Top Ranked Films From India

Top ranked films on the internet polls from India

Only ten in the top 1000, shame on western critics and poll respondents! That's only 1% of the top ranked films, when France has 148, or 14.8%?

[The first three films by Satyajit Ray are known as The Apu Trilogy; Ray has won 37 film awards and is considered to be India's most important director]

1. Pather Panchali [Ray, Satyajit; 1955] #32 - Drama
2. The World of Apu [Ray, Satyajit; 1959] #218 - Drama
3. Aparajito [Ray, Satyajit; 1956] #313 - Drama
4. Music Room, The [Ray, Satyajit; 1958] #438 – Drama
5. The River [Renoir, Jean; 1950, US-India] #453 – Drama-Romance
6. Charulata [Ray, Satyajit; 1964] #530 - Drama
7. Pyaasa [Dutt, Guru; 1957] #561 - Musical
8. Cloud-Capped Star, The [Ghatak, Ritwik; 1960] #594 - Drama
9. Kaagaz Ke Phool [Dutt, Guru; 1959] #846 - Musical
10. Pakeezah [Amrohi, Kamal ;1972] #885 - Musical
11. Mother India [Khan, Mehboob; 1957] #1029 - Drama
12. Days and Nights in the Forest [Ray, Satyajit; 1970] #1061 - Drama

There are far more Indian films to see than these few. The problem in the west is that even Ray’s Apu trilogy is not available here on dvd. Most of what is available are the new light Bollywood films that almost all feature 4-8 musical numbers with ready-made tv videos. Some of these are still quite enjoyable but won’t makes critics’ lists.

The Indian Film Academy Awards
Link to the International Indian Film Academy Awards

Here are the ones I’ve see that I would recommend that didn’t make the critics polls:

Salaam Bombay! – Mira Nair’s first feature film, made with funding aid from the governments of India and the UK, exposed street poverty there, and allowed Mira to open 4 orphanages with the profits, now numbering 17

Jodhaa Akbar – a historical musical costume epic romance (!), one of the most opulent and visually beautiful films ever made; based on the story of the first Muslim king of Hindustan (music by 2 Oscar winning A.R. Raman, who won for Slumdog Millionaire, see below) - just won 11 Int'l Indian Film Awards, incl. Best Picture

A Wednesday – a topical and brilliantly engrossing film about a modern terrorist in Mumbai, a computer hacker holding the police hostage

Bride and Prejudice – a light-hearted musical romance based on Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice, updated to modern India, with a few songs and the most beautiful four sisters you’ll ever see on film, including former Miss World Aishwarya Rai (my choice for most beautiful woman in the world)

Veer-Zaara – a cross-cultural romance with a light first half, and a dramatic 2nd part, the story of an Indian rescue pilot, Veer, and a visiting Muslim aristocrat from Pakistan named Zaara; winner of 8 Int’l Indian film awards

Some more you may want to check out:
Black Friday (terrorist drama), Guru (capitalist musical romance), Koi Mil Gaya and sequel Krrsh (E.T. type fun musicals for kids, based on Hindu mythology, but obviously not serious)

Here are also some great western films about India

Gandhi – the Richard Attenborough bio of the legend; winner of 8 Oscars including actor for Indian born Ben Kingsley; this was a 19 yr project for actor Attenborough

Heat and Dust – the Ruth Jvabala award-winning novel transformed by her and director James Ivory into a beautiful romance starring Julie Christie in present day India, and Great Scacchi as her aunt in colonial India, linked through the aunt’s diaries

Slumdog Millionaire – UK director Danny Boyle’s popular and inspiring drama also won 8 Oscars, incl best picture, and 75 total awards (!). It seems to have been inspired by Salaam Bombay Note: I'm compiling and will add a list of some fan recommendations from here and IMDB, which will provide about 20 more titles, so please comment with some more suggestions.

