Cinema's greatest classics

[ajay124]

The entire world seems to be inundated with films made in Hollywood and Bollywood.Alas!It may be my personal solitary opinion that these films are unwatchable.Cinema is a director's medium.In 1954 the French film critic and director Francois Truffaut advocated the auteur theory,in which among other things he stated that a film should reflect the director's personal vision.Watching the films made in Bollywood and Hollywood one cannot help concluding every film is first and foremost a vehicle for the STAR'S studied dialogue deliveries and trademark clothes and mannerisms.A star never becomes the 'character' in the film.Instead the 'character' is subsumed into the persona of the star in film after film after film.Throw in a potpourri of special effects,sex,violence,melodrama and some inane music and you have the average masala film.The director is reduced to the status of a clumsy juggler with too many balls in the air.The results inevitably are disastrous.There is no personal,in fact,NO vision at all at work.Every Shahrukh,Aamir,Amitabh,De Niro,Pacino,Clooney film is a tired rehash of the same old formulas.
Some of the greatest films ever made have come from Hungary,Poland,Italy,France,Germany,Spain,Sweden,Russia,China,Japan,Argentina,Brazil... there's a vast wonderful world of fabulous cinema out there.Why settle for the sleep inducing Avatar's and Titanic's ?
Starting a list of Cinema Classics NOT made in the masala factories of Mumbai and Hollywood.Will keep editing and adding more...
ANDREI TARKOVSKY
Andrei Rublyov/Ivan's Childhood/Stalker/Solaris/Zerkalo/Nostalghia/Offret
INGMAR BERGMAN
Winterlight/Wild Strawberries/Cries & Whispers/Seventh Seal/Persona/ Autumn Sonata/Through a Glass Darkly/Fanny & Alexander
MICHELANGELO ANTONIONI
L'Avventura/L'Notte/L'Eclipse/Red Desert/Blowup
FEDERICO FELLINI
L'Dolce Vita/8 1/2 /La Strada/Nights of Cabiria
VITTORIO DE SICA
The Bicycle Thief/Shoeshine/Umberto D
LUIS BUNUEL
Viridiana/Belle De Jour/Tristana/Discreet Charm Of The Bourgeoisie/Phantom Of Liberty/That Obscure Object Of Desire
FRANCOIS TRUFFAUT
Jules Et Jim/400 Blows/Fahrenheit 451
JEAN LUC GODARD
Breathless/Vivre Se Vie/Pierrot Le Fou/Alphaville
ROBERT BRESSON
Diary of A Country priest/Pickpocket/Money/The Devil Probably
AKIRA KUROSAWA
Roshomon/Ran/Kagemusha/Seven Samurai/Ikiru/Dersu Uzala
YASUJIRO OZU
Tokyo Story/Early Spring/Late Autumn
KENJI MIZOGUCHI
Oharu/Ugetsu/Sansho The Bailiff
SHOHEI IMAMURA
The Ballad of Narayama/Black Rain/Endless Desire
SATYAJIT RAY
The Apu Trilogy/Charulata/Jalsagar
ADOOR GOPALAKRISHNAN
Elippathayam/Mukhamukham/Maithilukal

 

[deba]

nice post.......really tired of watching the recent bollywood and hollywood films.......

 

[metalbandit]

Takashi Miike
Audition, Ichi The Killer


French Horror
Martyrs, Inside, Frontiers

 

[asliarun]

Ajay, this is a wonderful collection! Thanks for sharing. One request: Can you please add some words to each of these movies - a very short description or your impression. This will immensely help other people better pick and choose from this list.

A few that I have seen that are not in your list:

Takeshi Kitano (yes, the same guy who made Takeshi's Castle!)
Sonatine (serious, minimalistic)
Hana-bi (reflective, minimalistic)
Zato-ichi (fun)

Hayao Miyazaki
Princess Mononoke (anime, nature based)
Spirited Away (anime)

Mirrormask (surreal, fantasy, brilliant low budget movie)

P.S. Metalbandit, Ichii The Killer that you mentioned in your post is one seriously gory movie!

