Essential Movies You’ve Never Seen

Cafe Society
21

One essential movie I haven’t seen is Apocalypse Now. I’ve read the book it was based on though. Does that count for anything?

Pulp Fiction
Casablanca
The Princess Bride
Terminators 1 & 2

Many, many others…

22

Casablanca.
Gone With the Wind.
It’s a Wonderful Life.
Any John Wayne movie. Not a one.
Plan 9 From Outer Space.

23

From the imdb top 50 list, I’ve never seen:

Casablanca
Shichinin no Samurai (or the American version, The Magnificent Seven)
most of Alfred Hitchcock’s work on the list (though I have seen several of his other films)
Lawrence of Arabia
Sunset Blvd.
Some Like it Hot
Taxi Driver
Paths of Glory (never even heard of it)
Das Boot
Double Indemnity
Chinatown
Requiem for a Dream
Bridge on the River Kwai
Singin’ in the Rain
Saving Private Ryan
All About Eve

But most of them are on my ‘should see’ list.

Altogether, I’ve seen 60 of the top 100.

24

Classic/Significant films I’ve missed seeing:
Schindler’s List
Lawrence of Arabia
Saving Private Ryan
It’s a Wonderful Life
The Deer Hunter
Ben-Hur
Easy Rider

Recent movies I’ve heard a lot of talk about but not seen:
A Beautiful Mind
The Hours
Y tu mamá también
Hedwig and the Angry Inch

25

For everyone who is asking, no “10 things I hate about you” is in no way a classic movie, nor is it even a good teenybopper film. Based on “Taming of the Shrew” Julia Styles (Save the last dance) hates guys, sister loves guys, both fall in love with different guys, everyones happy. No one will care about this movie in 10 years. Then again, I said that about speed…

26

Citizen Kane.

Lawerence of Arabia.

The Godfather series of movies.

Only seen about half of the Hitchcock movies which are considered classics.

27

must see

Gladiator
Midnight In The Garden of Good and Evil
L. A. Confidential
A Beautiful Mind
American Beauty
The Usual Suspects
Swimming With Sharks
Grosse Point Blanke
The Life of David Gale

28

Everyone should see Casablanca and The Wizard of OZ and Gone With the Wind and maybe Godfather 1 & 2, 1) because they’re excellent and 2) so they will know what everyone else is talking about.

I suspect more people talk about Citizen Kane than have seen it, so you’re on your own there. If you want “good movie” recommendations, start with the above, add In the Heat of the Night and then search the SD archives–I’m sure there are multiple “what movies should I see” threads.

If you want “pop culture,” that is something of a different question. On the imdb (www.imdb.com) there are “Top” lists of every description, try “Tops at the Box-Office” for most popular (made the most money, which means newer films have an advantage–Twister at #27???) and “Top-Rated Movies” for the “best” (whatever that means)–remembering that these are ratings from people who use the web to look up movies…not exactly a cross-section of America.

And finally, there’s no particular reason you “should” watch any of these–movies are entertainment!

29

Titanic
Saving Private Ryan
Alien
Fatal Attraction
Godfather
Pulp Fiction
Taxi Driver
And I have no plans to ever see them. Ataraxy22, Tanaqui, Torgo, I am impressed!

30

Some folks’ idea of “essential” movies is really troubling.

31

I have a lot of these.

  • Gone with the Wind
  • Casablanca
  • Schindler’s List
  • The Shawshank Redemption
  • Pulp Fiction
  • Braveheart
  • The Matrix
  • Ben-Hur
  • Psycho
  • Dances with Wolves
  • Footloose
  • Fatal Attraction
  • The Godfather(or any sequels)
  • Saving Private Ryan

That’s just off the top of my head. I feel so uncultured. :wink: