Great Movies That Could Change Your Perspective on Life

A handful of people with seemingly different trajectories in life collide with each other over a 24 hour period in San Fernando Valley. The characters range from the loathsome, to the pathetic, to the absolutely wacky, nonetheless, all are in search of the same things in life: love, forgiveness, acceptance, etc. Magnolia features an iconic third act stunt where frogs inexplicably fall from the sky like rain.

Magnolia has so many interwoven characters and story arcs that it can seem overwhelming until the pieces begin falling into place. Anderson does a masterful job in developing them over the 3 hour runtime and makes us care (more instances than not) about their respective plights.

The most memorable performance is probably Tom Cruise’s incredible portrayal of a motivational speaker/guy with daddy issues, whose guiltless womanizing turns out to be the strange result of years of neglect from his own father (played by Jason Robards). The film drives home the theme that while all of us are damaged in different ways, it’s how we treat others that illuminates our true natures.

The opus that is Magnolia is best summed up by John C. Reilly’s final monologue that ends with the question: “If you can forgive someone, well that’s the tough part… what can we forgive? It’s a hard part of the job. It’s a hard part of walking down the street.” Magnolia is one of those rare Hollywood films that will make you pause, make you think, and possibly change your perspective on life.

Philip Seymour Hoffman is Caden Cotard, a theatre director whose health is ailing and family life in tatters decides to mount an ambitious production that requires a replica of New York City be built inside a Warehouse. As the project larger and more complex, the lines between fiction and reality fade.

Kaufman is the writer of such cult classics as Being John Malkovich and Adaptation. Synecdoche is Kaufman’s directorial debut, and one can see the similarities to his thought-provoking and bizarre previous works. Nevertheless, Synecdoche is arguably the most mind-bending of them all.

Hoffman’s character wants his theatre production to completely mirror real life. He wants his play to be about “everything.” This requires him to not only build a miniature city with all the inhabitants, but also a warehouse inside that city where a playwright named Cotard is building a replica of New York and so on. It’s also about relationships, illuminating the fact that the people in our lives only exist in our heads, and we’ll never be able to see people for their entirety as humans.

In short, the story stretches the imagination to the max, but in the best possible way. It’s about how we spend so much of our time toiling over insignificant problems, and ultimately it’s impossible in our feeble minds to truly see “the big picture.” Synecdoche New York is a film so loaded with symbolism and thematic elements that one can watch it repeatedly and find new things every time.

“The point at which receding parallel lines viewed in perspective appear to converge.”

Kowalski, a Vietnam veteran whose life has since unraveled is hired to drive a souped-up Dodge Challenger from Denver to San Francisco. After acquiring the car, Kowalski visits his speed dealer and makes a bet that he can complete the journey in 15 hours. Before long he is being ruthlessly pursued by the cops, and an increasingly dangerous suspect in a nationwide manhunt. All the while a blind disc jockey who has intercepted police chatter tries to aid Kowalski over his radio broadcast.

This is different than your average action-packed car chase flick. The story starts ordinarily enough, but one can soon tell that Vanishing Point has more under its hood than at first glance. As the chase continues throughout the film, Kowalski increasingly takes on an almost mythical image in the minds of the spectators to the chase. He’s a symbol for counter-culture, and the sad reality that no matter how much we want to break the cast of society the “system” or “the man” always prevails.

As the old snake wrangler says at the midpoint, “Sometimes the only way to escape is to root-in right where you are.” Nevertheless, Kowalski accepts his fate and commits suicide by driving full-speed into a police barricade. Note here that Kowalski has a strange smile while he races towards death, and also watch how the locals gather around the barricade to witness the show… then immediately begin dispersing when the car bursts into flames.

Brad Pitt plays Benjamin Button, a baby born in the body of an old man. As he matures, Benjamin finds he is actually aging in reverse, becoming more youthful as time passes.

We follow Benjamin for his entire life, weaving in and out of different story arcs, most notably his childhood love interest Daisy played by Cate Blanchett. Though everyone in Benjamin’s life has become “older” than him physically, he’s still destined for the same march towards death that we all face. This film is based on a short story by F. Scott Fitzgerald.

This movie is filled with stunning cinematography, great performances, and truly incredible special effects. David Fincher and crew do a great job creating a melancholic atmosphere that perfectly illustrates the bittersweet nature of life. “I was thinking how nothing lasts, and what a shame that is.” says youthful Benjamin to Daisy when they finally become a couple. This statement sums up the main message of this film: appreciate our life while we can, before the onslaught of time washes everything away. Benjamin Button delivers all the goods and leaves a surprisingly haunting aftertaste.

