Movie Recommendations (Vol. 3)
If you are like me, your streaming queues are out-of-control. Too many apps. Too many titles. If you love movies but have ever felt paralyzed by choice, then this is the place for you. In this column, I’ll detail what I’ve been watching, make recommendations and highlight the films I found interesting. To help describe the appeal of each title, there is a “RIYL” (recommended if you like…) section after each blurb. Join me in attempting to watch it all!
April 2024 Update: Circumstances continue to conspire against me as I seek to post more consistently, but I have once again tweaked the format in hopes of greasing the rails. The monthly format is out. A less constraining “top 10 recent watches plus 5 more” format is in. This column is fun to write but it also has “reader service” ambitions, so let me know your thoughts. Thanks and enjoy!
1. Aliens (1986)
As Aliens has long been one of my favorites, this was a very easy top choice. Seeing it in a theater for the first time made this viewing even more delightful. The theater advertised the original theatrical version, but screened the longer Special Edition instead. You really can’t go wrong either way but I was looking forward to seeing the theatrical again, as I usually watch the longer version at home. Minutiae aside, Aliens is about as crowd-pleasing as it gets and probably Sigourney Weaver’s best-ever role. A tad gory for the lightweights out there, but Aliens is an incredibly satisfying thrill ride.
Recommended if you like: Alien (1979); Predator (1987); Avatar (2009)
2. Are You There, God? It’s Me, Margaret. (2023)
A lovely coming-of-age teen movie that I suspect might resonate even more so with adults. In addition to the convincingly throwback ’70s setting, the adult cast (reliably great performances by Rachel McAdams and Kathy Bates in particular) make this a must-see.
RIYL: The Edge of Seventeen (2016); Ladybird (2017); Eighth Grade (2018)
3. El Norte (1983)
Beautifully made and moving drama about Guatemalan emigrants seeking a better life in the United States. From filmmaker Greg Nava, who would go on to direct Jennifer Lopez in Selena.
RIYL: Sin Nombre (2009); Roma (2018)
4. 13 Assassins (2010)
Who’d have thought Takashi Miike, the director who haunted our nightmares with 1999’s Audition, would be the one to resurrect the samurai epic? I didn’t, but maybe you did. Anyway, if you love Kurosawa’s samurai films, well… sometimes they actually do make ‘em like they used to.
RIYL: Seven Samurai (1954); Shogun Assassin (1980); Ran (1985)
5. A Pigeon Sat on a Branch Reflecting on Existence (2014)
This one refuses to be pigeon-holed into an obvious genre and as a result might be for adventurous cinephiles only. It’s a slow, non-narrative, quasi-anthology film. The drama is surreal; the humor bleak and deadpan. That said, in its own way, A Pigeon is often very satisfying for how it finds catharsis and humanity in observations of the mundane.
RIYL: Songs from the Second Floor (2000); You, the Living (2007); Brazil (1985)
6. Hot Shots! (1991); Hot Shots! Part Deux (1993)
Just two of the greatest spoof films ever made. Also highly recommended if you’re into brawny ’80s actioners (particularly Top Gun and the Rambo films), or even if you haven’t seen any of those but enjoyed more recent spoofs like Scary Movie.
RIYL: Airplane (1980); The Naked Gun: From the Files of Police Squad! (1988); Scary Movie (2000)
7. Experimenter (2015)
This film about Stanley Milgram is the best biopic about a modern figure I’ve seen in a while. It does a lot of the things that make many biopics feel disposable but somehow improves on the execution. It helps to have a pitch perfect Peter Sarsgaard performance that goes a long way in selling the voiceover portions of the script. It also helps that the movie clocks in at a brisk 98-minutes. That’s not meant as faint praise. Experimenter is excellent and sure to please enthusiasts of biopics or movies about psychology.
RIYL: The Social Network (2010); Oppenheimer (2023)
8. Nights of Cabiria (1957)
Eclectic list, right? Federico Fellini was on a hot streak, directing Nights of Cabiria (Le notti di Cabiria) in between La Strada and La Dolce Vita. It’s defined by Giulietta Massina’s lead performance as a chronically down-on-her-luck prostitute and it’s a real breath of fresh air if you ever happen to find yourself in a rut with modern movies.
RIYL: La Strada (1954); La Dolce Vita (1960)
9. Little Woods (2018)
An issues-oriented drama (housing and women’s healthcare in particular) but frothed up into a thriller by first-time writer/director Nia DaCosta. There’s a lot to like here, especially the two core performances by Tessa Thompson and Lily James as estranged sisters.
RIYL: Citizen Ruth (1996); Thoroughbreds (2017); Emily the Criminal (2022)
10. Terms of Endearment (1983)
Likely not the prime career highlight for James L. Brooks, Shirley MacLaine or Debra Winger, but it’s a pretty strong intersection for the three stars.
RIYL: Urban Cowboy (1980); Broadcast News (1987); Postcards from the Edge (1990)
…And Five More
Anthropoid (2016)
Visceral World War II drama about the historical assassination attempt on SS General Reinhard Heydrich of the Third Reich. Not exactly a traditional crowd pleaser but those who prefer character-focused war stories to sweeping battle reenactments should be satisfied. This one is also for the casuals who may have ben unfamiliar with Cillian Murphy before Oppenheimer.
RIYL: The Train (1964); Munich (2005)
Dear White People (2014)
Dear White People features complex characters played by a great cast and is electrified by its approach to thorny subject matter. It deftly balances a tricky tone along with its numerous characters and ideas. The subject matter only feels more relevant with each passing year.
RIYL: Higher Learning (1995), Chi-Raq (2015), Promising Young Woman (2020)
Fool For Love (1985)
I tend to think of Robert Altman’s movies as dropping you into a world with a large cast, featuring overlapping dialogue and subplots. Fool For Love is a bit different, originating as an intimate stage play by Sam Shepard (who stars in the film). Featuring a very small cast of characters and their bitter-romantic convergence in a small town, Fool For Love is a different kind of Altman movie, but an interesting work all the same.
RIYL: Closer (2004); Fences (2016)
The Meg (2018)
I was expecting to laugh my way through this one. It did get there in spots, but The Meg is a pretty sturdy shark thriller that lies at the intersection of kaiju and animal attack movies. If you are wondering… The Meg 2: The Trench is also pretty fun, but much sillier.
RIYL: Deep Blue Sea (1998), Godzilla (2014)
Violet (2021)
Justine Bateman’s Violet experiments with using the protagonist’s intrusive thoughts extensively throughout the script. I thought it worked well. Olivia Munn gives a strong lead performance that, while probably intended for a mostly female audience, should feel relatable to anyone who has ever felt professional anxiety or creative frustration.
RIYL: Adaptation. (2002); Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Our Planet Burke 