10 movies Adnan Malik wants you to watch

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For someone who’s studied film in college, works in the industry, and watches a lot of films, compiling a list of just 10 films is impossible. So, I’m improvising! I am a fundamental believer in the ‘Auteur’ theory, and when watching films, I often look at the director before the cast!

Here is my list of 10 directors who have influenced me deeply (and what, for me, are their best films)

1) 'Monsoon Wedding' 

Director: Mira Nair



Even though I had watched Salaam Bombay before Monsoon Wedding, and was considerably moved by it; Monsoon Wedding is the film that first made me want to be a director. I was in college at the time (Vassar), and most of my friends were Americans. I remember taking all of them to the Sunshine theater on Houston street to see this film. When we all stepped out, Samantha turned to me and said “you have a beautiful culture”.

It was the first piece of cinema I had seen that I felt truly represented the beauty, complexity and challenges of life in my part of the world. It made me understand the power of cinema and how it can influence perspective and create “identity”.

It was also a sensitively crafted film that challenged patriarchal norms in the subcontinent and was made with a massive, exploding heart. Meeting Mira a few years later was one of my most cherished moments.

2) 'Blow Up'

Director Michelangelo Antonioni



 

My Icelandic roommate, who was a philosophy major, introduced me to this film, and it just blew my mind! It’s an existential, free flowing narrative, loosely based on the life of the glamorous fashion photographer, David Bailey, in London in the swinging ‘60s.

Antonioni is a visual poet, and this film is at once both visually lush and prosaic, in that it meditates on the meaninglessness of things. Its sexy and spacious, and ultimately about nothing at all. And although I enjoyed the films of Godard, Truffaut, and Fellini, who were his contemporaries, I just loved Antonioni’s vision, measured pace, patience and love of landscape. The Passenger with Jack Nicholson is a close second favourite of his films.



3) 'The Wolf of Wall Street' 

Director: Martin Scorcese



For Scorcese fans, this is not his best film, but its been ages since I saw Taxi Driver and Good Fellas, and Raging Bull was just not as good on a second watch. All his films are excellent and deserve to be studied.

This is just my current favourite. Scorcese has a specific, iconic and a clean style of filmmaking: The motivated dolly camera moves, the intense, flawed protagonists, the tautness of his scenes; Scorcese has been a huge influence on intelligent, serious American cinema.

I loved The Wolf of Wallstreet because it’s a larger than life biopic, has incredible performances by DiCaprio and Jonah Hill who deliver lines, like I can only dream to. It’s funny, it’s tragic, it’s over the top, it’s honest. Its just a masterful film. (I chose Scorcese over Copolla here, because I bracketed them in the same category. Of course, The Godfather was a masterpiece, but I prefer Scorcese’s direction).

4) 'Manhattan'

Director: Woody Allen



What an amazing contribution to cinema Woody Allen’s voice and vision have been. He redefined the idea of a leading man in cinema. While all leads of films at the time were strong, masculine, sure-footed men, here he was writing, directing and starring in his own films that not only satirised the idea of a hero (himself), but modern relationships, and upper class society at large.

His hyper-intellectualised, guilt-ridden, “loser” leading man (and woman in the case of Blue Jasmine) who are tragically flawed, helped create a new archetype in contemporary storytelling. His ouvre has been adapted and evolved by directors such as Noah Baumbach and Lena Dunham as well. I never miss a film by any of these directors.

I loved Manhattan because it’s based in a city I love, was beautifully shot in chiaroscuro black & white by the master Gordon Willis, and dealt with real relationship issues that I can relate to. A stunning and curious film.

5) '21 grams'

Director: Alejandro González Iñárritu



This guy is definitely the most visceral, and perhaps cruelest filmmaker out of the ones I love. And I find each and everyone of his films so raw, honest, and as much about the process of making them, as about the narrative (and both are top shelf).

21 grams was the first film of his that I saw, and it felt like I had been punched in the gut after watching it. He makes me “feel” in each of his films. His style of storytelling is amazing. The triple narrative, in this case, edited on instinct. He’s an earthy, gritty, filmmaker, and I love and admire that deeply. I think Jami, here in Pakistan, has some of the inrarritu magic.

