These classics are definitely worth a watch! Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we’re counting down our picks for the most essential cinematic gems every movie lover should have tucked inside their mental rolodex!
Category
🎥
Short filmTranscript
00:00-"Toto, I have a feeling we're not in Kansas anymore."
00:05Welcome to WatchMojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most essential cinematic gems
00:10every movie lover should have tucked inside their mental Rolodex.
00:14-"Don't you go out with friends?"
00:19-"Well, a boy's best friend is his mother."
00:23Number 30, Forrest Gump.
00:25There will always be movies that serve as creative tentpoles for their decade.
00:29Forrest Gump served that purpose for the 90s.
00:31-"I could eat about a million and a half of these."
00:36-"My mama always said, life was like a box of chocolates."
00:42A tried-and-true classic with tons of heart and some of the most iconic performances of its time,
00:46the film was nominated for every award you could imagine back in 1994.
00:51Among those, it bagged six Academy Awards, including trophies for Best Picture,
00:55Director, Actor, and Adapted Screenplay.
00:58The film's script, which was praised for its treatment of Winston Groom's 1986 novel
01:03of the same name, did take a few liberties, but nothing that watered down its charm.
01:08-"That day, for no particular reason, I decided to go for a little run."
01:14With or without those tweaks, Forrest Gump remains a must-see example of
01:18earnest, feel-good 90s cinema.
01:20Number 29, Terminator 2, Judgment Day.
01:23James Cameron seems to have a knack for bucking the established,
01:26reliable trend of diminishing sequel returns.
01:29He certainly proved that with his work on both the Aliens and Terminator franchises.
01:33After showing he could follow up Ridley Scott's Alien with a hit,
01:36Cameron doubled down with Terminator 2, Judgment Day,
01:39which became the highest-grossing film of 1991.
01:42-"Come with me if you want to live."
01:44-"It's okay, Mom. He's here to help. It's okay."
01:48Judgment Day takes the grit and neon of the first film and polishes it up a bit, but not
01:53too much.
01:53This sequel is still very much a high-octane action classic,
01:57yet it's also slick as hell without becoming too mired in lore.
02:00Terminator 2 is a textbook example of how to push a franchise forward
02:04in a way that keeps every fan satisfied.
02:06-"High five, high five. Five below."
02:09-"Ha ha ha. Too slow."
02:11-"No, I'm just kidding."
02:16Number 28, Taxi Driver.
02:18At what point do we, as moviegoers, apologize for a flawed protagonist?
02:23Simply due to how much we enjoy the performance.
02:26-"You talking to me? You talking to me? You talking to me?"
02:35Robert De Niro's Travis Bickle is a troubled and dangerous man,
02:38an outsider on the fringes of society with a fuse that's set to blow.
02:42Yet De Niro is so captivating in the role that we find ourselves
02:46viewing Taxi Driver through Travis's eyes, perhaps at the risk of becoming too much alike.
02:51-"I should get one of those signs that says one of these days I'm gonna get organized."
02:56-"You mean organized?"
02:57-"Organized. Organized. It's a joke."
03:02The famous quote attributed to Friedrich Nietzsche seems to ring true.
03:05If you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you.
03:10That abyss is Travis Bickle, the film is Taxi Driver,
03:14and we dare everyone to stare into his eyes at least once.
03:17Number 27, A Clockwork Orange.
03:20The transgressive violence of A Clockwork Orange may make it
03:23difficult for some to engage in multiple viewings. While that is understandable,
03:27it's also important for any self-respecting cinephile to dive headlong into director
03:32Stanley Kubrick's filmography. A Clockwork Orange is as good a place to start as any.
03:37-"It was like a bird of rarest spun heaven metal.
03:41Or like silvery wine flowing in a spaceship. Gravity all nonsense now."
03:47The film embodies the often cold and austere aesthetic of the maestro,
03:51while bursts of harrowing violence explode off the screen like bottle rockets.
03:55Malcolm McDowell's Alex DeLarge is another one of those protagonists
03:59that's not only unreliable, but supremely unlikable.
04:02-"And I'm singing. Just singing. In the rain, doobie-doo, doobie-doo."