Two monks, one old and one young live together in a secluded monastery. The film takes place over different seasons that pass throughout decades, as the young monk becomes older he makes mistakes that force him into jail. The old monk, seeing this as the end of his life decides to self immolate. The young monk eventually is released from prison and returns to the now empty monastery, taking up the reins of his master. He then gains an apprentice and the cycle starts over again.

This film might be the closest thing to a meditative experience many viewers will ever have. While slow, the movie never feels like a chore, as one could easily sit back and let the gorgeous visuals and contemplative pace wash over them. The themes are subtle and profound, demonstrating just how different the western worldview is from an eastern standpoint. If you’re in a particularly thoughtful mood Spring, Summer, Fall, Winter… and Spring will definitely give you a different perspective on life.

Jeff Bridges plays Max Klein, a man who survives a plane crash unscathed and finds he is overcome with a profound fearlessness of death and steadfast dedication to being completely honest with everyone. His newfound attitude towards life not only drives a wedge between him and his family, but inspires him to attempt dangerous stunts in an effort to stoke his sensation of fear. Max eventually reaches out and falls in love with one of the other crash survivors played by Rosie Perez, whose son died in the wreck.

Fearless is about pain and fear, about how our shared experience of it can heighten the sense of being alive and also bring us together. Fearless also treads into deeper philosophical territory, exploring how one man’s brush with death forced him to see the miracle of his existence in the first place.

Note the mesmerizing scene after the plane crash as Max stops on the side of the road and spits in the dirt, mixing the saliva around with his fingers. Bridges does an excellent job conveying a personality altered in the face of extraordinary terror and grief. Fearless is one of those rare flicks you’ll find yourself thinking about long after the credits roll.

Seconds is about a banker whose boring life changes when he’s offered the chance to abandon everything he knows in exchange for a new face and new life. John Randolph plays banker turned handsome painter Tony (Rock Hudson) whose initial elation about his new life is crushed when the learns the reality of his fellow “identity-changers.” When Tony decides he wants to escape his new life, it turns out to be a much more dangerous proposition than he could have imagined.

Another existential parable about a man who literally sheds his outer shell in an effort to improve his outlook on life. In the end the banker/Tony sees that changing the outside cannot transform what’s beneath the skin.

Seconds delves into questions of identity and whether even if it were possible to switch into better, more successful versions of ourselves… could we actually handle it? Seconds is reminiscent of an extended Twilight Zone episode; thought-provoking and chilling, it’s truly a hidden gem in science fiction.

This animated film by Academy Award nominated artist Bill Plympton follows a loathsome, lust-filled man in his daily activities until one day he wakes up with angel wings growing out of his back. The man initially uses his newfound appendages for nefarious purposes (stealing grandma’s purse, spying on naked sunbathers etc.) but eventually the wings take on a personality of their own, forcing the once despicable man to become an unwilling participant in acts of decency.

This is a weird film by any standard. Devoid of dialog, the entire story is told through the pantomimes of its characters and environment. The highly stylized animation evokes a sort of gothic atmosphere, accompanied with the beautifully hypnotic soundtrack by Cory Jackson, Idiots and Angels is a singular experience. Throughout Plympton’s dark, surreal dreamscape of a film is the exploration of how even the most loathsome among us are capable of good. We are all at the core both idiot and angel.

A story that spans 1000 years starring Hugh Jackman as Spanish Conquistador, modern day neurosurgeon, and snow globe dwelling space explorer en route to a dying star. Aronofsky employs his signature visual flare, interweaving the 3 narratives into one story about a man coming to terms with the death of his wife.

“The Fountain” refers to the book Jackman’s wife is writing as she falls ill. The conquistador thread is her story in the book, the modern day is what actually happens, and the space explorer thread is how Jackman finishes “The Fountain” after her untimely death.

While theatrically it was considered a box-office failure, The Fountain has amassed a cult following in the years since its release. The film is a meditation on death and rebirth, using the metaphor of a “dying star” to illustrate that while we’re destined for physical death, we ultimately live forever within an endless recycling plant called the universe. Check out The Fountain if you like your science fiction with a dash of Zen and a heaping glob of emotional heft.

A highly educated but troubled young man aimlessly wanders the streets of London and talks to random people. Such is the synopsis for Leigh’s fascinating film starring David Thewlis as Johnny, the ruthlessly smart yet disturbed protagonist. Naked really doesn’t have a traditional story arc. The film is presented mostly as episodic scenes where Johnny discusses high minded philosophical topics with other lost souls he encounters on the streets.

Mike Leigh and his crew of actors supposedly rehearsed for months, employing improvisation to come up with almost all of the film’s dialog. While Naked is untraditional, Thewlis’ portrayal as Johnny is truly one for the ages. He absolutely commands every scene. Katrin Cartlidge and Lesley Sharp also turn in impressive performances as two women vying for Johnny’s affection.

