Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)

Desperately Seeking Susan (1985)

[5] Rosanna Arquette stars as a bored New Jersey housewife who becomes infatuated with Susan (Madonna), a nomadic woman she's never met who uses the newspaper personal ads to keep up with her boyfriend. When one of the ads mentions…
Streets of Fire (1984)

Streets of Fire (1984)

[3] In this self-proclaimed 'rock & roll fable' from director Walter Hill (The Warriors, 48 Hrs.), a mercenary is summoned to rescue a revered singer from a motorcycle gang that kidnapped her right off the stage. That the singer and…
The Hunger (1983)

The Hunger (1983)

[8] Catherine Deneuve and David Bowie play vampire lovers living in modern-day New York who seek the help of a gerontologist played by Susan Sarandon. If that sounds oxymoronic, therein lies the rub. Bowie's character has suddenly begun aging, following…
Swamp Thing (1982)

Swamp Thing (1982)

[3] In this adaptation of the DC Comics series, a scientist working on a bio-engineering experiment is killed in a lab explosion that turns him into a creature, half-man and half plant. Super-strength and the ability to heal people are…
Dragonslayer (1981)

Dragonslayer (1981)

[4] A sorcerer's apprentice confronts a fire-breathing dragon that likes to eat virgins. If only Dragonslayer were as exciting as it sounds. Peter MacNicol (Sophie's Choice, Ghostbusters II) plays the apprentice with all the charisma and screen presence of driftwood,…
9 to 5 (1980)

9 to 5 (1980)

[6] Writer/director Colin Higgins (Harold & Maude, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas) serves up an office space comedy starring national treasures Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton as three women who enact revenge on their sexist, egotistical boss…
Licorice Pizza (2021)

Licorice Pizza (2021)

[8] Hollywood often waters down characters and storylines to make them universally appealing. Filmmakers like Paul Thomas Anderson with Licorice Pizza, or David O. Russell with Joy and The Fighter, are challenging that notion with stories of tremendous specificity --…
Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

Spider-Man: No Way Home (2021)

[7] Tom Holland, my personal favorite Spider-Man, returns in his third official film -- although his character has also appeared in many other Marvel movies that don't have his name in the title. This time, the young webslinger is dealing…
Lincoln (2012)

Lincoln (2012)

[7] Daniel Day-Lewis (My Left Foot, There Will Be Blood) won his third Oscar for his convincing portrait of America's 16th president during the final months of the Civil War. Lincoln is a decades-long pet project for director Steven Spielberg,…
Atonement (2007)

Atonement (2007)

[7] Thirteen-year-old aspiring writer Briony Tallis (Saoirse Ronan) accuses her older sister's lover of a crime he didn't commit, effectively condemning him to years of prison and compulsory military service. The lovers (Keira Knightley and James McAvoy) stay connected through…