Total Number of Movies in Joel’s Collection: 1,338 Page Number: 21 / 27
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Take Me Home Tonight

Director: Michael Dowse
Starring: Topher Grace, Anna Faris
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Studio: 20th Century Fox
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.3 (31,447 votes)
Release: Jul 2011
Summary: It's the late 1980s, when Wall Street is riding high, and it seems as if the entire country is cashing in on the bumper profits. Disgusted with the materialism that surrounds him, Matt Franklin, a brilliant young MIT graduate, has walked out on his well-paid position at a local lab and taken a low-level job as a video clerk, much to his father Bill's consternation. And the crises keep piling up in Matt's life. His best buddy Barry has just gotten fired from his job, his brainy sister Wendy is getting hitched to her vapid boyfriend Kyle, and the gorgeous Tori Frederking, long-time object of Matt's unattainable adoration, is suddenly back in the picture. Now, on one wild, woolly and irresponsible evening, everything is coming to a head, with explosive results.
 

Take Shelter

Director: Jeff Nichols
Starring: Michael Shannon, Jessica Chastain, Tova Stewart, Shea Whigham, Katy Mixon
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Studio: Grove Hill Productions
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6
Release: Feb 2012
Summary: Curtis, a father and husband, is starting to experience bad dreams and hallucinations. Assuming mental illness, he seeks medical help and counseling. However, fearing the worst, he starts building an elaborate and expensive storm shelter in their backyard. This storm shelter threatens to tear apart his family, threatens his sanity and his standing in the community, but he builds it to save his family's life.
 

Taken

Director: Pierre Morel
Starring: Liam Neeson, Famke Janssen, Maggie Grace
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.9 (299,643 votes)
Release: Jan 2009
Summary: What could be a skillful but ordinary action flick gets a surprising emotional heft from the presence of Liam Neeson as the hero. Bryan Mills (Neeson) has given up his career as a spy to form a relationship with his estranged teenage daughter--but when, on a trip to Paris, she's kidnapped by slavers, Mills uses all his connections and skills to turn the city of lights upside down and rescue her. Like most of the movies that writer/producer Luc Besson has a hand in (such as La Femme Nikita, The Transporter, Unleashed, and many other French action movies), Taken drips with lurid violence (a bit toned-down to get a PG-13 rating, but there's still plenty of it), deranged sentimentality, and stereotypes of all kinds. But this doesn't stop his movies from being effective thrill-rides, and Taken is no exception. Taken pays just enough attention to the illusion of procedure--making it seem like Mills knows all the right steps to track down his daughter--that the movie cheerfully seduces your suspension of disbelief, despite many plot holes and scenes where Mills doesn't get scratched despite bullets flying in all directions or pretends to be a French policeman despite not speaking French or even adopting a French accent. What holds it all together is Neeson; his gravitas and emotional availability make his character--the usual action fantasy of impossible competence and righteous fury--somehow seem real and relatable.
 

Taken 2

Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Liam Neeson, Maggie Grace, Famke Janssen, Leland Orser, Jon Gries
Genre: Action, Crime, Thriller
Studio: Europa Corp.
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.4 (54,727 votes)
Release: Jan 2013
Summary: Bryan Mills, the retired CIA agent, stopped at nothing to save his daughter Kim from Albanian kidnappers. The father of one of the kidnappers has sworn revenge and takes Bryan and his wife hostage during their family vacation in Istanbul. Bryan enlists his daughter to help them escape.
 

Talking Funny

Director: John Moffitt
Starring: Jerry Seinfeld, Louis C.K., Ricky Gervais, Chris Rock
Genre: Comedy, Talk Show
Studio: Gervais Ink
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.7 (576 votes)
Release: Apr 2011
Summary: "A legendary discussion about what's so funny about being funny." This is a given: If you put comedians Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Louis C.K., and Ricky Gervais in a room together, tears of laughter will at some point stream from everyone's eyes. HBO did just that for its upcoming comedy special—which is appropriately titled Talking Funny—and the quartet sat down together to discuss the art of the joke, their individual paths to greatness, and dirty words. But what you might not expect from this Mount Rushmore of comedy (with apologies to Dave Chappelle, who would otherwise belong in the mix but took himself out of the running by choosing happiness over fame) is the incredibly insightful and academic discussion that makes Talking Funny one of the most hilarious learning experiences you'll ever take part in.
 

Tangled

Director: Nathan Greno, Byron Howard
Starring: Mandy Moore, Zachary Levi
Genre: Animation, Adventure
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 7.8 (132,043 votes)
Release: Nov 2010
Summary: Disney's 50th full-length animated feature film, "Tangled" is a visually appealing, music-filled adventure full of romance and humor. The movie focuses on Rapunzel, a girl with long magical hair who's lived her entire life imprisoned in a tower by her greedy mother. Naturally optimistic and acquiescent, Rapunzel (Mandy Moore) rarely complains about her circumstances, but for her 18th birthday she longs to leave the tower to see the floating lights that appear every year on her birthday. Her mother (Donna Murphy) refuses her request, but when thief Flynn Ryder (Zachary Levi) climbs the tower to escape his pursuers, Rapunzel (once she's conked him on the head with a skillet multiple times) impulsively decides to trust the young man and convinces him to help her escape to see the floating lights. Thus begins a journey that alternates quite schizophrenically between optimistic excitement and guilty remorse that will ultimately change Rapunzel's and Flynn's lives forever. "Tangled" is a masterful blend of humor, adventure, passion, and drama combined with a great musical score and top-notch animation. The Real 3-D effects add to the experience but probably won't really be missed in other formats. Best of all, Disney presents a princess who matures from a meek and compliant girl into a spunky young woman who's not afraid to pursue her dreams and risk it all for love--now that's a Disney princess worth emulating. (Ages 6 and older) "--Tami Horiuchi"
 

Taxi Driver

Director: Martin Scorsese
Starring: Robert De Niro, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Jodie Foster, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, Albert Brooks, Diahnne Abbott, Frank Adu, Gino Ardito, Martin Scorsese
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Studio: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8.5 (291,470 votes)
Release: Feb 1976
Summary: Robert De Niro stars as Travis Bickle in this oppressive psychodrama about a Vietnam veteran who rebels against the decadence and immorality of big city life in New York while working the nightshift as a taxi driver.
 

Team America: World Police

Director: Trey Parker
Starring: Trey Parker, Matt Stone, Elle Russ, Kristen Miller, Masasa Moyo
Genre: Thrillers
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.3 (19 votes)
Release: May 2005
Summary: An elite U.S. counter-terrorism squad loses a member while decimating half of Paris in the reckless pursuit of Middle Eastern maniacs; a Broadway actor with a traumatic childhood secret is naturally hired to replace him. Oh--and they're all marionettes. "South Park" maestros Trey Parker and Matt Stone (along with co-writer Pam Brady) came up with this shameless satire of pea-brained Hollywood action flicks and even smaller-minded global politics, so don't expect subtlety or even a hint of good taste. "Team America" is soon on the trail of North Korea's evil Kim Jong Il, who treats us to a tender song about his loneliness before ensnaring Alec Baldwin and the rest of the oblivious Film Actors Guild (F.A.G. for short) in a plot to blow up every major city on the planet. Just as the mindless squad cheerfully demolishes everything in sight, so do director Parker and company. Throwing punches Left, Right, and in-between, the movie's politics leave no turn un-stoned; there's even time to bludgeon the musical "Rent". It's offensive, irresponsible comic anarchy seemingly made by sniggering little boys. "Painfully funny" sniggering little boys."--Steve Wiecking"
 

Ted

Director: Seth MacFarlane
Starring: Mark Wahlberg, Mila Kunis, Seth MacFarlane
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
Studio: Universal
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.1 (234,467 votes)
Release: Jun 2012
Summary: John makes a Christmas miracle happen by bringing his one and only friend to life, his teddy bear. The two grow up together and John must then choose to stay with his girlfriend or keep his friendship with his crude and extremely inappropriate teddy bear, Ted.
 

The Ten Commandments

Director: Cecil B. DeMille
Starring: Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner, Edward G. Robinson
Genre: Adventure, Drama, History
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: G
Rating: 7.8 (32,488 votes)
Release: Oct 1956
Summary: Legendary silent film director Cecil B. DeMille didn't much alter the way he made movies after sound came in, and this 1956 biblical drama is proof of that. While graced with such 1950s niceties as VistaVision and Technicolor, "The Ten Commandments" (DeMille had already filmed an earlier version in 1923) has an anachronistic, impassioned style that finds lead actors Charlton Heston and Yul Brynner expressively posing while hundreds of extras writhe either in the presence of God's power or from orgiastic heat. DeMille, as always, plays both sides of the fence as far as sin goes, surrounding Heston's Moses with worshipful music and heavenly special effects while also making the sexy action around the cult of the Golden Calf look like fun. You have to see "The Ten Commandments" to understand its peculiar resonance as an old-new movie, complete with several still-impressive effects such as the parting of the Red Sea. "--Tom Keogh"
 

The Terminator

Director: James Cameron
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn, Paul Winfield, Lance Henriksen
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8.1 (341,832 votes)
Release: Oct 2001
Summary: This is the film that cemented Schwarzenegger's spot in the action-brawn firmament, and it was well deserved. He's chilling as the futuristic cyborg who kills without fear, without love, without mercy. James Cameron's story and direction are pared to the bone and all the more creepy. But don't overlook the contributions of Linda Hamilton, who more than holds her own as the Terminator's would-be victim, Sarah Connor--thus creating, along with Sigourney Weaver in "Alien", a new generation of rugged, clear-thinking female action stars. It's surprising how well this film holds up, and how its minimalist, malevolent violence is actually way scarier than that of its far more expensive, more effects-laden sequel. "--Anne Hurley"
 

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

Director: James Cameron
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong, Robert Patrick, Earl Boen
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Carolco Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6
Release: May 2005
Summary: Nearly 10 years have passed since Sarah Connor was targeted for termination by a cyborg from the future. Now her son, John, the future leader of the resistance, is the target for a newer, more deadly terminator. Once again, the resistance has managed to send a protector back to attempt to save John and his mother Sarah.
 

Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines

Director: Jonathan Mostow
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Nick Stahl, Kristanna Loken, Claire Danes, Christopher Lawford
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Studio: Warner Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 4.6 (86 votes)
Release: Jul 2003
Summary: With a reported budget of $172 million, "Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines" starts in high gear and never slows down. The apocalyptic "Judgment Day" of "T2" was never prevented, only postponed: John Connor (Nick Stahl, replacing "T2"'s Edward Furlong), now 22 and disconnected from society, is being pursued yet again, this time by the advanced T-X, a sleek "Terminatrix" (coldly expressionless Kristanna Loken) programmed to stop Connor from becoming the savior of humankind. Originally programmed as an assassin, a disadvantaged T-101 cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger, bidding fond farewell to his signature role) arrives from the future to join Connor and his old acquaintance Kate (Claire Danes) in thwarting the T-X's relentless pursuit. The plot presents a logical fulfillment of "T2" prophesy, disposing of Connor's mother (Linda Hamilton is sorely missed) while computer-driven machines assume control, launching a nuclear nightmare that Connor must survive. With "Breakdown" and "U-571" serving as worthy rehearsals for this cautionary epic of mass destruction, director Jonathan Mostow wisely avoids any stylistic connection to James Cameron's "Terminator" classics; instead he's crafted a fun, exciting popcorn thriller, humorous and yet still effectively nihilistic, and comparable to "Jurassic Park III" in returning the "Terminator" franchise to its potent B-movie roots. "--Jeff Shannon"
 

Terminator Salvation

Director: McG
Starring: Christian Bale, Sam Worthington, Anton Yelchin, Moon Bloodgood, Helena Bonham Carter
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Warner Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.1 (14 votes)
Release: Dec 2009
Summary: Terminator Salvation restores some of the balance of huge freakin' explosions and emotionally compelling plot to the Terminator series. Set entirely after the nuclear assault that left the computer system Skynet in control of the world, Terminator Salvation follows John Connor (Christian Bale) as he grapples with both murderous robots and his superiors in the resistance, who aren't sure they believe the prophecies that Connor is destined to save humanity. Into the midst of this struggle tumbles Marcus Wright (Sam Worthington, who would later star in James Cameron's Avatar); the last thing he remembers was being executed in prison decades before. Baffled, he falls into company with Kyle Reese (Anton Yelchin, Star Trek) and a mute little girl, who soon get captured--but Wright then meets and bonds with Blair Williams (Moon Bloodgood, Eight Below), a resistance fighter who remains loyal to the confused Wright even though Connor suspects he's not what he seems--or what he believes himself to be. Terminator Salvation isn't the astonishing synthesis of action and feeling that either The Terminator or T2 were; the plot threads are poorly woven and fray completely in the last third of the movie. Despite this, Terminator Salvation has at least two skillfully orchestrated action sequences that will get your heart racing, and Worthington’s beguiling mixture of toughness and vulnerability gives his relationship with Bloodgood a genuine pulse. It's imperfect, but compared with the hollow carcasses that most action movies (including Terminator 3) turn out to be, it's worth seeing. --Bret Fetzer
 

Terriers

Director: Craig Brewer
Starring: Donal Logue, Michael Raymond-James, Kimberly Quinn, Jamie Denbo, Rockmond Dunbar, Laura Allen, Gareth Williams, Christopher Cousins, Rachel Miner, Lee Reherman
Genre: Crime, Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Studio: Fox 21
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 8.0 (5,259 votes)
Summary: Ex-cop and recovering alcoholic Hank Dolworth (Donal Logue) partners with his best friend, former criminal Britt Pollack (Michael Raymond-James), in an unlicensed private investigation business. The series is set in Ocean Beach, San Diego, California, although it is portrayed as a distinct town, with Dolworth having once been a member of the fictional Ocean Beach Police Department.
 

Terry Pratchett: Choosing to Die

Director: Charlie Russell
Starring: Terry Pratchett, Peter Smedley, Christine Smedley, Veerla Claus-De Wit, Mick Gordelier
Genre: Documentary, Television
Studio: KEO films
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 8.3 (87 votes)
Release: Jun 2011
Summary: Terry Pratchett looks at the highly controversial issue of assisted suicide.
 

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Director: Tobe Hooper
Starring: Marilyn Burns, Allen Danziger, Paul A. Partain, William Vail, Teri McMinn
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Studio: Geneon [Pioneer]
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.1 (75,360 votes)
Release: Oct 2003
Summary: This sensational, extremely influential, 1974 low-budget horror movie directed by Tobe Hooper ("Poltergeist", "Lifeforce", "Salem's Lot"), may be notorious for its title, but it's also a damn fine piece of moviemaking. And it's blood-curdling scary, too. Loosely based on the true crimes of Ed Gein (also a partial inspiration for "Psycho"), the original Jeffrey Dahmer, "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" follows a group of teenagers who pick up a hitchhiker and wind up in a backwoods horror chamber where they're held captive, tortured, chopped up, and impaled on meat hooks by a demented cannibalistic family, including a character known as Leatherface who maniacally wields one helluva chainsaw. The movie's powerful sense of dread is heightened by its grainy, semi-documentary style--but it also has a wicked sense of humor (and not that camp, self-referential variety that became so tiresome in subsequent horror films of the '70s, '80s, and '90s). OK, in case you couldn't tell, it's "not for everyone." But as a landmark in the development of the horror/slasher genre, it ranks with "Psycho", "Halloween", and "A Nightmare on Elm Street". "--Jim Emerson"
 

The Texas Chainsaw Massacre

Director: Marcus Nispel
Starring: Jessica Biel, Jonathan Tucker, Erica Leerhsen, Mike Vogel, Eric Balfour
Genre: Horror, Thriller
Studio: New Line Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.1 (75,360 votes)
Release: Mar 2004
Summary: The 2003 version of "The Texas Chainsaw Massacre" adheres to the pure and simple slasher movie formula: Introduce a gaggle of sexy young people, make vague gestures to distinguish them--Jessica Biel ("Summer Catch") wants to get married and doesn't like pot, so she's our moral compass--then start hacking them to pieces one by one. The visual palette includes grimy crucified dolls, fly-specked pig carcasses, body parts floating in murky jars, a tobacco-chewing redneck sheriff, and many slender beams of sunlight cutting through dank, dusty interiors. The camera lovingly photographs Biel's tank-topped bosom and sculpted abs as she's running in terror from a bloated, chainsaw-wielding, human-skin-wearing maniac. This remake lacks the macabre comedy of the original; it's all about the nauseating sensation of waiting for something to jump out of the dark. Also featuring Eric Balfour ("Six Feet Under") and R. Lee Ermey ("Full Metal Jacket", "Mail Call"). "--Bret Fetzer"
 

Thale

Director: Aleksander Nordaas
Starring: Silje Reinamo, Erlend Nervold, Jon Sigve Skard, Sunniva Lien
Genre: Science Fiction, Horror
Studio: Anderson Digital
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Release: Apr 2013
Summary: Thale revolves around a huldra - a seductive forest spirit who appears from the front to be a beautiful young woman but who also has a cow's tale and whose back appears to be like a hollowed out tree. The huldra has been known to offer rewards to those who satisfy them sexually and death to those who fail to do so and are also prone to stealing human babies.
 

Thank You For Smoking

Director: Jason Reitman
Starring: Aaron Eckhart, Rob Lowe, Katie Holmes, William H. Macy, Robert Duvall
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Studio: Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.7 (139,241 votes)
Release: Oct 2006
Summary: The chief spokesperson and lobbyist Nick Naylor is the Vice-President of the Academy of Tobacco Studies. He is talented in speaking and spins argument to defend the cigarette industry in the most difficult situations. His best friends are Polly Bailey that works in the Moderation Council in alcohol business, and Bobby Jay Bliss of the gun business own advisory group SAFETY. They frequently meet each other in a bar and they self-entitle the Mod Squad a.k.a. Merchants of Death, disputing which industry has killed more people. Nick's greatest enemy is Vermont's Senator Ortolan Finistirre, who defends in the Senate the use a skull and crossed bones in the cigarette packs. Nick's son Joey Naylor lives with his mother, and has the chance to know his father in a business trip. When the ambitious reporter Heather Holloway betrays Nick disclosing confidences he had in bed with her, his life turns upside-down. But Nick is good in what he does for the mortgage.
 

There Will Be Blood

Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Barry Del Sherman, Dillon Freasier, Paul Dano, Ciarán Hinds
Genre: Drama
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8.1 (229,907 votes)
Release: Apr 2008
Summary: Unmistakably a shot at greatness, Paul Thomas Anderson's "There Will Be Blood" succeeds in wild, explosive ways. The film digs into nothing less than the sources of peculiarly American kinds of ambition, corruption, and industry--and makes exhilarating cinema from it all. Although inspired by Upton Sinclair's 1927 novel "Oil!", Anderson has crafted his own take on the material, focusing on a black-eyed, self-made oilman named Daniel Plainview (Daniel Day-Lewis), whose voracious appetite for oil turns him into a California tycoon in the early years of the 20th century. The early reels are a mesmerizing look at the getting of oil from the ground, an intensely physical process that later broadens into Plainview's equally indomitable urge to control land and power. Curious, diverting episodes accumulate during Plainview's rise: a mighty derrick fire (a bravura opportunity that Anderson, with the aid of cinematographer Robert Elswit, does not fail to meet), a visit from a long-lost brother (Kevin J. O'Connor), the ongoing involvement of Plainview's poker-faced adoptive son (Dillon Freasier). As the film progresses, it gravitates toward Plainview's rivalry with the local representative of God, a preacher named Eli Sunday (brimstone-spitting Paul Dano); religion and capitalism are thus presented not so much as opposing forces but as two sides of the same coin. And the worm in the apple here is less man's greed than his vanity. Anderson's offbeat take on all this--exemplified by the astonishing musical score by Jonny Greenwood--occasionally threatens to break the film apart, but even when it founders, it excites. As for Daniel Day-Lewis, his performance is Olivier-like in its grand scope and its attention to details of behavior; Plainview speaks in the rum-rich voice of John Huston, and squints with the wariness of Walter Huston. It's a fearsome performance, and the engine behind the film's relentless power. "--Robert Horton"
 

