Last Samurai, The (2003)

Action/Adventure Rated R

Sometimes by intent, often by chance, director Edward Zwick makes military-themed movies that prick our national consciousness. After Glory, The Siege and Courage Under Fire comes this grand Tom Cruise vehicle about a Civil War veteran who is recruited to modernize the Japanese army. Arriving at a time of heated debate over U.S. involvement in

Blue Velvet (1986)

Thriller Rated R

Blue Velvet sent a shock wave through the film world in 1986, just when Hollywood was in another one of its factory-production heydays. While most pictures were being engineered by studio marketing departments, here was a movie that seeped directly from its maker’s consciousness (a crazy consciousness at that). Blue Velvet opens in a satirically

Polar Express, The (2004)

Family Rated G

This hyperactive adaptation of Chris Van Allsburg’s children’s book is not content to echo the gentle beauty of the original illustrations (though some of the images do that wonderfully). Instead, director Robert Zemeckis and his team of computer animators kick things up several notches with frantic action filler. If there is any conceivable way a

Basic (2003)

Thriller Rated R

Basic may set a record for plot twists, and the movie seems to think that’s a good thing. Simply having surprises is only half the battle, however. It helps tremendously if they’re clever. John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson star – Jackson plays an elite Army commander who disappears with some of his men in

Ready to Rumble (2000)

Comedy Rated PG-13

This comedy about two thickheaded wrestling fans (David Arquette and Scott Caan) would be harmless – albeit raunchy – fun except for the way its amped-up violence spills outside of the ring. Here, beating the crap out of somebody isn’t just part of a theatrical stage show; it’s a way of life.

Hills Have Eyes, The (2006)

Horror Rated R

In this remake of the 1977 horror flick from Wes Craven, an extended family traveling through the desert of New Mexico is beset by a horde of bogeymen. Rape, torture and dismemberment ensue, all to the delight of French director Alexandre Aja (High Tension). Despite a prologue suggesting the attackers are the deformed victims of

Unbreakable (2000)

Thriller Rated PG-13

“…a superhero origin story as emotional awakening.”

Hitch (2005)

Romantic Comedy Rated PG-13

Hitch takes good care of its slick premise – in which a “date doctor” (Will Smith) helps self-conscious men woo the women of their dreams. Smith mostly plays straight man to a very funny Kevin James as a nerdy accountant pining for an heiress. Eva Mendes adds steam and wit as a gossip columnist unimpressed

Win a Date with Tad Hamilton! (2004)

Romantic Comedy Rated PG-13

A romantic triangle develops between a small-town supermarket cashier (Kate Bosworth), the friend who quietly pines after her (Topher Grace) and the movie star (Josh Duhamel) who falls for her after she wins a contest to go on a date with him. We’re supposed to find these characters endearing, but the movie treats them like

Lord of War (2005)

Drama Rated R

The arms-dealing drama Lord of War could have been fired from a shotgun – it sprays all over the place. Part action movie and part message piece, the picture is only one thing for sure: a major misstep for gifted writer/director Andrew Niccol (Gattaca). In following the unlikely career of Ukrainian-American antihero Yuri Orlov (a