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.

The Machinist (2004)

Starring: Christian Bale, Jennifer Jason Leigh, John Sharian
Director: Brad Anderson
Country: Various
Genre: Mystery

Twice the Bale performance at half the weight!

Brad Anderson, of cult classic Session 9 fame, crafts this Hitchcockian mystery of an insomniac trying to piece together the puzzle of his faltering life. Sometime between American Psycho and Batman Begins Christian Bale found the time to lose 63 pounds for this harrowing role, and ends up putting in one of his best performances. The film is chock full of the symbolism that mystery buffs drool over, but it’s all built on a very real human drama which is what gives any film longevity. The script, the acting, and the direction all work with such synergy that it’s hard to believe this film hasn’t received more attention than the “Christian Bale skeleton” film. It’s dark and twisted, but always has a sense of fun in its execution.

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.

The Dark Knight (2008)

Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Gary Oldman, Aaron Eckhart
Director: Christopher Nolan
Country: USA
Genre: Action, Drama

Duh.

What can be said about TDK that hasn’t already been said? Not much. It’s obviously the greatest and best superhero film of all time. So, instead, I’ll just pay homage to it: Remember Heath Ledger’s performance as The Joker? That was awesome. Remember the opening bank robbery? That was awesome. Remember the moral choices that Bruce Wayne had to make? Those were awesome. Remember the car chase in the tunnels? That was awesome. Remember when they replaced Katie Holmes with Maggie Gyllenhaal? That was… a choice. Remember Batman’s voice? … Even the best things aren’t without their flaws…

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.