DIRECTOR FILMOGRAPHY - The Films of LUIS BUNUEL

Not my fav either, but each film has been enjoyable.

Ranking:

1. Belle de jour
2. Un chien andalou
3. Los Olvidados
4. That Obscure Object of Desire
5. Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie
6. Diary of a Chambermaid

LUIS BUNUEL

Seen: 5
Like: 1
Own: 0*

Rank order:

The Exterminating Angel (1962)
Los Olvidados (1950)
Viridiana (1961)
L’ Âge d'or (1930)
Belle de jour (1967)


* - The Exterminating Angel is on my to buy list now.

My personal favorites with brief descriptions (only for the first few now, but hopefully more to follow):

That Obscure Object of Desire (1977) - Bunuel's final and my personal favorite of his films. While basically surrealist, with the added wrinkle of two actresses playing the same character, this is one of Bunuel's more conventional narratives outside of the soapier Mexican "studio" films he helmed, and certainly one I'd recommend to both the budding Bunuelophile and someone who'd never seen any of his films.

El (1953) - an odd choice for this high up the list, perhaps, but a fascinating narrative that contains most of the great Bunuel tropes: the anti-clericism, the sexual fetishes, the fragile male ego and the jealousy/paranoia stemming from sexual inadequacy. The "needle and thread" scene is a wonder -- despite being merely suggestive of his intentions, I've never known anyone who didn't get exactly what he was up to. Not as easy an accomplishment as one might think, given the obvious constraints. Clearly a big influence on Hitchcock with a clock tower scene that brings to mind "Vertigo", it's a great film by any standard and likely to please the casual viewer.

Viridiana (1961) - appears at no. 3 here, but this may be my favorite Bunuel film. I say "may be" as I've only seen it once, back in college when I was just getting into Bunuel. But it's stayed with me ever since as something of a cinematic touchstone, a film that truly opened my eyes. It's been 17 years now since I've seen it (and I'm tempted to order that French disc with no English subs...).

The Milky Way (1969) - the ultimate anti-clerical film by Bunuel, but may appeal more to philosophy/religion students than the more casual viewer.
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The rest of my favorites, more or less in order. I really dig all these films a lot, with the single exception of "Robinson Crusoe" (1954), so aside from that one consider them basically all bunched up in a big ball of recommended goodness (that is, I don't love "The Exterminating Angel" ten times more than "Las Hurdes"):
The Exterminating Angel (1962)
Un chien andalou (1929)
The Phantom of Liberty (1974)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
Los Olvidados (1950)
Belle de jour (1967)
Diary of a Chambermaid (1964)
Rehearsal for a Crime (aka The Criminal Life of Archibaldo de la Cruz) (1955)
L’ Âge d'or (1930)
Tristana (1970)
Las Hurdes/Land Without Bread (1933)
Robinson Crusoe (1954)
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I have not seen any of the following (and I'm dying to see "Nazarín", in particular!):
Nazarín (1959)
Simon of the Desert (1965)
The Young One (1960)
Fever Rises in El Pao (1959)
Death in the Garden (1956)
The River and Death (1955)
That Is the Dawn (1955)
Wuthering Heights (1954)
Illusion Travels by Streetcar (1954)
The Brute (1953)
A Woman Without Love (1952)
Ascent to Heaven (1952)
Daughter of Deceit (1951)
Susana (1951)
The Great Madcap (1949)
Gran Casino (1947)

Certainly one of my favorites

*1. That Obscure Object Of Desire - A (agree with Rich, this film captures the male/female relationship better than just about any other)
2. Belle de Jour - A (both my first Bunuel and the only one I've seen in a theater, an unforgettable, mind-altering experience)
*3. The Criminal Life Of Archibaldo de La Cruz - A (delicious, exceedingly fun story. I could watch this over and over)
4. The Exterminating Angel - A
5. Tristana - A (I've only seen it once, but have an instant affinity for it as it treads the same thematic ground that Fassbinder did in numerous films - love turning into possession, exploitation, subjugation, the loss of self, etc.)
6. Simon of the Desert - A

*7. The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeosie - A-
*8. El (aka This Strange Passion) - A-
9. Nazarin - A-
10. The Phantom Of Liberty - A-
*11. Diary Of A Chambermaid - A-
12. Viridiana - B+
*13. Los Olvidados - B+
14. The Milky Way - B+
15. Susana - B+
*16. Las Hurdes - B+
17. The Young One - B+

*18. Illusion Travels By Streetcar - B
19. Robinson Crusoe - B
20. A Woman Without Love - B
21. The Brute - B

The surrealist films I haven't been able to really appreciate. I find parts of them funny but I haven't been able to see in them what the reviews I've read see in them.

