Batman Begins (2005)

Starring: Christian Bale, Liam Neeson, Cillian Murphy, Gary Oldman
Director: Christopher Nolan
Country: USA
Genre: Action

I’m the bat, man.

The Dark Knight is obviously herald as the superhero movies to end all superhero movies, but it wouldn’t be half as strong as it is without a firm structure to stand upon. Batman Begins is one hell of a film. It’s the reboot to put all other reboots to shame. The elements really aligned, from a suspiciously talented director to a dream cast that makes the mouth water. Add to it a script that stays faithful to the character while crafting an intriguing and thrilling story, plus cinematography by incredibly skillful up and coming director of photography, and you have a rock solid flick. Christopher Nolan has almost single handedly shown that even superhero movies should be taken seriously in addition to how entertaining they can be.

1001 Movie Club: Seven (1995)

David Fincher was surely shot into prominence right out the gun with his feature directorial debut as the third installment in the ultra successful Alien franchise. Three years later he sealed his fate in the directors hall of fame by not only sidestepping the sophomore slump, but progressing leaps and bounds to experienced veteran status. Fifteen years later, Seven is still pointed to as one of the go-to gritty neo-noir stories for anyone interested in the crime genre.

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Road to Perdition (2002)

Starring: Tom Hanks, Paul Newman, Jude Law, Daniel Craig
Director: Sam Mendes
Country: USA
Genre: Drama, Neo-noir

Every shot in this film looks like an Edward Hopper painting.

The legendary cinematographer Conrad L. Hall really outdid himself on Road to Perdition creating such a visually stunning palate of shadows and dark colors in true noir fashion. Sam Mendes took an interesting turn for his second directorial venture, finding inspiration in the stunning graphic novel by the same name. Ever the master of dealing with actors, Mendes pulls one hell of a performance from Tom Hanks, in a much darker role than his usual everyday hero types. Road may be a gangster movie on its surface, but below the dark anterior lies a touching father and son tale. Mendes and Hall artfully play with the distance between Mike and Michael Sullivan throughout the film, allowing them to grow together both visually and emotionally. And let’s not forget about Jude Law in his most disgusting and despicable character he’s ever played. Honey dipped fried chicken anyone?

Shutter Island (2010)

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Mark Ruffalo, Ben Kingsley
Director: Martin Scorsese
Country: USA
Genre: Thriller-ish.

At Shutter Island nothing is as it seems.

In his fourth collaboration with DiCaprio, Scorsese has pulled out one of his best performance, and crafted perhaps one of his most interesting films. Sure to infuriate some and delight others, Shutter Island is all about evoking a response out of the audience – participation. It’s a detective story about a detective, but the investigation isn’t the investigation that the detective is investigating. Or is it? It raises a lot of questions, and doesn’t take the audience for granted in finding the answers for themselves. Also, in a departure from his usual visual style, Scorsese has created one of his more luscious looking, albeit foreign feeling, films to date.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang (2005)

Starring: Robert Downey Jr., Val Kilmer, Michelle Monaghan
Director: Shane Black
Country: USA
Genre: Crime, Comedy

Hopefully with RDJ’s new-re-found fame, people will discover this amazing piece of entertainment.

Robert Downey’s career comeback didn’t happen overnight as one might suspect.  For nearly a decade he honed his craft doing little under the radar films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang. There is something so appealing about this film: it has a decent little mystery, a edgy-enough style, and a bubbling chemistry between its actors who all put in super fun performances. Perhaps it shouldn’t be to surprising to find out the man behind the hilarious back and forth between the main characters comes from the mind who also brought us Leathal Weapon. But in his directorial debut, Shane Black shapes perfect escapism. This neo-noir has a tongue-in-cheek tone that the Coen Brothers would be jealous of, and Downey knocks it out of the park. It’s fascinating how engaging (and hilarious) his 50’s style detective narration can be.

The Departed (2006)

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Matt Damon, Jack Nicholson
Director: Martin Scorsese
Country: USA
Genre: Crime

X marks the spot.

And down the rabbit hole we go. The Departed is one of the bleakest films I can remember, even counting Taxi Driver. Scorsese’s lament on personal descent is practically maddening and completely immersive. Even upon multiple viewings it’s as potent as it ever was. The complex story follows parallel lives of a criminal posing as a cop and a cop undercover as a criminal, both making choices that they cannot turn back from. Scorsese is above all else a lover of films and keeps it entertaining (in a car wreck on-looker sort of way.) The pacing is brisk, it speeds by despite its running time and never feels slow. Top it off with an ensemble of amazing actors, (yes even Walberg,) and you’ve got yourself one hell of a film.

Minority Report (2002)

Starring: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell, Samantha Morton
Director: Steven Spielberg
Country: USA
Genre: Sci-Fi, Action

Minority Report is the best action science fiction film noir directed by Steven Spielberg this decade!

Like most great science fiction films, Minority Report combines grandiose scenes of action spectacle with intellectual technological theories and an undercurrent of moral themes. In a lot of ways this film totally feels like a Spielberg film, and in a lot of ways it doesn’t. Some of the action sequences are perfectly suited next to Raiders of the Lost Ark or the classic hand to hand combat between Tom Hanks and Leo in Catch Me If You Can. But a lot of the exploration into the moral and scientific themes feels more like him compensating for A.I. That’s not necessarily a bad thing though. Overall, Minority Report is just entertaining if a bit overlong. Any way you slice it, Spielberg is a master storyteller. It’s a shame that some of the special effects won’t hold up in another couple of years.