 

[SBT]

Two I watched recently...

Piravi (Piravi - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) - Shaji N Karun

Spring,_Summer,_Fall,_Winter..._and_Spring (Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter... and Spring - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia) - Kim Ki-duk

 

[idlebrain]

@ajay124:Thanks for opening this idea.Its a well thought thread.I am a fan of foreign cinema particularly french.
Jean-Pierre Melville is one director I would like to add to your list.
Few of his famous works are Le doulos, Un flic, Le cercle rouge.

Thanks
Satya.

 

[ajay124]

Shaji Karun and Jean Pierre Melville are both very good filmmakers.The South Korean film Spring,Summer... is right on top of the list of films I would most like to watch...
Some more additions to the list..
RAINER WERNER FASSBINDER
The Marriage of Maria Braun/Lola/Veronica Voss/Fear Eats The Soul/The Bitter Tears Of Petra Von Kant
CHEN KAIGE
Farewell My Concubine/Yellow Earth/The Emperor And The Assassin/Life On A String
ZHANG YIMOU
Red Sorghum/Raise The Red Lantern/To Live/Curse Of The Golden Flower/House Of Flying Daggers

 

[KonfuSed]

Even though I agree with the list of the movies added here being classics (watched quite a few of them) I don't agree to the point being made that all other movies are trash. There are movies which are made for masses and for pure entertainment. And hell they are entertaining, and no way those movies are sleep inducing. It's ok to praise the Classics (I do praise and watch) but never demean other movies (new gen) at the same time. Basically there is no need to trash other Masala movies to make the classic/world cinema look better. Just my two cents.

 

[alcy]

Even though I agree with the list of the movies added here being classics (watched quite a few of them) I don't agree to the point being made that all other movies are trash. There are movies which are made for masses and for pure entertainment. And hell they are entertaining, and no way those movies are sleep inducing. It's ok to praise the Classics (I do praise and watch) but never demean other movies (new gen) at the same time. Basically there is no need to trash other Masala movies to make the classic/world cinema look better. Just my two cents.

Agreed. I have watched films by quite a few directors from that list(Bresson, Tarkovsky, Bergman, Antonioni and others) too and although I have enjoyed them, I don't want all cinema to be like that.

Having said that, its a great list..please keep adding.

 

[ajay124]

@KonFused
I am not trying to make a point that all films except art house classics are trash.If there is a point to be made then it is that there is just too much of the mainstream stuff around and not enough of innovative,adventurous and independent cinema.The films I listed are among the most path-breaking and original cinema of the 20th century.Perhaps spreading the gospel about these films will inspire a new generation of viewers and filmmakers.Yes, personally I feel that mainstream cinema is boring but ultimately every viewer has the right to his own opinion and preferences.

 

[asliarun]

@KonFused
I am not trying to make a point that all films except art house classics are trash.If there is a point to be made then it is that there is just too much of the mainstream stuff around and not enough of innovative,adventurous and independent cinema.The films I listed are among the most path-breaking and original cinema of the 20th century.Perhaps spreading the gospel about these films will inspire a new generation of viewers and filmmakers.Yes, personally I feel that mainstream cinema is boring but ultimately every viewer has the right to his own opinion and preferences.

I agree with you that most commercial movies nowadays reflect the soul of the big studio and commercialism, rather than the soul of the director.

There are notable exceptions to this of course, even in the commercial segement. Movies by the Coen brothers, the Wachowski brothers, Peter Jackson, and I argue, even Quentin Tarantino are examples of directors who have managed to make commercial cinema while keeping their style and vision largely intact. A lot of low-budget indie cinema also reflects this. Little Miss Sunshine is a popular example.

 

[esanthosh]

I am not trying to make a point that all films except art house classics are trash.If there is a point to be made then it is that there is just too much of the mainstream stuff around and not enough of innovative,adventurous and independent cinema

I am just taking baby steps in the last 2 years, so my view could be wrong. But I, for one, would like the ratio of commercial movies:art house movies to remain the same Good is always relative. It's only abundance of commercial films both in media and mind space of people that started me in search of "different kind of" movies.