22. Un Chien Andalou - B-
23. L'Age D'Or - C+
24. Gran Casino - C+

Own: 8 (holding out for a better version of Belle du Jour, would buy Tristana, would buy Simon of the Desert, Nazarin and The Exterminating Angel.)

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Rated from to
Titles in RED are theatrical screenings

Luis Bunuel
Feb 22, 1900 - Jul 29, 1983

That Obscure Object of Desire (1977) (Own the DVD)
The Phantom of Liberty (1974) (Own the DVD)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) (Own the DVD)
Tristana (1970)
The Milky Way (1969) (Own the DVD)
Belle de jour (1967)
Simon of the Desert (1965) (Own the DVD)
Diary of a Chambermaid (1964) (Own the DVD)
The Exterminating Angel (1962) (Own the DVD)
Viridiana (1961) (Own the DVD)
The Young One (1960) (Own the DVD, haven't watched it yet)
Fever Rises in El Pao (1959)
Nazarín (1959)
Death in the Garden (1956) (Own the DVD)
The River and Death (1955)
Rehearsal for a Crime (The Criminal Life Of Archibaldo de La Cruz) (1955) (Own the DVD)
That Is the Dawn (1955)
Robinson Crusoe (1954)
Wuthering Heights (1954)
Illusion Travels by Streetcar (1954) (Own the DVD, haven't watched it yet)
El (1953) (Own the DVD)
The Brute (1953)
A Woman Without Love (1952)
Ascent to Heaven (1952)
Daughter of Deceit (1951)
Susana (1951)
Los Olvidados (1950) (Own the DVD)
The Great Madcap (1949)
Gran Casino (1947) (Own the DVD, haven't watched it yet)
Land Without Bread (1933) (Own the DVD)
L’ Âge d'or (1930)
Un chien andalou (1929)

Seen 19
Own 16
Edited by Bill McA - 2/20/10 at 3:20pm

That alternate "happy ending" for LOS OLVIDADOS is on the Films-sans-frontiers DVD... and it's every bit as terrible as you might expect! I forget the story about it, but I don't believe LOS OLVIDADOS was shown at the festivals with the "happy ending" (it's the film that revived Bunuel's career).

Updated to add Nazarin the moving story of the ill-treatment of a Christ-like priest.

Phantom of Liberty should arrive today, but I'm not sure if I'll watch it tonight.

Way to go Rich!

I trust Rich (because we also both passionately love Before Sunset)! El and The Milky Way are in my next Bunuel to see just to ensure that he'll get a perfect 10/10 from me.

Updated to add The Phantom of Liberty - Mucho hilarity ensues from the premise Jean-Claude Carriere discusses in his introduction on the DVD: Take a story, and just as it gets interesting, switch to another, less interesting story. Then when it starts to get interesting, switch again.

The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972) - 1/2
Land Without Bread (1933) - 1/2
L’ Âge d'or (1930) -
Un chien andalou (1929) -

I've stumbled across this thread accidentally but, now that I'm here, I might as well give it a go. In order of merit:


1.LE CHARME DISCRET DE LA BOURGEOISIE (1972) ****
2.BELLE DE JOUR (1967) ****
3.VIRIDIANA (1961) ****
4.TRISTANA (1970) ****
5.EL ANGEL EXTERMINADOR (1962) ****
6.LE FANTOME DE LA LIBERTE` (1974) ****
7.CET OBSCUR OBJET DU DESIR (1977) ****
8.SIMON DEL DESIERTO (1965) ****
9.L’AGE D’ OR (1930) ****
10.UN CHIEN ANDALOU (1929) ****
11.ROBINSON CRUSOE (1952) ***1/2
12.EL (1952) ***1/2
13.LA VOIE LACTEE` (1969) ***1/2
14.LOS OLVIDADOS (1950) ***1/2
15.NAZARIN (1959) ***1/2
16.ENSAYO DE UN CRIMEN (1955) ***1/2
17.LE JOURNAL D’ UNE FEMME DE CHAMBRE (1964) ***
18.LA MORTE EN CE JARDIN (1956) ***
19.CELA S'APPELLE L'AURORE (1955) ***
20.EL BRUTO (1952) ***
21.ABISMOS DE PASION (1953) ***
22.LA FIEVRE MONTE A` EL PAO (1959) ***
23.LA JOVEN (1960) ***
24.EL RIO Y LA MUERTE (1955) ***
25.SUBIDA AL CIELO (1951) ***
26.SUSANA (1951) ***
27.LAS HURDES: TIERRA SIN PAN (1932) **1/2
28.EL GRAN CALAVERA (1949) **1/2
29.LA HIJA DEL ENGANO (1951) **1/2
30.LA ILUSION VIAJA EN TRANVIA (1953) **1/2
31.UNA MUJER SIN AMOR (1951) **1/2