04:12He is a legitimate antisocial psychopath, yet his journey from delinquency to guinea pig
04:16takes us full circle, ending right where it began, an ouroboros of ultraviolence.
04:21Number 26. Back to the Future
04:24While all of the films on this list deserve to be seen at least once,
04:28we can't help but insist that viewers take in nothing less than half a dozen tries with
04:32Back to the Future. -"I was standing on the edge of my toilet,
04:34hanging a clock. The porcelain was wet. I slipped, hit my head on the edge of the sink.
04:37And when I came to, I had a revelation. A vision. A picture in my head. A picture of this."
04:44This is a film that rewards those who take the time to discover all of its Easter eggs
04:48and secrets. Beyond this fact, however, Back to the Future is just one of those
04:51quintessential 80s flicks, an important part of a balanced cinematic diet.
04:55Let's forget for a moment how much the film resonated with audiences in the 80s,
05:00and instead admire the fact that Back to the Future remains a perfect trilogy that future
05:04generations continue to revisit with their children. -"Hey Doc, you better back up. We
05:08don't have enough road to get up to 88." -"Roads? Where we're going, we don't need roads."
05:16That counts for a lot.
05:20We love movies about the making of movies, and Federico Fellini's masterful
05:248 1⁄2 is one of the best examples of this fascinating subgenre.
05:28The very word Fellini-esque has gone on to describe the maestro's cinematic artfulness,
05:42and 8 1⁄2 is living proof. Themes of writer's block, alienation,
05:47and romantic restlessness all come into play within Fellini's film,
05:50underlined by moments of absurd comedy. Marcello Mastroianni is the epitome of cool
05:55as director Guido Anselmi, while a robust cast of legends like Claudia Cardinale and
06:00Barbara Steele make up Fellini's legendary penchant for casting all-time screen beauties.
06:178 1⁄2 is an artful film, but it's never boring, and serves as a great way to inject a little
06:22culture into your movie-watching rotation.
06:38If there was ever a misconception that a courtroom procedural couldn't also double
06:42as a smolderingly intense social drama, then we submit for your approval 12 Angry Men.
06:47This film from director Sidney Lumet takes audiences into the deliberation room of a
06:52murder trial and dissects, with painstaking detail and accuracy,
06:56all of the elements that comprise that all-important phrase, reasonable doubt.
07:00You're talking about a matter of seconds, nobody can be that accurate.
07:03Well I think testimony that could put a boy into the electric chair should be that accurate.
07:07There is a single dissenting voice in 12 Angry Men that will not be silenced or overwhelmed,
07:13as the summer heat outside is brought into the jury room.
07:16Personal tensions take over, emotional and prejudicial baggage is unpacked,
07:20all while a young man's life hangs in the balance.
07:25Sometimes a film's disturbing content can make it so difficult to watch that you only
07:29really need to see it once. Schindler's List is a prime example of that.
07:34It was you. You committed this crime.
07:38No sir.
07:38But you know who though.
07:40Yes.
07:41It is without a doubt a powerful piece, and ranks as one of the finest in Steven
07:45Spielberg's enviable filmography. That said, it doesn't make for easy viewing,
07:50thanks to its setting of the Holocaust. Yet the performance of its ensemble cast,
07:54Spielberg's assured direction, and Steven Zalian's wonderful screenplay have cemented
07:59Schindler's List as one of those films that's still shown in high schools all over the world.
08:14Do you have a comfort food movie? One that you turn to whenever you're feeling down?
08:18The Shawshank Redemption seems to embody that for many film lovers.
08:22I guess it comes down to a simple choice really.
08:24Get busy living, you get busy dying.
08:32It's also one of those movies that some forget is actually based upon a story by horror legend
08:37Stephen King. But despite being helmed by future Walking Dead developer Frank Darabont,
08:41The Shawshank Redemption is the furthest thing from Halloween fare.
08:44This was a film that succeeded via word of mouth. A campaign of praise from those who saw it,
08:49loved it, and wanted others to feel the same way. And that legacy still holds true today,
08:54as new viewers continue to discover the brilliance of The Shawshank Redemption for the first time.
08:59Remember Red, hope is a good thing. Maybe the best of things. And no good thing ever dies.