There's Something About Mary

Director: Bobby Farrelly, Peter Farrelly
Starring: Ben Stiller, Cameron Diaz, Matt Dillon, Lee Evans, Chris Elliott
Genre: Thrillers
Studio: 20th Century Fox
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.1 (172,069 votes)
Release: Feb 2005
Summary: "There's Something About Mary" is one of the funniest movies in years, recalling the days of the Zucker-Abraham-Zucker movies, in which (often tasteless) gags were piled on at a fierce rate. The difference is that cowriters and codirectors Bobby and Peter Farrelly have also crafted a credible story line and even tossed in some genuine emotional content. The Farrelly brothers' first two movies, "Dumb and Dumber" and "Kingpin", had some moments of uproarious raunch, but were uneven. With "Mary", they've created a consistently hilarious romantic comedy, made all the funnier by the fact that you know that they know that some of their gags go way over the line.
Cameron Diaz stars as Mary, every guy's ideal. Ben Stiller plays a high-school suitor still hung up on Mary years later; the obstacles standing between him and her include a number of psychotic suitors, a miserable little pooch, and, oh yeah, a murder charge. The Farrellys' admittedly simplistic camera work, which adapts easily to a TV screen, and the fact that you'll likely laugh yourself so silly over certain scenes you'll want to replay them to see what you were missing while you were busy convulsing, make this a perfect video movie. "--David Kronke"
 

They Live

Director: John Carpenter
Starring: Roddy Piper, Keith David, Meg Foster, George 'Buck' Flower, Peter Jason
Genre: Science Fiction
Studio: Image Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8
Release: Mar 1998
Summary: Nada, a down-on-his-luck construction worker, discovers a pair of special sunglasses. Wearing them, he is able to see the world as it really is: people being bombarded by media and government with messages like "Stay Asleep", "No Imagination", "Submit to Authority". Even scarier is that he is able to see that some usually normal-looking people are in fact ugly aliens in charge of the massive campaign to keep humans subdued.
 

The Thing

Director: Matthijs van Heijningen Jr.
Starring: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Joel Edgerton, Ulrich Thomsen, Eric Christian Olsen, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje
Genre: Horror, Mystery, Sci-Fi
Studio: Morgan Creek Productions
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.5 (11,829 votes)
Release: Oct 2011
Summary: Paleontologist Kate Lloyd is invited by Dr. Sandor Halvorson to join his team who have found something extraordinary. Deep below the Arctic ice, they have found an alien spacecraft that has been there for perhaps 100,000 years. Not far from where the craft landed, they find the remains of the occupant. It's cut out of the ice and taken back to their camp but as the ice melts, the creature reanimates and not only begins to attack them but manages to infect them, with team members devolving into the alien creature.
 

The Thing

Director: John Carpenter
Starring: Kurt Russell, Wilford Brimley, T.K. Carter, David Clennon, Donald Moffat
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Studio: Universal Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.2 (61,138 votes)
Release: Oct 2004
Summary: Howard Hawks's original 1951 production of "The Thing from Another World" can be glimpsed playing on a TV that fateful October evening in John Carpenter's blockbuster hit, "Halloween" (1978). A few years later, Carpenter reteamed with his "Escape from New York" star Kurt Russell to do a remake. But while the first movie version of "The Thing" was in atmospheric black and white, Carpenter's 1982 version is in widescreen, full color, and features some of the most revoltingly explicit, surreally imaginative special effects (courtesy of FX-meister Rob Bottin) that have ever been seen on the screen. Researchers in the remote Antarctic dig up the remains of a spacecraft that has long been frozen in the ice. But the alien life unthaws and infects the living (not only humans but sled dogs too), living and gestating inside them. (This horrific concept was also explored in the two versions of "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" and the "Alien" movies.) This "Thing" is chilling in every sense of the word, with plenty of terrifying, adrenaline-pumping moments that build it to a powerful and shockingly nihilistic conclusion. It's a harsh and uncompromising movie (hewing more closely to the original 1930s story "Who Goes There?")--so much so that it probably never would have been given a green-light by any studio in the more cautious and doggedly upbeat 1990s. "--Jim Emerson"
 

The Thing from Another World

Director: Christian Nyby, Howard Hawks
Starring: Kenneth Tobey, Margaret Sheridan, Robert Cornthwaite, Douglas Spencer, James Young
Genre: Horror, Sci-Fi
Studio: Turner Home Ent
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.3 (12,826 votes)
Release: Aug 2003
Summary: With its modest special effects, lean plot, and small cast of lesser stars, this 1951 thriller remains a sturdy blueprint for fusing horror and science fiction. The formula has been employed countless times since, fleshed out with more extensive and elaborate production values, and manned by higher profiled marquee names, but the results have yet to improve on "The Thing from Another World", Howard Hawks's lone foray into sci-fi.
The story begins as military airmen are dispatched to a remote Arctic research station where scientists have detected the crash of a spacecraft. An effort to retrieve the saucer-shaped vehicle fails, but the team returns to the station with the frozen body of its sole occupant. When the extraterrestrial pilot is accidentally thawed, the crew, headed by a tough-talking pilot (Kenneth Tobey), grapples with a massive, chlorophyll-based humanoid (James Arness) thirsty for blood and in no mood for galactic diplomacy.
Hawks takes only a production credit for this low-budget exercise, but his filmmaking style transcends Christian Nyby's nominal direction: rapid-fire, overlapping dialogue, an ensemble of comrades whose professionalism is tempered by wisecracks, and unsentimental female characters (embodied by feisty romantic interest Margaret Sheridan) recall Hawks's signature works, while propelling the plot over any potential gaps in credibility. It's hardly surprising, then, that "The Thing from Another World" remains among the most influential science fiction movies ever shot, or that it remains exciting entertainment a half century later. "--Sam Sutherland"
 

The Thing: Terror Takes Shape

Director: Michael Matessino
Starring: John Carpenter, Kurt Russell, Rob Bottin
Genre: Documentary
Studio: Universal Studios Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.4 (285 votes)
Release: Oct 1998
Summary: On the DVD of The Thing you'll find this making-of documentary, that was put together almost twenty years later. While this does indulge in the silly gimmick of every chapter name utilizing the title card of the film itself, it is an excellently put together, very entertaining and quite informative piece. It consists of interviews with cast and crew, both groups having plenty to say and being a joy to listen to, behind-the-scenes footage, concept art/examples of how stuff did look or could have and finally clips from the movie, as well as from a couple of others. A specific highlight is Rob Bottin, whose hard work(and I mean that, he actually went to the hospital from exhaustion after they wrapped) helped make the piece as amazing as it was and is. He did just about all of the special effects, and he's a blast to listen to and watch. A comic book fan who was in his early twenties when he worked on the production, he's got a certain manic enthusiasm to him. He is a lot of fun, for both the anecdotes and the breakdown of some of what he created. In general you get to hear a lot about how it was on set, and how they achieved the many tricky aspects. It never becomes too technical to follow for people who don't live and breathe Hollywood, and it never lingers too long. Coming in at 83 minutes, feature-length, almost an hour and a half, this manages to remain worth the energy and time spent on it, throughout. The pacing is spot-on. There is a little love-fest going on, but mostly, it stays on point. I would say that for anyone into John Carpenter and this of his directorial efforts in particular, this alone is reason enough for getting the disc. I recommend this to any fan of him, anyone else who was employed on it, and the silver screen release itself.
 

Thirteen

Director: Catherine Hardwicke
Starring: Evan Rachel Wood, Nikki Reed, Vanessa Anne Hudgens, Holly Hunter, Brady Corbet
Genre: Biography, Drama
Studio: 20th Century Fox
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.9 (49,489 votes)
Release: Nov 2003
Summary: A gut-wrenching portrait of adolescence, "Thirteen" is made all the more powerful because it was co-written by a genuine teenage girl, Nikki Reed, who also co-stars in the movie. Tracy (Evan Rachel Wood), a serious good student, finds herself needing to express her anger and resentment at her fractured family life. To rebel, she pursues a friendship with the reckless, alluring Evie (Reed), who seems to have all the cocksure freedom that Tracy desires. What follows is both harrowing and compelling: Tracy becomes enmeshed in a relationship with Evie that empowers Tracy and drags her deeper into the misery she wants to escape--and terrifies her mother (Holly Hunter), who struggles desperately to hold on to her daughter's love. "Thirteen" makes every step on this path utterly convincing, due to the vivid script, energized direction, and astonishingly alive performances from Hunter, Reed, and especially Wood. Jolting, sad, and mesmerizing. "--Bret Fetzer"
 

This Film Is Not Yet Rated

Director: Kirby Dick
Starring: Kimberly Peirce, Jon Lewis, David Ansen, Martin Garbus, Wayne Kramer, Paul Dergarabedian, Kevin Smith, John Waters, Matt Stone, Richard Heffner, Bingham Ray, Joel Federman, Kirby Dick, Jay Rosenzweig, Paul Huebl, Clark Baker, Becky Altringer, Cheryl Howell, Cookie Schwartz, Lindsey Howell, Jay Landers, Stephen Farber, Dottie Hamilton, Maria Bello, Mark Urman, Allison Anders, Mary Harron, Jamie Babbit, Joan Graves, Joann Yatabe, Darren Aronofsky, Theresa Webb, Michael Tucker, David L. Robb, Lawrence Lessig, Anthony 'Tony' Hey, Barry Freeman, Arleen Bates, Matt Ioakimedes, Jane Worden, Scott Young, Howard Fridkin, Atom Egoyan, Rachel Blanchard, Michael McClellan, James Wall, Eddie Schmidt, Kirsten Johnson, Javorn Drummond, Will H. Hays, Eric Johnston, Richard Nixon, J. Parnell Thomas, Jack Valenti, Tom Brokaw, Walter Cronkite, Ann Curry, Dan Rather
Genre: Documentary
Studio: Independent Film Channel (IFC)
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6
Release: Jan 2006
Summary: Kirby Dick's provocative documentary investigates the secretive and inconsistent process by which the Motion Picture Association of America rates films, revealing the organization's underhanded efforts to control culture. Dick questions whether certain studios get preferential treatment and exposes the discrepancies in how the MPAA views sex and violence.
 

