The Movie Nerd Bible: Part I

[lumpenprole]

Nice list. Seen them all and own about half of them.

One thing that stood out to me was that Jaws was a year before Logan's Run. I own both of them and watch them about yearly. Jaws still feels fairly modern and accessible. Whereas Logan's Run, despite being awesome, is also ridiculously dated.

I mean, they're trying to accomplish two very, very different things, so it's not really fair to compare them, but it's certainly weird.

Seconding the Clockwork Orange suggestion. It may not be everyone's favorite movie, but the influence on the future distopia sub-genre is inarguable.

Also, I'd add THX-1138. It also comes off as dated, but it's a perfect insight into how people who are the age of about half the congress feel about computers.

 

[LesIsMore]

All good films, many of which I still need to see. Definitely see the remastered version of "Metropolis" that came out last month - it makes so much more of the film, not just visually but in terms of narrative and symbolism.

 

[MowDownJoe]

I guess I'm not as big of a nerd as I like to consider myself... I never saw the original King Kong, only the remake that had Jack Black doing a good job playing a serious role.
I have seen Jaws, at least... I can't say I've seen the original versions of many of those films, but I have at least seen Jaws.

 

[Susan Arendt]

With the exception of "Solaris", the Hammer-horror movies and "Night of the Living Dead" I've seen all of these.

Read: Every horror and sci-fi movie you should see.

Are movie nerds really relegated to these two genres? A true movie nerd appreciates all types of films. I list some here, but there are of course about 200+ missing.

This.

There are shitloads of movies outside the "nerd" genres that are equally good (and better) and just as influential than what's on this list.
Like all the heist movies ("Outside the Law", "The Killing", "Rififi"), the crime noir ones (almost anything with Bogart in it), the endless number of war movies, samurai movies, westerns and so on. And all the other movies Fritz Lang and Kubrick did.

This isn't a list of what every movie nerd should see, it's a list of what every nerd should see. Movie nerds and the more general nerd are not the same creature.

 

[jabrwock]

Definitely a milestone, but given how overrated and boring (due to amazingly slow pacing) this movie is, and given that just about every scene has been parodied or referenced dozens of times in modern pop culture, i don't really see why someone still would HAVE!!!! to see this movie.

If you don't know the source material, a parody just isn't as funny.

 

[ItsAPaul]

I've actually seen none of those (except part of Night of the Living Dead but man was it boring), and I'm okay with that.

 

[blindthrall]

Where did you find the Tarkovsky version of Solaris? I've been looking for that for some time. I hated the Clooney version, but the book is my favorite SF novel ever.

Fun fact: Tarkovsky filmed the movie version of STALKER...in Pripyat! Then some boob messed up the film, and they had to go back and do it all over. Most of the crew got cancer.

 

[UGAlawdawg]

Good list, I am always happy to see someone included "Cabinet of Dr. Caligari" in a list like this. There is one glaring omission that noone has mentioned yet.
The Day the Earth Stood Still.

 

[RobCoxxy]

Where did you find the Tarkovsky version of Solaris? I've been looking for that for some time. I hated the Clooney version, but the book is my favorite SF novel ever.

Fun fact: Tarkovsky filmed the movie version of STALKER...in Pripyat! Then some boob messed up the film, and they had to go back and do it all over. Most of the crew got cancer.

Try Amazon, my good man.

 

[NSGrendel]

They were notable at their time, but they're not tremendously relevant now. Also, this list does not include "Invaders from Mars".

Fail list is fail. And derivative.

 

[Breaker deGodot]

I liked the list, but personally I would have added some Sergio Leone in there somewhere.

 

[The_root_of_all_evil]

Jenny Agutter...*sigh*

Anyway, a few to add from my stable.

[HEADING=3]Mysterymen (1999)[/HEADING]

In my opinion, the best Superhero film ever. One of the few times Ben Stiller is awesome. We've got a blind date with destiny and she's ordered the lobster.

[HEADING=3]Nikita (1990)[/HEADING]

The original gun wielding damsel. A film that merges My Fair Lady(Pygmalion] and The Ipcress File. Anne Parillaud takes Ellen Ripley and makes her sexy, vulnerable but still a strong female. Her gun-and-run through the kitchen is literally heart-stopping.

[HEADING=3]Labyrinth (1986)[/HEADING]

Some loved David Bowie (those tights...), Some loved Jennifer Connolly (guiltily), everyone loved Jim Henson's work.

[HEADING=3]Back to the Future (1985)[/HEADING]

What needs to be said? Sheer brilliance from all concerned. Forget the logic of what really must have happened, just enjoy Michael J Fox's second finest film.
(The Frighteners was better, but less heard about)

[HEADING=3]Brazil (1985)[/HEADING]

Terry Gilliam. Bob Hoskins. Michael Palin. Johnathan Pryce. Robert De Niro. Jim Broadbent...They're all coming for me...

I'm afraid we lost him, Mr. Helpmann.

[HEADING=3]Ghostbusters (1984)[/HEADING]

Who ya gonna call?

