MOSAIK: Our Favourite Films. Part I

Some of the contributors at Mosaik were asked to write about their all time favourite films this will take place over a series of articles. These films are perfect for a lazy Sunday...

The Virgin Suicides, a film directed by Sofia Coppola, adapted from the novel by Jeffery Eugenides, would have to be my favourite movie.
The film follows the lives of the Lisbon sisters, through the retrospective narration of their childhood admirers who collect memorabilia of the girls and in their middle age still search for some explanation of what happened all those years ago. When you watch the movie you “[feel the] imprisonment of being a girl,” as the Lisbon sisters enjoy what they can of their short lives.
The Virgin Suicides reads like a prophecy as it predicts the society we live in today, where a great amount of innocence is lost, paralleling the steady ruin of our natural world.
The film is sombre and eerie and yet there are glimpses of hope through the nostalgic, pastel dodging of scences that resemble the desires each of us hold.
But maybe I just like watching it because I like seeing Trip Fontaine walking down the hall in his aviators or Lux becoming Homecoming Queen in her final Strange Magic moment or maybe I like the complete shock I always get at the end of the film despite having watched it over and over again.
-A

'Oh, was it your faaaavourite?'

My mother often mocks me as everything I watch and see and do seems to be my 'favourite'. This may be aided by the fact that I blatantly call things my favourite time and time again. I read a book and love it so much I proclaim that it 'could be my favourite book' (exact words I said to my boyfriend after finishing The Book Thief two days ago). I sit in smiling silence for a good 30 seconds after a TV episode finishes thinking 'wow, this show is a work of genius' (most recently with the BBC series Call the Midwife). When things are fresh in my mind I guess they seem to surpass everything that has come before.

This perpetual love for whatever I am presented with leaves me without a definite 'favourite' as the list is endless. All I can go by is what I saw last. The last film I have seen that has left me sitting in silence smiling is Wes Anderson's, The Grand Budapest Hotel which I saw at my favourite cinema - Sun Theatre in Yarraville. A fan of Anderson already and an all round appreciator of aesthetics, I loved seeing all the usual suspects; the meticulously symmetrical settings, the beautiful soundtrack by French film composer Alexandre Desplat and sharp yet subtle comedy. However, I also found this film very different to the many of his other films. Unlike The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou which I struggled to finish the first time I sat down to watch it and even the 1998 Rushmore, I felt connected to the adventures of Gustave H and Zero Moustafa at the famous European hotel. The storyline really grabbed me, which Anderson's films sometimes fail to do (although the set design is always enough to keep me watching). I felt this film was travelling in a direction more like Moonrise Kingdom as it allowed the audience to fall in love with the characters and become entranced within Anderson's colourfully created world. I feel it would appeal to the public more than some of the others and although I am often a criticiser of Hollywood film, I think his films are in no danger of falling into that category and the ups and downs of the storyline and comedic angle only enhance the film overall. This film retains Anderson's usual whimsical quirkiness and common cast members and long pauses and yet it holds another element of excitement that I feel brings it to another level.

So much so that yes, it is one of many 'favourites'.

-B

Flipped: One of the very rare cases where the film lives up to the brilliance of its original book, Rob Reiner’s ‘Flipped’ (2010) explores the awkward and uncomfortable nature of growing up and experiencing your first love.

While demonstrated through the complicated relationship shared between two eighth-graders, Bryce and July, the messages communicated are far more adult. The importance of kindness, forgiveness and standing up for what you believe in, the complexity behind each individual’s character and most importantly, the way our perceptions of others and the world can change with time are each examined in an extremely sweet and moving way.

Predominantly set in the early 1960s, the rich, warm hues on screen transport the viewer into the world of the characters, aided by the accurate wardrobe choices and the film's catchy vintage soundtrack. Madeline Carroll and Callan McAuliffe act with such natural ease. Their portrayal of their characters is believable and remains true to their representation in Wendelin Van Draanen’s novel. I’m also sure it’s not okay I find the young Callan McAuliffe as attractive as I do – he’s just so darn cute!

If you’re looking for the perfect lazy Sunday afternoon film with both intelligence and heart, I could not recommend Flipped more highly.

- M