10 Classic Films Everyone Should See

"That's an old movie. Who would want to watch that?"

Time and time again I've heard the above words said to me after I offered to watch a film that is at least fifty-years old. Films, similar to other art forms, have transformed throughout the decades and the movies that were at one time considered entertaining no longer appeal to modern audiences. I'm a movie buff, but even I'll admit that I don't get as excited about watching an older film as I do when going to the theater to see a newly released movie. As expected the action sequences in older films do not hold up to the CGI and superior stunt work present in most modern movies. In a similar sense the majority of romantic comedies do not hold up as well. This is primarily because the writing that once appealed to viewers now appears fake and austere. However, over the past century there have been a few handfuls of older films that remain entertaining to this day. These films are able to stand the test of time through great writing, characters, and stories. The messages, characters, and lines within the films will continue to remain strong as long as the human race prospers, because what is considered entertaining may change but the life lessons and statements within these films will always remain. These are ten classic films (pre-1968) every American should see.


10) City Lights (1931)
Most of the Charlie Chaplin movies have held up fairly well over time. My personal favorite is City Lights, in which Chaplin's character (identified as the tramp) falls in love with a blind girl and goes through a personal journey through the streets of New York in order to get her eye surgery. Audiences love an underdog. I believe this is the reason why Chaplin movies have held up over time. Chaplin plays a similar character in all his films, which is a clumsy, kind, yet courageous individual who is able to overcome difficult obstacles through his strong benevolence. Watching a Chaplin film is like watching the race between the rabbit and the tortoise, you can't help but cheer for the tortoise (underdog) and are entertained to see how he wins.

9) On the Waterfront (1954)
It's hard to stand up to people with power, especially when those in power are willing to kill in order to have things their way. In Elia Kazan's On the Waterfront (1954), an ex-boxer named Terry Malloy is forced to make a decision to either take the side of the dock workers or the corrupt dock boss. Superior performances last forever and the five lead characters played by Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Rob Steiger, Lee J. Cobb, and Karl Malden were all Oscar worthy. What makes these performances hold up to this day is that the characters were given such fantastic lines throughout the film. There have been instances where I have told people about how great this film is and they have said they have never heard of it. Then I would quote a line from the movie and they'll say, "Oh, so that's were that comes from."

8) Spartacus (1960)
Three of the films on this list were directed by Stanley Kubrick. This is because Kubrick was known of being ahead of his time and pushing the envelope in story and censorship (he also directed A Clockwork Orange, Full Metal Jacket, and Eyes Wide Shut). Spartacus follows a slave who ends up leading a revolt against the Roman empire. The story within this film shows acts of tremendous courage. The citizens following Spartacus believe so much in his cause that every one of them are willing to give their lives to defend him. This is also one of the few films in which the action has held up over the past few decades, primarily because the cinematography is top notch.


7) The General (1927)
Most people associate Charlie Chaplin as the best silent-era movie star of all time, but I believe the best silent film is Buster Keaton's The General. This is because Keaton combines an amiable character, similar to "the tramp" in the Chaplin films, with impressive stuntwork. Throughout the film Keaton's character attempts to chase down a train stolen by the Union forces during the Civil War in order to save the woman he loves. The cat and mouse chase is why the film holds up so well over time. Both sides eventually play the part of either the cat or the mouse and the deciding factor in who catches who is the side that knows the railway system the best. This film is amazingly clever and funny despite being over 80 years old.

6) Double Indemnity (1944)
Known as one of the best film noir movies of all-time, Double Indemnity holds up primarily because of its interesting story, which unlike most of the other films at the time period is completely unpredictable. Also, another positive difference between this movie and other film noir's is that it remains complex to the audience without being overwhelming and frustrating. The plot revolves around Walter Neff, an insurance agent who is convinced to commit murder in order to collect the insurance money for the victim's wife and for himself. However, things do not go as simply as planned and eventually Neff becomes a suspect. This film is guaranteed to keep viewers guessing and remains suspenseful though it is was released in 1944.

