Growing up mormon we were not allowed to watch R rated movies. Even mormon adults are told not to watch them. The LDS Church teaches that its members should only watch “wholesome”, and “uplifting” movies and TV. The problem with that is there are some really good, iconic movies that are R rated. They are referenced in tons of other movies, even Disney. There are a ton of great movies that I think everyone should watch, no matter what. This is a list of my favorite R rated films.
Full Metal Jacket
Full Metal Jacket was the film that inspired this post. It’s a movie about the Vietnam war. It’s a very good example of what war was like, why it sucks and why it’s wrong. It is R rated because war is R rated. It is definitely something worth watching. One of the first few scenes is sent up in Mulan. It’s a great movie, we watch it over and over again.
Fight Club
This is another movie referenced in tons of films. It’s kind of crazy and a little fucked up but I love it.
The Breakfast Club and American Pie, are both teen coming of age movies. The Breakfast Club came out in 1985, and American Pie came out in 1999. Both are really good movies. It is interesting to see how different things were after only 14 years.
The Breakfast Club
This movie is rated R. There is a TV 14 cut, but the pieces cut out are a big part of the movie in my opinion. I really like this movie, the R rated cut of this movie should definitely be on everyone's watch list. 90% of the movie happens in a single room, it’s the dialog and the characters that really make it interesting.
American Pie
This movie is my high school experience in a nutshell, except I was the only one who didn’t get laid. It’s a classic. “This one time at band camp” came from that movie. You have to watch it to know what happened that one time at band camp.
Pulp Fiction
Again another movie that is referenced everywhere. This is my favorite Quentin Tarantino film. Pulp Fiction is a great movie the first time you watch it. It probably doesn’t make complete sense until probably the 10th time you’ve watched it. I have watched it at least 50 times and I still catch something new every once and awhile.
The Usual Suspects
Who is Keyser Soze?
Alien
Alien is not very scary. It is a horror movie, and it is suspenseful, but there is no CGI so it’s obviously fake. The sets are amazing because they were all real, they are so intricate and detailed. Again this is a movie referenced everywhere. For example Megamind, Despicable Me 2, even Toy Story.
Reservoir Dogs
Reservoir Dogs is a really good gangster, crime movie. It is also directed by Quentin Tarantino. It is pretty gory during a few scenes but is definitely a must watch. I see it subtly referenced all the time.
Risky Business
Risky Business is a classic movie. Tom Cruise dancing, in his tighty whities, sliding through a hallway, is iconic, and referenced everywhere.
American Beauty
The main character in American Beauty, Lester Burnham is very relatable. RJ felt a lot like Lester a few years ago. Now he only sometimes feels like Lester at work. There are parts of this movie that resemble the beginning of my relationship with RJ, a lot, and that’s why we love it. It’s about a normal average guy whose life goes to shit, and how he handles it. In the end he is happy but the movie doesn’t have a happy end. It’s a great move that we watch over and over again. It’s not referenced in many places, but it is one of my favorites.
Basically as soon as I was no longer a mormon I binge watched all these iconic rated R movies. I now watch them on a regular basis. Thanks for reading!
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