# What's the earliest movie that you liked that you still like? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 3, 2014, 5:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817 "2014-01-03T17:43:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 11:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/61 "2014-01-04T23:33:01Z")
The first movies I saw in a movie theater when I was very small were Disney’s **Song of the South** and Disney’s **Sleeping Beauty**. On tv, though, before I was 10, I saw **Casablanca** , **The Day the Earth Stood Still,** \*\*The Thing \*\*(the one where James Arness was the monster), the Hope-Crosby Road pictures, etc. I’ve probably seen **Casablanca** 20 times since then, and still think it is a perfect movie. Oh, and I not so long ago resaw Bob Hope’s **Ghost Busters**. I didn’t think it would hold up at all, and was surprised by how much I enjoyed it. ---
**Author:** ![Tapiotar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/3be4f8/32.png) [@Tapiotar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tapiotar)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 11:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/62 "2014-01-04T23:35:14Z")
> [@aceplace57](#): > > Harvey (Jimmy Stewart). Oh, yes, I first saw Harvey on tv when I was a kid, and it is still one of my all-time favorite movies. ---
**Author:** ![Stringbean](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d6d6ee/32.png) [@Stringbean](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Stringbean)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 11:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/63 "2014-01-04T23:41:42Z")
> [@Roundabout](#): > > Terminator 2: Judgement Day. > > One my earliest theater experiences, and still my favorite action film to this day. Exactly what I was gonna say. I knew all the lines to that movie when I was 5 years old. ---
**Author:** ![River\_Hippie](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/river_hippie/32/26_2.png) [@River\_Hippie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/River_Hippie)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2014, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/64 "2014-01-04T23:46:30Z")
My dad took me to see **2001** when it came out. I still love it. Before that, in 1966, he took me to see [**Grand Prix**](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0060472/?ref_=nv_sr_1). The plot is pretty soapy but the racing footage is truly spectacular. It really captures the golden age of Formula One racing, IMHO. I have it on DVD and watch it every once in a while. ---
**Author:** ![marshmallow](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/df705f/32.png) [@marshmallow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/marshmallow)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 12:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/65 "2014-01-05T00:12:17Z")
I vividly remember watching The Land Before Time since I loved me some dinosaurs as a kid. Littlefoot’s mother protecting him from the T. rex and then dying from her wounds was only mildly traumatizing. I saw it not so long ago and it still holds up, great animation and score. But someone must’ve been chopping some onions… > [@](#): > > Dear, sweet, Littlefoot, do you remember the way to the Great Valley? ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 12:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/66 "2014-01-05T00:33:01Z")
> [@Tapiotar](#): > > Oh, yes, I first saw Harvey on tv when I was a kid, and it is still one of my all-time favorite movies. I didn’t see it until I was 30. 33 years later it’s still my favorite comedy, and one of my top 5 favorites overall. _“That awful Pooka!”_ ---
**Author:** ![tadtooornamental](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/c89c15/32.png) [@tadtooornamental](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/tadtooornamental)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/67 "2014-01-05T00:58:44Z")
The Last Unicorn. I absolutely adored that movie as a kid, and probably drove my parents nuts watching it (on VHS) every day. I must have been 3 or 4 the first time I saw it. I still love it, and own the DVD now, but I’m shocked that I wasn’t completely traumatized! Bass/Rankin animation is a bit creepy no matter what, but then add in the terrifying Red Bull and the weirdo-hippie soundtrack by America? Somehow it all worked out. ---
**Author:** ![delphica](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e9a140/32.png) [@delphica](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/delphica)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 4:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/68 "2014-01-05T04:07:06Z")
_The Bad News Bears_ (the original). Loved it then, love it now. Of course, as a kid, I loved it because it was funny … now I appreciate a lot of the nuances, and (this is making me sound like a crabby old person) I can’t imagine getting amazing performances from the likes of Walter Matthau and Vic Morrow in a movie about little league these days. I had previously seen _Mary Poppins_ in the theater, and I like it now, but I didn’t then … I found it very scary. It is cute to me to see the difference in this thread between people who grew up with VCRs (or DVDs, whatever) as opposed to those essentially had to see a movie in the theater or maybe get lucky to see it on network TV. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 4:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/69 "2014-01-05T04:32:29Z")
If you’re interested in _The Last Unicorn_, you should know that Peter Beagle is doing a long tour (and I mean several years long) where he shows the film and signs his books: [http://lastunicorntour.com/](http://lastunicorntour.com/) ---
**Author:** ![Esox\_Lucius](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/848f3c/32.png) [@Esox\_Lucius](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Esox_Lucius)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 10:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/70 "2014-01-05T10:25:12Z")
The first movie I saw whose title I can remember was _Sink The Bismarck_ but I was too young to appreciate it. As a teenager, I thought the funniest movie ever was _Texas Across The River_, a Hollywood Western with Dean Martin, Joey Bishop et al (“Ha-roor har!” became my signature catch phrase). I’d probably cringe seeing it now. I was 17 when I saw _2001: A Space Odyssey_ at a drive-in. It was actually our second choice when another drive-in didn’t show the movie it had advertised, and the whole experience rocked my world. I couldn’t stop thinking or talking about it, and saw it probably 15 or 20 times in the next few years. I certainly do not cringe when I see it now. (As an aside to the other old-timers who might relate to this, when I was around seven and eight, I’d get 25 cents on Saturday afternoons to go to serial Westerns with Roy Rogers and the like (15 cents for admission and 10 cents for a treat). The audience would always cheer when the good guys came riding to the rescue at the end. The popcorn came in cardboard boxes that could be flattened when they were empty and thrown like frisbees, but if an usher caught you, it was out on the street and don’t ever come back.) ---
