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NBC Universal’s streaming service Peacock staked a lot of its identity on being the new home of The Office, even to the extent that they had the show baked into the tiers of their pricing plan. But if they wanted to tout their movies, too, they’d be well within their rights. Peacock’s offerings are built on a cornerstone of the Universal Pictures library for more mainstream tastes and a smaller selection from their arthouse label Focus Features. The streamer also hosts a wide variety of box office hits and under-the-radar indie flicks from outside their own corporate umbrella. Best of all? It’s all available totally free with some relatively unobtrusive ads (though you will get even more bang for your buck at the Premium tier)!
But where to begin on finding the right movie on the platform for your next viewing? Decider is here to put a feather in your cap by sorting through all of Peacock’s film offerings and providing 50 solid recommendations for any number of moods or preferences. Rather than visit the Scranton branch of Dunder-Mifflin for the umpteenth time, let these accomplished works of cinema transport you and transform you. Whether you’re in the mood for an ’80s or ’90s favorite, a recent indie hit, or a low-budget gem, Peacock has you covered.
‘M3GAN’ (2023)
DIRECTOR: Gerard Johnstone
STARS: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw, Ronny Chieng
RATING: PG-13
To quote the great Wendy Williams: she’s an icon, she’s a legend, and she is the moment. M3GAN, the killer talking AI doll who slays (literally), will sashay her way right into your heart as she curdles your spine. This is a new camp classic that proves sinful fun as it makes some quite insightful commentary on parenting in an automated world.
‘Lone Survivor’ (2013)
DIRECTOR: Peter Berg
STARS: Mark Wahlberg, Taylor Kitsch, Emile Hirsch
RATING: R
Sure, the title might give away the ending, but don’t let that discourage you from strapping in for the thrilling true-life tale of how Mark Wahlberg’s Marcus Luttrell fights for his life against improbable odds against the Taliban. Lone Survivor is the war film at its most visceral, personal, and propulsive. You’re not so much watching this battle for survival as you’re feeling it on a gut level.
‘Clockwatchers’ (1998)
DIRECTOR: Jill Sprecher
STARS: Toni Colette, Parker Posey, Lisa Kudrow, Alanna Ubach
RATING: PG-13
Move over, Office Space. There’s a new cult classic comedy from the late ‘90s about the drudgery of officework, and it’s Jill Sprecher’s Clockwatchers. Don’t believe us? Talk to our friend, John Early, about it.
‘Afternoon Delight’ (2013)
DIRECTOR: Joey Soloway
STARS: Kathryn Hahn, Juno Temple, Josh Radnor
RATING: R
Who’s the comedic dynamo you need more of in your life? It’s been Kathryn Hahn all along! Joey Soloway’s Afternoon Delight is one of the rare opportunities she gets to be at the center of a narrative, and she of course knocks it out of the park. As a sexually frustrated carpool mom dealing with feelings of inadequacy, Hahn’s Rachel makes the questionable move to “rescue” a young stripper and hire her as the family nanny … and life around the house gets a lot more interesting.
‘Scarface’ (1983)
DIRECTOR: Brian de Palma
STARS: Al Pacino, Michelle Pfeiffer, Steven Bauer
RATING: R
Don’t hold all the dorm room posters against Scarface. Brian de Palma’s crime epic of a Cuban immigrant rising through Miami’s drug cartels has all the trappings of a classic American dream story. It’s just soaked in the kind of cocaine-fueled energy of its leading character, vividly brought to life by Al Pacino at his absolute hammiest. There’s a reason his screaming delivery of “say hello to my little friend!” has become an iconic line … and is worth waiting nearly three hours to hear.
‘Putney Swope’ (1969)
DIRECTOR: Robert Downey Sr.
STARS: Arnold Johnson, Stan Gottlieb, Allen Garfield
RATING: R
Sure, you know Jr. – but what about his father? Robert Downey Sr. was a trailblazing artist at the forefront of culture in his own way. Granted, it was the counterculture. If you want to get a sense of his radical work that embodied the anarchic energy of the ‘60s, start with Putney Swope. This blistering satire spirals outward from a simple concept: the only Black member of an advertising firm’s board becomes its chairman. Half a century later, the film’s unwillingness to pull punches makes it feel as relevant as ever.