[HEADING=3]Airplane! (1980)[/HEADING]

Surely you can't be serious missing this one out? The greatest parody of all time. Marvelously incorrect. Eminently quotable. And I picked a fine week to stop sniffing glue.

[HEADING=3]Star Wars (1977)[/HEADING]

Never has there been a better start and a better ending to a space opera. I don't think there ever will be.

[HEADING=3]Blazing Saddles (1974)[/HEADING]

There's no-one that can offend like Mel Brooks. And still keep people laughing.

[HEADING=3]The Godfather (1972)[/HEADING]

Some day, and that day may never come, I will call upon you to do a service for me. But until that day, consider this justice a gift on my daughter's wedding day.

[HEADING=3]The Italian Job (1969)[/HEADING]

The car chase movie of all car chase movies. And the bank heist movie of all bank heist movies.

[HEADING=3]Duck Soup (1933)[/HEADING]
The Marx Brothers finest. If you ever need to be a comedian, watch Groucho.

 

[Guest_Star]

With the exception of "Solaris", the Hammer-horror movies and "Night of the Living Dead" I've seen all of these.

Read: Every horror and sci-fi movie you should see.

Are movie nerds really relegated to these two genres? A true movie nerd appreciates all types of films. I list some here, but there are of course about 200+ missing.

This.

There are shitloads of movies outside the "nerd" genres that are equally good (and better) and just as influential than what's on this list.
Like all the heist movies ("Outside the Law", "The Killing", "Rififi"), the crime noir ones (almost anything with Bogart in it), the endless number of war movies, samurai movies, westerns and so on. And all the other movies Fritz Lang and Kubrick did.

This isn't a list of what every movie nerd should see, it's a list of what every nerd should see. Movie nerds and the more general nerd are not the same creature.

Still, even most general nerds will get more from the heist movies Tarantino continually homages than "Logan's Run" or "Soylent Green".

And, this being a nerds list... where's the 1966 "Batman"? Or the 1951 "Superman vs the Mole Men", arguably the first full length movie adaption of a comic. (1948 "Dick Tracy" doesn't count since Tracy only was a comic strip)
Also, no "The Day the Earth Stood Still"? It could have been included just for the phrase "Klaatu barada nikto" alone. Or the Bernard Hermann score, forever establishing how aliens are introduced.

Fun fact: Tarkovsky filmed the movie version of STALKER...in Pripyat! Then some boob messed up the film, and they had to go back and do it all over. Most of the crew got cancer.

Don't write things like that, people might believe it. Most of the film was filmed in Estonia. And it happened 7 years before the Chernobyl Disaster.

Btw: The Tarkosky "Solaris" is easily obtainable from Play.com.

 

[MovieBob]

i.e. what is/isn't on here:

I had to be absolutely merciless in hacking this down to manageable length, otherwise it'd have been a book. Stuff it most pained me to cut: Clockwork Orange, Wizard of Oz, 10 Commandments, The Day the Earth Stood Still, THX 1138 Clockwork Orange, Caligiri, etc. SOME of these will be "namechecked" alongside related later films next week.

When it came down to it, the main idea of these two lists isn't so much a film school curriculum or a "best" roster as it is the stuff that makes up the main "reference pool" for geek-culture today. So, objectively, THX is a better negative-utopia movie than Logan's Run, but Logan's Run is more "iconic" - go make a futuristic overpopulation paranoia movie, and the first thing everyone mentions is either Logans Run or Soylent Green.

The "post-Star Wars" list, I can already tell, is going to be a BEAST to edit down - thanks to stuff like Robot Chicken and College Humor, there are sooooo many 80s and 90s movies that have NO objective reason to be on a list of noteworthies but might have to be because the references are now so ubiquitous (see: "Krull.") I'm already seriously considering pushing it to three just because the 80s were so jam-packed.

 

[machvergil]

I wonder how few people under the age of 30 there are like me who were forced to watch Soylent Green in school and therefore experienced the surprise ending before TV spoiled it for him?

 

[blindthrall]

Fun fact: Tarkovsky filmed the movie version of STALKER...in Pripyat! Then some boob messed up the film, and they had to go back and do it all over. Most of the crew got cancer.

Don't write things like that, people might believe it. Most of the film was filmed in Estonia. And it happened 7 years before the Chernobyl Disaster.

My mistake. I just checked it out, and you're right. Now I just wish I remembered where I heard that crap.

 

[Guest_Star]

I'm already seriously considering pushing it to three just because the 80s were so jam-packed.

Ha! Just Arnold's movies alone would fill at least one segment.

 

[Dhatz]

Bob,In case you get it wrong:NOBODY will EVER want to watch anything older than planet of apes. At least not anyone born 1990 and on. In addition Space Odyssey totally failed because there was no way to do the effects depicted in the book.

 

[SatansBestBuddy]

Hmmm...

Welp, guess I've got another 30+ movies to add to the "big long list of shit to watch" list.

 

[Herr Wozzeck]

Of these movies, I've seen Nosferatu, The Wolfman, Logan's Run, and 2001: A Space Oddessy.

All great films for sure. Awesome list, Bob. Can't wait for the other half. =D