5) Casablanca (1942)
Though the film prides itself on being a film about a never dying romance, Casablanca also succeeds in making an everlasting political and historical statement. The film mainly takes place in an American Cafe, in which the bar owner named Rick (Humphrey Bogart) runs into the former love of his life, who left him after the Nazis invaded Paris. She is now married to her former husband (who she believed had been dead), now a leader of the Jewish resistance. The film primarily follows the relationship between Rick and his former lover named Llsa (Ingrid Bergman), yet the movie also explores the desperation that people had to get out of Europe during the war. The classic one-liners as well as the superb storyline make this a film that will last for decades to come.

4) Paths of Glory (1957)
Paths of Glory is one of the best anti-war film ever made and it powerfully demonstrates some of the absurd acts that high-ranking military personnel may undergo in order to be victorious. When a general sends his squad on a suicide mission to overtake German defenses, the American commander ignores the order and tells his soldiers to save themselves instead. As punishment the general orders three random men from the squad to be assassinated as a demonstration of how disobedience will be dealt with. Once again Kubrick was ahead of his time in both cinematography and narrative, which is part of the reason why Paths of Glory appeals to modern audiences.


3) Dr. Strangelove or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb (1964)
Known as one of the best satires of all time, Dr. Strangelove was meant to show the stupidity of the Cold War. Why do we build so many bombs that we could blow the world up 100 times over? This film still applies to modern audiences because we still have nuclear bombs all over the world. Isn't there some other way to settle disputes than to build devastating weapons of mass destruction? Dr. Strangelove attempts to demonstrate through dark humor how easily our government could destroy the human race. It set the standard for black comedy and still remains entertaining to this day.


2) Rear Window (1954)
Hitchcock made a lot of great films, but in my opinion Rear Window was easily his best. The film follows L.B. Jefferies, who after a leg injury is forced to spend every hour of every day in a small apartment in New York. Jefferies is bored out of his mind until he begins gaining evidence that a murder has taken place in the apartment across the courtyard. Hitchcock was born to direct this film and it contains one of my favorite shots of all time, in which Hitchcock introduces all the neighbors in a continuous long shot. Though it was released over half a century ago, it remains suspenseful and should be required viewing for all people interested in movies.


1) 12 Angry Men (1957)
I believe this is the third time I've mentioned 12 Angry Men since I started the blog. I truly can't say enough about this movie. Whenever I think about how films possess the ability to influence people, 12 Angry Men comes to mind. Though the film is about a jury, the courage demonstrated by juror #8 can be applied to all aspects of life. Its hard to stand up to a group of people when you are all alone. The pressures from other people can often lead us to do injustices we never thought we were capable of. However, those who possess the ability to stand up and do the right thing will most likely succeed in the long run. This message presented in 12 Angry Men will always apply to people everywhere. It is a must see film.

Review of The Hurt Locker

Most of the war films I have seen are meant to demonstrate the mental and physical horrors of warfare such as Paths of Glory, Apocalypse Now, and Saving Private Ryan. Although Kathryn Bigelow's The Hurt Locker shares this characteristic, it also shows how soldiers can become addicted to war. This was surprising to me, in that I was expecting a movie about the faults of the war in Iraq. Instead, The Hurt Locker serves more as a character study about a soldier who feeds off the adrenaline rush during the process of defusing bombs and how his team reacts to his gallant personality.

I get nervous over taking an important test or going to a job interview, so I can't even imagine the state I would be in if I had a job defusing bombs in Iraq. The idea that one wrong move might blow up myself and my team would be much more than I could handle. The Hurt Locker does a fantastic job of showing the kind of personality a soldier must have in order to succeed in dismantling bombs. The story revolves around Sergeant First Class William James (Jeremy Renner), a bomb diffuser who remains calm during almost any crisis. Though he is certainly the best at what he does, the Sergeant's reckless personality causes the rest of the bomb squad to worry. Understandably the team does not want to die with only a month left in their tour, and it appears that James does not have a care in the world whether they live or die. However, as the squad continues to go on missions, the rest of the team soon discovers that there is more to James' personality than meets the eye. He may be reckless with his own life, but this allows him to put the lives of the rest of his squad over his own.

