All people should watch these movies at least once, at least …but 4–10 times is recommended. If you’re in the mood for sad movies, I wrote a list of certifiable tearjerkers, and I remain convicted in my movie-list-making decisions here as well.

1. The Godfather Pts. I & II (1972, 1974)

Has anyone not seen The Godfather ? I’m genuinely curious. Francis Ford Coppola’s The Godfather (based on Mario Puzo’s intergenerational novel of the same name,) are some of the greatest films ever made that everyone should watch.

The movies are feats of filmmaking, acting, music, space and time. We move across generations, continents and cultures, all the way from the small town of Corleone, in Palermo, Sicily, Italy, across the Atlantic to the United States. Coppola’s movie’s have kept the Corleone family name alive and well in our memories and screens for decades, and will continue doing so in time to come. I can always rewatch The Godfather, and honestly, I may have to pause right now because I feel like watching some clips on YouTube. Be back in a couple hours.

Though not a ranked list, The Godfather (parts one and two, I don’t care if that’s cheating) gets the number one spot because it epitomizes classic movies, and is one I can always return to, and they truly never disappoint.

2. American Beauty (1999)

I watched it as a young tween, (my parents weren’t great about supervising our movie choices,) and American Beauty played a pivotal role in shaping my love of movies at a young age, and delicate season in my adolescence. I relished each moment of occupying the inner and active mind of middle-aged white man, suburban-living and depressed Lester Burnham (played by Spacey). I’ve seen the movie countless times, Annette Benning make me cry tears of true laughter because she is absolutely hilarious and the best at playing housewife showboat phoniness to a tee.

American Beauty is directed by Sam Mendes, written by Alan Ball (Six Feet Under, anyone?!) and stars Kevin Spacey and Annette Benning. I’ve noticed that American Beauty gets polarizing reactions, and I can see why, sure. It’s a slice of life pic about a dysfunctional suburban family, and, generally speaking, they can be described as intolerable, materialistic and seriously out-of-touch individuals. It might not be to everyone’s humour or taste, and I could get how some might find it unsavoury or maybe, unnerving?

I watched it as a young tween, (my parents weren’t great about supervising our movie choices,) and American Beauty played a pivotal role in shaping my love of movies at a young age, and delicate season in my adolescence. I relished each moment of occupying the inner and active mind of middle-aged white man, suburban-living and depressed Lester Burnham (played by Spacey). I’ve seen the movie countless times, Annette Benning make me cry tears of true laughter because she is absolutely hilarious and the best at playing housewife showboat phoniness to a tee. It’s such a good movie, and it’s an acquired taste …so go on, acquire taste and hit play, you’ll be set.

3. Schindler’s List (1993)

“The list is an absolute good. The list is life.”

Schindler’s List is a movie based on Oskar Schindler, a German business magnate and a member of the Nazi party during WW2. Oskar Schindler’s life and actions go beyond extraordinary, and are firmly land within the supererogatory. As a Jewish person and grandchild of Holocaust survivors, I am deeply moved each time I watch this movie, and believe every single person must watch this movie at some point in their lives. I rewatched it to write about it here, and the impact is the same.

Schindler’s List is directed by Steven Spielberg, stars Liam Neeson as Oskar Schindler, Sir Ben Kingsley as Itzhak Stern, and Ralph Fiennes as the diabolical SS army officer, Amon Göth. Though a little over 3 hours, the movie keeps your attention the whole way through. You will find yourself sobbing and heaving uncontrollably by the end, but don’t let that steer you away. Watch the movie, and cry like nobody’s watching.

4. American History X (1998)

This movie has since garnered something like a cult status, and it is still one of the most shocking, stomach-turning and violent films I’ve seen. American History X left a big impression on me when I first watched it, and each time I rewatch it I am immediately engrossed in the story all over again, from start to finish, as though I hadn’t already seen it. It’s a film that immediately captivates, tells a powerful story, features great acting, writing and everything else you could want from a top-tier cinematic experience.

We’re going from real Nazi’s to wanna-be Nazis and Skinheads in the home of the brave and land of the free, in the deep south of the United States. Coming in guns a blazin’ at numero cuatro with the throat-punching and gritty American History X. Directed by Tony Kaye and written by David McKenna, American History X start Edward Norton as Derek, a former Neo-Nazi and skinhead who turns a new leaf while spending time in prison and befriends another inmate.

This movie has since garnered something like a cult status, and it is still one of the most shocking, stomach-turning and violent films I’ve seen. American History X left a big impression on me when I first watched it, and each time I rewatch it I am immediately engrossed in the story all over again, from start to finish, as though I hadn’t already seen it. It’s a film that immediately captivates, tells a powerful story, features great acting, writing and everything else you could want from a top-tier cinematic experience.

5. City of God (2002)

Going steady with the theme of grit and violence for numero cinco, City of God is a Brazilian movie directed by Brazilian native Fernando Meirelles, and viewer warning: this movie contains violence and is not for the faint of heart.