This Is 40

Director: Judd Apatow
Starring: Paul Rudd, Leslie Mann, Maude Apatow, Iris Apatow, Jason Segel
Genre: Comedy
Studio: Apatow Productions
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.3 (26,311 votes)
Release: Dec 2012
Summary: A look at the lives of Pete and Debbie a few years after the events of Knocked Up.
 

This Is England

Director: Shane Meadows
Starring: Thomas Turgoose, Stephen Graham, Jo Hartley, Andrew Shim, Vicky McClure, Joseph Gilgun, Perry Benson, Andrew Ellis
Genre: Drama, Foreign, Indie, Crime
Studio: Big Arty Productions
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7
Release: Jul 2007
Summary: This is England: Mods, New Romantics, and Skinheads are the major youth sub-cultures of this very English summer of 1983 and young 12-year-old Shaun is left wandering aimlessly alone and lost during the start of his school holidays, until his chance meeting with Woody and his fun and friendly Skinhead pack. Finding a new lease of life; girls, parties, Ben Sherman shirts, Doc Martin boots and shaven hairstyles young Shaun is welcomed, life during this summer holiday has got a whole lot better. That is until Combo arrives on the scene bitter, dangerous, racist, militant and psychotic life for young Shaun has just approached his first major crossroads. This is England is a look back at the early eighties of British working-class life through the eyes of young Shaun and his new gang, and dealing with the bitterness of outside influences such as racism and xenophobia, of mass unemployment and the fall out of the Falkland's War; Thatcher's Britain: Did we ever have it so good? When you see Shaun, ask Him.
 

This is Spinal Tap

Director: Rob Reiner
Starring: Fran Drescher, Christopher Guest, Bruno Kirby, Patrick Macnee, Michael McKean
Genre: Comedy, Music
Studio: MGM (Video & DVD)
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8.0 (76,231 votes)
Release: Sep 2000
Summary: Director Marty DiBergi (Rob Reiner) solemnly alerts us to the glory that was Spinal Tap in his introduction to this "rockumentary" about the legendary British heavy-metal group, featuring lead guitarist Nigel Tufnel (Christopher Guest), lead singer David St. Hubbins (Michael McKean), bassist Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer), and a succession of drummers whose careers were cut short by spontaneously combusting on their stool, drowning in somebody else's vomit, or otherwise perishing in untimely fashion. Under DiBergi's studious interrogation, the band and their familiars retrace the band's evolution from head-bopping Mersey Beat poseurs to head-banging metal poseurs, each change in musical direction or tonsorial chic having little effect on the surviving trio's sublime idiocy. For, as St. Hubbins (he's the "deep" one, relatively speaking) sagely observes, "It's such a fine line between stupid and clever."
Happily for us, director Reiner, who developed the underlying story line with Guest and former Credibility Gap pranksters McKean and Shearer, stays squarely on the right side of the line, even as his writer-actors remain hilariously trapped on the other side. In lieu of a formal shooting script, the quartet created an extensive and detailed band history ripe with the sort of dead-pan detail that hard-core rock historians and screwball aficionados will savor on countless replays; with the three Tap members also musicians themselves, the "band" developed its stage act under the unsuspecting noses of L.A. club denizens, who accepted them as just as loud, flashy, sexist, and obvious as any other mullet-tressed, leather-garbed brigade of guitar slingers, circa 1984. The resulting footage thus manages to lob its punch lines and build its characters (including some thinly veiled character assassinations of various industry folks) with a loose, tossed-away verve rooted in the improvisational approach. "This Is Spinal Tap" remains the funniest, and most truthful, look at rock culture ever filmed and a personal best for all involved. "--Sam Sutherland"
 

This Is the End

Director: Seth Rogen, Evan Goldberg
Starring: Jonah Hill, James Franco, Rihanna, Emma Watson, Jason Segel, Seth Rogen, Jay Baruchel, Aziz Ansari, David Krumholtz, Martin Starr, Mindy Kaling, Danny McBride, Craig Robinson, Michael Cera, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Paul Rudd, Channing Tatum, Kevin Hart
Genre: Comedy, Fantasy
Studio: Columbia Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: R
Release: Jun 2013
Summary: All Jay Baruchel expected coming to LA was a fun time with Seth Rogen with all the wild partying to have both by themselves and at James Franco's housewarming party. Suddenly, the Rapture hits and the Biblical Apocalypse has begun. Now, Jay and Seth are desperately sheltering in James' house for rescue along with a few other friends. Together, they must band together to attempt to survive the end of the world, only for Jay to find that they are all too dumb and superficial to do it until they discover the only way out.
 

This Means War

Director: McG
Starring: Reese Witherspoon, Chris Pine, Tom Hardy, Til Schweiger, Chelsea Handler
Genre: Action, Comedy, Romance
Studio: Overbrook Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6.3 (84,449 votes)
Release: Feb 2012
Summary: Two CIA agents, Tuck and Frank who are also best friends, have been benched because someone's after them. Tuck is divorced with a son whom he's not close to and Frank is a ladies man. Tuck decides to try and find someone so he places his profile on a dating website. Lauren, a woman also looking for a guy sees tuck's profile and goes with him. She later bumps into Frank and he hits on her and she goes out with him. she's intrigued by both of them. When they learn that they're dating the same girl, they agree to let her choose. But both can't help but use their skills to keep tabs on her and each other. And also sabotage each others dates with her.
 

This Must Be the Place

Director: Paolo Sorrentino
Starring: Sean Penn, Frances McDormand, Judd Hirsch, Eve Hewson, Kerry Condon, Harry Dean Stanton, Joyce Van Patten, David Byrne, Olwen Fouéré, Shea Whigham
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Studio: Indigo Film
My Rating:
Rated: R
Release: Nov 2012
Summary: Cheyenne, a wealthy former rock star (Penn), now bored and jaded in his retirement embarks on a quest to find his father's persecutor, an ex-Nazi war criminal now hiding out in the U.S. Learning his father is close to death, he travels to New York in the hope of being reconciled with him during his final hours, only to arrive too late. Having been estranged for over 30 years, it is only now in death that he learns the true extent of his father's humiliation in Auschwitz at the hands of former SS Officer Aloise Muller - an event he is determined to avenge. So begins a life-altering journey across the heartland of America to track down and confront his father's nemesis. As his quest unfolds, Cheyenne is reawakened by the people he encounters and his journey is transformed into one of reconciliation and self discovery. As his date with destiny arrives and he tracks down Muller, Cheyenne must finally decide if it is redemption he seeks.
 

Thor

Director: Kenneth Branagh
Starring: Natalie Portman, Chris Hemsworth, Anthony Hopkins, Stellan Skarsgard, Rene Russo
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.0 (262,958 votes)
Release: Sep 2011
Summary: The warrior Thor (Hemsworth) is cast out of the fantastic realm of Asgard by his father Odin (Hopkins) for his arrogance and sent to Earth to live among humans. Falling in love with scientist Jane Foster (Portman) teaches Thor much-needed lessons, and his new-found strength comes into play as a villain from his homeland sends dark forces toward Earth.
 

Thor: The Dark World

Director: Alan Taylor
Starring: Chris Hemsworth, Natalie Portman, Tom Hiddleston, Idris Elba, Jaimie Alexander, Stellan Skarsgård, Zachary Levi, Christopher Eccleston, Adewale Akinnuoye-Agbaje, Kat Dennings, Tadanobu Asano, Rene Russo, Anthony Hopkins, Clive Russell, Stan Lee, Chris O'Dowd, Tony Curran, Talulah Riley, Richard Brake, Richard Wharton, Chris Evans, Ophelia Lovibond, Benicio del Toro, Ray Stevenson, Alice Krige, Jonathan Howard
Genre: Action, Adventure, Fantasy
Studio: Marvel Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Release: Nov 2013
Summary: Thor fights to restore order across the cosmos… but an ancient race led by the vengeful Malekith returns to plunge the universe back into darkness. Faced with an enemy that even Odin and Asgard cannot withstand, Thor must embark on his most perilous and personal journey yet, one that will reunite him with Jane Foster and force him to sacrifice everything to save us all.
 

Three Amigos

Director: John Landis
Starring: Steve Martin, Chevy Chase, Martin Short, Jr. Jorge Cervera, Candy Castillo
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Western
Studio: Hbo Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 6.2 (36,020 votes)
Release: Dec 1986
Summary: Three Western stars (Martin Short, Steve Martin, Chevy Chase) from Hollywood silent films go to Mexico for what they assume will be a publicity appearance, and find they've actually been summoned to fight a local bandit. John Landis directed this 1986 comedy with self-conscious artifice, and it's hard to get into his self-congratulatory joke. Even the three main stars, brilliant comics all, can't sustain anything funny in it. "--Tom Keogh"
 

Three O'Clock High

Director: Phil Joanou
Starring: Casey Siemaszko, Annie Ryan, Richard Tyson, Stacey Glick, Jonathan Wise
Genre: Comedy
Studio: Universal Studios
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.9 (5,734 votes)
Release: Sep 2003
Summary: A high school nerd, Jerry Mitchell (Siemaszko) is assigned to write a piece for the school paper about new boy Buddy Revell (Tyson), who is rumored to be a psychopathic nutcase. When Jerry accidentally touches Buddy, he says that they must fight in the parking lot at 3pm. Jerry will just about do anything to avoid the confrontation.
 

Tideland

Director: Terry Gilliam
Starring: Jodelle Ferland, Janet McTeer, Brendan Fletcher, Jeff Bridges, Jennifer Tilly, Dylan Taylor, Wendy Anderson, Sally Crooks
Genre: Fantasy, Drama, Thriller, Science Fiction
Studio: Revolver Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8
Release: Oct 2006
Summary: Pre-teen Jeliza-Rose's parents are hopeless drug addicts. When pa, rocker Noah, finds ma OD's, he fears to be charged of homicide and takes her along to his ma's place, in a desolate country region. With Noah passed out, the girl mentally transfers to a fantasy worlds she and her doll heads enter magically. In its adventures she also stars the crazy locals, notably Dell, her domineering hag ma and adult, but retarded brother Dickens.
 