I watch all sorts of movies - Art house, ordinary house, dog house, crap house etc., From Kevin Smith's comedies to horror/thriller movies like "Tale of Two sisters" and "Let the right one in" to "Harry Potter" to "Kill Bill" to "Fight Club" to ... "Tom and Jerry".

If every second director was a Kurosawa or a Bergman, there would be no variations at all. Bergman too made a comedy like "Smiles of a Summer night" and Kurosawa made Samurai films like "Yojimbo", "Hidden Fortress", "Sanjuro", a thriller like "High and Low", a 'romantic' film like "One wonderful Sunday".... all of which I like too. Are they not 'commercial' films? :sad:

After watching several Bergman films in a row and feeling "empty" for nearly a month, nothing worked for me to 'fill the void'. I had to resort to devious ways like watching "Eight Legged Freaks" and try Math Metal of Meshuggah to snap out. Now, if that's not "value" of commercial cinema, I do not know what is

 

[odyssey]

Ajay, this is a wonderful collection! Thanks for sharing. One request: Can you please add some words to each of these movies - a very short description or your impression. This will immensely help other people better pick and choose from this list.

A few that I have seen that are not in your list:

Takeshi Kitano (yes, the same guy who made Takeshi's Castle!)
Sonatine (serious, minimalistic)
Hana-bi (reflective, minimalistic)
Zato-ichi (fun)

Hayao Miyazaki
Princess Mononoke (anime, nature based)
Spirited Away (anime)

Mirrormask (surreal, fantasy, brilliant low budget movie)

P.S. Metalbandit, Ichii The Killer that you mentioned in your post is one seriously gory movie!

Miyazaki's Castle in the sky can also be added to this list

 

[ajay124]

@esantosh
Yeah!A film like Through A Glass Darkly or Autumn Sonata can knock you out.I used to resort to reading PG Wodehouse,Gerald Durrel or Peter Mayle to chase away the blues...
Finally it comes down to individual choice.What is more important-the pursuit of happiness or the pursuit of knowledge?Watching Bergman or Tarkovsky or reading Kafka,Ibsen or Dostoevesky one gets the impression that the two are mutually exclusive.The only God I have ever believed in - Socrates - said KNOW THYSELF!THE UNEXAMINED LIFE IS NOT WORTH LIVING!And this is what I expect from every work of art-film,book,music,painting-that it examines life...
*I don't want to produce a work of art that the public can sit and suck aesthetically. I want to give them a blow in the small of the back, to scorch their indifference, to startle them out of their complacency--Ingmar Bergman

 

[esanthosh]

Yeah!A film like Through A Glass Darkly or Autumn Sonata can knock you out

Though I consider myself as a "Play school" level as far as world cinema is concerned, so far Bergman's films have been the most intriguing for me. With Bergman, I really would not say I "enjoyed" watching his films. IMO, "Winter Light" is as dry as a film can get, "Scenes from a Marriage" feels very claustrophobic, "Fanny and Alexander" goes nowhere in the first hour etc., It's always the post movie analysis, connecting the dots, the introspection that made them much more interesting. His earlier films were short with a running time of around 90 mins (they also ended abruptly). Even then, I could not watch more than one Bergman movie per day.

Good to see Hayao Miyazaki is turning up in some of the recommendations today. Have watched all the animations he directed and they are all good - of course few are (far) better than others.

Anybody here who has seen a Masaki Kobayashi film? His "Human Condition" trilogy (with a running time of 10 hours+) is highly rated in IMDB along side "Sepukku", "Kwaidan" and "Samurai Rebellion". I am thinking of 'finishing' his films next before moving on to "auteur" films.

