# The most quintessential movies of the 1960's **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 28, 2016, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502 "2016-01-28T16:08:33Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/21 "2016-01-28T18:52:21Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > … “most popular” does not always mean “the best”. In fact sometimes there is almost no relation at all. … “Quintessential” doesn’t mean either of these. ---
**Author:** ![JohnT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnt/32/15048_2.png) [@JohnT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnT)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/22 "2016-01-28T18:52:43Z")
\*\*Charlie Wayne \*\*: “click bait” ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 6:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/23 "2016-01-28T18:55:19Z")
I was surprised nobody had mentioned [Altered States](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0080360/), then was surprised to see it was a 1980 release. Seems awfully 60ish. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 6:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/24 "2016-01-28T18:58:37Z")
> [@Boyo\_Jim](#): > > “Quintessential” doesn’t mean either of these. Yes indeed. Quintessential means, “of or relating to the most perfect embodiment of something”. > **[Dictionary.com | Meanings & Definitions of English Words](https://www.dictionary.com/browse/quintessential?s=t)** > > The world's leading online dictionary: English definitions, synonyms, word origins, example sentences, word games, and more. A trusted authority for 25+ years! But given that definition, I’m still not sure how to differentiate between “the best” and “the quintessential”. I’m not sure how to identify one particular sci fi movie (for example) that represents the most perfect embodiment of a sci fi movie from the 60s. ---
**Author:** ![Charlie\_Wayne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/4bbf92/32.png) [@Charlie\_Wayne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Charlie_Wayne)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 6:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/25 "2016-01-28T18:59:42Z")
> [@JohnT](#): > > \*\*Charlie Wayne \*\*: “click bait” Thanks John. ---
**Author:** ![Boyo\_Jim](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/87869e/32.png) [@Boyo\_Jim](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Boyo_Jim)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 7:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/26 "2016-01-28T19:04:52Z")
My definition is “best captures the essence.” I picked The graduate because it captured the theme of alienation between generations, emblematic of the 60s, more than any other film I can think of, and regardless of the aesthetic qualities of it. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/27 "2016-01-28T19:10:28Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > Yes indeed. Quintessential means, “of or relating to the most perfect embodiment of something”. > > [QUINTESSENTIAL Definition & Meaning | Dictionary.com](http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/quintessential?s=t) > > But given that definition, I’m still not sure how to differentiate between “the best” and “the quintessential”. I’m not sure how to identify one particular sci fi movie (for example) that represents the most perfect embodiment of a sci fi movie from the 60s. quiescently frozen confection Is something altogether different, though. ---
**Author:** ![OttoDaFe](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ottodafe/32/356_2.png) [@OttoDaFe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/OttoDaFe)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 7:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/28 "2016-01-28T19:10:41Z")
In the sense of “just because you’re paranoid doesn’t mean they’re not out to get you,” I’d consider [The President’s Analyst](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_President's_Analyst). Although the demise of TPC deflated its impact. A bit. For now. ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/29 "2016-01-28T20:01:10Z")
Woodstock (though it was released in early 1970) ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/30 "2016-01-28T20:17:09Z")
The Good The Bad and The Ugly ---
**Author:** ![Cardigan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/cardigan/32/187_2.png) [@Cardigan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cardigan)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/31 "2016-01-28T20:31:03Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > The Good The Bad and The Ugly I think an argument can be made for naming a spaghetti western as the quintessential western from the 1960’s and an even stronger argument can be made for TGB&U as being the quintessential example within the spaghetti western subgenre ---
**Author:** ![John\_Mace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_mace/32/185_2.png) [@John\_Mace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_Mace)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/32 "2016-01-28T20:49:15Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > - > > if…\* I meant to post that one earlier, but couldn’t remember the exact title. Also: _A Clockwork Orange_. 1971, but the 60s ended in 1973. 🆒 And: \*Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid. The Great Escape Sex and the Single Girl The Endless Summer George Girl Camelot Two for the Road\* ---
**Author:** ![stillownedbysetters](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/41988e/32.png) [@stillownedbysetters](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/stillownedbysetters)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/33 "2016-01-28T20:54:05Z")
To me, it’s the early Sean Connery Bond movies. The bad guys were usually Eastern Bloc types, the life of the spy was glamorous and dangerous, the latest greatest gadgets were always available, the race to moon was usually given a nod (either manned space ships, satellites turned to evil use, etc.) and Merry Olde England was portrayed as a pretty swingin’ place on the outside. ---
