Classic Movie Night

Sensible night:
City Lights (Chaplin), Casablanca (Curtiz), King of Hearts (De Brocca). The 400 Blows (Truffaut).

Laughing night:
Horse Feathers (Marx Bros.), Some Like it Hot (Wilder), Hellzapoppin' (Potter)

Action/Thriller/Noir night:
The Seven Samurai (Kurosawa), Key Largo (Huston), Double Indemnity (Wilder)

Indie night:
Un Chien Andalou/ L'Age d'Or (Buñuel), Satyricon (Fellini), The Seventh Seal (Bergman).

For comedy, it's hard to beat "Some Like it Hot".

You might wanto to also go to Ebert's full list of classic films.

http://www.suntimes.com/ebert/greatmovies/


The book is the basis for my threads -- you'd perhaps get some benefit out of what comments are made on each film there and read Ebert's review.

What genres attract you the most?

What exactly are you looking for Sugar..more of great film, a serious classic, something fun and differrent?
There are a great many to choose from and Imthinking of a mix for you but, having an insiders look to you and the boy and the movies..as far as classics go..Im baffled for ya
Let me see if I can find a good list that encompasses what I think you might enjoy.

www.filmsite.org
has some great breakdowns and lists you can go through to find whatever it is your looking for, including descriptions and decade lists, academy awards, and directors
http://www.classicmovies.com/cm/catalog.asp
Has more information for you to browse through including foreign films

Here are my top ten pre-1969 movies, listed in chronological order (because I love all of them too much to rank any of them above the others):

Top Hat, Swing Time, or Shall We Dance (the best three of the Astaire/Rogers movies)
The Philadelphia Story
The Lady Eve
The Maltese Falcon
Notorious
All About Eve
The African Queen
Roman Holiday
North by Northwest
Tom Jones

how about

To Kill A Mocking Bird
Twelve Angry Men
Breakfast at Tiffanys
Ten Commandments


okay..theres a few specifics

I also second
African Queen
Roman Holiday
Casablanca

I love watching "The Ten Commandments" (DeMille's newer color version)
for all the cornball dialogue. "Oh, Moses, Moses, Moses.." I always try to figure who is hamming it up the most -- DeMille always seemed to draw his actors into overacting. It's a comic book illustrated Bible story of a movie and the special effects now look clunky and dated, especially the obviously animated pillar of fire.

The best classic epic (Biblical or otherwise) historical films for me are (even though they all meddle in distorting history):

"Spartacus" (albeit some tinkering with what really happened in the
slave revolt).

"The Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire" (albeit Christopher Plummer
turning into Oscar Meyer in the final scenes)

"Ben Hur" (Charleton Heston's finest performance)

"Quo Vadis" (Peter Ustinov makes the definitive Nero)

"Captain from Castile" (a great musical score, the Newman march theme
"Conquest" used as USC's football theme)

"Intolerance" (albeit some unfortunate racist content)

Spartacus....yes, another one!!

When watching the classical biblical type films I admire the sets and extras the most, the acting <other than Heston, IMO> leaves you wanting more...perhaps its just the scripts and the director to blame though.

Lawrence of Arabia - topical right now.

Splendor In The Grass

3:10 To Yuma

On The Water Front

While you're on Elia Kazan, consider:

"East of Eden" (Its emotional message is just as valid today and can anyone argue there are great performances delivered by every actor in this movie, not just James Dean?)

"A Streetcard Named Desire" (again, great performances by all the actors -- does Elia know how to get everything out of his actors or what?)

"A Face in the Crowd"

"Gentlemen's Agreement"

"A Tree Grows in Brooklyn"

Sullivans Travels
Foreign Correspondent
White Heat
Belle Du Jour
8½
La Dolce Vita
The Killing
Jules et Jim
A Bout de Souffle

How old is your son?What are his tastes?

Ooh and don´t forget:
The Third Man
The Lavender Hill Mob

Good stuff here people. Thanks!

I didn't really want to narrow it down to a genre, just get people's own favorites so I'd have a variety of things I may not normally consider.

My $0.02:

The Thin Man - great romantic (but not mooshy) movie
Stagecoach - John Wayne's breakout role
Beat the Devil - with my personal favorite, Humphrey Bogart