The best movies from the 70s

An essential list

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

After the collapse of the old studio system, a group of directors took control, like how Dennis Hopper's 'Easy Riders' or Scorsese's 'Raging Bull' set the pace. And yes, they knew what they were doing.

The Deer Hunter

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Movies like 'The Deer Hunter' or 'Apocalypse Now' spewed the collective trauma of a war they deemed pointless into the audience's face. They were not just movies; they were moral whiplashes.

Taxi Driver

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Taxi Driver' needs no introduction. Travis Bickle, a dirty mirror of a rotten America, became a symbol of urban alienation. And De Niro... well, simply deranged.

Jaws

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Jaws' taught that a shark could ruin summer vacations... and save commercial cinema. It invented the blockbuster and kept half the planet out of the sea for weeks.

A Clockwork Orange

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'A Clockwork Orange' arrived to shock with milk, Beethoven, and ultraviolence. Kubrick showed that British dystopia could be as charming as it was nauseating.

The Exorcist

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Psychological horror flourished with 'The Exorcist', redefining fear with green vomit, childish blasphemies, and sweaty priests. The demon was never so box-office friendly.

The Godfather

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'The Godfather' (I and II) not only portrayed crime as a family art but also turned Marlon Brando into a myth of vocal slowness. Cult cinema with bullets and pasta.

Star Wars

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

With 'Star Wars', the 70s ended in another galaxy. Luke, Vader, and the Wookies started the era of endless franchises. Merchandising, Jedi, and lightsabers that go “whoom”.

Apocalypse Now

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

Francis Ford Coppola directed again with visionary madness in 'Apocalypse Now'. Boats in the jungle, Wagner, and a neckless Brando. A Vietnam that feels like the most realistic nightmare.

Alien

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Alien' mixed science fiction with claustrophobic horror. Ridley Scott created the most iconic creature in cinema while shaking up an entire crew with no open hatches.

The Conversation

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'The Conversation' and 'All the President’s Men' turned surveillance and journalism into methodical nightmares. Watergate became a plot, and Gene Hackman stopped trusting anyone.

Mad Max

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Mad Max' brought the desert, motorized violence, and a pre-preacher Mel Gibson. Australian cinema with a scent of gasoline and a road apocalypse.

Jeanne Dielman

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Jeanne Dielman' by Chantal Akerman showed that the routine of a housewife could also be cinema. Three hours of cooking, cleaning, and fleeting encounters with men. Radical minimalism. Photo: Olympic Films

The Rocky Horror Picture Show

An essential list, The Deer Hunter, Taxi Driver, A Clockwork Orange, The Exorcist, The Godfather, Star Wars, Apocalypse Now, The Conversation, Jeanne Dielman, The Rocky Horror Picture Show

'Cabaret' and 'The Rocky Horror Picture Show' filled the seventh art with sequins and ambiguity. Between Hitler and corsets, the spectacle was pure delirium.

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