I pride myself on my somewhat knowledge of movies. I do enjoy viewing a wide variety of features from low brow B flicks such as Roger Corman’s Piranha to Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather.
I do enjoy reading must see movie lists as well. After reading my yearly crop of must see lists that include annual must see movie before you die I wondered what my own must see list look like.
I pieced together a handful of titles with a bit of a blurb about each. The movies are listed in order by year they were released and not in the order in which I enjoyed the movie or in which they should be seen if they haven’t.
So please enjoy and let me know how many you’ve seen and what you think of the list.
Casablanca (1942)
The best picture winner at the 16th annual academy awards. It’s a war movie that doesn’t actually show the war. What it does show is the effects of war on those involved. The classic is a must see for everyone movie buff and casual viewer alike.
Planet of the Apes (1968)
My favorite of all science fiction movies. In addition to having many of films greatest one lines (‘Get your hands off me you damn dirty apes’ ect) the movie has one of the greatest endings in cinema.
On Her Majesty’s Secret Service (1969)
The 007 franchise is my favorite film series and I count many entries (Skyfall, Goldfinger, Goldeneye, ect) among my favorite movies. The sixth entry On Her Majesty’s Secret Service is my favorite and a movie that works well as a James Bond movie and works well on a separate level as a well thought out movie. I’m not going to put all the Bond flicks on the list but they are represented by this classic entry.
The Exorcist (1973)
Yes a horror movie! But it’s the granddaddy of horror movies. I’ve seen it many times and it still scares me each time. Unlike recent trends in horror is uses graphic images to enhance an excellent & scary story instead of using the graphic images to go for the scares. It is a must see but do be cautious that it is graphic in imagery and scary.
Jaws (1975)
The first of two movies by director Steven Spielberg on the list. The movie beautifully creates suspense without showing you the villain until the final act. Great filmmaking at its best.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
No movie do I quote more then Monty Python and the Holy Grail. I find myself laughing at the same jokes over the years after each viewing. It is one of the funniest movies I have ever seen.
Star Wars Episode V The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
The best of all 7 (counting the animated feature The Clone Wars) Star Wars feature. Also the movie has the greatest twist in film history. You can skip Episodes I-III because The Phantom Menace is one of the worst movies ever made. A New Hope & Return of the Jedi are both fantastic movies as well but The Empire Strikes Back takes it up a notch.
Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)
The second of two movies from Steven Spielberg and the adventure proves that movies can be a fun time. Nothing wrong with enjoying one’s self at the movies and Raiders of the Lost Ark is a prime example of that.
The Shawshank Redemption (1994)
Morgan Freeman & Tim Robbins both are at the top of there game. The movie shows brilliantly ones will to survive in hellish circumstances beyond ones control. Also based on material by Stephen King shows great diversity from a talented horror author.
Bowling for Columbine (2002)
People either love Michael Moore or hate Michael Moore. There appears to be no middle ground. That is all irrelevant though with this movie. Here he creates a thought provoking look at gun violence in America that is just as relevant in 2002 when the movie was released as it is in 2012.
People either love Michael Moore or hate Michael Moore. There appears to be no middle ground. That is all irrelevant though with this movie. Here he creates a thought provoking look at gun violence in America that is just as relevant in 2002 when the movie was released as it is in 2012.
Ironman & The Dark Knight (2008)
Superhero movies tend to have a bit of camp to them. That tends to add a bit of fun to it. By the late 90’s that camp though seemed to have ruin superhero movies. In 2008 both Marvel & DC released features that revamped the superhero movies. Marvel released Ironman. The movie was full of camp but also added an edge factor that brought Superhero movies to a new level. The Dark Knight took a more realistic approach to the superhero genre. It worked great and did something even rarer by becoming the first superhero movie to win a major academy award. (Heath Ledger took home the Academy Award posthumously for his supporting performance)
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