Top Tens: 2008

While looking at this page, in tribute to the highest ranking film on the list, I recommend playing Rivers of Babylon by Boney M in the background. This was the year I really got into cinema as a medium. Ironically, none of the films that got the most critical praise, or most of the ones I liked back then, are on the list below. 2008 is an incredibly strong year, but to have such a list I had to watch a lot of bad and average films to find the gems. It was worth it, but looking at the ten selections (and honorable mentions) below, something like The Dark Knight is so far from my tastes now, regardless of my actually opinion of it, that it feels like an alien language if I was to rewatch it again. Not out of a hipster, elitist attitude, but literally in a completely different mindset at points in what I admire in film making from current critical views of the medium, even in my vacuous entertainment. Genre blurring or taking dramatic stories and depicting them in unconventional ways dominate the list, and if anything, the noughties (sic) was a decade where these two traits were pushed further even compared to the nineties. Sometimes too much but with these ten examples it was done perfectly.

Ranking 2008

(In Order as of 15th May 2014)

Tulpan (Dir. Sergei Dvortsevoy, 2008) 

Waltz With Bashir (Dir. Ari Folman, 2008) 

The Headless Woman (Dir. Lucrecia Martel, 2008)

Historias extraordinarias (Dir. Mariano Llinás, 2008)

Love Exposure (Dir. Sion Sono, 2008)

Pontypool (Dir. Bruce McDonald, 2008)

The Sky Crawlers (Dir. Mamoru Oshii, 2008) 

35 Shots of Rum (Dir. Claire Denis, 2008)

Kaiba (Dir. Masaaki Yuasa, 2008/Anime Series)

Goodbye Solo (Dir. Ramin Bahrani, 2008)

Honorable Mentions (Also in Order of Preference):

Redbelt (Dir. David Mamet, 2008); Rembrandt's J'Accuse (Dir. Peter Greenaway, 2008); JCVD (Dir. Mabrouk El Mechri, 2008); Not Quite Hollywood (Dir. Mark Hatley, 2008); Vinyan (Dir. Fabrice Du Welz, 2008); Synecdoche, New York (Dir. Charlie Kaufman, 2008); Of Time and the City (Dir. Terence Davies, 2008); Il Divo (Dir. Paolo Sorrentino, 2008) 

Full List of Films Watched from the Year - http://letterboxd.com/coheed/list/my-personal-2008-in-film-ranked-best-to-worst/

I didn't include Steve McQueen's Hunger because, honestly, I need to rewatch that film. A part of me wonders if it'll stand up or will lose its power drastically on another viewing.
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Screenshots, in Order, from the Following Sources:

http://www.coffeecoffeeandmorecoffee.com/archives/tulpan%202.jpg
http://mmimageslarge.moviemail-online.co.uk/Waltz-with-Bashir-25763_5.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjL9y7xWW6m8X8NaZG0DMMQgaF1H7mjmBztcHXfY40lWaT_8HhpfFO42MobLVINGuO2OSOlzDvYpCV2bHRUAhi0D1AveVrWW4zlUtnb-SoTWiry4vYHUXq5p_eFt_HVt7Au_FEbQW51UAVu/s1600/vlcsnap-2014-01-09-21h16m41s42.png
https://wondersinthedark.files.wordpress.com/2010/08/historias_extraordinarias_1-avi_snapshot_00-04-04_2010-08-09_16-25-08.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdk2x4G2mHPfiD7Tq6xlObgYdhvPQWpZvb07Va0nSFIHCEKQpe3t73BOXunftYUSjA05scxEbWeemcEkWBgt2lfl4cQvAxP7yjSt1g6-GTrURfmJKl9kaJ2Q_blOJR6LpTXiVrO7DWQWk/s1600/loveexposure6.jpg
https://academicalism.files.wordpress.com/2010/10/pontypool_1djbloodbooth1.jpg
http://www.japanator.com/elephant/ul/9020-skycrawlers-550.jpg
http://kistenet.com/brandon/images/Blog/2009/December/35%20Rhums%201.jpg
http://jessi.gonein60fps.net/S1E1/Kaiba/Episode%207%2001.jpg
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/1/1a/Blowing_Rock-27527-2.jpg/512px-Blowing_Rock-27527-2.jpg

Top Tens: 2007

Ah, a good year. It was 2008 when I got into cinema fully, but judging from this year too - if you see the whole list here - 2007 was as important. The fact that many films were only getting released in 2008 in the United Kingdom meant that a lot of the films being mentioned below had an impact along with those from the following year. Yes, There Will Be Blood is not this Top Ten, nor Zodiac, but any of the films mentioned here are strong enough by themselves to be included.

