Fill out my Netflix list

[Russell Nash]

OK, I just signed up for a Netflix-like service.  There is no Netflix over here.  I went to put stuff on my list and drew a complete blank.  I surfed around the site for a while and got a bit of a list going, but it's not a strong list.

I need your help.  I would like everyone to tell me the 5 most deserving films to be on my list.  I didn't say best.  I said deserving.  Which 5 need to be seen?  I should say discs, because TV series are also welcome.  If I have some of your choices on my list already or have seen them, I'll ask you for more.  I'll also post the titles I'm adding.

[Heradel]

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey
2. Monty Python's Personal Best DVD Set — each of them got their own personal best disk with about an hour of skits from the show.
3. Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind
4. Cashback
5. Across the Universe

Went for ones that entertained more than made me think, though the two are pretty well linked in my mind.

[jrderego]

Yojimbo
Gojira
The Whole Wide World
Black Sun: the nanking massacre (I designed and wrote the DVD extras)
Ratatouille
The Producers (the original with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder)

[Tango Alpha Delta]

1. 1408
2. Kung-fu Hustle
3. Stardust
4. Night Watch
5. Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns (documentary about They Might Be Giants)

In no particular order, except that's the order I thought of them.

[Darwinist]

New stuff:

1. Once
2. No Country For Old Men
3. Michael Clayton
4. Into the Wild
5. The Departed

[Thaurismunths]

These are from our newly acquired Netflix list, but we've seen them before:
Nine Dead Gay Guys
Hot Fuzz
The Shadow (1994)
The Fountain
The Day The Earth Stood Still (1951)

[Tango Alpha Delta]

Hey, you could do a week of numbers!

1408
1776
300
9 Dead Gay Guys
Once

 

[Ocicat]

Rather difficult, without knowing what you've seen or what you like, but from the top of my head, some classics you may have missed:

The Lion in Winter
Brazil
V for Vendetta
Pan's Labyrinth
Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead

[sirana]

Just out of interest, which service did you finally choose? ;-)

[Alasdair5000]

-The Day The Earth Caught Fire
Hard-bitten journalists discover something very bad.  Picture The West Wing crossed with '50s science fiction.  One of my all time favourite movies.

-The Nightmare Man
Six part BBC series about a series of murders on a small Scottish island.  Well written, acted and not what you think it is.

-Clerks II
Not only is it Smith's funniest movie but it's oddly, dignified.  That's not something you should be able to say about a film which involves a man, a donkey and a Sam Fox record but it's true.

-Mulholland Drive
Note to movie studios.  DON'T tell David Lynch his film's too weird.  It makes him MAD.

-Doctor Who-Silver Nemesis
The Doctor checks his diary and discovers the world is scheduled to end.  Now.  One of the best classic WHO stories.

-The Cat Returns
Unfathomably pretty and deeply, deply endearing Studio Ghibli movie featuring the late great Peter Boyle as the world's largest grumpiest white cat.

-Ghost in the Shell
-Ghost in the Shell II:Innocence
-Ghost in the Shell:Stand Alone Complex 1st Gig
-Ghost in the Shell:Stand Alone Complex 2nd Gig
-Ghost in the Shell:Solid State Society
One of the most defining anime series.  Intensely complicated, very very smart and remarkably literate.  Also, there's hitting.

-The Hunt for Red October
I have a deep love for Ben Affleck's take on Jack Ryan, but this remains the best Clancy movie to date.  Classic, old school submarine movie.

-Daredevil and Daredevil:Director's Cut
The most unfairly pilloried Marvel movie is actually one of the best.  Affleck's great, the plot's unusually complex and smart and the film is COMPLETELY unrecognisable in the Director's cut.  Fascinating experience in cutting if nothing else.

[Listener]

Primer (took til my third viewing to actually understand it)
Code 46 (beautifully-shot near-future SF film)
Enchanted (you can watch it with your kids, and it's really pretty enjoyable for a disney-type fantasy film)
Mystery Men ("maybe you should put some shorts on if you're going to fight any more evil today")
The Incredibles (should've been nominated for best picture, not just best animated film)

[Talia]

Everything is Illuminated (underrated and absolutely AMAZING)

Amelie (just in case you havent yet. A must-see)

Ulee's Gold (lovely film. Just lovely)

I just saw American Gangster last night and found it absolutely 100% excellent. I'd recommend it.

Speaking of Denzel Washington, his little-seen movie 'The Great Debaters' was absolutely fantastic. I would definitely recommend it whenever it arrives on DVD. (not sure if it's out yet).

