark Ruffalo and Robert Downey Jr. are outstanding.
Words by Steph Green