My Top 20 by Year - 1970
Under construction and always in progress.
The Best films from this year (according to IMDb) I've seen (so far).
Out of 160 films 'seen' (ie rated at IMDb).
(Sep 2016)
Notes:
Cinema = cinema (big screen) viewing
TV = TV viewing
PC = download
OL = online viewing
VHS = VHS viewing
Yet to see (among many):
Pratidwandi (The Adversary, S. Ray, 1970)
La rupture (The Breakup, Chabrol, 1970)
Anaparastasi (Reconstruction, Angelopoulos, 1970)
Les choses de la vie (The Things of Life, Sautet, 1970)
Mujo (This Transient Life, Jissoji, 1970)
La muralla verde (The Green Wall, Robles Godoy, 1970)
Ice (R. Kramer, 1970)
Adelheid (Vlácil, 1970)
Kladivo na carodejnice (Witchhammer, Vávra, 1970)
Uski Roti (Our Daily Bread, Kaul, 1970)
Rengoku eroica (Heroic Purgatory, Yoshida, 1970)
Petit à petit (Little by Little, Rouch, 1970)
Vamos a matar, compañeros (Companeros, Corbucci, 1970)
I Walk the Line (Frankenheimer, 1970)
The Kremlin Letter (Huston, 1970)
Soldier Blue (R. Nelson, 1970)
San Domingo (Syberberg, 1970)
Peau d'âne (Donkey Skin, Demy, 1970)
Magasiskola (The Falcons, Gaál, 1970)
Tora! Tora! Tora! (Fleischer/Fukasaku/Masuda, 1970)
Oratotis Miden (Visibility Zero, Foskolos, 1970)
The Railway Children (Jeffries, 1970)
I Never Sang for My Father (Cates, 1970)
Berlin Horse (le Grice, 1970, sh)
Os deuses E Os Mortos (Of Gods and the Undead, R. Guerra, 1970)
The Best films from this year (according to IMDb) I've seen (so far).
Out of 160 films 'seen' (ie rated at IMDb).
(Sep 2016)
Notes:
- Features, shorts, docs and TV movies eligible ("A film is a film is a film.").
- TV mini-series are NOT (unless stated otherwise).
- My humble rates added (for films with the same rate just once or twice though).
- Films with the same rate are ordered arbitrarily. Feel free to re-order them at your will.
- When I saw more than 20 excellent films (9/10 or above in my book) from a certain year I'll try and list them ALL. That would make some lists much longer but all the excellentia deserves to be mentioned.
Cinema = cinema (big screen) viewing
TV = TV viewing
PC = download
OL = online viewing
VHS = VHS viewing
Yet to see (among many):
Pratidwandi (The Adversary, S. Ray, 1970)
La rupture (The Breakup, Chabrol, 1970)
Anaparastasi (Reconstruction, Angelopoulos, 1970)
Les choses de la vie (The Things of Life, Sautet, 1970)
Mujo (This Transient Life, Jissoji, 1970)
La muralla verde (The Green Wall, Robles Godoy, 1970)
Ice (R. Kramer, 1970)
Adelheid (Vlácil, 1970)
Kladivo na carodejnice (Witchhammer, Vávra, 1970)
Uski Roti (Our Daily Bread, Kaul, 1970)
Rengoku eroica (Heroic Purgatory, Yoshida, 1970)
Petit à petit (Little by Little, Rouch, 1970)
Vamos a matar, compañeros (Companeros, Corbucci, 1970)
I Walk the Line (Frankenheimer, 1970)
The Kremlin Letter (Huston, 1970)
Soldier Blue (R. Nelson, 1970)
San Domingo (Syberberg, 1970)
Peau d'âne (Donkey Skin, Demy, 1970)
Magasiskola (The Falcons, Gaál, 1970)
Tora! Tora! Tora! (Fleischer/Fukasaku/Masuda, 1970)
Oratotis Miden (Visibility Zero, Foskolos, 1970)
The Railway Children (Jeffries, 1970)
I Never Sang for My Father (Cates, 1970)
Berlin Horse (le Grice, 1970, sh)
Os deuses E Os Mortos (Of Gods and the Undead, R. Guerra, 1970)
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42 titles
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsYoshitaka ZushiKin SugaiToshiyuki TonomuraVarious tales in the lives of Tokyo slum dwellers, including a mentally deficient young man obsessed with driving his own commuter trolley.Cinema. 10/10.
- DirectorLuis BuñuelStarsCatherine DeneuveFernando ReyFranco NeroShortly after her mother's death, an innocent and youthful woman will find refuge into the household of her middle-aged aristocratic guardian, who will submit her to his sexual advances.TV.
- DirectorElio PetriStarsGian Maria VolontèFlorinda BolkanGianni SantuccioA chief of detectives, homicide section, kills his mistress and deliberately leaves clues to prove his own responsibility for the crime.Cinema.
- DirectorMichelangelo AntonioniStarsMark FrechetteDaria HalprinPaul FixAt a time of chronic civil unrest in late 1960s America, a young idealist and an anthropology student cross paths at Zabriskie Point in Death Valley, California. They start an unrestrained relationship by making love on the dusty terrain.Cinema.
