The Lives of Others, a German film about state surveillance of civilians during the Cold War. Touching, deep, and still quite relevant.
It’s extremely loosely based on an earlier film (but by no means simply an adaptation), but the Douglas Sirk Imitation of Life is a first year film studies class and is fertile ground for discussion. There have been some brilliant essays on this film, so you’d have some stuff to build your discussion around. It’s probably the most accessible of the great high art films, as it is disguised as classic rags-to-riches narrative. Really, really, really great movie.
Do the Right Thing is a film school classic.
For Westerns The Searchers is as good as it gets. Also some good essays on that. Lots of interesting stuff about race, 1950s America, and the evolution of the Western as a genre.
I would stay away from your standard artsy-fartsy blockbusters (a la American **Beauty **or Being John Malkovich and yes, Momento) because those who are interested have seen them and those who aren’t interested are going to think they are pretentious BS. There are so many great movies out there that even pretty well-watched people haven’t already seen. Choose one of those.
I’d also avoid a simple “subject” movie that has little more going for it than it addresses a controversial subject (like Requiem for a Dream or Blood Diamond). If you want to talk about a controversy, that is fine. But if you are going to spend the time to watch a film, you might as well watch something that really engages with film itself and has a place in cinematic history.
Memento is definitely a great choice. How about Donnie Darko? Fight Club? Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls?
I would recomend Mona Lisa Smile
Had so many different things in that make for an interesting discussion.
Declan
Bicycle Thieves. - Wonderful film.
If you don’t mind subtitles (or if everyone is fluent in German 
), I recommend Goodbye, Lenin. I absolutely adored it. Also, I fourth or fifth Gosford Park.
David Duchovny, fundamentalist Christianity, and Mimi Rogers’ boobs- a winning combination in Michael Tolkin’s THE RAPTURE.
It’s over three hours long, for a start, and the OP said no longer than 2 and a half hours.
Which is a shame, because it’s a good movie.
What about something a bit different- Kung Fu Hustle or Brotherhood Of The Wolf?
They’ve both got lots of discussion-worthy things in them (Imagine combining a Hong Kong Wire-Fu movie with a Looney Tunes Cartoon and the first Act from Indiana Jones & The Temple Of Doom and you’ve got some idea what Kung Fu Hustle is like, and Brotherhood Of The Wolf is an interesting whodunit/adventure film set in 18th Century France about a beast killing locals and the two guys sent from Paris to do something about it, much to the chagrin of some of the locals).
Someone in another thread described Sky Captain And The World Of Tomorrow as being an example of why films should not be made by directors and not the CGI department, whereas I think it’s a really good retro-pulp adventure. Certainly lots to discuss there, at any rate (including the use of dead actors “resurrected” from stock footage)…
Metropolis
Star Wars (even though it’s already been recommended **
Brother from Another Planet**
I’d include Forbiden Planet, but some wise-ass would claim that it’s just an adaptation of The Tempest, which I’d dispute.
Unfortunately, most of the things I’d include in this list violate one of the restrictions – they’re related to a previous work, or they’re too long, or both. It’s easy to do – the already-suggested Harvey was a play first. And Lawrence of Arabia is adapted from Lawrence’s Seven Pillars of Wisdom.
Gosford Park is a great choice.
I would also recommend Any Given Sunday, especially if anyone has any interest at all in football. That movie is ripe with issues covering many different subjects, and I’m not even joking. Of course, it’s sort of loosely based on 2 different unrelated football books and 3 different unrelated scripts, but I think its execution qualifies it for original to the screen.
The last time this group had a seminar on a film, it was Do The Right Thing, at my suggestion. It’s exactly the kind of film we’re looking for this time: well done, with complex themes, and no easy answers. As are many of the suggestions you all have provided. Thanks.
BrassyPhrase: My biggest problem with Lawrence, apart from the length, is that watching it on even the largest home TV is still missing the essence of the film. If you haven’t seen it projected on a large theater screen from a 70mm print, you haven’t seen Lawrence of Arabia.
