For many modern moviegoers, black-and-white films may have negative connotations: one might believe that this kind of color scheme only belongs to Casablanca et cetera).
But black-and-white is not something filmmakers would just resort to once upon a time because there was no other option; many kept using it even after being able to shoot in color. Some notable modern examples include Schindler’s List and Good Night, And Good Luck. But to celebrate the closure of the decade, we will focus on great black-and-whites from the 2010-2020 period.
Sin City: A Dame To Kill For (2014)
The critics did not love this one, unlike its predecessor Sin City. But still, this modern-day neo-noir vision of a city full to the brim with corruption, stylish violence, perversity, and of course guns and booze (quite faithfully adapted from Frank Miller’s comic books) is worth the watch.
The plot follows four intermingling stories that feature (Ba)Sin City citizens, some of whom participate in more than one (e.g. Marv, Nancy, Senator Roark), with the main story being that of Dwight McCarthy who is drawn into his ex-lover Ava’s scheme. Miller’s and Rodriguez's concept of a world of black-and-white, deadly justice is fascinating.
Escape From Tomorrow (2013)
Maybe the inclusion of this independent horror film seems peculiar; critics were seriously divided, while mainstream audiences were alienated and weirded out. But conceptually this film is ingenious and as for its shooting, well… let us say emerging filmmaker Randy Moore ruffled some feathers. Shot guerrilla-style at Walt Disney World (Florida) with no permits whatsoever, principal photography was kept completely under the radar. The potential legal issues were massive, but Disney responded with silence to the whole affair. It follows an unemployed dad experiencing increasingly uncanny occurrences and ominous visions during the final day of a family trip at the Disney World Resort. The lack of color here is apt: it befits the sedate and sanitized type of happiness sold by Disney.
The Eyes Of My Mother (2016)
This subversive and eerie horror film was Nicholas Pesce’s directorial debut (he also wrote and edited it). It brilliantly explores the subjects of murder, loneliness, and parenthood, as we observe the world through the colorless gaze of the protagonist, kidnapper, and murderer sca who takes away the eyes (as she was taught by her mother, a veterinarian) and vocal cords of her kidnap victims and then imprisons them in her farm’s barn to escape her solitude. Variety website called the film a “subtle take on the horror-thriller genre reminiscent of Alfred Hitchcock meets Roald Dahl meets the Saw franchise”.
Blue Jay (2016)
This dramatic romance premiered at the Toronto International Film Festival and was directed by Alex Lehmann, also in his directorial debut (black-and-white is apparently a relatively popular choice for up-and-coming filmmakers). It received overwhelmingly positive reviews and has been called one of the gems of TIFF.
It narrates the story of Jim Henderson who goes back to his birthplace in California and reunites with his high-school sweetheart Amanda and it is revealed that the two had a tumultuous end to their relationship years ago. It was written by Mark Duplass (also the writer of The Lazarus Effect).
Keyhole (2011)
The peculiar amalgamation of genres found in this Canadian film makes it an enthralling, if also uncanny, watch. It blends gangster elements with haunted houses, thriller elements, and allusions to the Greek epic of Odyssey for a film that has plenty to say. Guy Maddin’s Keyhole narrates the tale of Ulysses Pick who returns to his home with his gang as the place is surrounded by police; he then embarks on a journey from room to room. Plenty of surrealism piles up here, with dead people simply getting up and leaving, ghosts that no one seems to mind and plenty of twists involving murder and revenge.
Darling (2015)
This horror film, written and directed by Mickey Keating (director of Carnage Park and Psychopaths), unfolds its terrifying plot in six chapters (but the implied vicious cycle of this story happening time and again points to many more chapters). Darling moves into Madame’s luxurious New York flat to become the new caretaker.
Madame leaves her with an ominous warning that the previous caretaker killed herself (The Shining much?) and with instructions never to open the door at the corridor’s end. Strange hallucinations and disturbing visions ensue, as Darling is tormented by the flat’s past and by appearances of the Latin proverb "Abyssus Abyssum Invocat" (Deep calls to Deep/ Hell invokes Hell).
A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night (2014)
Again, the blending of genres here is exquisite. In this Iranian vampire western horror film (exactly), the protagonist and antihero only known as The Girl roam the roads of Bad City, over which solitude and death seem to rule. She barely talks and has no connections with other people, her sole motivation to seek them out is being her thirst for blood, until she comes upon a lost, but comionate young man Arash.
It was Ana Lily Amirpour’s directorial debut and an homage to the style of spaghetti westerns, as well as to the classic German vampire film Nosferatu.
Ida (2013)
Paweł Pawlikowski’s drama garnered many accolades, amongst them the 2015 Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film (the first Polish film to win it). It was also crowned as Best Film of 2014 by the European Film Academy. Taking place in 1962 Poland, it narrates the story of a young woman preparing to take her vows as a Catholic nun. Having lost her parents as a toddler during World War II, she now reunites with her aunt (her ideological and life-style opposite). The ex-Communist and Ida’s single living relation reveals that her parents were Jewish. The two women embark on a journey around the Polish countryside to uncover their family’s past.
Roma (2018)
first (and still sole, although there are things happening) Netflix Original to be added to the Criterion Collection.
The Artist (2011)
And the first on our list, this beautiful and moving French comedy/drama was an homage to silent-era black-and-white films. The narrative unfolds in Hollywood during a six-year period (1927 to 1932), and centers around the relationship of an aging famous silent film actor and an emerging young actress as silent cinema becomes obsolete and old-fashioned until it is eventually dethroned by the "talkies"/talking films. Directed and written by Michel Hazanavicius (whose dream had been to make a silent black-and-white movie), this film received many awards and posed some brilliant ideas about the importance of preserving art and about feeling outdated and lost in a rapidly changing world.