- DirectorFederico FelliniStarsRiccardo BilliGigi RederTino ScottiA ragout of real memories and mockumentary, as Fellini explores a childhood obsession: circus clowns.Cinema.
- DirectorKen RussellStarsRichard ChamberlainGlenda JacksonMax AdrianPiano teacher Peter Ilych Tchaikovsky struggles against his homosexuality by marrying, but unfortunately he chooses a nymphomaniac whom he cannot satisfy.TV.
- DirectorRobert AltmanStarsDonald SutherlandElliott GouldTom SkerrittThe staff of a Korean War field hospital use humor and high jinks to keep their sanity in the face of the horror of war.Cinema.
- DirectorMike NicholsStarsAlan ArkinMartin BalsamRichard BenjaminA man is trying desperately to be certified insane during World War II, so he can stop flying missions.Cinema.
- DirectorArthur PennStarsDustin HoffmanFaye DunawayChief Dan GeorgeJack Crabb, looking back from extreme old age, tells of his life being raised by Native Americans and fighting with General Custer.Cinema.
- DirectorStuart HagmannStarsBruce DavisonKim DarbyBud CortAn apolitical college student joins a group of campus protesters to meet girls but gets swept up in their cause and involved in a violent confrontation with police.Cinema.
- DirectorStandish LawderAn unknown observer is seen traveling through a bleak corridor. At the end of the corridor they see a naked woman, whom the observer is unable to reach as his or her trip seems to become increasingly twisted and looped.OL.
- DirectorMarek PiwowskiStarsStanislaw TymJolanta LotheWanda Stanislawska-LotheA stowaway on a cruise ship is mistaken for an entertainment director.OL. 10/10.
- DirectorAlejandro JodorowskyStarsAlejandro JodorowskyBrontis JodorowskyJosé LegarretaA mysterious black-clad gunfighter wanders a mystical Western landscape encountering multiple bizarre characters.PC. 9/10.
- DirectorKarel KachynaStarsJirina BohdalováRadoslav BrzobohatýGustav OpocenskýAfter coming home from a Party gathering one night, a Czech official becomes convinced that he is about to be the subject of a political purge and tries to do damage control, while also dealing with his turbulent marriage.OL.
Note (IMDb Trivia):
"Although made in 1970, this didn't see major release until 1989." - DirectorCosta-GavrasStarsYves MontandSimone SignoretGabriele FerzettiA high-ranking official is forced to confess to high treason.TV.
- DirectorVittorio De SicaStarsDominique SandaLino CapolicchioHelmut BergerThe story of the Finzi-Continis, a noble family of Ferrara, during the Jewish persecution in Italy's 1930s.Cinema.
- DirectorAndrzej WajdaStarsDaniel OlbrychskiOlgierd LukaszewiczEmilia KrakowskaA musician tries to find his inner peace in a cottage within the woods.PC.
- DirectorFrançois TruffautStarsJean-Pierre LéaudClaude JadeHiroko BerghauerAntoine Doinel works dying flowers in the courtyard outside his apartment. He is married to Christine, who is pregnant. He has an affair with a Japanese woman, jeopardising his marriage.Cinema.
- DirectorAndrzej WajdaStarsDaniel OlbrychskiStanislawa CelinskaAleksander BardiniThe film opens with the mad rush of haphazard freedom as the concentration camps are liberated. Men are trying to grab food, change clothes, bury the tormentors they find alive. They are then herded into other camps as the Allies try to devise means to control the situation. A young poet, who cannot quite find himself in this new situation, meets a headstrong young Jewish girl who wants him to run off with her to the West. He cannot cope with her growing demands for affection, and still feels hatred for the Germans and disdain for his fellow men, who quickly revert to petty enmities.PC.
- DirectorSam PeckinpahStarsJason RobardsStella StevensDavid WarnerA hobo accidentally stumbles onto a water spring, and creates a profitable way station in the middle of the desert.TV.
- DirectorMichael WadleighStarsJoan BaezRichie HavensRoger DaltreyOscar-winning musical chronicle that brilliantly captures the three-day rock concert and celebration of peace and love that became a capstone for the Sixties.TV.
- DirectorDonald CammellNicolas RoegStarsJames FoxMick JaggerAnita PallenbergA violent East London gangster undergoes a transformation of identity while hiding from his former colleagues in the home of a jaded Bohemian rock star and his two girlfriends.TV.
- DirectorJaromil JiresStarsJaroslava SchallerováHelena AnýzováPetr KoprivaSurreal tale in which love, fear, sex, and religion merge into one fantastic world. Based on a classical Czech novel of the same title.PC.
- DirectorBernardo BertolucciStarsJean-Louis TrintignantStefania SandrelliGastone MoschinA weak-willed Italian man becomes a fascist flunky who goes abroad to arrange the assassination of his old teacher, now a political dissident.PC.
