"important"/popular films you've never seen, or seen late

I just saw Blade Runner a couple of months ago, and adored it. I'd recommend the director's cut. That's a movie I could watch repeatedly, and there aren't too many of those.

Yeah, so what movies might be required viewing for those who want to be (more) culturally literate?

A Midnight Cowboy reference instead, surely.

I need to see the Godfather series as well.

Never seen Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, either.

A few years ago, I got tired of people saying "What?! You haven't seen [insert classic 80's film here]?!" and so I rented the Molly Ringwald trilogy (Sixteen Candles, Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink) to see what all the fuss was about. But I still haven't seen Weird Science, Real Genius, or Say Anything. I'm not sure why everyone else my age (24) has seen these movies and I haven't. Maybe it's because I made a relatively quick leap from watching kids' movies in elementary school to becoming an adolescent film snob.

Also, I saw all the Star Wars movies when I was little, but only once. (They didn't interest me that much.) So most of the references are over my head.

amateurist -- just watch the Matrix already. It's a good time man.

jaymc -- that's quite a feat avoiding Goodfellas, Seven, Braveheart, and The Matrix. your loss.

jaymc -- Weird Science and Real Genius are worth a spin if you're in the right mood.

Okay, I'm done spazzing out now.

(I however am)

All I remember is some girl who sounds like Corky from Life Goes On saying "he made me laugh."

when people give me the "oh my god you haven't seen titanic!" line i just say "oh my god you haven't seen rat pfink a boo boo?!?!"

A lot of these though are referenced so often by other people/things that I can spot the reference without having actually seen the films though.

There's some kind of Scorsese-mind-block going on.

the godfather

many westerns (which do not interest me per se but are important in reference to many other films)

i am also weak on foreign and film noir

E.T. is probably the most popular movie that I still haven't seen, especially considering I am of that age when it came out new.

I just saw Slingblade a couple of weeks ago and I finally saw The Royal Tennenbaums last weekend. Both are movies that I wanted to see, but after missing them the first time around, it seemed everyone I knew had seen them. I liked them both.

I'd still like to see that last David Lynch movie, Crouching Dragon, The Two Towers, Magnolia, Memento and a whole lot of other things from past few years.

earlnash, don't bother seeing ET, just read the novelisation, and its sequel. They're great!

Spiderman though was ... occasionally cute ... mostly k-lame. The tone kept changing, really clunkily, like someone learning to drive stick.

The Matrix Reloaded
Capsule by Jonathan Rosenbaum
From the Chicago Reader

The first of two sequels to The Matrix planned for release this year, courtesy of the original writer-directors, the Wachowski brothers, who have amplified the camp elements of the original--including the ultrasolemn performances of Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, and Carrie-Anne Moss--while retreading the same metaphysical conceits. Lines like "We're all here to do what we're here to do" reverberate more than long enough for us to ponder their full profundity, and the martial arts choreography is neither graceful nor exciting--it's worthy of a video game. Only after cars, trucks, and a motorcycle join the action--easily outclassing all the actors--does the movie take on a modicum of vitality. But if you're 14 or younger in age or sensibility, you may giggle at some of the bons mots. 138 min.

What does JR have against 14 year olds? I hope never to be so curmudgeonly in my old age.

Any body read Peter Travers Reloaded Review. He basically describes the entire plot in minute detail and then says "I didn't like it".

Wow, I was typing too fast. Should be "some franchises are successful and some aren't"

I'm gonna go see it tomorow, mainly because I'm a raging science ficition nut. The wildly divergent, even downright hostile, reception it's gotten so far has made me even more curious and intruiged than if the reaction had just been "it rocks".

hehe sorry what i meant is that I do think you should read the book instead of watching the movie but if you happen to see the movie first and you like it then don't read the book bcz you will like it less.