# Top 10 memorable films



## mscp (Sep 22, 2020)

What are the 5-10 most memorable films you have watched so far?


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## Henrik B. Jensen (Sep 22, 2020)

Gosh that’s a big question  

What are yours?


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## Henrik B. Jensen (Sep 22, 2020)

The Dark Knight (2008)

Both because of Heath Ledger, but also because everything is so well done: Camera movement, the soundtrack, the acting by everyone involved including all the small roles. And the dialogue  So many funny lines 

- ”Funny, he told me something similar”
- ”No, no!”

- “Where did you learn how to count!”

- “Criminals in this town used to believe in things” etc.

etc.!

First 15 minutes or whatever is one of the best and most memorable openings I have ever seen in a movie.


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## Henrik B. Jensen (Sep 22, 2020)

Jurassic Park (1993)

Raiders of the Lost Ark (1981)

I love the adventure theme of these two movies + John Williams music and Spielberg directing. And a young Harrison Ford in Raiders. He’s one of my favorite actors.


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## mscp (Sep 22, 2020)

1. Back To the Future. I love everything about it. Biggest fan.
2. My Neighbor Totoro. Soul-cleansing.
3. Dancer In The Dark. Depressing, but beautiful film.
4. Grave of the Fireflies. Touching.
5. Lion. Based on real life. A must watch.
6. Parasite (Relatively new). I still need to watch a few more times to judge properly.
7. Idiocracy. Simply hilarious.
8. Inside out. Lovely concept. Well written.
9. Good bye Lenin. Spectacular portrayal of tragicomedy.

I don't have favourites...but those are the first memorable movies that came to my head just now.


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## Dirtgrain (Sep 22, 2020)

_Jacob's Ladder_: haunting, provokes physically, emotionally and intellectually.
_Brazil_: clever, cute, dark, creepy, hilarious, and again, haunting--takes _1984_ a step farther.
_Barfly_: "For my frieeeeends." Ha. Buckowski-based character--funny, crude and thought provoking, with great lines, poetry and sorrow.
_The Conversation: _Harry Caul is unforgettable. The film scared the heck out of me as a young man regarding the power of the state.
_In the Name of the Father_: utterly moving film about the injustice of the UK's violation of civil rights in combatting terrorism. Great acting by Daniel Day Lewis (as always).
_Pi_: Gritty, painful exploration of math and religion--great electronic music soundtrack
_Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead_: Funny, witty, clever alternative perspective on some of _Hamlet._
_They Live_:awful acting in parts, but a memorable depiction of an idea that makes one wonder about the ruling class.
_Affliction_: harrowing look at the awfulness of alcoholism.
_Gerry_: worst film to experience--about 90% of it is Matt Damon and Casey Afflack walking in the desert, with the sound of their foot steps crunching. But I will never forget it. Every darn time I hear my footsteps, I have flashbacks.


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## patrick76 (Sep 22, 2020)

Interesting question. I find myself thinking of some of my favorite films, but then wondering, are these the most memorable? 

-Ex Machina - probably the last film I saw that lingered with me for a while after I saw it.
-Forrest Gump - I love Zemeckis
-Solaris - the "new" one with George Clooney and Natasha McElhone. 
-The Shawshank Redemption - I wish I could go back in time and see it for the first time again.
-No Country For Old Men - I could watch this movie 10,000 times.
-Jurassic Park - imho a perfect film of it's genre
-The Village - JNH's score and the cinematography burned that one in my brain
-American Psycho - Christian Bale is so perfect in this.
-The Silence of the Lambs - great score. I saw this one in a theater when it first came out and my friend and I were the only two people in the theater. A perfect way to see a film like this (or any film I would say).
-Goodfellas - " but I'm funny how, I mean funny like I'm a clown, I amuse you? I make you laugh, I'm here to fuckin' amuse you? What do you mean funny, funny how? How am I funny? "

Many more films, but these came to my addled mind right now!


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## Dirtgrain (Sep 22, 2020)

patrick76 said:


> -American Psycho - Christian Bale is so perfect in this.



One of my favorite moments in film is when Bale's character sees that a competitor has one-upped him in business card quality. The look on his face . . .


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## mscp (Sep 22, 2020)

patrick76 said:


> -Ex Machina - probably the last film I saw that lingered with me for a while after I saw it.



