# The (vulgur) American Canon in Films **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [April 19, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658 "2010-04-19T20:02:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![ShibbOleth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/848f3c/32.png) [@ShibbOleth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ShibbOleth)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/1 "2010-04-19T20:02:12Z")
I have a colleague who is an Indian national, living in the USA for several years, who would like to eventually become an American. At dinner tonight, I realized that he doesn’t have a true sense of what that means. So I proposed to make him a list of films to add to his Netflix queue. Now, to be clear, I’m not talking about stuff like _Gone With The Wind_, _Casablanca_ or _Citizen Kane_. Most people know about those, and many Americans have gotten by just fine without seeing them. I’m looking for stuff more along the lines of _Star Wars_ (at least the first three), _Caddyshack_, _Ferris Bueller’s Day Off_, etc. Note that they do not need to be good films, just iconic movies that you and most of your friends have seen, can quote from, etc. Lowbrow is welcome here, but so are good films if they’re essential to the American experience. So, help a future American out - what are the top films that you think that any red blooded American should have seen. Or at least which films you think someone should know about before they sit for the citizenship test. Yes, I am interested in corrupting future generations, why do you ask? ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/2 "2010-04-19T20:07:52Z")
Personally, I’d add **Fletch, Airplane!, This Is Spinal Tap** and **Better Off Dead** from the 80s, and maybe **Pulp Fiction** from the 90s. I’m blanking right now, but I’m sure there are more (hell, he could probably watch everything John Hughes did in the 80s, while he’s at it, and there are plenty of drive-in classics from the 70s that would work). ---
**Author:** ![Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@Maggie\_the\_Ocelot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maggie_the_Ocelot)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/3 "2010-04-19T20:08:51Z")
Monty Python. Especially Holy Grail and The Life of Brian. ---
**Author:** ![woodstockbirdybird](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/woodstockbirdybird/32/7905_2.png) [@woodstockbirdybird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/woodstockbirdybird)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/4 "2010-04-19T20:11:50Z")
British films? Doubly traitorous! ---
**Author:** ![Oakminster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/77aa72/32.png) [@Oakminster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Oakminster)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/5 "2010-04-19T20:12:33Z")
_True Grit_ _The Outlaw Josey Wales_ _Animal House_ _History of the World, Part 1_ ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/6 "2010-04-19T20:13:40Z")
> [@Oni no Maggie](#): > > Monty Python. Especially Holy Grail and The Life of Brian. As examples of the _American_ canon? ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/7 "2010-04-19T20:22:49Z")
I think **Goodfellas** and **Taxi Driver** should be on the list. Not only are they great films, but they are deeply concerned with the American experience and the American dream. Plus, they’re referenced all the time in pop culture–including some of the other movies that will do doubt make your final list. ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/8 "2010-04-19T20:23:24Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > As examples of the _American_ canon? A rite of passage for a certain subset of American teens when I was a teen: go a week in conversation using only Monty Python (TV or movie) quotes. Also, American PBS airings of MP’sFC TV show is where many of my friends saw their first live action boobies (as opposed to NatGeo’s “look at the natives!” not moving boobies). Since the TV show was already so popular with these types, MPatHG movie was HUGE among geeks when I first heard of it. ---
**Author:** ![Cuckoorex](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Cuckoorex](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cuckoorex)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/9 "2010-04-19T20:23:47Z")
_The Princess Bride Swingers The Breakfast Club Dazed and Confused Risky Business Heathers Airplane! Dirty Harry The Outlaw Josey Wales Poltergeist Jaws Raiders of the Lost Ark Halloween A Nightmare on Elm Street Memento The Usual Suspects Reservoir Dogs The Thing Big Trouble in Little China Escape from New York Bladerunner Predator Conan the Barbarian The Terminator_ ---
**Author:** ![armedmonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@armedmonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/armedmonkey)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/10 "2010-04-19T20:29:29Z")
_American Pie_. Teenage sex comedies of that sort are very American. _Porky’s_ might fit for that one, too. I’m trying to think of a wacky conspiracy the-government-is-out-to-get-us one, but all I can think of is _The X-Files_. War films. We do fight a lot of wars, so it’s very ingrained in our culture. Show him _The Big Red One_ or maybe _Tora Tora Tora_, then _M_A_S_H\* (the film - not the TV show), and then end it with _Full Metal Jacket_. If he can get that those are all American takes on war, and that they don’t necessarily conflict with each other, he’s halfway there. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/11 "2010-04-19T20:43:35Z")
