Gus Van Sant is one of the most radical directors among the great
names of today's movie world. His Gerry and Elephant are masterpieces.
And Paranoid Park is the movie that made me understand better his
filming approach: he is not an observer; he is immersing into the
world of his heroes, to be there, to live there, to feel what they
feel, to take the picture from the center of the circle.

He gave to Newsweek his top of five most important movies. It is a
list as radical as his philosophy of creating a movie. His top
contains movies from 1927 to 2009:

1. Sátántangó (Satan's Tango, Béla Tarr, 1994): he likes Béla
Tarr's directorial style, retracing time in each of its sections—yet
it's linear.
2. Sunrise (F. W. Murnau, 1927): it shows the opulence of Hollywood
in the 1920s; there was a style of creating elaborate sets that cannot
be seen any longer.
3. The Last of England (Derek Jarman, 1988): the structure becomes
visual, rather than relying on a verbal explanation.
4. The Palm Beach Story (Preston Sturges, 1942): it's wild, and the
epitome of Preston Sturges.
5. Synecdoche, New York (Charlie Kaufman, 2008 - European release
in 2009): a pastiche of existence; there's no way to describe it; it's
pretty intense.

I hope I'll make it to see Synecdoche, New York this coming weekend.