I felt the same way with Requiem For A Dream. Clint's soundtrack stuck in my mind for a solid week.


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## mscp (Sep 22, 2020)

Dirtgrain said:


> _Pi_: Gritty, painful exploration of math and religion--great electronic music soundtrack



Yes!


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## Rory (Sep 22, 2020)

Asuming that we're only talking about fiction feature films...

These are in no particular order, except for Fanny and Alexander, which I think is a really special film. It was Bergman's last, unlike anything that he had done before and clearly a labour of love. Watch it over Christmas.

Fanny och Alexander/Fanny and Alexander (Ingmar Bergman)
Soy Cuba/I am Cuba (Mikhail Kalatozov)
Les quatre cents coups/The 400 Blows (François Truffaut)
Dr. Srangelove (Stanley Kubrick)
Mamma Roma (Pier Paolo Pasolini)
La Jetée (Chris Marker) [actually a short film, 28 minutes]
Lawrence of Arabia (David Lean)
La battaglia di Algeri/The Battle of Algiers (Gillo Pontecorvo)
Babettes Gaestebud/Babette's Feast (Gabriel Axel)
Casablanca (Michael Curtiz)
8 1/2 (Frederico Fellini)


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## mscp (Sep 22, 2020)

Rory said:


> Asuming that we're only talking about *fiction* feature films...



Anything goes.


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## cuttime (Sep 22, 2020)

Dirtgrain said:


> _The Conversation__: _Harry Caul is unforgettable. The film scared the heck out of me as a young man regarding the power of the state.


I love "The Conversation". Probably the only film I know of that is about sound and sound technology.


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## Rory (Sep 22, 2020)

Phil81 said:


> Anything goes.



Documentaries, animation and short fiction films are a whole other issue. As it is, I cheated by including Chris Marker's _La Jetée_, and I had to resist listing Jean Vigo's _Zéro de conduite_, an inspiration for both _The 400 Blows_ (Truffaut) and _If..._ (Lindsay Anderson) 

Also, I should acknowledge that my list includes films that interest me in part for technical reasons.


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## Rory (Sep 22, 2020)

Dirtgrain said:


> _The Conversation__: _Harry Caul is unforgettable. The film scared the heck out of me as a young man regarding the power of the state.



I think that Gene Hackman is outstanding, and I love that Walter Murch edited it, but it sure owes a lot to _Blow-Up_, as Coppola has acknowledged. From Wikipedia: "Coppola has cited Michelangelo Antonioni's _Blowup_ (1966) as a key influence on his conceptualization of the film's themes, such as surveillance versus participation, and perception versus reality. "Francis had seen [it] a year or two before, and had the idea to fuse the concept of _Blowup_ with the world of audio surveillance.""

Personally, I think that the original is a better film.


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## Rory (Sep 22, 2020)

cuttime said:


> I love "The Conversation". Probably the only film I know of that is about sound and sound technology.



If you haven't seen it, this 2019 documentary is very good. Available to purchase or rent from the usual sources. There's even a clip in the trailer from _The Conversation_ 

_Making Waves: The Art of Cinematic Sound_


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## NekujaK (Sep 22, 2020)

Well okay, if I have to narrow it down to 10... 

In no particular order:

*Night of the Living Dead*: I was a kid when I first saw it and couldn't sleep for days afterwards. I still find it enjoyable, and I love how it demonstrates that you don't need a mega-million dollar budget to create an effective, atmospheric, and entertaining film.

*Fight Club*: EVERYTHING about this film is so damn excellent. I was blown away the first time I saw it, and was blown away even more the second time.

*Annie Hall*: I still find myself quoting this film, and most everyone I know (who was born pre-1970) gets all the references. This film permeated our culture in ways we're not even consciously aware of.

*Alien*: The only film that literally made me jump out of my seat, but of course, it's so much more than just jump-scares. This is sci-fi/horror at its absolute best, and I have yet to see a film that equals it.

*Pulp Fiction*: Another film that has worked its way into our cultural fabric more than we realize - for better or worse.

*2001 A Space Odyssey*: Epic, visionary, beautiful, imaginative, artful, medatative. Another one I first saw as a kid, and the imagery has stuck with me all my life.

