People are mostly good. These films remember that when it's easy to forget.
A novice con man teams up with an acknowledged master to avenge the murder of a mutual friend by pulling off the ultimate big con and swindling a fortune from a big-time mobster.
There's a moment in this that restores something. You'll know it when you see it.
The drug-induced utopias of four Coney Island residents are shattered when their addictions run deep.
There's a moment in this that restores something. You'll know it when you see it.
When a impoverished widow's family moves to the big city, two of her five sons become romantic rivals with deadly results.
There's a moment in this that restores something. You'll know it when you see it.
When her American lover visits London, a wealthy woman's jealous husband hatches a plan to murder her and inherit her fortune.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
In Las Vegas, two best friends--a casino executive and a Mafia enforcer--compete for a gambling empire and a fast-living, fast-loving socialite.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
The best version of this effect is quiet. Not a speech. A small moment. These films have them.
Occasional moments of moral clarity in dark settings. More effective for contrast.
Works across generations. Safe but not boring.
A true story about Frank Abagnale Jr. who, before his 19th birthday, successfully conned millions of dollars worth of checks as a Pan Am pilot, doctor, and legal prosecutor. An FBI agent makes it his mission to put him behind bars. But Frank not only eludes capture, he revels in the pursuit.
There's a moment in this that restores something. You'll know it when you see it.
In 1970s London amidst the punk rock revolution, a young grifter named Estella is determined to make a name for herself with her designs. She befriends a pair of young thieves who appreciate her appetite for mischief, and together they are able to build a life for themselves on the London streets. One day, Estella's flair for fashion catches the eye of the Baroness von Hellman, a fashion legend who is devastatingly chic and terrifyingly haute. But their relationship sets in motion a course of events and revelations that will cause Estella to embrace her wicked side and become the raucous, fashionable and revenge-bent Cruella.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
An assassin is shot by her ruthless employer, Bill, and other members of their assassination circle – but she lives to plot her vengeance.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
Heroin addict Mark Renton stumbles through bad ideas and sobriety attempts with his unreliable friends --Sick Boy, Begbie, Spud and Tommy. He also has an underage girlfriend, Diane, along for the ride. After cleaning up and moving from Edinburgh to London, Mark finds he can't escape the life he left behind as Begbie and Sick Boy come knocking.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
Llewelyn Moss stumbles upon dead bodies, $2 million and a hoard of heroin in a Texas desert, but methodical killer Anton Chigurh comes looking for it, with local sheriff Ed Tom Bell hot on his trail. The roles of prey and predator blur as the violent pursuit of money and justice collide.
It shows people at their best without pretending the world is easy. That's the specific thing.
Some films earn their effect. These do.