‘Burning’ (2018)
DIRECTOR: Lee Chang-dong
STARS: Steven Yeun, Yoo Ah-in, Jong-seo Jun
RATING: Not Rated
If you loved the sincerity of Steven Yeun’s Oscar-nominated turn in Minari, broaden your knowledge of his formidable skills by watching him smolder in Korean drama Burning. This slow-burn of a film features the actor as the mysterious, magnetic Ben, a Gatsby-like nouveau riche South Korean with an unconventional hobby. Ben emerges out of nowhere as a romantic rival to the sheepish Jong-su, and his presence sparks a small flame that will soon engulf their lives. Give it time – the patience of director Lee Chang-dong really pays off.
‘Starred Up’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: David Mackenzie
STARS: Jack O’Connell, Ben Mendelsohn, Rupert Friend
RATING: Not Rated
In 2014, the media told us that Jack O’Connell was the next big star rising in Hollywood. Unfortunately, they all lined up behind the wrong movie (Angelina Jolie’s Unbroken) and missed the movie that best harnesses his talents. In the prison drama Starred Up, the incorrigible O’Connell channels all the energy of a caged bull as he moves from juvenile detention to an adult prison. Though the youngest person locked within the walls, his arrival unsettles and overturns the established order in fascinating and unexpected ways.
‘The House of the Devil’ (2009)
DIRECTOR: Ti West
STARS: Jocelin Donahue, Tom Noonan, Mary Woronov
RATING: R
Many people try to vibrate on the wavelength that filmmaker Ti West occupies – that is to say, they want to harken back to retro style while maintaining a distinctly contemporary edge. But few can manage what he does in The House of the Devil, which is to recapture the feeling of ‘80s horror without winking too much at his audience. This story of a babysitting job gone wrong intersects with the slasher film and the haunted house flick without making you feel like you’ve seen this story a dozen times before.
‘Half Nelson’ (2006)
DIRECTOR: Ryan Fleck
STARS: Ryan Gosling, Anthony Mackie, Shareeka Epps
RATING: R
We’ve all seen too many white savior dramas where a teacher plops into an under-resourced school and helps inspire a classroom of students. But Half Nelson flips that formula on its head with a story showing that it’s a teacher in need of rescue … and only his student can deliver him from the depths of his addiction. As Dan, the unconventional and radical history teacher with a drug habit, Ryan Gosling has scarcely ever been more electrifying a force on screen.
‘A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints’ (2005)
DIRECTOR: Dito Montiel
STARS: Robert Downey Jr., Shia LaBeouf, Channing Tatum
RATING: R
Adapting your own memoir for your directorial debut might sound like a recipe for navel-gazing, but Dito Montiel manages to pull it off with A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints. The film captures with affection and anguish his time growing up on the mean streets of Astoria in 1986. He acknowledges the way the neighborhood simultaneously shaped his life and drove him to look for a new one elsewhere. Phenomenal performances abound, but the real standout is a young Channing Tatum, who gives a ferociously physical performance as Dito’s volatile friend Antonio.
‘Unexpected’ (2015)
DIRECTOR: Kris Rey
STARS: Cobie Smulders, Anders Holm, Gail Bean
RATING: R
The concept of Kris Rey’s Unexpected seems like it would be a bad idea: an inner-city Chicago high school teacher (Cobie Smulders) and her bright student (Gail Bean) both have unplanned pregnancies at the same time. But it’s all in the execution here. Beyond the compassion bursting out of the frame, Rey’s film keeps an incisive edge throughout as the influence of class and racial dynamics exert themselves subtly but powerfully throughout.
‘Kick-Ass’ (2010)
DIRECTOR: Matthew Vaughn
STARS: Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Nicolas Cage, Chloë Grace Moretz
RATING: R
Kick-Ass ran so Deadpool could fly. Just as the pieces were clicking into place for the Marvel Cinematic Universe, along came Matthew Vaughn’s irreverent, R-rated action-comedy that sent up the self-seriousness of masked vigilantes. Come for Aaron Taylor-Johnson as a geek turned caped crusader, stay for a pint-sized Chloë Grace Moretz spewing shocking obscenities.