*City Lights*: The pinnacle of everything Charlie Chaplin was about. A perfect blend of humor and pathos. If the final scene doesn't spring tears, or at least put a lump in your throat, you may need to see a therapist.

*The Princess Bride*: Perhaps a rather predictable choice, but it's yet another film that just about everyone knows and I'll bet most folks can quote at least 2 lines from the film.

*Detour *(1945): There are many great films from classic film noir that could've made my list, but I chose Detour because of Ann Savage's wickedly unforgettable performance combined with the desperate and bizarre journey this film takes the viewer on. Film noir forever!

*The Usual Suspects*: What can I say? It's just a perfectly constructed and exquisitely delivered yarn with a satisfyingly delicious twist. When someone says "Keyzer Soze", you're instantly transported back to this great piece of cinematic storytelling.


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## LudovicVDP (Sep 23, 2020)

Top 10 are such a difficult thing to do...

I'll chose a few that really got me "wow!"

Pan's labyrinth
Dark Crystal
Alien + Aliens ("Get away from her you B*tch!" Probably the best badass line EVER)
Terminator 2
The Exorcist (the original version! NOT the extended version with the stupid flashes on the wall + ridiculous face morphings + pace killing extended dialogues + the spider walk that cuts and simply goes to the next scene like nothing happened)
Jurassic Park... that one doesn't age at all!
The Fly shocked me as a kid. I still like it very much to this day.
2001 Space Odyssey. I was completely "in" the movie... I don't dare watching it again by fear I'd get bored and disappointed.




EDIT... wrote like 20 other movies then stopped and deleted them because if I start like this I'll give you a top 100 rather than a top 10... with all the classics that would probably appear in almost everyone's lists.


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## tf-drone (Sep 23, 2020)

LOTR 1
LOTR 2
LOTR 3
Koyaanisqatsi
Gyakufunsha kazoku
E la nave va
Blade runner
2001
The Ninth Gate
Inception


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## el-bo (Sep 23, 2020)

NekujaK said:


> *The Princess Bride*: I'll bet most folks can quote at least 2 lines from the film.



I dunno. Seems pretty inconceivable, to me 

In no particular order:

*Angel Heart* - Dark, heavy, seething atmosphere, laid on so think you'll need a shower after watching. Haunting soundtrack. Great performance from Mickey Rourke.

*Dancer In The Dark* - Beautiful, but sad. Haven't watched it in years, but still get a knot in my stomach just thinking about it. Wonderful soundtrack!

*Star Wars IV*: A New Hope - Saw it in the cinema, on it's first theatrical release. Pretty sure it blew my six-year-old mind. Not sure how to judge for memorability, as I've easily seen it over thirty times.

*Logan's Run* - A quote from a review, grabbed from Rotten Tomatoes:



> A numbing combination of sloppy writing, vulgar art direction, high school acting, and bungled special effects.



And yet my young mind just lapped it up. Another really dark, atmospheric piece with an other-worldly (at the time) synth soundtrack. Haven't watched it in a while, but I'm sure it hasn't aged so well. Certainly, by the time this particular reviewer got to it (2007), it was thirty-years too late, and probably not a fair representation.

Watched almost as many times as 'A New Hope'.

*Brazil* - Gilliam's finest work, imo. Dark, surreal and claustrophobic, peppered with many moments of levity, beauty and expanse. Due for a re-watch.

*RumbleFish* - More darkness (I sense a pattern), both in styling, cinematography and theme. Tons of angst and a great mumbled performance from the ever-enigmatic Rourke. With an awesome soundtrack by Stewart Copeland!

*12 Angry Men* - Stunning piece of work, and a premise so good it even worked for a 90's remake and a surprisingly-good Amy Schumer parody. Timeless cinema that stands up to many repeated viewings.

*BladeRunner* - I know there are people who don't like this film, at all. But i'm part of the 'Whats not to love?' contingent. And for all it's apparent dumbed-down-ness, I actually still love the original, narrated theatrical release. I'd say that's party due to it being the first version I watched, partly because I was 11-years-old when I saw it, and that, really, until talk of the director's cut made it feel like a cop-out, that narrative/expository element was such a common device for noir detective films. It worked so well.

*Terminator* - The first movie. Terrifically dark, grindhouse-like horror.

