25 Essential Films To Watch In Quarantine

[Paolo's Circus Story]

Link: https://cantfindtickets.wordpress.com/2020/04/22/25-essential-films-to-watch-in-quarantine/

With most of us in lockdown, we’re going to have a lot of time on our hands. So I thought it would be worth talking about 25 essential films to watch that may have passed you by over the years, because after all we can only rewatch The Office and the Marvel Cinematic Universe so many times.
I’ve ranked the films based on how much I enjoyed them rather than how good they are, just in case you’re confused about the contrast in ratings as we get further down.

Enjoy!

[Thunder Roadie]

There's definitley a couple on there I want to see... Mulholland Drive and Parasite.... gave up on Donnie Darko jsut wasn't for me. There are some surprises on there too which I may well look up....thanks.... oh and here's one back at you, saw it the other day... blew my bonce off!!!

 

[Jimmy James]

I seen 12 of the 25. 

[Jimmy James]

Can I throw in Tombstone, if there is any possibility no one has watched it? 

 

 

[robk1]

On 4/22/2020 at 11:41 PM, Paolo's Circus Story said:

Link: https://cantfindtickets.wordpress.com/2020/04/22/25-essential-films-to-watch-in-quarantine/

With most of us in lockdown, we’re going to have a lot of time on our hands. So I thought it would be worth talking about 25 essential films to watch that may have passed you by over the years, because after all we can only rewatch The Office and the Marvel Cinematic Universe so many times.
I’ve ranked the films based on how much I enjoyed them rather than how good they are, just in case you’re confused about the contrast in ratings as we get further down.

Enjoy!

Hey Paolo....is this your list or someone else's? Sorry....I got confused

[Troublette]

On 4/24/2020 at 8:07 AM, Jimmy James said:

I seen 12 of the 25. 

One more than me then. 

[Tom-Joad]

I’ve seen 16 of those. Some I’m not very fond of (Casino, for example), but you’ve got There Will Be Blood there and that’s probably the best movie of the 21st century. I should watch it again.

[riverdude2]

I've seen 16 too but not one of them would make my own top 5 or maybe even 10.  Grand Budapest Hotel, I really tried to like because I like Wes Anderson, but I just gave up eventually after about an hour.

[Tom-Joad]

1 hour ago, riverdude2 said:

I've seen 16 too but not one of them would make my own top 5 or maybe even 10.  Grand Budapest Hotel, I really tried to like because I like Wes Anderson, but I just gave up eventually after about an hour.

I couldn’t finish GBH either. 

[whispered secret]

I liked GBH, but I don't think my tastes and Paolo's coincide much! I had only seen 7...

[Paolo's Circus Story]

On 4/26/2020 at 8:56 PM, robk1 said:

Hey Paolo....is this your list or someone else's? Sorry....I got confused

Hi, It's mine. Hope it helped!

12 hours ago, Tom-Joad said:

I’ve seen 16 of those. Some I’m not very fond of (Casino, for example), but you’ve got There Will Be Blood there and that’s probably the best movie of the 21st century. I should watch it again.

Can I ask what you didn't like about Casino? There Will Be Blood is amazing! God knows why it isn't a lifer on Sky. 

[Tom-Joad]

1 hour ago, Paolo's Circus Story said:

Hi, It's mine. Hope it helped!

Can I ask what you didn't like about Casino? There Will Be Blood is amazing! God knows why it isn't a lifer on Sky. 

I honestly don’t remember a whole lot about it. I remember I found it boring and very uninteresting...

[Paolo's Circus Story]

48 minutes ago, Tom-Joad said:

I honestly don’t remember a whole lot about it. I remember I found it boring and very uninteresting...

Fair enough. The only thing that bothered me was how similar it was to The Irishman. Of course Casino came out first, but I was somewhat irked by the lack of originality in Scorsese's templates over the years. 

[SteveJhb]

On 4/23/2020 at 12:41 AM, Paolo's Circus Story said:

Link: https://cantfindtickets.wordpress.com/2020/04/22/25-essential-films-to-watch-in-quarantine/

With most of us in lockdown, we’re going to have a lot of time on our hands. So I thought it would be worth talking about 25 essential films to watch that may have passed you by over the years, because after all we can only rewatch The Office and the Marvel Cinematic Universe so many times.
I’ve ranked the films based on how much I enjoyed them rather than how good they are, just in case you’re confused about the contrast in ratings as we get further down.

