Braveheart (1995)

9/11... how do you pick a movie today? Do you go with a direct 9/11 related movie? Or do you just leave that alone because there is enough to remind you of the anniversary without direct stimulus? Do you go for inspirational to lift your spirits and make you believe that good can happen in this world? What about a comedy to just completely ignore the whole thing?
It's all pretty personal and difficult. Unless you just don't care about remembering what happened 12 years ago.
I don't know which category you fall under and ultimately, that's your decision. I'm just a guy that makes dumb recommendations about movies to watch. And as such, if you are interested, here they are:

Oh crap! Another Mel Gibson movie! 2 days in a row! That's history for ya...today marks the anniversary of the Battle of Sterling Bridge. In 1297, William Wallace and Friends had what was basically their finest moment in Scots vs English fighting as they soundly kicked the bums of the invaders. Kind of a high point for the sword throwing enthusiast and it kind of went downhill after that. Obviously, you can enjoy more blue-painted madness by watching that epic Scottish flick, Highlander Braveheart, and perhaps take a little extra pride in screaming "FREEDOM!" at the end.

Happy Birthday! Brian DePalma turns 73! Might I suggest The Untouchables? I mean, DePalma works some magic because it's a non-baseball movie where Kevin Costner isn't unbearably annoying.

And another birthday for an actor who has passed away almost a year ago but was one of my favorites. Herbert Lom was probably best known as Chief Inspector Charles Dreyfus, the recipient of unintentional misfortune by one Inspector Clouseau (you know, Peter Sellers) in several Pink Panther films. But he was extremely accomplished and appeared in many memorable films. For today, I'm going with The Ladykillers (the 1955 original) where he plays quite the scoundrel and appears with the aforementioned Peter Sellers and the iconic Sir Alec Guinness.

Pocahontas (1995)

On September 10, 1608, John Smith was elected president of the Jamestown Virginia colony council. What better way to commemorate one of the earliest acts of political bureaucracy in the land that would become the United States of America than by watching a cartoon featuring a Disney-fied "princess" character? And, as an added bonus, John Smith is voiced by Mel Gibson, that fine man that all children should strive to emulate. But hey, there's singing so history schmistory. Rock on, Pocahontas.
Really though, I'm more interested in the early John Smith adventures where he was a pirate and fought Ottoman Turks, supposedly beheading three commanders in duals, and then getting knighted by a Transylvanian Prince before being captured and sold as a slave, ending up as the love interest of some Greek woman in Constantinople. Where's THAT movie, Disney?

Alternate More Obvious Pick - Colin Firth turns 53 today. Why not enjoy The King's Speech? Firth gets to act with Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter, both of whom play extremely normal characters, which is weird.

Movies for Non-Humans - Rin Tin Tin the First (there were three official Rin Tin Tins) was born today in 1918. He died in 1932, making him 14 in dog years and about 85 in human years. Since he's been dead for 81 years, does that mean he's been dead 330 dog years? Anyway, maybe you can track down Clash of the Wolves (1925). It's a silent film, so I guess you could call it a "Pre-Barky."