My Top Ten Fav Movies of All Time

My Top Ten Personal Favourite Movies of All Time (in no particular order):

Spirited Away (or most Ghibli movies)

Les Triplettes de Belleville

Female Trouble (or many John Waters films)

Hedwig & The Angry Inch

Torch Song Trilogy

Barbarella

Pink Narcissus

Fantasia

Heavy Metal

Elvira, Mistress of the Dark

I would like to preface this list to say that I really don’t enjoy picking favourites. As a great appreciator of art and film, it seems trivial to say that these are the best films of all time because they, put simply, are not. There are so many amazing films that could have made it into this list. These are moreso my own personal most-watched films. If I love a movie, I will watch it over and over, and over. I've watched all of these films dozens of times and I will keep watching them because I love them very much. So here they are. My Top 10 Personal Favourite movies of all time! Enjoy.

1.Spirited Away (2001) - You can also replace this animated film with pretty much any other Miyazaki Hayao-directed Ghibli film such as Kiki’s Delivery Service, Totoro or Ponyo for example. First of all, as a painter and visual artist I have always been fascinated by animated film. The sheer amount of work that goes into these epic productions is incredible. Especially old school animation where every movement is carefully hand drawn and all the backgrounds are painstakingly hand painted. I am especially in love with the beautiful minute detail associated with Ghibli films and Miyazaki’s uncanny ability to literally spirit us away into other magical worlds. I think what wins the prize for me is Miyazaki’s ability to do it so seamlessly. For example, Spirited Away starts up as Chihiro, a young girl who is the main character and hero, is whining and complaining in the backseat of her parents car as they are about to move to a new home. They somehow magically end up in the spirit world where Chihiro gets a job working in a magical bath house for weary spirits. It’s this transition from the banal grey world of modern day Japan to its more mystical roots that I hold very dear as a viewer. Indeed just seeing all of the glorious details of Japanese life (even though many Ghibli movies are not set in Japan at all), the Japanese nuances, food, etc. brings me right back to my time living in Osaka and Kobe. In fact, seeing Ponyo for the first time in Kyoto was quite wonderful. Miyazaki’s glorious return to hand drawn animation. I went with an ex, and they had fake bamboo in the movie theatre as well!!! Oh, speaking of fine detail, I'm also a big fan of The Borrowers which was not a Miyazaki film but still part of the Studio Ghibli collection. A personal favourite of mine.

2. Les Triplettes de Belleville (2003) - Now, I'm not sure that I would actually rank this as my number two top film. However, in actuality the ranking for these films is utterly irrelevant to me. These are all my favourites therefore the hierarchy of which goes first doesn’t really matter. I've watched them all countless times and I will continue to watch them for as long as I have eyes to see. Probably even after as the soundtracks are also great for most of these films. So, where to begin with Triplettes? First of all, visually stunning. The subtle, understated colour palette really highlights the uber exaggerated drawing style and though it’s a silent film, its French. Very French. The story is also very unusual. The main stars of the film are a spritely old lady and her dog, and three triplet matriarch musicians who eat frogs! Lots of really great music in this film too. I especially love the scenes when the three sisters sing in the swamp just using whatever trash they have at hand. And the frog popsicles!!!

3. Female Trouble (1974) - Similar to Spirited Away, quite a few John Waters films could make it into this list, including Serial Mom or Desperate Living especially. But Female Trouble is truly the film where drag star Divine aka Harris Glen Milstead really shines. Though she is most famous for eating dog shit in Pink Flamingos (what a great friend John Waters was for asking her to do that lol), in Female Trouble we really see the full range of Divines acting and comedy abilities. Also her drag is fully highlighted because it spans the full length of the character Dawn Davenports adult life. She really does pull off some pretty incredible looks in this film. From vivacious prostitute to sexy stay at home mom, she serves a lot of curves and some really amazingly subversive avant-guard hair and makeup. Not to mention her incredible acid burn face with mohawk prison look at the end. Filthy gorgeous fun. And very darkly satyrical. This is also the film where we get Divine’s famous cha cha heels scene where as a teenage girl she screams “fuck you fuck you I hate you” to her parents on Christmas morning for not getting her what she wanted. Then she knocks the tree down on them and stomps on the presents. I suppose she gets her just desserts though at the end as she is executed by electric chair for a life of glamorous crime.

4. Hedwig & The Angry Inch (2001) - Arguably my favourite musical. The story of a Russian transgender rock star who has a lot of bad luck with love and well, life in general. Amazing songs performed with full pizazz, great performances and overall a very special film. Starring John Cameron Mitchell who also wrote the film and all the music. One of my absolute favourite songs of all time is ‘Origin of Love’ which tells the mythical tale of how men and women, and men and men, and women and women, used to be sewed up back to back but how the Gods grew angry and cut them in two and that’s why we’re so desperately trying to get back together as lovers nowadays. Makes sense right? Also, the animation associated with this song is super fun (very 90s/early 2000s) and the ill-fated love affair between a drag queen and a straight boy is a story with which I can deeply relate. And mmmm, Michael Pitt.

