The Top 25 Films on Memory: Assigned Write-ups

[J.A.A. Purves]

Note: We want to try to have our blurbs/write-ups done and turned in by February 16th.

 

1 - Continue to use Tyler's Results thread to discuss the results.  If you would like to write a paragraph (2-3 sentences) explaining how one of the winning films on our list interacts with spiritual themes or otherwise why it warranted making a list entitled "Top 25 Films on Memory," use this thread to post the following:

 

1st choice: ______________

2nd choice: ______________

3rd choice: ______________

How many promotional blurbs/write-ups are you willing to do? __

 

2 - We'll give this 5 days for everyone to put in their claims.  So this claim process tentatively ends on the 9th at 11:59 pacific standard time.  Beginning on Tuesday morning (the 10th), I will finalize who is assigned what films based on what you've posted here.

 

3 - First, we will assign one write-up per person, first looking at everyone's first choice (then their second, etc.), and giving priority as follows:

[a] to who nominated the film, then

to who seconded the film, then

[c] to who has invested more time at A&F (determined by total post count), and then

[d] by first come, first serve.

 

Then, if there are any films left, I will begin assign a second film to those willing to write more than one, based on the [a] through [d] priority as above.  Then I'll even assign a third film if to a few of you if it becomes necessary.

 

4 - If you see that you and someone else both really want to do the write-up for the same film, then talk to them about it.  Be courteous.  In the past, writers have made trades before.  So, if, based on who gets priority, one person is willing to give up a film to another person, then tell me.

 

5 - I will add names below for who is assigned to which film.  I may periodically add names if it is obvious that someone wants to write for their own nominated film.

________________________

 

strike-through & bold = assigned

no strike-through & italic = still up for grabs

 

1. Rashômon (1950) - Peter T. Chattaway

2. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959) - Anodos

3. Vertigo (1958) - Ryan H.

4. Wild Strawberries (1957) - Anodos

5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Tyler

6. Three Colors: Blue (1993) - Persona

7. The Mirror (1975) - Overstreet

8. Blade Runner (1982) - John Drew

9. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - Jason Panella

10. Citizen Kane (1941) - Anders

11. How Green Was My Valley (1941) - M. Leary

12. Memento (2000) - Evan C.

13. The Tree of Life (2011) - Nick Olson

14. 2046 (2004) - Ryan H.

15. Solaris (1972) - Tyler

16. Last Year at Marienbad (1961) - J.A.A. Purves

17. The Sweet Hereafter (1997) - John Drew

18. The Thin Blue Line (1988) - Peter T. Chattaway

19. Certified Copy (2011) - M. Leary

20. 8 1/2 (1963) - Overstreet

21. The Manchurian Candidate (1962) - Darryl A. Armstrong

22. The Act of Killing (2012) - Evan C.

23. La Jetée (1962) - Anders

24. The Remains of the Day (1993) - J.A.A. Purves

25. Mulholland Drive (2001) - NBooth

Edited February 10, 2015 by J.A.A. Purves

[Nick Olson]

I happily defer to AF folks with more seniority. I know these are beloved by many here. But if you're looking for an additional voice for the list, I'd be happy to write something on one or more of these.

1. Tree of Life
2. Certified Copy
3. Vertigo
4. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

Edited February 5, 2015 by Nick Olson

[Peter T Chattaway]

1st choice: Rashomon, just so I can tie it to Ikiru (which is not on our list).

2nd choice: Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind

3rd choice: Memento

4th choice: The Thin Blue Line

 

I could write up to three, I think.

 

Note: if memory serves both Memento and Eternal Sunshine move backward through their memories.

Edited February 5, 2015 by Peter T Chattaway

[Anders]

1st choice: LA JETÉE

2nd choice: MIRROR

3rd choice: 2046

4th choice: WILD STRAWBERRIES

5th choice: HIROSHIMA MON AMOUR

 

I'm willing to 2-3 since I've already written about some of these films.

[Mr. Arkadin]

1st choice: 2046

2nd choice: Vertigo

3rd choice: Mulholland Drive

 

I'd be willing to write two or three blurbs.

[Overstreet]

1st choice: The Mirror

2nd choice: 8 1/2

3rd: Wild Strawberries

 

I'm willing to write two blurbs.

