SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION (1994)
It would be a crime not to include Shawshank Redemption on this list. Andy Dufresne is a successful wealthy banker, who is implicated for committing the murder of his wife and his lover, befriends ‘Red’ (Morgan Freeman) and gains the respect of fellow inmates inside the walls of Shawshank prison. Follow this tale of an unlikely friendship and their path of redemption till the end.
Red, The Shawshank Redemption
“Hope is a dangerous thing. Hope can drive a man insane.”
THE USUAL SUSPECTS (1995)
Five criminals meet at a seemingly random routine police line-up. What happens next is a tale narrated by Kevin Spacey about a heist involving precious emeralds. This is one film that I can’t write a lot about without giving much away, but it is definitely one that you SHOULD NOT miss. A film that you’d want to watch over and over again and never get tired of it.
“The greatest trick the Devil ever pulled was convincing the world he didn’t exist.”
Verbal Kint, The Usual Suspects
THE TRUMAN SHOW (1998)
Jim Carrey plays Truman, who doesn’t know that his entire life is a TV set for an extreme reality TV show called “The Truman Show”. He slowly comes to the realization that none of it is real and it is now up to him how he reacts. A movie to mess with your mind, Black Mirror style.
Christof, The Truman Show
“We accept the reality of the world with which we’re presented. It’s as simple as that”.
SHUTTER ISLAND (2010)
Based on the book by Dennis Lehane, this is one of the few films that I can say that did justice to the book. The dashing Leonardo DiCaprio and Mark Ruffalo don the role of US Marshals who set out on a ferry to investigate the case of a missing patient out on Shutter Island, which houses an asylum for the criminally insane. As shocking truths are uncovered, the old saying, “Not everything is what it seems”, becomes of utmost importance. This movie warrants multiple watches too, because, after the first watch, the second one would indeed, blow your mind.
“Which would be worse – to live as a monster? Or to die as a good man?”
Teddy Daniels, Shutter Island
A FEW GOOD MEN (1992)
In this dramatic courtroom thriller, Tom Cruise and Demi Moore face off against Jack Nicholson as they try to prove two US Marines innocent of a murder charge for killing a fellow marine down in Guantanamo Bay. The true shades of the military and the chain of command are exposed. The question is, can you handle the truth?
Aaron Sorkin, A Few Good Men
“We live in a world that has walls and those walls need to be guarded by men with guns.”
SOUND OF MUSIC (1965)
A classic musical for every music lover out there. If you haven’t watched or even heard of this film, what are you even doing? Set during the Second World War, this is a true story of a governess, Maria, played by the wonderful Julie Andrews, for the seven motherless children of Lieutenant Von Trapp. The rowdy children grow fond of the loving and humble Maria through the power of music.
“The hills are alive, with the sound of music!”
Maria,The Sound Of Music
THE SHINING (1980)
All work and no play makes jack a dull boy. A horror masterpiece that set the standard for future psychological thrillers, The Shining shows Jack Nicholson as a writer who, along with his family, takes refuge in an isolated hotel (with a dark past) high up in the mountains during the cold winter to overcome writer’s block. Watch as he slowly descends into insanity due to cabin fever and ends up on a killing spree, out to declare “Here’s Johnny!”
Jack Torrence, The Shining
” I’m not gonna hurt ya. I’m just going to bash your brains in.”
SEVEN (1995)
In this horror-gore film, Brad Pitt, a newly transferred cop and Morgan Freeman, a cop about to tackle his last case, set out to catch a serial killer who kills people who he thinks represent one of the seven deadly sins, i.e, pride, greed, lust, envy, gluttony, wrath and sloth, in an elaborate and gruesome manner, what remains to be seen, is that if they can catch him before he kills all seven?
“‘The world is a fine place and worth fighting for.’ I agree with the second part.”
William Somerset, Seven
THE PRESTIGE (2006)
A Christopher Nolan epitome, Hugh Jackman and Christian Bale are two rival magicians always in the race of outperforming each other. When one performs a trick of teleportation the other just can’t seem to decode, he takes the help of science to make his rivalling magic trick all the more real.
“The secret impresses no one. The trick you use it for is everything.”
Alfred Borden, The Prestige
ZERO DARK THIRTY (2012)
The story of the manhunt for the world’s most wanted man. A team of CIA operatives embark on a decade-long hunt for the leader of the Al-Qaeda, Osama bin Laden that led to the operation Neptune-Star which resulted in his death. Follow their ups and downs in this action-filled thriller.
“I’m going to smoke everyone involved in this op and then I’m going to kill Osama bin Laden.”
Maya, Zero Dark Thirty
Here are a few more movies to check out:
- Ocean’s Eleven
- The Breakfast Club
- Catch Me If You Can
- Fargo
- Pulp Fiction
- Ex Machina
- Fight Club
- Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
- Clockwork Orange
- Perks of Being a Wallflower
- Silence of the Lambs
- The Sixth Sense
- Back to the Future
- Good Will Hunting
- 2001: A Space Odyssey
- Schindler’s List
These are just a few films to get you started and introduce you to the world of fine cinema. All posters are from Pinterest.