Black Narcissus (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1947) Stunningly beautiful film about nuns having problems operating a convent in a remote Himalayan location.
Don (Chandra Barot, 1978) Classic Bollywood film about badass gang boss who is replaced by a doppelganger as part of a complicated police plot to turn the criminal underworld upside down. Features many twists and turns and amazing musical numbers.
Fail Safe (Sidney Lumet, 1964) Shown in the IFI as part of a season of nuclear themed films, this basically has the same plot as the better known Doctor Strangelove (US nuclear bombers set off by mistake to attack the USSR and cannot be recalled for reasons) but is not played for laughs and is actually pretty grim.
The Hunger (Tony Scott, 1983) Catherine Deneuve is a sexy immortal vampire who wants to recruit Susan Sarandon as her new vampire lover now that David Bowie is starting to rapidly age. Possibly the first film to successfully move the vampire genre from the past into the present; also may have established the idea that real vampires would love hanging out with goths.
The Muppet Christmas Carol (Brian Henson, 1992) Michael Caine stars as Ebenezer Scrooge in a surprisingly faithful muppet-featuring adaptation of Charles Dickens' novella. Actually very moving.
The Outcasts (Robert Wynne-Simmons, 1982) Legendary but long lost folk horror film set in Ireland just as the Famine is about to break, centred on a possibly autistic girl discovering magical powers. This restored version might be getting more screenings next year. In the meantime the entire film is on YouTube in not great quality (I couldn't find a trailer).
The Quare Fellow (Arthur Dreifuss, 1962) An adaptation of Brendan Behan's play that apparently takes some liberties with the plot but still struck me as an impressive evocation of Dublin of yore and an indictment of capital punishment. Also features strong early performance by Patrick McGoohan. Another one I could find no trailer for, despite the entire film being on YouTube.
The Red Shoes (Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1948) Dark but beautiful film set in the world of ballet, centred on a ballerina and the men seeking to control her.
Serpico (Sidney Lumet, 1973) Al Pacino plays an undercover cop who gets into a lot of trouble when he tries to blow the lid on systemic police corruption. Based on a true story but surprisingly funny thanks to Pacino's ever more bizarre undercover cop outfits.
Three Colours: Blue (Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1993) Many years ago I saw White, the second of Kieślowski's Colours trilogy, but I think I was too young for it and didn't get it. I'm old enough for Blue now, a beautiful film about grief and the creative process with some very impressive sound work.
Tommy (Ken Russell, 1975) The plot is nonsensical (kid develops hysterical blindness thanks to childhood trauma before becoming very good at pinball and founding a religion) but the combination of Ken Russell's visual flair and The Who's music makes this a most striking piece of work.
Uptight (Jules Dassin, 1968) The original source material for this was Liam O'Flaherty's novel The Informer, set during the Irish Civil War, but Dassin's film is set among African American radicals in the aftermath of Martin Luther King's assassination. The protagonist grasses up a leading militant, but then finds himself being hunted by the other militants and his own guilt, soundtracked atmospherically by Booker T. & the MG's.
Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders from Mars (D. A. Pennebaker, 1979) Pennebaker's stunning film of David Bowie's last Ziggy Stardust concert, turning the limitations of the technology available to him into a strength. If you've seen Moonlight Daydream you will have seen clips of this, but it was great seeing it in full on the big screen with a big sound system.
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