MITIR #012 - Movies I Want Everyone to Watch

For the Love of Cinema!

Photo by Alex Litvin on Unsplash

When you watch a movie, you are giving two hours of your time to it— two hours you are never going to get back. So, you should want maximum payoff. It should make you think, & give you a new perspective on life. At the very least, the movie should respect your intelligence.

If you willfully watch bad movies, you don’t have respect for your own time. Which means you don’t have respect for yourself. I know. This is bit of an extreme view I hold.

You might not like some of the movies in this list, but I guarantee you it won’t be a waste of your time.

If you are just starting out on your journey to become a genuine movie buff, start with the movies in bold.

Let’s jump in…

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English Movies

• The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

• Schindler's List (1993)

• 12 Angry Men (1957)

• Batman Begins (2005), & The Dark Knight (2008)

• The Usual Suspects (1995)

• Taxi Driver (1976)

• Forrest Gump (1994)

• The Departed (2006)

• L.A. Confidential (1997)

• To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

• The Green Mile (1999)

• Gladiator (2000)

• The Lord of the Rings Trilogy (2001, 02, 03)

• The Bourne Trilogy (2002, 04, 07)

• Toy Story Trilogy (1995, 1999, 2010)

• Ratatouille (2007)

• In Bruges (2008)

• Good Will Hunting (1997)

• Blood Diamond (2006)

• Ocean's Eleven (2001)

• Rain Man (1988)

• Catch Me If You Can (2002)

• Apollo 13 (1995)

• The Pursuit of Happyness (2006)

• Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)

• JFK (1991)

• Philadelphia (1993)

• In the Name of the Father (1993)

• Cinderella Man (2005)

• The World's Fastest Indian (2005)

• A Beautiful Mind (2001)

• Finding Neverland (2004)

• Before Sunrise (1995), Before Sunset (2004), Before Midnight (2013)

• Rudy (1993)

• The Hurricane (1999)

• Up in the Air (2009)

• Sleuth (1972)

• Sherlock Holmes (2009)

• Glory (1989)

• Goodfellas (1990)

• Escape from Alcatraz (1979)

• Dial M for Murder (1954)

• Hotel Rwanda (2004)

• The Hustler (1961)

• Miracle (2004)

• Inception (2010)

• The Godfather 1, 2 (1972, 74)

• Casablanca (1942)

• Snatch (2000)

• Thank You for Smoking (2005)

• Wag the Dog (1997)

• Inside Man (2006)

• October Sky (1999)

• Scent of a Woman (1992)

• Road to Perdition (2002)

• Training Day (2001)

• Deja Vu (2006)

• The Rainmaker (1997)

• Moneyball (2011)

• Skyfall (2012)

• Argo (2012)

• Sweet Smell of Success (1957)

• White Heat (1949)

• Lincoln (2012)

• Rush (2013)

• The Conversation (1974)

• Enough Said (2013)

• Whiplash (2014)

• Mud (2012)

• Inside Out (2015)

• Nightcrawler (2014)

• Steve Jobs (2015)

• Creed (2015)

• 99 Homes (2014)

• The Big Short (2015)

• The Jungle Book (2016)

• Enemy (2013)

• The Grand Budapest Hotel (2014)

• (500) Days of Summer (2009)

• Unforgiven (1992)

• True Grit (2010)

• The Breadwinner (2017)

• Little Women (2019)

• Out of the Furnace (2013)

• Million Dollar Baby (2004)

• Midnight in Paris (2011)

• The Town (2010)

• The Founder (2016)

• Touch of Evil (1958)

• The Prestige (2006)

• Inglourious Basterds (2009)

• Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

• To Kill a Mockingbird (1962)

• Se7en (1995)

• Memento (2000)

• Dead Poets Society (1989)

• Troy (2004)

• Up (2009)

• Iron Man (2008)

• Casino Royale (2006)

• Mystic River (2003)

• Judgment at Nuremberg (1961)

• Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl (2003)

• The Verdict (1982)

• The Social Network (2010)

• Margin Call (2011)

• Fruitvale Station (2013)

• No Country for Old Men (2007)

• Blue Jay (2016)

• Predestination (2014)

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Documentaries

• Senna (2010)

• The Armstrong Lie (2013)

• Hubble's Amazing Rescue (2009)

• Magic & Bird: A Courtship of Rivals (2010)

• Inside Job (2010)

• Jiro Dreams of Sushi (2011)

• The Dawn Wall (2017)

• Knock Down the House (2019)

• Long Shot (2017)

• 13th (2016)

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Indian Movies

Hindi

• Khosla Ka Ghosla! (2006)

• Anand (1971)

• Hera Pheri (2000)

• Lagaan (2001)

• Swades (2004)

• Dil Chahta Hai (2001)

• Sarfarosh (1999)

• Rang De Basanti (2006)

• A Wednesday (2008)

• Veer-Zaara (2004)

• Khakee (2004)

• Guru (2007)

• Jo Jeeta Wohi Sikandar (1992)

