An astronaut under a red light looking ahead in 2001- A Space Odyssey. Image via MGM
By
Luc Haasbroek
Published 3 minutes ago
Luc Haasbroek is a writer and videographer from Durban, South Africa. He has been writing professionally about pop culture for eight years. Luc's areas of interest are broad: he's just as passionate about psychology and history as he is about movies and TV. He's especially drawn to the places where these topics overlap.
Luc is also an avid producer of video essays and looks forward to expanding his writing career. When not writing, he can be found hiking, playing Dungeons & Dragons, hanging out with his cats, and doing deep dives on whatever topic happens to have captured his interest that week.
Sign in to your Collider account
Summary
Generate a summary of this story
follow
Follow
followed
Followed
Like
Like
Thread
Log in
Here is a fact-based summary of the story contents:
Try something different:
Show me the facts
Explain it like I’m 5
Give me a lighthearted recap
The 1960s were one of the most transformative decades in film history, a time when Hollywood charm collided with rebellious young voices and European influence seeped into American cinema. It's a time that produced more than its fair share of classics. But this list looks at not just the best of them, but the ones with the most rewatch value.
These are movies that are enjoyable on the first, second, and tenth viewing. They comfort, thrill, provoke, and entertain across decades, reeling you back because you want to live inside their worlds again.
10 1960 — ‘The Apartment’
Fran Kubelik, played by Shirley MacLaine, holds up a glass while wearing a crown in The Apartment.Image via United Artists
"That’s the way it crumbles… cookie-wise." The Apartment is the rare comedy that grows richer and more poignant with each viewing. Jack Lemmon is in top form as C.C. Baxter, a decent man who has lost himself to corporate ambition. He begins as a cog in a corrupt system, loaning his apartment to executives for their affairs, but rediscovers his conscience and emerges as a romantic hero. Opposite him, Shirley MacLaine’s Fran Kubelik walks a similar tightrope between hope and heartbreak.
This is not an easy tonal combination to pull off, but Billy Wilder makes it look easy. The director balances cynicism and tenderness like no one else, all without scrimping on the sparkling dialogue. The final scene (the famous "Shut up and deal") lands every time. The end result is a romance for grown-ups, one that believes in the possibility of ordinary people doing the extraordinary thing.
9 1961 — ‘West Side Story’
A woman in a wedding veil holds hands with a man and they sing together in West Side Story.Image via United Artists
"I feel pretty, oh so pretty!" West Side Story is one of those movies that feels totally larger than life, more like a shared dream than a regular film. Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, and Rita Moreno lead a talented, energetic cast, their charisma reeling us in and bringing the tale to life. The resulting film is a kaleidoscope of motion, color, and emotional charge, one that still holds up all these decades later. Not many musicals deliver the same level of soaring tragedy or symphonic passion.
The songs by Bernstein and Sondheim are infectious, and the choreography is amazingly athletic, from the opening rooftop beats to the heartbreaking finale. We watch bodies leap effortlessly through the air, shrugging off gravity like it was a mere suggestion. Spielberg's remake is great too, and together the two adaptations make for a potent double feature and a fascinating encapsulation of how far cinema has come.
8 1962 — ‘To Kill a Mockingbird’
Image via Universal Pictures
"You never really understand a person until you consider things from his point of view…" Like West Side Story, To Kill a Mockingbird also feels like way more than a movie. Fundamentally, it's an enduring moral statement. Gregory Peck’s Atticus Finch is one of cinema’s most powerful embodiments of decency, a character whose steadfastness feels revolutionary in any era. The story, told through the eyes of young Scout (Mary Badham), moves with a child's wonder despite the heavy subject matter. This approach makes its themes hit home all the harder.
The courtroom scenes remain riveting, the neighborhood mysteries retain their magic, and Atticus' wisdom feels eternal. The movie doesn't shout its values; it trusts you to feel them. Most importantly, To Kill a Mockingbird suggests that all of us can make a difference. Every revisit invites reflection: What does courage look like? How does empathy survive in a flawed world?
