West Side Story (1961)
[8] Tension between rival New York City gangs the Jets and the Sharks is wound to a tragic snapping point after one young Jet falls head over heels for the sister of the Sharks' leader. West Side Story is based…
The Bishop’s Wife (1947)
[7] Cary Grant stars as an angel from Heaven who comes to Earth just before Christmas to help a Bishop (David Niven) and his wife (Loretta Young) raise money for construction of a new cathedral. But Grant has ulterior motives,…
Patton (1970)
[5] George C. Scott's charisma is the best thing Patton has going for it. The film is a pastiche of the famous (and infamous) army general's career through World War II, including his successful invasion of Sicily, media blunders resulting…
1917 (2019)
[8] Writer/director Sam Mendes (American Beauty, Skyfall) and co-writer Krysty Wilson-Cairns bring us back to the trenches of World War I with the harrowing journey of two British officers tasked with traversing enemy territory to deliver a message that will…
A Farewell to Arms (1932)
[7] Helen Hayes and Gary Cooper co-star in director Frank Borzage's adaptation of Ernest Hemingway's A Farewell to Arms. Cooper plays an American ambulance driver who falls in love with Hayes' British nurse in Italy during the first World War.…
Bohemian Rhapsody (2018)
[8] Rami Malek stars as Freddie Mercury in Bryan Singer's (X-Men, Valkyrie) biopic about the formation and explosive success of rock group Queen. The film centers primarily around Mercury -- his estranged relationship with his family, his homosexuality, his drug…
Speed (1994)
[8] It's formulaic, overblown and downright preposterous at times, but it's also everything moviegoers want in a summer action movie. Speed has a tight, rapid-fire script, awesome sound design, a remarkably kinetic score, and surprisingly good acting for a movie…
King Kong (2005)
[8] After finishing The Lord of the Rings, Peter Jackson tackled a remake of his favorite film, King Kong. Jackson's remake is largely faithful to the 1933 original, while generously expanding the storyline and embellishing some of the characters. Jackson…
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…
Dunkirk (2017)
[7] Christopher Nolan serves up a wartime survival flick about Allied soldiers stranded on the beaches of Dunkirk, France, while the German army surrounds them. The water was so shallow, warships couldn't pick up the troops, so loading the hundreds of…