That’s why I wouldn’t recommend 2001: A Space Odyssey. (It’s also too long.)
I’ll send off a number of your suggestions, but the deadline hasn’t quite passed, so please feel free to suggest a few more.
Thanks again.
How about Rashomon? Great movie, obvious discussion openings.
**Eyes Wide Shut **is another possibility. I think it was sunk by its marketing.
I thought of this, too, but it’s based on two stories, so it didn’t seem to meet the OP’s requirement of originality. Although it does change the stories ernough to arguably qualify.
i would’ve recommended seven Samurai, which has no obvious pregenitors, but it’s easily too long.
My recommendations (and what to discuss):
-
“The Usual Suspects” topic: what do you know for sure actually took place ?
-
“Touching the Void” topic: what would you do ?/Did the partner (non broken leg) make the right call ?
-
“Heist” (Gene Hackman) topic: how many twists/“moves” did Gene Hackman’s character have to be thinking ahead ?
Edward Abbey (yeah, that Edward Abbey) had a book David Miller made of film of. Kirk Douglas called it his favorite film. We’ve discussed it in a book club before and it was excellent.
Lonely Are The Brave ('62)
Sort of depends on what kind of discussion you want to have. For instance, someone suggested MEMENTO, but my concern there is that the only discussion is “what happened?” which is ultimately uninteresting. CITIZEN KANE or SKY CAPTAIN AND THE WORLD OF TOMORROW, discussion would be mostly about cinematic techniques. Bergman’s THE SEVENTH SEAL or RASHOMON, the discussion would be primarily about the human condition.
So, it really does depend on what you want to discuss.
My favorite movie for discussion is an oldie but goodie, Hitchcock’s REAR WINDOW. Discussion can go in lots of different ways: human condition, filmmaking techniques, morality, etc.
Ingmar Bergmann’s work-Seventh Seal, Cries and Whispers.
I second the **Seven Samurai, **though a bit long.
Well, Breaker Morant is very loosely based on a book and a play, but it’s a fascinating court-martial drama and military adventure set during the Boer War. You could have some great discussions on justice, injustice, war crimes, and colonialism. It’s a favorite of mine.
I really enjoyed Memento and think you could discuss it at length - not so much what happened, but what was real and what wasn’t.
Se7en is a scary, smart, stylish crime thriller. It’ll really stay with you, and could lead into a discussion of faith, sin, despair, urban decay, pyschopathy, etc.
The Sand Pebbles
An American gunboat in China during the 1920s. The film tells the story of how the USA along with the European powers were controlling that nation leading to a rising nationalist movement to expel the foreign nations. It is however based upon a book.
Totally agree. I avoided watching it until I had to opportunity to see a 70mm print at a theater.
Earlier, you said:
This may seem totally out of left field, but why not Groundhog Day? If you don’t think it’s worthy of discussion, read some of the 440 comments on imdb, or watch the excellent DVD extra “The Weight of Time”. From the very first comment (spoilered for those who have not seen the film:
The other thing I noticed, while reflecting on this movie, is how uncertainty can keep us from charitable acts. We use our ignorance like a crutch: we don’t give to charity because it may be a scam, we don’t offer to help someone because they may not need help anyway, and so on. But Phil doesn’t have the luxury of ignorance. He knows…he knows with absolute certainty that if he doesn’t buy the old man a bowl of soup, that man will die in the streets within a few hours. He knows that if he isn’t on hand at the right time, a boy will fall from a tree and break his neck. Faced with such knowledge, even Phil, self-absorbed as he is, cannot stand by idly. Nor could we, in his position. This is a powerful argument for knowledge as the most reliable foundation for generous behavior. What other movie can offer an insight half so profound?
There’s a bit of a bias towards thinking that only “serious” movies can offer life-changing lessons or are worthy of discussion. I disagree.