09:10It's called tradition for a reason. And yes, we know that Die Hard and A Christmas Story have
09:15just as much right to be viewed every holiday season as It's a Wonderful Life. However,
09:19we're just glad that a film as vintage as this 1946 Frank Capra classic has not faded away over
09:25time. Get me back to my wife and kids. Help me, Clarence, please. Please. I want to live again.
09:34Instead, the Yuletide rings in as an opportunity for newcomers to appreciate It's a Wonderful Life
09:39for the first time. Sure, some of the plot elements, such as Donna Reed's fate of becoming
09:43an old unmarried maid, are certainly of their time. But the overarching sentiments of goodness,
09:49faith, and humanitarianism still ring true just as loudly as the bells announcing Clarence's
09:54brand-new angel wings.
10:05Number 20. Parasite. The critical and commercial success of Parasite is impressive for a number
10:11of reasons. And this in part influences why it deserves your cinematic attention.
10:19For starters, it's the first film to win the Academy Award for Best Picture that wasn't filmed
10:32using the English language. In this, Parasite manages to help change the foreign language
10:37stigma that's long been associated with the Oscars, while at the same time exposing international
10:43cinema to a wider audience. Similarly, director Bong Joon-ho comes from a genre cinema background,
10:55with Parasite further vindicating creators from this world as real contenders when it
11:00comes to movies of all shapes and sizes.
11:02Number 19. The Breakfast Club. It's been said that cinema geared towards young people and teenagers
11:15doesn't always have the best writing. Thankfully, there have been films like Fast Times at Ridgemont
11:28High and The Breakfast Club to challenge that conception and stereotype. Both films display a
11:34lot of respect for their young protagonists and treat their problems with seriousness.
11:39The Breakfast Club may start off compartmentalizing its group of high schoolers into tension,
11:43but it's quickly established that all is not what it seems. Everyone in The Breakfast Club undergoes
11:49a change of sorts by the movie's end, and we the audience are left with our minds challenged and
11:54our hearts that much fuller for having taken this journey with them along the way.
12:10You don't have to like westerns in order to enjoy Sergio Leone's The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
12:15I know nothing at all about that case of coins. Now that gold has disappeared,
12:19but if he'd listened we could have avoided this altogether.
12:21Okay, so having an appreciation of the genre certainly helps, but Leone's vision is a master
12:26class of epic storytelling, and is bound to enthrall even the most reticent of audiences.
12:31The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly does nothing by half measures,
12:35and pushes the genre forward in terms of violence, scope, and technique.
12:40When you have to shoot, shoot, don't talk.
12:42Leone's film isn't just about a treasure hunt or a pistol duel,
12:45rather it's a piece that takes the classic western archetype,
12:49grabs its hand, and drags it along into contemporary cinema for a brand new lease on life.
12:55You have not lived until you've seen Gene Kelly dance,
12:59and you haven't seen Gene Kelly dance until you've watched Singing in the Rain.
13:25The impact of this film is similar to that of Leone with westerns,
13:29in that it doesn't matter whether musicals are your thing.
13:32Singing in the Rain is old Hollywood glitz and glamour at its finest,
13:36and represents a bygone era of class and artifice.
13:39There's a grace and beauty to the singing and dancing on display here,
13:43as Kelly and his co-stars Debbie Reynolds and Sid Charisse
13:46light up the screen like lightning during a thunderstorm.
13:49There's just an electricity to Singing in the Rain that cannot be matched,
13:53and it's certainly a movie that everyone should see at least once.
14:10Our favorite movie stars come into our lives on the silver screen,
14:14and leave us with something that cannot be measured with money or time,
14:18an emotional connection.
14:19He turns to me and he says,
14:23Why so serious?
14:25Unfortunately those same stars don't stay with us forever,
14:29which is why films like Christopher Nolan's The Dark Knight
14:32serve as important time capsules to remember the performances we love.
14:36Heath Ledger stunned audiences and industry professionals alike
14:40when he disappeared into his role of the Joker for Nolan's film.
14:43Don't talk like one of them, you're not.
14:46Even if you'd like to be.
14:50To them you're just a freak, like me.
14:53The Dark Knight may be about Batman,
14:56but it's Ledger's movie full stop,
14:58and his performance is something that needs to be seen to be believed.
