Blind Spot Series 2013

When you're a cinephile one of the worst experiences you face is being in the company of fellow cineasts and letting it slip that you've never seen a certain classic film and then feel your integrity fall around you as they all point and jeer. Of course, they've probably never seen Breathless or The Breakfast Club, although they'll never admit it. Everyone has gaps on their film cannon, which is why James McNally of Toronto Screen Shots created the Blind Spot Series in 2012. How it works is that film bloggers pick 12 "essential" films that they haven't seen but feel they must and then post a review after they've seen it.

Below are the twelve movies I've picked that I aim to see before January 1st 2014. Unlike most, I'm not going to tackle these in any particular order or work to a schedule (I believe most are posting the last Tuesday of every month), I'm just going to watch and review as and when I see them.

Projects like this are always more fun when you're not working alone, so feel motivated to make your own list and try and see them all before 2013 is out. Even if you don't blog it's a great way of ticking some titles off the list and watching some great films in the process. I'd love to know what's on your list so make sure to comment below.

Without any further ado, my guilt list:


1. Dog Day Afternoon. (1975)

Often grouped in with The Godfather and The French Connection when people talk of the great crime movies of the '70s. Directed by the late Sidney Lumet and starring Al Pacino at the peak of his career.

2. A Streetcar Named Desire. (1951)

After Clark Gable made the vest highly unfashionable in 1934 after badmouthing it in It Happened One Night, it was Marlon Brando in A Streetcar Named Desire that made it cool again in 1951. 

3. Ivan's Childhood. (1962)

A major confession here, I've seen very little of Tarkovskiy's work and the fact he only made 11 films is little consolation. Having only seen Solaris I had many films to chose from; Stalker, Andrei Rublev, The Sacrifice... but in the end I decided on 1962's Ivan's Childhood.

4. The Apartment. (1960)

I've not meet anyone yet who's seen Billy Wilder's classic comedy, starring Jack Lemmon, and feels anything other than love and admiration for it. I hope I feel the same way when I eventually get around to seeing it in 2013.

5. Chungking Express. (1994)

Director Wong Kar Wai is widely considered one of the contemporary giants and poster boy for the new wave of South Korean cinema. I for one consider his turn of the century masterpiece, In The Mood For Love, to be one the greatest films of recent years.

6. Hearts of Darkness: A Filmmaker's Apocalypse. (1991)

A feature length documentary chronicling the traumatic principle photography of Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now. The documentary premiered at the '91 Cannes Film Festival to critical acclaim, some critics and film-goers even claim it to be a superior film to Apocalypse Now itself.

7. Life Is Beautiful. (1997)

Let me be honest, I've had plenty of opportunities to see this, I've physically held it in my hands in HMV many a time, but always put it back because nothing about it appeals to me. But in 2013 I'm finally going to bite the bullet and see if I can figure out for myself what it is everyone else loves about this film.

8. Stray Dog. (1949)

I've seen plenty of Kurosawa's Samurai films (although Ran and Hidden Fortress could have made this list) but I haven't seem any of his crime films, which is why I've added his film Stray Dog, starting Toshirô Mifune, to the list. 

9. Hiroshima, mon amour. (1959)

French director Alain Resnais turned 90 this year and he's still going strong making movies. But still the film he's most famous for is his Franco-Japanese love affair, Hiroshima, mon amour.

10. Whiskey Galore! (1949)

In trying to make sure I had a varied list of films, I almost forgot to include a gem from my native isles. The Ealing-comedy, Whiskey Galore! will be representing Great Britain.

Completed on 05/02/2013

11. Mulholland Drive. (2001)

I've not had a great relationship with David Lynch in the past, I consider Blue Velvet a work of art and I really like The Elephant Man, but I've found everything else (yes, even Eraserhead) cold and unengaging. But I'm more than willing to give Mulholland Drive a fair shot.

12. The Last Picture Show. (1971)

Film critic turned film maker Peter Bogdanovich's small masterpiece that flung Jeff Bridges out of obscurity, The Last Picture Show, is generally considered an American classic. It was nominated for eight Oscars, including Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay.