Expert Article: Cinema

CINEMA: The Six Movies That Tell Its Story

If Aliens came to Earth, what Six movies would you show them to represent the best of cinema? Cinema was the new form of art in the 20th century and now it has become ingrained into society and culture. The movie industry today in the United States makes up close to 13% of GDP (Nichols 2018). Vogue in 2011 estimated there have been over half a million feature length films made domestically, and nowadays the worldwide estimate of total movies made is close to one hundred fifty million.

But what makes a movie great? For the casual movie watcher, choosing six movies to represent all of cinema seems like an impossible task. However, through my experience, surveying, and research, I have managed come up with a list of six movies that represent the quintessence of film. I've chosen these six movies based on their superiority in portraying different aspects of filmmaking or portraying a certain story. The key aspects of filmmaking for storytelling, drama, visuals, sound, and Editing. Without further ado, the six movies are…

2001: A Space Odyssey – The Complete Experience

2001: A Space Odyssey from Stanley Kubrick pushes cinema to the max. The movie immerses you into the world of space. It achieves this feat not only through its stunning visuals but amazing use of visual effects. 2001: A Space Odyssey is not only renowned for its use of visuals but almost cryptic story, which deal with the themes of human evolution and our space in the universe. 2001: A Space Odyssey, which critics have dubbed a modern classic and is featured on many top 100 movies of all-time lists. 2001: A Space Odyssey for me represents the true power of cinema being used to its fullest, and how the possibilities are endless of what can be done using this medium. Variety says it is best in their top 100 list where they have the movie ranked 4th “Kubrick’s trancelike thriller meditation on the place of man in the universe stands as one of cinema’s monolithic achievements,” and “Stanley Kubrick directed what is still the ultimate trip — the only sci-fi spectacle that feels, at every moment, like it’s taking you to another world (Variety 2022).” If somewhere to ask me to show them a film that showcases all that cinema has to offer, I would show them this film. But, that doesn’t mean this movie is the be all end all of cinema, or we wouldn’t have nine other movies to go through.

Raiders of the Lost Ark – Action/Summer Blockbuster

Not all movies need to have deeper meaning or be super serious, going in a different direction from 2001: A Space Odyssey the next movie on my list is Raiders of the Lost Ark. Raiders of the Lost Ark is so brilliant in its simplicity and how enjoyable it is for the audience. The movie demonstrates that not every movie has to challenge the audience to find some deeper meaning, rather Raiders of the Lost Ark takes the audience on a fun action adventure with easy to love protagonists and easy to hate villains. Raiders of the Lost Ark is a fun film that now serves as the blueprint for action films and summer blockbusters to follow, making it a key part of cinema history.

12 Angry Men – Drama/Political Cinema

12 Angry Men is unlike many of the other films featured on this list because it doesn’t take place in several places or planets, but rather in one room. 12 Angry Men uses this confinement to increase both the drama and tension. This film shows how not all movies need to blow the budget on visuals and visual effects and still can be instant classics. Additionally, 12 Angry Men used the film medium to discuss social justice issues like racism and prejudice in America. Weiler said it best in the New York Times about the movie back in 1957 when the film first debuted, “Although it may sound ungallant, these "12 Angry Men,” are all right without distaff glamour. Their dramas are powerful and provocative enough to keep a viewer spellbound (Weiler 1957)." For 12 Angry Men’s ability to tackle issues like prejudice and unique approach to cinema, it is a must watch.

The Godfather Trilogy – Storytelling

Arguably one of the greatest trilogies of all time comprised of undoubtedly one of the greatest movies of all time the original The Godfather, this list wouldn’t be legit without a mention of these movies. I know, this is technically cheating to include all three movies, but I couldn’t choose between them and neither could my film school friends. The Godfather Trilogy is so special in its storytelling, film school writing classes have been using it for the past twenty years plus to teach students storytelling through film. If you haven’t seen The Godfather Trilogy yet, it is a must watch.

Avatar: The Way of Water – Visuals/CGI

Avatar: The Way of Water doesn’t have a lot going for it, it doesn’t have the drama of 12 Angry Men or the storytelling of The Godfather. However, this movie has to be one of the best looking movies of all time. Furthermore Avatar: The Way of Water took the stunning visuals of the first movie to a whole new level, the way the movie uses light and water colors is amazing. Nick De Semlyen writes “The first time he plunges us beneath the surface of Pandora’s big blue, the brain almost can’t take it all in: the images are crystal-sharp, hyper-real,” and “the marine ecosystem teeming in every frame is mesmerisingly unearthly (Semlyen 2022).” Some critics may say that the visuals don’t count because they are computer generated, but I think that actually makes the movie more impressive and worthy to be on this list for both its visuals and CGI.

The Prestige - Editing

Some movies are better on their second watch and The Prestige is one of them. Christopher Nolan has achieved something amazing with the editing in The Prestige. The editing of the movie keeps the audience hooked and on the edge of their seat for the whole time. The numerous twists and revels are so well executed the audience never sees it coming. To even begin to think how Nolan filmed this movie then edited it into its form gives me a migraine. The only possible thing I could compare it to is sculpting a statue from a big block of marble or putting together a glass bottle back together after it has been shattered into thousands of pieces. This is my personal favourite movie that I try to watch once a year. If you want to see the importance of editing and how it can elevate a movie, The Prestige is the best display in my opinion.

The Prestige - Editing

Just like all art, what makes good cinema is subjective. If you asked a hundred people to choose six movies to represent all of cinema, you would get drastically different answers. However, I believe that if you asked what is important in a good movie several themes would rise to the top. The six themes that in my opinion are the most crucial. Some might argue that there are better examples for the themes above and there might be, however these films will about till the end of time for their achievement in these aspects that much, I’m sure about. So, if you had to show someone six movies to represent the best of cinema I would proudly suggest these six.

Work Cited

Debruge, Peter. “The 100 Greatest Movies of All Time.” Variety, Variety, 21 Dec. 2022, https://variety.com/lists/best-movies-of-all-time/2001-a-space-odyssey-1968/.

Semlyen, Nick De. “Avatar: The Way of Water.” Empire, Empire, 13 Dec. 2022, https://www.empireonline.com/movies/reviews/avatar-the-way-of-water/.

Nichols, Bonnie. “Taking Note: The Film Industry's Contributions to National and State Economies.” National Endowment for the Arts, https://www.arts.gov/stories/blog/2018/taking-note-film-industrys-contributions-national-and-state-economies.

Weiler, A.h. “Screen: '12 Angry Men'; Jury Room Drama Has Debut at Capitol.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 15 Apr. 1957, https://www.nytimes.com/1957/04/15/archives/screen-12-angry-men-jury-room-drama-has-debut-at-capitol.html.