Ranking 2007
(In Order, of Preference, as of 11th May 2014)

Heartbeat Detector (Dir. Nicolas Klotz)

My Winnipeg (Dir. Guy Maddin)

You, The Living (Dir. Roy Andersson)

Import/Export (Dir. Ulrich Seidl)

The Man From London (Dirs. Béla Tarr and Ágnes Hranitzky)

Correspondances (Dir. Eugene Green/Short)

No Country For Old Men (Dirs. Ethan & Joel Coen)

Persepolis (Dirs. Vincent Paronnaud and Marjane Satrapi)

Buddha Collapsed Out of Shame (Dir. Hana Makhmalbaf)

Nightwatching (Dir. Peter Greenaway)

Honorable Mention:
XXY (Dir. Lucía Puenzo)

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Screenshots, in order, from the following sources:

https://itpworld.files.wordpress.com/2008/06/heartbeat.jpg
http://cineplex.media.baselineresearch.com/images/180488/180488_full.jpg
http://img27.imageshack.us/img27/3204/picture15bs.png
http://www.ffffilm.com/uploads/bluesoul/snapshots/2009/12/shots/6452930d15628714aa0567a02c965a49cb0cdae1-700.png
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https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7ZUPqNx0k_jds_Rk4vChGQqP1o1rKZfIaZ3DLBbjGnaphlXUtRMNoJrV7wXQBB7NglQlDhYs8r3wlJ6cKCnLnd4oR2xcijSVRfMX4EwKgjl4PSGxvnzj8RfmE53MGUuXK_5Z_8d9Pn_KY/s1600/corr.jpg
http://static.rogerebert.com/redactor_assets/pictures/scanners/no-country-for-old-men-out-in-all-that-dark/ncfomsil.jpg
http://media.cinemasquid.com/blu-ray/titles/persepolis/801/screenshot-med-29.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpW9zTzmTq8qzFwTqrKn94abIqjEvunBqtvwA6g9RIIGRtSwSIfXNA_cyTEZWsNrTpnEO8Lgsw1xCsVl-9ai1LC_3HtNFJWYl3tlBinbqvdU3xpLIzMVgFlLOKjVzjztfmecJjy_jS5Bgc/s1600-h/buddha.jpg
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Top Tens: 2006

Sexuality permeates this year's list, along with drifting away from reality and the presence of some obscure films. Checking the full list of all the films I've seen from this year as I go along, you can see that big, acclaimed works have not even got past the label 'Average'. In their place is one of the first films that I saw depict real sex onscreen, which is also one of the sweetest comedy-dramas I've ever seen, and the last feature David Lynch has made of yet, the first of his I ever saw, leading me to wait in hope he comes back for one or two more in the 2010s. An absurdist Norwegian film and a dramatic thriller from Tajikistan, Satoshi Kon's last ever feature film, two entries from the (Sadly) forgotten Destricted anthology on sexuality, and the tasteless genius of Neveldine/Taylor amongst the list.

Ranking 2006

(In Order as of 26th April 2014)

Shortbus (Dir. John Cameron Mitchell, 2006)

INLAND EMPIRE (Dir. David Lynch, 2006)

Lights in the Dusk (Dir. Aki Kaurismäki, 2006) 

Fantasma (Dir. Lisandro Alonso, 2006)

Crank (Dirs. Mark Neveldine and Brian Taylor, 2006)

Paprika (Dir. Satoshi Kon, 2006) 

To Get To Heaven First You Have To Die
(Dir. Jamshed Usmonov, 2006)

The Bothersome Man (Dir. Jens Lien, 2006)

Hoist (Dir. Matthew Barney, 2006) [From 'Destricted']

Impaled (Dir. Larry Clark, 2006) [From 'Destricted']

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Images, in order, from the following source:

http://thumbnails58.imagebam.com/17894/a06705178937219.jpg
http://i23.photobucket.com/albums/b392/mikekitchell/inland%20empire/20.jpg
http://mmimageslarge.moviemail-online.co.uk/20753_Lights-In-The-Dusk-01.JPG
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_vgIrOz78ywi6Zt8Bz4w8cLXyO_5rn00ITmfSV47-4vKmf4j0V5LwbD6qGqUhyedr3A2iHh2e-MCK9KXyAVaX-h7t4nIxk5xa7HeBwTnIC21DmEyc3TQDfqYWSGiRSa4c-e61iIJpisU/s1600/fantasma_01.jpg
http://wodumedia.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Chev-Chelios-Jason-Statham-in-Lions-Gate-Films-Crank-2006-21.jpg
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http://static.guim.co.uk/sys-images/Film/Pix/pictures/2008/11/04/tgthfyhtd460.jpg
http://vareverta.files.wordpress.com/2013/04/den-brysomme-mannen-754684l.jpg
http://www.anyspacewhatever.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/10/Hoist2_b.jpg
http://arjay.typepad.com/photos/uncategorized/larry_clark.jpg