Update:
are the Indian films recommended by other film fans so far; I'm sure it's predominately Hindi films because one group was listing their favorites of those at IMDB. I'll add to this as I find or get readers favorites. (*= at the top of someone's list)

3 Deewarein* (03)
Andaz Apna Apna (94)
Azam (97)
Chhoti Si Baat (75)
Company (02)
Dil Chahta Hai* (01)
Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayene (95)
Droh Kaal (94)
Gol Maal (79)
Hey Ram (00)
Jaane Bhi Do Yaaron (07)
K3G* (2001 - 22 awards, 43 nominations! Awards page at IMDB
Kaante (02)
Khakhee (04)
Kuch Kuch Hota Hai (98)
Lagaan* (Indian Film Awards, best picture)
Lali Mucaj (not found at IMDB)
Maine Pyar Kiya* (89)
Mumbai Meri Jaan* (08)
Munnabhai M.B.B.S. (03)
Naseeb (81)
Parinda (89)
Prahaar (91)
Saathya (02)
Sarfarosh (99)
Satya (98)
Sholay (this film sucked, imo.. a guy with no arms takes on a guy with two, and says "all I need to take care of you is my feet" - right - too bad the other guy didn't think of using a gun or knife!)


Int'l Indian Film Academy Awards - Best Picture (year of release)
2008 - Jodhaa Akbar (winner of 11 awards)
2007 - Chak De! India
2006 - Rang De Basanti
2005 - Black
2004 - Veer-Zaara
2003 - Kal Ho Naa Ho
2002 - Devdas
2001 - Lagaan: Once Upon a Time in India
2000 - Kaho Naa... Pyaar Hai

Our Emmy Choices for 2009

My Emmy Choices for this year's awards, for 2009
Telecast live, Sunday, Sept. 20th Most Nominations: 30 Rock (22), Grey Gardens (17), Mad Men (16) Updated with winners after the awards..
[looks like 5 of my 11 prime time choices won, and I'm happy for Chenoweth and Gleeson, both overdue]

Here's the official Emmy winners at their site

Comedy Series: **WINNER: 30 Rock**
(1) 30 Rock
(2) Entourage
[Flight of the Conchords wasn’t as good as year one. Same with Entourage, new chapters, same story.
30 Rock has maintained its sharpness and creativity each year. Witness this Baldwin quote, "The postmaster general and I had a falling out over the Jerry Garcia stamp.. I mean, if I want to lick a hippie I'll return Joan Baez' phone calls". rock, sex, and right wing humor all in one line.. now THAT is comedy!]

Drama Series: **WINNER: Mad Men**
(1) Mad Men (2) Big Love (3) Dexter
[Damages, likewise, a better year one but still engrossing and worthy; for some reason, I find Mad Men maddingly addictive, but all three of these are worthy candidates.
You have to love Big Love, produced by Tom Hanks - you get all the viewpoints on polygamy and Mormans, who have always been 'under attack' from the repressive U.S. government. In fact, the first woman in the U.S. arrested for 'terrorism' was a Morman woman who bombed the feds, circa 1910?]

Lead Actor/Comedy: **WINNER: Alec Baldwin**
(1) Alec Baldwin, 30 Rock (2) Jemaine Clement, Flight of the Conchords
[This should be a Baldwin runaway, he’s brilliant in this, absolutely perfect timing for comedy. Jemaine doesn't act, but is kinda funny in a nerdy, perverted way]

Lead Actor/Drama: **WINNER: Bryan Cranston** - back to back
(1) Michael C. Hall, Dexter (2) Bryan Cranston, Breaking Bad (3) Jon Hamm, Mad Men
[Cranston is brilliant, a former Broadway musical star - deserved Emmys for Malcolm in the Middle, but he got his last year for this role. Hall deserves at least one for Dexter, he’s better in this than in Six Feet Under, and makes homicide enjoyable. Hamm is an Arrow shirt ad, circa 1955, but I think wife January Jones is the better actor]

Lead Actor/Miniseries of Movie: **WINNER: Brendan Gleeson** (yea!)
I haven’t seen these but I love Brendan Gleeson (Into the Storm), he’s long overdue. You may know him from In Bruges with Colin Farrell last year. Kenneth Branagh and Ian McKellen are both nominated, and both Shakespearean, either would be a good choice.

