Film critic Robbie Collin has a good piece in the Telegraph (free-trial paywall) about media literacy and the necessity of turning young people onto the classics. (I wrote an entire book on the subject, so it’s obviously dear to my heart.) In the piece and on Twitter, Robbie lists his five choices for hooking jaded teens on old movies: The Awful Truth, The Big Sleep, 12 Angry Men, Some Like it Hot, North by Northwest.
Great list, and mine’s totally different: Rear Window, Bringing Up Baby, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes, Double Indemnity, The Red Shoes.
North by Northwest, Rear Window, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lawrence of Arabia (mostly because the memory of seeing it at Radio City Music Hall is so vivid), It Happened One Night
A post close to my heart as I have a 10 and 12 year old and often think about what classic movies I can show them. I can't answer which ones you should show them but I can tell you what has resonated so far. Stage Coach, Bad Day at Black Rock, Robin Hood (w/ Errol Garner), Key Largo, Rear Window, North by Northwest (to some extent, a little long and dry in parts), The Lady Vanishes, and The Seventh Samurai (to some extent, a little long and slow moving in parts) have all been fun watches with them. I look forward to trying more.
Old friends on Facebook regularly message me to say they have teens getting into movies and that they're looking for suggestions for movies to watch and my top pick always is Malcolm X. It's mature without featuring anything that could be considered objectionable, it's loaded with style (so much so that it's practically a compendium of everything Lee has learned from a lifetime of watching movies) and it does what I remember liking most about movies when I was a teen: It sparks a conversation.
Second pick: Rear Window. Always recommend Rear Window.
Ok, these are all (of course) wonderful movies … I’m thinking of movies that might say something to a kid about their eff’d up world now. I have more than five to think on: White Heat/Public Enemy, Key Largo, Face in the Crowd, Sullivan’s Travels, On the Waterfront, Grapes of Wrath, 400 Blows. All in different ways speak to power and perception. And with great, iconic speeches and scenes. Personally, I’d get a kid to watch Great Escape, too. But that’s just me.
Just how old do classics have to be? I have a teenage son, and the 40-year-old "The Road Warrior" and "The Terminator" are right over the plate for him.
Seven Samurai and Citizen Kane were the classic movies that resonated with me a youth, so I think I'd try those and see how they land.
Casablanca really resonates off of so many contemporary urgent issues--refugees, authoritarian invaders, the impulse to engage with or cynically retreat from the problems of the world.
Another interesting question is why do older movies resonate with preteens/teenagers? I would argue that for mine pacing is a critical component. They loved Stagecoach. The pacing is phenomenal without being crazy like so many movies today.
I’ve tried showing young people Bringing Up Baby in my class on comedy filmmaking I teach. It does not play well. It’s just too hokey by today’s standards (according to them). Some Like It Hot is a much better choice. It holds up very well and makes new fans every time I show it.
All of the above + Elmer Gantry (Burt Lancaster as a con man gaining power) All About Eve, The Little Foxes, Gentleman's Agreement, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
I took a select group of seventh and eighth graders to see "Rome, Open City," and "The Third Man" with great success. I took my son, when he was younger than that, to Yojimbo and Red River with equal success (Seven Samurai was too long). "Safety First" I've taught in a film elective, but I do have to fast forward over a racist bit a train station at the beginning. Not sure if they are the five best, but they are five that work.
I now realize classics here is specifically golden ahi Hollywood, but before realizing that this the list I was thinking of, under an expansive definition of classics:
Interesting variety of picks so far, some light as a feather, some very dark indeed. For me, Lawrence of Arabia for sure, also To Kill a Mockingbird, Pennies from Heaven (Steve Martin 1981 version), American Hot Wax (if it can be found), and the foundation of my adolescence: West Side Story (original version). And for the musically/mythologically/ethnically inclined teen: Black Orpheus.
Bringing Up Baby, Some Like It Hot, Arsenic and Old Lace, Singin' In the Rain, The Gold Rush. But what's a "classic?" I would add some more recent films like Young Frankenstein, What's Up, Doc?, The Great Escape, West Side Story, Charade, Breakfast at Tiffany's, To Kill a Mockingbird, Ben-Hur. I honestly think "funny" is the way to get teens into older films. Although I guess a case could be made for action films like Road Warrior (esp. if they liked Fury Road). It's so dependent on the kid's interests and background.