**Author:** ![Sherrerd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sherrerd/32/8_2.png) [@Sherrerd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sherrerd)\ **Post date:** [January 28, 2016, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/34 "2016-01-28T20:57:57Z")
I’d go with _Dr. Strangelove_, because it so perfectly embodies what was genuinely new in the 1960’s: the mainstreaming of subversion of the status quo. There has always been, in art and other human productions, an urge to undercut the power structure. But until the sixties we didn’t see such challenges become massively popular entertainment. _Easy Rider; The Manchurian Candidate; Bonnie & Clyde; The Wild Bunch_—these, among others, could not have been made (or would not have become hits) in earlier decades. _Dr. Strangelove_ is the most extremely disrespectful of them all, so it gets my vote. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 12:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/35 "2016-01-29T00:34:48Z")
What’s New Pussycat parodies and embodies the sexual politics of the era. Tongue in cheek vote for me, but not all the way. The Apartment kinda denotes the beginning of the sexual brouhaha as well. ---
**Author:** ![Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/soul_brother_number_two/32/3515_2.png) [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Soul_Brother_Number_Two)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/36 "2016-01-29T00:35:57Z")
I sink you have a schexual block with de schpelling of zat naughty name! ---
**Author:** ![Richard\_John\_Marcej](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Richard\_John\_Marcej](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Richard_John_Marcej)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 12:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/37 "2016-01-29T00:43:45Z")
> [@Soul\_Brother\_Number\_Two](#): > > What’s New Pussycat parodies and embodies the sexual politics of the era. Tongue in cheek vote for me, but not all the way. > > The Apartment kinda denotes the beginning of the sexual brouhaha as well. I disagree with your assessment of _ **The Apartment** _. The active sexual appetites of those in the post WW2 business world was known, just not acknowledged in mixed company. The actions of a male, specifically one with power to hire and fire, having sexual interludes with female employees was considered almost a given. This film was trying to say that a man with integrity still exists, but just not in the world of business. It’s more an admonishment on businesses than on the sexual mores. ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 12:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/38 "2016-01-29T00:52:44Z")
For me it has to be [Cool Hand Luke (1967)](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0061512/?ref_=nv_sr_6) since that movie summarizes all the currents at work during the decade. There have been some insightful comments already in this thread and I fully agree with the notion that at least two major themes divide the ten years into separate parts. The 50s overlap the first few years (probably until JFK’s assassination) and the remainder of the years bleed over into the early 70s. CHL sits squarely in the middle of that time frame with a disdain for the 50s “family values” we saw in TV series of that period, and with a hippie-like disregard for power structures of all sorts. Not only all that, but Paul Newman was never better! And the audacious “I can eat 50 eggs” taunt with an “anything for a kick” mentality that I identified with in those years sets the movie aside from some truly great movies of that era. Many of the ones already named are among my all-time favorites and it’s only by a head that CHL leads the pack. ---
**Author:** ![SCAdian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/scadian/32/3292_2.png) [@SCAdian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SCAdian)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 2:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/39 "2016-01-29T02:32:12Z")
_The Party Our Man Flint_ ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [January 29, 2016, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502/40 "2016-01-29T03:36:32Z")
> [@Charlie\_Wayne](#): > > But given that definition, I’m still not sure how to differentiate between “the best” and “the quintessential”. I’m not sure how to identify one particular sci fi movie (for example) that represents the most perfect embodiment of a sci fi movie from the 60s. It’s not an objective thing. You just have to have a feel for what the genre means and be able to identify which movie best exemplifies it. For a movie to be the most quintessential movie of the 1960’s, it would have to be about the sixties, at least metaphorically. _Lawrence of Arabia_, for example, is a great movie - arguably the best movie made in the sixties. But it’s not about the sixties. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-most-quintessential-movies-of-the-1960s/744502.md?page=3)