This time of year can be very hard for people.
The cultural pressure to spend money and be social on top of the sun being scarce and freezing temperatures can massively affect your mental health.
Sometimes you just need to escape for a while and there is no better way than with a good movie.
Here are 5 in no particular order.
I’ve picked them based on their pure “escapism factor”!
Midnight in Paris (2011)
Directed by Woody Allen, Written by Woody Allen, Starring Owen Wilson, Rachael McAdams, Michael Sheen, Marion Cotillard, Tom Hiddleston.
This film is simply beautiful. Dream-like and romantic.
At its core, it is an exploration of why we fetishise nostalgia.
Your appreciation of this film will be greater if you have a passing knowledge of Paris in the 1920s and you know a bit about the most famous painters and writers of that period.
You can rent this on Apple TV or Prime for £3.49
You can buy it and keep it on DVD for £4.99 from HMV
My Neighbour Totoro (1988)
Directed and written by Hayao Miyazaki
This is simply one of the most touching, beautiful and life affirming fims ever made.
It is 86 minutes of pure joy.
You can watch this on Netflix.
If you want to buy it it’s best to shop around for a used Blu-ray on eBay.
Padington 2 (2017)
Directed by Paul King, Written by Paul KIng & Simon Farnaby, Starring Ben Whishaw, Sally Hawkins, Hugh Bonneville and Hugh Grant.
The Paddington films are fantastic and I think “2” is the best so far. It is just magical & wholesome with a massive dollop of physical slapstick comedy.
Possibly Hugh Grant’s best role in 15 years! Don’t write these movies off as
“Kids' films” they are massively entertaining “family films”.
You can watch this on Netflix or ITVX with a subscription
Rent it on Apple TV or Prime for £3.49 or
you can buy and keep both Paddington films in a Blu-ray set for £6.99 from HMV
The Fall (2006)
Directed by Tarsem Singh, Produced by David Fincher & Spike Jones, Starring Lee Pace & Catinca Untaru.
This film is amazing! Totally visually stunning. I would describe this film as a cross between “Pans Labyrinth”, The Princess Bride and “The Adventures of Baron Munchusen” but not in a derivative way.
The child actor Catinca Untaru is so natural in her role and her chemistry with Lee Pace is wonderful.
The cinematography is extraordinary. With a film that is so good looking it would be easy to think it is style over substance but this is not the case.
You will laugh, you will cry, you will see a man at the end of his tether staring into the abyss due to love and obsession, unlikely friendships flourish and you will witness high adventure in a fantasy realm!
This film is a visual feast and a workout for your soul.
You can rent this via Amazon Prime for £3.49
You can buy and keep it on DVD £4.99 from Amazon
Pan’s Labyrinth (2006)
Directed & Written by Guillermo del Toro, Starring Ivana Baquero, Maribel Verdu, Doug Jones.
As we all know Guillermo del Toro is a genius and a true master of his craft.
In 2006 he released this beautiful film which ended up being the second instalment of a trilogy of films del Torro has now made based around the theme of childhood innocence lost at the hands of fascism. With “The Devil's Backbone” (2001), “Pan’s Labyrinth” (2006), and “Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio” (2022).
Pan’s Labyrinth is a masterpiece and is genuinely magical. This film is gripping, heartwarming, scary and thought-provoking. It contains one of the most sudden bursts of extreme course violence I have ever seen and one of the scariest monsters ever. If you want to be transported to another time and another realm for almost 2 hours this is a wonderful option.
Pan’s Labyrinth is available to watch on Netflix, ITVX and BBC iPlayer
You can rent it on Prime or Apple TV for £3.49
You can buy it and keep in on Blu-ray from HMV for £7.99