Though Leigh himself describes the film as a kind of rumination on anarchy, Naked is worth watching if just for David Thewlis’ captivating monologues amidst the incessantly depressing backdrop of modern day London.

Kirk Douglas plays Eddie, an advertising executive for a cigarette company who suffers a mental breakdown during his drive to work. Recovering at home, he slowly realizes the banality of his opulent existence and decides to destroy everything he had built in his life in an effort to find his true self. The supporting cast includes Faye Dunaway as Eddie’s mistress, and Richard Boone in a memorable performance as Eddie’s ailing father.

Widely panned by critics as one of Kazan’s worst films, The Arrangement is a hidden gem in the annals of classic cinema. The Arrangement portrays its characters as Freudian archetypes, as they serve to explain Eddie’s maddening descent into himself and his search for a more authentic life.

The Arrangement is based on a novel of the same name which Kazan also wrote. Thematically, the film could be compared to a Hermann Hesse novel, exploring the existential quandary of “can we ever become our true selves?”

Loosely based on the novel “Roadside Picnic” the film follows three men called Writer, Scientist, and Stalker as they make their way out of their industrial wasteland home and into a place called The Zone, where legend has it a person’s innermost desires will be granted.

Stalker might be not only be the most cryptic movie of Tarkovsky’s cannon, but one the most mysterious films ever made. Anyone familiar with Tarkovsky’s work will recognize the trademark gorgeous cinematography, excruciatingly long takes and subtle camera movements. One can extrapolate much from the loaded imagery throughout the nearly 3 hour runtime, but generally the film investigates the nature of belief, the nature of desire, and how these drives are mitigated in our subconscious.

Poetic and beautiful, Stalker works best when viewed in a contemplative frame of mind that won’t be put off by its glacial pacing. It’s a truly extraordinary work of art that can bore into one’s thoughts and haunt for months thereafter.

Francis Ford Coppola’s harrowing Vietnam War epic is widely considered one of the most seminal films in history. Martin Sheen plays Ben Willard, a battle-hardened Army Major tasked with finding and killing a once renowned officer who has gone insane, and built a compound deep within the jungle with his native followers that worship him as a god.

Upon taking the mission, Willard and a ragtag assortment of navy personnel man a PBR patrol boat and drift down a Vietnamese river deep into enemy territory. The story is based on Joseph Conrad’s novel “Heart of Darkness.”

Apocalypse Now is bleak exploration into human nature and war. Everything about this movie lends itself to the feeling of being “pulled-in” to the ultimate all-encompassing darkness at the heart of humanity. The performances are all phenomenal, including Marlon Brando’s classic portrayal of Walter Kurtz, the psychotic but eloquent target of Willard’s mission.

The movie is very philosophical, culminated in the hypnotic monologues of Brando during the film’s final act. Apocalypse Now remains not only a great war movie, but one of the most disturbing, thought-provoking films of all time.

Stroszek is the story of Bruno, a recently released ex-con who finds himself in a different kind of prison when his once girlfriend’s thuggish pimps begin mercilessly terrorizing him. His elderly neighbor “Herr” suggests they all three immigrate to America, hook up with his mechanic cousin in Wisconsin and make a better life for themselves.

Bruno Stroszek is played by real-life street musician/savant Bruno S. The performance is perfect, and solidifies Bruno as one of the weirdest characters in cinema history. Stroszek’s episodic structure works in strumming up the bizarre and ruthlessly bleak tone of the film. Herzog once said this movie was his reaction to American culture, and some of the scenes come from real experiences he had while visiting Wisconsin.

Ultimately, Stroszek is an exploration of the human condition, and the general pointlessness of our actions and existence. The theme is solidified in the iconic last shot of the film, where a caged chicken repeatedly pulls a lever and starts to “dance” for no apparent reason other than for its own futile machinations.

Chuck Nolan (Tom Hanks) plays a Fed-Ex employee whose entire life revolves around punctuality. When Chuck’s plane crashes en route to the United States, he finds himself the lone survivor, washed ashore a deserted island. After 4 years on the island with no one but his volleyball friend “Wilson” to keep him company, Chuck makes a last effort to return to civilization on a makeshift raft. He is finally rescued, but upon returning home he finds nothing is the way he left it.

Carrying the entire second act on his solitary shoulders, Hanks turns in one of the best performances of his career. Helen Hunt is also effective in her role as Kelly, Chuck’s fiancée who finds herself settling for a different kind of life after his 4 year hiatus. What sets this film apart from most Hollywood fare is the Zen-like tone established throughout the second half of the story.

Cast Away explores the fleeting decisions we make every day that sometimes have life-long ramifications. The movie is a modern-day classic and if you let it, Cast Away just might touch your soul.