5. Torch Song Trilogy (1988) - a gay classic. Speaking of the ill fated love affairs of drag queens, Torch Song Trilogy weaves a marvellous yet touchingly tragic tale indeed. The tale of Arnold a successful drag queen and his tumultuous journey through life and love. First of all, Matthew Broderick (who played one of Arnold's lovers) in 1988 was absolutely adorable and seeing him play a gay character was even more adorable. This film was based on a hit broadway play and it stars Harvey Fierstein as a crusty yet soulful drag queen as we follow him through the three great loves of his life. First his closeted bisexual lover who eventually leaves him for a woman (once again a story very close to my own heart), then with his younger and very attractive lover played by Matthew (aka Ferris Bueller hehe), and finally with his adopted son David ('Ill try not to spoil the plot too much here). Meanwhile, the film also chronicles Arnold's difficult relationship with his Jewish mother. The beautiful thing about this film is really how it portrays the passage of time; its ability to ravage us with pain and hardship and also it’s ability to heal and transform.

6. Barbarella (1968) - Psychedelic 60s sci-fi sex. I love a good camp film and Barbarella is probably one of the best sexy sci-fi camp films of the late 60s. Starring none other than Jane Fonda Herself. The film starts off with a gorgeously luxurious scene of her floating around in a space ship as she undresses listlessly. One of my favourite things about this film is #1 Fonda plays a sex addict and manages to make love to every alien being in the universe and #2 has an outfit change in every scene and manages to maintain perfect hair no matter how much sex she is having. I love the cheesy yet high-budget-for-the-time special effects in this film. I also love the sexy 60s psychedelic soundtrack. (The theme song itself is highly addictive.) I love Jane Fonda and I love just how silly this movie is. It heavily objectives her as a woman but I mean, she was absolutely stunning at the time and look at the amazing strong woman she has since become. Still going strong 40 years into her career. A classic. An icon.

7. Pink Narcissus (1971) - Speaking of classic camp and classic gay, this film is probably not very well known at all, but it should be. Categorize it in obscure surreal gay erotica and then it’ll be much easier to find at your local movie rental store. (Yes, I know those don’t exist anymore but if they did this film would probably be hard to find). So what happens when a fabulously eccentric gay man in NYC locks himself up in his apartment for years, creates lavish and elaborate sets and pays a slew of attractive young twinks to prance around in their underwear? Pink Narcissus happens. Described on IMDb as "An erotic poem set in the fantasies of a young male prostitute", it is exactly that but so much more. This film is an opium dream, a gay mans hysteria, the colours alone are worth watching it for. Stop motion animation is used, intensely gay costuming and sets, and it just leaves you wondering if porn nowadays were this artistic and thoughtful how would things be different? The closest thing I've seen in recent history was the French arthouse horror film Knife+Heart (2019) directed by Yann Gonzalez which is also really worth mentioning. An amazingly beautiful and haunting gay film set in 1970s France.

8. Fantasia (1940) - When animation and music collide in a very experimental and beautiful visual odyssey that explores mythology, colour and sound. A Disney classic like no other. The art form of animation is broken down into light, colour, line, texture and sound. Then it is built back up again into storytelling, fairy tales, mythology and more. I've always loved this film and I could watch it 100 more times without question. From the gorgeous dancing flowers to the nymphs and centaurs and even Mickey Mouse as an apprentice wizard this movie takes us on an epic journey of animated shorts but manages to keep us intrigued and entertained from start to finish with classical music and classical animation being the main attraction. It still boggles my mind that this extraordinary film was made in 1940. In the tradition of earlier Disney films being psychedelic journeys such as Dumbo (1941) or Alice in Wonderland (1951), also two favourites.

9. Heavy Metal (1981) - 80s raunchy wild cartoons for adults. What more could you ask for? Glamazons kicking ass. Sci-fi futuristic, post-apocalyptic, naughty, otherworldly fantasy, good old fashioned fun. All set to 80s heavy metal rock and roll! If you are a fan of the sci-fi/fantasy magazine comic book series Heavy Metal you will also love this film because it brings it all that to life. Once again, this movie embodies my love for old school illustration and animation and also kick ass female leads. Eroticism meets horror in an incredibly entertaining journey that brings you from one end of the galaxy to the other. Much like Fantasia this is also a compilation of animated shorts, and the variety is very much appreciated. If I remember correctly all of the stories are loosely intertwined thanks to an evil green orb called the Lochnar which aims to destroy everything in its path. Fun right?

10. Elvira, Mistress of the Dark (1988) - I cannot express how much I absolutely adore this film. In this case, I definitely saved the best for last. CAMP CAMP and more CAMP. Elvira is hilarious, sexy, dark and so much fun to watch. My only criticism of this film is that there isn’t an entire series starring Elvira. The story line is so perfect too. Elvira, sex symbol and horror movie vamp, having lost her job as a late night TV host heads off to a small conservative town to collect her uncles inheritance and pursue her dream of having her own Las Vegas show. She encounters the towns youth, compromises their Christianity and has a really great time doing it. She even finds a love interest and cooks him a ghoulish meal (one of my favourite and most hilarious scenes) and the clashes between her and the towns morality police ensue in an only-in-the-80s campy horror laugh fest that leaves you wanting more, more, and more! And just when you think you’ve had enough Elvira, the one and only Mistress of the Dark, leaves you with a wonderful musical number at the end, fulfilling all her Las Vegas fantasies and your own. So good.