Claire Denis names her 10 favourite movies
Born in 1946, Claire Denis spent much of her early film career working as an assistant director, eventually making her directorial debut in 1988 with Chocolat. However, she is best known for the 1999 movie Beau Travil, a seminal piece of French cinema that beautifully examines masculinity, violence, memory and sexual identity.
The movie is widely acclaimed, cementing Denis as one of France’s most important cinematic voices. However, Denis, though born in Paris, spent much of her upbringing in French-occupied Africa. Subsequently, much of Denis’ work explores colonialism with great nuance.
Following Beau Travail, Denis released Trouble Every Day, which has been classified as part of the New French Extremity. Collaborating with actors such as Juliette Binoche, Isabelle Huppert and Béatrice Dalle, Denis has made some of French cinema’s most profound works, although she has also occasionally forayed into English language productions, such as High Life and Stars At Noon.
Naturally, Denis, who has worked with filmmakers such as Wim Wenders and Jacques Rivette, is a tremendous cinephile. But what are her favourite movies? She has a rather eclectic taste in films, ranging from Hollywood classics to more recent indie flicks.
Denis appears to be quite the fan of Jim Jarmusch, citing both 1995’s Dead Man and 2016’s Paterson as some of her favourites. She once told Lé Cinema Club: “Beyond the fact that I love Jim as you love a friend, it’s also his collaboration with Robby Müller on [Dead Man]; the beauty and poetry of the screenplay; the idea that the past lies somewhere in the earth, near the totems, the Native Americans…For me, cinema and its characters, like that of Johnny Depp, have an immortal quality.”
She also calls Arthur Penn’s The Chase one of her favourite movies, released in 1966. Despite the fact that Penn believes “everything in that film was a letdown,” Denis thinks it is great. Alongside Marlon Brando, the movie also features Robert Duvall, Jane Fonda and Robert Redford – a pretty perfect ‘60s cast.
Another movie that Denis selected while talking to A.Frame was Thief by Michael Mann, starring James Caan as an ex-convict ready to turn his life around. It was Mann’s debut feature and has since been considered an ‘80s cult classic. In keeping with the gangster theme, she also picked out Dillinger Is Dead by Marco Ferreri, an Italian crime drama that initially proved controversial due to its intense violence. It stars Anita Pallenberg, Michel Piccoli and Annie Girardot.
Denis, like any good filmmaker, loves Robert Altman, citing McCabe and Mrs Miller as her favourite. Although Altman has an impressive list of directing credits, the film is widely regarded as one of his best. Denis told Lé Cinema Club, “This film is so beautiful, so erotic. I am obligated to use the term erotic because, in this film, there is life, emotions and the absolute beauty of desire.”
Discover Claire Denis’ ten favourite movies below.
Claire Denis’ favourite movies:
- Thief (Michael Mann, 1981)
- Dead Man (Jim Jarmusch, 1995)
- Paterson (Jarmusch, 2016)
- The Chase (Arthur Penn, 1966)
- Dillinger Is Dead (Marco Ferreri, 1969)
- McCabe and Mrs Miller (Robert Altman, 1971)
- Cemetery of Splendour (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2015)
- Suddenly, Last Summer (Joseph L. Mankiewicz, 1959)
- Trust (Hal Hartley, 1990)
- An Elephant Sitting Still (Hu Bo, 2018)