Bunuel is my all-time favorite director and has been for more than a decade. Even though there are some skeptics among us, it gives me great pleasure to see that they keep seeking his work out regardless (be it by accident or by design) and are not easily put off by the whimsical/surrealist/absurdist/anti-clerical nature of his work. For myself, in the coming weeks, I should hopefully be initiating two fellow HTF members into Bunuel's world. We'll see how it goes...

Hi, Joe...didn't think I'd ever see your name in a thread of this sort!

I could have sworn you'd be interested in seeing ROBINSON CRUSOE (1952) first out of all of Bunuel's films. Go ahead and rent it; even though stylistically it's a VERY conventional film by Bunuel's standards, it does have one or two unmistakably Bunuelian touches thrown in for good maeasure. But it's still an excellent film in its own right, with an equal measure of excitment and intelligence that make it the definitive film version of Daniel Defoe's classic story.

Some things I'm learning by participating in some of these threads:

1.) I should have kept notes decades ago.

2.) I need to classify my films more by Director.

3.) I need to see a helluva lotta films!

I hear you, Joe!

I agree that one should keep notes on stuff he watches (even if it's only ratings) because they sure come in handy in threads like these!

As you can see, although I've ranked the Bunuel films, I didn't rate them because, even though I might have an idea what rating I'd give them, they might still not be that accurate. In any case, I've gone back and written in the ratings I've given the Bunuel films which I've watched since I've been keeping track of the films I'm watching day by day...

I should add ANOTHER thing, Mario -- I really am not positive as to some of the star ratings, and sometimes I'm aware a film gets a higher or lower rating here than the last time I rated it!

I really need to find a better rating system.

Hell, I've gone and taken your lead and rated all the Bunuel films I've watched as I think they deserve. In any case, I should be rewatching a bunch of them shortly so I'll soon know if my ratings were accurate or not...

By the way, I see you've been lapping up these Great Directors checklists. I'm off from work tomorrow as well (sick leave, see) and I intend to take this opportunity to get to the other directors' threads, too.

Updated with:

The Exterminating Angel - A
Viridiana - B+

Still have Simon of the Desert to watch.

edited my list to include Los Olvidados.

Edited my list to include Viridiana.

Edited to include The Exterminating Angel.

Updated to include Simon Of The Desert - A

Wow, the shock of the day!!! I'm stunned you liked The Exterminating Angel, George. There's hope for you yet.

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Edited to add

BELLE DE JOUR (1967) ****

That Obscure ****** of Desire (1977)
The Phantom of Liberty (1974)
The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie (1972)
Tristana (1970)
The Milky Way (1969)
Belle de jour (1967)
Simon of the Desert (1965)
Diary of a Chambermaid (1964)
The Exterminating Angel (1962)
Viridiana (1961)
The Young One (1960)
Fever Rises in El Pao (1959)
Nazarín (1959)
Death in the Garden (1956)
The River and Death (1955)
Rehearsal for a Crime (1955)
That Is the Dawn (1955)
Robinson Crusoe (1954)
Wuthering Heights (1954)
Illusion Travels by Streetcar (1954)
El (1953)
The Brute (1953)
A Woman Without Love (1952)
Ascent to Heaven (1952)
Daughter of Deceit (1951)
Susana (1951)
Los Olvidados (1950)
The Great Madcap (1949)
Gran Casino (1947)
Land Without Bread (1933)
L’ Âge d'or (1930)
Un chien andalou (1929)