This is a harrowing and still very effective antiwar film that ranks with Lewis Milestone's epic All Quiet On The Western Front in its power.

One of Hawks's undisputed masterpieces, and a landmark in the screen depiction of gangsters.

In HIGH AND LOW Kurosawa succeeds in developing a highly visual structural style within the wide-screen format.

A cool indictment of television's near-irresistible pandering to the inner peeping tom.

Focusing strictly on stripped-down performances of great music and the charming chemistry between the two leads, it's a perfectly realized yet unassuming movie that deserves to find a big audience.

Allen has infused it with wit, a superb cast and his usual "the best direction is the least direction" style.

A warm and moving sleeper hit.

The one and only; an unqualified masterpiece and milestone.

One of the most powerful boxing films ever made.

A blood-curdling picture directed by Georges Franju at an even, distant pace that builds tension to an almost unbearable level.

One of the most harrowing, viscerally upsetting films ever made.

Never less than gripping.

A hilarious tongue-in-cheek crime comedy, one of the finest to come out of the Ealing Studios during their most prolific years.

Visually stunning adventure. (Review of Original Release)

Star Wars brought back for a new generation many of the most attractive elements of studio-era moviemaking, and it did so in breathless anthology form. For some young filmgoers this film acted as a doorway to the glory of the movies.

The French-language voice cast is first-rate, although the film will also be released in the U.S. in an English-language version featuring Sean Penn, Iggy Pop and Gena Rowlands in addition to Deneuve and Mastroianni.

Its loving exploration of the arcane workings of a closed society, that of wealthy, well-bred New Yorkers of the 1870s, has more in common than one might expect with Scorsese's earlier work, from "Mean Streets" through "Goodfellas."

Brutally memorable, The Deer Hunter is an emotionally draining production that draws a vivid portrait of its characters and their milieu--and succeeds in showing the devastating effect of the war on their lives, as well as their brave attempts at renewal. Unfortunately, the film falters when it comes to the larger questions of America's involvement in Vietnam.

For once, Carrey is more than merely tolerable. He's actually good, and the film that ebbs and flows around him is something you won't soon forget.

Rarely have six hours spent doing ANYTHING seemed so rewarding.

Fat City is both an extraordinarily realistic look at the bottom rungs of the fight game and a moving exploration of the human condition.

A tense and tightly plotted fictional thriller is based on real tactics used by the Stasi -- East Germany's secret police force -- to spy on and interrogate their own citizens.

Certainly not an average car chase movie, Two-Lane Blacktop is perhaps director Monte Hellman's finest film.

This film pivots on a romantic triangle as overwrought as it is stylized. It's like a Douglas Sirk melodrama ratcheted up with fists of fury and wrapped in apparently endless yards of shimmering silk.

A piercing satire of Italian investigative techniques, and an interesting meditation on the relationship between class and guilt.

Disney's first totally live-action movie, and it is, by far, the best film version of the familiar Stevenson story. Disney regular Bobby Driscoll takes on the coveted role of Jim Hawkins, and a number of reliable British actors round out the cast. This version has a marvelous full-bodied visual style that never appears to be studio-bound.

Woody Allen's hilarious satire of classic Russian literature, might properly be described as Tolstoy meets the Marx Bros., as he and Diane Keaton get caught up in an uproariously funny plot to assassinate Napoleon in 1812.

Though SEARCHING finally ties up its loose ends a little too neatly, what comes before that is a joy; an engrossing, witty story about far more than chess, directed with a flawless eye for detail and superbly performed by some of the best actors around--including young Mr. Pomeranc.

The shadowy photography, great editing, snappy dialogue, and a moody synthesizer score by Carpenter himself make this one of the most successful homages to the Hawks brand of filmmaking--and a very impressive film in its own right.

The film runs 95 minutes, and you'll be holding your breath for most of them.

For what could easily have been a slickly vulgar variation on "American Pie" or "Porky's", this libidinous comedy explores some unusually complicated territory, and benefits greatly from Verdú's unpredictable performance as Luisa.

At its best, Force achieves a style at once brutal and poetic, documentarian and noir.

WHITE HEAT is primal, flamboyant stuff--close your eyes and you could be watching a 30s picture. But don't close them more than momentarily; the film's visuals make it linger in the mind's eye.

Akira Kurosawa's THE HIDDEN FORTRESS is a paradigm of the modern adventure epic--a marvelously entertaining blend of a simple but strong plot, exhilarating action scenes, tongue-in-cheek humor, and a solid philosophical underpinning.

A fun, breezy roadtrip across the Western landscape.

