Good Films?

[ack]

What are some good leftist films? I don't know any, but would like to see some. Thanks.

[silentprotest]

The Truman Show
Waterloo (Though not technically a leftist film it has a truthful portrayl of Napoleon as a great socialist at the beginning.)

Thats all I can think of at the moment.

I know a few which are more of a critique of capitalism, well here they are because I might as well list them.

Being John Malkovich
Rain Man
Team America
Apocolypse Now

[loveme4whoiam]

Fight Club? I suppose it doesn't really portray a truthful (or even accurate) view of anarchism, but it's better than watching Bambi over again...

[which doctor]

City of God.

[SanPatricio'sSoul]

The Corporation
Malcolm X
The Revolution Will Not Be Televised
Battle of Algiers

thats all i can think of right now

[RABBIT - THE - CUBAN - MILITANT]

Battle Royale 2
Crash (more of a social commentary )
A Huey P. Newton Story

[loveme4whoiam]

There's a sequel to Battle Royale? Cool, I love that film. City of God is good too, although thats a hell of a twist :s

[YKTMX]

Reds
All Ken Loach films (especially Land and Freedom)
Oliver Stone films (particuarly JFK, which includes quite a strong attack on the military industrial complex)
Matewan
Eisenstein films (obviously) - everyone should watch Potemkin at least once

[FULL METAL JACKET]

Originally posted by [email protected] 30 2006, 09:09 PM
Fight Club? I suppose it doesn't really portray a truthful (or even accurate) view of anarchism, but it's better than watching Bambi over again...
Fight Club is very good! Says something about our economy or the "system" in a way.

You guys should check out the documentary Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room. It's insane how they got away with all their coporate fraud for a while. The trial will start soon, I hope they get life!

[Red Leader]

Go see Lord of War.

Now.

Its really good, even though i hate everything he main character stands for, it speaks the truth, and is one of those movies that jsut beats you over the head with a message.

[ComradeOm]

October 1917: Ten Days That Shook The World

Not the easiest film to watch but stirring stuff nonetheless. The Shostakovich score is excellent.

[vox_populi]

Surplus

[WUOrevolt]

The Weather Underground

The Take

[anomaly]

These have already been said, but they deserve to be seconded.

Malcolm X

JFK

Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room (this lets you see how the free market really works)

Control Room (about Al-Jazeera)

Crash (extremely, extremely good)

And of course The Shawshank Redemption (one of my favorite films ever)


If you want comedy, I suggest

Monty Python: The Meaning of Life

Monty Python: Life of Brian

Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back (if you're like me and you like simple toilet humor)


Oh, and there is a new documentary out called Why We Fight. Critics have said it is what Fahrenheit 9/11 should have been. Anyone seen it??

[Pilgrim]

Originally posted by [email protected] 1 2006, 06:55 PM
October 1917: Ten Days That Shook The World

Not the easiest film to watch but stirring stuff nonetheless. The Shostakovich score is excellent.
If you think that is hard to watch, I suggest you avoid two of my favourite films.

One is the John Hurt/Richard Burton version of George Orwell's classic '1984'. It was Richard Burton's last film before he died and one of his finest performances, as the psychopathic interrogator 'O'Brien'.

The other is the BBC Cold War classic entitled 'Threads'. A realistic, docu-drama showing the likely effects of a nuclear war on a British town, 'Threads' pulls absolutely no punches whatsoever. You may not be able to finish watching it all at once, it really is that graphic and unpleasant.

Oh, and Ken Loach's 'Land And Freedom' is an excellent film and should really be in everybody's collection. If you haven't seen it, then you really should get hold of a copy. Such a sad film, yet uplifting at the same time.

[vox_populi]

I saw "Panther" yesterday...and that's probably the best american made leftist film of all time!

[YKTMX]

I think it's a bit rubbish.

Decent central performances, but I don't think the Script or the director really got "into" where the Panthers came from, or their position in the wider movement and milieu of the 60's.

[vox_populi]

Actually I don't know that much about the movement...so I couldn't point out the errors and fact faults...but you seem to know more about it, so i'll take your word...but I thought it was good :D

[ack]

Sweet, thanks!
I'm gonna go watch all these now.
At least, those I can find.

[celtopunk]

Originally posted by [email protected] 5 2006, 04:48 PM
I think it's a bit rubbish.

Decent central performances, but I don't think the Script or the director really got "into" where the Panthers came from, or their position in the wider movement and milieu of the 60's.
You have to take it for what it was. This was a Hollywood film about modern day revolutionaries in the US with guns. Hollywood isn't ready for that kind of thing.
There are some documentaries on the subject do a google search, check this out too:
http://www.itsabouttimebpp.com/index.html

I also think that Bobby Seale has a film version of "Seize the Time" coming out which is a book worth reading hopefully it will be a movie worth seeing.


There is also a pinned thread at the top of the "Literature and Films" section that has a lot of grewat suggestions.
http://www.revolutionaryleft.com/index.php...opic=27331&st=0 (http://www.revolutionaryleft.com/index.php?showtopic=27331&st=0)

[Floyce White]

All Quiet on the Western Front
Les Miserable
Reds
Z
Brainstorm
Spartacus

[Vladislav]

This is sort of off topic, but I've noticed that a lot of people seem to like the movie Battle Royale I and II. Is Battle Royale a Japanese movie or is it something else because I've seen Battle Royale I and it was like these school kids get thrown onto an island were they have to kill each other.

