To commemorate their 75th anniversary, the British Film Institute has launched a nice little project called “Visions for the Future.” They’ve selected 75 figures from the world of film — actors, filmmakers, critics and other industry pros — and invited them to name one film they would choose to share with future generations, as well as asking for their thoughts on the future of the medium.
The results — mainly in the form of video interviews — are really rather insightful. Obvious (albeit worthy) choices abound, from “The Wizard of Oz” to “The Third Man” to “Tokyo Story.”
But there are a number of interesting left turns. As if there weren’t enough reasons to like her already, Cate Blanchett proves her taste and intelligence by picking Andrei Tarkovsky’s mind-blowing “Stalker,” though she admits it took her three days to get through it. (Her choice also gives me a nice excuse to post one of the most beautiful posters of all time as an illustration.)
My favourite choice, however, is that of the brilliant playwright and screenwriter Patrick Marber — Powell and Pressburger’s “The Red Shoes,” a twisted, romantic and visually breathtaking fairytale that he economically describes as being “about wanting things too much and not getting them.”