Lead Actress/Comedy: **WINNER: Toni Collette**
- this series bothers me, like when, as a man, she had a fistfight with a high school boy; they call this comedy? about a true schizoid person w multiple personalities?
(1) Sara Silverman, Sarah Silverman Program (2) Mary-Louise Parker, Weeds (3) Tina Fey, 30 Rock [Mary-Louise is overdue for Weeds, but I have a crush on Sara Silverman, who was voted 50th in Maxim’s “hottest 100 women” poll. She said, "great position - I'm not so high that I have to maintain myself, but I'm ahead of 50 others that I can say I'm 'hotter than.." She also told “The Aristocrats” joke the most erotically in that film, and deserves something for that!]

Lead Actress/Drama: **WINNER: Glenn Close** - 2 for 2, she's just too good
(1) Glenn Close, Damages (2) Elisabeth Moss, Mad Men (3) Sally Field, Brothers and Sisters
[Close is perfect, and scary, but won last year. Moss is the best actor in a large and talented cast and is very understated. Field has won enough, and Hunter is a life-long favorite and from the same town in Georgia, Athens]

Lead Actress/ Miniseries or Movie: **WINNER: Jessica Lange**
I haven’t seen these but I love the underrated Chandra Wilson, from Grey’s Anatomy. She’s up against two former Oscar winners, in Jessica Lange and Shirley Maclaine, also Sigourney Weaver and Drew Barrymore. 

Supporting Actor/Comedy: **WINNER: John Cryer**
(1) Tracy Morgan, 30 Rock (2) Kevin Dillon, Entourage
[Looks like Piven retired himself to give co-star Dillon a shot, but I get more laughs from Tracy Morgan myself, and this is comedy, not dramatic acting, Johnny Drama!]

Supporting Actor/Drama: **WINNER: Michael Emerson** - I hate this show, can't watch it
(1) John Slattery, Mad Men (2) William Hurt, Damages [both are just what the part calls for, Slattery is overdue for some award - update: Slattery later won for "guest star in a drama" - he's not a "guest", he's a regular!]

Supporting Actress/Comedy: **WINNER: Kristen Chenoweth** - they got this right, and she cried the whole time!
(1) Kristin Chenoweth, Pushing Daisies (2) Jane Krakowski, 30 Rock (3) Elizabeth Perkins
[Chenoweth is a huge talent, for both music and comedy; it’ll be a crime if she doesn’t get one award for the early cancelled but underrated fantasy. Krakowski is funny but I don’t see a lot of acting, same with Perkins & Poehler]

Supporting Actress/Drama: **WINNER: Cherry Jones** - 24 is still on? (hey, I have a "cherry jones" myself, esp. on ice cream)
(1) Chandra Wilson, Grey’s Anatomy (2) Rose Byrne, Damages
[Chandra is overdue for an Emmy for this; she has a SAG Actor. Dianne Wiest is an old fave but has 2 Oscars already]

Supporting Actress/Miniseries or Movie: **WINNER: Shohreh Aghdashloo** - a surprise winner from Iran, and she was truly gorgeous, wasn't she? one of the classiest winners..
I haven’t seen these but I love Janet McTeer, a best actress Oscar nominee as well, for Tumbleweeds.

Exceptional Merit in Non-Fiction Programming: (already awarded) **The Memory Loss Tapes, Shari Cookson and Nick Doob**, producers
[This was brilliant, pt 1 of the Alzheimer’s Project for HBO, I was glad they won. This is the equivalent of "documentary", but AMPAS 'owns' that word, tv can't use it - how silly, eh? How can people get a legal hold on nouns, like 'windows' and 'apple'?]

There are some reality show awards, but I don’t care – they could lose all those, imo, and just show more live music and comedy from around the planet, that would be the best reality. Let's just mount cameras in all the blues, jazz, and other music venues around the world. I think we should also put cameras all over Tiger Woods' house, and pay him another 100 million a year..

Top Ranked Films from the Rest of Europe

Taking the countries we didn’t list yet from the remainder of Europe, we have 32 more films mentioned, with 24 in the top 1000. Poland and Denmark had 6 each.

