5. You Were Never Really Here (2017) (IMDB rating – 6.9)
“You Were Never Really Here” is another example of a great stylish movie that is not for wide audiences. It revolves around a lonely, traumatized, and broken hitman with nothing to lose.
Joaquin Phoenix delivers an exceptional performance by fully blending into the character, while director Lynne Ramsay fully captures emotional aspects with a widely experimental and minimalistic approach. The film has some exceptional scenes and its beautiful cinematography exceeds all expectations.
It is not a surprise that this film didn’t get high ratings from audiences for its lack of action and slow pace, which is actually not a compromise at all.
4. The Vessel (2016) (IMDB rating – 5.3)
“The Vessel” is the debut full-length film from Cuban American filmmaker Julio Quintana, and was produced by Terrence Malick. The film revolves around different issues and topics of life and death, but most importantly around the meaning of faith. Many aspects of the film like the screenplay, cinematography, and cast are just astonishing, which create this beautiful and unique experience.
“The Vessel” does not explore the world from the point of view of non-believers, and it does not share point of view of believers as well, but at the same time it is a combination of both of them. Throughout the film, it is impossible to predict what will happen next, while great actor Martin Sheen delivers one of the best performances of his career.
While the film is not for everyone because of its slow pace and Malikean approach, it is one of the best experiences that a person with good taste and an open mind can get.
3. The Invitation (2015) (IMDB rating – 6.7)
“The Invitation” is a slow burning, beautiful, interesting, and confusing movie directed by Karyn Kusama. You can feel that every scene was crafted masterfully, despite being filmed mostly in one location. One of the greatest achievements of this film is that, despite its realistic characters and dialogs, the biggest emotions and feelings are delivered through eyes, facial expressions, and body gestures, most notably by the main character, played by Logan Marshall-Green.
The viewer is in a constant struggle and cannot know for sure what’s really happening till the very end, which is pretty rewarding. It is hard to understand why this film has a low rating, but one guess would be that it is slow paced for an average movie viewer.
2. Valhalla Rising (2009) (IMDB rating – 6.0)
“Valhalla Rising” is a perfect blend of violence, silence, mysticism, beautiful cinematography, and innovative editing. While there are approximately only 120 lines of dialogue in the whole film, it never gets boring.
Mads Mikkelsen, who stars as the main character, One-Eye, delivers one his best performances, while the fearless and arrogant director Nicolas Winding Refn explores unknown fields of dreamlike, spiritual, and metaphysical worlds. Influences by Tarkovsky can be felt throughout the film, but it never loses its individual identity. There are many different interpretations of the film, as it has no simple logical storyline.
“Valhalla Rising” is not for everyone, but if it is for you, well, in that case, you will never forget it.
1. The Tree of Life (2011) (IMDB rating – 6.8)
“The Tree of Life” is a modern masterpiece written and directed by one of the most divisive directors, Terrence Malick. It delivers one of the most unique experiences that a person can get from a movie. Its title tells a lot about the movie, as the film explores life, from its roots to the top.
Mexican cinematographer Emmanuel Lubezki created breathtaking scenes and huge part of them were just improvised. And the improvisation was not limited to the cinematographer, as it is clear that even the cast members had improvise a lot in order to deliver real feelings and emotions.
One particular scene is a good example of the aforementioned, where the beautiful Jessica Chastain sits in the garden with her little children, and suddenly a butterfly appears out of nowhere and lands directly on her hand. That is only one scene from the countless number of astonishing scenes.
Malick created a very personal film by reflecting the feelings for his own real family, while exploring the whole world from the first cells to the stars. He managed to create one the most beautiful images of a woman, a mother and a wife in a single character.
Some people are not patient enough to watch the whole film, some are just not wise enough to understand it, and some are just not brave enough to let it in, but if you are ready to remove your personal chains of mind and watch with a clear and open heart, then you will definitely fall in love with it.
Honorable Mentions:
Antichrist (2009)
The Zero Theorem (2013)
Trance (2013)
1408 (2007)
Crimson Peak (2015)
Funny Games (2007)
The Grey (2011)
A Perfect Day (2015)