Lemme ask, for some who has never seen any old Doctor Who but would love to start, what movies would one recommend?
Well, here's a handful of suggestions, arranged by Doctor.
1 - The Beginning (box set, contains 3 stories. 1 - An Unearthly Child, the first episode is brilliant followed by 3 clunkers; 2 - The Daleks, which is padded and wondering, but mostly good; 3 - Edge of Destruction - a two-episode story taking place entirely inside the Tardis, and my favorite First Doctor story) -- this box set contains the first three stories, and the pilot is a wonderful introduction to the Doctor, his family, and setting up what the series is all about. It is available on Netflix.
1 - The Aztecs - Requires very little knowledge other than knowing the Doctor travels in time. It's a historical story, 4 episodes, and has some pretty good character pieces.
2 - Tomb of the Cybermen - four-episode story, reintroduces the Cybermen, and everything you'd need to know is provided in dialog. One of the two best 2nd Doctor stories on dvd.
2 - The Invasion (the other one of the 2 best) - eight episode story, set on Earth, with a greedy corporation owner trying to take over the earth with the Cybermen helping. Can be seen with no previous knowledge.
3 - Spearhead from Space - This is the Third Doctor's first story. It's the first ever DW story filmed in color, and follows the Doctor's regeneration. It's a sort of reintroduction to the series and especially to the character. It also further sets up the Doctor's relationship with the military dudes known as "UNIT" ... he'd worked with them before, but this kind of cements it.
4 - Pyramids of Mars - Just a cracking good story and you don't need to know anything about the show to follow it.
4 - City of Death - A much later Fourth Doctor story, set (and filmed) almost entirely in Paris. Lots of location shooting, as well as comedy. It was written by Douglas Adams (Hitchhiker's Guide) and features a cameo by a certain member of Monty Python towards the end.
5 - The Five Doctors - Honestly, there's not much story here. It was the 20th anniversary movie, and was nothing more than a flimsy excuse to get the living Doctors to all appear in a story together. Features various companions and monsters from the series' history. Each of the Doctors' most well-remembered characteristic is highlighted in an exaggerated way (for example, the First Doctor isn't always the grumpy old goat they show here, but that's what people remember ... the Second Doctor wasn't a comic buffoon, as the above stories show, but here, that's what people remember). It is a good introduction to the first five Doctors, and if there's one that sticks out at you, you can go back and see more of their stories.
6 - The Mark of the Rani - a historical featuring the Sixth Doctor and two of his fellow time travelers. One is the Master, a recurring bad guy, one of the Doctor's own people. Another is the Rani, one of the very few females we ever encounter from the Doctor's people. And she's a baddie, experimenting on humans for her own evil ends.
7 - None. Of the few available titles, each one pretty much assumes you're already very familiar with the series and doesn't even try to be an introduction.
