I love movies. Mr. Jeannie and I are always going to the movies and renting stuff. As much as I love movies, it occurs to me that I haven’t seen many of the “classics.” For example, I have seen neither “Casablanca” nor “Citizen Kane.” (Yes, I know, I need to correct this ASAP).
So, what else do I need to see?
(BTW, when I say “classics,” it doesn’t necessarily mean b&w films. Just list whatever you guys think any movie lover should see).
Here’s an odd one: “Mad Wednesday.”
Harold Lloyd (old silent film star) teams with director Preston Sturges in this 1947 film originally called “The Sin of Harold Diddlebock.” It’s a lovely, little-known comedy that’s sort of a sequel to Lloyd’s role in “The Freshman.”
Things to watch for: supporting actors you’ve seen elsewhere, like Edgar Kennedy (Marx Bro. movie), Margaret Hamilton (Oz’s wicked witch), Rudy Vallee and Franklin Pangborn. Notice how they get little moments to extend themselves as characters, not just act as foils for the star.
Plus, the final line of the movie is sort of a dirty-joke punchline, at least for 1947.
It ain’t art, but it’s a fun movie.
A good place to start is the [url"http://www.afionline.org/100movies/"]AFI 100. While this isn’t necessarily the list most people will come up with on their own, it is 100 great films.
It’s hard to make suggestions without knowing what you like. I love Kurosawa, but I wouldn’t recommend his films to everyone. What are some of your favorite movies?
If I had to choose five pre-1965 classics I’d recommend to everyone, it’d be Citizen Kane, Dr. Strangelove, Sunset Blvd., The Apartment, and Bridge on the River Kwai.
Joey’s got the right idea, AFI 100 Best Movies is a good place to start.
A couple of my personal favourites:
Raging Bull
All About Eve
The Lion In Winter
All of 'em. And don’t come back till you’re done.
The General (1927)
The Big Sleep (1946)
Network (1976)
The Adventures of Baron von Munchausen
Time Bandits
Daze and Confused
There have been a number of “best movie” lists on our boards. Here’s mine:
Double Indemnity
The Great Escape
The Natural
Schindler’s List
Twelve O’Clock High
The Muppet Movie
Full Metal Jacket
Annie Hall
Radio Days
Pulp Fiction
North By Northwest
The Sting
Toy Story I & II
Braveheart
Great Expectations(the newer one)
October Sky
2001: A space Oddessy
As Good As It Gets
The Long, Long Trailer (starring pre-TV Lucy and Desi)
What About Bob?
Good Will Hunting
The Sixth Sense
Somewhere In Time
First off, watch Casablanca and Citizen Kane immediately, as well as the Maltese Falcon, if you haven’t seen that one.
Check out the Internet Movie Database’s list of the top 250 films, as well as top 50 by genre. They list top 50 votes by decade too.
Joey’s right. Give us some of the movies that you’ve liked and we can suggest some others to try. My two all-time favorites are Dr. Strangelove and Harold and Maude.
Eric
Let’s see here about about these:
The Cook, The Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover
Crimes of Passion
Desperate Living
Henry and June
Amazon Women on the Moon
Harold and Maude
Wild at Heart
Koyaanisqatsi (Good luck finding a copy, though)
Death Race 2000
The Exorcist
The Exorcist III
Jacob’s Ladder
Until the End of the World
Blue Velvet
Brazil
The Life of Brian
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Leon: The Professional
Dogma
Blade Runner
Ronin
Dark City
La Femme Nikita (bears no real relation to the TV series)
1984 (the John Hurt version, if you can find a copy)
For All Mankind
American Beauty
The Trial (with Anthony Perkins)
Rocky Horror Picture Show!
The Usual Suspects
Orlando
Romancing the Stone
The Secret of Nhym
The Dark Crystal
Labrynth
Pink Flamingoes
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Eraserhead
The Snake Pit
I’m not saying they’re good movies, just movies you should see. (I’ve never seen Casablanca, either).
Heat
Wizards
Battlefield Earth (if for no other reason than you can see how bad a movie can be! 
)
Plan 9 From Outer Space
The Day the Earth Stood Still
Rollerball (the original)
Planet of the Apes (again, the original)
Kalifornia
Natural Born Killers
Platoon
Lolita (the original, yet again)
I second Pulp Fiction. It is without a doubt the best movie of the 90s. Well maybe a…Shadow of a Doubt. Hehe.
Others:
**
Reservoir Dogs
The Exorcist
Clue
Beetlejuice
La Femme Nikita
Indochine
The Shining
A couple more…
Apocalypse Now
A Clockwork Orange
A good little movie, newly released in the US, “Enlightenment Guaranteed.” Don’t let this throw you off; it’s in German with subtitles. Both funny and thought provoking. Terrific visuals.
http://www.hollywoodbitchslap.com gives it a ‘fuckin’ awesome’ rating. 'Nuff said.
http://hollywoodbitchslap.com/hbs.cgi
As long as I’m in the foreign film mode:
Children of Heaven (Iranian)
The Tin Drum (German)
any Wallace & Grommit films (British)
Others:
Schindler’s List
Fargo
Boogie Nights
American Beauty
To Kill a Mockingbird
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest
All About Eve
Sunset Boulevard
Casablanca
And to know what everyone talks about:
Gone With the Wind