Edited February 5, 2015 by Overstreet

[Evan C]

1st choice: Memento
2nd choice: Last Year at Marienbad
3rd choice: The Act of Killing, Vertigo (as the nominator, I will happily cede Vertigo to someone else who wants it more)
4th choice: 8 1/2, Three Colors: Blue

I can do one or two blurbs.

John Drew has to do Blade Runner.

Edited February 10, 2015 by Evan C

[Anodos]

1st - Wild Strawberries  (the film which really jump-started my love for cinema...)

2nd - Memento

3rd - Certified Copy

4th - Vertigo

 

I can do two if that's helpful.

[Evan C]

For ease of reference. First name is nominator, second is seconder:

1. Rashômon (1950) - NBooth; Evan C

2. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959) - Anodos; Evan C

3. Vertigo (1958) - Evan C; Tyler

4. Wild Strawberries (1957) - J.A.A. Purves; Anodos

5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004) - Tyler; Evan C

6. Three Colors: Blue (1993) - Tyler; Evan C

7. The Mirror (1975) - J.A.A. Purves; Tyler

8. Blade Runner (1982) - John Drew; NBooth

9. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962) - Jason Panella; Andrew

10. Citizen Kane (1941) - John Drew; Tucker

11. How Green Was My Valley (1941) - Nathan Douglas; Andrew

12. Memento (2000) - Tyler; Evan C

13. The Tree of Life (2011) - Nick Alexander; Nathan Douglas

14. 2046 (2004) - Ryan H; Anders

15. Solaris (1972) - John Drew; Tyler

16. Last Year at Marienbad (1961) - J.A.A. Purves; Anodos

17. The Sweet Hereafter (1997) - John Drew; Darrel Manson

18. The Thin Blue Line (1988) - Darryl A. Armstrong; Darrel Manson

19. Certified Copy (2011) - Tyler; Nathan Douglas

20. 8 1/2 (1963) - Evan C; Anders

21. The Manchurian Candidate (1962) - John Drew; Darryl A. Armstrong

22. The Act of Killing (2012) - Tyler; Overstreet

23. La Jetée (1962) - Anders; Evan C

24. The Remains of the Day (1993) - J.A.A. Purves; John Drew

25. Mulholland Drive (2001) - NBooth; Evan C

[Tyler]

1st choice: Solaris

2nd choice: Eternal Sunshine

3rd choice: Three Colors: Blue

How many promotional blurbs/write-ups are you willing to do? 2-3

[John Drew]

1st choice:  Blade Runner

2nd choice:  The Sweet Hereafter

3rd choice:  The Manchurian Candidate

How many promotional blurbs/write-ups are you willing to do? 2

[M. Leary]

I can take anything leftover but Memento.

 

1st: Certified Copy

2nd: Whatever

3rd: Whatever

[Anodos]

For ease of reference. First name is nominator, second is seconder:

...

2. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959) - Anodos; Evan C

 

Huh. For some reason I forgot I'd nominated this one. A quiet 'Hurrah!'. I'd be happy to write the blurb for it, of course. Wild Strawberries would still be my No.1 though.

[NBooth]

Well, here's three I'm willing to write on:

First choice: Mulholland Dr.

Second choice: Rashomon

Third choice: Blade Runner

 

I'm probably only going to be able to swing one blurb, though.

[John Drew]

1. Rashômon (1950)

2. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959)

3. Vertigo (1958)

4. Wild Strawberries (1957)

5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

6. Three Colors: Blue (1993)

7. The Mirror (1975)

8. Blade Runner (1982)

9. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

10. Citizen Kane (1941)

11. How Green Was My Valley (1941)

12. Memento (2000)

13. The Tree of Life (2011)

14. 2046 (2004) 

15. Solaris (1972)

16. Last Year at Marienbad (1961)

17. The Sweet Hereafter (1997)

18. The Thin Blue Line (1988)

19. Certified Copy (2011)

20. 8 1/2 (1963)

21. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

22. The Act of Killing (2012)

23. La Jetée (1962)

24. The Remains of the Day (1993)

25. Mulholland Drive (2001)

 

Just wanted to strike off the various films for which some folks have been interested in writing blurbs, and highlight the four films that have yet to be claimed.  Several of the films have multiple people vying for them.  I know the official assignment for blurbs won't be made until tomorrow, I just wanted to make it a little easier to see what was left unclaimed.