'Dark River' (2018)
DIRECTOR: Clio Barnard
STARS: Ruth Wilson, Sean Bean, Mark Stanley
RATING: Not Rated
British director Clio Barnard channels a grounded earthiness in her work like few other filmmakers can, and her 2018 feature Dark River is no exception. This psychological and pastoral drama features a powerful Ruth Wilson as a sheep shearer who must deal with the unresolved pain of her past upon inheriting her father’s farm. Barnard plunges us into piercing flashbacks that underscore the trauma triggered by Wilson’s Alice fighting her brother tooth-and-nail for tenancy of the property. These 89 minutes feel like they contain the full lifetime of a character.
‘Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising’ (2016)
DIRECTOR: Nicholas Stoller
STARS: Seth Rogen, Zac Efron, Rose Byrne
RATING: R
The sequel to Neighbors has absolutely no business being this funny, but it absolutely RIPS. Sorority Rising restages a lot of the original film’s conflict of adjoining properties between a family and a raucous college crew, only gender-swapped. But the real X-factor of this follow-up is how it wields Zac Efron’s Teddy Sanders from the first film as a frat star completely lost at sea as his brothers move on without him. It’s surprisingly sweet to watch him bop around the two houses in search of anything to provide him a sense of grounding and purpose in the absence of the fraternity that allowed him to be such a rockstar.
‘Big Fan’ (2009)
DIRECTOR: Robert D. Siegel
STARS: Patton Oswalt, Kevin Corrigan, Michael Rapaport
RATING: R
How far does your fandom extend? That’s the question Patton Oswalt’s Paul Aufiero, a parking garage attendant and talk radio enthusiast, has to answer in Big Fan after his favorite Giants player beats him up to the point of hospitalization. If Paul stands up for himself, he runs the risk of imperiling the chances of his beloved team by taking a star player off the field. Oswalt fully leans into the twisted mental logic of his character and keeps us guessing about how he’ll respond to the bitter end.
‘Black Christmas’ (1974)
DIRECTOR: Bob Clark
STARS: Olivia Hussey, Keir Dullea, Margot Kidder
RATING: R
Who says all Christmas movies need to be cheerful? Black Christmas will have you seeing red for the holiday season – red for blood, that is. This slasher film following a sorority house stalked by a crazy killer during the Christmas season is exactly the kind of holiday counterprogramming you’re looking for. But ho ho ho-ld up before you unwrap this gift: the kills from this ‘70s horror flick are gruesome and disturbing even by today’s standards.
‘It’s Complicated’ (2009)
DIRECTOR: Nancy Meyers
STARS: Meryl Streep, Alec Baldwin, Steve Martin
RATING: R
Nancy Meyers is perhaps best known for providing easygoing cinematic comfort food. You get all of that in It’s Complicated and more — as it turns out, she’s got a real knack for bawdy, brassy comedy. As Meryl Streep’s cozy divorcee weighs her romantic options between her good-natured architect (Steve Martin) and her remarried ex-husband (Alec Baldwin), Meyers finds a way to make a raunchy sex romp go down with the silky smoothness of a chocolate croissant.
‘American Pie’ (1999)
DIRECTOR: Paul Weitz
STARS: Jason Biggs, Sean William Scott, Eugene Levy
RATING: R
The high school sex comedy to end them all. American Pie is raunchy, lewd, irreverent … and still an absolute hoot even if you know surprises such as the double meaning of the title. This might not be a film people return to quite as much, but the impact cannot be overstated. Everything in the new millennium that has let teens be heedlessly horny owes this movie a debt of gratitude.
‘Better Watch Out’ (2017)
DIRECTOR: Chris Peckover
STARS: Olivia De Jonge, Levi Miller, Ed Oxenbould
RATING: R
‘Tis always the season for scares. Better Watch Out starts out like a typical holiday-themed home invasion flick, but let’s just say what Santa’s bringing this year isn’t the only surprise ahead. Chris Peckover’s clever, modest thriller turns many an expectation on its head to wildly entertaining effect.
‘Listen Up Philip’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: Alex Ross Perry
STARS: Jason Schwartzman, Elisabeth Moss, Jonathan Pryce
RATING: Not Rated
If you’re unfamiliar with filmmaker Alex Ross Perry, Listen Up Philip is a great place to begin acquainting yourself with one of the major talents to emerge from the American independent cinema scene over the last decade. Here, he fuses the frankness of the naturalistic “mumblecore” style with the more witty, urbane trappings of a New York intelligentsia comedy. His character study of the self-obsessed novelist Philip Lewis Friedman (Jason Schwartzman) in the wake of his professional successes and personal foibles has a bite so sharp and venomous it could draw blood.
