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Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

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Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#151

Post by toastal »

cbanek wrote: post #112
morpheuskafka wrote: post #96

Going in a slightly different direction, the two saddest films I have ever seen are 火垂るの墓 / Grave of the Fireflies (1988 - Ghibli - Japan) and Hiss Dokhtarha Faryad Nemizanad / Hush! Girls Don't Scream (2013 - Iran). In both of them you can feel the exact moment when the protagonist loses hope and it really hits you. Both of them deserve a pretty strong warning--I guess the second one more of a true "trigger warning"…

Grave of the Fireflies I'm calling the most sad anime ever. It is indeed a wonderful movie. I had a friend say "oh have you ever seen that really depressing anime?" and I immediately said "Grave of the Fireflies?" Nailed it!

An ex showed me this movie and I was actively hostile afterwards because I wasn't given a heads-up on how depressing it was going to be and I hadn't prepared thinking it was just another cute Ghibli film

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#152

Post by petewailes »

iscrewyou wrote: post #133
catears wrote: post #130

I would suggest "The Big Short". It mainly focuses on the huge disaster of the 2008 financial bubble, and what led up to it. Before watching the movie I had this feeling of how impossible it could have been for so many normal people to be screwed over so royally. The crisis obviously happened, but I lacked the understanding of how something like that could have happened. After the movie it was clear to me how systemi…

Margin Call has been on my list to watch for a very long time. You just gave me a reason to watch it sooner than later. I’d say Steve Carell’s character is the only protagonist in The Big Short.

Margin Call is possibly the best film about how the finance industry works at a micro level ever made.

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#153

Post by dehrmann »

dwd wrote: post #62
duxup wrote: post #12

Henry V (1989 film) I randomly saw it one night on PBS. I thought I had caught it in the middle of the movie, not realizing I turned it on the moment it started. I was pretty young and had no real interest in literature, the arts, whatever. But it looked neat "hey a dude in a castle" ... and I realized ... I kinda understood it. I couldn't explain it word for word in plain English, but I got the metaphors and the sto…

"And Crispin Crispian shall ne'er go by from this day until the ending of the world but we in it shall be remembered. We few, we happy few, we band of brothers, For he today who sheds his blood with me shall be my brother, Be he ne'er so vile, this day shall gentle his condition, and gentlemen in England now abed shall think themselves acursed they were not here, and hold their manhoods cheap whilst any speaks, that…

It's basically the president's speech in Independence Day.

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#155

Post by juanuys »

goatinaboat wrote: post #97
mindcrime wrote: post #4

The Matrix

The Matrix I wonder why they never made any sequels

It was a trilogy, and apparently one of the original creators will be creating another sequel.

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.digitaltrends.com/movies/ma...

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#156

Post by dvh »

cbanek wrote: post #112
morpheuskafka wrote: post #96

Going in a slightly different direction, the two saddest films I have ever seen are 火垂るの墓 / Grave of the Fireflies (1988 - Ghibli - Japan) and Hiss Dokhtarha Faryad Nemizanad / Hush! Girls Don't Scream (2013 - Iran). In both of them you can feel the exact moment when the protagonist loses hope and it really hits you. Both of them deserve a pretty strong warning--I guess the second one more of a true "trigger warning"…

Grave of the Fireflies I'm calling the most sad anime ever. It is indeed a wonderful movie. I had a friend say "oh have you ever seen that really depressing anime?" and I immediately said "Grave of the Fireflies?" Nailed it!

GotF is just sad, if you want really depressing anime watch Angel's egg (Tenshi no tamago).

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#157

Post by Markoff »

it depends on your age, I don't think you can really change your world view based on movie if you are in 30s or older, but you can be definitely influenced if you are teenager and into 20s

taking this into consideration I would recommend these parts of the movies, you can find them all on YouTube without watching whole movie:

Se7en - final John Doe monologue about innocence of his victims in back seat

Collateral - Vincent monologue on back seat about not doing anything with your life

Fight club - pretty much all movie, very influential, should be mandatory for teenagers

American beauty - less extreme version of fight club for older men that you can rebuild your life even in higher age

the big Lebowski - if you care about your clothing maybe it can help you to watch Lebowski

the beach - encouraged me to travel more, although wanted already before

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#158

Post by cmehdy »

La Haine (1995)[0]: not so much that I saw it differently, more that I felt less crazy for seeing it as it was. I come from those exact areas and times, and even twenty years later there is a terrible amount of similarity in how things are unraveling.

Children of Men (2006)[1]: for the combination of cinematography and the dystopian atmosphere.

Departures / Okuribito (2008)[2]: the subtlety and elegance of the Japanese touch when brushing against Life and Death.

Persona (1966)[3]: I can and can't wrap my head around this movie. I think it left a trace on me in a way that my conscious self doesn't address but the subconscious plays with.

The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)[4]: there are few things that can put a person against their own mind more than the locked-in syndrome. There's a lot of confusion, humility and strength to find in such apparent helplessness and lack of control. I think of it when I encounter people with ALS or other neuro-degenerative illnesses, and I think of it when I explore my own journey throughout the depths of mental illness.

Amour (2012)[5]: when you go through certain inevitable journeys with people you love, there's so much to be found in the most essentially simple things.

I'm sure there are other impactful things out there but my memory is pretty spotty at times.

[0] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0113247/

[1] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0206634/

[2] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1069238/

[3] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060827/

[4] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0401383/

[5] https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1602620/

Re: Ask HN: Films that made you see the world differently?

#159

Post by EdwardMSmith »

mapgrep wrote: post #145
infofarmer wrote: post #80

Ikiru / To Live (1952, Kurosawa) Only saw it once long ago, among many other masterpieces. It immediately and singularly became my deeply ingrained reference model for the mechanics of fateful changes in life, following your heart, the absolute happiness of meaningful sacrifice, cathartic paradigm shifts, and a host of other vital concepts that are otherwise difficult to visualize.

I just saw this last night and was going to add it. I agree totally with your take. This is available on the Criterion streaming service which has many other good movies. If OP signs up try also Night on Earth by Jim Jarmusch, a look at transitional moments in life through taxi cab rides occurring simultaneously in five cities.

If you have a library card, your local library may provide free access to Kanopy, which has Ikiru, as well as a couple other Kurosawa and Jarmusch films.
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