6) 'Silver Linings Playbook' 

Director: David O’Russell



I love all the offbeat, independent, serious cinema of the new-age American directors. It’s tough to choose between Paul Thomas Anderson, Alexander Payne and O’Russel, but of late, I have been inspired by O’Russel. You can tell that he workshops a lot with his actors, and then gives them a certain kind of freedom to improvise on set, which really allows for a rawness and honesty in performance.

The chemistry between Jennifer Lawrence and Bradley Cooper in this film is amazing to watch. I mean, what he brings out of Lawrence always leaves me awe struck. He does “happy sad” better than anyone else out there. O’Russell has a unique and honest perspective on life and its sorrows, one that I can relate to.

7) 'Youth'

Director: Paolo Sorrentino



Hailed as the new age Fellini, Sorrentino’s last two films have been extravagant visual spectacles. Although 'La Grande Belliza' was a real crowd favourite, and has one of the greatest character introductions of recent time, 'Youth' appealed to me because of the tight storytelling, gorgeous and intelligent score, excellent characterisation, and stellar performances by the ensemble cast.

There’s this one single take scene that stays on Rachel Weisz’s face while she’s speaking to her father, Michael Caine, about his neglectful attitude towards her while growing up, that just blows me away every time (I’ve seen it thrice). Crackling scene! They just don’t make films like this anymore. Its experimental, honest, polished. Ut references other great films, and has the most intelligent use of sound I’ve seen in recent times. (The other film I may have chosen here is Almodovar’s 'Talk to Her'. Another excellent, moody, sexy, soulful film with an incredible score)



8) 'Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind'

Director: Michelle Gondry



Another film I can watch at least once a year and it always reveals something new to me. Clearly, I am a sucker for the “coming of age love story” genre, and this might be one of the best! And that’s what happens when some of the most ingenious people in the world come together.

Writer Charlie Kauffman is a crafty wizard and Michelle Gondry brings his whimsical music video style to narrative. Again it’s the way the story moves, always a step ahead of the audience that keeps me engaged. The plausible yet incredulous premise of being able erase your memories, coupled with clever special effects, quirky characters (Jim carry’s best performance to date) and soulful heartbreak make this movie delicious. I can never remove my eyes from it once it’s on.  (Second place would have to be PT Anderson’s 'Punch Drunk Love', deeply inventive and with one of Phillip Seymour Hoffman’s best performances, followed by Spike Jonze’s 'Her'.)

9) 'The Social Network' 

Director: David Fincher



This guy! Another music video director (remember George Michael’s “freedom 90”? ) who evolved into a top notch narrative director. His collaboration with Aaron Sorkin in this film about possibly the greatest “social phenomenon” of our times, Facebook, just blew me away with its zippy-paced scene development, propulsive writing, searing performances (The Winklevoss twins were actually one guy, and Justin Timberlake! He can act!), incredible score by Trent Reznor of 9 Inch Nails, and just intelligent mis-en-scene. It’s a true filmmakers film made with so much awareness and intelligence. Its meta-meta. An almost perfect, contemporary film. (The other two films I considered here were David Lynch’s 'Mulholland Drive' for its noir sexiness and Alex Garland’s near perfect noir drama about artificial intelligence 'Ex-Machina')

10) 'Aurat Raj'

Director: Rangeela



My bonus Pakistani film! A severely underrated director, Rangeela was true comic genius, and this is an incredible satire of Pakistani society in the 70s. I came across it when I was researching my feature length documentary on Pakistani Cinema 'The Forgotten Song'.

The plot basically revolves around a gender election between men and women that ends in women winning and taking charge of society in the way men do. From that point on all the men are dubbed in female voices and all the women in mens voices. Waheed Murad wears a sari and does a mujra, and Rani becomes this misogynistic, wip-bearing brute.

Hilarious and brilliant satire in equal measure, and way ahead of its time. Pointed absurdism that makes a serious comment about Pakistani society and gender politics in  the 70’s  Bhutto era. Yes, we made intelligent films!

 

Adnan Malik has a bachelor in film theory and production from Vassar College. He is a documentary, TV commercial and music video director, who has his eye on film. He was Video Producer on Coke Studio for five years, and is also an acclaimed actor. He tweets @adnanmalik