Jacek Sobczyński’s Top 10
Top 10 of Timeless Film Festival Warsaw – Jacek Sobczyński, Festival Spokesperson
1. Anima. Masters of Polish Animation, dir. Various
Still outstanding, still underrated. I fell in love with the imagination of classic Polish animation filmmakers during my film studies – and I truly encourage you to explore these gems of national cinema through screenings like this.
screening: Sunday, April 13, 5:15 PM (Iluzjon)
2. Cronos, dir. Guillermo del Toro
Not everyone knows that Guillermo del Toro began his cinematic journey with a horror film about an antique dealer who acquires a device that grants eternal life. This is that film. Catching Cronos on the big screen is a rare treat, making it all the more worthwhile to see the debut of the Pan’s Labyrinth director.
screenings: Wednesday, April 9, 8:00 PM (Muranów), Friday, April 11, 11:15 PM (Muranów)
3. Institute Benjamenta, or This Dream People Call Human Life, dir. Quay Brothers
This film passed through Polish cinemas like a meteor in the late ’90s. A great shame, because it’s an incredibly sensual production that truly requires a big screen and immersive sound. Honestly – no other film has ever put me in such a trance during a screening.
screening: Wednesday, April 9, 8:30 PM (Iluzjon)
4. Straw Dogs, dir. Sam Peckinpah
The only domestic drama in Peckinpah’s filmography – but as often with him, intensely brutal, portraying violence in both literal and stylized ways. Dustin Hoffman plays an intellectual who unexpectedly takes up arms to defend his wife. Is this the film that inspired Michael Haneke’s Funny Games?
screening: Wednesday, April 9, 9:00 PM (Iluzjon)
5. Shoah, dir. Claude Lanzmann
Arguably the most important screening of this year’s edition – a harrowing, hypnotic film about the Holocaust, told through a slow, gripping narrative. Shoah on the big screen is a major cinematic event. If you only attend one screening at Timeless Film Festival Warsaw – make it this one.
6. Sugarland Express, dir. Steven Spielberg
Steven Spielberg’s theatrical debut (after making several TV movies), released just before he revolutionized blockbusters with Jaws. But The Sugarland Express isn’t a blockbuster – it’s an excellent road crime drama, awarded at Cannes for its screenplay, blending gravity with grotesque and a sharp social sensibility with an undercurrent of tension. Hard to believe Spielberg made it at 28.
screenings: Monday, April 7, 5:30 PM (Muranów), Saturday, April 12, 10:30 PM (Muranów)
7. High and Low, dir. Akira Kurosawa
Kurosawa doing crime drama? That might surprise some. But this is the perfect moment to discover High and Low, especially since Spike Lee will soon be releasing his remake titled Highest 2 Lowest. Great opportunity to compare the two visions of the same story.
screenings: Thursday, April 10, 5:30 PM (Luna), Sunday, April 13, 5:45 PM (Ziemia Obiecana)
8. Raging Bull, dir. Martin Scorsese
First, it’s about extreme reactions to the inability to cope with aging. Second, it’s a haunting portrait of toxic masculinity. And above all, there have been few black-and-white cinematographic works as stunning as those by Michael Chapman. For that alone, I couldn’t imagine this Top 10 without Raging Bull.
screenings: Saturday, April 12, 7:30 PM (Muranów), Sunday, April 13, 12:30 PM (Ziemia Obiecana)
9. Deliverance, dir. John Boorman
Yes – this is the film Quentin Tarantino has often said he saw as a child. What’s unusual about that? Deliverance is a stark, grim survival thriller with one of the most disturbing scenes in film history. But the violence isn’t gratuitous – it serves as a meditation on the dark side of human nature and an allegory for the Vietnam War. A gem of 1970s American genre cinema – a must-see for thriller fan
screenings: Tuesday, April 8, 5:30 PM (Muranów), Monday, April 14, 3:30 PM (Muranów)
10. Lost Highway, dir. David Lynch
No explanation needed – it might just be my favorite film. I’ve seen it more than a dozen times and see no reason not to watch it again.
screenings: Saturday, April 12, 10:30 AM (Luna), Sunday, April 13, 8:30 PM (Luna)