Enjoy!

I think I've only seen 10 on the list. (I think) but at least 3 on that list I would put in my top 10 favourite movies, ever. So I will definitely seek out others on the list. Thank you Paolo-San.

[took me long enough]

I need to Whiplash again, so good.  Great list. 

[JimCT]

So many more come to mind

On the Waterfront - Brando, Lee J. Cobb, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Rod Steiger (recommended today by Little Steven )

Guys and Dolls - Brando (again) and Sinatra

Platoon

Coming Home - Jane Fonda, Jon Voight

Midnight Cowboy - Voight and Dustin Hoffman

Scent of a Woman - Pacino's sole Oscar

Fabulous Baker Boys - the Bridges brothers and Michelle Pfeiffer 

ETA:

Chinatown

Big Chill

American Graffiti

Dead Poet's Society 

American Beauty

Pump Up the Volume

Some Kind of Wonderful 

Fast Times at Ridgemont High

ETA: Steve's tweet

 

[Paolo's Circus Story]

13 hours ago, SteveJhb said:

I think I've only seen 10 on the list. (I think) but at least 3 on that list I would put in my top 10 favourite movies, ever. So I will definitely seek out others on the list. Thank you Paolo-San.

What are the 3 in your top 10 mate?

[Paolo's Circus Story]

7 hours ago, JimCT said:

So many more come to mind

On the Waterfront - Brando, Lee J. Cobb, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Rod Steiger (recommended today by Little Steven )

Guys and Dolls - Brando (again) and Sinatra

Platoon

Coming Home - Jane Fonda, Jon Voight

Midnight Cowboy - Voight and Dustin Hoffman

Scent of a Woman - Pacino's sole Oscar

Fabulous Baker Boys - the Bridges brothers and Michelle Pfeiffer 

ETA:

Chinatown

Big Chill

American Graffiti

Dead Poet's Society 

American Beauty

Pump Up the Volume

Some Kind of Wonderful 

Fast Times at Ridgemont High

Some fantastic films there. On The Waterfront I watched for the first time earlier this year as part of a double bill alongside The Wild One. I thought The Wild One was borderline awful, but On The Waterfront, well that one lived up to expectations. As Stevie said in that tweet, Brando brought it and showed exactly what makes him a great actor - De Niro does similar in Raging Bull - because every now and then you might find yourself thinking, "yeah they're great actors, but what exactly makes them great?" Streetcar is another example of that, of course he's helped by how annoying Vivien Leigh is in that film. 

Of those other fourteen I've honestly only seen Chinatown and American Beauty (Scent of a Women is the one I'm waiting to pop up on Sky or streaming services). I thought Chinatown was just decent, albeit a bit of a slog to get through at times, but after watching and being seriously underwhelmed by Rosemary's Baby the other day I have a suspicion Polanski films aren't my cup of tea. American Beauty on the other hand is tremendous.

[SteveJhb]

3 hours ago, Paolo's Circus Story said:

What are the 3 in your top 10 mate?

Oh gosh squire... Too hard to say. Same as music. For me, a top 3 or top 10 list would not necessarily be about the best movie, or the best acting, or best script or whatever. It would be which ones do I want to go back to, over and over? Which ones do I never tire of? If I had to get rid of my entire Blu Ray and DVD collection and have only 10, which would they be?

I absolutely love movies that others might laugh at the thought of. For example, one of my all time favourites, which I recently found on Blu Ray and was ecstatic about, was Joe Versus The Volcano. Ditto The Idolmaker. It finally made it to Blu Ray a couple years ago.

The first Matrix movie, Pulp Fiction, Grumpy Old Men, Ronin, Love Actually, The Green Mile, Cry Freedom, Regarding Henry, A Few Good Men, Back to the Future, Carlito's Way.... All outstanding movies in my mind for one reason or another. When I watch a movie, and I know where I have laughed or cried or gotten angry before, and that still happens, then for me, that movie has worked.

[SteveJhb]

And already I had forgotten one of my most favourite movies... Glengarry Glen Ross.