- DirectorMichael FenglerRainer Werner FassbinderStarsLilith UngererKurt RaabAmadeus FenglerWith slicked-down hair and three-piece suits, dependable Herr Raab is a technical draftsman. He gets along with his colleagues although his boss wants him to go beyond technical cleanliness to problem solving. He's a dutiful husband; his wife's a social climber and pushes him to seek a promotion, but they also share sweet moments. He's a caring father, helping his son with homework. His parents visit; his mother criticizes his wife. Old School friends drop by, as do neighbors. Some comment on Raab's wife's expensive tastes. His promotion may be a long shot, especially after he gives a dull and tipsy toast at an office dinner. But why would Herr Raab run amok?PC.
- DirectorRoy AnderssonStarsAnn-Sofie KylinRolf SohlmanAnita LindblomTwo teenagers fall in love over the summer, in spite of cynical and disapproving adults who dismiss their relationship as being nothing but young love.PC.
- DirectorIstván SzabóStarsJudit HalászAndrás BálintEdit KelemenJancsi reminiscences about Kata his childhood friend in WWII Budapest, They are separated as a result of 1956 revolution. Reunited as adults, they struggle with whether they will stay in each others lives.PC.
- DirectorOsamu TezukaEiichi YamamotoStarsChinatsu NakayamaKotoe HatsuiTsubame YanagiyaTo decipher a scheme plotted by enemy aliens, three agents from the future travel to Cleopatra's time, where they witness her romances with Caesar and Mark Antony.OL.
- DirectorJohn CassavetesStarsBen GazzaraPeter FalkJohn CassavetesAfter the death of a common friend, three married men leave their lives together, seeking pleasure and freedom and ultimately leaving for London.PC.
- DirectorJohn G. AvildsenStarsPeter BoyleDennis PatrickSusan SarandonTwo men--wealthy conservative Bill and far-right factory worker Joe--form a dangerous bond after Bill confesses to Joe about murdering his daughter's drug-dealer boyfriend.Cinema.
- DirectorMaximilian SchellStarsJohn Moulder-BrownDominique SandaMaximilian SchellBased on Ivan Turgeyev's novella, Erste Liebe is about two young lovers in czarist Russia. One is a 21-year-old woman, the other a young man of sixteen. Things take a tragic turn as the girl (Dominique Sanda as Sanaida) falls in love with the boy's father (Maximilian Schell). This film was nominated for Best Foreign Language Film in 1970's Academy Awards.TV.
- DirectorHollis FramptonStarsRosemarie CastoroGinger MichelsMarcia SteinbrecherA rhythmically edited alphabet composed of street and shop signs shot in New York City and other elements is gradually replaced by repeated seemingly abstract shots in this influential structuralist film.OL.
- DirectorKrsto PapicStarsFabijan SovagovicAdem CejvanJagoda KaloperSmall village in mountains of Dalmatinska Zagora is under total control of Andrija, local Party official. One day two members of secret police come to the village and everybody knows they are going to arrest somebody, but nobody knows whom.Cinema.
- DirectorZivojin PavlovicStarsRade SerbedzijaMajda PotokarMajda GrbacAn ex-partisan and current political activist sets out to Styria region in Slovenia to buy out the wheat from peasants and convince them to form the farming collective. His ostensible success (based on blackmailing rather than convincing), as well as his love defeat, make him disturbed and he kills an innocent man while performing a social mission.Orig. title: Rdeče klasje.
Cinema. - DirectorJan SvankmajerA non-narrative voyage round Sedlec Ossuary, which has been constructed from over 50,000 human skeletons (victims of the Black Death).PC.
- DirectorErnie GehrAn experimental short film which shows a time-lapse in the basement hallway of a Binghamton University building.OL.
- DirectorFranklin J. SchaffnerStarsGeorge C. ScottKarl MaldenStephen YoungThe World War II phase of the career of controversial American general George S. Patton.Cinema.
- DirectorKarpo Acimovic-GodinaStarsOblak BardManca CermeljMilan JesihPlotless and wordless, beautifully edited shots of young (often naked or semi-naked) people in various positions, illustrating different emotions, actions and situations, underlined by rock music.PC.
- DirectorAlbert MayslesDavid MayslesCharlotte ZwerinStarsMick JaggerKeith RichardsMick TaylorWhen three hundred thousand members of the Love Generation collided with a few dozen Hells Angels at San Francisco's Altamont Speedway, the bloody slash that transformed a decade's dreams into disillusionment was immortalized on this film.Cinema.
- DirectorEd EmshwillerStarsCarol EmshwillerStoney EmshwillerThis 16mm Abstract Movie by the Ed Emshwiller is a masterful piece of Pure Cinema. It's wonderfully conceived, beautifully shot, tightly and lovingly edited and put together with a poignant gentle musical score. The optic/in-camera mechanical celluloid visual effects are emotionally Cinematic. This is a visual tone poem, a romantic poetic Love Letter to the movie maker's wife, Carol Emshwiller. The visual textures of the tree barks and the leaves on the branches being gently blown in the wind being double-exposed with the visual texture of Carol's facial skin is sensually pleasurable and expressive. The movie's pacing from a gentle slow rhythm to a kinetic and kinesthetic visual cascade of flashing and flickering colors and explosive motion and bright lights contrasting with dark shadows and shapes in super fast alternating spirals and bursts is exhilarating visceral emotionally intense cinema.OL. 9/10.