Although it is entirely by accident, 1961 is exceptionally well represented among these last ten films I’ve watched. Hailed as arguably the greatest Korean film ever made, Aimless Bullet is a stylishly shot drama that remarkably recalls the stripped down aesthetics and emotional intensity of Italian neorealism, then cranks its despairing bleakness up even farther. Criterion release Blast of Silence is a yuletide city symphony posing as a low-rent, noirish hit job dressed up in some exceptionally cynical, hardboiled narration, and it’s cheaply wonderful. Quentin Lawrence’s Hammer Films heist flick sees Peter Cushing play a bank manager who is visited by one bank-robber whose meticulously planned heist inspires a Scrooge-like challenge to Cushing’s miserly, tight-assed personality. Certainly the latter two films are perfect for anyone interested in an alternative Christmas canon for this season’s screenings.
- The Day of the Beast (Álex de la Iglesia, 1995)
- Scrooged (Richard Donner, 1988)
- The Muppet Christmas Carol (Brian Henson, 1992)
- It’s a Very Merry Muppet Christmas (Kirk R. Thatcher, 2002)
- Blast of Silence (Allen Baron, 1961)
- My Crasy Life (Jean-Pierre Gorin, 1992)
- Cash on Demand (Quentin Lawrence, 1961)
- National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation (Jeremiah S. Chechik, 1989)
- Leonor Will Never Die (Martika Ramirez Escobar, 2022)
- Aimless Bullet (Yu Hyun-mok, 1961)
Also, in case you weren’t already aware and reading this list hasn’t tipped you off, the holiday season is upon us. This December seems to putting some unforeseen emphasis on Jim Henson and the Muppets and while you can’t go wrong with The Muppet Christmas Carol, MMC! has to step outside these last ten screenings to recommend Eric Till and Peter Harris’ A Muppet Family Christmas (1987), an ABC TV special which boasts appearances by characters from the Muppets, Sesame Street, Fraggle Rock, and even the Muppet Babies!
Make Mine Criterion! 