Could that really be Mrs. Robinson? Anne Bancroft made a permanent mark on film culture with her galvanizing turn as the desiccated, predatory housewife of The Graduate. Yet it would be unfair to let that performance overshadow her other formidable work, especially her Oscar-winning turn as Helen Keller’s teacher here. The Miracle Worker has all

An original script from Arthur Miller, The Misfits turns on the playwright’s usual concern: that of the individual trying to maintain his identity in a changing world. Cowboys are the dying breed here, specifically an aging wrangler played by Clark Gable, a mechanic played by Eli Wallach and a daredevil bull-rider played by Montgomery Clift,

Secretary features a young woman who cuts herself (Maggie Gyllenhaal) and a lawyer who considers bondage gear proper office attire (James Spader), and yet the movie isn’t about self-mutilation or dominant-submissive relationships. Instead, what begins as something kinky, even silly, transforms into an unabashed – if politically incorrect – romance. And why not – who

A fascinating morality play about honor and loyalty. Russell Crowe, as the real-life tobacco company scientist who risks his family and personal freedom to testify against the industry, provides a mesmerizing portrait of integrity’s cost; you can see the worry weighing down on his drooping eyelids and sagging mouth. A slow-burning, interior epic from muscular

Big Fish, about the reconciliation between a tall-tale-telling father (Albert Finney) and his skeptical son (Billy Crudup), is an odd Tim Burton film, but not in the way that a Tim Burton film usually is odd. This time he forgoes his artful despondency for an unadorned, unabashed emotional warmth. Still, Burton purists needn’t worry: There

The first movie to confess the American sins of the Vietnam War, Platoon carried extra weight because it came from someone who was there: writer-director Oliver Stone. Platoon had a purging power when it was released, but years later you can see some of the picture’s flaws more clearly. As it details a rift that

It feels a bit dated and preachy now, but Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner‘s racial politics were radical for its time. Paired for the final time with her on- and off-screen partner Spencer Tracy, Katharine Hepburn plays the wealthy, liberal mother of a woman (Katharine Houghton) who surprises her parents by announcing her sudden plans

Guns dramatizes a British mission to infiltrate a German-occupied Greek island to take out two powerful guns that have been terrorizing Allied ships. The 1961 Best Picture nominee is a bit bloated in the manner of an Oscar-hungry prestige picture, yet it’s a good showcase for Gregory Peck’s charisma. He commands the screen even while