[birdless]

"Most deserving"... interesting caveat... even though you've probably seen most of these, here's my take (for now):

To Kill a Mockingbird
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington
Schindler's List
Dead Poets Society

... I'll have to get back to you on the fifth one.

<edit after some thought>
For now, I'm gonna say Rear Window, but I'll probably change my mind about this one.

[DKT]

-Daredevil and Daredevil:Director's Cut
The most unfairly pilloried Marvel movie is actually one of the best.  Affleck's great, the plot's unusually complex and smart and the film is COMPLETELY unrecognisable in the Director's cut.  Fascinating experience in cutting if nothing else.

OMG!  I thought I was the only person in the world who liked that movie. 

Russell, I'm trying to go for movies that haven't already been mentioned, or that I don't know if you've seen.

1) Fight Club (We've already talked about this, haven't we?)

2) A Scanner Darkly -- The most pure adaptation of Philip K. Dick's work I've seen, with trippy rotoscope animation over Keannu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Robert Downey, Jr., and Woody Harrelson.  A very weird movie, but a very strong one. 

3) LA Confidential -- Hands down, my favorite crime movie.  Russell Crowe's break-out performance, and good turns from Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, and the guy from Babe and Star Trek: First Contact.

4) Veronica Mars (TV Show) -- one of the wittiest, freshest, best-written TV shows.  It's way more Philip Marlowe than it is Nancy Drew.  And I still maintain Kristen Bell says "frak" better than anyone in the BSG cast.  Season 1 and Season 3 are great, but Season 2 was just pretty good (at best, despite cameos by Kevin Smith and Joss Whedon).

5) Lost -- people give this series a lot of shit.  But personally, I think it's the best TV show I've ever seen, and I've seen a decent amount (Heroes, BSG, 24, Veronica Mars, and the X-Files -- which used to be my personal favorite).  If you start from the first season and watch it all the way through, it will blow your mind.  Especially now that we're heading toward the endgame -- only 2 1/2 seasons from now.

[birdless]

OMG!  I thought I was the only person in the world who liked that movie. 

Russell, I'm trying to go for movies that haven't already been mentioned, or that I don't know if you've seen.

1) Fight Club (We've already talked about this, haven't we?)

2) A Scanner Darkly -- The most pure adaptation of Philip K. Dick's work I've seen, with trippy rotoscope animation over Keannu Reeves, Winona Ryder, Robert Downey, Jr., and Woody Harrelson.  A very weird movie, but a very strong one. 

3) LA Confidential -- Hands down, my favorite crime movie.  Russell Crowe's break-out performance, and good turns from Kevin Spacey, Guy Pearce, and the guy from Babe and Star Trek: First Contact.

4) Veronica Mars (TV Show) -- one of the wittiest, freshest, best-written TV shows.  It's way more Philip Marlowe than it is Nancy Drew.  And I still maintain Kristen Bell says "frak" better than anyone in the BSG cast.  Season 1 and Season 3 are great, but Season 2 was just pretty good (at best, despite cameos by Kevin Smith and Joss Whedon).

5) Lost -- people give this series a lot of shit.  But personally, I think it's the best TV show I've ever seen, and I've seen a decent amount (Heroes, BSG, 24, Veronica Mars, and the X-Files -- which used to be my personal favorite).  If you start from the first season and watch it all the way through, it will blow your mind.  Especially now that we're heading toward the endgame -- only 2 1/2 seasons from now.

Didn't know there was a Director's cut... gonna have to check that out!

Fight Club!!! Good call!!

I liked LA Confidential a lot, except for that part where Exley seems to completely step out of character in that one scene with Lynn Bracken. It almost ruined the movie for me. I haven't seen that movie in ages!

I almost put Lost down, too. I "ditto" that whole "5)", in fact!

[Russell Nash]

Just out of interest, which service did you finally choose? ;-)

I'm trying Amazon.  They have a two week free trial.  I don't know how it normally works, but they send out the discs one at a time.  Meaning I can keep three at a time, but The morning after I watch the first I can send it back, while I still have the other two.  I don't have to send all three back at once and then wait for the package to come back with the next three. (This is how I always understood Netflix to work, although I've never looked into it, so I could be wrong.)

[wintermute]

Following [Chris Nolan's debut. Think Memento on steroids]
Arsenic and Old Lace [the funniest movie ever made]
The Blood of Heroes / Salute of the Jugger [Rutger Hauer in a post-apocalyptic sports movie]
The Man Who Wasn't There [The Coen Brothers do film noir at least as well as they do everything else]
Sinbad of the Seven Seas [watch it with a bunch of easily-amused friends, and you won't be disappointed]

[birdless]

Oh! Thanks for jogging my memory Winter (that's twice in the same day now!). Love Arsenic and Old Lace. But for my fifth offering, I'm gonna have to say His Girl Friday (another Cary Grant movie).

