The 18 best films to watch while self-isolating
Words - Taj Hayer
If week two of isolation has had you climbing the walls and you have done all your work for the day by 11am, it feels perfectly acceptable to escape to Hollywood. Here’s where you can escape to, from the comfort of your own home …
Spirited Away
Japanese animation is the escapism we all need right now, with crazy characters, super bright colours and offbeat beats. This movie is a wonderful blend of traditional Japanese myths, a great, young heroine and fantastic visuals.
The Shining
Save this one for late night. Violent, with slow building tension that draws to a dramatic conclusion. Best remembered for Jack Nicholson (rightly so) and his performance as a struggling writer on the edge, that takes his wife and young child to a remote hotel during winter.
Fantastic Mr Fox
Only Wes Anderson could have made this film such a sheer joy to watch. George Clooney leads a starry cast as the most rakish fox known to mankind but the real stars of the show are the young Ash and Kristofferson.
Lawrence of Arabia
When else are you going to have three hours free on a Wednesday afternoon? Take the time to lose yourself in David Lean’s epic and dazzling masterpiece, full of big set pieces and intimate & intelligent dramatic moments.
Amadeus
In equal parts sumptuous and hilarious, the 1984 film brings to life the unparalleled talents of the composer Mozart and the man that seeks to destroy him. A great introduction to the music, if you are new to it.
Romeo & Juliet
There are countless versions of this classic story but the Baz Luhrmann directed 1996 adaption starring a young Leonardo DiCaprio stands head and shoulders above the rest. Worth a watch for the Hawaiian shirt porn alone.
Life is Beautiful
It would take someone of a very cold heart to watch this film and not shed a tear. A Jewish father uses humour to help his young son survive the horrible, grim realities of the Second World War. An absolute classic.
The English Patient
Ralph Fiennes gives one of his finest ever performances (and that is really saying something) as the victim of a plane crash who is looked after by a kindly young nurse. The story unfolds as he tells her of his life.
The King’s Speech
If Covid-19 is the twenty first century’s Blitz, Somme & rationing, go back to 1940 to see a real country in crisis. The story is the backdrop of a man who was never meant to be king, struggling to find his voice.
Citizen Kane
Oft called the greatest film ever made, and largely lost to a modern audience, Orson Welles’s masterpiece carries messages and warnings about love, ambition and how hollow success can be. It also inspired one of the best episodes of The Simpsons ever.
Rear Window
No list of must see films would be complete without at least one entry from Alfred Hitchcock. Vertigo, The Birds and Psycho are all brilliant but Rear Window combines suspense, tension and incredible style courtesy of Grace Kelly.
Aladdin
The 2019 version was only OK. The classic Robin Williams version is brilliant - featuring some of the best Disney songs, a fantastic story and characters and should keep the kids quiet for an hour or so.
West Side Story
Spielberg may be working on a new version but the 1961is pretty damn good. Romeo & Juliet is transported to the world of rival street gangs in America where the musical numbers and choreography help to bring the story of star crossed lovers to life.
12 Years a Slave
An important education in how so many have had things so much worse than we have right now. Harrowing, and in places, so searing that you have to turn your face away from the screen, the journey of a man that is sold into slavery.
The Godfather
Al Pacino. Marlon Brando, Robert Duvall and James Caan will make you wish you had been born into a Mob family. Full of classic one liners and some of the best scenes in movie history, whether you opt for Part 1 or 2, you can’t really go wrong with either.
127 Hours
Just in case you are missing the outdoors and all that climbing, running etc, this will make you happy that you are on the couch. A reminder to always travel in packs, and keep your hour of exercise close to home.
Cleopatra
Shakespeare, Egypt, Rome, Caesar, Anthony, Richard Burton & Elizabeth Taylor makes for an epic three hour romp and one of the most visually arresting and over budget films of all time. Enjoy with a cup of tea over the course of the afternoon.
The Great Gatsby
Jay Gatsby (Robert Redford not Leo) may be the only man that ever lived to rock a gorgeous pink rag of a suit. Some books are so good that they should be adapted word for one - the 1974 film version is a glorious tribute to the roaring Twenties.