There are thousands of movies and TV shows available to binge watch on Netflix this Winter Break. But after a while, you start to wonder, "What am I doing with my life?" Well, I have the answer to your existential crisis. These classics will help you make it through winter break and teach you some history along the way...your mom will totally buy that excuse.
1. "The Godfather, Part 1" (1972)
If you haven’t seen this film yet, you are missing out on the best movie ever (I refuse to apologize to "Citizen Kane" fans). This cult classic is a gangster film that takes place in the 1940’s. Watch in awe as five major mafia families fight for control of New York City as Al Pacino plays his “breakthrough” character Michael Corleone. There are so many deaths in this film that you and your friends should just turn it into a drinking game. Fun fact: Every time you see the color orange, someone is about to get hurt or murdered.
2. "Rear Window" (1954)
Based on the short story “It Had to Be Murder,” this thriller-detective film takes place in just one location. A famous photographer who broke his foot in an accident is restricted to his wheelchair for a few weeks and spends his day people-watching. One day, he notices that one of the tenants living across the yard has been acting strangely and he suspects that the tenant murdered his own wife. The photographer starts to spy on the apartment and the action escalates from there. By the way, the two main characters, James Stewart and Grace Kelly are super attractive in this film (if you’re just looking for some eye candy to pass the time).
3. "Psycho" (1959)
One of the earliest thriller films ever created, the leading character, a female thief and liar with a strong sex drive, flees town with $40,000 to join her boyfriend. She gets stuck in a heavy storm and ends up in a rundown motel where she meets Norman Bates. This movie keeps you on your toes, with suspense and horror created by none other than the "king of suspense," Alfred Hitchcock, and is considered to be his best movie. But it will also provide loads of laughter with it’s 1959-special-effects. Trivia: flushing toilets made its debut in this film and viewers criticized Hitchcock for indecency.
4. "Good Will Hunting" (1997)
Matt Damon. Robin Williams. Ben Affleck. That should be enough to get you watching. Written by Damon and Affleck, this drama was nominated for nine Academy Awards and won two: Best Supporting Actor for Williams and Best Original Screenplay for Damon and Affleck. Set in South Boston, Will Hunting (Damon) is a 20-year-old janitor at MIT. His latent intelligence was discovered when he secretly, and nonchalantly, solved a math problem while mopping the halls at night. After Hunting was prosecuted for assaulting a police officer, he becomes a patient of a therapist (Williams), while working alongside a renowned mathematics professor. The plot centers around Hunting’s complex relationships with those around him and his inner turmoil concerning his future.
5. "Citizen Kane" (1941)
This movie by Orson Welles -- who directed, produced, co-wrote, and starred in it -- is considered the greatest film ever made. The main character, Charles Foster Kane, is based on the American newspaper magnate, William Rudolph Hearst. Kane inherits a successful newspaper company but quickly succumbs to his innate thirst for power. The movie starts off with Kane on his deathbed and uttering his last word, “Rosebud.” The rest of the movie consists of flashbacks and reporters investigating the meaning of Kane’s last word.
6. "Memento" (2000)
I know this film isn’t that old, but it’s one of my personal favorites. Leonard, the protagonist, has anterograde amnesia and is unable to retain short-term memories. Be utterly confused as he tries to hunt down the man who killed his wife by tattooing the facts that he discovers on his body. There are two separate and fragmented storylines: one that starts from the beginning of the plot and one that starts at the end. The movie alternates between short segments of each storyline until they meet in the middle and result in your mind being blown. Warning: this isn’t a movie meant for killing time. Your mind will be fried until it blows up at the very end.
