'Merica - A rolling 50 movies that define USA

[Ezee E]

You get the deal.

Post a pic of the movie, and a one sentence reason of why it defines America.

We get to 50.

1. In America
2. Born on the Fourth of July
3. Network
4. Jaws
5. Rio Bravo
6. Do the Right Thing
7. Dogville
8. Killer of Sheep
9. Night of the Hunter
10. Birth of a Nation

11. Forrest Gump
12. Florida Project
13. Dazed and Confused
14. Wag the Dag
15. American Pie
16. Crash
17. Written on the Wind
18. Idiocracy
19. The Grapes of Wrath

20. To Kill a Mockingbird
21. Bob Roberts
22. The Godfather Part II
23. Scarface
24. Dog Day Afternoon
25. Independence Day
26. Easy Rider
27. Team America: World Police
28. Baseball
29. Starship Troopers

30. Badlands
31. Transformers
32. Zootopia
33. Dawn of the Dead
34. Logan Lucky
35. Fargo
36. Natural Born Killers
37. The Patriot
38. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
39. Argo

40. National Lampoon's Vacation
41. Rocky
42. Raging Bull

[Ezee E]

In America directed by Jim Sheridan in 2002



In America contains the struggle of immigrants to a new land, the wariness of race, the love of pop culture (Spielberg), and a motif of hope and strength of family.

[Dead & Messed Up]

Born on the Fourth of July directed by Oliver Stone in 1989



A searing look at the failure and folly of American adventurism and also the country's potential to learn and renew and improve, presented through an unforgettable central performance.

[Skitch]

(3) Network directed by Sidney Lumet, 1976



A great commentary on the importance of how media conducts itself and the audience in that we feed the beast that is eating us.

[Skitch]

Wow am I thinking of some other great films that fit this thread.

[Dukefrukem]

We haven't done this in a while!!!!

4. Jaws - It feels like summer every time I watch this. And of course, takes place on the 4th.

[Grouchy]

​5. Rio Bravo directed by Howard Hawks, 1959



Deliberately made as a response to the cynical High Noon, building the myth of the good, honest Western hero and the spirit of friendship.

[Ezee E]

6. Do The Right Thing Spike Lee, 1989



A country of immigrants. A neighborhood of cultures. Misunderstanding, closted racism, hot summers, pizza, sports, and music. Every step forward, there's another step backward.

[Spinal]

7. Dogville (Lars von Trier, 2003)



You might say that America in 2018 is 'third-act Dogville' in which the folksy, cheery facade of a proud community crumbles and the nasty, violent, corrupt core is laid bare, expressing hostility to outsiders.

[Ezee E]

Nice one.

[baby doll]

8. Killer of Sheep (Charles Burnett, 1977)



During the Second Great Migration in the 1940s, tens of thousands of black people moved from the South to California in search of better opportunities, and it was during this time that Watts became a predominantly black neighbourhood. In the early 1960s, the disappearance of manufacturing jobs devastated the community. Through a series of vignettes of daily life, Burnett's film depicts the forgotten underclass of black Americans who are seldom represented in the mass media.

[Mysterious Dude]

9. The Night of the Hunter (1955, Charles Laughton)



Religion and guns.

[Grouchy]

10. Birth of a Nation (D.W. Griffith, 1915)



MAKE 'MERICA GREAH AGAN

[Ezee E]

Forrest Gump (Robert Zemeckis, 1994)



The modern American Tall Tale.

[Spinal]

12. The Florida Project (Sean Baker, 2017)



In the shadow of the American corporate fantasy of a 'Magic Kingdom', a loving parent goes to extraordinary lengths to preserve her daughter's childhood and mask the harsh reality of unshakable poverty.

[transmogrifier]

This town is rotten from the inside out and I wouldn't miss it, if it fell into the gorge tomorrow. I see no charm here, but you seem to. Admit it you've fallen for Dogville. The trees, the mountains, the simple folk. And if all that ain't got you fooled yet, I bet the cinnamon has. That damned cinnamon in those gooseberry pies. Dogville has everything that you ever dreamed of in the big city.

[Skitch]

Umm...

[transmogrifier]

Umm...

What? Nothing to see here. Move along. MOVE ALONG I SAY!

[transmogrifier]

13. Dazed and Confused (Richard Linklater, 1993)



From an outsider looking in, this movie has always defined my perception of the American high school lifestyle. So it is either remarkably true to life or a remarkable piece of cultural propaganda - how would I know which? Either way, it is one of the best movies ever made.

[Watashi]

14. Wag the Dog (Barry Levinson, 1997)



America is very dumb and will believe in anything its President will tell them.

[Ezee E]

American Pie Chris Weitz, 1999



Teens perspective of a world where the worst problem is being caught ejaculating into a pie.

[transmogrifier]

16. Crash (Paul Haggis, 2004)



Race + guns + Oscar bait + left-leaning self-congratulation = WTF, America? Highlights how tone-deaf political discussion can be.

[baby doll]

17. Written on the Wind (Douglas Sirk, 1956)



"[A] screaming Brechtian essay on the shared impotence of American family and business life."—Dave Kehr

[Spinal]

18. Idiocracy (Mike Judge, 2006)



Roughly one third of Americans polled are wrong about virtually any topic you care to name, whether it's about civil liberties, the Constitution, the importance of science, the pros and cons of drinking paint thinner, or whether 'facts' are actually a thing.

[megladon8]

How do I get in on this?