"Excuse me. I call myself artist, short of a better word. In my creative work, nothing is evident, rather it is a compulsion. Without me wanting it, I have been classified as something "exceptional", 5-legged calf, monster. I have never fought for that position, nor am I fighting to keep it. Sure enough, I have felt megalomania lick my forehead but I believe I am immune. It is sufficient to think about the small importance of art in today's world. To cool down. Yet my compulsion remains." - Johan, "Hour of the Wolf" (1968) by Ingmar Bergman

 

[KonfuSed]

@KonFused
Yes, personally I feel that mainstream cinema is boring

And I would feel the exact opposite, they are not boring but entertaining.

but ultimately every viewer has the right to his own opinion and preferences.

exactly my point too. Also I like to keep my life simple and would allow only my own thoughts to disturb me than the filmmakers.
Anyway we are two poles apart in our frequencies, so it's better I'm off the discussion. But will keep checking the thread for some recommendation though.

 

[sam9s]

@KonFused
I am not trying to make a point that all films except art house classics are trash.If there is a point to be made then it is that there is just too much of the mainstream stuff around and not enough of innovative,adventurous and independent cinema.The films I listed are among the most path-breaking and original cinema of the 20th century.Perhaps spreading the gospel about these films will inspire a new generation of viewers and filmmakers.Yes, personally I feel that mainstream cinema is boring but ultimately every viewer has the right to his own opinion and preferences.

Hollywood is not just Avatars and Titanics...... yes I agree there are movies across the world that have defined the realms of path breaking cinima, but if you look hard, you will find equally path breaking cinema from within hollywood or infact Bollywood as well (though yes the number would be quite less). Just like our own Bollywood has earned a name with a cinema of "people dancing around trees" Hollywood also has earned a name of going too mainstreme recently, but that does not mean there are no creations that are; in all preposition equal; if not better to the offerings of the world Cinema............you just have to look hard.

And no Cinima is boring for that matter, it absolutely depends on ones personal preference and choice.

 

[ajay124]

@KonFused
We may be poles apart in our frequencies as you say but that is no reason for you stay of the discussion.A forum or discussion can only be interesting or meaningful when it accommodates diverse opinions.In a meaningful dialogue thesis and anti thesis finally leads to a synthesis...
@sam9s
Many years ago a friend had asked me to mail him a list of Hollywood classics.I still had that list and am including it here.Most of these films I have watched while I was in school and college.The rest of the inclusions are based on reputation and reviews.Although I don't watch Hollywood films anymore I have very fond memories of them.I grew up and learnt about cinema/life from these films and also from the Shyam Benegal inspired 'parallel cinema' 1978-1988.My favorite actors were Naseerudin Shah,Smita Patil,Shabana Azmi,Om Puri,Marlon Brando,Robert De Niro,Meryl Streep.While in school in the 70's I was hooked to the persona of Steve Mcqueen,Clint Eastwood,Rajesh Khanna and the early Amitabh Bacchan.

