Movie Recommendation Thread

[FrenziedFish]

I'm starting this thread because I believe that the previous movie recommendation thread was sadly deleted, If I'm wrong on this (or it can be brought back somehow) I'll delete this thread to avoid clutter.


Film is a common topic of discussion on the forum, I'd like this thread to be where films can be recommended with a little non-spoiler information given on them so people have a good idea of what they're getting into. Other threads such as the Kino Diary can be continued to be used for longer form analysis and discussion of specific films while deeper dives into certain artists, genres, etc can have their own threads like the Nicholas Winding Refn Rising thread.



I'd like to start this thread by recommending a couple of films:

Dead Awake (2001)



This is a low budget mystery-thriller made for TV film starring Stephen Baldwin as an insomniac who sleeps through his successful job during the day and goes on the same walk every single night, stopping at an all night diner where he meets the same few familiar faces, one played by Michael Ironside who does a great conspiracist. The film's plot is driven by a rather engaging mystery but it's more to serve as a vehicle for the atmosphere and characters of the film, one which is of contented outcasts and oddities in the strange warmth of a city at night.

Green Zone (2010)



This is an action film in a very similar style to the Bourne films of the 2000s, main difference being it's based on real events and stars Damon as a regular guy. The action is more grounded and takes place in more relatable and delineated scenarios which then gives that action more of an edge than the Bourne series. The plot presents a narrative of the invasion of Iraq and it's immediate aftermath as a conflict between realists and liberal idealists which is more interesting than the general Iraq war (or war on terror) film fare.

The Hunted (2003)



This is a more minimalist action-chase film with a focus on realism and hand to hand and knife fighting. It's plot is fast and direct while carrying interesting themes, most intriguing to me being human worthiness.

[anthony]

The Hunted is a very fun film. I strongly suspect it inspired MGS3. Even if it didn't it's still the Metal Gear movie.

Cop (1988)



Based on a novel by James Ellroy. James Woods is one of my favourite actors and I'm always happy when he gets to lead a whole movie. And Ellroy was always one of us. This is a very cool, edgy movie with an incredible energy to it (probably owed equally to Ellroy and Woods). Very fun viewing. To some extent it's a cross-section of LA, its people and cultures, like most of Ellroy's work, and it's also a character piece. The protagonist is great fun. The protagonist is a brilliant man with good intentions, balanced by extraordinary cynicism and weakness to certain passions and neurosis. A great James Woods character.

Salvador (1986)



James Woods again, playing a brilliant James Woods role and making the whole movie fun and worth watching just for that alone. But more than that this is an Oliver Stone film. It has been decided in higher places that we're all doing a big run of Oliver Stone appreciation now, so why not start here? This is Stone's Boomer-dissident war epic. A much better and more interesting film than Platoon if you ask me. And perhaps more interesting now that El Salvador is in the news again for turning things around. You want to know what that country's deal was? You could look here. But this isn't that kind of film. This is the Hollywood dramatic epic of the third world struggle of the 20th century. We have sides, cultural forces, the white man, human depravity and idealism, chaos and war, everything that ought to be here feels present and rendered interesting and cinematic. Despite the sensitive subject matter at no point was I annoyed at this film. You don't need to cut this film any slack. It's a masterpiece. Perhaps one of many for Stone.

The Boys Next Door (1985)



From Penelope Spheeris, whose key fascination throughout her career was always youth and youth culture. Documentaries on Californian subcultures and troubled kids, and feature films about much the same. On one hand coming of age dramas, and on the other she did Wayne's World. This one I only learned about recently, and I think it might be her most interesting film. Spheeris developed her fascination with troubled youth in a time and place when that actually meant empathising with rich souls in pain, rather than a euphemism for giving privileged treatment to dead-eyed violent criminals. Charlie Sheen and Maxwell Caulfield play a pair of no-good teenagers feeling burned out on life as they're graduating high school. They decide to take some chances and hit the road to have some fun and prepare for the bad lot their lives have in store for them. From here things take many turns and get out of hand. All through this movie the concerns of youth feel respected. And because Spheeris has such a thing for youth she can depict the concerns of young men specifically. And in this part of California. Young white men. The movie doesn't really take much of a stand, or even necessarily have much to say. Which I believe is just respect held for the subject matter. After all, what is there to say? Again, a film with extraordinary energy. Just very fast and easy viewing and you can feel that this meant a lot even if it's not saying a lot. It's nice to feel respected.