1 “The River.” Jean Renoir’s beautiful adaptation of Rumer Godden’s autobiographical novel about a season in the life of an English girl raised in Bengal. Perfect for the hospital bedroom.
2 “Saint Jack.” Peter Bogdanovich’s elegiac film of Paul Theroux’s novel. Set in Singapore, with Ben Gazzara. Might save this for the very end.
3 “Husbands.” One of the best of John Cassavetes’s movies. Not very hopeful.
4 “The Last Detail.” Hal Ashby, Robert Towne, Jack Nicholson. Bleak, sad, funny. Even less hopeful.
5 “Days and Nights in the Forest.” Satyajit Ray’s story about four friends from Calcutta on a lost weekend in the country. Also no pushover—but here there is definitely hope.
What classic film are you embarrassed you’ve never seen?: “Battleship Potemkin.” One of the basic course requirements of Filmmaking 101.
What iconic film have you resisted seeing?: “The Great Gatsby.” I prefer to stick with the book on this one.
