The Good German (2006)

The Good German (2006)

[5] George Clooney and Cate Blanchett star in Steven Soderbergh's homage to war-time film noir, right down to the black and white 4x3 Academy aspect ratio. Clooney plays an American military journalist who tries to figure out who shot his…
How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)

How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014)

[7] This sequel taps into two powerful currents of audience identification: the love between parents and children, and the love between people and animals. You can approach these with cloying calculation, as many family films do, or you can attack…
The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button (2008)

[6] Just as Robert Zemeckis had to make Forrest Gump and Tim Burton had to make Big Fish, so did David Fincher have to make The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. All three directors are known for their visual and/or…
Veronica Guerin (2003)

Veronica Guerin (2003)

[6]

Cate Blanchett stars as the real-life Irish journalist who paid the ultimate price for exposing the burgeoning drug problem in mid-90s Dublin. Outraged after discovering children playing in streets littered with used needles, Veronica Guerin decided to bring the epidemic into the national limelight, risking the life and safety of not only herself but her family as well. Blanchett, always reliable, does a great job portraying Guerin as a woman with a brave public face, even after a shot is fired into her home and a drug lord punches her repeatedly in the face for daring to step foot on his property (the film’s most brutal and disturbing scene).

The Aviator (2004)

The Aviator (2004)

[9] Martin Scorsese directs Leonardo DiCaprio in this biopic of Howard Hughes, the billionaire aviator, filmmaker, and playboy whose considerable ambition was tragically counterbalanced by his mental illness. The Aviator opens with Hughes' mammoth, three-year-long production of the aerial battle…
An Ideal Husband (1999)

An Ideal Husband (1999)

[9] Who said period pieces have to be stuffy? Director Oliver Parker equips a talented and charming ensemble cast with the eviscerating words of Oscar Wilde. Rupert Everett owns the role Arthur Goring, a self-centered playboy who runs from responsibility…
The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999)

[10] Anthony Minghella (The English Patient) adapts the Patricia Highsmith novel for the big screen, casts it perfectly, and delivers a superb character study and psychological thriller. Matt Damon anchors the film in the best performance of his career, playing the…