Joy (2015)

Joy (2015)

[9] Director David O. Russell (The Fighter, Three Kings) sticks with his good luck charm, casting Jennifer Lawrence as the title character in Joy. Russell has said that his film career started to disinterest him several years back, and that…
12 Years a Slave (2013)

12 Years a Slave (2013)

[8] Director Steve McQueen (Hunger, Shame) brings to life the true-life story of Solomon Northup, a free black man from New York who is kidnapped and sold into Southern slavery. Northup endures two different owners and many harrowing experiences before…
Straight Talk (1992)

Straight Talk (1992)

[4] A country girl leaves her stifling life behind to try and make it in the big city, serendipitously becoming the most popular radio talk show host in Chicago. Straight Talk is a Dolly Parton vehicle, and just about everything…
Descent (2007)

Descent (2007)

[6] Rosario Dawson stars in this rape revenge story about a timid college freshman who keeps tabs on her rapist while falling in with a seedy crowd who inspire her method of revenge. Descent is a slow burn that tested…
Altered States (1980)

Altered States (1980)

[4] William Hurt makes his big-screen debut in this blend of psychedelia and cockamamy psychology based on a novel by Paddy Chayefsky (Network). Hurt plays a college professor of science who experiments with drugs inside isolation tanks to, oh, I…
Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

Avengers: Age of Ultron (2015)

[6] My favorite part of this Avengers sequel is when the bad guy, a robot voiced by James Spader, first pulls himself together and wobbles confidently in front of the superheroes at the end of a house party. It's a…
The January Man (1989)

The January Man (1989)

[3] I don't know what the hell I just saw. I could tell you what it's about, but it'd be misleading. See, it's about a discharged cop (Kevin Kline) who is roped back into the police to help them find…
Exists (2014)

Exists (2014)

[7] Exists is easily the best Bigfoot movie ever made. There's still room for improvement, but I have to applaud writer Jamie Nash and director Eduardo Sánchez (The Blair Witch Project) for making my favorite boogeyman as scary as he…
Starry Eyes (2014)

Starry Eyes (2014)

[4] Alex Essoe stars as a young woman who'll do anything to become a successful actress. When a mysterious Hollywood secret society 'auditions' her and offers her everything she's ever wanted, she stops at nothing and sacrifices everything for eternal…
It Follows (2015)

It Follows (2015)

[6] Writer/director David Robert Mitchell serves up a relatively fresh, original low-budget indie horror film that will tickle many horror fans' nostalgia bones. The film is basically about a killer STD... sorta. If you have sex with the wrong person,…