As much as I remember enjoying Terminator 2, I'd rather the image of Arnie's original relentless killing machine to have remained unsullied by the cheesiness and the switching of sides, to fight for good.

*Assault On Precinct 13* - More dark, gritty, grindhouse thriller/terror. Special mention to the soundtrack 

*Ghost Dog: Way Of The Samurai* - So much quirky joy to be had, from start to finish. Great performance by Forest Whitaker, all propelled along by RZA's soundtrack.

*The Breakfast Club* - Not much to say, here. But if you were a teen during the 80's, this was possibly amongst your favourite films, and you could've probably recited the dialogue to at least half of it 

*Top secret* - My favourite from the Zucker, Zucker & Abrahams oeuvre; perhaps, due to over-familiarity (Another 30+ viewings, I'd imagine). Fun, from start to finish 

Oh, and special mention to '*The Hitcher*'. Found the whole premise, along with Hauer's performance, terrifying. Haven't seen it in years, so not sure how well it would hold up. Definitely left it's mark on me, though

Oh, and *Alien*, *Jaws*, *The Omen*, and...and...

There...My list of, erm...10


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## d.healey (Sep 23, 2020)

First 10 that came to mind (in no particular order).

Little shop of horrors
Indiana Jones ... last crusade
Star Wars Phantom Menace (first Star Wars film I saw)
From Russia with Love
The grand Budapest hotel
The sting
Pirates of the Caribbean
Abobott and Costello Meet Frankenstein
Blazing saddles
Forbidden Planet


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## Rory (Sep 23, 2020)

el-bo said:


> *Brazil* - Gilliam's finest work, imo. Dark, surreal and claustrophobic, peppered with many moments of levity, beauty and expanse. Due for a re-watch.



Brilliant film.


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## aaronnt1 (Sep 23, 2020)

So many to choose from but from the top of my head:

Jaws
ET
Shawshank Redemption
Nightcrawler
Marriage Story
The Irishman
The Road
Blade Runner 2049
District 9
The Assassination of Jesse James
The English Patient
Hunt for the Wilderpeople


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## mscp (Sep 23, 2020)

aaronnt1 said:


> Hunt for the Wilderpeople



This x 1,000,000!! I absolutely love this film.


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## bigcatJC (Sep 23, 2020)

*Arsenic and Old Lace*
I can't help but laugh myself silly when I watch it.

*Star Wars Episodes I-VI*
Yes I love the prequels. Wanna make something of it?

*John Carpenter's The Thing*
Good Lord, the paranoia!

*Casablanca*
Cliche? Yes, but a great film.

*Blade Runner*
Gone...Like tears in rain

*A Night At The Opera*
If you can't laugh at the Marx Brothers, I don't wanna know you.

*The Silence Of The Lambs*
Creeps me right the frag out.

There's more, I'm sure...But I gotta run!


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## D Halgren (Sep 23, 2020)

Million Dollar Hotel

The Hustler

Cool Hand Luke

Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf

Magnolia

The Man Who Fell To Earth

Man On Fire (the Tony Scott version)

The Hunger

The Road Warrior

The Tree of Life


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## Will Blackburn (Sep 23, 2020)

1. Orca
2. The Legend Of 1900
3. Watership Down
4. Leon
5. Solaris (George Clooney one)
6. The Fountain
7. Interstellar
8. Spirited Away
9. In Bruges
10. Phaontom Of The Opera


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## Will Blackburn (Sep 23, 2020)

D Halgren said:


> Million Dollar Hotel
> 
> 
> 
> Man On Fire (the Tony Scott version)



Loved that film.


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## Uncle Ox (Sep 23, 2020)

One of the best movies from the last centuries:

Street of Crocodiles (1986) - Brothers Quay
Under the Skin (2014) - Jonathan Glazer
Holy Motors (2012) - Leos Carax
In the Crosswind (2014) - Matti Helde
Ingmar Bergman (1966) - Persona
Jacques Tati (1967) - Play Time
Roy Andersson (2000) - Songs from the Second Floor
all films from Akira Kurosawa, Andrei Tarkovsky, 
Sergei Paradzjanov oh I forget Fellini, Visconti etc etc

One thing for sure:
is the movie top so is the music and sound(scape) !!
HAPPY WATCHING
Cutchi


