Essential Movies
If I were to be stranded on an island, which movies would I bring? These are it.
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- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingCarey MulliganBryan CranstonA mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.Soundtrack and camera are on point. Kind of a retro-pulp style thriller. Every scene is very delicately put together. Love it.
- DirectorJacques BeckerStarsAndré BervilJean KeraudyMichel ConstantinDistrust and uncertainty arise when four long-term inmates cautiously induct a new prisoner into their elaborate prison-break scheme.Terrific naturalistic display of menial details. Very vivid watching experience.
- DirectorAkira KurosawaStarsToshirô MifuneEijirô TônoTatsuya NakadaiA crafty ronin comes to a town divided by two criminal gangs and decides to play them against each other to free the town.Impeccable acting and a great script. Fathered a bunch of remakes I never even knew were based on this until I stumbled across it.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsTom HardyCharlize TheronNicholas HoultIn a post-apocalyptic wasteland, a woman rebels against a tyrannical ruler in search for her homeland with the aid of a group of female prisoners, a psychotic worshiper and a drifter named Max.Perfect blend of CGI and conventional effects. Script reminds me of old Dredd and AD2000 comics. It's just unadulterated action with very little emphasis on deeper meaning. Refreshing.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsHarrison FordRutger HauerSean YoungA blade runner must pursue and terminate four replicants who stole a ship in space and have returned to Earth to find their creator.Used to be pretty fanatical about this movie, still ranks absurdly high among my favorites. Revolutionary lighting and the Final Cut makeover allow this to compete with modern movies of the genre.
- DirectorDavid Robert MitchellStarsClaire SlomaMarlon MortonAmanda BauerFour young people navigate the suburban wonderland of metro-Detroit looking for love and adventure on the last weekend of summer.The insight into a whole world of the characters' feelings is pretty amazing. Not exactly in touch with reality.
- DirectorGareth EvansStarsIko UwaisAnanda GeorgeRay SahetapyA S.W.A.T. team becomes trapped in a tenement run by a ruthless mobster and his army of killers and thugs.Combat choreography at its best. Not much in the way of a story.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerLinda HamiltonEdward FurlongA cyborg, identical to the one who failed to kill Sarah Connor, must now protect her ten year old son John from an even more advanced and powerful cyborg.Perpetually high tension makes this movie one of the action thrillers I know. Jumps right in and does not let up until it's over.
- DirectorMel GibsonStarsMel GibsonSophie MarceauPatrick McGoohanScottish warrior William Wallace leads his countrymen in a rebellion to free his homeland from the tyranny of King Edward I of England.Epic drama that moved me emotionally.
- DirectorDavid Robert MitchellStarsMaika MonroeKeir GilchristOlivia LuccardiA young woman is followed by an unknown supernatural force after a sexual encounter.Classic american horror made in a modern style with a perfectly fitting soundtrack.
- DirectorAlan TaylorStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerJason ClarkeEmilia ClarkeWhen John Connor, leader of the human resistance, sends Sgt. Kyle Reese back to 1984 to protect Sarah Connor and safeguard the future, an unexpected turn of events creates a fractured timeline.Respectful homage to the T2 classic with a very clever and new perspective on the whole Terminator universe.
- DirectorElizabeth BanksStarsAnna KendrickRebel WilsonHailee SteinfeldAfter a humiliating command performance at The Kennedy Center, the Barden Bellas enter an international competition that no American group has ever won in order to regain their status and right to perform.Beneath mindless naive drizzle this offers some truth and beauty. Music's pretty catchy, too. Legacy cameo was moving.
- CreatorSam EsmailStarsRami MalekChristian SlaterCarly ChaikinElliot, a brilliant but unstable cyber-security engineer and vigilante hacker, becomes a key figure in a complex game of global chaos when he and his shadowy allies try to take down the corrupt corporation his company is paid to protect.
- DirectorJudd ApatowStarsAmy SchumerBill HaderBrie LarsonHaving thought that monogamy was never possible, a commitment-phobic career woman may have to face her fears when she meets a good guy.
- DirectorJoss WhedonStarsRobert Downey Jr.Chris EvansMark RuffaloWhen Tony Stark and Bruce Banner try to jump-start a dormant peacekeeping program called Ultron, things go horribly wrong and it's up to Earth's mightiest heroes to stop the villainous Ultron from enacting his terrible plan.
- DirectorAnders Thomas JensenStarsUlrich ThomsenMads MikkelsenNicolas BroA neo-Nazi sentenced to community service at a church clashes with the blindly devoted minister.
- DirectorFred M. WilcoxStarsWalter PidgeonAnne FrancisLeslie NielsenA starship crew in the 23rd century goes to investigate the silence of a distant planet's colony, only to find just two survivors, a powerful robot, and the deadly secret of a lost civilization.
- DirectorJim MickleStarsMichael C. HallSam ShepardDon JohnsonWhen a protective father meets a murderous ex-con, both need to deviate from the path they are on as they soon find themselves entangled in a downwards spiral of lies and violence while having to confront their own inner psyche.
- DirectorAlex van WarmerdamStarsJan BijvoetHadewych MinisJeroen PercevalA vagrant enters the lives of an arrogant upper-class family, turning their lives into a psychological nightmare in the process.
- DirectorAdam CurtisStarsGeorge BushGeorge W. BushJoanne HerringAn experimental documentary that explores Saudi Arabia's relationship with the U.S. and the role this has played in the war in Afghanistan.
- DirectorTerry GilliamStarsBruce WillisMadeleine StoweBrad PittIn a future world devastated by disease, a convict is sent back in time to gather information about the man-made virus that wiped out most of the human population on the planet.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsTom HanksMatt DamonTom SizemoreFollowing the Normandy Landings, a group of U.S. soldiers go behind enemy lines to retrieve a paratrooper whose brothers have been killed in action.
- DirectorNoah BaumbachStarsBen StillerNaomi WattsAdam DriverA middle-aged couple's career and marriage are overturned when a disarming young couple enters their lives.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsMatt DamonJessica ChastainKristen WiigAn astronaut becomes stranded on Mars after his team assume him dead, and must rely on his ingenuity to find a way to signal to Earth that he is alive and can survive until a potential rescue.
- DirectorBrad BirdStarsEli MarienthalHarry Connick Jr.Jennifer AnistonA young boy befriends a giant robot from outer space that a paranoid government agent wants to destroy.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweJoaquin PhoenixConnie NielsenA former Roman General sets out to exact vengeance against the corrupt emperor who murdered his family and sent him into slavery.
- DirectorKent MoranStarsKent MoranMichael Clarke DuncanS. Epatha MerkersonStruggling Bronx mechanic Jaden Miller uses boxing to save himself and his mother from being homeless. With a legendary trainer, and a reality show built around him, Miller goes for the title.RIP MCD.