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I thought this might be a fun discussion to have, where we can throw out our picks for the films which have the staying power and artistic merit to endure past their contemporaries. So, as the title asks, what modern films does Dakka think will go down as classics when people look back decades from now?

My vote has to go to Mad Max: Fury Road. I can't think of a better action film that I've seen in the cinema. The fight choreography was phenomenal, the action never felt like it was repeating itself thanks to the plot serving to separate different elements of the force chasing the war rig, allowing each new sequence to feature different spectacles (first fight is a small number of small, fast cars vs each other and war rig in the open desert and then a sandstorm, second is bikes vs. war rig in a tight, enclosed canyon, next is Immortan's monster truck vs War Rig, then you have the final set piece where you have small cars, large rigs, the polemen and motorbikes all crashing into each other, first in open desert then in the canyon).

And despite all the craziness going on in these action sequences you never feel disoriented thanks to how the framing of the shots are chosen, where the action of the shot is always centre frame so the eye doesn't have to dart around the screen during multiple fast cuts.

All that is wrapped up in a film that knows not to bog you down with unnecessary dialogue, that trusts you to understand what is being shown without having to tell you in dialogue thanks to usage of foreshadowing and set up/payoff which allow for world details to be passed onto the viewer without disrupting the action with expositional dialogue. A perfect example of this is the setting up of the chrome spray paint and calling to be witnessed. We are shown someone doing this before suiciding to kill an enemy and so when Nux opens his fuel tanks, sprays his mouth and calls on Max to witness him we immediately know he is going to try a suicidal attack without any character needing to say that out loud. Everything we know about this world (except for the initial voice over during the opening credits) is told to us through the action and natural dialogue between characters. We never have an instance of a character asking what would be a stupid question in the film universe solely so another character can answer them and tell us about some detail that everybody should already know about in the films world but which the viewers might not know.

These videos explain what I'm trying to put across better than I probably can:


So, what other nominations does Dakka have?

The first thought I had was the Matrix, I really felt it changed how movies were made and is still important today. Of course it's now 19 years old

My next thought, not based on quality but again on significance, was Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow. This retro sci fi movie used entirely virtual sets and props where only the actors were real. It's become a common technique but I think SCWoT was the first to go all the way with that. Of course that's 13 years old or so...

Avengers comes to mind as well for basically being the biggest cross-over shared universe film (the only rival I can think of is Roger Rabbit). Not really a great moment in cinema but in marketing and world building.

None of this really answers the question though since I'm still stuck in my genre ghetto and looking at technique rather than quality.

So, what modern film do I forsee my future kids seeing and saying, wow...

Frozen. That was legitimately good for a kids film, but I'm in another ghetto aren't I?

Matrix again, strikes me as legitimately good film with a message about reality and humanity.

Let me think...

How old does a movie have to be before it becomes a classic? A few movies came to mind but their all at least 10 years old.

The Matrix is certainly up there. Unfortunately I was too young to see it in the cinema, but it was still amazing to see it when I eventually got to see it on DVD later.

The techniques it introduced have certainly had their effect on film making.

Frozen is an excellent film. I can see it being regarded in the same light as The Lion King in years to come, as the high point of a particular era of disney film making.




Automatically Appended Next Post:

 mrhappyface wrote:
How old does a movie have to be before it becomes a classic? A few movies came to mind but their all at least 10 years old.

That could also be something to discuss, when does a film become a "classic"? And what makes some films be called "X classics", where X is the decade it came out (80s classic, for example), rather than "classics" without needing to specify a decade.

I think the MCU in general is going to have books written about it within 2 decades.

Certain movies will be called out as cinematic classics. I think Winter Soldier and Civil war in particular are amazing stand alone films with Infinity War just plain having some massive balls and being an amazing achievement (all Russo Brothers you might note), but the whole undertaking is something nobody has ever attempted let alone succeeded at so regularly.

I think this whole era of film making is going to be defined by the MCU if for no other reason then that. The scale, scope, and success of the undertaking.

The Witch and Get Out.

The Matrix - for so many reasons!

The Lord of the Rings - this film created and made popular the idea of films being made in a block not just one by one as is normal. That made it a very new type of film; but it also told a tale that had up till then, defeated cinema. It put Lord of the Rings back on the map and whilst it changed things it captured the visual beauty of Middle Earth

Jurassic Park...... wait is that already a classic? Regradless this should be in the list. It was the first big use of quality CGI and animatronics and was a vast change in how we made monsters and beasties in films. Even Avatar can't touch JP for the way it changed cinema experiences.