15:06Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon was following in the footsteps of giants
15:10back when it was released in 2000,
15:12thanks to its incredible crossover appeal with audiences.
15:20It's easy to compare the explosion and acclaim received by the film
15:27to the kung fu craze that ignited in the wake of Bruce Lee's
15:30Enter the Dragon back in the 70s.
15:32However, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is important for additional reasons,
15:36in that it also deviated from that 70s martial arts stereotype,
15:40bringing the more physically graceful
15:42and thematically complex wuxia style to the masses.
15:45Is it a martial arts film?
15:46Certainly, but Crouching Tiger is also much more than that.
15:50It is a beautiful cinematic experience that begs to be savored.
16:03There's more than one way for movie fans to enjoy
16:06just how epic Francis Ford Coppola's Apocalypse Now was in scope.
16:11Such, and that's why poor filmmakers in a way,
16:13that's their greatest horror, is to be pretentious.
16:16On the surface, Coppola's film is one of the darkest
16:19and most captivating war films of all time.
16:22But there's also the war that went into getting the film made in the first place,
16:26a story that was captured by Coppola's wife with documentary footage shot on set.
16:30It was a truly harrowing experience shooting Apocalypse Now for everyone involved,
16:35and those results are clearly set there on the screen.
16:41It's a heady and psychedelic trip into the heart of darkness,
16:52an abyss where this film resides, patiently waiting for its next new victim.
17:00Who says kids movies have to be just for kids?
17:02Clearly not the team at Pixar,
17:04whose Toy Story franchise has gone on to be embraced
17:07by children and adults around the world.
17:11I'm Picasso!
17:12I don't get it.
17:13There's just a universal appeal to Buzz, Woody and all the gang,
17:17as we see just what goes on when kids aren't paying attention to their toys.
17:21Moreover, Toy Story tackles themes that affect everyone,
17:25from the emotional changes of growing up,
17:27to feelings of abandonment, confusion and loss.
17:30It also does so with a patient grace that transcends easily
17:34from the screen into our hearts.
17:36Toy Story is quite simply a classic.
17:39To infinity and beyond!
17:42Number 12
17:43The Maltese Falcon
17:45Film noir was a hugely important movement within American cinema,
17:48one that was influenced by German Expressionism
17:51while carving its own black and white path into history.
17:54You've got to trust me, Mr. Spade.
17:57Oh, I'm so alone and afraid.
18:00I've got nobody to help me if you won't help me.
18:02The Maltese Falcon is one of the best examples of this style,
18:06a picture that's studied by film students for its contributions
18:09to visual style and narrative structure.
18:12Indeed, the importance and influence of the Maltese Falcon
18:15can be seen in more modern works,
18:17such as Quentin Tarantino's Pulp Fiction,
18:19which owes a debt of gratitude to the film.
18:22It's all here, from Humphrey Bogart's hard-boiled private eye
18:26to Mary Astor's alluring femme fatale.
18:28The Maltese Falcon didn't follow cinematic tropes,
18:31it helped create them.
18:33A man's partner's killed,
18:34he's supposed to do something about it.
18:36It doesn't make any difference what you thought of him.
18:38Number 11.
18:39The Exorcist.
18:40There are few corners of film fandom with as much dedication
18:44as the world of horror.
18:46So what's wrong with him?
18:50We still think the temporal lobe.
18:52Oh, what are you talking about, for Christ's sakes?
18:55Did you see her or not?
18:57Fright fans want to see it all,
18:59re-watching their favorite scares again and again.
19:02But what about desert island horror?
19:04The films without which fans simply could not live?
19:08The original Halloween is certainly on that list,
19:10but perhaps chief among them is William Friedkin's The Exorcist.
19:14It's the Citizen Kane of horror films,
19:17a tour de force that still manages to disturb
19:20decades after its original release.
19:22The Exorcist was a viral hit before the term was even invented,
19:26a word-of-mouth shocker that went on to help define the genre to this very day.
19:31He will like to confuse us,
19:34but he will also mix lies with the truth to attack us.
19:40Number 10.
19:41Citizen Kane.
19:43Speaking of Citizen Kane,
19:44there's a reason why this 1941 film continues to receive
19:48so many accolades by film scholars.