1. Ordet [Dreyer, Carl Theodor; 1955] #111 - Denmark
2. Ashes and Diamonds [Wajda, Andrzej; 1958] #114 - Poland
3. Jeanne Dielman, 23 Quai du Commerce, 1080 Bruxelles [Akerman, Chantal; 1975] #146 - Belgium-France
4. Dekalog [Kieslowski, Krszystof; 1988] #237 - Poland
5. Gertrud [Dreyer, Carl Theodor; 1964] #276 - Denmark
6. Landscape in the Mist [Angelopoulos, Theo; 1988] #321 - Greece-France-Italy
7. Travelling Players, The [Angelopoulos, Theo; 1975] #418 - Greece
8. Closely Watched Trains [Menzel, Jirí; 1966] #427 - Czechoslovakia
9. 4 Months, 3 Weeks and 2 Days [Mungiu, Cristian; 2007] #430 - Romania
10. Breaking the Waves [von Trier, Lars; 1996] #449 - Denmark-Sweden-France-Netherlands-Norway

11. Day of Wrath [Dreyer, Carl Theodor; 1943] #488 - Denmark
12. Sátántangó [Tarr, Bela; 1994] #547 - Hungary-Germany-Switzerland
13. Loves of a Blonde [Forman, Milos; 1965] #553 - Czechoslovakia
14. Werckmeister Harmonies [Tarr, Bela & Hranitzky, Agnes; 2000] #611 - Hung-It-Gy-France
15. Once [Carney, John; 2006] #744 - Ireland
16. Daisies [Chytilová, Vera; 1966] #756 - Czechoslovakia
17. Firemen's Ball, The [Forman, Milos; 1967] #804 - Czechoslovakia
18. Fateless [Koltai, Lajos; 2005] #824 - Hungary-GY
19. Short Film About Killing, A [Kieslowski, Krszystof; 1988] #844 - Poland
20. Festen (aka Celebration) [Vinterberg, Thomas; 1998] #884 - Denmark-Sweden

21. Round-Up, The (Szegénylegények) [Jancsó, Miklós; 1966] #889 - Hungary 22. Europa [von Trier, Lars; 1991] #929 - Denmark
23. Edge of Heaven, The [Akin, Fatih; 2007] #962 - Gy-Tky-Italy
24. Mephisto [Szabó, István; 1981] #997 - Hungary
25. Man Without a Past, The [Kaurismaki, Aki; 2002] #1104 - Finland
26. Eternity and a Day [Angelopoulos, Theo; 1998] #1125 - Greece-Fr-It-Ger
27. Kingdom (Riget) [von Trier, Lars; 1994] #1193 - Den-Fr-Gy-Sweden
28. Red and White [Jancsó, Miklós; 1967] #1218 - Hungary-USSR
29. Maskerade [Forst, Willi; 1934] #1223 - Austria
30. Short Film About Love, A [Kieslowski, Krszystof; 1988] #1239 - Poland

31. Man of Marble [Wajda, Andrzej; 1977] #1246 - Poland
32. Kanal [Wajda, Andrzej; 1957] #1268 - Poland Missing:

The Oscar-winning The Shop on Main St., a beautifully understated Czech film about the 'Aryanization' of Jewish shops, with a terrific performance by Ida Kaminska

Zelary - a terrific Czech film about an underground agent in WW2 who has to move high up in the mountains to escape; Oscar nominee for foreign film.

Kolya - a beautiful Oscar-winning story of an aging Czech bachelor who marries to help a Russian woman get citizenship, and who gets a terrific stepson named Kolya in the bargain; this would be #1 on this list for me, an all-time top 100 for sure. Written by the director's father who stars as the bachelor musician.

My favorite on this list is the Oscar-winning Mephisto, a brilliant study of an actor thanks to a remarkable performance by Klaus-Maria Brandauer (where was Oscar?), based on Klaus Mann’s (son of Thomas) novel of his brother-in-law's life, who was an actor in Berlin during the Third Reich. Some of these should come with a warning, especially Jeanne Dilman, which is 3.5 hrs long, and shows Jeanne meticulously peel potatoes, prepare meat loaf, take a bath, and other everyday banalities, which was the point, I'm sure. It all leads up to an important character event, but that could have been done in 90 minutes instead, and you wouldn't want director Akerman's head. Bela Tarr’s Werckmeister Harmonies has some unforgettable scenes, with a giant whale and an angry mob with torches, yet its entire meaning must ultimately be provided by the viewer.

Top Ranked Films from Brazil and Mexico

20 total (10 each), with 14 in the top 1000 (7 each). Ironic, that most Mexican films were directed by Spaniard Luis Buñuel, even one by a Russian, Sergei Eisenstein. [I'm using the IMDB country designations, which are often joint collaberations, just to get the financing].

