Principal Uncertainty said:

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Two just mentioned The Maltese Falcon. It frequently gets mentioned in lists like this, so I watched it once when I had nothing pressing to do. I don't get it. Really? It's slow. Meandering plot. Dead-pan deliveries. No great climax to speak of. No great resolution of tension. I can't think of a single thing mentionable about watching this thing. Guys, please help me out. What did I miss?

As my entry, I would add The Geaduate". Is that old enough for this list? Too risqu for young audiences?

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I am probably biased, since I've a big fan of Dashiell Hammett, but I adore the movie. It's in some ways the prototypical hard-boiled detective movie - you have the heroic detective who's tempted but ultimately not tarnished by the femme fatale, the macguffin that people are killing each other over, and a cast of supporting character actors that add to the film's heft (literally, in the case of Sidney Greenstreet).

AustinAg2K said:

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1996 said:

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My 7 and 10 year old boys love anything with Buster Keaton!

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In a lot of ways, the special effects in Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin movies amaze me even more than movies today. Today, they would just CGI everything, but that wasn't an option back then. Seeing what you can do with forced perspective, a little math, and straight up ingenuity is incredible.

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There's a great story of Buster Keaton almost getting knocked out in a bursting water tower scene in Sherlock, Jr. Years later, after having headaches and neck pain, he had an X-ray and was told his neck had been broken and tried to heal.

Gone with the Wind.

AustinAg2K said:

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Head Ninja In Charge said:

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Casablanca still has like the tightest screenplay ever IMO. Not a single line wasted. Air tight. Infinitely rewatchable.

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For extra credit in history last year, my son had to watch a movie that was filmed during WWII. I told him to watch Casablanca, and he was not happy about it. He was convinced it was a sappy love story, but since there aren't many choices from that time, he agreed to watch it. As soon as the movie was done, he turned to me and said, "Damn it. That was really friggin' good."

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I have always loved this movie, but I saw it on the big screen at the Paramount in Austin once and it seemed to much more real and funny. I caught a lot of jokes and witticism that you just miss on the small screen.

citizenkane06 said:

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AustinAg2K said:

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1996 said:

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My 7 and 10 year old boys love anything with Buster Keaton!

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In a lot of ways, the special effects in Buster Keaton and Charlie Chaplin movies amaze me even more than movies today. Today, they would just CGI everything, but that wasn't an option back then. Seeing what you can do with forced perspective, a little math, and straight up ingenuity is incredible.

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There's a great story of Buster Keaton almost getting knocked out in a bursting water tower scene in Sherlock, Jr. Years later, after having headaches and neck pain, he had an X-ray and was told his neck had been broken and tried to heal.

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There are comp videos on Youtube of his best stunts. They are amazing. I showed them to my seventh grade class and they were even impressed and watched.

Love a lot of these movies. I'll add:
Flight of the Phoenix (60s version)
Sahara (Bogey)
Shane
The Dirty Dozen
The Hustler
Cool Hand Luke

Random one that is pretty interesting is 7 Faces of Dr. Lao

"Dishonored Lady"
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0039324/

"Dark Journey"
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028767/

"The Heroes of Telemark"
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0059263/

"The Petrified Forest"
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0028096/

"The Light at the Edge of the World"
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0067345/

Brigadoon
National Velvet
Lassie Come Home
On the Town
The Basil Rathbone Sherlock Holmes Movies
The Maltese Falcon
The Quiet Man
The Pony Express(1953)
How The West Was Won(1962)
Key Largo
The Lost World
Voyage To the Bottom of the Sea
Ice Station Zebra
Where Eagles Dare
any John Wayne western or WW 2 Movie
Dragnet
The D.I.
Mr Smith Goes to Washington
The Adventures of Robin Hood (Errol Flynn)
They Died With Their Boots On
From Russia With Love

Seven Brides for Seven Brothers is a fun one.

Not exactly PC these days but probably the only musical that can keep my attention.

Came here to post that one. Also:

Arsenic and Old Lace
Father Goose
Operation Petticoat

I love the Maltese Falcon. It was the first Bogey movie I saw and I loved his swagger and confidence. It's not an "exciting" movie but it's got an intricate plot (IIRC) and the way he pieces it all together and solves the case is great. And isn't fooled by the femme fatale. He portrays as a somewhat morally ambiguous character but in the end does the right thing. It's awesome.

Also IIRC it's really short, so way more approachable than something like Sierra Madre or something that feels way longer than it is. Maybe it's the "old movie" aspect but that one didn't hold me when I went through an old classics phase.

The Thin Man - another Hammett adaptation (book is better, but the movie stands on its own). It's a comedic detective novel in the roaring 20s with a great cast and good characters. They made a series of them, but the first is the best, though 2 and 3 aren't bad either.

The Quiet Man - John Wayne in a non-western, as he returns to his ancestral home of Ireland to work through trauma he experienced in the states, and falls in love but has to overcome her brother's objections.

High Noon - dramatic western where the sheriff has to choose between getting married and moving on, or finishing a fight with the gang, he sent to prison.

3:10 to Yuma - another western, where a man trying to save his farm has to choose between what's right and what's safe/easy after an outlaw comes to town.

True Grit - I prefer the original to the remake.