THX 1138 (1971)

THX 1138 is George Lucas' first film, and is a sci-fi dystopian story. It is a future where people are sedated by drugs, policed by androids, and instructed to consume for happiness. "Buy more, buy more now - buy, and be happy." It's not an exciting, action-packed film - it actually does a good job of sedating the viewer, to an extent; the bored, disjointed atmosphere kind of creeps into you. Some of it may be confusing, and further reading (of discussions) can help - one comment by a fan that helped my appreciation for the film is that it's like a foreign film, in terms of it being a futuristic film that doesn't go out of its way to explain itself to modern day viewers. You might not fully understand all of the rituals, and some of the terminology may be unfamiliar, but you can get a gist of what's going on. And the vision, the vision of this bland, sterile future, is executed well. All in all, it's an interesting story of one man's attempt to escape to freedom from this passively oppressive society, after becoming awakened to his basic humanity due to an illegal reduction in his pill-taking responsibilities. Not a flawless film, but an inspired production worth taking a look at, if you're a film buff or a sci-fi geek, or just a dedicated fan of George Lucas (this film is a world away from Star Wars).