These two countries had the most films listed in the the western hemisphere, after the U.S. and Canada.

Brazil
1. City of God [Meirelles, Fernando and Lund, Katia; 2002] #192 - Brazil-Germany-France [photo top] - Lund was a photojournalist with experience working in the slums that Fernando had assist him on this film, as this is based on the story of a young photographer who took pictures of the violence in this slum city.

2. Children of Men [Meirelles, Fernando; 2006] #458 - Brazil
3. Black God, White Devil [Rocha, Glauber; 1964] #528 - Brazil
4. Terra em Transe [Rocha, Glauber; 1967] #617 - Brazil
5. Antonio das Mortes [Rocha, Glauber; 1969] #668 - Brazil
6. Barren Lives [Dos Santos, Nelson Pereira; 1963] #752 - Brazil
7. Limite [Peixoto, Mario; 1931] #897 - Brazil
8. Black Orpheus [Camus, Marcel; 1959] #1124 - Brazil-France-Italy
9. Pixote [Babenco, Hector; 1981] #1237 - Brazil
10. Central Station [Salles, Walter; 1998] #1238 - Brazil

I'm a big fan of both Meirelles, City of God is a masterpiece, and Salles, whose Motorcycle Diaries is also excellent, but is listed as U.S., not Brazil, though Salles is from Rio de Janiero.

I've yet to see the Rocha films, they are currently unavailable at Netflix.

Black Orpheus is also a classic, a modernized myth, and should be ranked much higher, like the top 200. It's a rare combination of music and film that become so symbiotic they can't be separated.

Mexico
1. Pan's Labyrinth [del Toro, Guillermo; 2006] #154 - Mexico
2. Los Olvidados [Buñuel, Luis; 1950] #372 - Mexico
3. Exterminating Angel, The [Buñuel, Luis; 1962] #403 - Mexico
4. Y Tu Mamá También [Cuarón, Alfonso; 2001] #470 - Mexico
5. Amores perros [Inarritu, Alejandro Gonzalez; 2000] #489 - Mexico
6. El [Buñuel, Luis; 1953] #520 - Mexico
7. Que viva - Mexico! [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1932] #663 - Mexico-US
8. Nazarín [Buñuel, Luis; 1959] #1078 - Mexico
 9. Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz, The [Buñuel, Luis; 1955] #1172 - Mexico
10. Simon of the Desert [Buñuel, Luis; 1965] #1214 - Mexico

I'm not a big fan of Pan's, though it did have some interesting special effects (in a kind of 50's way); but I found it mostly sensationalism without a lot of substance behind the imagery, and I can do without watching a man sew his torn up face together in a mirror.

Buñuel, a surrealist who works without a script (and sometimes with Salvador Dali), does a lot of improvising, and is an acquired taste - many of his films will test your patience, which Exterminating Angel did for me.

Viridiana (Spanish, the #1 ranked film solely from Spain) was much more interesting.

Cuaron (Y Tu Mamá También) is one of the best young directors, and all his films are worth seeing.

Missing: Inarritu's Babel, which I found much more artistic and riveting than Amores Perros, which has some very disturbing dog scenes.

Top Ranked Films from Australia, Canada, and New Zealand

The top ranked films on the net from Australia (9), New Zealand (4), and Canada (13) from our survey of internet film polls. Out of the 26 mentioned, 23 made the top 1000, 11 from Canada.

Australia
1. Piano, The [Campion, Jane; 1993] #81 - Australia
2. Shine [Hicks, Scott; 1996] #574 - Australia
3. Mad Max 2, aka Road Warrior [Miller, George; 1981] #590 - Australia
4. Walkabout [Roeg, Nicolas; 1971] #672 - Australia
5. Picnic at Hanging Rock [Weir, Peter; 1975] #730 – Australia
6. An Angel at My Table, An [Campion, Jane; 1990] #737 - New Zealand-Aust-UK
7. Forbidden Lie$ [Broinowski, Anna; 2007] #1028 - Australia
8. Year of Living Dangerously, The [Weir, Peter; 1982] #1136 - Australia
9. Moulin Rouge! [Luhrmann, Baz; 2001] #1184 - Australia-US
 [see bottom of this post for a list of Australian Film Institute awards for best picture]

