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Perfect American Movies

Schindler's List
Some Like it Hot
The Departed
The Green Mile
Brokeback Mountain
Crash
 
®îçhå®? said:
TOP GUN
Best. Film. Ever (Seriously, i have watched it over 20 times)

Apart from that:
Gone In 60 Seconds
Band Of Brothers
Shawshank Redemption
Saving Private Ryan

British Films:
The Italian Job
Hot Fuzz
Billy Elliot (note to post high above, it is British)
Mean Machine
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This post is a bad ,, bad joke n'est pas?
 
I just had a couple that are already mentioned:

Citizen Cane
Casablanca
The Godfather
It's A Wonderful Life
E.T.

Those are the obvious ones though. You could almost say anything by Hitchcock as well. Same with other Orson Welles movies and a lot of Jimmy Stewart's and Humprey Bogart's work. Some people might say Gone With The Wind makes it up there. Neverending Story was my favorite as a kid, and it still stands up, but I don't know if I'd call it perfect. Hoop Dreams is one of the best documentaries I've ever seen, but it's a little slow at times. David Lynch stuff is up there too, but it's an acquired taste.

For things you wouldn't normally think of I'd suggest a little known film called Rumble Fish, or a little known director named Jim Jarmusch.
 
A few of the top of my head:

Broadway Danny Rose
Trainspotting
Ghost World
Shaft (original)
A Perfect World
Streetwise
A Home at the End of the World
Map of the Human Heart
Happy Gilmore
 
For some reason, I am just uninterested in films. (I have only seen six of the movies listed so far!)

Anyway, I thought the Harry Potter movies were good; Mean Girls is my favorite comedy.

So, yeah...
 
Mostly Not "American"

Henri Gaudier said:
Just American ones eh? A bit of an odd limitation ... What constitutes an American film anyway? The money or the talent? Lock Stock is wholly Brit crap surely?:p Or something I do like - Bladerunner has an English director with a fantastic Dutchman. Without either of these two it would be an entirely different film.
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I agree completely.

If you are going to make that weird "American" designation, then they should be movies that are seriously American, and about America, steeped in Americana etc. And BTW, it should really be "USA" or "US" not "American." ;)

We all know that the majority of Hollywood type films are remakes and copies of other foreign films (or classic literature), so for true "made in the USA" films, I would nominate stuff like:

- Smile
- Easy Rider
- Dirty Harry
- Full Metal Jacket
- Nashville
- The Long Riders

Those are all hard-core US movies about US subjects by US directors that "say something" about the USA and are all absolutely fantastic.
 
Virgil-TB2 said:
We all know that the majority of Hollywood type films are remakes and copies of other foreign films (or classic literature)
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This is really a separate (and fairly absurdist) issue... Shakespeare copied almost all of his stories too. This is important in understanding Shakespeare. But if you characterize Shakespeare purely this set of actions, you misunderstand him completely.
 
poopyhead said:
the elephant man
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I'd class The Elephant Man as a British film with it's British writers, cast, locations and story. (OK, so it was directed by David Lynch and produced by Mel Brooks, but British cinema is in such a bad state and I want to claim one for us! ;) )


As for great US films, I vote for Taxi Driver and The Straight Story.
 
mkrishnan said:
This is really a separate (and fairly absurdist) issue... Shakespeare copied almost all of his stories too. This is important in understanding Shakespeare. But if you characterize Shakespeare purely this set of actions, you misunderstand him completely.
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I think you overstate the case in your reference to Shakespeare, but I am not so attached to the idea that I want to debate it. I don't especially think of Shakespeare as a great writer but more of a great craftsman. If he were alive today he would likely be working in sitcoms as opposed to writing for the stage or screen perhaps.

In the context of the thread, I think my remark about borrowed and reworked themes makes a lot more sense than the same statement usually does in the more general context one usually sees it.

My main thought was that since are talking about American movies, the focus should really be on American stories and things quintessentially American. Simple.
 
TheAnswer said:
Here's the English language films on my watch and rewatch list, I don't know that any of them are 100% flawless, though:

--List--

A caveat: this is just from the movies I have watched this year (when I started tracking stuff like this).
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Nice list.
 
For a good documentary check out dark days with music by DJ Shadow

what about Pi:Faith in Chaos or Requiem for a Dream by Darin Aronofsky
American History X... a definite must see
The Royal Tenenbaums

For those who like Val Kilmer in Top Gun, check out Top Secret! and Real Genius... it will change your mind about him quicker then falling off a log.
 
Shane
High Noon
The Quiet Man (Best John Wayne movie ever!!!)
Full Metal Jacket
Unforgiven
Million Dollar Baby
Sleepless in Seattle
Top Secret (This is NOT Mel Torme!)
The Longest Day
The Longest Yard ( Old version)
An American Werewolf in London
Blazing Saddles
Young Frankenstein
 
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