Time Bandits

Director: Terry Gilliam
Starring: John Cleese, Michael Palin, Sean Connery, David Warner, Craig Warnock
Genre: Thrillers
Studio: IMAGE ENTERTAINMENT
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 6.9 (32,290 votes)
Release: Feb 2011
Summary: Young Kevins daydreams burst into astonishing and hilarious life when a band of time-traveling little men come crashing through his bedroom wardrobe and carry him off on an unbelievable crime spree, weaving through the greatest and strangest moments of history. The pint-sized plunderers filch from a neurotic Napoleon (Ian Holm), a dim-witted Robin Hood (John Cleese) and a heroic King Agamemnon (Sean Connery), leading to a showdown with the dark forces of Evil (David Warner)...all while keeping just one precarious step ahead of the wrath of The Supreme Being himself!Producer/Director/Co-writer Terry Gilliam (Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Brazil) teams with many of his comic-genius cohorts from Monty Python to bring this laugh-out-loud modern fairy tale-adventure to life.
 

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

Director: Tomas Alfredson
Starring: Mark Strong, John Hurt, Zoltán Mucsi, Péter Kálloy Molnár, Ilona Kassai
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Studio: Studio Canal
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.5 (15,342 votes)
Release: Jan 2012
Summary: In the early 1970s during the Cold War, the head of British Intelligence, Control, resigns after an operation in Budapest, Hungary goes badly wrong. It transpires that Control believed one of four senior figures in the service was in fact a Russian agent - a mole - and the Hungary operation was an attempt to identify which of them it was. Smiley had been forced into retirement by the departure of Control, but is asked by a senior government figure to investigate a story told to him by a rogue agent, Ricky Tarr, that there was a mole. Smiley considers that the failure of the Hungary operation and the continuing success of Operation Witchcraft (an apparent source of significant Soviet intelligence) confirms this, and takes up the task of finding him. Through the efforts of Peter Guillam, Smiley obtains information that eventually leads him to Jim Prideaux, the agent at the heart of the Hungary fiasco...
 

The To Do List

Director: Maggie Carey
Starring: Christopher Mintz-Plasse, Aubrey Plaza, Rachel Bilson, Clark Gregg, Alia Shawkat, Andy Samberg, Connie Britton, Bill Hader, Donald Glover, Johnny Simmons, Scott Porter, Nolan Gould, Adam Pally, Sarah Steele
Genre: Comedy
Studio: 3 Arts Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 5.7 (8,789 votes)
Release: Jul 2913
Summary: Feeling pressured to become more sexually experienced before she goes to college, Brandy Klark makes a list of things to accomplish before hitting campus in the fall.
 

Tommy Boy

Director: Peter Segal
Starring: Chris Farley, David Spade, Brian Dennehy, Bo Derek, Dan Aykroyd
Genre: Thrillers
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.8 (43,670 votes)
Release: Nov 1999
Summary: The late Chris Farley teams up with his "Saturday Night Live" pal David Spade for this road comedy about a perpetual screwup, Tommy Callahan Jr. (Farley), who tries to save the auto-parts store owned by his late father (Brian Dennehy). The latter's dry-witted number cruncher (Spade) reluctantly joins the loud, awkward, but well-meaning Tommy in the mission, which is threatened behind the scenes by his dad's widow (Bo Derek). The film is sporadically funny, but as with most movies starring TV comics, some vital energy in the stars seems unnaturally suppressed. Still, the film is worth a visit if you want to turn off your brain awhile. "--Tom Keogh"
 

Too Big to Fail

Director: Curtis Hanson
Starring: Topher Grace, Paul Giamatti, James Woods, Matthew Modine, Billy Crudup, William Hurt, Tony Shalhoub, Bill Pullman, Cynthia Nixon, Edward Asner
Genre: Drama
Studio: HBO Studios
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.2 (6,727 votes)
Release: May 2011
Summary: Based on the bestselling book by Andrew Ross Sorkin, 'Too Big to Fail' offers an intimate look at the epochal financial crisis of 2008 and the powerful men and women who decided the fate of the world's economy in a matter of a few weeks.
 

Top Gear: The Worst Car in the History of the World

Director: Various
Starring: Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond, James May, Ben Collins
Genre: Television
Studio: BBC Warner
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 8.7 (31,209 votes)
Release: Nov 2012
Summary: Everyone has an opinion on bad cars. Now it’s time to hear the ones that really count...ours. As it’s the worst car in the history of the WORLD, we’re on our travels to name and shame the most rubbish car from a manufacturer which, frankly, should have known better.

But, it’s not all about hateful cars. You have to revel in some good ones to appreciate the stinkers. We argue over the great and the awful from Peugeot, Ford, Mahindra, FSO, Alfa Romeo, Rolls Royce, Porsche, Citroen, Peugeot, Saab...and many more.
 

Top Secret!

Director: David Zucker, Jerry Zucker, Jim Abrahams
Starring: Val Kilmer, Lucy Gutteridge, Peter Cushing, Jeremy Kemp, Christopher Villiers, Warren Clarke, Harry Ditson, Jim Carter, Eddie Tagoe, Omar Sharif, Tristram Jellinek, Billy J. Mitchell, Ian McNeice
Genre: Comedy
Studio: Paramount Home Entertainment
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 1
Release: Jun 1984
Summary: Parody of WWII spy movies in which an American rock and roll singer becomes involved in a Resistance plot to rescue a scientist imprisoned in East Germany.
 

Total Recall

Director: Len Wiseman
Starring: Colin Farrell, Kate Beckinsale, Jessica Biel, Bryan Cranston, Bokeem Woodbine
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi, Thriller
Studio: Total Recall
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.3 (44,745 votes)
Release: Aug 2012
Summary: For a factory worker named Douglas Quaid, even though he's got a beautiful wife who he loves, the mind-trip sounds like the perfect vacation from his frustrating life - real memories of life as a super-spy might be just what he needs. But when the procedure goes horribly wrong, Quaid becomes a hunted man as he finds himself on the run from the police.
 

Totally Bill Hicks

Director: Rupert Edwards
Starring: Bill Hicks, Richard Belzer, Eric Bogosian, Kevin Booth, George Bush
Genre: Comedy, Documentary
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.5 (592 votes)
Release: Feb 1994
Summary: United Kingdom released, PAL/Region 2 DVD: it WILL NOT play on standard US DVD player. You need multi-region PAL/NTSC DVD player to view it in USA/Canada: LANGUAGES: English ( Dolby Digital Stereo ), English ( Subtitles ), SPECIAL FEATURES: Interactive Menu, Scene Access, SYNOPSIS: The tragic death of the outspoken comedian Bill Hicks, at just 32, cut short the career of a man who had proved himself as having one of the most distinctive voices in comedy. Uncompromising and outrageous Hicks was a sex, drugs and rock 'n' roll comedian. Passionate about his work, his comedy was built on conviction, setting him apart from all other stand-up comedians. This DVD contains two programmes: Revelations: Hicks' last live performance, a sell out show at the Dominion Theatre It's Just A Ride: A celebration of Hicks' comedy including interviews with Eddie Izzard, Sean Hughes, Jay Leno, David Letterman, his fans as well as friends and family.
 

The Town

Director: Ben Affleck
Starring: Ben Affleck, Jeremy Renner, Jon Hamm, Blake Lively, Rebecca Hall
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Studio: Warner Bros. Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.6 (178,745 votes)
Release: Dec 2010
Summary: The Charlestown neighborhood of Boston is renowned for churning out a high number of armed robbers, generation after generation. These robbers never leave their Charlestown life on their own volition, the neighborhood where there is an unwritten code to protect that lifestyle. Such robbers include friends Doug MacRay, James Coughlin, Albert 'Gloansy' Magloan and Desmond Elden. Doug and James in particular treat each other like family, as the Coughlins have realistically been as such to Doug since Doug's mother ran off and Doug's father, Stephen MacRay, was sent to prison. James' single mother sister, the drugged out Krista Coughlin, and Doug have a casual sexual relationship. The foursome carry out a mostly successful bank robbery, but due to circumstances take the bank manager, Claire Keesey, hostage for a short period before releasing her physically unharmed. They find out that Claire lives in Charlestown, so they want to ensure that she did not see anything that could incriminate them if they were to ever run into her. As such, Doug begins a personal relationship with her to find out what she knows and what she's told the police and the FBI, who have taken charge of the investigation. He learns that she has kept some information from the authorities for her own protection but information that could identify James in particular. But Doug slowly falls for her, as she does for him. Ultimately, Doug dreams about leaving his Charlestown life to be with Claire anywhere but there. But Doug has to try and keep his true identity from her, and keep the fact that he is seeing her from his colleagues. But leaving is not as easy as he would like as he and the gang are tasked with a big job by a local gangster named Fergie whether Doug likes it or not. And Adam Frawley, the FBI's lead investigator, comes into evidence that links the foursome to the bank robbery and a subsequent armored car heist, so is on their tail for evidence that will send them away dead or alive.
 

Toy Story

Director: John Lasseter
Starring: Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Annie Potts, John Ratzenberger, Don Rickles
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Studio: Disney*Pixar
My Rating:
Rated: G
Rating: 8.3 (328,989 votes)
Release: Nov 1995
Summary: There is greatness in film that can be discussed, dissected, and talked about late into the night. Then there is genius that is right in front of our faces--we smile at the spell it puts us into and are refreshed, and nary a word needs to be spoken. This kind of entertainment is what they used to call "movie magic," and there is loads of it in this irresistible computer animation feature. Just a picture of these bright toys reawaken the kid in us. Filmmaker John Lasseter thinks of himself as a storyteller first and an animator second, much like another film innovator, Walt Disney.

Lasseter's story is universal and magical: what do toys do when they're not played with? Cowboy Woody (voiced by Tom Hanks), Andy's favorite bedroom toy, tries to calm the other toys (some original, some classic) during a wrenching time of year--the birthday party, when newer toys may replace them. Sure enough, Space Ranger Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) is the new toy that takes over the throne. Buzz has a crucial flaw, though--he believes he's the real Buzz Lightyear, not a toy. Lasseter further scores with perfect voice casting, including Don Rickles as Mr. Potato Head and Wallace Shawn as a meek dinosaur. The director-animator won a special Oscar for "the development and inspired application of techniques that have made possible the first feature-length computer-animated film." In other words, the movie is great. --Doug Thomas
 

Toy Story 2

Director: John Lasseter
Starring: Tim Allen, Tom Hanks, Joan Cusack, Kelsey Grammer, Don Rickles
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Studio: Disney*Pixar
My Rating:
Rated: G
Rating: 7.9 (228,226 votes)
Release: May 2010
Summary: Andy heads off to cowboy camp leaving his toys to their own devices. Things shift into high gear when an obsessive toy collector named Al McWhiggin (owner of Al's Toy Barn) kidnaps Woody. At Al's apartment, Woody discovers that he is a highly valued collectible from a 1950s TV show called Woody's Roundup, and he meets the other prized toys from that show, Jessie the Cowgirl, Bullseye the Horse, and Stinky Pete the Prospector. Back at the scene of the crime, Buzz Lightyear and the other toys from Andy's room, Mr. Potato Head, Slinky Dog, Rex and Hamm spring into action to rescue their pal from winding up as a museum piece. The toys get into one predicament after another in their daring race to get Woody before Andy returns.

