Constance Tsang’s Top10

This is the ultimate film that fundamentally changed the way I understood cinema and how I could make films. I remember thinking that this is what it’s like to really experience time, and this is how a film can be shaped and formed to support a single moment in a way that brings a sense of completion to the whole work. It is truly a masterpiece.

Every once in a while, I will watch a Bresson film to cleanse my palette and remind myself that films are at their best when they are simple. By “simple,” I do not mean simplistic; rather, I’m referring to how complex, loaded ideas can be rendered in a manner that is efficient, precise, and lean. The craft in L’argent is impeccable, and the film contains one of my favorite sequences ever—the last sequence, in which the murder takes place. We never see the violent act, only doors being opened and closed, and a dog running through a hallway. The scene is filled with tension, and it’s shocking for what we do not see.

There are so many Kiarostami films that I love, including Taste of Cherry and Where Is the Friend’s House?, but Close-up is one that I always come back to. I love metanarratives that blend documentary and fiction. Artifice is at the core of cinema, so how do you make something truthful out of what is essentially a simulacrum? I also relate deeply to Sabzian. To imagine that he pretended to be someone he is not, and that the film features him reenacting his “crime” and then finally meeting his idol, the director Mohsen Makhmalbaf . . . I was so deeply moved by their interaction.

Most of Kieślowski’s films are very special to me, but Blue particularly captivated me. The always excellent Juliette Binoche plays a woman who is grieving the loss of her husband and daughter, and the way the character’s grief is processed is truly transcendent. I think the score and how the music is used, and also the way light appears, is so sensuous—it feels like this is not just a movie, it’s an experience. There are these moments that stick out in my mind—if you notice, in my film Blue Sun Palace, I stole the shot of Juliette behind the crystals.

I love Cléo from 5 to 7 so much that I named my beloved cat of sixteen years after the title character. It is a film that initially seems light, especially when we first meet the pop-star protagonist, who appears in color and is more interested in her hats than in self-reflection. Yet it is through this focus on surfaces that she makes the transition from a state of artifice to an understanding of herself and her mortality. Watching the story unfold in real time, I’m reminded that we often hit on something profound the moment we step away from our patterns.

I discovered this film only recently, but it had such an impact on me that I now try to see it every time it’s showing in theaters. The first time I watched it, I honestly hated it. I didn’t know why Wanda would let herself be treated so badly, why she would hang around men who are so disrespectful to her. After the movie was finished, though, I processed and truly understood what Loden was trying to do. This film is radical both in the character it explores and in its style. Wanda is a great example of how films can be political and feminist.

There are of course other great Edward Yang films that I love, including Yi Yi and A Brighter Summer Day, but Taipei Story is very special to me, and I can’t quite describe it. I’ve seen it many times, and still, at the end, my eyes well up when Hou Hsiao-hsien’s character meets his fate. I think this is a perfect example of how multiple storylines can intersect, how interiority can be visualized, and how contemporary city life and its malaise can be captured in a movie’s atmosphere. I admire the film’s looseness; its power comes from its sense of ease.

I watched this trilogy in two days during the COVID-19 pandemic, and when I was done, I ordered the Criterion box set for my mother, because I knew she would love it. When I started putting together this top 10 list, I called her just to reminisce on how the films work and why they stay with you long after you watch them. What was particularly resonant for me was Apu’s relationship with his mother, and the sacrifices and responsibilities that come with being a parent. Every scene is lensed with such grace and humanity; it reminds us how nourishing cinema can be. These films show the full breadth of life.

A gorgeous film about longing, desire, and the impressions that people leave on one another. Everything in this film is so intentional and pulsating. There is a reason why it has resonated with so many. It is so intoxicating and visually stunning. I watched it when I was sixteen, and I remember thinking that this is what love must feel like.

Fassbinder is one of my favorite directors. I couldn’t decide which of his films to include, so here are two that have really stayed with me. Both are brutal and revelatory in their own ways. Fox, played by Fassbinder himself, is a character I often think about. In his purity and outlook, he stands in contrast with everyone around him, in a way that is so moving and devastating. I love films that take into consideration how economics play a role in shaping who we are and the choices we make.

The Bitter Tears of Petra von Kant is another film about power imbalances in relationships, but this time with the most beautiful costumes. I love this film so much because of the way it reconsiders what melodrama is, with such an inventive tone. Fassbinder renders heightened emotions so artfully and strangely, and creates a sense of distance that makes the film feel so singular to me. It also contains the best cinematic use of “Smoke Gets in Your Eyes” by the Platters.