Something Marvel/DC - not sure what to be honest but I feel something should be classic. That said there's a lot more redundancy here too. When you've got three or four or more films that retell the same story (eg Spiderman) in such a short span of time they tend to smother each other.
Heath Ledgers portrayal of the Joker will likely make that film a classic though - at least in Batman circles.

Pixar - yeah again I can't actually pick one and honestly I've a feeling that Pixar films will end up like classic Disney animated films - ergo most of the library of films they made will wind up classics of family entertainment. UP, Walle, heck Toy Story is already a classic etc...

Well I think we need 2 definitations here, what is modern, and what is a classic.

The first Jurassic Park film is over 20 years old, and the Matrix is old enough to vote so are they 'modern'?

So I say confine to last 10 years.

What is a classic?

I vote for someone 25 years from now will watch the film and say 'that was good'. 25 years from now 'everyone' will have heard of it and a good portion of folks will have seen it. And agree it was a milestone of some sort.

 Overread wrote:
The Matrix - for so many reasons!

The Lord of the Rings - this film created and made popular the idea of films being made in a block not just one by one as is normal. That made it a very new type of film; but it also told a tale that had up till then, defeated cinema. It put Lord of the Rings back on the map and whilst it changed things it captured the visual beauty of Middle Earth.

Made popular, but Back to the Future 2 and 3 were filmed together, IIRC.

as far as Super Hero movies go, I’d say Black Panther and Wonder Woman have the best chances, with Avengers Infinity Wars being next in line for its sheer magnitude of fast; I do believe such a powerhouse of characters is unparalleled at any point in history. BP and WW are because of the intensely strong character building and sheer enjoyment of both; they both left you hungry for more.

As some of you already suggested, many of titles listed here are already classics being released two decades ago (when talking about cinema classics during '90 people usually referred to pictures ranging from early '60 to late '70, with earlier great productions being antiquated films (don't know the proper translation from polish, but there was distinction between very old films and those who were simply a "must see" from a decade or two ago). My personal definition of "classic" is a film that is now outdated in terms of film technology/film language, but this outdated property makes it even more interesting to watch again/for the first time.

Nowadays, '90s pictures like "12 monkeys", first "Mission Impossible", "Starship troopers", "Fight Club", first "Matrix" or "Event Horizon" are already classics.

Funnily enough, due to knee surgery, I have been rewatching a lot of such classic movies (I finished rewatching LOTR only yesterday) and many of them aged rather poorly in terms of technology used (said LOTR has very artificially lookink CGI by today standards (except perhaps Gollum) and very off synchronisation of running over matte paintings) but have still fundamental value as "cornerstones" of film industry/film language used/developed or unparalleled individuality.

So limiting only to last decade or so, MCU as a whole will definitely be considered classic (but even now early films in that series are nearly unwatchable, CGI ages very poorly and MCU advances storytelling techniques quite rapidly, so old ones feel somewhat slow and boring). Other than that, Nolan's films: "Prestige", "Inception", "Dunkirk" and "Interstellar" can become classics ("Prestige" is already old enough and don't have any direct competition as to story it tells) and "Memento" and "Dark Knight" already are. "Cornetto trilogy" is already a classic. From newer titles "New arrival" is good candidate to rival deep sci-fi movies of old. "Watchmen" is another one. I don't think that "Children of men" will ever age, it is just so different than anything else. "Dredd" already has cult status as well as "District 9". And all of this is pretty much a single genre. Film industry is a lot bigger than it used to be, so what will be considered "classic" will probably be more diluted than films from '70-'90.

And don't forget about tv series, as more and more weight of entertainment shifts onto them - "Battlestar" is already a classic that changed how tv series are done and some other productions will stay popular and watchable beyond their times.

But which of those (and other) titles will become "popular classics" like "Back to the Future" is a lot harder to predict.

"Letters From Iwo Jima" and "Flags of Our Fathers" will still work perfectly fine in 20 or 30 years. I had a conversation with my father the other day on the subject of "Dunkirk" where we agreed that there aren't that many (good) WW2 movies done any more because you'd inevitably have to compare them to "Saving Private Ryan", "Band of Brothers", and the "Letters/Flags" duology, and it's hard to measure up to them. That's the hallmark of a classic to me.

No question. Money Train.

In the last 10 years? Sucker Punch.

 Ouze wrote:
No question. Money Train.

In the last 10 years? Sucker Punch.