Missing (they really shafted Australia in the polls):
Babe (Chris Noonan, 1995) [This won 17 international awards, nominated for Best Picture, how can it not make any film polls? Produced by Road Warrior director George Miller]
My Brilliant Career (Gillian Armstrong, 1979) - energetic romantic adventure
Breaker Morant (Bruce Beresford, 1980) - terrific war story based on fact
The Proposition (John Hillcoat, 2005) – a gutsy western
The Last Wave (Peter Weir, 1977) - aboriginal folk tale of the apocalypse
Flirting (John Duigan, 1980) - insightful interracial love story, Nicole Kidman co-stars
The Man From Snowy River (George Miller, 1982) – not the same George Miller as above (this one's from Scotland), another Aussie western
Australia (Baz Luhrmann, 2008) - enjoyable epic western romance, with some war thrown in as well

My own favorite Aussie films are: Babe, Walkabout, The Road Warrior (a classic in mayhem), My Brilliant Career, Picnic at Hanging Rock, Flirting, The Piano, The Proposition, Shine, The Man From Snowy River
Update: add Animal Kingdom (2010)

New Zealand
1. Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring [Jackson, Peter; 2001] #84 - US-New Zealand
2. Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King [Jackson, Peter; 2003] #97 - US-New Zealand
3. Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers [Jackson, Peter; 2002] #144 - US-New Zealand
4. An Angel at My Table [Campion, Jane; 1990] #737 - New Zealand

Canada
1. Wavelength [Snow, Michael; 1967] #263 - Canada
2. Sweet Hereafter, The [Egoyan, Atom; 1997] #319 - Canada
3. Dead Ringers [Cronenberg, David; 1988] #355 - Canada
4. Atlantic City [Malle, Louis; 1980] #491 - Canada-France
5. Fast Runner, The [Kunuk, Zacharias; 2001] #620 - Canada
6. Videodrome [Cronenberg, David; 1983] #705 - Canada
7. Hart of London, The [Chambers, Jack; 1970] #711 - Canada
8. Région centrale, La [Snow, Michael; 1971] #725 - Canada*
9. Capote [Miller, Bennett; 2005] #760 - Canada-US
10. Away from Her [Polley, Sarah; 2006] #774 - Canada
11. Crash [Cronenberg, David; 1996] #984 - Canada
12. My Winnipeg [Maddin, Guy; 2007] #1096 - Canada
13. Barbarian Invasions, The [Arcand, Denys; 2003] #1207 - Canada*

* = in French, with subtitles

I think the last of these, foreign language Oscar® winner Barbarian Invasions, about a man dying of cancer with his family and friends around to send him off, is my favorite Canadian film (in French, with subtitles).
However, The Sweet Hereafter (in English) is a minor masterpiece, imo, which also deals with death, as lawyer Ian Holm shows up in a small Canadian town to try to get them to seek justice after a fatal school bus accident.
Atlantic City, with Burt Lancaster and Susan Sarandon, is Louis Malle's best to me, though it really feels like US film, another crime/noir story.
Apparently, Wavelength is an experimental film designed to get people to leave the theater with noise, I don't know how it out-polled the more serious films.

Australian Film Institute Awards for Best Picture [only films produced in Australia]
2008 - The Black Balloon
2007 - Romulus, My Father
2006 - Ten Canoes
2005 - Look Both Ways
2004 - Somersault
2003 - Japanese Story
2002 - Rabbit-Proof Fence
2001 - Lantana
2000 - Looking for Alibrandi
1999 - Two Hands
1998 - The Interview
1997 - Kiss or Kill
1996 - Shine
1995 - Angel Baby
1994 - Muriel's Wedding
1993 - The Piano
1992 - Strictly Ballroom
1991 - Proof
1990 - Flirting
1989 - Evil Angels (aka. A Cry in the Dark)
1988 - The Navigator: A Medieval Odyssey
1987 - The Year My Voice Broke
1986 - Malcolm
1985 - Bliss
1984 - Annie's Coming Out
1983 - Careful, He Might Hear You
1982 - Lonely Hearts
1981 - Gallipoli
1980 - Breaker Morant
1979 - My Brilliant Career
1978 - Newsfront
1977 - Storm Boy
1976 - The Devil's Playground
1974/5 - Sunday Too Far Away
1973 - Libido: The Child
1973 - 27A
1972 - Stork
1971 - Homesdale
1970 - Three To Go: Michael
1969 - Jack And Jill: A Postscript
1968 - The Change at Groote / The Talgai Skull
1967 - Cardin in Australia
1966 - Concerto for Orchestra
1965 - The Legend of Damien Parer / Stronger Since The War
1964 - The Dancing Class / I The Aboriginal
1963 - The Land That Waited
1962 - Bypass to Life / Night Freighter
1961 - Not awarded this year
1960 - Three in a Million
1959 - Edge of The Deep / The Power Makers
1958 - Conquest of The Rivers / Hard to Windward