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## muk (Sep 23, 2020)

In no particular order:

On Body and Soul

El secreto de sus ojos

Pan's Labyrinth

North by Northwest

M - Eine Stadt sucht einen Mörder

2046

The Fearless Vampire Killers

Parasite

Amadeus

Rushomon



Honourable mentions:

Call me by your name

Only lovers left alife

Welcome Mr. Chance

Some like it hot

The Lord of the Rings Trilogy

The Shape of Water

Lost Highway


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## davidson (Sep 23, 2020)

Not necessarily the best 10 films I've ever seen, but definitely some of the most memorable and inspirational whilst I was growing up.

Aliens
Lord of the rings
Braveheart
Jaws
Snatch
Friday 13th
Rocky 4
Jurassic Park
Halloween
Dawn of the dead


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## mscp (Sep 24, 2020)

Will Blackburn said:


> 8. Spirited Away



YES!


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## mscp (Sep 24, 2020)

I have another one I'd like to add to the list.

Good bye Lenin.


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## telecode101 (Sep 24, 2020)

..


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## szczaw (Sep 24, 2020)

Mostly disturbing stuff:

Martyrs (2008)
Come and See (1985)
The Debt (1999)
Se7en (1995)
The Witch (2015)
Snowpiercer (2013)
12 Monkeys (1995)
Event Horizon (1997)
Dark City (1998)
The King Is Dancing (2000, great baroque music)


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## batonruse (Sep 24, 2020)

Prisoners
Margin Call
Serendipity
The Hunt For Red October
The Shawshank Redemption
The French Lieiutenant’s Woman
Enemy At The Gates
Dances with Wolves
Inglourious Basterds
The Sound Of Music


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## penfever (Sep 24, 2020)

Grizzly Man/Aguirre/Fitzcarraldo/Anything Herzog
Persona/Fanny and Alexander/My Summer with Monika/Anything Bergman
Stalker/The Mirror, but be patient
Satantango, but be even more patient
Das Boot
Moonlight
House (1979)
The Sweet Smell of Success
8 1/2
The Rules of the Game (1939) -- even on a list of brilliant films, this film is surpassingly brilliant


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## Mike Marino (Sep 24, 2020)

Saving Private Ryan
Jaws
Indiana Jones - Temple of Doom
Se7en
Back To The Future
Good Will Hunting
Jurassic Park
Signs
The Green Mile
Big Trouble In Little China

EDIT
Honorable mention: Dumb and Dumber (the original)


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## JohnG (Sep 24, 2020)

Interesting lists. Range from pretty sentimental to kind of "cheeseburger" movies to the esoteric.

I guess we all like a mix of all of those, depending on our moods.


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## Wally Garten (Sep 24, 2020)

Recently rewatched Dune. I was amazed by how much I have retained from that movie. "The toooooooth...." Just a bonkers film, but... memorable? Hell yeah.


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## JohnG (Sep 24, 2020)

The old Dune, Wally? With the guy from Twin Peaks?

That was indeed memorable, though I'm afraid at moments as a comedy.


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## Mike Fox (Sep 24, 2020)

Donnie Darko


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## chillbot (Sep 24, 2020)

This thread is a fun read.



NekujaK said:


> *Fight Club*: EVERYTHING about this film is so damn excellent.


Yes.


NekujaK said:


> *Pulp Fiction*: Another film that has worked its way into our cultural fabric more than we realize - for better or worse.


Yes.


LudovicVDP said:


> Jurassic Park... that one doesn't age at all!


Ha ha, you have your opinion and I respect it. (I don't share it.)


d.healey said:


> The Sting


Glad this made someone's list.


muk said:


> Lost Highway


So much yes.


MOST MEMORABLE i.e. not "favorites" per se. Though they can and might be both, I would assume. My list of most memorable is probably half favorites and half not:

Fight Club
Pulp Fiction
Lost Highway
Godfather I (and II, whatever)
Interstellar
Strictly Ballroom
Life is Beautiful
The Happening (odd choice but I still think about it every year when we get the Santa Ana winds in LA)
Big Lebowski
Cinema Paradiso
Glengarry Glen Ross
Shawshank Redemption
The Matrix
Any Given Sunday
Inception
Napoleon Dynamite

How many is that? 10? Close enough.


