Manchester by the Sea (2016)

Manchester by the Sea (2016)

[9] Not since 1980's Ordinary People have we had such a genuinely affecting movie about loss and mourning. In Manchester by the Sea, a man with a tortured past discovers he is the legal guardian of his late brother's teenaged son. Casey…
The Edge of Seventeen (2016)

The Edge of Seventeen (2016)

[8] Hailee Steinfeld (Oscar nominee for the Coen Brothers' True Grit remake) stars as a high school girl on the edge of a nervous breakdown when she discovers her best and only friend has begun dating her brother. Writer/director Kelly Fremon Craig beautifully…
The Third Man (1949)

The Third Man (1949)

[8] Joseph Cotten uncovers a conspiracy surrounding a deceased friend in The Third Man, a masterfully crafted film noir thriller from author Graham Greene and director Carol Reed. Reed keeps the story moving at a brisk pace, surrounding Cotten's character with a…
My Bodyguard (1980)

My Bodyguard (1980)

[8] Writer Alan Ormsby and director Tony Bill create a compelling coming-of-age story that avoids two of the greatest pitfalls of the genre: it doesn't talk down to its subjects and it doesn't wallow in sentimentality. Chris Makepeace and Adam Baldwin give…
Sully (2016)

Sully (2016)

[8] Tom Hanks stars as celebrated pilot Chesley Sullenberger, who safely landed his U.S. Airways passenger plane on the Hudson River after the unprecedented scenario of losing both engines to bird-strike shortly after take-off. Director Clint Eastwood lets this true story unfold with…
First Blood (1982)

First Blood (1982)

[8] Spoiler Review! Sylvester Stallone further cemented his action super-star status with this smart, character-driven thriller about a former Green Beret suffering from post-traumatic stress who gets bullied by a small mountain-town sheriff and his deputies. When the soldier finally defends himself,…
Manhunter (1986)

Manhunter (1986)

[8] Michael Mann (Miami Vice, Heat) brings Thomas Harris' novel Red Dragon to the big screen, introducing movie-goers to Hannibal Lecktor for the first time. Manhunter stars William Petersen (CSI) as an FBI profiler trying to stop a serial killer dubbed 'The…
Winter’s Bone (2010)

Winter’s Bone (2010)

[8] Jennifer Lawrence earned her first Oscar nomination playing Ree, a brave teenager raising her younger siblings in Debra Granik's Winter's Bone, based on a novel by Daniel Woodrell. When her drug-dealing father puts the family home up for collateral on his bail,…
Adventures of Don Juan (1948)

Adventures of Don Juan (1948)

[8] Errol Flynn makes a triumphant return to the genre that made him a star (after Hollywood shelved period action flicks for the duration of WWII). Adventures of Don Juan is splashy, colorful, good-humored, and terrifically entertaining. Despite public knowledge that Flynn's…
Swiss Army Man (2016)

Swiss Army Man (2016)

[9] When a movie's main title is preceded by a lonely man riding a farting corpse off a desert island and across the ocean, you either leave the theater immediately, or settle in for a cinematic experience like no other. Paul Dano…