Mercurius
Legend
I. PREAMBLE: Some Ruminations on Favorite vs. Best, and the Cream (huh?)
In a recent thread, Morrus made a side comment about differentiating "best" and "favorite" when it comes to film. I have gone back and forth about this, and actually veer more towards Morrus' side. On one hand, I get the view that when talking about films, a lot of it is subjective, and one's personal favorite is, by a certain definition, the "best" for oneself.On the other hand, I do think it is a meaningful distinction, as a film can be a good cinematic quality and be a drag to watch, or can be quite entertaining but of limited cinematic chops.
let's contrast some films. In one corner, we films of high regard for their cinematic quality like There Will Be Blood and No Country For Old Men. Both are excellent films, very well made and acted. Daniel Day-Lewis' performance in the former is frequently mentioned as among the best acting roles in cinematic history, and Javier Bardem in the latter as one of the best villains. But...I watched both once and don't see myself re-watching either, unless it is years from now when my memory has faded. I did like both, and appreciated their cinematic quality, but they aren't "favorites." A more extreme example is Requiem for a Dream, which was also very well made and acted, but exceedingly unpleasant to watch. Similarly with Mystic River.
(I think part of the problem with such films is that they tend to be focused on the worst pathos of humanity, perhaps increasingly so over the decades, as if quality must equal extreme pathos. Contrast that with Sinners which, while certainly filled with pathos, had an underlying redemptive quality, and presented elements of beauty that are lacking in Requiem or, for the most part, only used in terms of the cinematic craft in No Country, et al)
On the other side of things are "comfort/entertainment films" - films you watch when you're feeling down, or just want something pleasant playing in the background while you type on your favorite internet haunt. They are films you tend to re-watch, maybe several times. "I'm in the mood for X." These vary by the individual, but may or may not be of "cinematic quality." For me these are often well-made romantic comedies, such as Notting Hill or You've Got Mail, or some of the Judd Apatow films. Or to take some example of films that I enjoy re-watching every few years because they scratch a certain itch (in this case, mega-disaster), but I don't see as being all that well made, 2012 or Deep Impact (not quite "comfort" films, but certainly entertaining).
And then we have a third category, which I will call the "cream of the crop:" Those films that are both well-made and personally enjoyable to watch. They might be more quality or comfort focused, but have just enough of the other But this is subjective. We can argue over the "best," but we can't argue over comfort films, or even "personal bests" that combine comfort and quality.
I think cream of the crop could include those films that are either of such transcendent quality that any notion of "entertainment" is irrelevant, or some entertaining that the entertainment value equates with quality (doing what it intends to do, but very very well). For the latter, I think Pulp Fiction--which was self-consciously meant to be entertaining, with no subtext or deeper meaning; for the former, I think Terrance Malick at his very best, especially The Thin Red Line or Tree of Life.
So we have:
Best: Films of the highest cinematic quality, in terms of cinematography, scripting, acting, etc.
Favorite: Comfort films, personal favorites, etc. Generally more variable in quality.
Cream (of the Crop): Films that combine both of the two factors above, for oneself.
II. THIS THREAD - What It Is (Supposed to Be) About
My first notion is to ask for:
Five TV Series That are Cream of the Crop (for you)
But you can include as many as you want, and/or address other categories:
Films that are Cream of the Crop
Films or Series of X Genre that are Cream of the Crop
THE ONE RULE I have is to focus on "cream of the crop" - films or series that you find both of at least very good cinematic quality AND are among your personal favorites, for simple enjoyment and/or comfort and/or depth/meaning. Or to put it simply: Films/Series that are BOTH very well-made AND very entertaining.
Feel free to include films that you see among the Best or Favorites, but mostly for contrast (like I did above).
III. DO IT!
In a recent thread, Morrus made a side comment about differentiating "best" and "favorite" when it comes to film. I have gone back and forth about this, and actually veer more towards Morrus' side. On one hand, I get the view that when talking about films, a lot of it is subjective, and one's personal favorite is, by a certain definition, the "best" for oneself.On the other hand, I do think it is a meaningful distinction, as a film can be a good cinematic quality and be a drag to watch, or can be quite entertaining but of limited cinematic chops.
let's contrast some films. In one corner, we films of high regard for their cinematic quality like There Will Be Blood and No Country For Old Men. Both are excellent films, very well made and acted. Daniel Day-Lewis' performance in the former is frequently mentioned as among the best acting roles in cinematic history, and Javier Bardem in the latter as one of the best villains. But...I watched both once and don't see myself re-watching either, unless it is years from now when my memory has faded. I did like both, and appreciated their cinematic quality, but they aren't "favorites." A more extreme example is Requiem for a Dream, which was also very well made and acted, but exceedingly unpleasant to watch. Similarly with Mystic River.
(I think part of the problem with such films is that they tend to be focused on the worst pathos of humanity, perhaps increasingly so over the decades, as if quality must equal extreme pathos. Contrast that with Sinners which, while certainly filled with pathos, had an underlying redemptive quality, and presented elements of beauty that are lacking in Requiem or, for the most part, only used in terms of the cinematic craft in No Country, et al)
On the other side of things are "comfort/entertainment films" - films you watch when you're feeling down, or just want something pleasant playing in the background while you type on your favorite internet haunt. They are films you tend to re-watch, maybe several times. "I'm in the mood for X." These vary by the individual, but may or may not be of "cinematic quality." For me these are often well-made romantic comedies, such as Notting Hill or You've Got Mail, or some of the Judd Apatow films. Or to take some example of films that I enjoy re-watching every few years because they scratch a certain itch (in this case, mega-disaster), but I don't see as being all that well made, 2012 or Deep Impact (not quite "comfort" films, but certainly entertaining).
And then we have a third category, which I will call the "cream of the crop:" Those films that are both well-made and personally enjoyable to watch. They might be more quality or comfort focused, but have just enough of the other But this is subjective. We can argue over the "best," but we can't argue over comfort films, or even "personal bests" that combine comfort and quality.
I think cream of the crop could include those films that are either of such transcendent quality that any notion of "entertainment" is irrelevant, or some entertaining that the entertainment value equates with quality (doing what it intends to do, but very very well). For the latter, I think Pulp Fiction--which was self-consciously meant to be entertaining, with no subtext or deeper meaning; for the former, I think Terrance Malick at his very best, especially The Thin Red Line or Tree of Life.
So we have:
Best: Films of the highest cinematic quality, in terms of cinematography, scripting, acting, etc.
Favorite: Comfort films, personal favorites, etc. Generally more variable in quality.
Cream (of the Crop): Films that combine both of the two factors above, for oneself.
II. THIS THREAD - What It Is (Supposed to Be) About
My first notion is to ask for:
Five TV Series That are Cream of the Crop (for you)
But you can include as many as you want, and/or address other categories:
Films that are Cream of the Crop
Films or Series of X Genre that are Cream of the Crop
THE ONE RULE I have is to focus on "cream of the crop" - films or series that you find both of at least very good cinematic quality AND are among your personal favorites, for simple enjoyment and/or comfort and/or depth/meaning. Or to put it simply: Films/Series that are BOTH very well-made AND very entertaining.
Feel free to include films that you see among the Best or Favorites, but mostly for contrast (like I did above).
III. DO IT!
