No Country for Old Men (2007)

No Country for Old Men (2007)

[8] Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin star in this Southwestern chase movie that doubles as a meditation on man's perpetual but futile attempt to make order out of chaos. Brolin's character, Llewelyn Moss, stumbles upon the bloody aftermath of…
Ben-Hur (1959)

Ben-Hur (1959)

[10] Charlton Heston stars as Judah Ben-Hur, a Jewish prince whose life is thrown into years of soul-crushing turmoil after being betrayed by a childhood friend. That friend, a Roman soldier named Messala (Stephen Boyd), turns against Judah after he refuses to…
The Sting (1973)

The Sting (1973)

[7] Robert Redford and Paul Newman play Chicago con artists who team up to bankrupt a crime boss (Robert Shaw) who authorized the killing of Redford's grifting partner. Several other con artists join in on the elaborate betting scheme, which is threatened…
Brokeback Mountain (2005)

Brokeback Mountain (2005)

[9] Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal star as Ennis and Jack, young cowboys who take a job herding sheep in the mountains of Wyoming during the summer of 1963. Isolated from the rest of the world for months on end, the two…
Anora (2024)

Anora (2024)

[7] Mikey Madison stars as Anora, a New York stripper and escort who accepts a marriage proposal from a super-rich Russian playboy (Mark Eydelshteyn) during a lavish excursion to Las Vegas. The romance burns fast and bright before the boy's oligarch parents…
One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975)

[10] Director Miloš Forman (Amadeus, The People vs Larry Flynt) adapts Ken Kesey's novel about R.P. McMurphy (Jack Nicholson), a trouble-making convict who enters psychiatric care to avoid hard labor. While there, he befriends the patients -- a motley bunch with assorted…
The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

The Silence of the Lambs (1991)

[9] Here we have a horror film so well executed, it swept the Academy Awards. Anthony Hopkins (The Lion in Winter) and Jodie Foster (The Accused) each deliver career-defining performances as cannibalistic serial killer Hannibal Lecter and neophyte FBI agent Clarice Starling.…
One Battle After Another (2025)

One Battle After Another (2025)

[3] It's possible I'll see this movie again in the future and understand it better. I have to assume this is possible, because I love several other Paul Thomas Anderson movies, including Boogie Nights, Magnolia, There Will Be Blood, and Licorice Pizza.…
Platoon (1986)

Platoon (1986)

[8] Oliver Stone's Platoon was one of the first major motion pictures to deal with the Vietnam war. Charlie Sheen stars as an infantry volunteer who finds himself in a moral quandry, torn between two sergeants of differing philosophies. Tom Berenger and…
Going My Way (1944)

Going My Way (1944)

[8] Jaded or cynical viewers may want to skip this movie, but anyone looking for a feel-good comedy/drama from a simpler time may enjoy director Leo McCarey's Going My Way. Crooner Bing Crosby stars as Father Chuck O'Malley, a young Catholic priest…