Edited February 9, 2015 by John Drew

[Anders]

If no one wants to write on KANE, I will. Contrary to others I do think it offers interesting perspective on filmic memory.

[Evan C]

I could potentially do The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance, but my first choice is very much Memento, and if I took on MWSLV, that would leave Last Year at Marienbad unclaimed, although I could do three blurbs if no one else wants to write something up.

 

I recall SDG and Nathan Douglas having an exchange about How Green was My Valley being an excellent fit for this list. Perhaps one of them could write that one up?

[Nathan Douglas]

I recall SDG and Nathan Douglas having an exchange about How Green was My Valley being an excellent fit for this list. Perhaps one of them could write that one up?

I'm afraid I'm too busy at the moment to commit to writing one. I'm also reluctant because I wrote up HGWMV for the Top 100, and would rather read someone else's take on it - a passionate Fordphile like Darren Hughes or Nathaniel Bell.

A third caveat: I'm not over the moon about HGWMV making the list at the loss of stronger nominations. It has more interaction with memory and cinema as analogues than its simple flashback structure would suggest (kind of in the same territory as Kane), but its treatment of loss and nostalgia isn't nearly as thick as, well, Nostalghia. To name one example.

Edited February 9, 2015 by Nathan Douglas

[J.A.A. Purves]

Alright, I'm putting my own choices here, just to be fair.

 

1. The Mirror (1975) - As the nominator of this one, I'm yielding it to Jeffrey.

2. Last Year at Marienbad (1961)

3. The Remains of the Day (1993)

 

I'll calculate everyone's rankings later tonight and then we'll see how many other films we have left over.

[Evan C]

Oh yeah, as the nominator of  8 1/2, I yield it to Jeffrey as well.  And since you want it Jeremy, I withdraw my bid on Last Year at Marienbad.

[J.A.A. Purves]

Alright, because I am juggling a number of different tasks tonight, here’s a slightly early start on the assigned writeups. If you have any questions or worries, don’t hesitate to ask. Please remember that your write-up for the film should be about 3 sentences long and that it should not just be about how good the film is, but also about why it explores the theme of Memory.

 

For the sake of those who are going to set up the webpage for us, please try to have these turned in to me by next Monday, February 16th.  (You can PM me or email them to me at jeremy.purves@gmail.com).  Thanks everyone!

Anders
- 10. Citizen Kane (1941)
- 23. La Jetée (1962)

Anodos
- 2. Hiroshima, Mon Amour (1959)
- 4. Wild Strawberries (1957)

 

Darryl A. Armstrong

- 21. The Manchurian Candidate (1962)

Evan C.
- 12. Memento (2000)
- 22. The Act of Killing (2012)

J.A.A. Purves
- 16. Last Year at Marienbad (1961)
- 24. The Remains of the Day (1993)

 

Jason Panella

- 9. The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance (1962)

John Drew
- 8. Blade Runner (1982)
- 17. The Sweet Hereafter (1997)

M. Leary
- 11. How Green Was My Valley (1941)
- 19. Certified Copy (2011)

NBooth
- 25. Mulholland Drive (2001)

Nick Olson
- 13. The Tree of Life (2011)

Overstreet
- 7. The Mirror (1975)
- 20. 8 1/2 (1963)

 

Persona

- 6. Three Colors: Blue (1993)

Peter T. Chattaway
- 1. Rashômon (1950)
- 18. The Thin Blue Line (1988)

Ryan H.
- 3. Vertigo (1958)
- 14. 2046 (2004)

Tyler
- 5. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)
- 15. Solaris (1972)

Edited February 10, 2015 by J.A.A. Purves

[J.A.A. Purves]

Alright, all the write-ups are now assigned.

[Anders]

I'm pretty happy with whom the write-ups are assigned to. For the most part I think the folks writing on the film are people who have been longtime champions of the particular films.

[M. Leary]

Glad you got La Jetee! Perfect fit. And I look forward to your CK blurb.

[Darren H]

Looks great. Sorry I couldn't help out this time.