Apocalypse Now
Based on the novel "Heart of Darkness" by Joseph Conrad, Apocalypse Now follows the journey of Vietnam War Captain Benjamin Willard (Martin Sheen) as he hunts down Colonel Kurtz (Marlon Brando), a once-promising officer who has succumbed to insanity. Directed, co-written, and produced by Francis Ford Coppola, Apocalypse Now became an instant classic when it hit theaters in 1979.
2001: A Space Odyssey
Stanley Kubrick wrote, directed, and produced this 1968 classic, which is based on a short story by revered science fiction author Arthur C. Clarke. Dr. Dave Bowman (Keir Dullea) and his team of fellows astronauts are sent on a mysterious mission, their ship's computer system, HAL, begins to act out in increasingly strange ways. 2001: A Space Odyssey's visual effects were far ahead of its time, which is precisely why it took home the Oscar for Best Visual Effects.