Important Movies

Say that again when 2004 comes up.

There's definitely an argument to be made for Azkaban when we get there. Anyway, as far as 2011 is considered, Deathly Hallows should be there for reasons already stated.

Throwing in: Harry Potter needs to stay.

3 Harry Potter films on the list? Ugh.

Oh man, this year is going to be a BLOODBATH


The Exorcist: Widely acknowledged horror classic
Enter the Dragon: Iconic film that cemented Bruce Lee's legacy and had a massive influence on martial arts cinema.
Amarcord: Fellini's last great movie and a brilliant rumination on nostalgia and memorty.
Badlands: The beginning of the Malick journey and the ultimate lovers on the run movie.  Highly referenced.
Mean Streets: The movie that put Scorsese on the map and pushed American cinema towards personal realism.


Honorable mentions include the likes of:

Serpico: the definitive police corruption movie

The Last Tango in Paris: Butter

The Wicker Man: The horror classic that will live in The Exorcist's shadow this year

Cries and Whispers: A wild and beautifully shot Berman film (Criterion, hurry up and put this on Blu).

The Last Detail: The first major American film to use a really large amount of profanity
 
The Long Goodbye: One of the first major neo-noirs

Day for Night: One of the most famous films about filmmaking from none other than François Truffaut

Soylent Green: Heavily quoted ending

The Friends of Eddie Coyle: One of the first Boston set crime films

Sleeper: A very funny Woody Allen movie

American Graffiti: The ur-text for 50s nostalgia (even if it was set in 1962)

Don't Look Now: The other horror film that will live in The Exorcist's shadow this year)

The Harder They Come: Played a big role in popularizing Reggae, but ultimately more important for its soundtrack than as a movie.

Coffy: The first female blaxsploitation movie.

Phew, glad we're out of 2011. Here's hoping we don't do any years past that.

1. The Exorcist: Seen as the pinnacle of its genre and is still ripped off my lesser exorcism themed films.

2. Enter the Dragon: It seems to be Bruce Lee's most iconic role and the definitive martial arts film.

3. Mean Streets: The film that marked the arrival of Martin Scorsese. It established a lot of his style, his core themes, and it's said to have had a pretty wide influence.

4. American Graffiti: Influential "one crazy night" movie that sparked a new interest in 50s and 60s culture. The film also seems to have really connected with an audience of both people who lived through the era, or people who just saw it at the right age.

5: Badlands: A strong example of the "lovers on the run" genre that was popular at the time and the debut of one of cinema's most important directors. Additionally, the way it frames violence in a fairy tale-esque way seems to have taken off.

Honourable Mentions:

Serpico: Famous movie about police corruption that's been referenced/spoofed a lot. Almost made it.

Amarcord: Highly personal examination of nostalgia from the great Federico Fellini. Also almost made it.

The Long Goodbye: Robert Altman film that allegedly deliberately subverts genre conventions. I wouldn't know; I haven't seen it yet.

The Sting: Highly entertaining and with great performances, but I can't think of too many ways it's really important.

Sleeper: Might have influenced Futurama.

The Exorcist
Enter the Dragon
American Graffiti
Mean Streets
Serpico

False alarm. There won't be a bloodbath. So what's gonna be our 5th movie? I say PAPILLON. It's the prototype for every prison escape movie and we need a Steve McQueen movie on our "important" movies list. I know there's still a chance for The Blob, but come on, it's Steve McQueen. That can't be the movie that will define him on our list. Let's not be silly here. And I know what you're thinking. THE GREAT ESCAPE. THE MAGNIFICENT SEVEN. But those were ensemble movies. We need a movie where McQueen is the star and you guys already ignored Bullitt and The Thomas Crown Affair. And I highly doubt you guys will acknowledge The Getaway.

You know what I'm referring to, Dracula. The Shawshank Redemption. It's true that Cool Hand Luke is also influential in the very specific category I'm talking about. But there's no denying that so is Papillon. When you watch The Shawshank Redemption, which currently ranks #1 on IMDb, there's no doubt it borrowed from both Cool Hand Luke and Papillon.



The only foreign movie that made an impact in America is Last Tango In Paris. It pretty much set the stage for all the "erotic movies" we've gotten over the last 40 years. So if you want a foreign movie - let's be real - that's the obvious one.

The Sting
The Exorcist
Enter the Dragon
Mean Streets
Badlands

Seconded.

American Graffiti
Enter the Dragon
The Exorcist
The Last Tango in Paris
Mean Streets