‘The Little Rascals’ (1994)
DIRECTOR: Penelope Spheeris
STARS: Travis Tedford, Bug Hall, Brittany Ashton Holmes
RATING: PG
There’s something uniquely joyous about what Penelope Spheeris pulls off with her big-screen version of The Little Rascals. It’s a story about young boys and girls humorously ensconced in firm ideas of gender separation features what seems like juvenile humor … at least from how it generates giggles from young audiences. But there’s actually a deceptive amount of variety and sophistication at play in the film’s comedic stylings. Whether you’re maturing into what lies below the surface of this family favorite or discovering it for the first time, you’ll find something far more than lowest common denominator fare.
‘Meet the Patels’ (2015)
DIRECTORS: Ravi Patel, Geeta Patel
STARS: Ravi Patel, Geeta Patel
RATING: PG
The idea of arranged marriage might sound like something that only exists in a fictional movie, but it’s very much a part of documentary Meet the Patels. Ravi Patel, with the help of his sister Geeta, films the romantic journey that ensues when he indulges his traditional Indian parents’ request to consider the idea. It’s a moving, provocative and ultimately sweet investigation of the relationship between love and marriage.
‘Night of the Living Dead’ (1968)
DIRECTOR: George A. Romero
STARS: Duane Jones, Judith O’Dea, Karl Hardman
RATING: Not Rated
Were you a fan of the “social thriller” as configured by Jordan Peele in Get Out? Thank George A. Romero, a pioneer of the subgenre in Night of the Living Dead. What this lo-fi zombie film might lack in scares after 50 years of advances in technology, it more than makes up for in subversive social commentary. It’s living proof that sometimes the most enduring political messages are smuggled through genre films, not blared out from a soapbox in self-important dramas.
‘The Cabin in the Woods’ (2012)
DIRECTOR: Drew Goddard
STARS: Chris Hemsworth, Richard Jenkins, Bradley Whitford
RATING: R
Horror afficionados who know the genre’s tropes like the back of their hand are in for a real treat with The Cabin in the Woods. This razor-sharp satire from the minds of Drew Goddard and Joss Whedon rivals Scream in terms of self-aware thrills. The setup of a college students headed into a wooded environment only to encounter the supernatural might seem clichéd … but then the film takes a step backward and reveals a group of well-versed operators quite literally calling the shots. It’s scary, it’s smart, it’s scary smart.
‘Hide Your Smiling Faces’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: Daniel Patrick Carbone
STARS: Ryan Jones, Nathan Varnson
RATING: Not Rated
There’s little nostalgia for childhood in Hide Your Smiling Faces, but the film is all the better for its clear-eyed take on the coming-of-age story. After two young Jersey boys spot a body alongside a river, they begin to process the nature of death. Filmmaker Daniel Patrick Carbone observes their understanding of mortality from an abstract concept to something concrete with remarkable sensitivity. He renders with grace the parts of growing up that we try to elide, even though they shape us irrevocably.
‘The Proposition’ (2005)
DIRECTOR: John Hillcoat
STARS: Guy Pearce, Ray Winstone, Emily Watson
RATING: R
If you think there’s no new ground to trod in the Western, turn your eyes even further west: to Australia. The Proposition takes us back to the 1880s where Guy Pearce’s outlaw Charlie Burns faces a brutal mandate to kill one brother in order to save another sibling. Perhaps the only thing more unsparing than his mission is the land itself of the arid Australian outback.
‘Jaws’ (1975)
DIRECTOR: Steven Spielberg
STARS: Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss, Robert Shaw
RATING: PG
I’m glad Jaws has become associated with the 4th of July holiday in recent years because few movies embody the American cultural psyche quite like Spielberg’s original blockbuster. The way a shark can wreak havoc on a beachfront twin speaks to the way the country’s preferred method of dealing with a nebulous threat is to try and ignorantly will it away. But when needed, a ragtag team can band together and pool their respective smarts and skills to tame the beast. The movie has gained a reputation for the way it can generate terrified shrieks yet deserves more recognition for how it can elicit triumphant cheers.
