NOT ONE FUCKING PERSON MENTIONED BOONDOCK SAINTS!!!!
I mean, let's be honest, there's a lot of movies about some Boston Irish folks killing people or getting in trouble with the cops, or you know, typical Boston movie shit
@Ilriyas said:
Ctrl+F "The African Queen" no results.
Come on guys step up your classics game.
Casablanca, as already mentioned is an amazing choice it was my grandfather's favourite movie of all time and one of mine too.
I'm just going to throw it out there because the list is extensive, any movie starring Humphrey Bogart, Jimmy Stewart or Lauren Bacall are GOAT. I don't believe Humphrey Bogart ever had a bad film.
I just did this same exact thing regarding the African Queen. Bogie and Bacall were pretty amazing in everything. I'd add Audrey Heburn & Katharine Hepburn (not related) to that list. Anything John Huston directed also is a classic.
I need to know someone well enough to recommend films. That said, you could watch Casablanca and if you hate it you cross off every black and white romance ever made. Watch West Side Story, love it, more musicals for you, hate it, move on to True Grit, hate that, try North by Northwest, if you hate all of those, stop watching film. But that is how I would suggest you broaden your knowledge. Take ten major genres, watch a film that is widely considered one of the best in each and decide where you want to focus your viewing for awhile.
Looking at the AMC Filmsite they list these main Genre types
Action
Adventure
Comedy
Crime and Gangster
Drama
Epics / Historical
Horror
Musical / Dance
Science Fiction / Fantasy
War
Western
Now I would argue Mystery / Suspense is a genre as well as Documentary, so I'm adding those because I know more than AMC...
Now.... If I am to make some rules, I mean a young man is going to have pretty easy 24/7 access to every film that came out in the last decade, or at least realize they exist, if you really, said, Cliff, pick a true five star perfect film in each category that has at least aged enough to grow a little hair?
Action - Die Hard - It broke the rules by having a normal guy save the day, it is a great escapist film that is every bit as good the tenth time you watch it.
Adventure - Raiders of the Lost Ark, Coolest guy on earth does impossible things while being scared shitless of snakes... It's perfect.
Comedy - Monty Python, some people get it, the rest suck at life. The Holy Grail is more silly fun, but Life of Brian is smarter. I'd say start with Grail, if you laugh plenty, move on to Life of Brian. Coin flip on which is better, just depends on my mood.
Crime and Gangster - Some people will tell you Godfather and Godfather II all day long, and those are amazing films, but to me, Goodfellas just has this pace, you can't take your eyes off it. The Godfather is a more mature, more fleshed out story, but Goodfellas is better entertainment.
Drama - Wide category, could go a million directions with this, but if you have never seen the 1957 12 Angry Men... Do that. There was a remake, that is also worthy, but the 1957 original is the master class on how you bring a play that moves in real time to the screen. In terms of pure dialogue, perhaps the greatest script ever written.
Epics / Historical - See, have to be honest, not my favorite genre. Spartacus, Ben-Hur, Cleopatra all sort of bore me, Doctor Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, while I appreciate them as works of art, I'm just not that into them. To pick one, I'd say Schindler's List. Why?? It moves me, it makes me cry.
Horror - I kind of want to say Psycho, just because it's Psycho and everyone should see it, and it holds up, and the performance Hitchcock gets out of Anthony Perkins is so far ahead of it's time... Seriously, when you put it in context of what was available at the time those guys were pushing the limits... But, if I am being honest, I love Alien. Alien is a horror film, anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong. In Space no one can hear you scream.... muhahahahaha The Ridley Scott original FYI, James Cameron's Aliens is a fun movie, but not nearly as good, and definitely not a horror film, that one is more of an action movie.
Musical / Dance - West Side Story, it's the best of the genre, hands down, nothing else comes near it. Basically it is Romeo and Juliet with fight dancing. It's also one of those rare occasions where the filmmakers knew how to take a stage production and translate it to film. Not gonna lie though, I also love Little Shop of Horrors. I was the demented dentist in a stage production once... Now you know too much about me.
Science Fiction - Blade Runner - It feels relevant today, it's such a brilliant blend of genres, sci fi, action, noir... and it is one of those that is even better the second time you watch it.
Fantasy - The Classic Star Wars trilogy - DUH!!!!
War - Full Metal Jacket - Now, due respect to the Saving Private Ryan faithful, and to lovers of old John Wayne movies and such... War is a tricky genre because it is so often romanticized. Who the good guys are vs. the bad guys, the lines are often drawn for us. Full Metal Jacket is honest. It is brutally honest. I met my share of guys that fought in that war. It's a story of when you are a kid, and it's you or him.... That's war for the grunt on the ground. Plus, it's almost two films in one, the first and second act contrast so brilliantly, best war film ever made.