What separates The Hurt Locker from other war movies is that it demonstrates how fighting for one's country can be appealing to people with certain personality types. Through watching James dismantle bombs throughout the film, I gained more respect for those soldiers who love the thrill of knowing that life could be over at any second. In many ways I wish I was like that. Being unafraid (or at least appearing so) of death is a luxury that most people do not have and in many ways I admire the courage it must take to face death with a big smile on your face.

The Hurt Locker feels like a documentary in many ways, partially because it represents an actual war (Iraq). However, I think the main reason why it feels so realistic is the characters are believable. I don't know if The Hurt Locker is based on a true story, but I am almost certain that there are people similar to the characters played by the three leads. Bigelow does a great job of capturing the environment of Iraq. The townspeople look on with confusion, there are destroyed cars along the road, and the buildings all look like they have gone through an earthquake. I almost felt as if I was watching the news, except The Hurt Locker is much more entertaining and thought-provoking.

Overall, The Hurt Locker is the best war film I have seen since Black Hawk Down. It is suspenseful, action-packed, thoughtful, and contains one of the best lead characters in recent memory. I believe The Hurt Locker will go down as a modern classic and a film that demonstrates a different side of war.

RATING: 4.0/5

Review of Paranormal Activity

I remember one time I was in a restroom and out of nowhere the sink came on (was not a sensor sink). At the time I simply figured the plumbing somehow short circuited, but who knows. Perhaps some supernatural ghost or demon was haunting the bathroom on the 3rd floor of Buckman Hall at Rhodes College and was trying to tell me to wash my hands. Most people have had something unexplainable happen to them, and it just depends on the individual to decide whether the cause was coincidence or if there is such a thing as ghost.

In Paranormal Activity a young couple begins questioning the weird sounds in the night and the mysterious things that happen while they sleep. In an attempt to get evidence of the ghost or demon haunting their house, the husband named Micah buys a video camera to try and catch the "paranormal activities" on tape. Day by day the camera records stranger and more evidential activities of demons in the house, who appear to be trying to control the body of the wife named Katie. The couple has no idea what to do because the demon seems to have been following Katie since she was a small girl. They want to leave the house but they know that the demon will only bring torment to other people they come into contact with. In broad terms, they're fucked. Micah wants to figure out the problem, but his pride and reckless personality does not allow himself to call for help. Katie just feels desperate, confused, and guilty. She doesn't understand why this is happening to her and simply wants it to go away (who wouldn't).

What is very frightening about Paranormal Activity is despite its extremely low budget, it is one of the most believable horror films ever made. It is shot with a hand-held camera and with simple effects, which makes it almost look like a home movie. With this in mind, Paranormal Activity makes the audience question those sounds they may hear in the night. This is what makes this film really scary and unique. So if you like horror films, Paranormal Activity is a must see. First time director Oren Peli has proved that a big-budget, experience and all-star actors are not needed to make a top-notch horror film. All it takes is an original, interesting idea and 10,000 dollars (The Paranormal Activity budget) to scare people out of their seats.

RATING: 3.6/5

Review of Cop Land

When I was in college I remember one of my professors telling me about her experiences as a Spanish instructor for the Memphis Police Department. It was her job to teach the officers common phrases that may be used by Spanish speaking criminals. However, although the officers had been hired as protectors of society, she said that she had never seen a classroom where there was more lying, cheating, and misconduct (and she had previously taught elementary school). In theory police officers are meant to enforce the law, yet this raises the question, who enforces the law upon those who are in many ways above it? In James Mangold's Cop Land (1997) an experienced sheriff in a small town in New Jersey named Freddy Heflin (Sylvester Stallone) slowly learns that the cops in New York City are using their status to get away with murder. When a rookie cop shoots and kills two young African-Americans, a team of New York city officers attempt to cover up the murder by declaring the young cop had committed suicide. Slowly Heflin learns of the corruption and decides to do something about it by taking on the corrupt cops by himself. This film is not necessarily packed with action, but it is certainly never boring. In fact, the slowness of Cop Land adds to the intensity during the final shootout between Heflin and the corrupt officers. Overall, this is one of Stallone's best films, not because of the action sequences but because of the ideas the film explores. Is it the duty of an officer to disturb the peaceful nature of a small town in order to promote justice? In the case of Heflin he decides that since an officer has made an oath to protect society, there are no exceptions in promoting justice even if those who threaten society are officers themselves.

