nondeplumage: Here are my recommendations that happen to be some of my favorites:
Young Frankenstein: Mel Brooks teams up with writer/star Gene Wilder for one of the funniest comedies of either of their careers.
The Princess Bride: find me a movie with more memorable lines. I dare ya.
Goonies: Kids going on an epic treasure hunt.
The Frisco Kid: Harrison Ford is a cowboy. Gene Wilder is a rabbi. Hilarity ensues.
Yojimbo: Toshiro Mifune. Akira Kurosawa. 'nuf said.
The Seven Samurai: See above.
The Hidden Fortress: See above.
Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan. Kirk's dealing with old age on a ship full of new recruits. The villain is a mix of Satan and Captain Ahab (literally, as the two main inspirations from the story come from
Paradise Lost and
Moby Dick). This is science fiction done right, although the acting in several scenes doesn't age well. Nor do the costume designs of the science staff.
Forbidden Planet: Leslie Nielson in on of his early serious roles. This is straight out of the golden age of 50s sci-fi.
M: Fritz Lang and Peter Lorre team up to bring you a fantastic detective mystery.
Army of Darkness: Bruce Campbell and Sam Raimi. 'nuff said.
Tombstone: This movie is worth watching solely for Val Kilmer's performance. It seems crazy, but he completely steals this movie out from everyone else. It's such a shame the rest of his movies are such shit. Except maybe for
Real Genius, but it's not one of my favorites.
Quoted again just because of the awesomeness. Rep given.
Just one thing... Val Kilmer was marvelous in Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. ;)