Escapism and Eye Candy: Movies to Watch

Eight films to watch when you're craving a visual feast.  Most of these aren't serious, just purely fun and fancy for the end of a weekend.  Whimsical, over the top sets never fail to captivate me.  After all, what is interior design if not at some level fantasy?

1. City of Lost Children (La Cité des Enfants Perdus) (1995). If you aren't familiar with the work of Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet (Jenuet did Amélie), this is most certainly worth looking into. A dark twisted fantasy about a mad scientist who kidnaps children to steal their dreams.

2. Metropolis (1927), Fritz Lang.  A dystopian classic with positively ominous cinematography.

3. Delicatessen (1991).  Another visual feast by Marc Caro and Jean-Pierre Jeunet.  A surrealist black comedy about a landlord who cooks cannibalistic meals for his tenants.

4. Marie Antoinette (2006). Sofia Coppola. A silky, pastel-colored, cake filled vision inspired by a royal figure's luxurious lifestyle and beautiful possessions. 

5. Brazil (1985). Terry Gilliam. A surrealist comedy based on Orwell's 1984. If for nothing else, watch it for Ida Lowry's Schiaparelli-inspired shoe hat. 

6. Un Chien Andalou (1929). Luis Bunuel and Salvador Dali. Dali's surrealism in motion.

7. The Age of Innoncence (1993). Martin Scorsese. Golden-age decadence.

8. The Addams Family (1991). Barry Sonnenfeld. Nominated for best costume design, watch it for the set.