10 Essential Movies for Students to Watch at College

Daisies (1966)
Dir: Vra Chytilová
Initially banned in Czechoslovakia for its portrayal of wanton women and excessive food wastage, this experimental feminist classic – at times cinematically gorgeous and uproariously crass in equal measure – truly showcases the power of film as a medium. With some of the most creative editing ever put to the screen, Daisies truly is a must for students and film fans alike.

Eternal Sunshine Of The Spotless Mind (2004)
Dir: Michel Gondry
With a near-flawless screenplay and wonderfully crafted mise-en-scène, there is a reason Michel Gondry’s Eternal Sunshine remains a bona fide modern classic. At once life-affirming and gut wrenchingly sad, the film features arguably career best performances from Kate Winslet and Jim Carrey, as well as a tear-jerking score composed by Jon Brion. And that ending – Jesus, Mary and all the saints! That ending!

Casablanca (1942)
Dir: Michael Curtiz
Unendingly quotable and one of the standouts of Hollywood’s studio era, this Hayes code epic is a shoo-in for film courses up and down the country. Centring around a messy love triangle, a cigarette huffing, liquor swilling and lovelorn Bogey sneers, snarls and sighs his way through Nazi-occupied Casablanca, as club owner Rick. Though it is technically American war propaganda, Casablanca is just too excellent to fully write off. Absolutely believe the hype – here’s looking at you kid!

The Commitments (1991)
Dir: Alan Parker
As unabashedly Irish as they come, this feel-good comedy also acts as a remarkable piece of social realist filmmaking, holding a mirraor to the city that was Dublin in the ’90s. A part of the Barrytown trilogy and based upon Roddy Doyle’s book of the same name, The Commitments remains a classic of Irish cinema.

Moonrise Kingdom (2012)
Dir: Wes Anderson
Patron saint of insufferable art students everywhere – I couldn’t not mention Wes Anderson. With gorgeous painterly cinematography, symmetry and emotionally stunted characters abounding, Anderson’s lament on childhood naivety and innocence in Moonrise Kingdom is one of his most effective. The dog, however, does die in this one...

Eraserhead (1977)
Dir: David Lynch
American auteur David Lynch’s debut is an enigmatic, pitch-dark and, at times, hilarious take on fatherhood. With abstract sequences of erasers being harvested from the brains of the film’s protagonist, a singing lady living in the radiator, and an inhuman baby that may or may not be crafted using a lamb foetus, this 1977 classic will leave you with more questions than answers. What does it all mean? Whatever you want it to, says Lynch!

The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Dir: Jim Sharman
From a plume of cigarette smoke, sequins, and glitter, out came the dulcet tones of Tim Curry – and the midnight movie was forever changed…
With a brilliant soundtrack by Richard O’Brien and Richard Hartley, this off-beat rock-opera is a fabulously deranged queer cult classic. And with frequent Halloween screenings, this one is perfect if you feel the need to yell something crass at the top of your lungs in a packed movie theatre.

Possession (1981)
Dir: Andrzej uawski
Starring a brilliantly unhinged Isabelle Adjani, this polish body horror chiller from 1981 still shocks today. Arguably the most unsettling of break-up films, and featuring a bizarre sequence in a subway tunnel, Possession is not for the faint of heart! Is this a “girl-boss” movie? Maybe. Is it terrifying? Absolutely! It’s best to know as little as possible going into this one, so I’ll keep it quiet. But just know that it gets freaky, very freaky – you have been warned...

Mean Girls (2004)
Dir: Mark Waters
Before the hot pink, feminist powerhouse that was Gerwig’s Barbie, we had this iconic piece of 2000s nostalgia, with a brilliant screenplay from Tina Fey, and a frankly diabolical Rachel McAdams as Regina George, if you don’t like Mean Girls, you’re either a plain misogynist or you hate fun, I don’t make the rules. So fetch!

Nowhere (1997)
Dir: Gregg Araki
Often described as “90210 on acid”, this transgressive and psychedelic cult classic is insufferably cool. Starring a young James Duval before he donned the bunny suit in Donnie Darko, Nowhere has bizarre plotlines and surreal visuals to beat the band.

Read the full Part 2 of the Student Special in the current issue of Hot Press, out now: