One of the things that defines RPI as more than a school—as a community—is a common culture that we all share. At RPI, being the type of school it is, movies play an important role in this; in particular, there are certain movies that have a larger appeal to those of a technical mindset. Nevertheless, it seems that some RPI students manage to remain unaware of the movies that by any measure are essential to a true geek. What follows are the 15 movies every RPI student needs to have seen, in order of importance.
Boondock Saints begins the list with some good, old-fashioned, ass-kicking, name-taking action. Two Irish brothers kill two Russian mobsters in self defense and discover they have a knack for that sort of thing. They take it upon themselves to become a two-man mobster exterminating squad, invoking prayers each time they do the deed. Willem Dafoe weaves a masterful performance as the FBI agent tracking them, and the final scene is nothing short of staggering.
A Clockwork Orange is a Stanley Kubrick adaptation of the Anthony Burgess novel by the same name, and Kubrick’s style binds the movie together. A young Malcom McDowell plays the main character, Alex, a young hooligan who is exposed to an ethically horrifying new crime-control technique. One of the most chilling movies of the late 20th century.
Army of Darkness features B-Movie King Bruce Campbell at his chin-jutting best, in the third of the Evil Dead trilogy. Pure camp, the movie follows Ash back in time to 13th century England, where he must retrieve the Necronomicon (Book of the Dead) and then use it to defeat an army of the undead. The central appeal of this movie is not the action but the sardonic humor that Campbell does superbly.
With Cool Hand Luke, allegory is the order of the day as Luke, played by the venerable Paul Newman, finds himself sentenced to two years in a labor gang for removing the tops of parking meters. Newman plays the character with maximum sanguinity as Luke becomes increasingly at odds with the penal system. This movie gave birth to the famous line, delivered by Strother Martin, “What we got here is failure to communicate.”
Reservoir Dogs is Quentin Tarantino at his finest, detailing the story of a botched robbery operation in Tarantino’s usual temporally-disjointed style. The power in this movie is not just palpable; it actively grips the viewer and doesn’t let go for an instant. You haven’t seen real drama until you’ve seen Michael Madsen, as Mr. Blonde, torturing a cop. RPI students may feel free to substitute Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction for equivalent credit.
Napoleon Dynamite, the new cult hit, is ideally suited to address the apathy so prevalent on the RPI campus. Jon Heder presents a surprising performance as the titular character in this slice-of-Idaho-life epic, which follows Napoleon and his friends through the trials and tribulations of life as a student of Preston High School. And yes, you get to see him dance at the end.
Ferris Bueller’s Day Off is the pinnacle of the ’80s teen movie. A very young Matthew Broderick has just the right baby face needed to pull off this naively capable man about town, as Beuller leads his friends on a day off through Chicago and drives the high school principal to his wits’ end, while the tongue-in-cheek humor ties it all together.
Dr. Strangelove: Or How I Learned To Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb, another Kubrick film, is anti-war satire of the highest form. General Jack Ripper, in his personal crusade against Communism, starts a process that might take the world into nuclear holocaust while the legendary Peter Sellers plays Dr. Strangelove, the weird German scientist, as well as several other characters.
Office Space is the RPI student’s handbook for how to survive the rat race. Peter Gibbons (Ron Livingston) has a dull, stressful, and TPS report-filled life as a codemonkey, until he has a Zen-like revelation that enables him to sit back and enjoy life—even if his stapler is missing.
Fight Club brings the genius of author Chuck Palahniuk to the silver screen as Brad Pitt and Edward Norton, two of the greatest actors today, stage an underground revolution involving soap while the deliciously jaded Marla Singer (Helena Bonham Carter) gets caught in the middle. Absolutely essential for any RPI students planning to change the world in a big way.
Airplane! returns to the lighter side with a concentrated and airborne dose of ’80s comedy. Here the tongue-in-cheek humor is all there is as shell-shocked war pilot Ted Striker (Robert Hays) must land a commercial jet after food poisoning disables the crew. Wordplay and satire abound in what is shirley one of the greatest comedies ever to make an emergency landing. RPI students looking for extra credit should see Airplane II: The Sequel, featuring William Shatner.
Spaceballs is the quintessential Star Wars parody. Mel Brooks’ comedic genius shines through in rare form as the evil Dark Helmet chases the renegade Lone Starr and the Druish Princess Vespa in search of breathable air. Mel Brooks himself makes appearances as the Spaceballs president and as the Schwartz master Yogurt. Pure classic, through and through.
One Star Trek movie: Yeah, yeah, Star Trek is only for those “real” geeks. Well, no RPI student can claim to be familiar with science fiction without watching at least one Star Trek movie—preferably more. If you really can’t stand to watch more than one, go with the even-numbered ones, and do not forget to live long and prosper.
The Star Wars Trilogy: The original science-fiction epic. Say what you will about episodes I-III, but the original trilogy is still a classic no matter how many times it has been remastered, and needs no further endorsement.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail is the epitome of geek humor. No one has ever done satire and silliness like Monty Python, and it is doubtful anyone ever will. It is simply impossible to attend RPI for four years and not be able to recite at least certain portions of this timeless classic. If you do not see this one, we will come and say “Ni!” to you.