Great movies, all! And your book rocks—I gave it to my brother when his two girls were young, and was happily surprised by them singing along to “Moses Supposes” when we watched “Singing’ in the Rain” together!
These made a big impression on me in my teen years and might still resonate with teens: Vertigo, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dr Strangelove, Gaslight, Top Hat (and all the Astaire/Rogers movies).
Two years ago when my son was 8 I made him watch some classics (he always refused to watch old movies) on my birthday. We watched What’s Up Doc? and Some Like It Hot. He loved them both. We also watched North by Northwest and To Catch a Thief that year and lots of Chaplin and Keaton. He liked it all although he won’t admit it now. Two weeks ago we rewatched North by Northwest and Rear Window which he enjoyed. It’s so fun to share all of these films with him. The next five I would like to convince him to watch is The Thin Man, Sullivan’s Travels, Key Largo, The Third Man, & Bringing Up Baby.
I too picked up Ty's book when my daughters were young and they really enjoyed Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. And they even loved Charlie Chaplin's The KId. My youngest daughter has been watching Casablanca since she was a teen and loving it. Not sure how far back you need to go but the Redford/Newman movies The Sting and Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid were both big hits. And I would think In The Heat Of The Night would be a winner.
I’ve invested years already indoctrinating my child with classic movies thanks to your book, Ty! She’s 10 now and her faves are Some Like It Hot, The Court Jester, North by Northwest, and all Marx Brothers especially Animal Crackers. (Hooray for Captain Spaulding!) She recently felt pretty grownup watching subtitles with Beauty and the Beast (1946) and Good Morning.
She’s probably ready for Bogart soon (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and Casablanca) and more Hitchcock like Strangers on a Train and Rebecca.
Go to early Barbara Stanwyck. Pre-code Baby Face is a shocker. Her acting in Miracle Woman shows what she would become. Ball of Fire is hilarious. The Lady Eve and Stella Dallas place her in the top 3 of Golden Age actors.
The last three may not be "classics", but I was trying to think of movies involving main characters who were younger and movies that weren't boring. (not sure the definition of "old movies")
I’ll just mention The Great Race and The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming because then they would understand where a lot of family catch phrases come from.
FYI, my son is now 24, but the movies he loved when he was a teenager were (and still are) A HARD DAY'S NIGHT : WITHNAIL & I : MEPHISTO : THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING : MY MAN GODFREY :
He's a big fan of Klaus Maria Brandauer. Mephisto, Colonel Redl, Hanussen....wonderful trilogy from Istvan Szabo. He's been in college at St Andrews in Scotland, graduating next week (late, but right on time...Covid.) I'm heading over there in a few days. Been a wild & interesting ride.
It's so hard to make a list of just five but here goes: Rear Window, Casablanca, The Wizard of Oz, It's a Wonderful Life, and The Godfather.
So many others: Shane, A Christmas Carol (the one with Alistair Sim), Groundhog Day, When Harry Met Sally, The Big Lebowski, This Is Spinal Tap, The Producers (the one with Zero Mostel & Gene Wilder), The Red Shoes, Psycho, Taxi Driver, Singin' in the Rain, Goodfellas, Psycho, Lincoln, Schindler's List, Mary Poppins, Sound of Music, Lawrence of Arabia, On the Waterfront, Chinatown, The African Queen, and Toy Story.
When my daughter was growing up we watched and she loved musicals, all of the above-named plus Meet Me in St. Louis, On the Town, Guys and Dolls (but really, how could they cast Brando as the musical lead AND have Sinatra in the movie?), Music Man, The King and I, An American in Paris, Carousel, Oklahoma, My Fair Lady, Brigadoon, and all the Rogers/Astaire movies. They were a great way to get into older movies. Also anything with Katherine Hepburn, extra points if Spencer Tracy is in it (but Philadelphia Story and of course Bringing up Baby even without). The Jimmy Stewart/Lionel Barrymore double-feature, It’s a Wonderful Life and You Can’t Take it With You. I can’t count but I think that’s more than five so I’ll stop there.
Great invitation to remember what I loved in my youth. Here are 5 movies that I loved as a high schooler: The Magnificent Seven (what a cast!), West Side Story, The Great Escape, A Shot in the Dark (The Pink Panther 2), and Goldfinger. Then came my film education at The Thalia in Manhattan’s West Side during my college years where I saw double bills like Night at the Opera/Day at the Races, Casablanca/Maltese Falcon, Wild Strawberries/Smiles of a Summer Night, and on and on. Maybe what excited me then would excite young folk today. I would hope so. These are still great films in my book.
