The post was triggered by a set of pictures I recently saw of Bradley Cooper and his latest girlfriend taken in Paris, although this reality is surrounding us every day. The dynamics of relationships with a considerable age gap have actually inspired some of my all-time favourite movies and even now they still hold the power to shock us.

I give you a list of these personal choices, including not only my crème de la crème, but some extremely popular duos which came to mind.


Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) & Angela Hayes (Mena Suvari) in

American Beauty

This is especially for those who I haven't (yet) forced to watch it ;)

I was looking at the latest movies of Jane Campion (The Piano) when I stumbled upon Top of the Lake. It is a mini-series and has become the favourite one, from what I watched so far, including Mildred Pierce and Angels in America.

It really has it all, from the directing to the acting, the unique New Zealand scenery and the meticulously portioned story-line... It is beautifully shot and as I come to think about it, no flaws come to mind. But it would be totally understandable if some would be bothered by its feminist sentiment: the majority of male characters are on the animalistic side, mostly presented as "villains", while women on the other hand are portrayed in a complex, more "positive" manner.

The rawness and wilderness of the series gives it a specific feeling, which, combined with the harmoniously and confusingly developing events, come together in this balanced and simply great narrative.

A movie addressing the senses...

The association of these two movies seems quite random, and it actually is. I just happened to watch them one after the other, which is maybe why I found some (random) similarities and big differences.

Well of course I liked the French one much better, but actually succeeded in falling asleep by the end of Baz Luhrmann's last one. I can't call myself a true Xavier Dolan fan either, but Laurence Anyways I liked, really enjoyed it, even though it is almost 3 hours long. In general I would postpone a time-consuming movie like this until maybe it somehow gets lost and all those precious minutes don't get used up by a single film. But I had the luck of looking at the clock only towards the end, when it didn't really matter anyhow, because the longer it lasted, the more visually and emotionally delighted I felt.

Now Gatsby on the other hand is similarly bright and colourful, the soundtrack was also a pig part of the project and it is a love story as well, but in comparison it felt cold and it got me wondering what other more useful things they could have done with a large portion of the budget, I got the sense of too much for too little. Although I enjoyed the music of Moulin Rouge! and the intention of "modernisation" with contemporary songs, this time I was not impressed. Dolan did a much better job in my opinion and the soundtrack of Laurence is absolutely memorable.

Watching these two consecutively I just couldn't help but notice the enormous difference between the female characters (reference to the changing status of women throughout the century): while Daisy gives the impression of a powerless woman whose fate is written solely by the men in her life, Dolan's (by the way, he is only 24 and has directed three successful movies until now!!) leading ladies are strong and independent. I really liked the character of Fred played by Suzanne Clément and the struggle she experienced between trying to "be normal", conform to society's prescriptions, and staying true to the feelings she had for her (wo)man.

I could go on and on about Laurence Anyways, but instead I urge you to watch it. That is only if you are not a homophob. If you have those kind of reluctances, you would be better off sparing yourself the frustration.

Laurence Anyways

Fellini's Amarcord

Stealing Beauty

A funny, humble production with actors mostly familiar from playing small parts in other movies. Preferable to watch on a random day, at random time, to be in tune with the spirit of the film.

Focusing on the impact and sometimes devastating outcome of seemingly harmless childhood experiences - hence the title (in a youthful and colourful cinematic rhythm). There is an interesting relationship between events and music, forcing a humorous reaction from the viewer while watching some unfortunate situations. And the actors take it away!

Written by a 19-year-old Harmony Korine, the film presents the day-to-day lives of an ethnically diverse group of New York teenagers. Chloë Sevigny and Rosario Dawson made their debuts in this. The movie (not surprisingly) was produced at the beginning by Gus Van Sant. Controversial at its time, it features alcohol, drug use and sexually explicit scenes of sometimes very young kids. Considering the experimental and the incipient nature of the production, it turned out pretty decent.

At first I was annoyed by the characters, the whole script seemed so disconnected from reality, and the way it was filmed made me dizzy... I suddenly started feeling anxious. Just when I was about to give up on it, the strange world of David O. Russel settled in and became real. I don't know exactly when it happened, but afterwards the feeling of anxiety vanished and a curiosity for what will happen took over.

Brilliant acting, it all seemed to make sense once you get the hang of it, and the main characters, complex and disturbed, started to become loveable. Jennifer Lawrence is just a natural in my opinion, she made it look so easy... Bradley put more thought into it but nevertheless did a great job.

And then I couldn't help but compare it to I Heart Huckabees. I tried to watch that movie before and after Silver Linings, but just couldn't. O. Russel lost the rhythm in that one, because his peculiar world never became real to me, and that is why I stopped at some point and just couldn't watch it any more, totally annoyed because of the time I lost by trying to connect and not getting anything out of it. And what he missed there, worked just like magic in this unusual love story.

So it all fits and the amount of strangeness constitutes the salt and pepper which makes this movie an instant classic. And it is the type of film which you can watch over and over again :)