Last week I started work for a video and game rental store. One of the perks is that I can get nearly any movie or video game for free (up to three per night, excluding movies released within the past 21 days, but including movies that aren’t available for public rental yet like The Matrix Reloaded, which comes out tomorrow). Only problem is, I have no idea what to watch.
So, since money isn’t an issue, any recommendations?
Anything by the Coen Brothers.
Fargo, The Big Lebowski, O Brother Where Art Thou, Raising Arizona, Barton Fink, Miller’s Crossing, Blood Simple, The Hudsucker Proxy, The Man Who Wasn’t There…
I’ll stop listing. They’re all great. Look them up on IMDB.
Do you work for a crap chain like Blockbuster or Hollywood Video? If you work for an independent, then you may have a strong Foreign and Classics selection. I know that’s where I’d pillage first. Old movies, in particular, are great because they tend to have shorter running times so you can fit more in a night (not to mention that the movies themselves are usually better than most product in the “New Releases” section).
Um, what kind of movies do you like?
Yeah, I do work for a crap chain. But hey, a job’s a job. That does mean that I don’t have much access to foreign films, though.
Good question. I’m sure real film buffs (no pun intended) will retch, but some favorites that come to mind are Snatch,* Fight Club*, Requiem for a Dream, and The Boondock Saints. I love The Lord of the Rings in any medium and I’m a fan of sci-fi and fantasy in general, though the movies I’ve listed don’t really seem to support that. In any case, I figure that there’s no reason not to heed any of these suggestions since I can simply turn off the movie without having wasted any cash.
…except for Barton Fink. 
There are few things in life more painful than watching John Goodman sweat in a wifebeater for three hours.
EYE OF GOD with Martha Plimpton, Kevin Anderson, Nick Stahl and Hal Holbrook. Brilliantly structured script by Tim Blake Nelson and solid acting make this little-known powerful drama a must-see.
Have you tried anime? For fantasy try Princess Mononoke and Spirited Away two great films by Hayao Miyazaki (the most famous anime director). For science fiction try Ghost in the Shell and Metropolis.
Well, are you looking for entertainment or are you looking for more “film as art”?
I like the Sam Raimi/Bruce Campbell flicks, but that’s me.
In my Top 10 favorite movies (excluding ones you’ve already mentioned) in no particular order:
Breakfest At Tiffany’s
The Breakfest Club
The Graduate
Brazil
American History X
The Beach
The Man With No Name Trilogy (Fistfull of Dollars, For a Few Dollars More, The Good The Bad and The Ugly)
High Plains Drifter
Princess Monoke
Dune (the original movie version by the DeLaurentis folks)
I would also want to get:
Tron
Black Hole
Flash Gorden (DeLaurentis again)
The Virgin Suicides
Godfather Trilogy
The Conan Trilogy
Krull
Death Race 2000
Gremlins
2001 & 2010
I would also want to get the movies those crappy chains don’t have:
Evil Dead 1&2
CrossWorlds
Kurt Vonnegut’s: Alec Bergeron
The Germinal
The City of the Lost Children
Mad Max Trilogy
Pink Floyd: Live in Pompei
Thats all I can think of for now.
Uh, they never made Conan 3. Arnie’s about the right age now to play Conan the King, once he’s done slogging through the mess in Sacramento.
There’s this little known film called “Greenfingers” (about British prisoners who get into gardening) that is really charming. Funny and charming. Also, “Brassed Off.” Love that film.
And science fiction–hmm…well there are all the standards (Star Wars, Star Trek, etc.) but I lalso ove a rather schlocky Kurt Russell film called “Soldier.” It just did it for me. I’ve also been renting a lot of movies from Netfilx.com (great deal!) and have been slowly going through the films of Clint Eastwood. He’s done some fun films. I like the old 70s and 80s ones too (“Bronco Billy” is very funny).
Oh, a special vote for the Barbara Hershey/Tom Berenger film “Last of the Dogmen.” Kind of sweet and corny (a cross between “Lost Horizon” and “Dances with Wolves”–I read that somewhere) but I love that film. Oh, and another Tom Berenger great: “At Play in the Fields of the Lord.” Wonderful film. Very intense. I’ve seen it at Blockbuster so there’s a good shot you can find it.
I don’t know how much that helps, but I gave it a shot! 
Ack: “I lalso ove”? What the hell is that?
It’s this damned keyboard. It keeps skipping keys and weirding out on me. I’m sharing it between a Mac and a PC (KVM switch) and it’s just not working out. Each computer needs their own keyboard, obviously. :eek:
Harvey. Without exception the best Jimmy Stewart movie. I have lent this film to many different people with tastes that span the gamut, and they all love it.
To Kill A Mockingbird. OK, I’m in love with this movie again because I just read the book, and it is the most accurately adapted book-to-movie ever made.
If you like Requiem, you’ll probably like A Clockwork Orange. It’s a violent look at society, but it makes a powerful statement.
Alec Bergeron? Do you by any chance mean Harrison Bergeron?
I’d say, rather than looking for specific films, go for films that have a common actor/director/writer running through them.
As in…I liked Fargo, so I’ll get The Big Lebowski (Coen’s directed both). I liked the Dude, so I’ll check out The Fisher King. Hey, Robin Williams is in that, how about I get Flubber. Flubber sucked, I shouldn’t listen to Ender_Will’s theory…
My sister worked for a video store in high school (a small chain, now defunct–at least, that particular store is gone now) and she rented just about every kind of movie. Take this opportunity to expand your horizons. If, while cleaning the shelves, you see something that tickles your fancy, go ahead and pick that up for the night.
She told me that the rationale for letting the employees rent for free was so that they would be familiar with the movies so that they could recommend movies to their customers. Of course, her boss wanted them to rent the new releases so that they could push them, but my sister, in good conscience, could not recommend most of the new Hollywood dreck. She raided the foreign and classics sections, small and crappy as they were (if small stores are known for better foriegn and classics sections now, it’s because the ones that didn’t have them didn’t survive. When I discovered anime in the early 90’s, I told her to tell her boss that he should get some anime titles. Nothin’ doin’. Well, look how big anime has become!)
If anything, after you’ve worked there a while, you should rent Clerks. You’ll laugh your ass off.
Actually, in my area, the only small video stores that are left are just fronts for porn rental. A few crappy “regular” videos in the front, while the “little back room” has taken over almost the entire store! You have to go to Blockbuster to get a “normal” movie.