West Side Story (1961)
[8] Tension between rival New York City gangs the Jets and the Sharks is wound to a tragic snapping point after one young Jet falls head over heels for the sister of the Sharks' leader. West Side Story is based…
Gentleman’s Agreement (1947)
[7] Gregory Peck stars as a widowed magazine reporter who spends six months pretending to be Jewish while researching for an article about anti-semitism. He's startled to discover the ways bigotry manifests in his undercover life -- openly at 'restricted'…
Patton (1970)
[5] George C. Scott's charisma is the best thing Patton has going for it. The film is a pastiche of the famous (and infamous) army general's career through World War II, including his successful invasion of Sicily, media blunders resulting…
The French Connection (1971)
[7] A pair of New York city narcotics cops try to bust a big heroin deal being brokered between suspected mobsters and a French connection. But one of the cops, 'Popeye' Doyle (Gene Hackman), has a history of recklessness and…
The Lost Weekend (1945)
[6] Maestro Billy Wilder directs Ray Milland as a drunk writer circling the drain in the multi-Oscar-winning The Lost Weekend. Milland's character is supposed to begin recovery on a long holiday weekend with his brother (Phillip Terry) and gal pal…
Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans (1927)
[7] Some of the most enduring films from silent cinema were directed by F.W. Murnau (Nosferatu). One of those classics is Sunrise: A Song of Two Humans, about a man (George O'Brien) who is coerced by a lascivious city girl…
All the King’s Men (1949)
[7] Broderick Crawford plays a small-town hick who attracts a populist following that takes him all the way to the governor's mansion, even though his ascent is riddled with corruption and crime. All the King's Men is really about Crawford's…
The Shape of Water (2017)
[7] Guillermo del Toro serves up a fantasy love story set in the 1960s in which a mute janitor at a top-secret research facility falls in love with... well, a fish man. Sally Hawkins plays the janitor and Doug Jones (a…
The King’s Speech (2010)
[7] Colin Firth plays the stuttering King George VI, who never wanted to be king for fear of his speech impediment bringing shame to him and his family. The King's Speech focuses on the antagonistic relationship between the king and…
The Hurt Locker (2009)
[7] Kathryn Bigelow (Strange Days, Near Dark) won the Oscar for directing this suspense thriller about three soldiers who disarm bombs in Iraq. The movie also won Best Picture, maybe just because nothing better came out during the year (except…