[DKT]

Fight Club!!! Good call!!

I liked LA Confidential a lot, except for that part where Exley seems to completely step out of character in that one scene with Lynn Bracken. It almost ruined the movie for me. I haven't seen that movie in ages!

I almost put Lost down, too. I "ditto" that whole "5)", in fact!

Yeah, a lot of people were getting frustrated in season 3, but I think the last half of that season (specifically the finale) blew my mind.  I like the show's not afraid to take huge chances and is not afraid to be smart.  This season, in particular, is fantastic. 

[Russell Nash]

1. 2001: A Space Odyssey
2. Monty Python's Personal Best DVD Set — each of them got their own personal best disk with about an hour of skits from the show.
3. Eternal Sunshine of a Spotless Mind
4. Cashback
5. Across the Universe

Love #1 and #3.  #4 and#5 added.

Yojimbo
Gojira
The Whole Wide World
Black Sun: the nanking massacre (I designed and wrote the DVD extras)
Ratatouille
The Producers (the original with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder)

Wanted to add the first four, but there's no English track on the German discs.  I buy everything from Pixar.  The Producers is added.  I'm annoyed it didn't come in the Mel Brooks collection I bought.

1. 1408
2. Kung-fu Hustle
3. Stardust
4. Night Watch
5. Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns (documentary about They Might Be Giants)

#1,3, and 4 added. #2 no English track.

New stuff:

1. Once
2. No Country For Old Men
3. Michael Clayton
4. Into the Wild
5. The Departed

All added except for #4.  The concept just doesn't do it for me.

[jrderego]

Yojimbo
Gojira
The Whole Wide World
Black Sun: the nanking massacre (I designed and wrote the DVD extras)
Ratatouille
The Producers (the original with Zero Mostel and Gene Wilder)

Wanted to add the first four, but there's no English track on the German discs.  I buy everything from Pixar.  The Producers is added.  I'm annoyed it didn't come in the Mel Brooks collection I bought.

Yojimbo and Gojira are in original Japanese with English subs. Black Sun is in original Chinese with English Subs. None of them have English dubs. I did the DVD work for the Unearthed Films release, so if you can find that one, get it - I also think it's region 0.

[Tango Alpha Delta]

1. 1408
2. Kung-fu Hustle
3. Stardust
4. Night Watch
5. Gigantic: A Tale of Two Johns (documentary about They Might Be Giants)

#1,3, and 4 added. #2 no English track.

I remembered Kung Fu Hustle being in Chinese with English subs... NetFlix says:

Subtitles:
English, French
Closed Captioned Closed Captioned
Language and Sound:
Cantonese: Dolby Digital 5.1
English: Dolby Digital 5.1
French: Dolby Digital 2.0 Surround

And, FWIW, Netflix sends each disc in its own envelope, so you can send them back one at a time.

But I'm glad you did this... y'all reminded me to add a couple to MY queue!  (When three unrelated folks suggest "Everything Is Illuminated" in the same week, it's a sign from TCoRN!)

[Planish]

The Lion in Winter

Which vintage?
The Lion in Winter (1968 with Peter O'Toole and Kate Hepburn)
or
The Lion in Winter (made for TV, 2003, with Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close)
I favour the 1968 version.

Both of them have two of my favourite bits of dialogue:

Prince John: A knife! He's got a knife!
Eleanor of Aquitaine: Of course he has a knife, he always has a knife, we all have knives! It's 1183 and we're barbarians!

Henry II: Give me a little peace.
Eleanor of Aquitaine: A little? Why so modest? How about eternal peace? Now there's a thought.

[Ocicat]

Which vintage?
The Lion in Winter (1968 with Peter O'Toole and Kate Hepburn)
or
The Lion in Winter (made for TV, 2003, with Patrick Stewart and Glenn Close)
I favour the 1968 version.

Absent actually having a live performance of the play to go see, most certainly the 1968.  I mean, the story is great and all, but the acting in that movie is just amazing.  I think it's Katherine Hepburn's best role, and that's saying a lot.  And it's also got a then-unknown by the name of Anthony Hopkins.  What's not to love?

[Thaurismunths]

But I'm glad you did this... y'all reminded me to add a couple to MY queue!  (When three unrelated folks suggest "Everything Is Illuminated" in the same week, it's a sign from TCoRN!)

Technically it's a sign for TCoRN.
(what kind of heretic are you, anyway?)