There are some days, when you spend the whole day at home, having no desire whatsoever to get out. Not because you have no friends, or you don’t feel good, or you are depressed, or you are a loser, but just because the weather outside is plain and gray and you woke up late in the morning. Plus, it’s just one of those days when you are too lazy to do anything and want to spend the whole day with yourself. I strongly believe in spending some alone time with yourself. It’s kind of like a therapy.
To me, this sort of therapy mostly involves watching films. But not just action films, or comedy films, or romcoms, or dramas, or blockbusters. No no no. The films I choose for such days are strictly about human nature and overcoming yourself and being strong or being afraid or being stuck. Some of them are full of action, but not the type where the main character runs around town and blows things up. Some of them are documentaries and some of them are slow-paced independent films.
These films are strongly recommended for watching on your own, so that you can sit back after watching the film and think about what you have just seen. Plus, in case you are stuck in a young adult crisis or just existential crisis and find int hard to realize your dreams, these are for especially you.
1. Whiplash (2014)
PHOTOGRAPH BY DANIEL MCFADDEN / SONY PICTURES CLASSICS / EVERETT
I didn’t know about this film until after the Oscars. When I saw that it was in the list of nominees after the awards and I hate totally missed it, I googled it instantly and what I read made it obvious that Whiplash shouldn’t be missed. A film about a JAZZ drummer (a JAZZ! drummer) who wants to be the best drummer in the world and does everything he can to achieve that, he is even ready to be embarrass by his extremely strict and ruthless teacher in front of everyone to reach his goal. If you are an avid jazz lover, I can’t say you will be crazy about the music in the film, but the compositions and the drums are truly good and fit perfectly into each and every scene. This film is good for everyone, even if you hate jazz, if you hate music. I can’t descrive in words just how much it has affected me (though the post before this one definitely shows it well). The reason you should watch this film home alone and than think about it for yourself, is because it shows you just how much it takes to reach your goal and why and how you should never give up and how you should know what you stand for so that you don’t go crazy after the whole world denies your wishes. Trust me, after thinking about the film the whole day and the whole night, you WILL want to get out of the house and discuss it very deeply with your friends and do everything you have ever wanted to do. It is truly a very inspirational film and one of the few best films I have seen in the last few years that have made me realize so many things.
2. Kicking and Screaming (1995)
Noah Baumbach’s debut masterpiece, which will help you realize Baumbach’s goal – To show humans just the way they are, without any alternations. Watching this film, I felt my heart slowly melt into a warm mess from all the sweetness, witty dialogue, friendly jokes. The basic idea of the film is to show how college graduates feel stuck on the line between being young and being an adult, when just hanging out with friends in bars isn’t enough to be satisfied, but also having a job and having no time is also not a very pleasurable idea. In the film, we have 4 friends, all guys, all played by amazing actors who are unfortunately not well known, especially my new blue-eyed love Josh Hamilton (the reason I watched the film in the first place). These four friends all have their problems, which they don’t really try to overcome, but they feel uncomfortable non the less. They frequent one bar where we hear them talk the most realistic, witty and comic dialogues, they play dumb trivia games and talk all the same about philosophical stuff that in the end they know makes no sense. They are nihilistic and bored. What I like the most about the film is that there is no big epiphany in the end, there are no cheesy love songs, no cheese break-ups or make-ups, and we don’t see the main character having a sudden realization in the end and walking into the street with a happy face and some inspirational music in the backgrounds and then the titles roll. The ending is very simple, and quite abrupt, but trust me, it leaves you with a very warm smile. So in case you are a 20-21 year old student, on the verge of ending University and stepping into the real life and feeling scared and stuck, definitely watch this film.
3. The Virgin Suicides (1999)
Those who have seen this film will be surprised as to why this sad tragic story should be on the list. But I do have a good explanation for this! It sure is perfect for hot, dull summer days. The film is full of the intolerance with the every day life, the effect of peers on teenagers and the effect of parents and strictness. The reason it’s good to watch alone on a dull summer evening, is the style in which it is made: pastel colors, frequent scenes filmed in dusk or dawn, teenage girl bedrooms filled with girly, unneeded stuff. Sofia Coppola can tell any store with amazing style and beauty, even a tragic one like this one. But you know, tragic things are sometimes romantic things. so if you are feeling romantic and bored in summer, it’s a must-watch with amazing visuals and soundtrack that might leave you feeling a bit sour, but it’s okay. You will realize that your life shouldn’t be wasted the same way the lives of the Lisbon sisters were. After watching this film, treat yourself with something tasty, or smoke a cigarette, and sit outside in the chilly weather for a while. Plus, you will want to watch this film every summer.
4. The Punk Singer (2013)
Okay, I am obsessed with Kathleen Hanna – THE punk rock feminist singer who began her work in the 90s and hasn’t stopped yet. The woman behind 90s feminism, zines, Bikini Kill, Le Tigre, Julie Ruin, Adam Horovitz’s wife! This documentary film is here not only because I am obsessed, but also because it makes you think about what you want out of life and what you stand for, what your principals, morals and ideals are. Kathleen never had a problem with this, she always did what she was told she couldn’t do, she wasn’t afraid of anybody, she wasn’t afraid fo having a relationship with a cheeky Beastie Boy who sang the most misogynistic songs ever in the 80s. The only thing that stopped her only for a while was the illness she found very hard to overcome, but fights it every day and doesn’t give up on feminism and singing. Also, the film just goes on to show you that you shouldn’t be judgemental, because if the most feminist ever woman married the most sexist man ever, the anything is possible. Well, Adam wasn’t singing sexist shit anymore when they met, but he used to anyway. And the way these two people have effected each other and helped each other is very inspirational. The Punk Singer is also filmed very well and the story is told well and the end leaves you very happy and makes you want to do everything you have ever wanted to do.
5. Gummo (1997)
Harmony Korine’s yet another masterpiece after Kids. Gummo is one of the films that doesn’t require you to use your brain and think about what each and every character has said, because Gummo is about nothing, actually. We see a small American town in ruins after a storm, and we see young people trying to live amongst the collapsed buildings and deteriorated culture of the town. The youngsters spend the time doing nothing, being violent, being sexy, drinking and smoking, partying and fighting, eating and bathing. They are bored and they don’t know how to get out of the boredom. It’s one of these things you know, when some dull emotion takes over and you feel so comfortable with it you don’t try to change the every day dull life you have because that means you have to become uncomfortable and that’s a challenge. Most of the dialogues and scenes appear as unscripted, and maybe they are, and none of the actors are actual professionals, which gives the film the natural and organic film, like Kicking and Screaming with a bit of a creepy, perverted and at moments disgusting twist. So watch it if you are bored and feel like nothing, because after watching Gummo, everything will seem extremely entertaining. So Gummo is basically about this – how humans adapt to their surroundings unlike animals and learn to entertain themselves.
So this is it for now, because I am extremely sleepy and have lessons tomorrow. There are more to come, and I do know which films to add. I wish I wasn’t so sleepy and it wasn’t so late, but my brain can’t function and I can’t continue so this is a Good Night Everyone!
Artistic Notions 