I’ve recklessly joined a video club and am now stocking up on sale items as I live 30 minutes from the nearest Blockbuster and am always late on returns. Thus far I’ve gotten the following films:
The Big Country
To Kill a Mockingbird
GWTW
Lawrence of Arabia
Rocky Horror
Now, Voyager
Life of Brian
MP Holy Grail
The Meaning of Life
American Beauty
Easy Rider
LOTR (when it comes out}
Hopefully, this will give you some insight into my taste or lack of.
Knowing that there are true film connoisseurs on board, I respectfully solicit your suggestions as to other titles I could add.
Ta in advance.
Well, what kinda stuff do you like? I’m a film buff, but maybe a third of the ones on your list roll off my knife. Tell me the genres, stars, eras, you like, and I’ll be dee-lighted to throw a few ideas your way.
And do you want your collection to consist of classic films or movies that are just now being made available for purchase? Some people just buy the new ones when they come out at a sell-through price; others only buy the all-time greats. (Of course, according to your brief list, I’d have to think you’re in the ‘classic’ camp.)
Also, there are places to buy movies (VHS or DVD) that are a little cheaper than places like Blockbuster. Here in Maryland we have tons of blowout/clearance/discount video places; the movies are new (or newish), and they’re usually fairly inexpensive.
Like Eve said, let us know your favorite genres.
To start you off, I’d suggest going to www.imdb.com and checking IMdB’s Top 250 movies of all time. You’re sure to find a handful you like in there.
Thanks Eve, I was rather hoping that you’d show up in this thread. Didn’t wanta pressure you with one of those coy “Eve, woohoo, over here thread titles” ,however.
I like lotsa stuff-that’s my problem.
Not real big on the action movie genre-my rule of thumb is that if more than 9 people die in the first 10 minutes-I’m outta here. I am one of the 3 people in America that didn’t rave about the Pulp Fiction. Fell asleep in Gladiator.
Like the earlier Woody Allen stuff but dropped interest after Hannah…
Dialogue and plot are important but I never sneeze at great visuals either.Don’t mind having to work at a movie but it better be worth it.
Don’t mind mindless entertainment either but don’t think farting and turds and teenage boys trying to get laid are a basis for great comedy.
More recently , thought The Others were great.
Hated Terms of Endearment. Loved Leaving Las Vegas.
Hated the last Star Wars. Loved the first.
Sniffled in Titanic but felt used afterwards.
I’m hoping to expand my horizons and stretch my diminutive brain-while lolling on my couch and woofling Mike’s and popcorn.
There are classics and there are those that you’d actually want to watch over again through the years and are, therefore, worth buying. In addition to some of those you mentioned, here are some of mine that fit both criteria:
2001: A Space Odyssey
The Andromeda Strain
Dr. Strangelove
The Thing (John Carpenter)
Tombstone
Bullitt
Camelot
Oliver
Predator
My Dinner With Andre
Ronin
Saving Private Ryan
Obviously, there’s hundreds more but I’m at work and forget what I have. BTW, all these are available on DVD.
Oh, but mon frere, I love zose “yoo-hoo, over here, Eve!” threads! Well, the bnest I can do is cut-and-paste from another recent thread, that one on what DVDs to buy. These are all from the 1930s, though, so I’ll lket other Dopers handle the pre- and -post-'30s films.
Comedies
The Women (all-star extravaganza)
Million Dollar Legs and/or Three Cornered Moon (little known, but hilarious!)
It Happened One Night (Gable & Colbert)
Any Marx Brothers film from Paramount (not their MGM stuff)
Bombshell (Jean Harlow)
I’m No Angel (Mae West)
Musicals
Best Busby Berkeley musicals: Gold Diggers of 1933, 42nd Street, Footlight Parade
One Hour with You and/or Love Me Tonight (Chevalier & MacDonald)
Any pre-1938 Astaire/Rogers film
The Wizard of Oz
Gangster
Little Caesar
Public Enemy
I Am a Fugitive from a Chain Gang
Scarface
Horror
Frankenstein and/or Bride of Frankenstein
Dracula
Freaks
Island of Lost Souls
Dramas
Dinner at Eight and/or Grand Hotel (all-stars)
Gone with the Wind
One Way Passage (great weepie)
Marie Antoinette (MGM historical blockbuster)
This is a work still in progress, but here are some of my favorite movies. Only the first 20 are in order (and I’m not even possitive about that), the rest are just randomly placed until I it down and figure it out.
It is always fun to read these threads because it is interesting to see how vastly tastes can differ. There are (in my opinion) some truly awful films mentioned in this thread (Pi!?) and I’m sure that if I were to list some everyone would react similarly to at least one of them.
But I won’t, except to say that you need to order Amelie NOW! Just because I own it doesn’t mean it is a good movie, but you can see my current collection here, maybe you’ll see something you like.
If you liked Lawrence of Arabia you should try Bridge on the River Kwai and Dr. Zhivago also by David Lean (if you haven’t already)
If you want to try new genres you might want to try film noir or the screwball comedies of the 30’s and 40’s.
Some of the best comedies include His Girl Friday, Bringing up Baby, Palm Beach Story, Philadelphia Story.
Film Noir: Maltese Falcon, Double Indemnity, Big Sleep, Sunset Boulevard ( the device used in American Beauty of telling you right at the begining that the hero will die is probably a homage to Sunset)
If you want something completely different try Japanese anime. I loved Princess Mononoke by Miyazaki. Other famous anime films include Ghost in the Shell and Metropolis which I haven’t seen yet.
Japanese animated TV serials are also very good. I am currently watching Cowboy Bebop which is really good.
All of the above anime should be available on DVD at your local store.
Whether the divine Eve would agree with my selections or not, my personal opinion is that certain films must be included in a film library. Some because they are classic examples of a certain genre, others because they are just good films, still others because they are classics (which is not the same as a good film, necessarily). In no particular order, and with some omissions, probably, since this is off the top of my head…
His Girl Friday
Marx Bros. pre-MGM (spot on, Eve)
Bringing Up Baby
It Happened One Night
Casablanca
The Maltese Falcon
Citizen Kane
The Godfather
Singin’ In The Rain
Numerous Alfred Hitchcock titles, most notably Notorious, North By Northwest, Psycho, Rear Window, Vertigo
Pulp Fiction
Dr. Strangelove
The original Little Shop of Horrors
2001: A Space Odyssey
There are more, but, as I said above, I’m doing this off the cuff.