Western - See, this is hard, because for me, Western's have changed so much, there are Western Sub genres. High Noon is the classic black and white early Hollywood. It is a fun easy watch, fairly short, easy to follow, just the events of one day as a conflict approaches. Essential viewing. True Grit with John Wayne is probably my favorite. It is a redemption story, by todays standards maybe it will feel a bit silly, but it has a heart, a reluctant hero redemption story. Always delivers. You obviously have all the Sergio Leone Westerns that inspired so many modern filmmakers. Visual works of art, but maybe a little thin on narrative. In fact that is why Eastwood swore Unforgiven would be his last Western. He wanted to make the anti Leone western in the sense that the life of violence was not just something of a visual treat but it had weight, it had a consequence and that was not something you saw much of in that genre prior to Unforgiven. All listed fantastic films if forced to pick one, True Grit.
Mystery / Suspense - Look, it is going to be a Hitchcock film... Which one?? Well, Rear Window is probably the most simple entertaining film he made, Vertigo probably the best, but it takes a few times seeing it to really appreciate how layered it is, for me, there is just something campy and fun about the suspense / mystery chase caper North by Northwest. It's a fun watch, I love it, probably my favorite Cary Grant performance.
Documentary - Roger and Me made me care about the world I live in. It's that powerful. I saw it when I was 15, it is still relevant, it is still the best film Michael Moore has ever done (and he has done a few great ones). I think it holds up because it's not an agenda political film in the sense that he wants to prove some point, he simply wants to shine a light on his suffering neighbors, give them a voice. It never seems exploitive to me, it seems honest, like this is what is happening, are we okay with this? Powerful film, see it.
So there you have it, a TLDR version of the films I consider essential viewing.
Still relatively modern, but still considered must see:
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - Most Americans' first real exposure to Chinese cinema, and beautiful throughout.
Hero (Jet Li) - An interesting take on China's unification. Color themes play a HUGE role and make for some incredible visuals.
TBH: Anything made before, like, 1985 is going to be a really hard sell. The pacing of movies has changed over the years, and unless you're already familiar with them, older films are really hard to watch because they feel so slow compared to modern films. Even classics feel intolerable to a person who's never seen them, and who is used to modern pacing. I'm not just talking about action, either, even dramas and romances are quicker paced now, and it's noticeable.
2
BlackHawkBible music connoisseurThere's no place like 127.0.0.1Icrontian
@CB said:
TBH: Anything made before, like, 1985 is going to be a really hard sell. The pacing of movies has changed over the years, and unless you're already familiar with them, older films are really hard to watch because they feel so slow compared to modern films. Even classics feel intolerable to a person who's never seen them, and who is used to modern pacing. I'm not just talking about action, either, even dramas and romances are quicker paced now, and it's noticeable.
Completely true IMO. Watched classic Christmas movies with @kimono54 when we got together and they're sooooo slow. Feel like there's ton of unnecessary scene between actual plot points. Only other non-Christmas classic movie I've seen is To Kill a Mockingbird and I feel the same way with that.
@Kwitko said:
Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
Being John Malkovich
Adaptation
You have no idea how happy it made me to see these here.
You have no idea how happy it made me to see that someone else knows the movie Adaptation.
I don't know what caused me to see this movie in theatres, but it immediately became one of my favourite films, which I've watched many many times since.
There are so many amazing films popping up in this thread. I tend to assume I'm on my own in loving some of the more outlandish ones. Can you imagine what a film fest curated by the members of Icrontic would be like?
@CB said:
TBH: Anything made before, like, 1985 is going to be a really hard sell. The pacing of movies has changed over the years, and unless you're already familiar with them, older films are really hard to watch because they feel so slow compared to modern films. Even classics feel intolerable to a person who's never seen them, and who is used to modern pacing. I'm not just talking about action, either, even dramas and romances are quicker paced now, and it's noticeable.
There is something to that. Honestly, I think the modern era of film starts in the 70's probably with the Godfather. Now, that isn't about pace as much as it was film executives trying to figure out a way to lure people from the TV. Competition from television forced filmakers to innovate in the 70s. The content had more of an edge, the acting style shifted away from simulated stage plays to more realism, a push in technology to set up more elaborate shots, fx, and stunts to give the audience something they could not get from a 30 minute show on the Boob Tube. It is funny, today TV and Film companies are all the same, back then they were competing against each other for eyeballs. The 70s is where things really shift in film.
Mt_GoatHead Cheezy KnobPflugerville (north of Austin)Icrontian
Just watch romantic comedies aka "Chic Flicks" with him. They are modern, totally timeless and really put a good spin on reality. It's certainly better than The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat.