City of God is a movie that pulsates with energy, excitement, gang violence and poverty. We are in the slums of Rio de Janeiro, also known as the favelas (pronounced fah-vel-ah) a city within a city riddled with poverty and drugs and gang affiliated violence. We follow Rocket, the main narrator, and a boy who grew up in the hillside shantytowns of Rio, where the pressures of falling into gang-life looms large and heavy.

This movie captures a piece of the world and the lives of people that are so vastly different from my own, and gives a glimpse on a place that’s full of life, and yet also disregards life entirely. City of God is unforgiving, it is masterfully directed, shot and told, and not only is it one of the best foreign films I’ve ever seen, it’s one of the best movies I’ve seen, full-stop.

6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004)

How happy is the blameless vestal’s lot!

The world forgetting, by the world forgot.

Eternal sunshine of the spotless mind!

Each pray’r accepted, and each wish resign’d;

— Eloisa to Abelard, by Alexander Pope.

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind directed by Michael Gondry and written by Charlie Kaufman, and stars Kate Winslet, Jim Carrey, Mark Ruffalo, Elijah Wood and Kirsten Dunst. It should come as no surprise that I’m a true and dedicated fan of Charlie Kaufman. The man writes the most bizarre movies and screenplays, but they make sense, and are thought-provoking and touching.

Eternal Sunshine is the story of two people (Joe and Clementine) that undergo a medical procedure so they forget their relationship and also each other. Kaufman’s movies play with concepts of memory, identity, fate and determination vs. freedom of choice and free will. Kaufman is a philosopher in his own right, and asks deeply personal questions in his films. What if you could erase someone from your life entirely, as if they never existed at all? I’m sure there are times we all wish we could do that, and that’s the thing about Charlie Kaufman, his movies speak to something so essentially human and relatable, and then he plays with the concept in ways that no audience would expect. He’s one of my favourite writers and directors of all time, and Eternal Sunshine is the movie that showed me his genius.

7. Forrest Gump (1994)

Have you ever tried describing the movie Forrest Gump to anyone? I haven’t, and this would be my first attempt, and I realize now that it’s difficult to describe Forrest Gump in a way that makes it enticing, or sound not-boring.

Forrest Gump is a movie about, well, Forrest Gump. Forrest is special and he has a lower IQ (of 75,) but what he lacks in brains he makes up for by his heart. Forrest is a good man, he has a pure heart, and though he may not be smart, “he still knows what love is.” Forrest lives an extraordinary life: he meets the president, he’s a war veteran and shareholder of a booming business, and retired athlete and runner.

Ignorance is bliss, and so is Forrest. I grew up on this movie, it’s a classic that I’ve seen I don’t know how many times. I couldn’t tell you how many times, or when it was that I first watched Forrest Gump, but in my memory the movie stands as an all-time classic that holds upon watch, after rewatch, after rewatch, and everyone should see it.

8. 12 Angry Men

12 Angry Men is a classic courtroom drama and a lesson on what it means to give a person their right to a fair trial. This movie exposes implicit biases people hold, even when they are unaware of it themselves. Directed by Sidney Lumet and written by Reginald Rose, 12 Angry Men stars the impeccable Henry Fonda and is an absolute classic and must-watch (at some point in your life).

9. The Deer Hunter (1978)

The Deer Hunter is a war movie like no other, it is a harrowing 3-hour foray into the Vietnam war, focusing on a small group of friends from a small town in Pennsylvania. The Deer Hunter has a heavyweight cast of all-time greats including: Meryl Streep, Robert De Niro, Christopher Walken and it’s the last film John Cazale starred in before he passed (RIP.)

The beginning of the movie is a bit slow, but there is an energy and the sense of foreshadowing for what’s to come. This movie takes a stark look at wartime horrors, it deals with PTSD in ways I haven’t seen in film before and it is gripping. The movie is distinctly shown in parts, pre, during and post Vietnam war, and the way it delves into the psychological impacts and PTSD of war on the group of friends turned soldiers is an accomplishment that few other films have managed to achieve.

10. The Shawshank Redemption (1994)

I’m afraid that if I don’t include this movie on here, people might get mad. Is there a more beloved movie than The Shawshank Redemption? I’m not sure there is. Shawshank has stayed put on IMDB’s top-250 list at the number one spot, and whether you agree with this ranking or not, there’s no question that it’s a great movie that has stood the test of time.

While a movie inside the grey-bar community of prison, Shawshank is tender, heartfelt and makes you feel warm and hopeful. It’s a classic redemption tale, it’s about friendship and resiliency, and doing what is right and good. We are privileged to have Morgan Freeman’s as the narrator and storyteller, and Tim Robbins as Andy Dufresne. When you watch Shawshank, you can feel its importance as a film, and its movie-captivating powers washes over you and keeps you held in the plot and on the edge of your seat. I remember my first time watching Shawshank and feeling like it was one of the greatest movies I’d ever seen, and now, it’s probably time I go and rewatch it.

Thanks for reading, I hope you enjoyed, and let me know what you consider to be the best classic/essential movies!