HOLLYWOOD-MAINSTREAM

AN AMERICAN IN PARIS/ VINCENT MINNELLI
ANNIE HALL/ WOODY ALLEN
APOCALYPSE NOW /FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
BEN HUR/ WILLIAM WYLER
THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES/ WILLIAM WYLER
THR BLADE RUNNER /RIDLEY SCOTT
BONNIE AND CLYDE/ARTHUR PENN
BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI/DAVID LEAN
CASABLANCA /MICHAEL CURTIS
CHINA TOWN/ROMAN POLANSKI
CITIZEN KANE/ ORSON WELLES
DR. STRANGEGLOVE/ STANLEY KUBRICK
ET/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE GODFATHER 1 AND 2/ FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
THE GRADUATE /MIKE NICHOLS
HIGH NOON/ FRED ZINNEMAN
JAWS/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA /DAVID LEAN
MIDNIGHT COWBOY/ JOHN SCHLESINGER
NASHVILLE/ ROBERT ALTMAN
THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER/ CHARLES LAUGHTON
NORTH BY NORTHWEST/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
ON THE WATERFRONT /ELIA KAZAN
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOOS NEST/ MILOS FORMAN
PATHS OF GLORY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
PSYCHO/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
RAGING BULL /MARTIN SCORCESE
REAR WINDOW/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE /NICHOLAS RAY
ROMAN HOLIDAY / WILLIAM WYLER
SINGING IN THE RAIN/ GENE KELLY
SOME LIKE IT HOT /BILLY WILDER
A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE/ ELIA KAZAN
SUNSET BOULEVARD /BILLY WILDER
TAXI DRIVER /MARTIN SCORCESE
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD/ ROBERT MULLIGAN
TOUCH OF EVIL/ ORSON WELLES
2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
WEST SIDE STORY/ROBERT WISE
WHOS AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF/ MIKE NICHOLS
THE WILD BUNCH/ SAM PECKINPAH
BADLANDS/ TERRENCE MALLICK
THE THIN RED LINE/ TERRENCE MALLICK
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE /STANLEY KUBRICK
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
SCHINDLERS LIST /STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE DEER HUNTER /MICHAEL CIMINO
THE FRENCH CONNECTION/ WILLIAM FREIDKIN
THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE/ JOHN FRANKENHEIMER
MANHATTAN/ WOODY ALLEN
ROSEMARYS BABY /ROMAN POLANSKI
THE SHAWSHENK REDEMPTION/ FRANK DARABONT
PULP FICTION/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
RESERVOIR DOGS/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
KILL BILL 1 AND 2 /QUENTIN TARRANTINO
NETWORK / SIDNEY LUMET
SOUND OF MUSIC / ROBERT WISE
UNFORGIVEN /CLINT EASTWOOD
MILLION DOLLAR BABY/ CLINT EASTWOOD
ALIEN/ RIDLEY SCOTT
BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCED KID/ GEORGE HILL
THE CONVERSATION / FRANCIS FORD CUPOLA
DAYS OF HEAVEN / TERRENCE MALIK
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK / STEVEN SPIELBERG
AMADEUS / MILOS FORMAN
AMERICAN BEAUTY / SAM MENDES
DELIVERANCE / JOHN BOOKMAN
A FISH CALLED WANDA / CHARLES CRICHTON
IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT / NORMAN JEWISON
THE LAST EMPEROR / BERNARDO BERTOLUCCI
THE SHINING / STANLEY KUBRICK
THE FRENCH LIEUTENANTS WOMAN/ KAREL REISZ
SOPHIES CHOICE /ALAN PAKULA
LAST TANGO IN PARIS/ BERNARDO BERTOLUCCI
THE SHELTERING SKY/ BERNARDO BERTOLUCI
GANGS OF NEW YORK/ MARTIN SCORCESE
DEAD POETS SOCIETY/ PETER WEIR
BITTER MOON/ ROMAN POLANSKI
BOYS DONT CRY/KIMBERLY PIERCE

 

[KonfuSed]

@Ajay, I was just kidding ;-) I'm still very much in this thread.
And thanks for that list, I've some movies from that list lined up ;-)

 

[sam9s]

Many years ago a friend had asked me to mail him a list of Hollywood classics.I still had that list and am including it here.Most of these films I have watched while I was in school and college.The rest of the inclusions are based on reputation and reviews.Although I don't watch Hollywood films anymore I have very fond memories of them.I grew up and learnt about cinema/life from these films and also from the Shyam Benegal inspired 'parallel cinema' 1978-1988.My favorite actors were Naseerudin Shah,Smita Patil,Shabana Azmi,Om Puri,Marlon Brando,Robert De Niro,Meryl Streep.While in school in the 70's I was hooked to the persona of Steve Mcqueen,Clint Eastwood,Rajesh Khanna and the early Amitabh Bacchan.

