I was going to go for Inception, but actually, I think I'll go for Source Code. A lovely simple concept with a couple of strong characters; goal, stakes, urgency. Good moral questions. And a happy ending (though my ending would have been rather different, I think). The perfect example of the kind of film I'd like to write.

Gah! You beat me to it Debbie. I was going to say Source Code too. I thought it was a terrific film with a wonderful concept. On a contemporary note, I really loved the hook that Little Miss Sunshine had. It approached the idea of dysfunctional families and beauty contests from a totally fresh perspective. It may not be "high concept" in the true sense of the phrase but it totally hooked me and in my opinion, I thought the characters were high concept.

Great question, Scott. I'll go with the movie that popped into my head first (gotta be some kinda truth in the gut reaction as opposed to over-thinking it, yeah?) Terminator. Such a clear concept with really cool things to sink your teeth into. Skynet, Judgement Day, an unkillable, relentless assassin, a built in love story with a nice time travel paradox included, strong allusions, great themes about mankind killing itself through the technology it created, and a bunch of great action.

I definitely agree with DJ on Terminator, but in trying to expand the conversation, I'd go with Se7en. You just can't beat that ending.

I can't believe more people didn't jump at this. I can tell you this is a subject pro screenwriters bat around a lot. "God, I wish I had written that!" It's easy to crap on poor movies and say, "I could do better than that." But that shouldn't be our focus. Rather we should be aiming at the best movies and aspire to writing something like them.

Man, there are loads! So much so, that my choice would probably change on a daily basis. Today I would very much go with Trading Places.

Se7en. Always amazes me. And Face Off. Brilliant. So brilliant that I despair of reaching such clarity, simplicity yet action.

In a totally different genre, the little known but much beloved by me (therapy?) Drop Dead Fred.

Another one I'd go with is Back to the Future!

I would have loved to come up with the concept of Sliding Doors, even though I wouldn't class it as one of my favourite films, I love the idea. (I still thought the film was very well executed and enjoyable). It's been done in other films but I liked the train as the catalyst. You miss a train, take a different turn, stop in your tracks rather than walking down the street, your life changes forever and we all do it, every day. Just to be dramatic I wouldn't even be here if my Mum had decided she had time to go back and have a second look at a pair of shoes. She would have been hit by a bomb that exploded beside the shoe shop, whilst she was dithering at the pedestrian crossing. We're all twists of fate.

I also third Terminator. I mean a man from the future goes back to the past, to get some bird up-the-duff, to SAVE the future? It's just the most outlandish chat-up ever. And she fell for it? I would have loved to have sat in on the pitch for that one. On a serious note it's a brilliant concept. It's one that lingers, the kind you find yourself thinking about in stalled traffic.

A few others I can't believe I forgot - The Matrix, mostly anything Hitchcock (Strangers on a Train, Vertigo, etc.) and Inside Man.

Gosh, how to choose from so many? Terminator. Alien. The Thing. Blade Runner. Oh, and Goonies. Can't forget Goonies.

Quite an awesome question, difficult answer. So many genius concepts out there. Isn't there a universal obvious choice for screenwriters? Kaufman's Adaptation? Kidding. One, if I could only pick one... I can't pick one. I've just watched the interview you posted with Neil Blomkamp at Comic-Con so that's my tune and I am going to pick one of my favorite films: District 9.

Jaws, Alien, Die Hard, Galaxy Quest, Rear Window, The Sixth Sense... oh yikes. How to pick one? I think today it would be either Alien or Die Hard. They are both "pressure cooker" concepts, and I find those appealing because the stakes for all the characters are automatically high, just by their being in the situation in the first place.

ONE story? Sheesh. It is hard to whittle it down to one but I think Forrest Gump would have to be near the top of my list. I appreciate how simple the concept was, but how the story was intricately interwoven through historical events. Additional honorable mentions for great concepts: Being John Malkovich Butterfly Effect Phone Booth Buried Jaws Goonies Godfather The Matrix ...to just scratch the surface.

Open Water 2. (You probably think I'm kidding, but I'm not. The premise is simple, hilarious and terrifying. Absolute genius! The only downside is that it involves a lot of water, which makes everything about twice as expensive. Also, most actors hate getting wet.)

I would go with Jurassic Park. Sometimes I like to deconstruct how Michael Chichton came up with that idea, and then went from concept to plot. 1) What is the coolest boyhood things I could make a movie about? Robots? Ninjas? Dinosaurs! Duh. 2) How do I get them in modern times? Dino DNA! 3) What do I do when I get them here? Theme Park! 4) Now, whats the worst that could happen? Hurricanes, power outage, dinosaurs on the loose. 5) Whats my overall theme? Man plays God, suffers consequences 6) Insert sub plots (Greedy Programmer, Prot's fear of commitment) 7) Collect millions Unfortunately, this process hasn't quite worked for my own screenplays. Except for my robot ninja dinosaur movie, "Way of the Mecha-Tyrannosaurus Fist o Fury"

Except for my robot ninja dinosaur movie, “Way of the Mecha-Tyrannosaurus Fist o Fury” I saw THIS in a small art house cinema! Personally I think it didn't really work because of the dynamic of the dinosaur-ninja "I am your father thing."