Bonus Features include: Director commentary, Toy Story 3 Sneak Peek: The Characters, Buzz Lightyear Mission Logs: International Space Station, Paths to Pixar: Technical Artists, Studio Stories: Toy Story 2 Sleep Deprivation Lab, Pinocchio, The Movie Vanishes, Pixar's Zoetrop, Celebrating our Friend Joe Ranft
 

Toy Story 3

Director: Lee Unkrich
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack
Genre: Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Studio: Disney*Pixar
My Rating:
Rated: G
Rating: 8.5 (285,902 votes)
Release: Nov 2010
Summary: Woody, Buzz and the whole gang are back. As their owner Andy prepares to depart for college, his loyal toys find themselves in daycare where untamed tots with their sticky little fingers do not play nice. So, it's all for one and one for all as they join Barbie's counterpart Ken, a thespian hedgehog named Mr. Pricklepants and a pink, strawberry-scented teddy bear called Lots-o'-Huggin' Bear to plan their great escape.
 

Toy Story of Terror

Director: Angus MacLane
Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, John Ratzenberger, Kristen Schaal, Michael Keaton, Joan Cusack, Carl Weathers, Wallace Shawn, Timothy Dalton, Don Rickles, Jodi Benson, Emily Hahn
Genre: Animation, Comedy, Family
Studio: Pixar Animation Studios
My Rating:
Rated: TV-G
Release: Oct 2013
Summary: What starts out as a fun road trip for the Toy Story gang takes an unexpected turn for the worse when the trip detours to a roadside motel. After one of the toys goes missing, the others find themselves caught up in a mysterious sequence of events that must be solved before they all suffer the same fate in this Toy Story of Terror.
 

Trading Places

Director: John Landis
Starring: Eddie Murphy, Dan Aykroyd, Jamie Lee Curtis, Denholm Elliott, Ralph Bellamy, Don Ameche, Paul Gleason, Kristin Holby
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 5.5 (5 votes)
Release: Jun 1983
Summary: A snobbish investor and a wily street con artist find their positions reversed as part of a bet by two callous millionaires.
 

Traffic

Director: Steven Soderbergh
Starring: Michael Douglas, Benicio Del Toro, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Jacob Vargas, Andrew Chavez
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Studio: Universal Studios
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.7 (130,525 votes)
Release: Jun 2002
Summary: Featuring a huge cast of chA modern day look at America's war on drugs told through four separate stories that are connected in one way or another. A conservative judge who's just been appointed as the US drug czar learns that his teenage honor student daughter is a drug addict. A beautiful trophy wife struggles to save her wealthy husband's drug business, while two DEA agents protect a witness with inside knowledge of the spouse's business. In Mexico, a slightly corrupt, yet dedicated cop struggles with his conscience when he learns that his new boss may not be the anti-drug official he made himself out to be.
 

Trainspotting

Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd, Robert Carlyle
Genre: Crime, Drama
Studio: Walt Disney Video
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8.2 (280,986 votes)
Release: Jul 1995
Summary: With its hallucinatory visions of crawling dead babies and a grungy plunge into the filthiest toilet in Scotland, you might not think "Trainspotting" could have been one of the best movies of 1996, but Danny Boyle's film about unrepentant heroin addicts in Edinburgh is all that and more. That doesn't make it everybody's cup of tea (so unsuspecting viewers beware), but the film's blend of hyperkinetic humor and real-life horror is constantly fascinating, and the entire cast (led by Ewan McGregor and "Full Monty" star Robert Carlyle) bursts off of the screen in a supernova of outrageous energy. Adapted by John Hodge from the acclaimed novel by Irving Welsh, the film was a phenomenal hit in England, Scotland, and (to a lesser extent) the U.S. For all of its comedic vitality and invigorating filmmaking, the movie is no ode to heroin, nor is it a straight-laced cautionary tale. "Trainspotting" is just a very honest and well-made film about the nature of addiction, and it doesn't pull any punches when it is time to show the alternating pleasure and pain of substance abuse. "--Jeff Shannon"
 

Trance

Director: Danny Boyle
Starring: James McAvoy, Rosario Dawson, Vincent Cassel, Tuppence Middleton, Danny Sapani, Lee Nicholas Harris, Sam Creed, Hamza Jeetooa, Ben Cura, Matt Cross, Kelvin Wise, Simon Kunz
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Studio: Pathé
My Rating:
Rated: R
Release: Apr 2013
Summary: A fine art auctioneer mixed up with a gang joins forces with a hypnotherapist to recover a lost painting. As boundaries between desire, reality and hypnotic suggestion begin to blur the stakes rise faster than anyone could have anticipated.
 

Transcendent Man

Director: Robert Barry Ptolemy
Starring: Tom Abate, Hugo De Garis, Peter Diamandis
Genre: Documentary
Studio: DOCURAMA
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.0 (1,041 votes)
Release: May 2011
Summary: Technology will accelerate exponentially. Within 25 years, computers will have consciousness. Humans will soon be bionic. These predictions make bestselling author Ray Kurzweil (The Singularity Is Near) a prophetic genius to some, and a highly sophisticated crackpot to others. There is no question, however, that he has predicted the future with more accuracy than anyone else in history.

TRANSCENDENT MAN gets inside the mind of the award-winning scientist and A.I. specialist through extensive interviews with Kurzweil himself and revealing conversations with friends and colleagues. The film outlines Kurzweil s theory of singularity the point when change occurs so rapidly that humans will need to merge with technology to keep up while also chronicling Kurzweil s history, his myriad accomplishments (including 24 U.S. patents), and his unique vision of the future.
 

Transformers

Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Josh Duhamel, Megan Fox, Rachael Taylor, Tyrese Gibson, Jon Voight, John Turturro, Anthony Anderson, Peter Cullen, Mark Ryan, Hugo Weaving, Keith David, Kevin Dunn, Michael O'Neill, Julie White, Amaury Nolasco, Bernie Mac
Genre: Adventure, Action, Thriller, Science Fiction
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.1 (343,892 votes)
Release: Jul 2007
Summary: Young teenager Sam Witwicky becomes involved in the ancient struggle between two extraterrestrial factions of transforming robots, the heroic Autobots and the evil Decepticons. Sam holds the clue to unimaginable power and the Decepticons will stop at nothing to retrieve it.
 

Transformers: Dark of the Moon

Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, John Malkovich, Ken Jeong, Frances McDormand, Josh Duhamel, Tyrese Gibson, Hugo Weaving, Leonard Nimoy, John Turturro, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Patrick Dempsey, Alan Tudyk, Peter Cullen, Glenn Morshower, Charles Adler, Robert Foxworth, James Remar, Frank Welker, Jess Harnell, Tom Kenny, Reno Wilson, Ron Bottitta, Scott Krinsky, John Di Maggio, Julie White, Kevin Dunn, Keith Szarabajka, George Coe
Genre: Science Fiction, Action, Adventure
Studio: DreamWorks
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Release: Sep 2011
Summary: Sam Witwicky takes his first tenuous steps into adulthood while remaining a reluctant human ally of Autobot-leader Optimus Prime. The film centers around the space race between the USSR and the USA, suggesting there was a hidden Transformers role in it all that remains one of the planet's most dangerous secrets.
 

Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen

Director: Michael Bay
Starring: Shia LaBeouf, Megan Fox, Josh Duhamel, Rainn Wilson, Tyrese Gibson, John Turturro, Kevin Dunn, Julie White, Ramon Rodriguez, Isabel Lucas, Glenn Morshower, Hugo Weaving
Genre: Action, Adventure, Science Fiction
Studio: Dreamworks Video
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 5.9 (203,981 votes)
Release: Jun 2009
Summary: Sam Witwicky leaves the Autobots behind for a normal life. But when his mind is filled with cryptic symbols, the Decepticons target him and he is dragged back into the Transformers' war.
 

The Transporter

Director: Corey Yuen, Louis Leterrier
Starring: Jason Statham, Qi Shu, Matt Schulze, François Berléand, Ric Young
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Fox Home Entertainme
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.7 (146,519 votes)
Release: Oct 2003
Summary: Move over, Vin Diesel, because "The Transporter", Hong Kong action veteran Corey Yuen's English-language directorial debut, is revving up to steal your thunder. As the "other" top-billed action star to emerge in 2002, British hunk Jason Statham--previously seen in "Snatch", "Ghosts of Mars", and "The One"--plays a hard-driving courier for well-heeled underworld clients. He follows simple rules: (1) Stick to the deal; (2) Don't ask names; and (3) Don't look in the packages he transports. All's well until he violates rule 3, discovering a Chinese beauty (Qi Shu) in the trunk of his tricked-out BMW, and foiling a deadly plot to smuggle Chinese slaves through the port of Marseilles. The first hour is ass-kickin' fun, and the stuntwork is impressive throughout, even as the plot degenerates into a predictable series of bone-breaking showdowns. Statham boasts an appealing combination of brains "and" brawn, suggesting the suave versatility of a promising career. Coproduced by action auteur Luc Besson and filmed on dazzling French locations, "The Transporter" is an action fan's delight. "--Jeff Shannon"
 

