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…
Platoon (1986)
[8] Oliver Stone's Platoon was one of the first major motion pictures to deal with the Vietnam war. Charlie Sheen stars as an infantry volunteer who finds himself in a moral quandry, torn between two sergeants of differing philosophies. Tom…
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…
A Beautiful Mind (2001)
[7] Russell Crowe and Jennifer Connelly are at the top of their game in A Beautiful Mind, Ron Howard's Oscar-winning biopic about John Nash, the brilliant but haunted mathematician who overcame schizophrenia and received the Nobel Prize. These are the…
An American in Paris (1951)
[4] Near the end of both Singin' in the Rain and An American in Paris, there is a big, epic dance number that feels very out of place. It's the only thing I don't like about Singin' in the Rain,…
Spotlight (2015)
[6] Tom McCarthy (The Station Agent) cowrites and directs this true story of a Boston investigative newspaper team who expose the Catholic Church for covering decades worth of pedophilic activity by over 87 priests in the city. Spotlight's not a…
The Deer Hunter (1978)
[8] Close-knit friends from a mining community share a harrowing experience during their tour of duty in Vietnam. Michael Cimino's three-hour long film focuses primarily on the aftermath of the ordeal, now one of the most famous scenes in movie…
The Godfather Part II (1974)
[7] An unusual sequel of sorts, The Godfather Part II spends equal time in the past and the present, exploring the early life of Vito Corleone (with Robert DeNiro taking over the mantle from Marlon Brando) while also following the…
In the Heat of the Night (1967)
[7] Sidney Poitier plays a black Northern detective who reluctantly aides a white Southern sheriff (Rod Steiger) in solving a murder case. The mystery itself is a bit thin, but it's bolstered by good performances from the leads and a…