I recently watched The Awful Truth for the first time, on TCM, and can't agree with Robbie Collin choosing it. I felt Irene Dunne was miscast, had an unappealing personality, and had no chemistry with Cary Grant. I felt terrible for Ralph Bellamy & Joyce Compton, who were ridiculed throughout the film and were so much nicer human beings than the two leads! I was hoping for a fun screwball comedy, but found the movie tedious...
North by Northwest, Rear Window, To Kill a Mockingbird, Lawrence of Arabia (mostly because the memory of seeing it at Radio City Music Hall is so vivid), It Happened One Night
Rear Window, Some Like it Hot, It Happened One Night, It's a Wonderful Life, Singing in the Rain
Philadelphia Story (Hepburn/Grant/Stewart), Psycho, The Letter, His Girl Friday, Adam's Rib or almost anything Hepburn/Tracy
A post close to my heart as I have a 10 and 12 year old and often think about what classic movies I can show them. I can't answer which ones you should show them but I can tell you what has resonated so far. Stage Coach, Bad Day at Black Rock, Robin Hood (w/ Errol Garner), Key Largo, Rear Window, North by Northwest (to some extent, a little long and dry in parts), The Lady Vanishes, and The Seventh Samurai (to some extent, a little long and slow moving in parts) have all been fun watches with them. I look forward to trying more.
The Wizard of Oz and Chariots of Fire were bad misses.
Old friends on Facebook regularly message me to say they have teens getting into movies and that they're looking for suggestions for movies to watch and my top pick always is Malcolm X. It's mature without featuring anything that could be considered objectionable, it's loaded with style (so much so that it's practically a compendium of everything Lee has learned from a lifetime of watching movies) and it does what I remember liking most about movies when I was a teen: It sparks a conversation.
Second pick: Rear Window. Always recommend Rear Window.
Ok, these are all (of course) wonderful movies … I’m thinking of movies that might say something to a kid about their eff’d up world now. I have more than five to think on: White Heat/Public Enemy, Key Largo, Face in the Crowd, Sullivan’s Travels, On the Waterfront, Grapes of Wrath, 400 Blows. All in different ways speak to power and perception. And with great, iconic speeches and scenes. Personally, I’d get a kid to watch Great Escape, too. But that’s just me.
Just how old do classics have to be? I have a teenage son, and the 40-year-old "The Road Warrior" and "The Terminator" are right over the plate for him.
Seven Samurai and Citizen Kane were the classic movies that resonated with me a youth, so I think I'd try those and see how they land.
Casablanca really resonates off of so many contemporary urgent issues--refugees, authoritarian invaders, the impulse to engage with or cynically retreat from the problems of the world.
The Man who shot Liberty Valance, The Magnificent 7…I know not that old but…A river runs thru it is timeless
Another interesting question is why do older movies resonate with preteens/teenagers? I would argue that for mine pacing is a critical component. They loved Stagecoach. The pacing is phenomenal without being crazy like so many movies today.
Just to add other films to the discussion:
The Apartment
Singin' in the Rain
The Third Man
Sherlock Jr.
Citizen Kane
I’ve tried showing young people Bringing Up Baby in my class on comedy filmmaking I teach. It does not play well. It’s just too hokey by today’s standards (according to them). Some Like It Hot is a much better choice. It holds up very well and makes new fans every time I show it.
All of the above + Elmer Gantry (Burt Lancaster as a con man gaining power) All About Eve, The Little Foxes, Gentleman's Agreement, Guess Who's Coming to Dinner
I took a select group of seventh and eighth graders to see "Rome, Open City," and "The Third Man" with great success. I took my son, when he was younger than that, to Yojimbo and Red River with equal success (Seven Samurai was too long). "Safety First" I've taught in a film elective, but I do have to fast forward over a racist bit a train station at the beginning. Not sure if they are the five best, but they are five that work.
