I have now mercilessly targetted friends around the world (and I’m not done!) for the list of ‘your 10 best films since 1980’, which can be seen on my film page. Some interesting trends are emerging. Firstly, the best of Hollywood has scored well on the lists of people with known subversive (i.e. artistic leanings)… The Matrix is doing well, as is Unforgiven, Pulp Fiction and Blade Runner. On the European side, we have heavy voting for Das Leven der Anderen (The Lives of Others), Cidade de Deus (City of God) and Amelie Poulin. Asian film just as strong, with Kar Wai Wong scoring with 2046 and In the Mood for Love.

It’s fun (for me at least) to connect the backgrounds of each person to the particular list of films they chose, both from a professional and geographical point of view. When this has gone on a bit longer, I may attempt a light-hearted statistical analysis!