19:50It's simultaneously a textbook example and a game changer for the medium,
19:55an achievement that went on to define the career of Hollywood icon Orson Welles.
20:00Countless filmmakers studied the editing techniques,
20:03the story structure and cinematography of Citizen Kane.
20:06Composers listened to Bernard Herrmann's iconic score
20:09and tried to emulate its rousing and textured themes.
20:12Perhaps unsurprisingly,
20:14Citizen Kane wasn't a financial success during its initial run,
20:17but word travels fast and it wasn't long before Welles's work
20:21would go on to become one of the most influential films ever made.
20:24For the indictment, prosecution and conviction of Boss Jim W. Geddes!
20:32Number 9.
20:33The Lord of the Rings The Fellowship of the Ring.
20:36Retaining an audience's interest throughout the runtime of a big-budget epic
20:40is not always easy.
20:42Don't you lose him Samwise Gamgee.
20:45I don't mean to.
20:46Sam, we're still in the Shire.
20:47What could possibly happen?
20:49That is, unless your name happens to be Peter Jackson.
20:52The first film in Jackson's Lord of the Rings trilogy
20:55followed in the footsteps of other filmmakers
20:58who attempted to bring the world of author J.R.R. Tolkien to life.
21:01Respected filmmakers such as Ralph Bakshi,
21:04Jules Bass and Arthur Rankin Jr.
21:06This time, however, Jackson had the budget,
21:09the setting and the cast to make an update that would serve for many
21:13as the definitive depiction of Tolkien on screen.
21:16And it's difficult to argue with those people,
21:18since The Fellowship of the Ring still possesses such an emotional resonance
21:22and cinematic relevance.
21:24It's truly an achievement.
21:26So do all who live to see such times,
21:28but that is not for them to decide.
21:31All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given to us.
21:36Number 8.
21:37Modern Times
21:38The world of silent film spawned a number of notable stars
21:42and impossibly creative legends.
21:44Buster Keaton was one,
21:46while Modern Times, our next entry,
21:48comes from another,
21:49the iconic Charlie Chaplin.
21:51Chaplin's film serves as one of the best entry points for newcomers,
21:55as it not only sets on display the actor's natural charm
21:58and amazing physical comedy skills,
22:00but also his ability to inject scathing satire into a narrative.
22:04Modern Times takes square aim at America's industrial revolution
22:08and even got Chaplin in trouble with the United States government,
22:12thanks to his left-leaning political views.
22:14Despite or perhaps because of this controversy,
22:17Modern Times remains unerringly relevant.
22:21Number 7.
22:22Gone With The Wind
22:23Everyone loves a big-budget epic, right?
22:25Titanic was a massive success when it was released back in 1997,
22:29but 1939's Gone With The Wind might be one of the OGs of going big.
22:42Today, some of the film's content stands out as controversial
22:45and requires a discussion of context,
22:48but this changes nothing about Gone With The Wind
22:50as both a technical achievement and cultural touchstone.
22:54Newcomers may be caught off guard by the film's three-hour-plus running time,
22:57but Gone With The Wind remains one of those films
23:00with which true scholars of the medium should invest their time.
23:03It's a grand, sweeping, romantic story
23:06the likes of which cinema will likely never see again.
23:17Number 6.
23:17Star Wars Episode IV, A New Hope
23:20The 70s were a true golden age for American cinema,
23:24from character-driven pieces and genre fare
23:26to the summer blockbuster season
23:28that unofficially kicked off with Steven Spielberg's Jaws.
23:34Elsewhere, Spielberg's friend and colleague George Lucas
23:37was placing his own stamp in cinema history
23:39with a little film of which you may have heard,
23:42called Star Wars.
23:48Sure, it may be known today, subtitled as Episode IV, A New Hope,
23:52but back then, it was known simply as Star Wars,
23:55a worldwide phenomenon that captivated the imaginations of moviegoers everywhere.
24:00Star Wars was the space opera to end all space operas,
24:04a smash hit that forever changed summer cinema trips,
24:07and led to one of the most beloved movie sequels,
24:10The Empire Strikes Back.
24:18It's not true.