**Author:** ![JohnClay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c37758/32.png) [@JohnClay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnClay)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/71 "2014-01-05T10:38:30Z")
The earliest movie I can remember watching was the Dark Crystal. I initially was scared of it but now I like it a lot. ---
**Author:** ![Melbourne](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/b5e925/32.png) [@Melbourne](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Melbourne)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 10:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/72 "2014-01-05T10:38:37Z")
> [@Hermione](#): > > Then, when I was five, I remember seeing the Disney live-action release _Candleshoe_ in the theater. It’s a remarkably well-done little flick… when I saw it again as an older kid, and again as an adult, it really hit me how well-made, well-written, well-cast (all those first-class actors like Niven, Hayes, and McKern!) and overall well-done it was. I remember Disney making cheap worthless movies in the mid 70’s. All forgotten now But before that, there must have been a golden age of quality writers, directors and actors. Perhaps it was shear volume? I’ve got an idea the Disney was a much larger production/distribution company in the 50’s and 60’s. ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 3:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/73 "2014-01-05T15:47:21Z")
The first movie I saw that I can recall was **Son of Kong**. I still like it, but I have to admit that I like **King Kong** , which I saw soon after that, a whole lot more. A lot of films that I saw as a kid I still like: **Seventh Voyage of Sinbad Sleeping Beauty The Wizard of Oz The Thing Them The Great Escape Forbidden Planet Mary Poppins** More interesting might be movies I saw as a kid that I no longer like (or don’t like as much), due to a combination of greater knowledge and sophistication, changing tastes, and changing film styles and capability. I liked Disney’s **Babes in Toyland** as a kid, but when I tried watching it recently, I cringed, for a variety of reasons (starting with the abysmal effects – from _Disney_, no less. Hard to believe that a couple of years later they gave us **Mary Poppins**.) ---
**Author:** ![Crafter\_Man](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crafter_man/32/458_2.png) [@Crafter\_Man](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crafter_Man)\ **Post date:** [January 5, 2014, 5:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/74 "2014-01-05T17:12:52Z")
I remember watching **Logan’s Run** when I was 10 years old. I still think it’s an awesome movie. ---
**Author:** ![brujaja](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/4af34b/32.png) [@brujaja](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/brujaja)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 7:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/75 "2014-01-06T07:07:56Z")
“Yellow Submarine.” Saw it in the theater with my brothers when I was six. Bought the book from the Scholastic Book Club at school. Watched it just the other day too. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 11:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/76 "2014-01-06T11:10:35Z")
Seldom Seen mentioned Paint Your Wagon, which I liked as a kid. I rented it in college, put it on for some friends, and they all laughed their asses off. At me, unfortunately. My best friend growing up got me into Universal monster movies, which were on TV quite a bit. I still like the first couple Frankenstein films. Probably the big one for me was The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly, which I remember as my favorite movie until Star Wars came along. I also remember liking a couple John Wayne movies, particularly The Cowboys, that I still find enjoyable. Until I read this thread, I didn’t really recall how bad the movies that Disney was making really were. The Wonderful World of Disney was on every Sunday, but I can’t remember them ever having any classic kid’s movies on it. I do remember seeing Song of the South on network TV. I think that one comes in a plain paper wrapper now. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/77 "2014-01-06T15:00:50Z")
It doesn’t come any way at all - Disney won’t let it out of the vault these days. I remember quite fondly going to see it in the theater the last time they ever let you - 1986, it would have been? ---
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 3:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/78 "2014-01-06T15:33:43Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > It doesn’t come any way at all - Disney won’t let it out of the vault these days. I remember quite fondly going to see it in the theater the last time they ever let you - 1986, it would have been? Not true. Disney is perfectly willing to sell **Song of the South** – outside the US. That’s where my copy came from. You can buy it in Britain and elsewhere on VHS or DVD. at any rate, you used to be able to. I haven’t checked recently. ---
**Author:** ![Inigo\_Montoya](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inigo_montoya/32/124_2.png) [@Inigo\_Montoya](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inigo_Montoya)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2014, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/79 "2014-01-06T15:44:54Z")
**Little Big Man** (1970) Older Disney 'toons like _ **Snow White** _ I like well enough, but I can’t imagine getting some popcorn ready and sitting through it without getting up at some point to do dishes, make a sandwich, or something. I also wouldn’t tell a friend, “You gotta watch this!” Little Big Man is an epic masterpiece (oddly, one that only guys seem to like) that is just crammed with truth. ---
**Author:** ![Ferd\_Burfel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/ecccb3/32.png) [@Ferd\_Burfel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ferd_Burfel)\ **Post date:** [January 7, 2014, 4:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817/80 "2014-01-07T16:31:17Z")
The first movie I saw in an indoor theater was **Flipper**. (My grandparents took us to a lot of movies at the drive-in, and Mom would just line up chairs in front of the TV and call it “the movies”) The first movie I sat through in its entirety without getting up to go the bathroom or to get snacks was \*\*Batman \*\*with Adam West, Burt Ward and a host of super-villians. (“Some days you just can’t get rid of a bomb.”) The first movie I remember seeking out to re-watch after seeing it as a child was John Wayne’s **The Hellfighters**. The opening scene where the worker ignites himself after popping an incandescent lamp still gives me the creeps. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whats-the-earliest-movie-that-you-liked-that-you-still-like/677817.md?page=5)