‘Bruce Almighty’ (2003)
DIRECTOR: Tom Shadyac
STARS: Jim Carrey, Jennifer Aniston, Morgan Freeman
RATING: PG-13
Jim Carrey’s best work often comes from taking one simple “what if?” question and stretching it to hilarious, absurd extremes. In Bruce Almighty, we see the wildly imaginative answer to pondering what would happen if an ordinary schlub became endowed with the powers of God. This is Carrey’s high-concept comedy at its best, and the fact that it takes a surprisingly sincere turn in its final act is a wonderful cherry on top.
‘The Messenger’ (2009)
DIRECTOR: Oren Moverman
STARS: Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson, Samantha Morton
RATING: R
As messengers delivering the news of a soldier’s passing to their loved ones at home, Staff Sergeant Will Montgomery (Ben Foster) and Captain Tony Stone (Woody Harrelson) are used to getting a wide range of emotional responses to their arrival. But The Messenger examines one interaction in their line of duty that cuts through to something deep within their core – a widow (Samantha Morton) whose calmness in the face of tragedy startles them. Such a reaction inspires such curiosity with Montgomery that he can’t help but investigate and understand her better.
‘Annihilation’ (2018)
DIRECTOR: Alex Garland
STARS: Natalie Portman, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Tessa Thompson
RATING: R
Alex Garland knows how to make sci-fi for the discerning viewer. The filmmaker followed up his triumphant Ex Machina with the beguiling Annihilation, maybe the closest thing we’ll ever get to a truly avant-garde blockbuster. This tale of four female scientists entering “The Shimmer,” a mysterious ethereal realm where an extraterrestrial presence lurks, goes in boldly experimental directions that defy all expectations. Kudos to Garland for getting Paramount to give him enough money to fully realize this singular vision.
‘Welcome to Me’ (2015)
DIRECTOR: Shira Piven
STARS: Kristen Wiig, James Marsden, Linda Cardellini
RATING: R
There’s always a hint of melancholy and aloofness in Kristen Wiig’s comedy, even dating back to her earliest sketches on SNL, but her turn in Welcome to Me is peak Wiig weird. Here, she stars as Alice, a woman for whom the boundary between garden-variety narcissism and mental illness ranges from thin to non-existent. After winning the lottery, she devotes her earnings to producing a cringeworthy vanity project talk show to feature herself to the world. It’s bonkers, bizarre … and also kind of brilliant as a piece of biting social commentary.
‘Short Term 12’ (2013)
DIRECTOR: Destin Daniel Cretton
STARS: Brie Larson, John Gallagher Jr., Lakeith Stanfield
RATING: R
If you know this movie for anything, it’s probably as an incubator of great actors. Short Term 12 features early standout turns from Oscar-winners Brie Larson and Rami Malek along with Lakeith Stanfield, Kaitlyn Dever, Stefanie Beatriz, and more. But Destin Daniel Cretton’s film is worth a watch for the story as well. The story of Larson’s Grace, a supervisor at a home for troubled teens with family issues of her own, is full of raw, vulnerable, and poignant emotion.
‘Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban’ (2004)
DIRECTOR: Alfonso Cuarón
STARS: Daniel Radcliffe, Gary Oldman, David Thewlis, Emma Thompson
RATING: PG
You can make an argument for just about any Harry Potter movie as the best, but it’s pretty hard to dispute that Prisoner of Azkaban is the most important of them all. Director Alfonso Cuarón’s infusion of dark ambiance and devilish humor helped the series graduate from kiddie literature into the stuff of serious adult drama. Rather than relegate it forever to the dustbin of fantasy, he grounded it in the realities of teenage anxieties and growing pangs. It’s got a wicked sense of style and fun that set the tone for all that was to come from the franchise on-screen.
Watch Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban on Peacock Premium
‘Palo Alto’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: Gia Coppola
STARS: Emma Roberts, Jack Kilmer, Nat Wolff
RATING: R
Let’s just go ahead and say it: the “ick” factor looms large over James Franco’s role in Palo Alto as a high school soccer coach who hits on one of his players. But his involvement should not invalidate all the other people who make the film such a riveting look at teenage boredom and ennui from director Gia Coppola to star Emma Roberts. This is such a singular, striking, and stylish coming-of-age story where the journey is not toward maturity so much as it is to getting accustomed to disappointment and dissatisfaction.