A wickedly funny black comedy that follows the increasingly bizarre series of events that befall hapless word-processer Griffin Dunne after he ventures out of his apartment on the Upper East Side of Manhattan and goes downtown in search of carnal pleasures.

It's a fearless performance and yields some squirm-inducingly funny moments.

With an actor only slightly more expressive than Ryan O'Neal in the lead, this sombre costume epic might have reached the level of tragedy; as it is, the film is langorous to a fault, but so visually delightful and keenly observed that its excesses demand forgiveness.

Flynn's star-making swashbuckler is right on target.

Judy Garland is at her peak, pulling out all the stops, daring the gods in this dark, weighty fable of the price one pays to be at the top.

The anger that fuels Ferguson's film is felt in nearly every frame.

Few filmmakers have rivaled director Frank Capra when it comes to examining the human heart, and IT'S A WONDERFUL LIFE is a masterfully crafted exercise in sentiment, augmented by Capra's undying faith in community. Reed and Barrymore give excellent performances, as does a superb cast of character players, but this is Stewart's film--heart-stirring as the dreamer who sacrifices all for his fellow man.

Acclaimed stage director Nicholas Hytner was obviously determined to make his cinematic debut a memorable one. He doesn't just open up the play; he scatters it across sun-drenched country fields, seemingly all of London, and every nook and cranny of the royal residence. Despite the talents involved, however, the effect is surprisingly static and unexciting, probably because the source material is the kind of talky tour de force that is best carried off on the stage. Even so, Hawthorne's performance is tremendously intelligent and affecting.

This brilliant, often devastating look at Hollywood and the real world behind its tinsel is arguably Preston Sturges's greatest film.

Downhill Racer is fascinating viewing, even if the closest you've gotten to a ski slope is "Wide World of Sports."

Argento here presents a stylish and compelling film that boasts remarkable visuals and an inventive use of sound effects and music.

And while this director's cut doesn't really differ all that much from the original 1979 release, it contains a few minutes of never-before seen footage, including one serious bitch slap and an entire scene in which Ripley stumbles upon a few not-quite-dead crew members whose terrible fates foreshadow James Cameron's 1986 sequel.

Despite mostly unprofessional acting, near nonexistent production values, homemade special effects, and cheap grainy black-and-white film stock, the film is a triumph.

It's heartfelt entertainment and anyone who ever whistled a tune, tapped a toe or hummed a bar of music will love it.

One of Hitchcock's greatest entertainments, Foreign Correspondent is also a stirring propaganda piece which clearly indicts the Nazi regime.

Campion's eye is extraordinary. She searches out the detail that makes the image, and the image that tells the story more eloquently than words ever could.

Though grim and offbeat, Of Mice And Men is a noble morality tale that can be appreciated for its simplicity. The acting is faultless and Copland's score is magnificent.

THE MOTHER AND THE WHORE captures a sense of realism rare in any type of film, bringing us deep beneath the surface of the characters' exteriors.

While the story is thin, Clouzot uses his immense skills to raise the picture above the standard for the genre.

Not a frame is wasted in this taut, superbly directed, masterfully acted film, the first so-called "adult Western." (Review of Original Release)

In this powerful study of juvenile violence, Dean is riveting as a teenager groping for love from a society he finds alien and oppressive.

This is sentimentality of the best kind, a touching display of male bonding amid terror and aching loneliness worthy of Howard Hawks at his finest.

Tough-minded, moving study of a working-class housewife's mental breakdown, enhanced by superb performances from Rowlands, in the title role, and Falk as her husband.

The oddly cast Sharif is better than usual, but Streisand, of course, is most of the show, belting out songs, pulling heartstrings, alternating between raucous slapstick and dramatic power, and generally demonstrating that she has arrived in a big way.

Easily the best of the many versions of the Stevenson horror classic.

In a startling move, Oliveira devotes the first 15 minutes of the film to the final moments of Ionesco's play, and it's thrilling to watch.

One of Coppola's very best.

Master director Whale, here essaying his first musical, does some typically marvelous things with the camera and mise-en-scene and gets wonderful performances from his cast.

This film lacks the cinematic boldness of Olivier's earlier screen Shakespeare; there's nothing here to match the gloomy mise-en-scene of Hamlet or the cocky theatrical conceits of Henry V. But his riveting performance transcends his conventional directing and utterly dominates the movie.

The film has some of Disney's most spectacular animation yet -- particularly in the wildebeest stampede -- and strong vocal performances, especially by skilled Broadway comedian Nathan Lane. However, it suffers from a curiously undeveloped story line.

Lee occasionally stumbles as a documentarian... But the material is so profoundly moving that it hardly matters.