• Lakshya (2004)

• Piku (2015)

• Queen (2014)

• Masaan (2015)

• Badlapur (2015)

• Pink (2016)

• Udaan (2010)

• Shor in the City (2010)

• Ugly (2013)

• Ramprasad Ki Tehrvi (2019)

• The Lunchbox (2013)

• Kapoor and Sons (2016)

• Tumbbad (2018)

• Gully Boy (2019)

• Bawarchi (1972)

• Wake Up Sid (2009)

• Deewaar (1975)

• Gulmohar (2023)

• Three of Us (2022)

• 12th Fail (2023)

Kannada

• Gauri Ganesha (1991)

• Nagara Haavu (1972)

• Gaalipata (2008)

• Ugramm (2014)

• Lifeu Ishtene (2011)

• Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu (2016)

• Ulidavaru Kandanthe (2014)

• Sidlingu (2012)

• Gantumoote (2019)

• Ayana (2017)

• Amrutha Varshini (1997)

• Sarkari. Hi. Pra. Shale Kasaragodu (2018)

• Kahi (2016)

• Thithi (2015)

• Lucia (2013)

• Babruvahana (1977)

• Garuda Gamana Vrishabha Vahana (2021)

• Sakutumba Sametha (2022)

• Hadinelentu (2022)

Malayalam

• Bangalore Days (2014)

• 1983 (2014)

• Ohm Shanthi Oshaana (2014)

• Drishyam 1, 2 (2013, 2021)

• Kammatti Paadam (2016)

• Maheshinte Prathikaaram (2016)

• Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020)

• Nayattu (2021)

• Kumbalangi Nights (2019)

• Ee. Ma. Yau (2018)

• Iratta (2023)

• June (2019)

• #Home (2021)

• Android Kunjappan Version 5.25 (2019)

• The Great Indian Kitchen (2021)

• Ishq (2019)

• Joseph (2018)

• Koode (2018)

• North 24 Kaatham (2013)

• Premam (2015)

• Thondimuthalum Dhriksakshiyum (2017)

• Virus (2019)

• Kuruthi (2021)

• Operation Java (2021)

• Bhoothakaalam (2022)

• Bheeshma Parvam (2022)

• Santhoshathinte Onnam Rahasyam (2021)

• Kuttavum Shikshayum (2022)

• Classmates (2006)

• Manjummel Boys (2024)

• Aattam (2023)

Telugu

• Pellichoopulu (2016)

• Ee Nagaraniki Emaindi (2018)

• C/o Kancharapalem (2018)

• Cinemabandi (2021)

• Mallesham (2019)

• Brochevarevarura (2019)

• Jersey (2019)

• Dear Comrade (2019)

• Bommarillu (2006)

Marathi

• Muramba (2017)

• Court (2014)

• Sairat (2016)

• The Disciple (2020)

• Ani... Dr. Kashinath Ghanekar (2018)

• Natsamrat (2016)

Tamil

• Vettaiyaadu Vilaiyaadu (2006)

• Vikram Vedha (2017)

• Super Deluxe (2019)

• Merku Thodarchi Malai (2018)

• Asuran (2019)

• Por Thozhil (2023)

• Maharaja (2024)

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Foreign Language Movies

European

• Bicycle Thieves (1948)

• The 400 Blows (1959)

• The Diving Bell and the Butterfly (2007)

• Le trou (1960)

• No Dogs Or Italians Allowed (2022)

• The Guilty (2018)

• The Invisible Guest (2016)

• Perfetti sconosciuti (Perfect Strangers) (2016)

• Incendies (2010)

South American

• The Secret in Their Eyes (2009)

• Wild Tales (2014)

• Amores perros (2000)

• City of God (2002)

Asian

Japanese

• Seven Samurai (1954)

• Rashômon (1950)

• Sanjuro (1962)

• High & Low (1963)

• Harakiri (1962)

• Grave of the Fireflies (1988)

Korean

• The Chaser (2008)

• A Taxi Driver (2017)

• Broker (2022)

• New World (2013)

Persian

• A Separation (2011)

• The Past (2013)

• About Elly (2009)

• Fireworks Wednesday (2006)

• The Salesman (2016)

• Law of Tehran (2019)

• There is no Evil (2020)

• Leila's Brothers (2022)

• Children of Heaven (1997)

• A Moment of Innocence (1996)

Others

• The Raid 1, 2 (2011, 2014)

• In The Mood For Love (2000)

• Capernaum (2018)

• Cake (2018)

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How many of these movies have you watched already? Did I miss any of your absolute favourite ones? Let me know…

Use JustWatch to find out the streaming options for these movies.

P.S. I admit this list has a recency bias.

For more movie recommendations, check out my constantly updated Twitter thread.

Bhuvan N @bhuvan_mysuru

#movierecommendations Tamil movie 'Mudhal Nee Mudivum Nee' streaming on zee5. One more good addition to the slew of nostalgia filled, coming of age movies.

You can also check out my post on Film Making 101.