Top Tens: 2005

The years 2005 and 2006 are an peculiar pair. Before now I viewed them as weaker years in the 2000s for cinema, although 2005 seemed the stronger between them. I no longer do, but its worth asking why I thought this. For one, both were sandwiched between 2004 and 2007 which, viewing the longer list for 2004 added to my post, and the link I'll add when I get to 2007, were exceptionally strong years themselves. The other issue, if you follow the link for the longer 2005 list here, is that films praised strongly critically, as cult films or by the many failed extremely for me when I got to them. Some deserve another chance, as with all the other lists, but it made a more pronouced dent with this year and 2006. That and the fact that, even now in 2014, the United Kingdom had to wait for films from the year before to get cinema releases in the year after, which muddles how one canonises a year in cinema completely a decade or so later.

What I can say if that, as most of the critically acclaimed films fell by the wayside, the dismissed works of auteurs, termite art (to quote Manny Farber), and out-of-the-blue surprises turned out to be the films that rose to podium status as this list shows. 

Ranking 2005

(In Order of Preference as of 26th April 2014)

The Death of Mr. Lazarescu (Dir. Cristi Puiu, 2005) 

Lunacy (Dir. Jan Svankmajer, 2005) 

Into Great Silence (Dir. Philip Groning, 2005)

Takeshis' (Dir. Takeshi Kitano, 2005)

Rabbit (Dir. Run Wrake, 2005/Short) 

Instructions For A Light and Sound Machine
(Dir. Peter Tscherkassky, 2005/Short) 

Avenge but one of my two eyes (Dir. Ari Mograbi, 2005)

The Sun (Dir. Aleksandr Sokurov, 2005) 

The Bow (Dir. Kim Ki-duk, 2005)

Time to Leave (Dir. François Ozon, 2005) 

Top Tens: 2004

Full list available here - http://letterboxd.com/coheed/list/my-personal-2004-ranked/

Ranking 2004

(In Order of Preference as of 24th April 2014)

Eternal Sunshine of The Spotless Mind
(Dir. Michel Gondry, 2004)

The Intruder (Dir. Claire Denis, 2004)

Tropical Malady (Dir. Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2004)

Paranoia Agent (Dir. Satoshi Kon, 2004/Anime Series)

2046 (Dir. Wong Kar-Wai, 2004)

Le pont des Arts (Dir. Eugène Green, 2004)

Vital (Dir. Shinya Tsukamoto, 2004)

Elfen Lied (Dir. Mamoru Kanbe, 2004/Anime Series)

Nobody Knows (Dir. Hirokazu Koreeda, 2004)

The Consequences of Love (Dir. Paolo Sorrentino, 2004)

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Images, in order, from the following sources:

http://media.cinemasquid.com/blu-ray/titles/eternal-sunshine-of-the-spotless-mind/16582/screenshot-med-03.jpg
http://cinemasights.files.wordpress.com/2011/07/intruder2004-upwardtreeshot.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0P8ZtrZm210hmMi5LIY4r1ar5_gMR7YdriFkTil-SzZKVz2VYFs47zai4YGY28FTNUBIMQhppWoigR4amUuO6ET_rfFVpK8L11V2pK_7ljZ4b-Tut_s5_9mNhMRWPboyPZNiDgYXGF-g/s1600/tropical+malady34.jpg
http://www.obstructedviews.net/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/dffhj.jpg
http://billsmovieemporium.files.wordpress.com/2013/09/2046.png
http://filmint.nu/wp-content/uploads/2011/11/original.jpg
http://nextprojection.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/03/Vital-04.jpg
https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4IFEL1-d86lRETRGDgzMEz_bVdAERrTtqTJCY-IxETLv_6ABLUwrmfoe_8lbpR5ZCaqWy39-eOXHXDHNDzblBaTFqcNQ0-w0WnRrTq5Y7EASoCGnU0yHR6YwUOlboPCk3iKTeFFeaITI/s1600/Elfen+Lied.jpg
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