[JimCT]

Another that escaped me earlier - Into the Woods

Not the theatrical version. In 1989 the original cast reunited to film it for later broadcast on PBS. Bernadette Peters as the Witch  

 

 

[Paolo's Circus Story]

10 hours ago, SteveJhb said:

Oh gosh squire... Too hard to say. Same as music. For me, a top 3 or top 10 list would not necessarily be about the best movie, or the best acting, or best script or whatever. It would be which ones do I want to go back to, over and over? Which ones do I never tire of? If I had to get rid of my entire Blu Ray and DVD collection and have only 10, which would they be?

I absolutely love movies that others might laugh at the thought of. For example, one of my all time favourites, which I recently found on Blu Ray and was ecstatic about, was Joe Versus The Volcano. Ditto The Idolmaker. It finally made it to Blu Ray a couple years ago.

The first Matrix movie, Pulp Fiction, Grumpy Old Men, Ronin, Love Actually, The Green Mile, Cry Freedom, Regarding Henry, A Few Good Men, Back to the Future, Carlito's Way.... All outstanding movies in my mind for one reason or another. When I watch a movie, and I know where I have laughed or cried or gotten angry before, and that still happens, then for me, that movie has worked.

Sorry for the headscratcher mate, I meant what were the "at least 3 on that list I would put in my top 10 favourite movies" 

You've mentioned some good'uns though. I watched Back to the Future II again for the first time in years last night and forgot how far it fell from the all-timer standard of the first one. I've also been pondering whether to watch Carlito's Way for the last week or so, I think you might have given me the final push to hoy  it on. I've been on a mini Pacino binge lately, rewatched The Godfather trilogy and watched Serpico for the first time. He's just the best. 

[SteveJhb]

10 minutes ago, Paolo's Circus Story said:

Sorry for the headscratcher mate, I meant what were the "at least 3 on that list I would put in my top 10 favourite movies" 

You've mentioned some good'uns though. I watched Back to the Future II again for the first time in years last night and forgot how far it fell from the all-timer standard of the first one. I've also been pondering whether to watch Carlito's Way for the last week or so, I think you might have given me the final push to hoy  it on. I've been on a mini Pacino binge lately, rewatched The Godfather trilogy and watched Serpico for the first time. He's just the best. 

No worries at all.

Love Pacino... Carlito's Way is undoubtedly one of his best. Trust me! "Last of the Mo'rican's..."

And if you've never seen Glengarry Glenross, it has one of the greatest casts on screen and Pacino is brilliant in that too. Completely different role to the likes of Carlito's Way, but that's what makes him a genius, innit?

[JimCT]

14 hours ago, Paolo's Circus Story said:

Some fantastic films there. On The Waterfront I watched for the first time earlier this year as part of a double bill alongside The Wild One. I thought The Wild One was borderline awful, but On The Waterfront, well that one lived up to expectations. As Stevie said in that tweet, Brando brought it and showed exactly what makes him a great actor - De Niro does similar in Raging Bull - because every now and then you might find yourself thinking, "yeah they're great actors, but what exactly makes them great?" Streetcar is another example of that, of course he's helped by how annoying Vivien Leigh is in that film. 

Of those other fourteen I've honestly only seen Chinatown and American Beauty (Scent of a Women is the one I'm waiting to pop up on Sky or streaming services). I thought Chinatown was just decent, albeit a bit of a slog to get through at times, but after watching and being seriously underwhelmed by Rosemary's Baby the other day I have a suspicion Polanski films aren't my cup of tea. American Beauty on the other hand is tremendous.

I used to do municipal water finance in California, especially in the LA area, including LADWP. So I view Chinatown as more of a documentary  Near and dear to my heart  

[Paolo's Circus Story]

2 hours ago, SteveJhb said:

No worries at all.

Love Pacino... Carlito's Way is undoubtedly one of his best. Trust me! "Last of the Mo'rican's..."

And if you've never seen Glengarry Glenross, it has one of the greatest casts on screen and Pacino is brilliant in that too. Completely different role to the likes of Carlito's Way, but that's what makes him a genius, innit?

Just finished it and I enjoyed it a fair bit. I'm probably gonna be mimicking him for a few days now. "Well maybe not the last." Pacino is most certainly one of the all time greats. 

Glengarry Glenross is on my watchlist, I'm just waiting for it to pop up somewhere.