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## JohnG (Sep 24, 2020)

nobody mentioned Scott Pilgrim Saves the World!

Stranger than Paradise

Down by Law

but someone mentioned "Babette's Feast," one of the all time most fun "small" movies and someone else "The Grand Budapest Hotel" which I like / love despite its obvious over-cranked-ness in places. Plus a fab score, my favourite from M. Desplat


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## Wally Garten (Sep 24, 2020)

JohnG said:


> The old Dune, Wally? With the guy from Twin Peaks?
> 
> That was indeed memorable, though I'm afraid at moments as a comedy.



I'm afraid I saw it at an impressionable age and buy into its crazy melodrama completely.


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## mscp (Sep 24, 2020)

Here are a few more:

Bicycle Thieves (Italy)
Drained (Brazil)
Taxi Driver (South Korea)
Jiro Dreams of Sushi (Japan) -- docufilm.
Children of Heaven (Iran)
The Invention of Lying (U.S.)
The Guard (U.K.) - viewer's discretion advised --> extremely sarcastic and downright rude.


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## JohnG (Sep 24, 2020)

Wally Garten said:


> I'm afraid I saw it at an impressionable age and buy into its crazy melodrama completely.



Very understandable. I saw Clockwork Orange at a young impressionable age. Made quite an impression.


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## rhizomusicosmos (Sep 24, 2020)

The first nine were easy:

Metropolis (1927)
The Apartment (1960)
Woman in the Dunes (1964)
2001: A Space Odyssey (1968)
Walkabout (1971)
Star Wars (1977)
Stalker (1979)
Blade Runner (1982)
My Neighbor Totoro (1988)

But all of these are jockeying for inclusion to make ten:

La Belle et la Bête (1946)
Late Spring (1949)
Tokyo Story (1953)
Monsieur Hulot's Holiday (1953)
Lawrence of Arabia (1962)
Kwaidan (1964)
Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind (1984)
Tampopo (1985)
Lord of the Rings (2001-2003)


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## JohnG (Sep 24, 2020)

some great ones there

forgot about Tokyo Story


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## LudovicVDP (Sep 25, 2020)

chillbot said:


> Ha ha, you have your opinion and I respect it. (I don't share it.)



Haha. No problem.
But I think the dinosaurs are still better in the first JP than some awful special effects dino from later movies like King Kong etc...


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## stixman (Sep 25, 2020)

How can anyone forget David Lynch Eraserhead! Just to start


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## Dirtgrain (Sep 25, 2020)

stixman said:


> How can anyone forget David Lynch Eraserhead! Just to start


Oh ya. For freaky type of memorable, _Videodrome_ and a Japanese film _Ironman_ (with a guy who has a metal drill for a . . . O.O ).


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## telecode101 (Sep 25, 2020)

..


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## telecode101 (Sep 25, 2020)

..


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## JohnG (Sep 25, 2020)

stixman said:


> How can anyone forget David Lynch Eraserhead! Just to start



I'm not as stirred by that one as many people seem to be but some of his other stuff -- Wild at Heart, Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man -- talk about unforgettable.

Mr. Lynch tugs at the old "curtain of sanity" and exposes an alternate reality. I find his version of reality all the more disturbing and freaky because it's not far from the one we experience in normal times. For me, it's subversive because, unlike slasher films or anything supernatural, Mr. Lynch's scary version is only a step (or two) away; discard a couple of norms, unleash some of the atavistic, primitive craziness that people certainly have within them, and wham!


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## Living Fossil (Sep 25, 2020)

Reducing it to 10 is hard, however,
that's an attempt:

_*Tři oříšky pro Popelku*_ (German: _Drei Haselnüsse für Aschenbrödel, Dir.: V. Vorlíček, 1973_) 
This was my favorite movie as a child.

*Landru* (Claude Chabrol, 1962)
An incredible film. 

*A Clockwork Orange (1971)*
While the film distorts the substantial intention of the book (not Kubrick's fault), it's still a classic.

*Meaning of Life *(1983)
I've picked this film as a representative for the art of Monty Python. 