Transporter 2

Director: Louis Leterrier
Starring: Jason Statham, Amber Valletta, Kate Nauta, Alessandro Gassman, Matthew Modine
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corporation
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 6.2 (94,237 votes)
Release: Jan 2006
Summary: "Transporter 2" knows what its audience wants and--like its title character--it delivers. This is a movie that has not only a fight choreographer but also a car stunt choreographer; a movie in which a female assassin wears nothing but a bra and panties because, presumably, additional clothing would be too cumbersome; a movie in which crashing through a concrete wall in order to leap over a four-lane street will not even rumple the hood of the hero's car; a movie in which a drunken supermodel, after her advances are chastely and gently rebuffed by the hero, says "Thanks for the respect--that's what I needed most"; a movie, in short, for those who liked the first "Transporter" but found it too subdued and character-driven. Jason Statham ("The Italian Job") reprises his role as Frank Martin, a perhaps overly diligent chauffer who will break bones if his duty is impeded. The sheer glee with which "Transporter 2" casts aside logic, probability, and the laws of physics is infectious. If the sequence in which Frank flips his car upside-down in order to detach the bomb attached to his undercarriage doesn't reduce you to intoxicated giggles, well...you're watching the wrong movie. "Transporter 2" is utterly shameless, unstoppably ridiculous, and completely enjoyable. Also featuring Amber Valetta ("Hitch"), Jason Flemyng ("Snatch"), and Matthew Modine. "--Bret Fetzer"
 

Transporter 3

Director: Olivier Megaton
Starring: Jason Statham, Robert Knepper, Natalya Rudakova, François Berléand, Jeroen Krabbé
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Lions Gate
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 5.9 (72,516 votes)
Release: Mar 2009
Summary: Jason Statham is back as Frank Martin, the Transporter, in this explosive third installment of the action-adventure series. This time, Frank is presented an offer he can’t refuse and ends up with a mysterious passenger and a dangerous destination - calling for a new machine and new rules. The stakes are bigger, the enemy is deadlier, and the action has never been hotter.
 

The Tree of Life

Director: Terrence Malick
Starring: Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain, Hunter McCracken, Laramie Eppler
Genre: Drama
Studio: Brace Cove Productions
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.2 (43,722 votes)
Release: Oct 2011
Summary: The impressionistic story of a Texas family in the 1950s. The film follows the life journey of the eldest son, Jack, through the innocence of childhood to his disillusioned adult years as he tries to reconcile a complicated relationship with his father (Brad Pitt). Jack (played as an adult by Sean Penn) finds himself a lost soul in the modern world, seeking answers to the origins and meaning of life while questioning the existence of faith.
 

Trekkies

Director: Roger Nygard
Starring: Denise Crosby, Frank D'Amico, Barbara Adams, Denis Bourguignon, David Greenstein
Genre: Documentary
Studio: Paramount
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 6.9 (3,657 votes)
Release: Nov 1999
Summary: In just under 90 minutes, this dynamic documentary manages to boldly go where a lot of "Star Trek" fans have gone before: into the heart of "Star Trek" fandom, where humanity blossoms into its most endearingly odd and bracingly positive manifestations. Are "Trekkies" (or "Trekkers") just a bunch of geeks, loners, and societal outcasts who've found their niche on the fandom convention circuit? This delightful film proves that the stereotypes are simultaneously valid and woefully myopic, because the people introduced here are only as strange as you make them. We could just as easily embrace them as ideal citizens of the United Federation of Planets, living Gene Roddenberry's fictional future on present-day Earth. Who's to say theirs is not a better world than ours?
Superbly directed by Roger Nygard and hosted by Denise Crosby (who played Tasha Yar on "Star Trek: The Next Generation"), the film offers splendid interview segments with all of the original "Star Trek" cast, and many from later "Trek" series, but the real story here lies with the devoted fans who are profiled with an equal balance of fascination, bemusement, and respect; they're a bit weird, to be sure, but these die-hard Trekkies are never unduly patronized. Instead, Crosby and Nygard respond as all "Trek" insiders have in the past: with astonished affection.
Filmed in 1996-97 at a variety of locations and conventions, "Trekkies" visits a vast array of Trekkers, Trekkies, and just plain folks who love the series and its pop-cultural progeny. Uplifting, thoughtful, comprehensive, and frequently hilarious, this good-natured film (sanctioned by Paramount without being subservient) is guaranteed to entertain fans and nonfans alike, and a proposed sequel would be wholeheartedly welcomed. "--Jeff Shannon"
 

Triangle

Director: Christopher Smith
Starring: Liam Hemsworth, Melissa George, Emma Lung, Rachael Carpani, Michael Dorman, Joshua McIvor, Henry Nixon
Genre: Horror
Studio: Icon Entertainment International
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 3
Release: Oct 2009
Summary: When Jess sets sail on a yacht with a group of friends, she cannot shake the feeling that there is something wrong. Her suspicions are realized when the yacht hits a storm and the group is forced to board a passing ocean liner to get to safety, a ship Jess is convinced she's been on before. The ship appears deserted, the clock on board has stopped, but they are not alone... Someone is intent on hunting them down, one by one. And Jess unknowingly holds the key to end the terror.
 

Trick 'r Treat

Director: Michael Dougherty
Starring: Anna Paquin, Brian Cox, Dylan Baker, Rochelle Aytes, Quinn Lord
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Studio: Warner Home Video
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 6
Release: Oct 2009
Summary: A creepy, darkly comic celebration of the scariest night of the year from producer BRYAN SINGER (director of X-Men and Superman Returns) and writer-director MICHAEL DOUGHERTY (co-scripter of X2 and Superman Returns). Trick ’R Treat takes the Creepshow/Tales from the Crypt approach to nefarious new depths with four interwoven tales set on Halloween night: a high school principal (DYLAN BAKER) moonlights as a vicious serial killer; the quest of a young virgin (ANNA PAQUIN) for that special someone takes a gruesome turn; a group of teens carries out a cruel prank with disastrous consequences; and a cantankerous old man (BRIAN COX) battles a mischievous trick-or-treating demon.
 

The Trip

Director: Michael Winterbottom
Starring: Steve Coogan, Rob Brydon, Claire Keelan, Margo Stilley, Rebecca Johnson
Genre: Comedy
Studio: British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC)
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.0 (8,284 votes)
Release: Oct 2011
Summary: When Steve Coogan is asked by The Observer to tour the country's finest restaurants, he envisions it as the perfect getaway with his beautiful girlfriend. But, when she backs out on him, he has no one to accompany him but his best friend and source of eternal aggravation, Rob Brydon.
 

The Triplets of Belleville

Director: Sylvain Chomet
Starring: Michèle Caucheteux, Jean-Claude Donda, Michel Robin, Monica Viegas, Béatrice Bonifassi
Genre: Thrillers
Studio: Sony Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.7 (30,401 votes)
Release: May 2004
Summary: Words cannot capture the delights of "The Triplets of Belleville", an astonishing animated movie from the mind of French director Sylvain Chomet. In fact, there are only a few spoken sentences in the entire film; most of the soundtrack is a mix of squeaks, barks, and the jazzy music of Benoit Charest. A bicyclist is kidnapped from the Tour de France by mysterious gangsters; his grandmother travels to the city of Belleville (which has a sardonic version of the Statue of Liberty in its harbor), where she tracks him down with the help of a musical trio gone to seed, the Belleville Triplets. This hand-drawn movie is unlike anything you'll see from Disney; every scene mixes the silent comedy of Jacques Tati and Buster Keaton--in which the world of objects subtly fights with living beings for mastery--and the bouncy hop of Betty Boop. Unique and mesmerizing. "--Bret Fetzer"
 

Triumph of the Will

Director: Leni Riefenstahl
Starring: Adolf Hitler, Max Amann, Martin Bormann, Hermann Goring, Hans Frank, Sepp Dietrich, Joseph Goebbels, Erich Raeder
Genre: Documentary, Foreign
Studio: Leni Riefenstahl-Produktion
My Rating:
Rated: NR
Rating: 7
Release: Mar 1935
Summary: Triumph of the Will (Triumph des Willens) is a filmed record of the 1934 Nazi Party Convention, in Nuremberg. No, it is more than just a record: it is an exultation of Adolf Hitler, who from the moment his plane descends from Valhalla-like clouds is visually characterized as a God on Earth. The "Jewish question" is disposed of with a few fleeting closeups; filmmaker Leni Riefenstahl prefers to concentrate on cheering crowds, precision marching, military bands, and Hitler's climactic speech, all orchestrated, choreographed and illuminated on a scale that makes Griffith and DeMille look like poverty-row directors. It has been alleged that the climactic rally, "spontaneous" Sieg-Heils and all, was pre-planned according to Riefenstahl's specifications, the better to take full advantage of its cinematic potential. Allegedly, propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels resented the presence and intrusion of a woman director, but finally had to admit that her images, achieved through the use of 30 cameras and 120 assistants, were worth a thousand speeches. Possibly the most powerful propaganda film ever made, Triumph of the Will is also, in retrospect, one of the most horrifying.
 

Troll Hunter

Director: Andre Ovredal
Starring: Otto Jespersen, Hans Morten Hansen, Tomas Alf Larsen, Johanna Mørck, Knut Nærum, Robert Stoltenberg, Glenn Erland Tosterud
Genre: Fantasy, Horror
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Release: Oct 2010
Summary: A group of students investigates a series of mysterious bear killings, but learns that there are much more dangerous things going on. They start to follow a mysterious hunter, learning that he is actually a troll hunter.
 

Tron

Director: Robert Meyer Burnett, Steven Lisberger
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Bruce Boxleitner, David Warner, Cindy Morgan, Barnard Hughes
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Studio: Walt Disney Video
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Rating: 6.7 (66,893 votes)
Release: Jan 2002
Summary: The surprising truth about Disney's 1982 computer-game fantasy is that it's still visually impressive (though technologically quaint by later high-definition standards) and a lot of fun. It's about a computer wizard named Flynn (Jeff Bridges) who is digitally broken down into a data stream by a villainous software pirate (David Warner) and reconstituted into the internal, 3-D graphical world of computers. It is there, in the blazingly colorful, geometrically intense landscapes of cyberspace, that Flynn joins forces with Tron (Bruce Boxleitner) to outmaneuver the Master Control program that holds them captive in the equivalent of a gigantic, infinitely challenging computer game. Disney's wizards used a variety of cinematic techniques and early-'80s state-of-the-art computer-generated graphics to accomplish their dynamic visual goals, and the result was a milestone in cyberentertainment, catering to technogeeks while providing a dazzling adventure for hackers and nonhackers alike. Appearing just in time to celebrate the nascent cyberpunk movement in science fiction, "Tron" received a decidedly mixed reaction when originally released, but has since become a high-tech favorite and a landmark in special effects, with a loyal following of fans. DVD is a perfect format for the movie's neon-glow color scheme, and the musical score by synthesizer pioneer Wendy Carlos is faithfully preserved on the digitally remastered soundtrack. "--Jeff Shannon"
 

Tron: Legacy

Director: Joseph Kosinski
Starring: Jeff Bridges, Garrett Hedlund, Olivia Wilde, Bruce Boxleitner
Genre: Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
Studio: Walt Disney Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Release: Apr 2011
Summary: Sam Flynn, the tech-savvy 27-year-old son of Kevin Flynn, looks into his father's disappearance and finds himself pulled into the same world of fierce programs and gladiatorial games where his father has been living for 20 years. Along with Kevin's loyal confidant, father and son embark on a life-and-death journey across a visually-stunning cyber universe that has become far more advanced and exceedingly dangerous.
 

