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Chantal Akerman’s ‘Jeanne Dielman’ becomes first female-directed film to top BFI-backed critics’ poll of greatest films of all time

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  1. cloud_loud
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    Sight and Sound does a top 100 list every ten years. Citizen Kane topped the list for five decades (that’s where it being considered the greatest movie ever comes from) but then got taken over by...

    Sight and Sound does a top 100 list every ten years. Citizen Kane topped the list for five decades (that’s where it being considered the greatest movie ever comes from) but then got taken over by Vertigo in 2012.

    I don’t think anyone expected Jeanne Dielman topping the list this time around. Though they doubled the voting members so a major shake-up was bound to happen. And with many of the voters being much younger and also coming for the world of film twitter and Letterboxd it makes sense that a feminist film would top the list. There’s been a bit of pushback against the younger voters and their focus on idpol and their reluctance to watch older films (leaving room for Mullholand Drive to enter the Top 10 while L’aaventura drops several spots for example).

    I watched Jeanne Dielman back when I was 17 and I borrowed it from my University’s fine art library. I thought it was brilliant. Long. But brilliant. It’s a movie where not much happens. We see a domestic mother do chores over the course of three days, while also working as a prostitute. It’s a subtle form of storytelling, she does the same tasks over and over but it changes slightly from day to day. Before it comes to a big conclusion.

    You can see the rest of the BFI top 100 here. I’m assuming you’ve all at least seen Get Out, Parasite, and The Shining which are some of the new additions.

    Edit: Director’s list also came out which is more on brand for Sight and Sound.

    3 votes