ALEX
+ the quarantine movie list
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As (most of us) are either unemployed or basically on house arrest, we have been granted an absurd amount of free time. Baking bread and learning TikTok dances are wonderful pass-times. But here is a list of movies for when you get bored of those things and no one is available to FaceTime.
These titles are successfully immersive pieces. When you can’t really leave your home, it’s nice to be transported. Additionally they are all united in their ability to craft uncanny realities. If not that, they inhabit the Sci-Fi or Fantasy genre.
These titles are successfully immersive pieces. When you can’t really leave your home, it’s nice to be transported. Additionally they are all united in their ability to craft uncanny realities. If not that, they inhabit the Sci-Fi or Fantasy genre.
Mandy 2018
Imagine: Nicholas Cage wearing tiger-print underwear primordially screaming in a bathroom for almost 5 minutes. Need I say more? It’s a psychedelic revenge adventure that is imbued with nostalgic Sci-Fi elements, backcountry cults, and gritty yet yummy set design.
Lost River 2014
A rare gem starring mega-babe Eva Mendez. Ryan Gosling’s directorial debut is a modern nightmarish fairytale, set in the contemporary ruins of Detroit. In short: it’s a Lynchian ghost town, which resembles America on Covid-19.
Safe 1995
Julianne Moore is an LA housewife. She is mysteriously and subtly ill, rather “environmentally sensitive”. Ultimately a really well executed psychological drama.
The Man Who Fell To Earth 1976
It’s streaming on Amazon Prime! David Bowie is an alien who ventures to Earth in search of natural resources to save his home planet. Nicholas Roeg was a director ahead of his time- merging genres, spinning non-linear narratives, and all the while creating a gorgeous cinematic landscape. This is an experimental classic, and a bit of a slow-burn, but a fun watch nonetheless.
The Wailing 2016
Including this for Horror fans. The Wailing operates with paranoia reminiscent of Hitchcock’s Rear Window. It’s a thrilling horror/ mystery, fueled by black magic.
Only Lovers Left Alive 2013
Jim Jarmusch makes a vampire movie. And, if you haven’t yet started in on the Twilight Saga, vampire fiction during a pandemic is fundamental. Tilda Swinton couldn’t be more perfect as a vampire. Hiddelston is every Emo girl and boy’s dream: brooding over an electric guitar as he refuses to leave his dimly lit apartment.
Nocturama 2016
What is a movie list without something heady and French? Nocturama follows a cast of young, classically attractive Parisians hungry for revolution. It’s sort of a cathartic watch. The characters commit minor acts of public violence, and towards the end of the film wind up hiding out in a massive shopping mall.
A couple extras that are disorienting and fun to watch:
Existenz (1999) David Cronenberg
Brick (2005) With Joseph Gordon Levitt
Liquid Sky (1982)
In The Mood For Love (2000)