?????????? good shit go౦ԁ sHit? thats ✔ some good??shit right??there??? right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my self ? i say so ? thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ? ?? ?НO0ОଠOOOOOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??Good shit
Rookie of the Year
1
KwitkoSheriff of Banning (Retired)By the thing near the stuffIcrontian
?????????? good shit go౦ԁ sHit? thats ✔ some good??shit right??there??? right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my self ? i say so ? thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ? ?? ?НO0ОଠOOOOOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??Good shit
Comments
In Bruges is my only contribution to this list.
I mean, let's be honest, there's a lot of movies about some Boston Irish folks killing people or getting in trouble with the cops, or you know, typical Boston movie shit
Have been in person, is indeed a beautiful fookin' fairytale.
Have also been in person. Indeed, tis a beautiful fookin fairytale.
I just did this same exact thing regarding the African Queen. Bogie and Bacall were pretty amazing in everything. I'd add Audrey Heburn & Katharine Hepburn (not related) to that list. Anything John Huston directed also is a classic.
This is a great list peeps
Cinderella Man is one of my favourite boxing films of all time, realized I forgot it on my list.
Zombeavers
I need to know someone well enough to recommend films. That said, you could watch Casablanca and if you hate it you cross off every black and white romance ever made. Watch West Side Story, love it, more musicals for you, hate it, move on to True Grit, hate that, try North by Northwest, if you hate all of those, stop watching film. But that is how I would suggest you broaden your knowledge. Take ten major genres, watch a film that is widely considered one of the best in each and decide where you want to focus your viewing for awhile.
Chinatown if you're a noir fan
I prefer Thankskilling.
Looking at the AMC Filmsite they list these main Genre types
Action
Adventure
Comedy
Crime and Gangster
Drama
Epics / Historical
Horror
Musical / Dance
Science Fiction / Fantasy
War
Western
Now I would argue Mystery / Suspense is a genre as well as Documentary, so I'm adding those because I know more than AMC...
Now.... If I am to make some rules, I mean a young man is going to have pretty easy 24/7 access to every film that came out in the last decade, or at least realize they exist, if you really, said, Cliff, pick a true five star perfect film in each category that has at least aged enough to grow a little hair?
Action - Die Hard - It broke the rules by having a normal guy save the day, it is a great escapist film that is every bit as good the tenth time you watch it.
Adventure - Raiders of the Lost Ark, Coolest guy on earth does impossible things while being scared shitless of snakes... It's perfect.
Comedy - Monty Python, some people get it, the rest suck at life. The Holy Grail is more silly fun, but Life of Brian is smarter. I'd say start with Grail, if you laugh plenty, move on to Life of Brian. Coin flip on which is better, just depends on my mood.
Crime and Gangster - Some people will tell you Godfather and Godfather II all day long, and those are amazing films, but to me, Goodfellas just has this pace, you can't take your eyes off it. The Godfather is a more mature, more fleshed out story, but Goodfellas is better entertainment.
Drama - Wide category, could go a million directions with this, but if you have never seen the 1957 12 Angry Men... Do that. There was a remake, that is also worthy, but the 1957 original is the master class on how you bring a play that moves in real time to the screen. In terms of pure dialogue, perhaps the greatest script ever written.
Epics / Historical - See, have to be honest, not my favorite genre. Spartacus, Ben-Hur, Cleopatra all sort of bore me, Doctor Zhivago, Lawrence of Arabia, while I appreciate them as works of art, I'm just not that into them. To pick one, I'd say Schindler's List. Why?? It moves me, it makes me cry.
Horror - I kind of want to say Psycho, just because it's Psycho and everyone should see it, and it holds up, and the performance Hitchcock gets out of Anthony Perkins is so far ahead of it's time... Seriously, when you put it in context of what was available at the time those guys were pushing the limits... But, if I am being honest, I love Alien. Alien is a horror film, anyone who thinks otherwise is wrong. In Space no one can hear you scream.... muhahahahaha The Ridley Scott original FYI, James Cameron's Aliens is a fun movie, but not nearly as good, and definitely not a horror film, that one is more of an action movie.
Musical / Dance - West Side Story, it's the best of the genre, hands down, nothing else comes near it. Basically it is Romeo and Juliet with fight dancing. It's also one of those rare occasions where the filmmakers knew how to take a stage production and translate it to film. Not gonna lie though, I also love Little Shop of Horrors. I was the demented dentist in a stage production once... Now you know too much about me.
Science Fiction - Blade Runner - It feels relevant today, it's such a brilliant blend of genres, sci fi, action, noir... and it is one of those that is even better the second time you watch it.
Fantasy - The Classic Star Wars trilogy - DUH!!!!
War - Full Metal Jacket - Now, due respect to the Saving Private Ryan faithful, and to lovers of old John Wayne movies and such... War is a tricky genre because it is so often romanticized. Who the good guys are vs. the bad guys, the lines are often drawn for us. Full Metal Jacket is honest. It is brutally honest. I met my share of guys that fought in that war. It's a story of when you are a kid, and it's you or him.... That's war for the grunt on the ground. Plus, it's almost two films in one, the first and second act contrast so brilliantly, best war film ever made.
