Sidney Lumet’s 1957 film “12 Angry Men” received Academy Award nominations for Best Picture, Best Director and Best Screenplay. (Photo courtesy of IMDb)

We have come to the conclusion of my time as the movie columnist of The Lafayette. While I could have made my final column a review for Marvel Studios’ “Thunderbolts*” (2025), I decided to change it up and list 10 movies I think everyone should watch at least once before graduating college. (Disclaimer: It’s impossible to boil this down to just 10, so I tried my best to do a wide variety of genres, but some favorites of mine had to be squeezed in there.)

Seven Samurai (1954)

Akira Kurosawa’s pinnacle film, “Seven Samurai,” became the blueprint for the modern action team-assembly movie, influencing everything from “The Magnificent Seven” to “The Avengers.”

Unforgiven (1992)

Clint Eastwood’s revisionist Western deconstructs the myth of redemptive violence and questions the very morality of heroism. This film significantly influenced my senior capstone project, a feature-length Western screenplay.

Goodfellas (1990)

Slightly more accessible in my opinion than Francis Ford Coppola’s “The Godfather” (1972), Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic is still a kinetic, immersive descent into the allure and eventual collapse of the American mob lifestyle, told with unflinching realism and Scorsese’s typical razor-sharp style. 

All The President’s Men (1976)

This 1976 political thriller starring Robert Redford and Dustin Hoffman perfectly demonstrates journalism’s role in safeguarding democracy. Following the uncovering of the Watergate scandal, “All The President’s Men” cultivates critical thinking and captures the tension and the meticulous process of uncovering corruption in the United States government.

Zero Dark Thirty (2012)

From Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow, “Zero Dark Thirty” looks at the hunt for Osama bin Laden, wrestling with the ethical ambiguities of post-9/11 warfare. It prompts urgent conversations about truth, torture and how history gets written in real time.

12 Angry Men (1957)

Starring film legend Henry Fonda, “12 Angry Men” is a single-room drama about a jury deliberating a murder case, but it goes well beyond that with timeless lessons in logic, bias and moral courage.

Jaws (1975)

Considered the first ever summer blockbuster, Steven Spielberg’s thriller revolutionized Hollywood while simultaneously tapping into primal human fears about the unknown. It’s a masterclass in suspense, pacing and storytelling that still shapes cinema and media culture today.

Casablanca (1942)

Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman star in this wartime romance layered with moral tension and political intrigue. It remains one of the most quotable and emotionally resonant films ever made. It teaches us the importance of love and standing up for something larger than oneself.

Nope (2022)

A masterful mix of horror and science fiction, Jordan Peele’s third feature film explores the idea of spectacle: how we watch, consume and exploit media and entertainment. It’s sharp and gorgeously shot, all while challenging viewers to question the context of race and media history.

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

I had to throw one animated film on the list, and Wes Anderson’s 2009 masterpiece is the perfect choice! With incredible voice acting and tremendous stop-motion animation, there is a reason “Fantastic Mr. Fox” is still my favorite of Anderson’s films.

Those are 10 movies I believe everyone should watch before graduating from college! Of course, there are many, many more I did not list, and the ones I did list are just my opinions. It’s now up to you to go and watch these cinema classics!