‘Past Lives’ director Celine Song names her four favourite movies of all time
South Korean-Canadian director, playwright and screenwriter Celine Song first came to the public’s attention with her play Endlings, which premiered in 2019, following up with a production of Anton Chekhov’s The Seagull using the video game The Sims 4. As a result. she aptly named it The Seagull on Sims 4.
After that initial success in the theatre world, Song shot herself into stardom after writing and directing one of the best films of 2023, Past Lives. Starring Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, and John Margaro, Song’s debut tells of two childhood friends and how their relationship changes over the course of three decades.
Past Lives is likely to become several cinema fans’ favourite movie over the following years, but for Song herself, there are four particular films that seem to comprise her most cherished. In a feature with Letterboxd, the director named her top choices in cinema, giving clues as to her inspirations on screen.
Thankfully, Song had already been asked what her favourite films are during the lengthy press duties of Past Lives, noting> “I answered a version of this question yesterday, so I have the four, which are Children of Men, Synecdoche, New York, Dogtooth and Computer Chess, an Andrew Bujalski movie.”
Children of Men is Alfonso Cuaron’s 2006 dystopian action thriller based on P.D. James’ novel of the same name. Clive Owen stars as a civil servant who is tasked with helping a refugee escape the torment of a world where humanity is infertile and left in the tatters of its former glory. Michael Caine and Julianne Moore also feature.
A Charlie Kaufman movie makes Song’s cut with Synecdoche, New York, getting a mention. It sees Philip Seymour Hoffman star as a physically and mentally unwell theatre director who’s tasked with completing his increasingly difficult stage production while the boundaries between fiction and reality are blurred in typical Kaufman style.
Song also looks to have an admiration for Yorgos Lanthimos, particularly his 2009 psychological drama Dogtooth. The Greek film tells of a husband and wife who shelter their children from the reality of the world beyond the confines of their house and garden, rewarding their good behaviour with stickers and punishing misbehaviour with violence.
Finally, Song’s favourite film list is rounded off by the independent comedy-drama Computer Chess, written and directed by Andrew Bujalski, who is sometimes considered the ‘godfather of mumblecore’. His 2013 film tells of a group of computer geniuses who enter a competition to see whose computer program can beat the others at computer chess.
Celine Song’s favourite movies:
- Children of Men (Alfonso Cuaron, 2006)
- Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, 2008)
- Dogtooth (Yorgos Lanthimos, 2009)
- Computer Chess (Andrew Bujalski, 2013)