Western - See, this is hard, because for me, Western's have changed so much, there are Western Sub genres. High Noon is the classic black and white early Hollywood. It is a fun easy watch, fairly short, easy to follow, just the events of one day as a conflict approaches. Essential viewing. True Grit with John Wayne is probably my favorite. It is a redemption story, by todays standards maybe it will feel a bit silly, but it has a heart, a reluctant hero redemption story. Always delivers. You obviously have all the Sergio Leone Westerns that inspired so many modern filmmakers. Visual works of art, but maybe a little thin on narrative. In fact that is why Eastwood swore Unforgiven would be his last Western. He wanted to make the anti Leone western in the sense that the life of violence was not just something of a visual treat but it had weight, it had a consequence and that was not something you saw much of in that genre prior to Unforgiven. All listed fantastic films if forced to pick one, True Grit.
Mystery / Suspense - Look, it is going to be a Hitchcock film... Which one?? Well, Rear Window is probably the most simple entertaining film he made, Vertigo probably the best, but it takes a few times seeing it to really appreciate how layered it is, for me, there is just something campy and fun about the suspense / mystery chase caper North by Northwest. It's a fun watch, I love it, probably my favorite Cary Grant performance.
Documentary - Roger and Me made me care about the world I live in. It's that powerful. I saw it when I was 15, it is still relevant, it is still the best film Michael Moore has ever done (and he has done a few great ones). I think it holds up because it's not an agenda political film in the sense that he wants to prove some point, he simply wants to shine a light on his suffering neighbors, give them a voice. It never seems exploitive to me, it seems honest, like this is what is happening, are we okay with this? Powerful film, see it.
So there you have it, a TLDR version of the films I consider essential viewing.
The Battle of Algiers
The Waking Life
Good Morning Vietnam
The Meaning of Life
Born on the 4th of July
Donnie Darko
A Scanner Darkly
Not movies but amazing:
Band of Brothers
The Pacific
Shogun
Adding a couple more, as I think of things.
Still relatively modern, but still considered must see:
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon - Most Americans' first real exposure to Chinese cinema, and beautiful throughout.
Hero (Jet Li) - An interesting take on China's unification. Color themes play a HUGE role and make for some incredible visuals.
TBH: Anything made before, like, 1985 is going to be a really hard sell. The pacing of movies has changed over the years, and unless you're already familiar with them, older films are really hard to watch because they feel so slow compared to modern films. Even classics feel intolerable to a person who's never seen them, and who is used to modern pacing. I'm not just talking about action, either, even dramas and romances are quicker paced now, and it's noticeable.
Completely true IMO. Watched classic Christmas movies with @kimono54 when we got together and they're sooooo slow. Feel like there's ton of unnecessary scene between actual plot points. Only other non-Christmas classic movie I've seen is To Kill a Mockingbird and I feel the same way with that.
Good to remember that movies for most of the 20th century were an evolving art form that was adapted from vaudeville and stage plays
I don't know what caused me to see this movie in theatres, but it immediately became one of my favourite films, which I've watched many many times since.
There are so many amazing films popping up in this thread. I tend to assume I'm on my own in loving some of the more outlandish ones. Can you imagine what a film fest curated by the members of Icrontic would be like?
Judging from the movies that get played at 2am during IC events, it would be terrible, and I would not attend.
Bubba Ho-Tep!
There is something to that. Honestly, I think the modern era of film starts in the 70's probably with the Godfather. Now, that isn't about pace as much as it was film executives trying to figure out a way to lure people from the TV. Competition from television forced filmakers to innovate in the 70s. The content had more of an edge, the acting style shifted away from simulated stage plays to more realism, a push in technology to set up more elaborate shots, fx, and stunts to give the audience something they could not get from a 30 minute show on the Boob Tube. It is funny, today TV and Film companies are all the same, back then they were competing against each other for eyeballs. The 70s is where things really shift in film.
Never before has a comment needed both a real talk and a lulz as much as this.
Office Space
Beavis and Butthead Do America
John Wick
Team American: World Police. Fuck yeah!
Read the whole thing
https://thenib.com/a-lifetime-of-coming-out
Just watch romantic comedies aka "Chic Flicks" with him. They are modern, totally timeless and really put a good spin on reality. It's certainly better than The Nine Lives of Fritz the Cat.
The Sandlot
?????????? good shit go౦ԁ sHit? thats ✔ some good??shit right??there??? right✔there ✔✔if i do ƽaү so my self ? i say so ? thats what im talking about right there right there (chorus: ʳᶦᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉʳᵉ) mMMMMᎷМ? ?? ?НO0ОଠOOOOOОଠଠOoooᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒᵒ? ?? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??Good shit
Rookie of the Year