7 1963 — ‘The Great Escape’
Hilts (Steve McQueen) escapes on a motorcycle in 'The Great Escape'Image via United Artists
"Good luck." One of cinema’s purest joys is watching Steve McQueen steal a Nazi motorbike and race toward freedom, and that’s only part of why The Great Escape remains endlessly watchable. This WWII adventure is both an ensemble masterpiece and a slow-burn epic, filled with camaraderie, tension, humor, and heroism. It's enjoyable to watch the fellowship of the prisoners, their ingenuity as they try to tunnel their way out. This is camaraderie forged in hardship, collective defiance against tyranny.
The supporting cast, from James Garner’s charm to Richard Attenborough’s steel, makes each character unforgettable. Then there are the stunts, including one of the greatest motorcycle jumps in film history. The movie is long, yes (almost three hours), but never slow. Rather than dawdling or dragging, it moves with confidence, building to a moving climax. The ending is deeply bittersweet, ensuring the film's place among the classics of its era.
6 1964 — ‘Mary Poppins’
Julie Andrews as Mary Poppins smiles while a bird sits on her finger in Mary Poppins.Image via Disney
"A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down." Julie Andrews turns in one of the most iconic musical performances of all time here, a mix of whimsy, quiet wisdom, and killer pipes. Opposite her, Dick Van Dyke radiates joy, and even his famously uneven Cockney accent has become part of the film’s quirky charm. The songs are immortal, and the visual invention still enchanting, particularly the then-cutting-edge hybrid of live-action and animation. Not to mention, the emotional message, that childhood magic can heal adult wounds, never loses its impact.
There's just so much life and story in this movie. It overflows with fantasy, warmth, humor, melancholy, and, above all, wonder. The first act, in particular, is just such an explosion of joy and energy. For all these reasons, Mary Poppins is a film that transcends its time, continuing to delight new generations as the years roll by. A modern fairy tale.
5 1965 — ‘The Sound of Music’
Maria plays guitar and sings surrounded by children in a meadow in The Sound of Music.Image via 20th Century Studios
"The hills are alive with the sound of music!" While Julie Andrews is superb in Mary Poppins, she would surpass it a year later with her lead role in The Sound of Music. Her Maria radiates warmth and optimism without tipping into saccharine, all while belting out some of the most iconic tunes in movie history. She is complemented nicely by Christopher Plummer as the stern Captain who slowly softens into romance and courage. Around them, the Alps shimmer with idealism.
Yes, it’s sentimental (and there are a few narrative stumbles), but sincerity is a rare and precious currency, and this film spends it wisely. That's why it's one of the ultimate comfort movies. Although it won Best Picture, critics' reviews were mixed on release, yet The Sound of Music has since been canonized as one of the great classic musicals. Some people still love to hate it, but that's precisely because it's so iconic and its impact so massive.
4 1966 — ‘The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’
Lee Cleef and Clint Eastwood in The Good, The Bad and the UglyImage via United Artists
"When you have to shoot, shoot. Don’t talk." The greatest Western of all time. The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly is an epic symphony of tension rising, humor flickering, and chaos building toward destiny. Clint Eastwood, Eli Wallach, and Lee Van Cleef form a trinity of moral ambiguity, their alliances shifting like desert wind. Their intertwined stories deliver on all fronts, from the acting to the aesthetics. Sergio Leone’s visual language here (extreme close-ups, sprawling vistas, stillness punctuated by sudden violence) influenced countless filmmakers that followed.
That said, the secret ingredient is the music. Ennio Morricone’s score remains one of the most recognizable ever composed, nowadays practically synonymous with the whole genre. Each viewing reveals something new in the dust and steel and silence. Tuco and Blondie’s uneasy partnership never loses charm; the cemetery standoff never loses power. This is cinema mythmaking at its highest voltage.
3 1967 — ‘The Graduate’
Anne Bancroft as Mrs. Robinson and Dustin Hoffman as Benjamin lie in bed together in The Graduate.Image via Embassy Pictures
"Mrs. Robinson, you’re trying to seduce me. Aren’t you?" Despite being almost 60 cards, The Graduate still feels amazingly modern. Dustin Hoffman’s Benjamin Braddock is forever the patron saint of post-adolescent confusion: adrift, pressured, seduced, and terrified of choosing a life before he knows who he is. Meanwhile, Anne Bancroft’s icy allure and Katharine Ross’ luminous sincerity build a triangle charged with longing ... and a whole lot of absurdity.
