![]() ![]() When excavations on the Moon uncover one of those strange monoliths, the discovery spurs Earth to explore Jupiter. (Examples: mysterious black monoliths imitated by modern-day pranksters, and the line "Open the pod-bay door, Hal" when an astronaut begs a rebellious computer to let him back into the spaceship.) The story hints that space aliens accelerated the evolution of human intelligence and are inviting us to take the next big leap. It's a masterpiece by director Stanley Kubrick that added some memorable visuals and phrases to popular culture. And because it was made two years before the Hays Code enforced strict censorship on Hollywood, the ending can be unexpected.Ģ001: A Space Odyssey (1968) is a must-see classic, even for those who dislike science fiction. Although this drama has a prison-reformist slant, it avoids the cliché of portraying the inmates as the good guys and the warden as the bad guy. His girl pays regular visits and does more later. Tracy's character learns that in prison he's just another serial number, not a big shot. Davis plays his loyal girlfriend but is difficult to recognize at first because of her bleach-blonde hair and the absence of her later mannerisms. Tracy plays a flashy, arrogant gangster sentenced to the infamous New York state prison. Though fictional, this movie bookends They Shall Not Grow Old (2018), a masterfully restored documentary of the same period.Ģ0,000 Years in Sing Sing (1932) features two young stars soon destined for greater fame: Spencer Tracy and Bette Davis. The set design is over the top, including almost a mile of historically correct trenches. The carefully choreographed action is realistic, and the acting is superb. Co-writer and director Sam Mendes filmed the screenplay to simulate one continuous shot, although it does have a few disguised cuts. To avert the massacre, the soldiers must cross no man's land and sneak through enemy territory. Two British soldiers are sent on a nearly suicidal mission to stop two front-line battalions from charging into a trap. The gimmick was necessary because the movie itself is campy and hardly worth watching.ġ917 (2019) earns a place of honor alongside Wings (1927), All Quiet On the Western Front (1930), Paths of Glory (1957), and Gallipoli (1981) as the best World War I movies ever made. Seen today without filters, the ghosts are visible as red apparitions on a blue background. Depending on which filter the watcher employed to view the screen, the red-tinted ghosts either appeared or disappeared. The gimmick is that theater goers received actual cardboard viewers with red and blue filters and were instructed to use them when the black-and-white scenes were tinted blue. Northup's ordeal is a rare first-person account of slavery authored by an educated black man who was born a free American before falling into America's holocaust.ġ3 Ghosts (1960) is a gimmicky thriller about a haunted house whose malicious ghosts are visible to the inhabitants only through special goggles. ![]() When its authenticity is hard to watch, the camera does not waver, giving these skilled actors time to wear their roles like skin. British director Steve McQueen and writer John Ridley pull no punches in bringing this harrowing drama to the screen. British actor Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Northup, and Kenyan-Mexican actress Lupita Nyong'o won an Oscar for her supporting role as a young slave frequently used and abused by her master. It's based on the 1853 memoir by Solomon Northup, a free black Northerner who was kidnapped and sold into slavery in 1841. Although some critics dismiss it as a "message movie," and some scenes show behavior that should trigger a mistrial, its power is undeniable, and it earns its classic status.ġ2 Years a Slave fully deserves its Academy Awards for Best Picture and Adapted Screenplay of 2013. Director Sidney Lumet's camera angles, close-ups, and quick cuts heighten the tension as the arguments verge on violence. Marshall, Martin Balsam, Jack Klugman, and Ed Begley, but even the lesser known actors pull their weight in this masterpiece. The biggest star is Henry Fonda, who calmly plays the lone holdout against the other 11. Adapted from a 1954 TV drama about a murder trial, this tight film casts 12 skilled actors as the jurors who debate a young man's fate. Nearly the entire running time is confined to the jury deliberations, and the sense of confinement is deliberate. Or jump directly to a section heading by alphabetic letter:ġ2 Angry Men (1957) remains one of the greatest courtroom dramas actually, a jury-room drama, because only the first few minutes take place in court. To find a specific title: after page downloads, press Ctrl-F (or Cmd-F on Mac) ![]()
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