I think you should watch some of the Stanley Kubrick and Quentin Tarantino directed films.e.g Full Metal Jacket, Clockwork Orange, Pulp Fiction etc.
There is also a nice film called Higher Learning.

[Postteen]

anything by: Theo Angelopoulos (I ADORE him)
Luis Bonuel
Andrei Tarkovsky
Alejandro Jodorowsky

I'm currently interested in surreal fimls so I'm searching!

[Sabocat]

Originally posted by [email protected] 4 2006, 12:26 AM
The Weather Underground

The Take
I also found Naomi Klein's "The Take" quite good.

Recently I acquired a copy of "Howard Zinn - You Can't Be Neutral on a Moving Train" documentary.

Being a fan of Zinn, I found it quite good.

[Roses in the Hospital]

American History X is really good. Edward Norton as a neo-Nazi realising he's wasted his life...


One is the John Hurt/Richard Burton version of George Orwell's classic '1984'. It was Richard Burton's last film before he died and one of his finest performances, as the psychopathic interrogator 'O'Brien'.

Seconded. An excellent adaptation. Almost totally faithful to the book...

[Abood]

The Truman Show
How is that leftist?!

I saw FIDEL yesterday and it's pretty good.

[bunk]

Together, a film about a commune is cool. I think it was swedish

[vox_populi]

Yep! Together or "Tillsammans (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0203166/)" is a Swedish movie by the pretty descent director Lukas Moodysson. The movie is mainly for a swedish audience but you'll might like it. I think that it's great :P

[Punk Rocker]

Fight Club kicks ass, and SLC Punk.

[Iroquois Xavier]

Bambi.

[dusk]

The people have a good taste here.

I liked apocalypse now
taxi driver
natural born killers
Amongst others.

And I'm interested in Good night, and good luck from George Clooney.
And syriana seems interesting too,
I still don't have te time to go to the cinema.

[chimx]

Battle of Algiers has already been mentioned but it is a fucking classic. It deals with France's experience of decolonization. It is a must watch.

Libertarias is a Spanish film dealing with the Spanish Civil War of 1936. It is centered around an anarchist women's militia and how they dealt with fighting both Franco as well as the sexism of their comrades.

Reds was also mentioned. It was made by Warren Beaty and stars him and Jack Nicholson (or is that the golfer? i mix them up). Beaty plays Jack Reed and deals with him hanging out in Russia in 1917 and how he came to be disillusioned with the Bolshevik Party. Emma Goldman also makes an apperance.

Street of Crocodiles by the Quay Brothers is an amazing short inspired by the work of Bruno Schulz. From wikipedia: "The desolation of the environment, combined with the haunting score, conveys a sense of isolation and futility, forcing the viewer into immediate identification with the mute protagonist as he explores a realm of mechanical realities and manufactured pleasures. As the protagonist tries to conform, or is forced into a submissive assimilation, the animation slowly reveals how unfulfilling and dead the surroundings actually are. Life and vitality are stripped gradually away to show the passionless cycle of existence." Highly recommended.

[bayano]

of leftist nondocumentary feature films about resistance:

already mentioned
malcolm x
battle of algiers
reds
matewan
Land And Freedom
panther wasnt very good, but ill include it
Z
spartacus
Good night, and good luck

some of the many others i would add
the organizer (old italian movie)
potemkin (one of many great old soviet flicks)
spook who sat by the door
rosewood
they live!
amistad (the first part anyways)
v for vendetta
the molly maguires
bhagat singh (indian)
the rising (indian)
i am cuba

the list goes on and on. ill be returning here with more, im sure

[bolshevik butcher]

land and freedom
venezuela bolivariana
the revolution will not be televised
the take

[Invader Zim]

Waterloo (Though not technically a leftist film it has a truthful portrayl of Napoleon as a great socialist at the beginning.)

No, it does not.

As for good films, I could name literally hundreds. In fact most films with a score of 6.5 or more on IMDB are good films.

[Sanjee]

Originally posted by [email protected] 25 2006, 04:24 PM
I saw FIDEL yesterday and it's pretty good.
"Fidel" is a stupid American film about Fidel Castro with a lot of lies, how can they film 2 hours about the first (let's say) 5/6 years before and during the revolution, and film the last 50 years in 30 minutes?

[Gura]

Salvador
Missing
State of Siege

[Ricardo]

What are some of the lies about Castro that are told in "Fidel"? I don't know much about him, but the movie seemed biased towards him, I don't really think anyone has as little faults as Castro does in the movie.

[Si Pinto]

Downfall - One of the most harrowing films I've ever seen, the scene were Mrs Goebbels is forcing her kids to drink the sleeping potion so she can kill them is absolutely heartbreaking.

Bruno Ganz as Hitler is brilliant.

Gallipoli - Ok it's got Mel Gibson in it, but it is one of the best 'anti-war' films I've ever seen, you really get a picture of the stupidity and heartlessness of the whole WWI thing. Well worth a watch.

and if you can find a copy..

Nosferatu - That is one scary film, incredibly atmospheric. Much better because it's in B&W.

[Conghaileach]

I don't think anyone has mentioned Citizen Kane yet.

I'd also recommend Ken Loach's films, especially Kes, Land and Freedom, Bread and Roses and The Wind that Shakes the Barley.

[SmithSmith]

Why we fight