I now realize classics here is specifically golden ahi Hollywood, but before realizing that this the list I was thinking of, under an expansive definition of classics:
City Lights
Casablanca
The 400 Blows
High and Low
The Godfather
For golden age Hollywood (let’s say 1930-1960):
City Lights
Casablanca
Double Indemnity
Touch of Evil
Psycho
Interesting variety of picks so far, some light as a feather, some very dark indeed. For me, Lawrence of Arabia for sure, also To Kill a Mockingbird, Pennies from Heaven (Steve Martin 1981 version), American Hot Wax (if it can be found), and the foundation of my adolescence: West Side Story (original version). And for the musically/mythologically/ethnically inclined teen: Black Orpheus.
Singin' in the Rain, To Kill a Mockingbird, Butch Cassidy, West Side Story, Sound of Music
Bringing Up Baby, Some Like It Hot, Arsenic and Old Lace, Singin' In the Rain, The Gold Rush. But what's a "classic?" I would add some more recent films like Young Frankenstein, What's Up, Doc?, The Great Escape, West Side Story, Charade, Breakfast at Tiffany's, To Kill a Mockingbird, Ben-Hur. I honestly think "funny" is the way to get teens into older films. Although I guess a case could be made for action films like Road Warrior (esp. if they liked Fury Road). It's so dependent on the kid's interests and background.
Great movies, all! And your book rocks—I gave it to my brother when his two girls were young, and was happily surprised by them singing along to “Moses Supposes” when we watched “Singing’ in the Rain” together!
These made a big impression on me in my teen years and might still resonate with teens: Vertigo, The Picture of Dorian Gray, Dr Strangelove, Gaslight, Top Hat (and all the Astaire/Rogers movies).
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid, Woodstock, Platoon, Forrest Gump, and Reefer Madness
Two years ago when my son was 8 I made him watch some classics (he always refused to watch old movies) on my birthday. We watched What’s Up Doc? and Some Like It Hot. He loved them both. We also watched North by Northwest and To Catch a Thief that year and lots of Chaplin and Keaton. He liked it all although he won’t admit it now. Two weeks ago we rewatched North by Northwest and Rear Window which he enjoyed. It’s so fun to share all of these films with him. The next five I would like to convince him to watch is The Thin Man, Sullivan’s Travels, Key Largo, The Third Man, & Bringing Up Baby.
I too picked up Ty's book when my daughters were young and they really enjoyed Abbott & Costello Meet Frankenstein. And they even loved Charlie Chaplin's The KId. My youngest daughter has been watching Casablanca since she was a teen and loving it. Not sure how far back you need to go but the Redford/Newman movies The Sting and Butch Cassidy & the Sundance Kid were both big hits. And I would think In The Heat Of The Night would be a winner.
The Last Laugh ::: The General ::: Double Indemnity ::: The Big Sleep ::: The Third Man
I’ve invested years already indoctrinating my child with classic movies thanks to your book, Ty! She’s 10 now and her faves are Some Like It Hot, The Court Jester, North by Northwest, and all Marx Brothers especially Animal Crackers. (Hooray for Captain Spaulding!) She recently felt pretty grownup watching subtitles with Beauty and the Beast (1946) and Good Morning.
She’s probably ready for Bogart soon (The Treasure of the Sierra Madre and Casablanca) and more Hitchcock like Strangers on a Train and Rebecca.
Casablanca, Chinatown, Blood Simple. The Godfather, Vertigo
To Kill a Mockingbird
12 Angry Men
Do the Right Thing
Life is Beautiful
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
Go to early Barbara Stanwyck. Pre-code Baby Face is a shocker. Her acting in Miracle Woman shows what she would become. Ball of Fire is hilarious. The Lady Eve and Stella Dallas place her in the top 3 of Golden Age actors.
To Kill a Mockingbird
North by Northwest
American Graffiti
The Shining
Spinal Tap
The last three may not be "classics", but I was trying to think of movies involving main characters who were younger and movies that weren't boring. (not sure the definition of "old movies")
Casablanca, Citizen Cane, The Graduate, Double Indemnity, the Wizard of Oz
Mr. Smith Goes to Washington, Swing Time, Gun Crazy, I Walked with a Zombie, and Out of the Past
I’ll just mention The Great Race and The Russians Are Coming, The Russians Are Coming because then they would understand where a lot of family catch phrases come from.
One more: It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World
It is good to hear that. I have loved that movie since I was about 10. Likewise my son, who is in his 50s.
