Beautiful Boy (2018)
[8] A father tries to save his son from drug addiction in this true story based on the lives and writings of David Sheff and Nic Sheff. Beautiful Boy opens on the father, played by Steve Carell (Little Miss Sunshine),…
Half Nelson (2006)
[5] Ryan Gosling stars as an inner-city junior high teacher with a drug habit. When one of his students finds him in a crack-induced stupor on the bathroom floor, the two strike up an unlikely relationship. Gosling and the girl…
Bad Times at the El Royale (2018)
[8] I very much enjoyed Drew Goddard's previous work on Cloverfield and The Cabin in the Woods, and I'm a big fan of single-location ensemble stories, so I was excited to see what Goddard had in store with Bad Times…
A Star is Born (2018)
[8] Director/co-star Bradley Cooper decided it was time for a fourth version of A Star is Born (previous versions were released in 1937, 1954, and 1976). I haven't yet seen any of those versions, so I'm coming into this one…
The Paperboy (2012)
[7] Lee Daniels (Precious, The Butler) directs this moody piece about a college dropout who helps his older brother investigate the murder of a police officer. The convicted killer's girlfriend joins the investigation to help prove his innocence. Zac Efron…
Jagged Edge (1985)
[6] Jeff Bridges' wife is murdered and Glenn Close goes to court to prove his innocence. Meanwhile, Peter Coyote's convinced that Bridges is the killer and Robert Loggia is doing investigation on the side to help Close's case. And dang…
Moby Dick (1956)
[5] Gregory Peck is Captain Ahab in John Huston's adaptation of Melville's classic novel. Peck is reliably charismatic in the role, and the movie is at its best when it stays with him. Huston's style is not an overly romantic…
Pinky (1949)
[7] Elia Kazan directs a trio of Oscar-nominated performances in this adaptation of the Cid Ricketts Sumner novel. Jeanne Crain (State Fair, A Letter to Three Wives) stars as Pinky, a light-skinned African American woman returning to her impoverished southern…
The Snowtown Murders (2011)
[7] Director Justin Kurzel tells the true story of Australia's most notorious serial killer through the eyes of his teenaged accomplice. Teenager Jamie (Lucas Pittaway) falls in with his mother's new boyfriend, John Bunting (Daniel Henshall). Bunting becomes a father…
BlacKkKlansman (2018)
[7] Spike Lee directs the stranger-than-fiction true story of a black Colorado police officer who infiltrated the Ku Klux Klan in the 1970s. John David Washington stars as Ron Stallworth, who struck up a relationship with local KKK members over…