As we wrap up the semester, let me tell you about a couple movies I’ve watched the last couple of weeks: War Horse [IMC DVD 636.1 W253 2012], Le Havre [342.083 H388 2012], The Artist [IMC DVD 791.436 A791 2012], and Nostalgia for the Light [IMC DVD 522.29 N898 2010]. All of these movies, I noticed, made a larger impact on me because of how well music was used and incorporated into the storyline.

War Horse is a Stephen Spielberg film, which always means great music to me. The film is split up into two main parts: the pre-war part where Albert, the main character, is raising his horse and dealing with circumstances at home, and then the war part, where Albert and his horse are separated, and you see their two different paths in World War I. I saw some reviews where people thought the opening part was too drawn out, but I thought it was a good length to adequately introduce the back story. In addition to great music, this movie also had wonderful cinematography.

Le Havre was a film about a man who discovers a runaway African boy and helps to shelter him from the authorities while he deals with a sick wife. I loved this movie, and mostly because of the sense of community that arises from the man and his neighbors as they all work together to help hide and later reunite the boy with his family. The sights and sounds of this movie also help the viewer to appreciate this quintessential French film.

The Artist is a silent black and white movie that was made in 2011 which tells the story of a silent film star who suddenly becomes unimportant once talkies are introduced. He struggles with discovering his new career path, but is helped along by a new female actress whom he helped at the beginning. Because of the nature of silent movies, music is incredibly important, and The Artist definitely delivered.

Finally, Nostalgia for the Light was a documentary film which compared astronomers looking at the stars in search of our past to archaeologists examining remains in the desert in order to unearth understanding from Pinochet’s dictatorial reign and the thousands that were murdered by his government. Beautiful cinematography and music combined to make this a gorgeous but heart-wrenching film.

Right now the IMC is featuring a wonderful Holiday DVD display, so come check out your favorites before the end of the semester! As always, follow along on your own film adventure at https://letterboxd.com/peterstanley/list/1001-movies-you-must-see-before-you-die/.