For older teens in the mood for something dark:
Chinatown
Don't Look Now
The Manchurian Candidate
Psycho
Rosemary's Baby
FYI, my son is now 24, but the movies he loved when he was a teenager were (and still are) A HARD DAY'S NIGHT : WITHNAIL & I : MEPHISTO : THE MAN WHO WOULD BE KING : MY MAN GODFREY :
Design for Living
The Lady Eve
Holiday
Sullivan’s Travels (and O Brother, Where Art Thou?)
On the Waterfront
I also have a melodramatic teen classics list, e.g., Valley of the Dolls, Gidget, A Patch of Blue, Up the Down Staircase, Rebel Without a Cause
He's a big fan of Klaus Maria Brandauer. Mephisto, Colonel Redl, Hanussen....wonderful trilogy from Istvan Szabo. He's been in college at St Andrews in Scotland, graduating next week (late, but right on time...Covid.) I'm heading over there in a few days. Been a wild & interesting ride.
It's so hard to make a list of just five but here goes: Rear Window, Casablanca, The Wizard of Oz, It's a Wonderful Life, and The Godfather.
So many others: Shane, A Christmas Carol (the one with Alistair Sim), Groundhog Day, When Harry Met Sally, The Big Lebowski, This Is Spinal Tap, The Producers (the one with Zero Mostel & Gene Wilder), The Red Shoes, Psycho, Taxi Driver, Singin' in the Rain, Goodfellas, Psycho, Lincoln, Schindler's List, Mary Poppins, Sound of Music, Lawrence of Arabia, On the Waterfront, Chinatown, The African Queen, and Toy Story.
When my daughter was growing up we watched and she loved musicals, all of the above-named plus Meet Me in St. Louis, On the Town, Guys and Dolls (but really, how could they cast Brando as the musical lead AND have Sinatra in the movie?), Music Man, The King and I, An American in Paris, Carousel, Oklahoma, My Fair Lady, Brigadoon, and all the Rogers/Astaire movies. They were a great way to get into older movies. Also anything with Katherine Hepburn, extra points if Spencer Tracy is in it (but Philadelphia Story and of course Bringing up Baby even without). The Jimmy Stewart/Lionel Barrymore double-feature, It’s a Wonderful Life and You Can’t Take it With You. I can’t count but I think that’s more than five so I’ll stop there.
I also mis-read the assignment - we started pre-teen.
Great invitation to remember what I loved in my youth. Here are 5 movies that I loved as a high schooler: The Magnificent Seven (what a cast!), West Side Story, The Great Escape, A Shot in the Dark (The Pink Panther 2), and Goldfinger. Then came my film education at The Thalia in Manhattan’s West Side during my college years where I saw double bills like Night at the Opera/Day at the Races, Casablanca/Maltese Falcon, Wild Strawberries/Smiles of a Summer Night, and on and on. Maybe what excited me then would excite young folk today. I would hope so. These are still great films in my book.
Random Harvest, Butch Cassidy, American Graffiti, Star Wars, and Lawrence of Arabia
I asked my just turned 14 yes old what he would pick. His picks are:
White Heat
Rio Bravo
Some Like it Hot
Maltese Falcon
North by Northwest
He is not sure people are really into musicals but if he picked one it would be Singin’ in the Rain
I decided to make my list skew a little more mature and chose movies that present opportunities for good conversation with teens
The Apartment
Sweet Smell of Success
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
All About Eve
Seven Brides for Seven Brothers
My 15 year old is currently loving the James Stewart Anthony Mann westerns
Some like it hot. Psycho. On the waterfront. Lawrence of Arabia. Young Frankenstein.
I recently watched The Awful Truth for the first time, on TCM, and can't agree with Robbie Collin choosing it. I felt Irene Dunne was miscast, had an unappealing personality, and had no chemistry with Cary Grant. I felt terrible for Ralph Bellamy & Joyce Compton, who were ridiculed throughout the film and were so much nicer human beings than the two leads! I was hoping for a fun screwball comedy, but found the movie tedious...
The Lady Eve
To Be or Not to Be (Lubitsch, not Brooks, although I love them both)
Random Harvest
Out of the Past
All About Eve
(Eves FTW.)
When my son was young:
Singing in the Rain
Forbidden Planet
Fantasia
Wizard of Oz
Jason and the Argonauts (skeleton army!)
Les enfants de paradis, wait until dark, all about Eve, the assassination bureau, the African queen. Also the lion in winter.