*Texas* (Helge Schneider, 1993)
The art of absurdity

*Happiness* (Solondz, 1998)
Humor can be pretty tough

*Bitter Moon* (Polanski, 1992)
This one is probably not an extraordinary film. But i was young and really liked it; also
because of the extremely clever use of music (Vangelis)

*Laura* (Preminger, 1944)
This made it into this list mostly because of the music (Raksin).

*Fight Club* (Fincher, 1999)
I didn't watch this one in the cinema (i think the trailer was misleading), but lots of times on DVD...

*Idiocracy* (Judge, 2006)
Intented as a comedy, this film turned out to be kind of a documentary.


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## JohnG (Sep 25, 2020)

interesting list, @Living Fossil 

Two of them I've never run across but will have a go, based on the rest. Tried to enjoy Laura but just too sentimental for me, notwithstanding the music.


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## stixman (Sep 25, 2020)

Its memorable purely because there was no way I was going to watch it at night lol I watched in the daylight  


JohnG said:


> I'm not as stirred by that one as many people seem to be but some of his other stuff -- Wild at Heart, Blue Velvet, The Elephant Man -- talk about unforgettable.
> 
> Mr. Lynch tugs at the old "curtain of sanity" and exposes an alternate reality. I find his version of reality all the more disturbing and freaky because it's not far from the one we experience in normal times. For me, it's subversive because, unlike slasher films or anything supernatural, Mr. Lynch's scary version is only a step (or two) away; discard a couple of norms, unleash some of the atavistic, primitive craziness that people certainly have within them, and wham!


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## Living Fossil (Sep 25, 2020)

JohnG said:


> Tried to enjoy Laura but just too sentimental for me, notwithstanding the music.



That's interesting.
I've always perceived the movie in the sense of Bertolt Brecht's concept of an "epic theatre" (of course there is no direct relation, so this is with a grain of salt...), where the
passion is abstracted to a massive degree. For me, this works because the character of Waldo; this complexion of stoicism, cynism, sarcasm and in the same time consciously perceived sentimentality
reaches me in a humorous way (not in the sense of "funny" humour).
And the music really underlines this on the semantic level.
One interesting thing is that Laura's theme is less about Laura and more about Waldo seeing Laura.
And Raksin handles this in a remarkable way; e. g. when the theme's tonality follows the circle of fifth, which is a traditional symbol for something inevitably taking place (like some destiny unfolding).
An interesting detail (on a personal level) is the fact that Raksin studied with Schoenberg, who wrote that incredibly valuable (and often overseen) book _Structural Functions of Harmony_ [1948], which deals with the use of tonality on the level of tonal regions that get used in longer formal blocks. (That book had a huge impact on me personally, i read it at age 18... )


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## PeterN (Sep 25, 2020)

Heres one more vote for Casablanca so its up to 3 votes now. Theres a Ricks Bar in todays Casablanca - at least it was there 3 years ago - some American had invested big. Its worth the visit to Morocco just for that bar, and the movie plays non stop. Sams piano located on first floor, the roulette on 2nd.

Second vote is for Lars von Triers, Breaking the Waves. Just as an odd horse - about power of a faith (or call belief in miracles). I just kept weeping, like I wept to Schindlers list in end. I dont weep, so thats quite an accomplishment.

Third vote is 12 Monkeys - The movie. It wouldnt be what it became without the magic of Astor Piaollas bandoneon.


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## Dirtgrain (Sep 25, 2020)

JohnG said:


> Blue Velvet



Really, Dennis Hopper is unforgetable. What a character he performed--put me so on edge.



JohnG said:


> The Elephant Man -- talk about unforgettable.


Yes

"I am not an animal; I am a human being."


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## Dirtgrain (Sep 25, 2020)

_The Abyss_ - the overall film I don't remember so well. But the emotional intensity of the scene where they have to choose who dies, who swims the other one back, and the resuscitation was almost too much for me to handle when I saw it. So intense. Resuscitation scenes are a dime a dozen--but not this one. Wow.

Someone mentioned _Down By Law_, which I loved when it came out. _Night on Earth_ (also by Jarmusch) has two chapters that I have not forgotten: the one with cab driver Helmut and characters played by Rosie Perez and Giancarlo Esposito; and the one with the Finnish cab driver telling story to some drunks of losing a child. I need to track that one down again.


