6. School of Rock (2003)

For a film about a hyperactive rock musician who's kicked out of his band and subsequently poses as a substitute teacher at a prep school to pay his bills, there could have been no better fit than Jack Black, whose performances in his band, Tenacious D, proved he could both make you laugh and melt your face off. An excellent script from Mike White and a cast of real-life thirteen-year-old rock savants all come together under Linklater's direction, and the film's music itself is surprisingly great. While it may not have broken new ground for the director in terms of experimentation, it's an undeniable success on its own terms.

5. Slacker (1991)

Slacker was an influential film, inspiring future filmmakers such as Kevin Smith and Quentin Tarantino to experiment with nonlinear narratives and dialogue that fused pop culture and philosophy. The film follows an eccentric cast of Texans in a pinball-like fashion — it stays with one character until he or she bumps into the next, then branches off to follow. Taken as a whole, the brief dialogue segments add up to a fascinating psychological portrait of what it was like to be a "slacker" in the early '90s. As Linklater's first film, Slacker has its amateurish qualities. But if you can ignore the occasional visible boom mic, the film's vision is thoroughly engrossing and unique.

4. Before Sunrise (1995)

When two young travelers (Ethan Hawke and Julie Delpy) meet on a train and decide share an adventure with each other in Vienna, the stage is set for one of the most romantic movies of all time. Through the course of a single night, the two get to know one another, flirting the night away and sharing their views on everything from pet peeves to dreams and personal ideals. The film's minimalist tracking shots keep the focus on Hawke and Delpy's perfect performances, and what at first seems like a casual encounter turns out to be two people falling in love without the bullshit of conflict or a pop soundtrack. Anyone on the fence about traveling should be forced to watch this movie. 

3. Dazed and Confused (1993)

Linklater's second feature is one of those rare films that you could place in a time capsule for fifty years and still have it feel relevant when you dug it up. Avoiding Hollywood cliches, the observant Linklater paints his characters with all the complexities and anxieties of real teenagers. The high-school quarterback is a pothead, the nerds have no problem getting the girls, and the up-and-coming freshmen are equal match for the overbearing upperclassmen and their wooden ass-paddles. With an ensemble cast of future stars and a script that's as quotable now as it was in 1993, Dazed and Confused remains a classic look at what it's like to be young and the steps you take to discover your own identity. 

2. Before Sunset (2004)

At the end of Before Sunrise, Jessie and Céline make a promise to reunite a year later, without exchanging addresses or phone numbers. Nine years later, the two meet randomly in a Paris bookstore, where Jessie is promoting his newest novel (which may as well have been titled Before Sunrise). Set in real time, the film proceeds with the two discussing the previous nine years and the chance occurrences that prevented them from reuniting. The film is heavier than its predecessor; the two leads have matured considerably as people, experiencing new loves and heartaches, but all the while pining over the magical relationship that got away from them. Hawke and Delpy exude deep longing and regret with every line. It's a film that simultaneously breaks your heart and fills you with hope.

1. Waking Life (2001)

No film of Linklater's is as visually or intellectually stimulating as this 2001 treatise on dreams and the meaning of life. Using innovative animation software, Linklater invited thirty artists from around Austin, Texas to paint their unique styles over live-action film. The result is like an Impressionist painting come to life. Where Slacker's surrealism was limited by real-life actors, Waking Life's very lines brim with an unrestrained vitality. Whether the main character of the film is dying or having a lucid dream is beside the point; it's the journey that counts, and every viewing of Waking Life has the potential to make you think differently about your own life and its unlimited possibilities.