Tilda Swinton Listed Her Favorite Films: Do You Dare Stream Them?

Tilda Swinton didn’t compile a list of her favorite films specifically for your coronavirus-induced social isolation needs. She put it together as part of her new fellowship with the British Film Institute. However, if there was ever a time to hole up in your bedroom and immerse yourself in the high tastes of a divine, celestial witch, this is it.

Swinton’s list is, naturally, full of art-house and foreign classics, many in black and white. Though, they’re not all exercises in experimental obscurity or surrealism (there’s only one Pier Paolo Pasolini film on here, after all). You’ll find comedies, films about childhood, and even one version of a beloved fairy tail that would go on to directly inspire Disney’s version decades later. It’s as good as any well-rounded Film History 201 syllabus you’re likely to find.

Though, not a single one of these films is available on Netflix and only one is on Amazon. So how do you stream them? Well, they’re all available on the BFI Player (which may have directed her choices in some respect). Its available as a Roku channel in the United States (there’s a 7-day free trial as well). Many can be found on Criterion Channel (which we’ve already suggested as a wise investment right now), and quite a few are on Kanopy, which may be available for free with your local or university library card (though, not for New Yorkers, sorry). A couple of them also live on other various niche streaming sites, and a few can even be watched for free.

I Was Born, But… (Yasujirō Ozu, 1932)

Streaming: BFI and Criterion Channel and Kanopy

A silent comedy about the realities of class told through the eyes of two young brothers. Swinton calls it a “beautiful wee silent masterpiece about childhood.”

Tokyo Story (Yasujiro Ozu, 1953)

Streaming: BFI and Criterion Channel and Kanopy and Archive.org (free)

The second Ozu film on Swinton’s list, but this film has sound. It’s also widely considering the Japanese director’s masterpiece and a mainstay of various greatest films of all time lists. It tells the story of an elderly couple from a small town who travel to Tokyo to visits their grown children, who often are too busy for them. “Magisterial,” is how Swinton described it.

Journey to Italy (Roberto Rossellini, 1954)

Streaming: BFI and Criterion Channel and Kanopy and Filmbox on Amazon and Archive.org (free) 

Starring Ingrid Bergman, Rossellini’s film tells the story of an English couple whose marriage starts to show strain during a trip to Italy.

La Belle et la Bête (Jean Cocteau, 1946)

Streaming: BFI and Criterion Channel and Kanopy

Yes, this is the original film version of Beauty and the Beast. While it’s based on the classic French fairy tail, Cocteau added ideas that Disney would repurpose for their own version, including enchanted household objects and the design of the beast. Though in this version there is no loopy talking candlestick.

M (Fritz Lang, 1931)

Streaming: BFI of Kanopy or Archive.org (free) or YouTube (free)  

A masterpiece of German Expresionism, this film also had a huge impact on the American film noir genre of later decades. Swinton says it’s, “maybe the original psychological thriller.”

Medea (Pier Paolo Pasolini, 1971)

Streaming: BFI and Snagfilms (free) 

This is opera legend Maria Callas’s only film role (though, she doesn’t sing). Based on Greek myth, it might be worth watching for the opulent costuming alone.

My Childhood / My Ain Folk / My Way Home (Bill Douglas, 1973, ’74 and ’79)

Streaming: BFI and Vimeo (free) 

A trilogy of shorter films inspired by the director’s own childhood, Swinton calls it “a proper Scottish cultural treasure.”

Stranger by the Lake (Alain Guiraudie, 2013)

Streaming: BFI and Shudder

A lustful thriller set at a gay nude beach, the film wowed critics when it premiered at Cannes.

Uncle Boonmee Who Can Recall His Past Lives (Apichatpong Weerasethakul, 2010)

Streaming: BFI and Kanopy and Amazon Prime and Fandor 

Another recent Cannes hit, this Thai film is a sparse ghost story which punctuates its slowly unraveling plot with moments of levity.

Related: The Power of Tilda Swinton Has Convinced Pedro Almodóvar to Make Films in English

See Tilda Swinton Completely Transformed as Legendary Eccentric Edith Sitwell

Tilda Swinton wears a Gucci dress; Marc Jacobs belt (worn as turban); rings: (right hand) Vela, (left hand, from left) Uno de 50, A. Brandt + Son, Lisa Eisner Jewelry, Lisa Eisner Jewelry.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Michael Kors Collection top and skirt; rings: (right hand, from left) stylist’s own, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., (left hand, from left) Uno de 50, stylist’s own; Monvieve choker; Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace; stylist’s own turban.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Gucci dress and tights; Marc Jacobs belt (worn as turban) and shoes; rings: (right hand, from left) Pebble London, Pebble London, Lisa Eisner Jewelry, Arman Sarkisyan, Vela, (left hand, from left) Lisa Eisner Jewelry, Uno de 50, A. Brandt + Son.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

From Left: Edith Sitwell, photographed by Cecil Beaton, in 1962; A view of the Renishaw Hall estate in a 1930s photograph by John Piper; Osbert, Edith, and Sacheverell Sitwell, photographed by Maurice Beck and Helen Macgregor, in 1924.

