This will really get us back on track.

Call this category Movies that I absolutely hate but are cool demos

Hustle and Flow
Underworld
Top Gun (it's a Tom Cruise thing...)
Blade I, II, III, ...

Absolutely. Y'know, most people don't seem to talk about this series as demo material but there are some scenes that have some really great sound. The episode covering the shelling during the Battle of the Bulge, has been coined by my wife simply as "Incoming!" as it's become a regular part of my demo to anyone that will listen.

You do know about "The Pacific" which is supposedly in production now...Hanks and Spielberg have been planning a counterpart series for the Pacific campaign.

http://www.zap2it.com/tv/news/zap-hbogreenlightsthepacific,0,1573322.story

Garcia - I know what you mean about Top Gun. I was never a Blade watcher so I don't know of it's value as a demo. But Top Gun is a great way to shake up the sound. Pearl Harbor, even with all it's butchery of history, is still a good demo too.

Hey cats. Probably shouldn't crash your party seeing as I don't have an HT system, but I was partaking of a friend's not long ago, and the movie whose sound kinda floored me was Collateral, with Tom Cruise and Jamie Fox. I thought there was something really visceral about the way Michael Mann, the director, captured the sound of L.A.—especially this one frenzied nightclub-execution sequence. I don't know...it didn't sound like other films to me. I'd be curious to hear if anyone else experienced that...or not.

...just $.02.

tru blu - I've never actually watched Collateral all the way through and never on my system. You've just given me a reason to spend $15.

Wow. This thread really got rolling. In response to some previous comments, I, like most folks, have tired of Tom Cruise, but Top Gun (DTS) is truly amazing for a demo. Not bad as a movie either. Collateral I really enjoyed. The fight scene in the night club was amazing.

I really liked the tangent on movies that are tough to watch, or that elicit powerful emotional responses. To that, I would also add disturbing films that tend to haunt your thoughts for a few days. So here's a stab at some of those:

House of Sand and Fog (the ending)
The Elephant Man
Straw Dogs
21 Grams
Pixote
Deliverance
Eraserhead
Illsa, She Wolf of the SS
A Clockwork Orange
Freaks
El Topo

Videodrome. Really interesting selection there, but what jumped out at me was the Brazilian movie Pixote. Harrowing and intense. Makes me think that you might want to check out City Of God, a more recent thing that also deals with kids/gangs in Rio. If I remember correctly, it's also sonically interesting.

Saw City of God. It's worth watching.

Wow, Videodrome. That is quite a list.

I would like to add Donnie Darko (Special Edition Director's cut) to that category. I love the 80's rock soundtrack too. I like when the kids jump out of the back of the school bus in slow motion while Tears for Fears' "Everybody wants to rule the world" is playing. The bunny's voice coming from all speakers saying "wake up Donnie" is eerie and haunting.

As far as "haunting", not "disturbing", tops on my list is The Fountain. I have been so absorbed every time I have seen it that I am not even sure about the sound. The visuals are amazing. Pan's Labyrinth, which has been mentioned here already, is close behind.

I forgot to add one to the "hated it, but..." category: Titanic.

Here's my list of movies that stimulate your brain (or your patience), in order of demand:

Primer (black and white. budget: $7K)
The Fountain
Memento
Eternal Sunshire of the Spotless Mind
12 Monkeys (DTS)
Donnie Darko
Run Lola, Run

What do they have in common? IMHO, none of them make good demos...