Looking back over 2015 has reminded me of a number of things I appreciated this year. The arrival of both a half decent cinema within driving distance and a car to drive to it with has improved my life to no end (although as is obvious from the notable absences from my year end list I still have a long way to go when it comes to actually seeing new releases). I learned how to make multiple rental lists on Lovefilm so finding myself stuck with two random movies from an unruly list of more than 1000 is a thing of the past. The London Film Festival was a blast as always, thanks to new and old faces. And I've seen as much rep as is financially feasible for a farm boy in the English countryside. So, yeah, a very good year, all told.
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New Releases (2015 premieres, missed a few big ones)
- Blackhat (Michael Mann)
- Mountains May Depart (Jia Zhangke)
- Journey To The Shore (Kiyoshi Kurosawa)
- Cemetery of Splendour (Apichatpong Weerasethakul)
- Carol (Todd Haynes)
- In Jackson Heights (Frederick Wiseman)
- Mistress America (Noah Baumbach)
- Mia Madre (Nanni Moretti)
- Happy Hour (Ryusuke Hamaguchi)
- Right Now, Wrong Then (Hong Sang-soo)
- Kaili Blues (Bi Gan)
- Bridge of Spies (Steven Spielberg)
- The Assassin (Hou Hsiao-hsien)
- James White (Josh Mond)
- Murmur of the Hearts (Sylvia Chang)
- Neon Bull (Gabriel Mascaro)
- Ricki and the Flash (Jonathan Demme)
- Love & Peace (Sion Sono)
- The Lobster (Yorgos Lanthimos)
- Chevalier (Athina Rachel Tsangari)
- One Floor Below (Radu Muntean)
- The Intern (Nancy Meyers)
- The Treasure (Corneliu Porumboiu)
- Office 3D (Johnnie To)
- Schneider vs. Bax (Alex van Warmerdam)
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Repertory/Exhibitions (ordered by date seen, formats as listed at screening)
Albert Serra: Divine Visionaries and Holy Fools - Tate Modern
- Story of my Death (2013) - 35mm
- Honour of the Knights (2005) - 35mm
- The Lord Worked Wonders in Me (2011) - Video
Abderrahmane Sissako: Poetry, Politics, and the New African Cinema - BFI Southbank
- Life on Earth (1998) - Video
- Waiting For Happiness (2002) - 35mm
- Timbuktu (2014) - DCP (on general release but screened as part of the season)
Also Like Life: The Films of Hou Hsiao-hsien - BFI Southbank
- A Summer at Grandpa's (1984) - 35mm
- Taipei Story (Edward Yang, 1985) - 35mm
- The Green, Green Grass of Home (1983) - 35mm
- The Boys From Fengkuei (1983) - 35mm
- Daughter of the Nile (1987) - 35mm
- Good Men, Good Women (1995) - 35mm
- Goodbye South, Goodbye (1996) - 35mm
- The Puppetmaster (1993) - 35mm
- Flowers of Shanghai (1998) - 35mm
- Millennium Mambo (2001) - 35mm
- Three Times (2005) - 35mm
Chantal Akerman: NOW - Ambika P3
- NOW (2015)
- In The Mirror (1971/2007)
- Maniac Summer (2009)
- Maniac Shadows (2013)
- A Voice in the Desert (2002)
- D'Est: au bord de la fiction (1995)
- Tombeé de nuit sur Shanghai (2007)
Others
- Once Upon a Time in America (Director's Cut) (Sergio Leone, 1984) - DCP
- In Vanda's Room (Pedro Costa, 2000) - Video
- The Crucified Lovers (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954) - 35mm
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Best First Time Viewings (one per director, mostly seen at home)
- Bitter Victory (Nicholas Ray, 1957)
- How Green Was My Valley (John Ford, 1941)
- Prince of Darkness (John Carpenter, 1987)
- The Crucified Lovers (Kenji Mizoguchi, 1954)
- The Bridges of Madison County (Clint Eastwood, 1995)
- Flowers of Shanghai (Hou Hsiao-hsien, 1998)
- Carlito's Way (Brian De Palma, 1993)
- The Green Ray (Eric Rohmer, 1986)
- Shanghai Express (Josef von Sternberg, 1932)
- The Story of Marie and Julien (Jacques Rivette, 2003)
- Cure (Kiyoshi Kurosawa, 1997)
- Journey To Italy (Roberto Rossellini, 1954)
- An Autumn Afternoon (Yasujiro Ozu, 1962)
- The Unfaithful Wife (Claude Chabrol, 1969)
- The Hole (Tsai Ming-liang, 1998)
- L'intrus (Claire Denis, 2004)
- Kikujiro (Takeshi Kitano, 1999)
- Peggy Sue Got Married (Francis Ford Coppola, 1986)
- Only Yesterday (Isao Takahata, 1991)
- The Strange Case of Angelica (Manoel de Oliveira, 2010)