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## Stringtree (Sep 30, 2020)

The Cook, the Thief, His Wife, and Her Lover
Jacob's Ladder
Vanilla Sky
Brazil
Amadeus
The 400 Blows
The Dark Knight
Dancer in the Dark
Fitzcarraldo
On Golden Pond


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## DoFuzz (Dec 20, 2020)

Hi

Kudos to Dirtgrain for mentioning Terry Gilliam's masterpiece Brazil - a funny rollercoaster and cinematic journey on par with Kubrick's 2001: A Space Odyssey. In my opinion.

Cherrs, DoFuzz


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## TGV (Dec 20, 2020)

It turns out to be really hard to cut the list down to 10. There are really many memorable movies:

Amadeus

Casablanca (definitely in my top 10, too: timelessly melancholic)

The Lives of Others (Das Leben der Andern: leaves a great impression on life in communist Germany)

Thesis (Tésis, the low budget mind fuck movie that put Amenábar on the map)

Life is beautiful (La vita e bella: never forget)

The Matrix (fantastic mix of fiction and philosophy)

Memento (what's in a name?)

Lost in Translation (strangely poetic)

Fargo (also a poetic movie)

Life of Brian (if I would forget all movies, the Latin grammar punishment will still stay with me)

Some films that dropped out of the top 10: Delicatessen, Groundhog Day, Galaxy Quest, Chicken Run, My Neighbour Totoro, The Death of Stalin, LOTR, Die Hard (it may not be great, but it is memorable), District 9, Abre los Ojos, Shawshank Redemption, Soldier of Orange, etc.


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## Monkberry (Dec 20, 2020)

Schindler's List
The Green Mile
Platoon
Juno
Forest Gump
Dead Poets Society
Love Actually
Fried Green Tomatoes
Apocalypse Now
Alien


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## Banquet (Dec 20, 2020)

Thin Red Line
Prometheus
Aliens
Contact
Withnail and I
The Right Stuff
Europa Report
Fly Away Home
Jaws
Zero Dark Thirty


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## AudioLoco (Dec 21, 2020)

The Quest of the Holy Grail
Life of Brian
2001 a Space Odissey
The Blues Brothers
Back to the future
Brazil
Idiocracy
The good the bad and the ugly
LOTR I
12 Monkeys
District 9
Frankenstein Junior
The big dictator
School of Rock
SpaceBalls (yeah, I know...)

In no particular order, it's more then 10, and probably I'm missing some big ones....


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## Michael Antrum (Dec 23, 2020)

1) Alien /Aliens
2) Godfather (any & all of them)
3) The Legend of 1900
4) Casino
5) The Exorcist (The only film that truly scared me)
6) Beaty & The Beast (Animated version - Disney at their very peak)
7) Jaws
8) Margin Call
9) The Thing (1983)
10) Contact

There's so many more. But these are films I really like. There are so many worthy films that I respect and value, like a lot of Nolan's work, but I don't actually 'like' them, if you know what I mean.

I saw Aliens in 70mm back in '86 at the Odeon Marble Arch in London - It blew me a


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## Alexandre (Mar 4, 2021)

Rory said:


> Asuming that we're only talking about fiction feature films...
> 
> These are in no particular order, except for Fanny and Alexander, which I think is a really special film. It was Bergman's last, unlike anything that he had done before and clearly a labour of love. Watch it over Christmas.
> 
> ...


Thank you for this wonderful list...


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## pondinthestream (Mar 4, 2021)

Dersu Uzala
Solaris (Tarkovsky)
12 Monkeys
Barton Fink
Hail, Caeser!
The Ballad of Buster Scruggs
Throne of Blood
Smiles of a Summer night
The seventh seal
Wake in Fright

I could go on for many many more, these are just the ones coming to mind now without getting stuck on a single director although I did a bit with the Coens


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## bill5 (Mar 10, 2021)

I decided to go for "ten of my favs" vs "most memorable," which as someone else said, wouldn't be the exact same list...and even this list might change if I think of it more, hard to narrow down, but off the top and in no order (I'm surprised some of these weren't mentioned yet):

Forrest Gump
Amadeus
Coming to America
Patton
City Slickers
When Harry Met Sally
Tequila Sunrise
Groundhog Day
Mr Holland's Opus 
Outlaw Josey Wales


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