© The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive at Sotheby’s; © The Piper estate/Tate London, 2018; Courtesy of University of Texas Press/National Portrait Gallery Publications.

Tilda Swinton wears a Michael Kors Collection top; rings: (right hand) Uno de 50, stylist’s own, (left hand, from left) stylist’s own, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co.; Monvieve choker; Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace; Joelle Kharrat necklace; stylist’s own turban.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Giorgio Armani jacket and pants; Gucci hood (worn as turban) and necklace; rings: (left hand, from top) Uno de 50, Gucci, Pebble London, (right hand, from top) Uno de 50, Gucci, Gucci. Beauty note: Walk a thin line. Lancôme Brow Shaping Powdery Pencil takes a precision approach for amplified arches.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Michael Kors Collection top and skirt; Monvieve choker; Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace; Arman Sarkisyan locket necklace; Joelle Kharrat long necklace; rings: (right hand, from top) stylist’s own, Elsa Perreti for Tiffany & Co., (left hand, from top) stylist’sown, Uno de 50; Gucci tights; Chanel shoes; stylist’s own turban.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Givenchy dress; Marc Jacobs belt (worn as turban); rings: (right hand, from left) Dara Ettinger, Dior, Dara Ettinger, (left hand, from left) Patricia von Musulin, Patricia von Musulin; bracelets: (right arm) Urban Zen, Dinosaur Designs, Patricia von Musulin, (left arm) Patricia von Musulin, Urban Zen.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Marc Jacobs blouse, trousers, and belt; vintage hat from Early Halloween, New York; Cult Gaia bracelet; rings: (right hand, from left) Dinosaur Designs, Dara Ettinger, Patricia von Musulin, (left hand, from left) A. Brandt + Son, Patricia von Musulin.

Wyndham Lewis’s portrait of Sitwell, 1923–1935.

© Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust and Tate London, 2018.

Amedeo Modigliani’s Portrait of Edith Sitwell, 1954.

Heritage Auctions, HA.com.

A spot in the gardens at Renishaw Hall.

Photograph by Tim Walker.

Tilda Swinton wears a Marni coat; Alexander McQueen dress; Prada turban; rings: (right hand) Patricia von Musulin, (left hand, from left) Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., Patricia von Musulin; the Row bag; Gucci tights; Marc Jacobs shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Max Mara dress; Heather Huey hat; Proenza Schouler necklace; bracelets: (right arm, top) Cult Gaia, all other bracelets stylist’s own; rings: (right hand) Kathleen Whitaker, (left hand) A. Brandt + Son.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Michael Kors Collection top and skirt; Monvieve choker; Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace; Arman Sarkisyan necklace; Joelle Kharrat necklace; rings: (right hand, from left) stylist’s own, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., (left hand, from left) Uno de 50, stylist’s own; Gucci tights; Chanel shoes; stylist’s own turban.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Tilda Swinton wears a Michael Kors Collection top and skirt; Monvieve choker; Camilla Dietz Bergeron necklace; Arman Sarkisyan necklace; Joelle Kharrat necklace; rings: (right hand, from left) stylist’s own, Elsa Peretti for Tiffany & Co., (left hand, from left) Uno de 50, stylist’s own; Gucci tights; Chanel shoes; stylist’s own turban.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

From Top: The epitaph on Sitwell’s grave at St. Mary’s Churchyard, in Northamptonshire; Sitwell’s hands and rings, photographed by Jane Bown, in 1959; A photograph of Sitwell taken in 1924 by Maurice Beck and Helen Macgregor, included in the book The Sitwells and the Arts of the 1920s and 1930s.

Photograph by Tim Walker(2); Observer/Eyevine/Redux.

Tilda Swinton wears a Kwaidan Editions faux fur; Dior dress; vintage hat from New York Vintage, New York; Alice Cicolini ring; Urban Zen bracelet; Gucci tights; Marc Jacobs shoes.

Photograph by Tim Walker; Styled by Sara Moonves.

Hair by Malcolm Edwards at Art Partner; Makeup by Lynsey Alexander for Lancôme at Streeters; Manicure by Trish Lomax at JAQ Management. Produced by Jeff Delich at Padbury Production; Production Coordinator: Lauren Sakioka; Retouching by Graeme Bulcraig at Touch Digital; Photography Assistants: Sarah Lloyd, Tony Ivanov; Fashion Assistants: Mary Ushay, Angus McEvoy; Tailor: Alina Gencaite; Production Assistants: James Stopforth, Charlotte Norman; Special thanks to Renishaw Hall, Jerry Stafford, Sandro Kopp. Beaton: © The Cecil Beaton Studio Archive at Sotheby’s; Piper: © The Piper estate/Tate London, 2018;vBeck and Macgregor: Courtesy of University of Texas Press/National Portrait Gallery Publications; Lewis: © Wyndham Lewis Memorial Trust and Tate London, 2018; Modigliani: Heritage Auctions, HA.com; Bown: Observer/Eyevine/Redux.

Renishaw Hall, the childhood home of Edith Sitwell in Derbyshire, England, remains in the family.

Photograph by Tim Walker.

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