Money Train has some stiff competition- Demolition Man is comedy action satire gold.

http://spectrumculture.com/2013/07/17/criminally-underrated-demolition-man/

You know, I may try just a no context '3 Seashells' reference in my class next year and see how many people get it.


I would say it's quite likely to be remembered as the Robocop of the 90s.

If it isn't, I hope Fifth Element is.

Good lists so far, Ill toss in a few more.

2012's "Dredd" will likely go down as classic in film afficionado and cult classic circles. Well done movie, excellent cast, great writing...awful marketing.

"Ready Player One" is likely to go down similarly. Pretty paint-by-numbers plot, but well executed, family accessible, has some pop culture reference for everyone, but still manages the dark dystopian thing.

"The Dark Knight" obviously is another one, little explanation is needed there.

I'd pretty sure no 'Super' movie will make stand-alone classic status, the MCU as a whole phenomenon might, Black Panther and Wonder Woman might earn kudo's as curio's for featuring non-white / non bloke leads, but hopefully that won't be unusual down the line, maybe Logan but again it relies on a lot of other X-films despite it being a Western in Mutant clothing

Only two recent films that really spring to mind for me are Ex Machina and Arrival (jury still out on BR2049)

 Ouze wrote:
No question. Money Train.

In the last 10 years? Sucker Punch.

I don;t know Money Train at all.

Sucker Punch I found a really good and surprisngly dark film, not in a fake - mindless oooh look at the effects Christopher Nolan way but the actual subject matter - often behind the flash on screen.

Get Out - I watched and just didn;t see the reason it was well regarded - adequate urban horror film - nothing special for me, but then I hated every moment I spent watching Scream at the cinema.

Dredd was a great conversion of a comic character onto the screen

Can't argue with Avengers - the writing was top notch and the interpaly of chracters and story a delight to watch.

This is an excellent thread topic!

Malus is spot on that Fury Road will be considered a classic. Vaktathi and nou also nailed it with Dredd. I'll add Blade Runner 2049 to this list.

Cheesecat mentioned The Witch. That movie disappointed me but I think it will be well remembered for it's strict instistance on period dialogue. I haven't seen it but I think the first Conjuring movie will likely be remembered as iconic for this era in horror.

Thanks to its box office woes, Solo may be the first Star Wars movie that could qualify as a cult classic.

Since there's apparently two movies called "Sucker Punch" (one from 2008 and one from 2011), is the one people are referring to the boxing one or the mental institution one?

The 2011 schlockfest, which I assure you I mentioned as a joke. It's an awful movie on nearly every level.

MCU for the reasons above, but for also being the only Movie Universe to have actually succeeded.

Opinions about which films are a bit rubbish are of course varied - but the brains behind it have stayed the course regardless. I’m sure exactly why Marvel worked and the others didn’t will be discussed endlessly in the coming decades.

Rogue One I think will also be up there. So far as I’m aware, no prequel attempt has ever slotted in quite so seamlessly. It adds to A New Hope, without ever really detracting from it. A New Hope still stands on its own after all, Rogue One isn’t needed to ‘explain’ its predecessor. Compare to say. Alien Covenant and Prometheus.

 Ouze wrote:
The 2011 schlockfest, which I assure you I mentioned as a joke. It's an awful movie on nearly every level.

Oh thank you, I was starting to wonder why the world had gone mad all of a sudden.

Oh, and Saving Private Ryan, if only because it didn’t attempt to gloss over the horrors with the heroism.

Whilst it engenders utmost respect for the characters and the true stories it’s based on, its real message is that war sucks?

That others have tried and not quite succeeded there is enough to seal its reputation forever.

It’s also not at all AMERICA feth YEAH about the whole thing.

The Artist and 12 Years a Slave.

My ideas of modern films to become classics:

The MCU in general, Infinity War/Avengers being the main candidates
The Star Wars films will be, but mostly as part of being related to Star Wars
Wonder Woman
Ex Machina
Mad Max: Fury Road
Dredd
The Dark Knight
Frozen and/or Moana
Get Out
Pacific Rim has a chance of being a classic in time

 Manchu wrote:
This is an excellent thread topic!

I thought so too
It opens a lot of potential discussion, from what defines classic movies (is it the writing, the techniques, the performances, the themes and stories examined etc.), to whether a true classic needs to excel in all those areas or whether raising the bar in one can cover deficiencies in others (so, just for the sake of an example, does the Matrix's advances in technical film making such as the bullet time sequences make up for individual performances which are less than stellar?), and so forth.

