Prince of the City (1981)

Prince of the City (1981)

[5] Sidney Lumet (Network, Dog Day Afternoon) directs the true story of a New York cop seeking redemption for some corrupt deeds. The undercover cop, played by Treat Williams, reluctantly becomes an informant for a special investigatory committee, only to…
Monster (2003)

Monster (2003)

[8] Charlize Theron stars as Aileen Wuornos, the infamous Florida prostitute who became a serial killer, in this film chronicling her last few months of freedom before being captured and executed in 2002. Writer/director Patty Jenkins doesn't shy away from…
Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

Murder on the Orient Express (1974)

[7] Director Sydney Lumet (12 Angry Men, Network) takes on Agatha Christie and delivers a light-hearted soufflé of a murder mystery. I always tend to enjoy ensemble films within a claustrophobic setting, so being trapped on the Orient Express during…
The Hateful Eight (2015)

The Hateful Eight (2015)

[8] Quentin Tarantino's eighth film (because he's counting) is a three-hour long claustrophobic western about eight characters holed up in a lodge during a snowstorm who all have reason to kill one another. Leading the ensemble cast are Kurt Russell…
A Life Less Ordinary (1997)

A Life Less Ordinary (1997)

[5] Ewan McGregor and Cameron Diaz star in this odd-ball romance from director Danny Boyle (Trainspotting, Slumdog Millionaire). McGregor plays a janitor whose just been fired and Diaz plays a rich girl rebelling against her father (Ian Holm). McGregor kidnaps…
Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

Assault on Precinct 13 (1976)

[7] The skeleton crew of an isolated police precinct battle a vengeful street gang that lay siege to the building. John Carpenter (Halloween, The Thing) writes and directs this simple, straight-forward, solidly executed action/thriller, imbuing it with his love of…
The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)

The Place Beyond the Pines (2012)

[7] The Place Beyond the Pines, from writer/director Derek Cianfrance (Blue Valentine), is a family epic of sorts. The first third of the film follows a low-life motorcycle showman, played by Ryan Gosling, who turns to crime to try and…
Casino (1995)

Casino (1995)

[7] Robert DeNiro stars a mobster who builds a gambling empire in Las Vegas only to see it threatened by relationships with his best friend, played by Joe Pesci, and his loose canon wife, played by Sharon Stone. Martin Scorsese…
The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

[7] Martin Scorsese remakes Casino, only instead of the Las Vegas gambling backdrop, we now have the shady thievery of Wall Street. Leonardo DiCaprio stars as Jordan Belfort in this true story of Belfort's rise to highly successful stock-broker and…
Scarface (1932)

Scarface (1932)

[6] Paul Muni plays a thinly-veiled version of Al Capone in Howard Hawks' Scarface, a grim, violent gangster flick that was pretty controversial for its time. The lack of bloodshed keeps it tame by today's standards, but myriad onscreen deaths…