Uncle Buck (1989)

Uncle Buck (1989)

[5] Writer/director John Hughes serves up this comedy star vehicle for John Candy, who plays an unreliable uncle called upon to babysit his nieces and nephew while their parents are away on emergency travel. As you can imagine, the meat…
Volunteers (1985)

Volunteers (1985)

[3] Tom Hanks stars as a snobby college graduate who escapes gambling debts by joining the Peace Corps on a bridge-building mission in Thailand. But when he discovers that struggle for control of the new pathway will make the local…
The Great Dictator (1940)

The Great Dictator (1940)

[8] There's something incredibly poetic about Charlie Chaplin, who built a career over the 1920s and 1930s as a silent screen star, finally opening his mouth in his first sound film, 1940's The Great Dictator. The decision wasn't an arbitrary…
Fritz the Cat (1972)

Fritz the Cat (1972)

[7] Ralph Bakshi's first animated feature is an X-rated adaptation of Robert Crumb's Fritz the Cat. Fritz is a college student who likes to have a good time by way of weed and women, but manages to cram a lot…
To Please a Lady (1950)

To Please a Lady (1950)

[4] Clark Gable and Barbara Stanwyck star in this story of a midget car racer (Gable) whose treacherous tactics get exposed by a prying news reporter (Stanwyck). After he's blamed for causing the death of another driver, Gable's racing career…
Ted 2 (2015)

Ted 2 (2015)

[6] Ted the foul-mouthed teddy bear wants to have a baby with his human wife, but the government doesn't acknowledge Ted as his own person. This sets Ted, his human pal played by Mark Whalberg, and a new lawyer friend…
The Half of It (2020)

The Half of It (2020)

[7] Writer/director Alice Wu tells us in the beginning of The Half of It that none of the characters will get what they want, and she's not lying. But that won't stop you from rooting for all three characters in…
The Lady in the Van (2015)

The Lady in the Van (2015)

[6] Maggie Smith headlines this true story adapted from a stage play by Alan Bennett, about a homeless woman who parks her van in a single, gay man's driveway and stays for fifteen years. Smith reliably carries the film, but…
We Bought a Zoo (2011)

We Bought a Zoo (2011)

[7] Cameron Crowe (Almost Famous, Jerry Maguire) directs this family drama/comedy about a widower, played by Matt Damon, who buys a rural home that comes with a rundown zoo. Damon and his two young children help the ragtag team of…
The Tempest (2010)

The Tempest (2010)

[7] Visionary director Julie Taymor (Titus, Across the Universe) brings Shakespeare's The Tempest to the big screen, with the lead role of Prospero played not by a man, as per tradition, but by Helen Mirren. Mirren's Prospera is raising her…