Recommended Films
Sun Side
12 Angry Men (1957)
Jurors debate the guilt or innocence of an 18-year-old on trial for murder, facing death. A single-setting study of holding sacred doubt against overconfident surety.
As Good As It Gets
An inconsiderate obsessive-compulsive recluse, nigh-universally loathed, comes to face the domain of the heart. A sober and comic reminder that no human being is unlovable or incapable of love.
Dances With Wolves (Extended Cut)
A suicidally-depressed Union army soldier gradually opens to the revelations provided by raw nature. A tapestry of large open skies, animal grace, cultural curiosity, and the universal languages of violence and love. The extended cut lets everything breathe as expansively as it needs to.
Dead Poets Society
A spirited new teacher breathes rousing fire into a stuffy boys’ school in the 50s. Coming-of-age ecstasis bristling against conformist tradition. A reminder of who we are and what we are here to do.
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (Extended Cut)
Gorgeous mythopoetic parable which underscores the necessity of steadfastness in the face of seemingly insurmountable evil. High fantasy meets the realities of war and the eternal lure of corrupting forces. Settle in for the (extra) long versions—it’s worth it.
The Sound of Music
A sweeping epic of a motherless family that underscores how the inviolable power of love and music can fluster oppressive paradigms. The dangers of groupthink and giving up. The brightness and innocence of children. The omnipotence of beautiful music.
Scent of a Woman
A dual rite-of-passage tale of a boy learning to become a man and a wayward sufferer learning to become an elder. Contains the greatest ending monologue in film (and you can’t convince me otherwise).
Pinocchio
Stunningly animated Disney classic tale of a puppet come to life. A gorgeous mapping of the evolution from a provisional life into full self-actualization.
Shadow Side
A Clockwork Orange
A dystopian tale of uninitiated young men overtaken by the shadows of aggression and dominance. Explores, among other poignant themes, how—archetypally—the absent father beckons totalitarian authority. In attempt to brute-force correct a psycho-social pathology, a lack of initiatory guidance is overcompensated via behavioral control.
Children of Men
In the near future, humanity is faced with total infertility. An exploration of the breaking point of the human spirit writ large, and what remains when there’s seemingly nothing to fight for.
Rosemary’s Baby
Shady neighbors target a naive, young housewife. What follows is a profane cavalcade of gaslighting and betrayal, in inhumane pursuit of perverse incentives.
Funny Games (2007)
Wherein intruders engage a sadistic experiment that is both utterly terrifying and surprisingly subdued. Satirical yet excruciating. Watch the English language version (unless German is your first language).
The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (1974)
A grisly study of the wayward innocence of youth coming face to face with the truly deranged. An honestly horrifying film, though far from the “bloodbath” that the title (and later poor remakes) would insinuate. Psychologically enthralling and atmospheric.
The Godfather & The Godfather II
Institutional corruption spreads through generations of a family involved in illegal business. It shows that when violence is the ground of one’s life, every decision is one of zugzwang (producing ultimate disadvantage). A true epic, incredibly paced and acted. A film series in its own lane.
Glengarry Glen Ross
A small office of salesmen descends into desperation when their job security is threatened. A crucible of backstabbing and deception marks this quintessence of dog-eat-dog workplace culture. A stellar ensemble cast and tight writing make this a riveting watch.
Shadow and Sun:
All things are governed by yin & yang. The paradox is that these forces are opposites, and yet each contains the other.
One classical way to understand this duality is that yin refers to the shade side of a mountain (e.g. darkness, wetness, passivity) and yang the sun side of a mountain (e.g. light, dryness, activity). It is not anything like the sun side is “good” and the shade side “bad”—mountains are inherently perfect, and always have varying arcs of light and shadow.
Human beings also have a sun side and shadow side. We maintain the capability for great acts of love, heroism, and compassion, as well as for horrid acts of betrayal, destruction, and hatred. Both of these forces swirl within us. It is what we use our volition to steward that is birthed into the world. Denial of this duality leads to a repression that inevitably causes disharmony.
The List:
I have only included on this list films that I consider masterpieces—that is, pinnacles of the art form. This is not to say that these works of art are perfect, rather that they are uniquely elite achievements of the medium.
Particularly, this list is of masterpieces that speak profoundly to the human condition and its myriad forms. Therefore, this is not an exhaustive list of film masterpieces (as if such a thing could ever be compiled by one person). So even though a masterpiece like The Shining—for example—may seem like an obvious choice on the shadow side, it is not included here because it hinges on a supernatural corrupting force rather than a corrupting force inherent in human experience. A few of these films do have mystical or magical elements, but the motivations of the characters remain wholly, and familiarly, human.
The films on the sun side reveal the resiliency of the human spirit, the transformative power of love, of faith in people’s goodness, what opens when one places trust in another person, and the boon of allowing oneself to forego miserable rigidity in pursuit of a truer way. Watch these films if you are looking to be inspired, uplifted, or reminded of what actually matters.
Not for the fragile of mind, the films on the shadow side reveal the depths of depravity into which humans are capable of reaching. They warn of the absence of moral leadership, of allowing one’s base impulses to rule, of the failure to recognize karmic law, and of blindly pursuing one’s ostensible self-interest in the face of disintegration. Watch these films to come face to face with the shadow in yourself—the undertaking of which Carl Jung defined as “the essential condition for any kind of self-knowledge.”
Notably, every film on the sun side carries its taste or serving of tragedy, just as every film on the shadow side carries its hint or helping of humanity. Yin contains yang; yang contains yin. This is the eternal truth.
One final note:
The descriptions below purposefully reveal very little about the plots of the films themselves. My recommendation is to go into these movies knowing as little about them as possible, so that you experience them directly, unencumbered by expectation or spoiled plot points. To this end, I recommend against watching trailers and reading reviews.
Where there are multiple versions of a film, I’ve indicated the specific version I recommend.