Possibly Ingmar Bergman's finest film and a landmark in film history.

What's most important here is that THE SEVENTH SEAL, for all its downbeat aspects, is so gripping as to be entertaining in an enlightening way. Less austere and more visually striking than some of Bergman's later films.

Everything about this film is touching; master director John Ford builds one simple scene upon another with very little plot, using incidents in the life of one family to tell the general tale, demonstrating changes and recording milestones.

Overall, it's an enjoyable film, thankfully free of the computerized look of later Disney cartoons, but it really can't compare to the real Disney classics (which appealed equally to both kids and adults).

Actor-turned-writer Dan Futterman's smart, subtle screenplay, which explores both Capote's determination to turn murder into literature and the deeply troubling questions he raised in the process.

A touch labored but lovable.

Strangers on a Train ranks at the top of Hitchcock's most accomplished works, a masterpiece that is so carefully constructed and its characters so well developed that the viewer is quickly intimate and comfortable with the story long before Bruno turns killer.

A delicately rendered and exceptionally moving reminiscence of a boyhood friendship cut short by war.

The overriding themes of the film are never broadly stated but are subtly revealed, and the horror and reality of war are quietly played out on both the human and panoramic levels with disturbing effect.

Look carefully at that final scene; few happy endings have ever felt so downbeat.

A sad and sometimes funny tale of Alzheimer's, love and loss.

A small comic masterpiece that dares to deal with that of which many Sicilians dare not speak: the Mafia.

The filmmakers have allowed themselves an overlong 140 minutes in order to preserve as much of the plot as possible, but they have bypassed many of the novel's key ideas and ironies.

The Innocents manipulates the viewer's imagination as few films can, with Kerr and Redgrave doing a masterful job of creating a sense of repressed hysteria.

Who'd have thought you'd find yourself caring so much about the fate of a flock of fryers? This chicken has legs -- lots of them.

This may be the warmest movie the Coen brothers have ever made. There's something unmistakably human beneath the oh-so-clever surface.

You get the feeling that, had Pixar been in business 25 years ago, Steven Spielberg might have made this movie for them as a follow-up to "Raiders of the Lost Ark."

Impeccable, bleak gloss, with the supreme Crawford engineering the greatest comeback of them all. Mildred Pierce is one of the finest noir soap operas ever, with the queen of pathos shouldering the storm alone; her efforts snagged the golden statuette as 1945's Best Actress.

Rather than confront what it sets up, it takes the one joke and runs - till it runs out of steam.

On a miniscule budget, Ghobadi conveys the terror of war, while the beautifully edited sequence in which Iranian villagers make bricks resembles nothing so much as a choreographed dance number.

A hauntingly nostalgic portrayal of childhood mischief set in a racially divided Alabama town in the 1930s. If the film's tone sometimes seems overly righteous, it's offset by a poetic lyricism that is difficult to resist embracing.

The laughs are plentiful and the acting by Fox, Thompson, and Glover is superb. Robert Zemeckis's direction, like the technical contributions, is first-rate, and after an ambling start takes off into frenetic, non-stop fun.

The story is simple enough for young children to follow, and the computer-animated images are both bright and surprisingly complex. Adults won't find the action heart-stopping.

This intelligent and exciting WWII tale, masterfully helmed by Lean (at the start of his "epic" period), features a splendid performance from Guinness as Col. Nicholson, a British officer who has surrendered with his regiment to the Japanese in Burma in 1943.

Japanese auteur Hirokazu Kore-eda's most accessible film to date is also his most wrenching.

One of the greatest children's films ever, MARY POPPINS is as perfect and inventive a musical as anyone could see, with a timeless story, strong performances, a flawless blend of live action and animation, wonderful songs, and a sterling script with all the charm of the P.L. Travers books upon which it is based.

Though it is sometimes a tedious viewing experience, its improvisational and documentary techniques are rewarding.

This second installment is heavy on battle sequences, which will thrill some viewers more than others.

Throughout this raw, often brilliant drama, the Dardennes refuse to judge these deeply flawed characters. They instead maintain a moral objectivity that ultimately leaves room for the possibility of redemption, no matter how dire the sins committed.

Good Morning is thoroughly enjoyable comedy that, somewhat atypically for director Yasujiro Ozu, is sunny throughout, without the darkness or sense of melancholy that rests under the surface of most of this gentle director's work.

Director Gillian Armstrong's feminist spin on classic material retains the moving humanity of Louisa May Alcott's novel while reworking it with welcome freshness.

This film ventures into slightly darker psychodramatic territory than much of Ozu's work, by courageously dramatizing and exploring issues such as maternal abandonment, broken families and substance abuse.