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Ok for the record and all the people who think my heart is encrusted with icicles here is:
The Official List of Films that Made Kostya Depressed
Grave of the Fireflies - Isao Takahata. Props out to rlblonde86 for submitting this one. This is one that is both shattering and affirming, shattering because of its tender, subdued depiction of the everyday joys of human relations and the ultimate tragedy written into those same relations, affirming because it is not a 'war film' that falls for cheap sermonising, political agendas or moral terrorism. It could just as easily have been an earthquake, flood or famine that precipitated the events of 'Grave of the Fireflies', the only thing that makes war a more poignant backdrop is that it is of human making. I can't begin to say how great, and sad this film is, and I'm not ashamed to say it makes me cry every time I watch it, which is a lot.
Once Were Warriors - Lee Tamahori. A New Zealand production which follows the life and times of a Maori family headed by the sociopathic, violent misogynist Jake played with frightening intensity by Temura Morrison (last seen miscast as Jango Fett.) Though it has a ghost of a happy ending, at its heart, 'Once Were Warriors' is about a man for whom there is to be no redemption, and those around him condemned to suffer and die for it. A testament to the people who live and die in the horrors of domestic abuse, poverty and hopelessness who inhabit the peripheral vision of Western societies.
Threads - The British version of the outcome of a nuclear apocalypse. It stays true to its premise, and presents us with a shameless and naked scenario of immense suffering devoid of hope. In viewing it I was deeply disturbed by the images it presented, but in the days that followed, the desolation and honesty of the ending haunted me much more.
Tokyo Story - Yasujiro Ozu. I can't quite explain the gentle sense of sadness with which Ozu observes the mundane routine of life.
Ran - Akira Kurosawa. Kurosawa gives us a story about human beings that is unafraid to suggest that what dominates our lives is chaos (Ran is Japanese for chaos) destruction, violence and horror. This is a story where the kind and gentle people are abused and helpless, where the ruthless, deceitful and violent are rewarded. What is depressing is that Kurosawa makes me believe it.
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