HOLLYWOOD-MAINSTREAM

AN AMERICAN IN PARIS/ VINCENT MINNELLI
ANNIE HALL/ WOODY ALLEN
APOCALYPSE NOW /FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
BEN HUR/ WILLIAM WYLER
THE BEST YEARS OF OUR LIVES/ WILLIAM WYLER
THR BLADE RUNNER /RIDLEY SCOTT
BONNIE AND CLYDE/ARTHUR PENN
BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI/DAVID LEAN
CASABLANCA /MICHAEL CURTIS
CHINA TOWN/ROMAN POLANSKI
CITIZEN KANE/ ORSON WELLES
DR. STRANGEGLOVE/ STANLEY KUBRICK
ET/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE GODFATHER 1 AND 2/ FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
THE GRADUATE /MIKE NICHOLS
HIGH NOON/ FRED ZINNEMAN
JAWS/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA /DAVID LEAN
MIDNIGHT COWBOY/ JOHN SCHLESINGER
NASHVILLE/ ROBERT ALTMAN
THE NIGHT OF THE HUNTER/ CHARLES LAUGHTON
NORTH BY NORTHWEST/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
ON THE WATERFRONT /ELIA KAZAN
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOOS NEST/ MILOS FORMAN
PATHS OF GLORY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
PSYCHO/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
RAGING BULL /MARTIN SCORCESE
REAR WINDOW/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
REBEL WITHOUT A CAUSE /NICHOLAS RAY
ROMAN HOLIDAY / WILLIAM WYLER
SINGING IN THE RAIN/ GENE KELLY
SOME LIKE IT HOT /BILLY WILDER
A STREETCAR NAMED DESIRE/ ELIA KAZAN
SUNSET BOULEVARD /BILLY WILDER
TAXI DRIVER /MARTIN SCORCESE
TO KILL A MOCKINGBIRD/ ROBERT MULLIGAN
TOUCH OF EVIL/ ORSON WELLES
2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
WEST SIDE STORY/ROBERT WISE
WHOS AFRAID OF VIRGINIA WOOLF/ MIKE NICHOLS
THE WILD BUNCH/ SAM PECKINPAH
BADLANDS/ TERRENCE MALLICK
THE THIN RED LINE/ TERRENCE MALLICK
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE /STANLEY KUBRICK
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
SCHINDLERS LIST /STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE DEER HUNTER /MICHAEL CIMINO
THE FRENCH CONNECTION/ WILLIAM FREIDKIN
THE MANCHURIAN CANDIDATE/ JOHN FRANKENHEIMER
MANHATTAN/ WOODY ALLEN
ROSEMARYS BABY /ROMAN POLANSKI
THE SHAWSHENK REDEMPTION/ FRANK DARABONT
PULP FICTION/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
RESERVOIR DOGS/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
KILL BILL 1 AND 2 /QUENTIN TARRANTINO
NETWORK / SIDNEY LUMET
SOUND OF MUSIC / ROBERT WISE
UNFORGIVEN /CLINT EASTWOOD
MILLION DOLLAR BABY/ CLINT EASTWOOD
ALIEN/ RIDLEY SCOTT
BUTCH CASSIDY AND THE SUNDANCED KID/ GEORGE HILL
THE CONVERSATION / FRANCIS FORD CUPOLA
DAYS OF HEAVEN / TERRENCE MALIK
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK / STEVEN SPIELBERG
AMADEUS / MILOS FORMAN
AMERICAN BEAUTY / SAM MENDES
DELIVERANCE / JOHN BOOKMAN
A FISH CALLED WANDA / CHARLES CRICHTON
IN THE HEAT OF THE NIGHT / NORMAN JEWISON
THE LAST EMPEROR / BERNARDO BERTOLUCCI
THE SHINING / STANLEY KUBRICK
THE FRENCH LIEUTENANTS WOMAN/ KAREL REISZ
SOPHIES CHOICE /ALAN PAKULA
LAST TANGO IN PARIS/ BERNARDO BERTOLUCCI
THE SHELTERING SKY/ BERNARDO BERTOLUCI
GANGS OF NEW YORK/ MARTIN SCORCESE
DEAD POETS SOCIETY/ PETER WEIR
BITTER MOON/ ROMAN POLANSKI
BOYS DONT CRY/KIMBERLY PIERCE

You got some very impressive list there and I am surprised with that list in hand you still quit hollywood viewing. Off the above following is what i have seen.

