I think about this pretty often. There are movies that are spectacularly well done or courageous in their message that we will stand on mountain cliffs and announce their glory. We will tell all our friends and family that they must see this spectacular film, that it will change their lives. We’ll even go as far as buying a copy to sit on our shelves waiting for the day we’ll watch it again.
Then the movie keeps on waiting to be watched only to be forever segregated to the darkness of the shelf. We’ll always speak fondly of the movie, but we have no interest in actually watching it ourselves. There’s a few more recent films that I feel that way about and I’d like to hear some other opinions on this discussion.
Black Swan
It’s probably my favorite film of 2010 and I was secretly holding out for an Oscar upset, but it just wasn’t going to happen. What makes this particular film difficult to revisit is the gruesome transformation that Natalie Portman’s character goes through. Black Swan left its mark on me and while I still think it’s a fantastic film, I’m just not sure when I’m going to feel like putting it in again.
There Will Be Blood
One of the finest performances from an actor ever, There Will Be Blood is a showcase for the immense talent of Daniel Day-Lewis. The only problem is there’s so little to actually love in There Will Be Blood. The characters are woefully flawed individuals and the depression rating is high with this one. While I always think about watching it, there’s just other things I feel like when I attempt to put it in.
*Note: Both films I’ve listed I’ve wanted to watch at different times, but I just keep putting them off. That’s why they are included in this discussion. It’s not a slight on either film.
There’s other films obviously (anything that is too gruesome or depressing). These are some that come to mind not necessarily for me, but in general:
- Blue Valentine
- Salo
- Audition
- Grave of the Fireflies
- The Hours
- Dancer in the Dark
- Requiem for a Dream
- Antichrist
- Oldboy
- Shame
- Hunger