‘Driveways’ (2020)
DIRECTOR: Andrew Ahn
STARS: Brian Dennehy, Hong Chau, Lucas Jaye
RATING: Not Rated
There’s a beautiful, elegant simplicity animated Andrew Ahn’s Driveways. This wholesome tale of a young boy who makes friends with his lonely, elderly neighbor possesses the kind of animating spirit that fills you up with goodness and grace. Films may not be able to change the world, but they can change our hearts – and this has the ability to lift yours.
‘I Am Big Bird’ (2015)
DIRECTORS: Dave LaMattina, Chad N. Walker
STARS: Carroll Spinney
RATING: Not Rated
It’s hard to imagine anyone else other than the late Carroll Spinney as Big Bird after watching this documentary, frankly. I Am Big Bird takes us behind the scenes of Sesame Street to understand how the creation of the series’ most beloved character was so intimately connected to its puppeteer. This is sure to delight Sesame fans old and new.
‘Madagascar’ (2005)
DIRECTORS: Eric Darnell, Tom McGrath
STARS: Ben Stiller, Chris Rock, David Schwimmer, Jada Pinkett Smith
RATING: PG
Don’t let the sequel-izing of the Madagascar franchise fool you (although if you haven’t seen the ingeniuous The Penguins of Madagascar movie, you are really missing out). The original animated film is still an absolute blast for viewers of all ages. It’s full of irreverent DreamWorks Animation humor and committed voice performances from a very game cast. You’ll be singing “I like to move it, move it” until the cows come home.
'The Imposter' (2012)
DIRECTOR: Bart Layton
STARS: Adam O’Brian, Anna Ruben, Cathy Dresbach
RATING:
Saying “truth is stranger than fiction” is one of the most hackneyed clichés, but it holds eerily true with Bart Layton’s documentary The Imposter. Fans of true crime simply must check out this riveting story of how a “missing child” from Texas returns home as someone … seemingly a bit off. You won’t see some of the twists coming, so just make sure the ground is clear for when you jaw inevitably hits the floor.
‘The Big Lebowski’ (1998)
DIRECTOR: Joel Coen
STARS: Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Steve Buscemi
RATING: R
How many movies can say they inspired their own religion? One need not convert to “Dudeism” to enjoy all the charms of The Big Lebowski, though! This Coen Brothers classic is an open book to engage with across any number of levels, be it as a stoner flick, a modern gumshoe mystery, or notes on the existential nature of being. Like Jeff Bridges’ iconic The Dude, the film contains many multitudes.
‘James White’ (2015)
DIRECTOR: Josh Mond
STARS: Christopher Abbott, Cynthia Nixon, Kid Cudi
RATING: R
The struggles of addiction rarely feel so searingly real as it does in James White, the story of how Christopher Abbott’s titular twentysomething must summon all his strength and composure to care for his ailing mother. Filmmaker Josh Mond offers no easy platitudes or narrative contrivances to make the character’s struggles more palatable for our consumption. Yet in the absence of comfort, what we have is a different kind of reassurance. We may not always be perfect, but sometimes we just have to be there for each other.
‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’ (2011)
DIRECTOR: Lynne Ramsay
STARS: Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, John C. Reilly
RATING: R
A decade out, Lynne Ramsay’s We Need to Talk About Kevin only grows in relevance. Our society continues to struggle in reckoning with the “mother of a monster” figure given the plague of disaffected young men committing acts of unspeakable violence. Ramsay never gets preachy or didactic in her exploration of the nature vs. nurture debate, instead letting her propulsive visuals pull us deep into the tortured psyche of Tilda Swinton’s Eva Khatchadourian. Don’t expect easy answers from the film, but Ramsay’s challenges and provocations will undoubtedly deepen your emotional understanding of this new cultural archetype.
‘Collateral’ (2004)
DIRECTOR: Michael Mann
CAST: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Jada Pinkett Smith
RATED: R
A movie set over the course of a single night is bound to get the blood flowing, but few pack the end-to-end tension of Michael Mann’s Collateral. In a pre-Uber LA, Max (Jamie Foxx), a taxi driver trying to make the jump to limousine service, gives five-star service to the passenger from hell. He mucks up the car, yes, but the real danger is from what Tom Cruise’s Vincent does outside the car as a hitman. As Max becomes chauffeur to Vincent’s murder spree, the stakes ratchet steadily upwards as he becomes an unwitting accomplice to a brutal killer. Mann makes the audience feel trapped in the moment and in the claustrophobic cab space with Vincent, who’s so terrifying that you’ll wish Cruise was doing more serious acting and less action hero.