Tropa de Elite (Elite Squad)

Director: José Padilha
Starring: Wagner Moura, André Ramiro, Caio Junqueira, Milhem Cortaz, Fernanda Machado
Genre: Action, Adventure
Studio: Zazen Produções
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 8
Release: Oct 2008
Summary: In 1997, before the visit of the pope to Rio de Janeiro, Captain Nascimento from BOPE (Special Police Operation Battalion) is assigned to eliminate the risks of the drug dealers in a dangerous slum nearby where the pope intends to be lodged. Captain Nascimento is trying to find a man to replace him because his wife is pregnant and he intends to quit the command and become a trainer of the new recruits. Meanwhile, the two idealistic friends Neto and Matias join the Military Police force expecting to become honest policemen and fight the criminals. However, they see only corruption, lack of competence and stupid bureaucracy in the Military Police, and after a serious incident in the Morro da Babilônia, they decide to join the BOPE. The lives of Capitain Nascimento, Neto and Matias are entwined along the next months, first in the tough training period and then in action against drug dealers...
 

Trouble Every Day

Director: Claire Denis
Starring: Vincent Gallo, Beatrice Dalle, Tricia Vessey, Alex Descas
Genre: Foreign, Horror
Studio: Siren Visual
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 6.0 (3,491 votes)
Release: Jul 2001
Summary: Trouble Every Day is a perverse and challenging tale, a uniquely sensual metaphorical dramatization of sexual obsession. Denis has earned her reputation as a critics' darling with visually compelling and thoughtful films like Beau Travail, and has dealt with similar dark subject matter in the serial killer drama I Can't Sleep. It's safe to say that, despite many esthetic similarities to her earlier films (elliptically presented narrative, little dialogue, sumptuously intimate visuals), Trouble represents new territory for the filmmaker. Denis is clearly unconcerned with genre conventions, and her film doesn't adhere to the traditional rhythms of the horror film. Her focus is not on suspense or narrative drive, but on insatiable lust as human disease and its analogous resolution in the consumption of human flesh. Vincent Gallo, with his grungy hangdog looks, and Beatrice Dalle, with her uniquely feral facial features, are perfectly cast as the afflicted carnivores. As their respective spouses, fragile beauty Tricia Vessey and stoic Alex Descas do solid work. The film's truly gruesome and extremely unnerving erotic encounter scenes, including Gallo's dalliance with a hotel chambermaid and especially Dalle's seduction of a young delinquent, push the film into new territory, literalizing sexual appetite in a visceral way. You expect Denis to cut away from the blood and gore, but she lingers on it like a lover cuddling up after sex. These scenes are powerful -- dark, erotic, and even funny, if viewed from the remote perspective Denis' approach fosters.
 

Troy

Director: Wolfgang Petersen
Starring: Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom, Diane Kruger, Brian Cox, Sean Bean, Brendan Gleeson, Saffron Burrows, Julie Christie, Rose Byrne, Garrett Hedlund, Jacob Smith, John Shrapnel, Siri Svegler, James Cosmo, Vincent Regan, Tyler Mane, Peter O'Toole, Eric Bana, Owain Yeoman
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Action, History
Studio: Warner Bros.
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.1 (233,398 votes)
Release: May 2004
Summary: In year 1250 B.C. during the late Bronze age, two emerging nations begin to clash. Paris, the Trojan prince, convinces Helen, Queen of Sparta, to leave her husband Menelaus, and sail with him back to Troy. After Menelaus finds out that his wife was taken by the Trojans, he asks his brother Agamemnom to help him get her back. Agamemnon sees this as an opportunity for power. So they set off with 1,000 ships holding 50,000 Greeks to Troy. With the help of Achilles, the Greeks are able to fight the never before defeated Trojans.
 

True Grit

Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Starring: Matt Damon, Jeff Bridges
Genre: Adventure, Drama, Western
Studio: Paramount Pictures
My Rating:
Rated: PG-13
Rating: 7.8 (157,331 votes)
Release: Jun 2011
Summary: Following the murder of her father by hired hand Tom Chaney, 14-year-old farm girl Mattie Ross sets out to capture the killer. To aid her, she hires the toughest U.S. marshal she can find, a man with "true grit," Reuben J. "Rooster" Cogburn. Mattie insists on accompanying Cogburn, whose drinking, sloth, and generally reprobate character do not augment her faith in him. Against his wishes, she joins him in his trek into the Indian Nations in search of Chaney. They are joined by Texas Ranger LaBoeuf, who wants Chaney for his own purposes. The unlikely trio find danger and surprises on the journey, and each has his or her "grit" tested.
 

Trust

Director: Hal Hartley
Starring: Adrienne Shelly, Martin Donovan, Merritt Nelson, John MacKay, Edie Falco
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Studio: Channel Four Films
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.5 (5,056 votes)
Release: Apr 2011
Summary: The unlikely relationship between a pregnant high school student and a brooding electronics repairman lies at the center of this droll comedy from writer-director Hal Hartley. Intelligent but unconventional, Maria (Adrienne Shelly) has more to worry about than her pregnancy, as her expectant state drives away her boyfriend and triggers a fatal heart attack in her father. Meanwhile, Matthew (Martin Donovan) has his own problems: an abusive father, a heightened sense of morality that prevents him from taking semi-lucrative television repair jobs, and a suicidal streak that causes him to carry around a potentially deadly grenade. The meeting of these troubled minds at first promises to be beneficial for both, but sours as they are forced to interact with each other's dysfunctional families. As in all of Hartley's pictures, the narrative is filtered through an amusingly detached sensibility that some may consider an acquired taste.
 

Tucker & Dale vs Evil

Director: Eli Craig
Starring: Tyler Labine, Alan Tudyk, Katrina Bowden, Jesse Moss, Philip Granger
Genre: Comedy, Horror
Studio: Eden Rock Media
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 7.7 (9,291 votes)
Release: Dec 2010
Summary: Two lovable West Virginian hillbillies, are headed to their "fixer-upper" vacation cabin to drink some beer, do some fishin', and have a good time. But when they run into a group of preppy college kids who assume from their looks that they must be in-bred, chainsaw wielding killers, Tucker & Dale's vacation takes a bloody & hilarious turn for the worse.
 

The Tunnel

Director: Carlos Ledesma
Starring: Bel Delia, Andy Rodereda, Steve Davis, Luke Arnold, Goran Kleut
Genre: Horror, Thriller, Drama
Studio: Distracted Media
My Rating:
Rated: R
Rating: 5.8 (9,274 votes)
Release: Jun 2011
Summary: An investigation into a government cover-up leads to a network of abandoned train tunnels deep beneath the heart of Sydney. As a journalist and her crew hunt for the story it quickly becomes clear the story is hunting them.
 

Turbo

Director: David Soren
Starring: Ryan Reynolds, Paul Giamatti, Michael Peña, Samuel L. Jackson, Luis Guzmán, Bill Hader, Snoop Dogg, Maya Rudolph, Ben Schwartz, Richard Jenkins, Ken Jeong, Michelle Rodriguez
Genre: Animation, Family, Adventure
Studio: DreamWorks Animation
My Rating:
Rated: PG
Release: Jul 2013
Summary: TURBO is a high-velocity 3D comedy about a snail who dares to dream big - and fast. After a freak accident infuses him with the power of super-speed, Turbo kicks into overdrive and embarks on an extraordinary journey to achieve the seemingly impossible: competing in the world's fastest race, the Indianapolis 500. With the help of his tricked-out streetwise snail crew, this ultimate underdog puts his heart and shell on the line to prove that no dream is too big, and no dreamer too small.
 

TV Junkie

Director: Michael Cain, Matt Radecki
Starring: Rick Kirkham, Tom Brokaw, James Brown, George Bush, Charles Dalaklis
Genre: Documentary
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 6
Release: Aug 2006
Summary: Rick Kirkham was a successful TV reporter, and could have been a major U.S. television profile if it hadn't been for his massive drug and alcohol abuse. Kirkham filmed his life every day with a video camera from the age of 14 years. On the basis of his video material the story of his life is told in this documentary.
 

Two Guys, a Girl and a Pizza Place

Starring: Traylor Howard, Ryan Reynolds, Richard Ruccolo, Suzanne Cryer, Nathan Fillion
Genre: Comedy
Studio: 20th Century Fox
My Rating:
Rated: Unrated
Rating: 7.2 (9,693 votes)
Release: Mar 1998
Summary: The lives and loves of three close friends - Pete, a neurotic architecture student, Berg, the laid-back pre-med, and Sharon, a tough girl with a soft center. Pete and Berg are roommates and students at a local Boston university, while Sharon struggles with her work and relationships.
 

Tyrannosaur

Director: Paddy Considine
Starring: Peter Mullan, Archie Lal, Jag Sanghera
Genre: Drama
Studio: Strand Releasing
My Rating:
Rated: NR
Rating: 7.5 (15,591 votes)
Release: Oct 2011
Summary: The story of Joseph, a man plagued by violence and a rage that is driving him to self-destruction. As Joseph's life spirals into turmoil, a chance at redemption appears in the form of Hannah, a Christian charity shop worker. Their relationship develops to reveal that Hannah is hiding a secret of her own with devastating consequences to both of their lives.