While some are dated, I’d add: American Graffiti, Gentlemen’s Agreement, The Man in the Gray Flannel Suit, To Kill A Mockingbird, All The President’s Men, The Best Years Of Our Lives and perhaps Birth of a Nation. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/12 "2010-04-19T20:50:59Z")
National Lampoon’s Vacation Meatballs Lost in America High Fidelity Stripes Ghostbusters ---
**Author:** ![The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/74df32/32.png) [@The\_Devil\_s\_Grandmother](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Devil_s_Grandmother)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 9:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/13 "2010-04-19T21:00:48Z")
> [@A Monkey With a Gun](#): > > I’m trying to think of a wacky conspiracy the-government-is-out-to-get-us one, but all I can think of is _The X-Files_. [_The President’s Analyst_](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0062153/) ---
**Author:** ![filling\_pages](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b9bd4f/32.png) [@filling\_pages](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/filling_pages)\ **Post date:** [April 19, 2010, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/14 "2010-04-19T21:36:23Z")
Movies he would have missed by not being an American kid/young teen: Goonies Disney cartoons Muppet Movie, Muppets Take Manhattan, Great Muppet Caper Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure Grease the Indiana Jones movies Neverending Story Pee Wee’s Big Adventure Who Framed Roger Rabbit? Wizard of Oz Beetlejuice Okay, that’s a good start. ---
**Author:** ![Darryl\_Lict](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7cd45c/32.png) [@Darryl\_Lict](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darryl_Lict)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 12:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/15 "2010-04-20T00:46:13Z")
Fast Times at Ridgemont High. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 1:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/16 "2010-04-20T01:01:18Z")
To the war movies; \*Patton \* definitely has to be on that list. I’d also show him a couple of old John Wayne propaganda ones too- like _Sands of Iwo Jima_ and/or _The Green Berets_. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 1:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/17 "2010-04-20T01:12:49Z")
I think _Casablanca_ needs to be on the list, if only because it’s one of the most quotable movies ever made. By the same metric, I’d throw in _The Wizard of Oz_ and _The Godfather_. Also, every Warner Brothers cartoon directed by Chuck Jones and just about every one by Fritz Feleng. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 1:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/18 "2010-04-20T01:21:35Z")
> [@NoClueBoy](#): > > A rite of passage for a certain subset of American teens when I was a teen: go a week in conversation using only Monty Python (TV or movie) quotes. > > Also, American PBS airings of MP’sFC TV show is where many of my friends saw their first live action boobies (as opposed to NatGeo’s “look at the natives!” not moving boobies). Since the TV show was already so popular with these types, MPatHG movie was HUGE among geeks when I first heard of it. That’s great. It’s still not part of the canon of American film, any more than William Shakespeare is a part of the canon of American literature. ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/19 "2010-04-20T01:48:14Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > That’s great. It’s still not part of the canon of American film, any more than William Shakespeare is a part of the canon of American literature. The OP actually says the American canon in films, not the canon of American films. It’s arguably the same thing, but the former phrasing does leave open some possibility that the films might not themselves be American. I wouldn’t say it’s _impossible_ for a foreign film to be “essential to the American experience” or one of “the top films that you think that any red blooded American should have seen”, although admittedly I can’t think of many foreign films that would qualify. Aside from Monty Python the only foreign films springing to mind that “everybody” in America is familiar with are the old Godzilla movies. **ShibbOleth** , it would probably save time if you could tell us flat out if you want us to limit our suggestions to American films. ---
**Author:** ![Rodgers01](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/b19c9b/32.png) [@Rodgers01](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rodgers01)\ **Post date:** [April 20, 2010, 2:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658/20 "2010-04-20T02:00:21Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > That’s great. It’s still not part of the canon of American film, any more than William Shakespeare is a part of the canon of American literature. Sure, if you’re looking for a canon of movies made in/by Americans. But the question is “what are the top films that you think that any red blooded American should have _seen_” - and by that standard, it doesn’t matter if the movie in question is British, if it’s iconic enough! > [@kunilou](#): > > I think _Casablanca_ needs to be on the list, if only because it’s one of the most quotable movies ever made. By the same metric, I’d throw in _The Wizard of Oz_ and _The Godfather_. Agree absolutely. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-vulgur-american-canon-in-films/536658.md?page=2)