Based on a novel by Sinclair Lewis, director William Wyler and screenwriter Sydney Howard have crafted an adult, perceptive romantic drama, beautifully played. They wisely minimize the soapiness inherent in the premise, ...

Reuniting Sidney Lumet and Al Pacino, who'd worked previously on "Serpico," this Oscar-nominated drama (based on a true story) tracks two scheming misfits who've witlessly imprisoned themselves in a no-win situation. ...

Why I Love It: In director Savoca’s capable hands, her two talented young leads become the center of a delicate yet totally credible film romance. Eddie’s striking handsomeness and glib charm initially overpower plain ...

Narrated by Sean Penn, this unique, adrenalized documentary explores the grass-roots movement that resulted in "vertical" skateboarding. Arresting as pop culture history, jaw dropping as spectacle, "Dogtown" is crammed ...

Filmed on a minimal soundstage with chalk lines and partial building facades, Von Trier's disturbing, provocative allegory of hypocrisy at the heart of the American soul is undeniably long at just under three hours, ...

Best known as the writer-director of soulful, often violent yakuza art flicks such as "Sonatine" and "Fireworks," Kitano here works in a lush minor key, opening his film with a visual motif borrowed from ancient ...

Biting, unvarnished look at the state of affairs between the sexes, made no clearer or more encouraging when fueled by booze. Beresford's gift for highly personal, intimate film-making makes us flies on the wall, and ...

Based on a ghost story by Daphne du Maurier, Nicolas Roeg's spooky, enigmatic thriller offers just the right mix of surreal intensity and emotional distress. Roeg gets a lot of mileage out of the labyrinthine streets ...

Based on the magical-realist novel by Jorge Amado, Barreto’s sexy “Dona Flor” features then-model Sonia Braga in a steamy role opposite Wilker’s blond (and buck naked) Bahia stud. Barreto handles the fantasy element in ...

Based on the real-life Joe Pistone's memoirs, Mike Newell's "Donnie Brasco" offers one of the freshest takes on the gangster film since "GoodFellas," capturing gritty street life in 1970s New York City as well as the ...

One of the quintessential noir films, Billy Wilder's "Double Indemnity" is a masterpiece of stark atmosphere and carefully stylized suspense. The talented Barbara Stanwyck, a familiar face in the 1940s noir universe, ...

Based on an 18th-century Bunraku puppet play, “Double Suicide” is a self-consciously theatrical drama that follows two desperate lovers as they forge a suicide pact when circumstances offer them no hope for happiness. ...

Enlisting Streep and Hoffman, two of the finest actors working today, for this Oscar-nominated film based on his own Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Shanley wrings a lot of great, gut-wrenching drama from his main themes, ...

An oddball road movie with three of the quirkiest characters you're likely to encounter, "Law" is a hilariously deadpan portrayal of hipster cool on the skids. Waits is perfectly cast as Zack, a struggling record ...

The film’s intense yet intimate portrayal of Hitler's demise has the crazy, nightmarish feel of a Bosch painting, with a pervasive sense of unreality. Ganz renders Hitler so expertly that the effect is spooky, as if the ...

Michael Ritchie's underrated debut film finally gets a first-rate DVD release from the Criterion Collection, and not a moment too soon. “Racer” holds up beautifully, thanks to a script that dispenses with all the sports ...

This superbly executed biopic turns the scientific minutiae of Ehrlich’s work (a legacy that would include cures for diphtheria and syphilis) into thrilling drama. Director Dieterle excelled at crafting humane, visually ...

Both 1932 and 1941 versions of this oft-told classic make for worthwhile viewing, with my own preference the earlier pre-Code entry starring Fredric March. It's the more frightening of the two, with stark, expressionist ...

Newly remastered by Kino video, this crisp DVD creates the electricity and atmosphere experienced by Berlin moviegoers in 1922. Lang's sinister thriller is a vivid, engaging tale of crime and evil (the German ...

Shot on location in Jamaica, Young's color-saturated, action-packed "Dr. No" introduced the world to British Secret Service Agent 007, played by a 32-year-old Connery. Less cheeky and a bit more cold-blooded than he ...