Films That Influenced Samam

These are the movies that deeply inspired and influenced me, during the process of making Samam. Making this list makes me want to revisit them, with tears of gratitude. This is not a list of my favorite films. These are films that, in some way or shape or form, I looked consciously to piece Samam together as a whole. And, this list is not exhaustive. There are many hundred movies I watched that crept into my subconscious without me being aware of it.

These are movies that I learnt cinema from, immerse myself in the language, understand writing, find techniques, intertwine internal and external, find tricks, steal shots, be courageous in a personal act of deep introspection, be brutally honest in the act of iso-morphing them to fiction, have a laugh at the absurdity of human consciousness in understanding life, be humbled in the philosophical quest of finding truth.

I write this eyes welled up, with a big giant dollop of gratitude, to all of these works of art, and everyone involved with them. Thanks for making my life richer!

• Yi Yi Edward Yang, 2000 Chinese. 174 min Taiwan, Japan
• The Master Paul Thomas Anderson, 2012 English. 137 min USA
• A Woman Under the Influence John Cassavetes, 1974 English. 155 min USA
• Tokyo Story Yasujirō Ozu, 1953 Japanese. 137 min Japan
• Chungking Express Wong Kar-wai, 1994 Cantonese. 103 min Hong Kong
• Still Walking Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2008 Japanese. 114 min Japan
• Life, and Nothing More… Abbas Kiarostami, 1992 Persian. 95 min Iran
• The White Ribbon Michael Haneke, 2009 German. 144 min Germany, Austria, France, Italy
• The Apartment Billy Wilder, 1960 English. 126 min USA
• Phantom Thread Paul Thomas Anderson, 2017 English. 130 min USA
• Some Like It Hot Billy Wilder, 1959 English. 123 min USA
• In the Mood for Love Wong Kar-wai, 2000 Cantonese. 99 min Hong Kong, France
• The Gleaners and I Agnès Varda, 2000 French. 82 min France
• Man with a Movie Camera Dziga Vertov, 1929 Silent. 68 min Soviet Union
• Roma Alfonso Cuarón, 2018 Spanish. 135 min Mexico, USA
• Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans F. W. Murnau, 1927 Silent. 94 min USA
• There Will Be Blood Paul Thomas Anderson, 2007 English. 158 min USA
• The Headless Woman Lucrecia Martel, 2008 Spanish. 87 min Argentina, France, Italy, Spain
• Iruvar Mani Ratnam, 1997 Tamil. 140 min India
• Winter Sleep Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2014 Turkish. 196 min Turkey, France, Germany
• Late Spring Yasujirō Ozu, 1949 Japanese. 108 min Japan
• Husbands John Cassavetes, 1970 English. 131 min USA
• Magnolia Paul Thomas Anderson, 1999 English. 189 min USA
• Punch-Drunk Love Paul Thomas Anderson, 2002 English. 96 min USA
• Arrival Denis Villeneuve, 2016 English. 116 min USA
• Amour Michael Haneke, 2012 French. 127 min France, Germany, Austria
• Distant Nuri Bilge Ceylan, 2002 Turkish. 106 min Turkey
• Where Is the Friend's House? Abbas Kiarostami, 1987 Persian. 83 min Iran
• Through the Olive Trees Abbas Kiarostami, 1994 Persian. 104 min Iran, France
• Ikiru Akira Kurosawa, 1952 Japanese. 143 min Japan
• Like Father, Like Son Hirokazu Kore-eda, 2013 Japanese. 120 min Japan
• Aftersun Charlotte Wells, 2022 English. 101 min UK, USA
• Vagabond Agnès Varda, 1985 French. 106 min France, UK
• High and Low Akira Kurosawa, 1963 Japanese. 142 min Japan
• Caché Michael Haneke, 2005 French. 118 min France, Austria, Germany, Italy
• Code Unknown Michael Haneke, 2000 French. 118 min France, Germany, Romania
• The Red Shoes Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger, 1948 English. 133 min UK
• Y Tu Mamá También Alfonso Cuarón, 2001 Spanish. 106 min Mexico
• Charulata Satyajit Ray, 1964 Bengali. 117 min India
• A Brighter Summer Day Edward Yang, 1991 Chinese. 237 min Taiwan
• Persona Ingmar Bergman, 1966 Swedish. 85 min Sweden
• This Is Not a Film Jafar Panahi & Mojtaba Mirtahmasb, 2011 Persian. 76 min Iran
• Nights of Cabiria Federico Fellini, 1957 Italian. 110 min Italy, France
• The Hunt Thomas Vinterberg, 2012 Danish. 116 min Denmark, Sweden
• My Neighbor Totoro Hayao Miyazaki, 1988 Japanese. 86 min Japan
• The Big City Satyajit Ray, 1963 Bengali. 136 min India
• Get Out Jordan Peele, 2017 English. 104 min USA
• Parasite Bong Joon Ho, 2019 Korean. 133 min South Korea
• The Tree of Life Terrence Malick, 2011 English. 139 min USA
• Mulholland Drive David Lynch, 2001 English. 147 min France, USA
• Burning Lee Chang-dong, 2018 Korean. 148 min South Korea, Japan
• Cold War Paweł Pawlikowski, 2018 Polish. 88 min Poland, UK, France
• Dekalog Krzysztof Kieślowski, 1989 Polish. 10 episodes, 572 min total Poland, Germany
• Beau Travail Claire Denis, 1999 French. 93 min France
• News from Home Chantal Akerman, 1976 French. 89 min Belgium, France, Germany
• La Ciénaga Lucrecia Martel, 2001 Spanish. 101 min Argentina, France, Spain
• A Streetcar Named Desire Elia Kazan, 1951 English. 122 min USA
• Touki Bouki Djibril Diop Mambéty, 1973 Wolof. 91 min Senegal
• A Separation Asghar Farhadi, 2011 Persian. 123 min Iran, France
• Spirited Away Hayao Miyazaki, 2001 Japanese. 125 min Japan