Malus is spot on that Fury Road will be considered a classic. Vaktathi and nou also nailed it with Dredd. I'll add Blade Runner 2049 to this list.

Blade Runner 2049 was very much in a difficult position, since it was trying to follow on from a true classic in its own right. Thankfully it managed to hit the perfect balance of deep characters, glorious visuals and compelling themes which allowed it to stand proud alongside its predecessor.

The other Mad Max films, though definitely enjoyable, wouldn't quite hit classic status for me. George Miller's skills as a filmmaker have improved so much since his first forays into the art form and Fury Road shows off all of that improved skill impeccably. So in that sense Fury Road didn't have quite as high a bar to reach and so it didn't have so much pressure. Only my opinion however.

Dredd of course only had the Stallone film to surpass. And if the actors involved managed to avoid adding 50 extra syllables into the word "law", they'd have done their bit

Cheesecat mentioned The Witch. That movie disappointed me but I think it will be well remembered for it's strict instistance on period dialogue.

That is certainly the kind of thing which can help a film stand out and earn it a place in history. Would A Clockwork Orange have been anywhere near as influential and loved, for example, if it didn't have the linguistic element of Nadsat?

Since people have already mentioned Sucker Punch, I'll have to add Grey, Beowulf (the 2007 movie), Batman versus Superman!
[edit]I apparently forgot Blade Runner 2049, which truly belongs to be seen in the company of the other movies of that list, I guess![/edit]

See, I didn’t really enjoy Wonder Woman. Sure, it’s the best of a bad bunch, and Gal Gadot was the least worst thing in BvS. But to me, she’s just utterly wooden and uncompelling in the role.

It’s still a reasonably decent movie, and I certainly don’t regret watching it. But it ultimately left me a bit ‘meh’.

I wonder how Apocalypto will be seen in future. It was a very brave movie, filmed and scripted entirely in what is now an obscure dialect. But the film itself is pretty bloody awesome. Sadly, it’s reputation was inherently tarnished because Mel Gibson flipped a self destruct switch around the same time.

Same with The Passion of the Christ.

 Mad Doc Grotsnik wrote:

I wonder how Apocalypto will be seen in future. It was a very brave movie, filmed and scripted entirely in what is now an obscure dialect. But the film itself is pretty bloody awesome. Sadly, it’s reputation was inherently tarnished because Mel Gibson flipped a self destruct switch around the same time.

Same with The Passion of the Christ.

Apocalypto is a great film.

It was that weird part of Gibson's career where he decided to make horrifyingly brutal films with dialogue in dead languages

And then he went completely mad.

Future classics? The entirety of the MCU. The movies are legitimately good, with something for just about everyone to enjoy. Yes, they tend toward being somewhat formulaic, but that's very much part and parcel with the source material. All of them have something to say about the world we live in, and raise some good questions, as good movies should.

Tropic Thunder should have been the next Blazing Saddles, but it didn't get the love it should have.

Battle Royale should also have been up there, but frickin' Hunger Games stole its thunder.

Otherwise, there really hasn't been a lot that's gotten me to sit up and think "wow, that was good"
____

 Kid_Kyoto wrote:
Frozen. That was legitimately good for a kids film, but I'm in another ghetto aren't I?

If you actually watch the movie, it's pretty fething awful, with stupid characters and stupid decisions, and OMG, those fething trolls. Yes, the soaring "LIG" transformation number is amazing, and post-pubescent Elsa is absolutely gorgeous, but everything else about it is garbage. I've watched Frozen many times, and Aladdin is far superior. Beauty and the Beast (LA) is better, even if they music isn't as good. Frozen is a Hollywood movie that is notable for being exceedingly-well marketed to little girls who had no other role model available. Thank goodness for Black Widow and Scarlet Witch, plus Wasp coming soon. If you don't believe me, go watch Frozen, but skip over the LIG scene. Just replace it in your head with "Elsa embraces her powers" as in an old-timey silent, and then continue. You'll see...

Aside, the English version of LIG is not the best - the German "Ich Las Los" is better, and Lara Loft's "Lass Jetzt Los" is actually best.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

 Vaktathi wrote:
2012's "Dredd" will likely go down as classic in film afficionado and cult classic circles. Well done movie, excellent cast, great writing...awful marketing.

Too bad The Raid came first and was better. Dredd's chick was basically useless and redundant.
____

 Ouze wrote:
In the last 10 years? Sucker Punch.

Hugely underrated movie, due to Warner neutering the theater version - the Director's Cut is excellent. I love that movie, but I'm not sure it'd be a classic. Cult classic, for sure.