285. Suk suk (2019)

 

Country: Hong Kong

Directed by Ray Yeung

Simple and real, Suk Suk is a tender film about the lives of closeted gay men at their 60's and 70's who are forced to keep hiding their true sexual identity and to content themselves with just fractions of happiness and intimacy in a society that not yet fully accepts anything different from the traditional gender roles. Without much drama, without to be very emotional, without a cheesy happy end, Ray Yeung presents beautifully a sober reality that is relevant not only in Hong Kong but pretty much everywhere on the planet involving millions of oppressed people

You can watch the full movie here: https://youtu.be/R420mU4aoDc

284. Downpour (1972)

 

Country: Iran

Directed by Bahram Beyzai

A totally unknown and unappreciated masterpiece of Iranian cinema, "Downpour" begins as a rather unimpressing and goofy typical story of the young idealistic teacher who goes to teach in a small city, an environment that it's hostile at first but then, you guess, it gonna embrace him etc. However, as the film progresses, you realize that it's much more than that: it's an almost devastating depiction of various social problems of the era, a bitter and emotional comment about the woman's position in that given society, an elegy about murdered dreams, a trip back and forth from hope to the total darkness. All of those though not as a simplistic social protest in your face but incorporated as hints to the plot, with a way that they hit the hardest, infused with poetical, surreal notes. A film that, seriously, they should teach in every film school

283. Bad boys (1961)

 

Country: Japan

Directed by Susumu Hani

Bad boys, although it didn't reach its full potential as a film (same exactly goes to Susumu Hani as director, talking about his whole career) is among the very few movies that they really gave a breath of fresh air to a tired at the time Japanese cinema, one of the early works of the New Wave that shook the traditional style and themes of japanese films paving the way for the creative explosion of 60's and 70's

282. By the time it gets dark (2016)

Country: Thailand

Directed by Anucha Suwichakornpong

Watching the film you often feel not satisfied for good reasons. You even think that it's a failure at many levels and there are many scenes that make you really disappointed. However the exact next moment something rather magical happens for a few seconds or minutes then it fades and then it happens again and again: it's always this very special touch of Anucha Suwichakornpong, a crack in the memory here, a crack in reality there, these unpredictable cryptic images that shutter the storyline, that make "By the time it gets dark" a film that is definitely worth watching despite its weaknesses

You can watch the full movie here:            

https://youtu.be/mH__Yw4uIdA

281. Shoplifters (2018)

Country: Japan

Directed by Hirokazu Koreeda

No doubt: Hirokazu Koreeda is one of my most favorite contemporary directors out there. I actually love almost every movie he ever made and "Shoplifters" is not an exception. His ability to present characters so real that you will not get surprised if you meet them next day on the street is really unique. But even more unique is the way that he touches, every time, the most sensitive part of your soul, your feelings, your memories, your traumas, your joys, talking somehow about your life too, restoring at the same time your faith to yourself and to humanity no matter how hard the world is. "What's love? What's family?" He asks in "Shoplifters" and when we feel deeply the answer we get emotional. Not an extremely interesting plot, not that much drama, nothing fancy, just superb cinematography that keep us captivated.