24:20Number 5. Seven Samurai
24:22There are names that cinephiles recognize as true masters of the silver screen.
24:27One of those names is Akira Kurosawa,
24:30a Japanese legend who crafted some of the art form's most influential movies.
24:35Seven Samurai is just one of Kurosawa's masterpieces,
24:39a 200-plus minute epic that's a masterclass in storytelling and visual beauty.
24:45The film may deal with samurai,
24:47but it also possesses themes of loss and finding one's place in the world,
24:51of how to cope with time, about how things change,
24:54and how we can make the most of our time.
24:56Kurosawa's story is one of a kind.
24:58It's a story about a man and a woman,
25:01of how to cope with time, about how things change,
25:04and how we define ourselves once that which defines us has gone away.
25:08Seven Samurai is much more than just swordplay and adventure.
25:12It is a true cinematic experience.
25:24Number 4. Psycho
25:26What defines a horror movie, and what separates it from a thriller?
25:30I'm sorry, I didn't mean it to sound uncaring.
25:34What do you know about caring?
25:37Have you ever seen the inside of one of those places?
25:39It's difficult to say, yet still,
25:41horror fans cheered when The Silence of the Lambs won the Best Picture Oscar back in 1992.
25:46Alfred Hitchcock's Psycho sort of works within both worlds,
25:49serving as a compelling and tragic character study,
25:52while at the same time providing some of the most iconic shocks of the decade.
25:57Hitch wasn't known as the master of suspense for nothing,
25:59and Psycho just might serve as one of the director's crowning achievements.
26:04A horror classic full of surprises that still feels so very fresh today.
26:15Number 3. 2001 A Space Odyssey
26:18It's not surprising at all that our top tier of films here
26:22are by some of the finest to ever sit behind a camera.
26:25Stanley Kubrick is certainly one of those people.
26:27A creative obsessive whose austere and relentlessly watchable works
26:32have gone on to become textbook cases about how to make a movie.
26:35I would recommend that we put the unit back in operation and let it fail.
26:412001 A Space Odyssey is one of Kubrick's most well-known pieces,
26:45but also one of his best.
26:46A slice of hard sci-fi that challenges its audience at every turn.
26:51This is a measured moody piece that questions humanity's place in the world,
26:55while also daring to get marvelously psychedelic throughout its runtime.
27:00Simply stated, 2001 A Space Odyssey is a must-see.
27:04Number 2. The Godfather
27:06We love to quote our favorite movies.
27:15And like it or not, some of those quotes become so well-known,
27:18they enter the pop culture zeitgeist and lexicon forever.
27:22The Godfather is one of those films,
27:24but it's also an outlier in that Francis Ford Coppola's massive crime epic
27:28still lives up to all the hype.
27:30This is a film that never gets old,
27:32no matter how many of its beats you've memorized or how much trivia you know.
27:36It's a marvel that Coppola was able to assemble this perfect cast
27:40and deliver this perfect movie at the perfect time.
27:43The Godfather is tops, and watching it is always a good decision.
27:56Before we continue, be sure to subscribe to our channel
27:59and ring the bell to get notified about our latest videos.
28:02You have the option to be notified for occasional videos or all of them.
28:06If you're on your phone, make sure you go into your settings and switch on notifications.
28:10Movies are for everyone, and everyone has their favorite movie.
28:18The Wizard of Oz, for many, stands at the top of this list, and with good reason.
28:23It's magical how perfectly The Wizard of Oz fits into our movie-watching habits as children,
28:28yet stays with us as we get older.
28:30Becoming one of those comfort food films we find ourselves viewing again and again.
28:35And it's not just because we love the Wizard of Oz,
28:38again and again.
28:40And if you've never seen The Wizard of Oz, it doesn't really matter,
28:43because a first-time viewing is just like the hundredth.
28:46Warm, familiar, and universally nostalgic.
28:50The wonder of Dorothy's adventures in the land of Oz are part of cinema's DNA,
28:55strands of indescribable magic that unite us all as movie fans.
29:08Which movie have you seen the most?
29:11Let us know in the comments.
29:19Did you enjoy this video?
29:20Check out these other clips from WatchMojo,
29:22and be sure to subscribe and ring the bell to be notified about our latest videos.
29:37you