...Everyone's got a few DVDs, some have more than a few...Some are like me who have an odd mixture of campy cheapies, former TV shows, classic comedies and solid titles. Others have every movie damn near created. We're all very proud of our collections and we all are still missing a couple that we really want...even if the movie sucks...

I have five DVD titles that should be required viewing. These movies are so important they actually make me think better of people if they have just one of them in their collection (and everyone should have at least one).

1) The Shawshank Redemption: This DVD tells me that you have great taste in movies and fantastic performances in theater. Bonus points if you feel like Morgan Freeman was completely jobbed out of his Oscar for Best Supporting Actor and every Academy Awards show should start off with an apology for this horrible injustice. Otherwise this movie tells me that you have a good attention span and a real believe in hope and how hope can set you free from a life of imprisonment.

2) Any Star Wars Episode: Everyone needs at least one....unless that one is the Attack of the Clones, in which case you need two. Personally if you have Empire Strikes Back you get the most respect with me. But still you need to know this series existed or otherwise I'll think you have no clue of American culture past the cotton gin.

3) Sex & The City (Season One): Pretty much any season will do but the first one is almost like required viewing. Around Season 5 this series jumped the shark because Samantha had pretty much screwed every guy in NYC, Charlotte's marriage already failed, Carrie gave up the best man she had on the show, Aidan and well we knew Miranda was gay in real life...Still the first season was brilliant on every level. The writing, the characters and the way each story was cleaned up and presented in a 22-minute span...Also it was the first time I fell for Charlotte...and every guy loved Charlotte...

4) Malcolm X/Get on the Bus: Spike Lee is one of the most important filmmakers in this era, if he didn't exist most black actors would either a) typecast for comic roles, b) stuck in blaxplotation films, or c) both. Thankfully Spike came along and while he isn't a filmmaker without flaws, he is as equally important to continuing society's development in issues of race. Malcolm X is his best film and one of the great biographies, but it's tough for people to take. Get on the Bus, which is a fictional documentary about the million man march (which was very non-fiction) and it's probably my favorite Spike film because it shows almost every side of the male portion of the race.

5) Blazing Saddles: My favorite comedy movie can change like the wind, so I'll go with the one of the most consistently funny movies instead. This movie is ALWAYS funny, you could watch it on repeat for 24 hours and laugh just as hard at the same dumb things each time. Mel Brooks is the king of comedy in the 20th/21st century. He was all about taking the things that were taboo and mocking them. I love this film, I'm smiling just thinking about it...

So what's your top 5?