AN AMERICAN IN PARIS/ VINCENT MINNELLI
ANNIE HALL/ WOODY ALLEN
APOCALYPSE NOW /FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
BEN HUR/ WILLIAM WYLER
THR BLADE RUNNER /RIDLEY SCOTT
BONNIE AND CLYDE/ARTHUR PENN
BRIDGE ON THE RIVER KWAI/DAVID LEAN
CASABLANCA /MICHAEL CURTIS
CHINA TOWN/ROMAN POLANSKI
CITIZEN KANE/ ORSON WELLES
ET/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE GODFATHER 1 AND 2/ FRANCIS FORD CAPPOLA
HIGH NOON/ FRED ZINNEMAN
JAWS/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
LAWRENCE OF ARABIA /DAVID LEAN
ON THE WATERFRONT /ELIA KAZAN
ONE FLEW OVER THE CUCKOOS NEST/ MILOS FORMAN
PATHS OF GLORY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
PSYCHO/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
RAGING BULL /MARTIN SCORCESE
REAR WINDOW/ ALFRED HITCHCOCK
TAXI DRIVER /MARTIN SCORCESE
2001 A SPACE ODYSSEY/ STANLEY KUBRICK
THE WILD BUNCH/ SAM PECKINPAH
THE THIN RED LINE/ TERRENCE MALLICK
A CLOCKWORK ORANGE /STANLEY KUBRICK
CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND/ STEVEN SPEILBERG
SCHINDLERS LIST /STEVEN SPEILBERG
THE DEER HUNTER /MICHAEL CIMINO
THE FRENCH CONNECTION/ WILLIAM FREIDKIN
MANHATTAN/ WOODY ALLEN
ROSEMARYS BABY /ROMAN POLANSKI
THE SHAWSHENK REDEMPTION/ FRANK DARABONT
PULP FICTION/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
RESERVOIR DOGS/ QUENTIN TARRANTINO
KILL BILL 1 AND 2 /QUENTIN TARRANTINO
SOUND OF MUSIC / ROBERT WISE
UNFORGIVEN /CLINT EASTWOOD
MILLION DOLLAR BABY/ CLINT EASTWOOD
ALIEN/ RIDLEY SCOTT
THE CONVERSATION / FRANCIS FORD CUPOLA
RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK / STEVEN SPIELBERG
AMERICAN BEAUTY / SAM MENDES
DELIVERANCE / JOHN BOOKMAN
THE SHINING / STANLEY KUBRICK
GANGS OF NEW YORK/ MARTIN SCORCESE
BOYS DONT CRY/KIMBERLY PIERCE

But I am surprised a man of your tast forgot to include the master pieces of ....

THE COEN BROTHERS (Fargo, Barton fink, The Big Lebowski)
RON HOWARD (cinderella man, A beautifull man, frost/nixon, Apollo 13)
SERGIO LEONE (The good the bad the ugly, once uon a time in west, for a few dollors more)
DAVID LYNCH (One of My fav) (Mulholland Dr, Inland Empire, Lost Highway) (One of the most intruging film maker)
OLIVER STONE (One of my fav) (The Doors, Born on the 4th of July, Wall Street, Platoon, JFK....list goes on....)
SIR RICHARD ATTENBOROUGH (Gandhi, a bridge too far, Shadowlands)
DAVID FINCHER (One of My fav) (Se7en, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Zodiac, fight club) (Another intruging film maker)
DAVID CRONENBERG (Naked Lunch, Crash, A history of violence)

I would also like to include........

BRIAN DE PALMA (Scareface, Carrie, The Untouchables)
ROBERT ZEMECKIS (Forest Gump, Cast Away, What Lies Beneath, Back to the future trilogy)
SYDNEY POLLACK (The firm, Tootsie)
TERRY GILLIAM (12 Monkies, The Fisher King)


Mind you I have only included the movies for the above master directors which I have personally seen, there are other masterpieces from them, which are worth a watch.......