Nevertheless, what keeps us coming back isn’t just the acting or the comedy, but the unique tone and universal themes. This is disorientation wrapped in California sunshine, ennui set to Simon & Garfunkel. It's the rootless anxiety of every young person unsure of what direction to take. The ending remains one of cinema’s greatest emotional pivots, swinging from desperate to triumphant, then suddenly awkward and questioning. A smart movie, both of its times and lightyears ahead of it.
2 1968 — ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’
Keir Dullea in a red spacesuit walking through well-lit space pod in 2001: A Space Odyssey.Image via MGM
"I’m sorry, Dave. I’m afraid I can’t do that." It's kind of ridiculous just how many masterpieces Stanley Kubrick banged out in his heyday. One of the most influential was 2001, which paved the way for almost every sci-fi classic to follow, from Star Wars to Alien. Aside from the groundbreaking visual effects, it simply serves up a compelling story and thought-provoking themes. Who are we? Where did we come from? What lies beyond consciousness?
There's just so much memorable imagery here: HAL’s calm menace, the monolith’s inscrutable power, the star-gate journey into evolutionary transcendence, not to mention one of the most iconic match cuts in movie history. Kubrick fuses awe, mystery, and terror into a symphony of visuals and silence, asking the kinds of big questions that modern-day sci-fi usually shies away from. Back in 1968, this movie must have felt like a missive from another dimension.
1 1969 — ‘Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid’
Butch Cassidy (Paul Newman) and the Sundance Kid (Robert Redford) sitting on a cave in 'Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid'Image via 20th Century Studios
"Are you crazy? The fall will probably kill you!" The final freeze-frame of Butch Cassidy is rightly iconic, but it only works because the rest of the film has earned it. In this boundary-pushing Western, Paul Newman and Robert Redford radiate mischievous chemistry, playing outlaws with charm and a shrugging awareness that the world is changing faster than they can draw. With its witty banter and odd interludes, the movie broke sharply with the genre conventions of its day.
It's a Western that feels like a hangout comedy until it suddenly feels like a requiem. The megawatt stars do a lot of heavy lifting, but a key factor in the film's success is the brilliant script by the great William Goldman, writer of The Princess Bride. The writing offers a potent mix of warmth and fatalism. Although it opened to a mixed reception, Butch and Sundance has gone on to become one of the most enduring Westerns of its time.
Like
Follow
Followed
Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid
PG
Western
Adventure
Release Date
September 24, 1969
Runtime
111 Minutes
Director
George Roy Hill
Writers
William Goldman
Cast
See All-
Paul Newman
Butch Cassidy
-
Robert Redford
Sundance Kid
Expand
Collapse
-
Movie
-
The Apartment
We want to hear from you! Share your opinions in the thread below and remember to keep it respectful.
Be the first to post Images Attachment(s) Please respect our community guidelines. No links, inappropriate language, or spam.Your comment has not been saved
Send confirmation emailThis thread is open for discussion.
Be the first to post your thoughts.
- Terms
- Privacy
- Feedback
2 days ago
8 Series Finales That Can Be Called Masterpieces
1 day ago
From 'Breaking Bad' to 'The Sopranos,' 10 Binge-Worthy Crime Shows That Got Better Every Season
2 days ago
10 Great Horror Movies That Are Just as Terrifying on a Rewatch
1 day ago
This Underrated Sci-Fi Series Left Fans a Four-Word Rallying Cry for Our Times
More from our brands
50 Best New Movies on Streaming to Watch Right Now
The Best Movies in Theaters Right Now
Movies To Watch If You Like 365 Days
The Best Free Movies On Amazon Prime (April 2025)
10 Movies From The 1960s That Are Considered Masterpieces
The 60 Best Movies Of All Time
The 55 Best Movies of All Time, Ranked
What To Watch
July 20, 2025
The 72 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now
Trending Now
Jesse Eisenberg's Thrilling Heist Sequel Makes Edward Norton's 'The Prestige' Dupe Disappear at the Box Office
The Funniest Movie of Robin Williams' Career Is Landing on Free Streaming Next Month
The Greatest Stephen King Adaptation of 2025 Finally Finds a Streaming Home
