The Florida Project (2017)

The Florida Project (2017)

[8] Tangerine co-writer/director Sean Baker applies his 'quasi-cinéma vérité' style to this examination of Moonee, an unsupervised six-year old child (Brooklynn Prince) running free-range in an impoverished motel community positioned immediately outside Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida. Along with…
Platoon (1986)

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…
John Wick (2014)

John Wick (2014)

[4] Nothing bores me more than a story about a hitman. It's a tired trope, and one that has a curious, potentially unhealthy appeal to audiences -- particularly young men who need no further encouragement to embrace their anger and…
Nosferatu (2024)

Nosferatu (2024)

[9] With this re-telling of Dracula and Nosferatu, director Robert Eggers (The Witch, The Lighthouse) re-solidifies his position as the most exciting artist working in cinema today. Eggers casts Lily-Rose Depp and Nicholas Hoult as a Ellen and Thomas Hutter,…
Clear and Present Danger (1994)

Clear and Present Danger (1994)

[5] Harrison Ford returns as Jack Ryan in his second Tom Clancy adaptation, Clear and Present Danger. The story this time puts Ryan in the middle of a secret war between the U.S. government and a Colombian drug cartel. The…
The Northman (2022)

The Northman (2022)

[9] Before seeing The Northman, I already considered director Robert Eggers the most exciting director working today. His debut film, The Witch, is my favorite film of the 21st century thus far, and The Lighthouse is a fascinating follow-up. With…
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…
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…
The Loveless (1981)

The Loveless (1981)

[7] Willem Dafoe made his big-screen debut in this meditative homage to The Wild Ones from writer/directors Kathryn Bigelow (The Hurt Locker, Near Dark) and Monty Montgomery. Dafoe plays a greaser who lays over in rural Georgia to wait for…
To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)

To Live and Die in L.A. (1985)

[7] William Petersen (C.S.I., Manhunter) made his film debut in this William Friedkin crime flick about a secret service agent who obsessively pursues the counterfeiter (Willem Dafoe) who killed his partner. Paired with a conscientious new partner (John Pankow), Petersen…