I Wish (Kiseki, dir. Hirokazu Koreeda, 2011)

It’s a movie with children rather than a children movie, you know? This little japanese gem tells the story of a 12 year old boy who believes that the energy released by two bullet trains can bring his separated parents and his little family together. It has the simplicity and beauty that only the japanese can do. Watch the trailer.

Oh Boy (dir. Jan Ole Gerster, 2012)

The recurring theme of the lost young man in search of his place in the world, but with an interesting perspective (and it’s filmed in Berlin in b&w, which is a bonus). The script is great, sometimes comical, sometimes quite dark, and the ending is very clever. And it has a clear reference to Breathless in the first scene, so how could I not love? ;) Watch the trailer.

The Trip (dir. Roger Corman, 1967)

Scripted by Jack Nicholson, the film follows the first LSD “trip” of a television commercial director in crisis, guided by a friend/guru. Legend has it that, to prepare for the film, Jack and his future partners in Easy Rider Peter Fonda and Dennis Hopper (who also work in the movie) engaged in a group LSD trip. I guess this must have been pretty standard behavior for those guys in the 60’s. Throughout the movie I could only think what a hassle it must have taken to edit those crazy scenes: there’s hooded knights, dwarves, go go dancers, strobe lights, witches… the typical bad trip I guess. Watch the trailer.