RATING: 3.5/5

Review of Up in the Air

Whenever I watch a movie I attempt to put myself in the main character's position. In the case of Jason Reitman's Up in the Air I pictured myself as a person who makes a living traveling from place to place releasing people from their jobs, in which the majority of time they have at least ten years experience and have done nothing to deserve being let go. For me it would be an impossibility because I personally have a hard time being the bearer of bad news. However, for Ryan Bingham (George Clooney) firing people is simply a job, in which he believes is a necessity. Most people have been fired at least once in their lifetime, and for Bingham he attempts to make the experience of being let go as painless as possible.
There are many people who believe movies should be created purely as a means to escape reality. If you are one of these people I would recommend avoiding Jason Reitman's Up in the Air, a film that prides itself on depicting realistic situations, characters, and relationships. I for one believe that in this modern time period our society can benefit from such a movie, because it explores the same individual and societal challenges most of us are experiencing presently. Up in the Air is a character study of a man who chooses to avoid relationships with all people because he has discovered that being alone is better than the complications that come with romances and friendships. However, after meeting the woman of his dreams he has a tough decision to make. Relationships are the cause of true happiness, but they also have the potential to produce misery. Perhaps a life a neutrality is the way to go. Up in the Air is not a movie that supports the actions of a particular character. Instead it simply presents realistic relationships and allows the audience to decide for themselves who is right and who is wrong. This is what makes Up in the Air so clever. This movie is one of the smartest movies I've seen in years, which for me makes it one of the best films of 2009.

RATING: 4.6/5

Review of District B13

I haven't seen many foreign films that were purely action flicks with the exception of films from China. I guess this might be because most foreign film production companies do not possess the finances to compete with the big-budget blockbusters of Hollywood. The CGI that is now so common in American action films is absent in the majority of foreign films. However, in District B13 (2006), director Pierre Morel proves that using none or at least very few digital effects can actually be beneficial to the action genre. District B13 is more visually stunning than the majority of the summer blockbusters released in recent years. This is caused by the superior stunt work as well as the amazing features of free running (running without stopping no matter what obstacles get in your way). The story follows a separated district in Paris where all people of poverty and crime have been isolated from the rest of the city. When a group of thugs from District B13 hijack a rocket, it is up to two men (one a undercover police officer, the other a former resident of District B13) to stop the bomb from going off. The story is simple, yet it presents a political message about poverty life in the big city. Overall, District B13 is one of the best foreign action films I've ever seen mainly because of the impressive stunts performed by the two lead characters. If you love action movies, you should check this film out.

RATING: 3.9/5

Review of Sherlock Holmes

I’ve never been a moviegoer who minded peculiarity in films, yet I do sometimes question why some filmmakers insist on making a movie idiosyncratic when an uncomplicated plot is suitable. This is the problem I have with many of Guy Richie’s films, which I typically characterize as “all over the place.” Often Richie's cinematography is much like the stories within his films, unsystematic and at times just plain bizarre. Unfortunately his latest film, Sherlock Holmes, suffers from these same detrimental characteristics. The film follows Holmes (Robert Downey Jr.) and Watson (Jude Law) as they attempt to stop a cult leader named Blackwood from taking over the world. Though it appears as if Blackwood has supernatural abilities, Holmes slowly begins to uncover Blackwood’s methods. Many times you cannot help but smile at Holmes superior logic in order to figure things out, yet there are simply to many aspects thrown towards the audience to develop any interest in the complete story at hand. In short, I was a bit overwhelmed by the plot of Sherlock Holmes. Undeniably there are moments in this film that are crafted adeptly, such as the moments when Holmes analyzes how he would be most successful at approaching brawls. However, overall the film unnecessarily bewilders the viewer by presenting too many plot devices, too many pointless characters, and humor that simply isn’t funny. The only real reason to see this film is Robert Downy Jr., whose version of Sherlock Holmes is of course a genius, yet clumsy enough so that he doesn’t appear arrogant. Though it isn’t necessarily a bad film, it is very forgettable. At this point in the movie season there are many better films that have recently been released (Avatar, Up in the Air, The Blind Side)

RATING: 2.9/5