Chris Marker directs Hélène Châtelain, Davos Hanich and Jacques Ledoux in this short French art film constructed almost entirely from still photos, it tells the story of a post-nuclear war experiment in time travel.

Famous to my generation as being a key influence on Terry Gilliam’s 12 Monkeys. The Gen-X sci-fi favourite is almost a faithful remake of the plot of this short, strange film. Yet while the famous blockbuster is more of an adventure, La Jetée focuses as much on the psychology and doomed romance of time travel experiments. Being the guinea pig in one. Told in a slideshow of stark monochrome photos we still feel the protagonists’ attraction, frustration, pain and futility. Time and memory happening at an uncontrollable fluctuation. Very rare a short film enters my personal Top 1000 movie. This inarguably belongs there.

9

Perfect Double Bill: San Soleil (1983)

My wife and I do a podcast together called The Worst Movies We Own. It is available on Spotify or here https://letterboxd.com/bobbycarroll/list/the-worst-movies-we-own-podcast-ranking-and/