Top Ranked Films from Russia-USSR

© William L. Sinclair

The top ranked films on our internet survey from Russia or the USSR; 34 total mentioned, with 23 in the top 1000. The top three are ironically silent films; the #1 ranked Man With a Movie Camera still looks modern today, featuring thousands of edits and creative camerawork to show one day in the Soviet Union.

1. Man With a Movie Camera [Vertov, Dziga; 1929] #78
2. Battleship Potemkin [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1925] #100
3. October [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1927] #222
4. Earth [Dovzhenko, Alexander; 1930] #249
5. Solaris [Tarkovsky, Andrei; 1972] #267
6. Andrei Rublev [Tarkovsky, Andrei; 1966] #282
7. Strike [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1924] #328
8. Ivan the Terrible, Part One [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1944] #357
9. Alexander Nevsky [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1938] #374 [photo rt - this features the ice battle on a frozen lake]
10. Mirror, The [Tarkovsky, Andrei; 1976] #382

11. Stalker [Tarkovsky, Andrei; 1979] #407
12. Ivan the Terrible, Part Two [Eisenstein, Sergei; 1946] #416
13. Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors [Parajanov, Sergei; 1964] #508
14. Come and See [Klimov, Elem; 1985] #559
15. Colour of Pomegranate, The [Parajanov, Sergei; 1968] #578
16. I Am Cuba [Kalatozishvili, Mikheil; 1964] #637
17. Ivan's Childhood [Tarkovsky, Andrei; 1962] #743
18. Storm Over Asia [Pudovkin, Vsevolod; 1928] #753
19. Tulpan [Dvortsevoy, Sergei; 2008] #758
20. Outskirts (Okraina) [Barnet, Boris; 1933] #801

21. Mother (Mat) [Pudovkin, Vsevolod; 1926] #855
22. Cranes Are Flying, The [Kalatozishvili, Mikheil; 1957] #874
23. Russian Ark [Sokurov, Aleksandr; 2002] #898
24. End of St. Petersburg, The [Pudovkin, Vsevolod; 1927] #1016
25. Alexandra [Sokurov, Aleksandr; 2007] #1042
26. Happiness [Medvedkin, Aleksandr; 1934] #1056
27. War and Peace [Bondarchuk, Sergei; 1967] #1077
28. Childhood of Maxim Gorky, The [Donskoi, Mark; 1938] #1120
29. By the Bluest of Seas [Barnet, Boris; 1936] #1135
30. Burnt by the Sun [Mikhalkov, Nikita; 1994] #1146

31. Slave of Love, A [Mikhalkov, Nikita; 1976] #1165
32. My Apprenticeship (Gorky Trilogy II) [Donskoi, Mark; 1939] #1173
33. My Friend Ivan Lapshin [Gherman, Alexei; 1984] #1199
34. Arsenal [Dovzhenko, Alexander; 1928] #1202

We lumped Russia and the USSR together.
It's interesting that Ivan the Terrible, in two parts, was listed as one from Russia, one from the USSR.

Many of these are terrific: all the Eisensteins, Man With the Movie Camera (deserves #1), Tarkovsky's Andrei Rublev, Ivan's Childhood, and The Mirror, the holocaust story Come and See, and the major league epic War and Peace, which is over 6 hrs, with 250,000 extras.

 

Missing: Gregori Chukrai's Ballad of a Soldier (1959), first Russian film distributed in the U.S., a beautiful b&w anti-war tale of a soldier's train journey home on a special furlough for heroism.