‘Hell or High Water’ (2016)
DIRECTOR: David Mackenzie
STARS: Chris Pine, Ben Foster, Jeff Bridges
RATING: R
“Three tours in Iraq but no bailout for people like us,” reads graffiti sprayed against a wall in the opening scene of Hell or High Water, setting a powerful tone for this unique twist on the cops and robbers tale. This thrilling neo-Western follows the twinned journeys of two brothers holding up banks to save their family’s ranch and two Texas Rangers hunting them down. It’s a provocative, pulse-pounding examination of who represents and defends justice in a contemporary world.
‘Wet Hot American Summer’ (2001)
DIRECTOR: David Wain
STARS: Janeane Garofolo, David Hyde Pierce, Michael Showalter
RATING: R
How to even pick the topline stars from Wet Hot American Summer? This gonzo comedy about the last day of camp in 1981 features early turns from Elizabeth Banks and Amy Poehler – as well as the first movie role for a young Bradley Cooper. It’s got dynamite comic turns from Paul Rudd, Molly Shannon, and Christopher Meloni. Dive in and see what made this wacky little indie that could one of the biggest cult sensations of the 2000s.
‘Limbo’ (2021)
DIRECTOR: Ben Sharrock
STARS: Amir El-Masry, Vikash Bhai
RATING: R
If you love those neatly arranged Wes Anderson frames but feel like his characters act like paper dolls, have I got the movie for you. Ben Sharrock’s Limbo does the impossible by making a heartwarming and uplifting tale out of the situation faced by refugees stuck in immigration purgatory outside the UK. He uses visual humor in the cinematography to highlight the silliness of their situations. But rather than sapping the film of its humanity with these fastidious compositions, he creates a space for our compassion to fill the void. It’s a remarkable, rousing feat of filmmaking.
‘If Beale Street Could Talk’ (2018)
DIRECTOR: Barry Jenkins
STARS: KiKi Layne, Stephan James, Regina King
RATING: R
It’s easy to grade Barry Jenkins on a curve for attempting what none others were foolish enough to try: adapting the formidable prose of the legendary James Baldwin to the screen. If Beale Street Could Talk is more than just a participation medal, even if Jenkins himself has second-guessed some of his decisions on the film. This is a film that preserves the raw power of Baldwin’s words and finds a visual corollary in Jenkins’ poetic aesthetic. It’s a tribute to Black joy and love with the power to persevere across the ages.
‘Bernie’ (2012)
DIRECTOR: Richard Linklater
STARS: Jack Black, Matthew McConaughey, Shirley MacLaine
RATING: PG-13
If there was ever any doubt that Richard Linklater is Texas’ cinematic poet laureate, that’s dispelled in Bernie. This ripped-from-the-headlines story of small-town undertaker Bernie Tiede (Jack Black) and the shocking turns in his relationship with crabby benefactor Marjorie Nugent (Shirley MacLaine) is as gripping as any true-crime tale. But the movie really belongs to his Greek chorus of the real-life residents of Carthage, TX, all of whom provide undeniable local color and flair to the story in their talking-head interviews.
‘Titanic’ (1997)
DIRECTOR: James Cameron
STARS: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Gloria Stuart
RATING: PG-13
Say what you will about the length and bombast of Titanic, but sometimes we all just want to settle in with a movie that dares to dream big. James Cameron delivers all that and more in his swooning star-crossed romance set aboard the ill-fated ocean liner. (Leo could have fit on the door, and I will die on this hill.) Like the Céline Dion song powering the over-three-hour journey, Titanic is corny but admirably crazy enough to sincerely believe in the grandiosity of its concept.
‘Bridesmaids’ (2011)
DIRECTOR: Paul Feig
STARS: Kristen Wiig, Maya Rudolph, Rose Byrne
RATING: R
If you have time to read more than a blurb on why Bridesmaids is so great, I argued that its GIF-ability made it the definitive comedy of the 2010s in my Decider column “Smells Like ‘10s Spirit.” Those outsized reactions to everyday absurdity, particularly from leading lady Kristen Wiig, made it the perfect movie to capture the imagination of a culture moving further towards visual rather than text-based communication. But the movie also endures because it’s more than just a collection of outrageous moments – it’s an honest, heartfelt look at female friendships.
