Demetrios Matheou

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The task of choosing the 10 greatest films of all time is inherently futile, leading only to a kind of madness (and let’s face it, critics already spend far too much time in the dark). It’s impossible to include every film that has changed my life in some way, or continues to inform my perspective on the world, or has added a new dimension to its medium – surely all aspects of great art. And, over time, the pool only gets deeper. So, a decade after my last attempt, it feels imperative to shuffle the deck, with a list that is perhaps a little more instinctive. Whether long beloved or more recent, what all these 10 films share is a permanent residence in my psyche, from where they constantly remind me of cinema’s miraculous, mysterious, moving possibilities.

To ease my labours, I’m allowing some special mentions: The 400 Blows and Vivre sa vie; La Jetée; Bicycle Thieves and 8½; Howard Hawks, John Cassavetes and Lucrecia Martel; and the comedies I can’t live without – His Girl Friday, The Philadelphia Story, The Lady Eve.