THE BEST Movies

A woman goes to prison for 5 years for protecting her small-time gangster boyfriend. Upon her release, she seeks him out to continue their relationship. Jia Zhangke’s critically–acclaimed drama is about two people being shaped by larger forces. Premieres 3/15/19.

(SPOILERS) “Life is more than just what is. It’s what could be. What you could make it.” ScreenPrism points out that Bird Box and A Quiet Place don’t just have similar sci-fi plots. They also both reflect what it’s like to be a parent in modern times.

Lessons from the Screenplay explores the legendary February movie Groundhog Day. Instead of adding twists or a deus ex machina, the movie fully explores its premise – what if someone had all the time in the world? – without being boring or predictable.

(SPOILERS) How It Should Have Ended plugs up the Aquaman movie’s loopholes and points out the problem of having an origin story after the hero has already joined a super team. Because Superman is the answer to everything.

Screen Junkies skewers Netflix’s adaptation of the sci-fi thriller novel Bird Box. Watch and laugh at the emotionally abusive mom, the long cliché setup, the bad guys who have vague abilities, and that freakin’ impossible boat ride.

July 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 mission. To commemorate this event, CNN Films made a documentary about the first successful manned mission to the Moon. The critically–acclaimed film is made almost entirely of never before seen 70mm footage.

Based on a short story by Cixin Liu, the big budget Chinese sci-fi film The Wandering Earth sees the Sun dying. Humans build massive engines to fly the entire planet to another star. But disaster strikes when the engines shut down, and collision with Jupiter is imminent.

Chiwetel Ejiofor stars and directs in this Netflix adaptation of William Kamkwamba’s eponymous memoir. As a teenager, William helped his family in Southeast Africa gain access to water and electricity by building a windmill out of junk parts. Premieres 3/1/19.

In this critically–acclaimed thriller, a doctor is on a personal sailing trip across the Atlantic. After weathering a storm, she finds herself close to a sinking ship filled with refugees. The Coast Guard orders her to stay away from the ship. Premieres 2/27/19.

(PG-13: Language) From the director of Wolfpack comes a coming of age story told through the lens of a female skateboarder and her newfound friends. Skate Kitchen features the eponymous Manhattan-based all-girl skate crew, along with Jaden Smith.

(PG-13: Language) Filmmaker and editor Fabrice Mathieu has outdone himself with this epic movie mashup, combining The Blues Brothers and Men In Black into an thrilling new adventure about two ex-cons on a mission from god to take down the alien scum of the universe.

Hollywood studios have a long history of releasing movies with very similar plots and/or characters right around the same time. Cheddar looks into this phenomenon, and attempts to explain why we get things like A Bugs Life and Antz, and Top Gun and Iron Eagle.

(Gore, SPOILERS) ScreenPrism deconstructs the story and the various endings of Black Mirror: Bandersnatch. It’s a story about itself, it’s a story about being a helpless consumer, and it’s a story about accepting that we can’t change the past.

With a title like The Man Who Killed Hitler and Then the Bigfoot, you’d think this movie is a comedy or an over-the-top action flick. Then you see it stars Sam Elliott. Early reviews say it’s more about a weary man who doesn’t find joy in his achievements. Premieres 2/8/19.

What’s more horrifying than The Horde’s carnivorous The Beast? How about a weatherman with an IQ of 48 who loves lamps and can summon a trident? Funny or Die is onto something with this Anchorman and Glass mashup.

John Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum picks up immediately after the events of the second movie. After breaking a sacred rule, the not-retired assassin is on the run with a $14M bounty on his head. Thankfully, he has an ace up his sleeve: a second dog. Premieres 5/17/19.

A mother and her young son move to a remote countryside to start anew. The boy goes missing in the forest beyond their home. While searching for his son, the mother comes across a huge sinkhole. The boy comes back, but is now on some Pet Sematary vibe.

Set in the aftermath of the still to come Avengers: Endgame, Spider-Man: Far From Home sees Peter Parker going on a trip to Europe with his school friends. He really wants to enjoy the downtime, but Nick Fury and a group of elemental beings have other ideas.

Pixar’s movies are often tearjerkers. But they are also about characters who change for the better. ScreenPrism looks at Toy Story, Up and Ratatouille to show the three types of obstacles that Pixar characters overcome on their way to making us cry.

(Gore) Nightcrawler writer and director Dan Gilroy reunites with Jake Gyllenhaal for this Netflix horror film set in LA’s contemporary art scene. A dead man’s artworks are put up for sale, but it turns out they’re cursed. They come alive and murder those who purchased them.

Meet David Dunn, a man who can see your evil deeds with a touch, lift heavy weights, has a badass immune system, and can make long pauses mid-sentence. Screen Junkies pokes fun at M. Night Shyamalan’s Unbreakable, just in time for Glass to hit theaters.

Duncan Vizla was known as the Black Kaiser, a top assassin. He’s retired, but his former firm comes after him with a bounty on his head, prompting a group of young assassins to try and finish the job. Mads Mikkelsen stars in Netflix’s action flick. Premieres 1/25/19.

We don’t think there’s any way to accurately depict hallucinations, but filmmakers have tried for years to give us an idea, and thanks to CGI, we’re getting some really trippy effects on screen. Film Qualia explores how psychedelic imagery has made it into mainstream films.

While it’s in no way a comprehensive collection, musician Marcos Kaiser’s compilation of 12 classic movie themes performed on his acoustic guitar will bring back lots of memories, and occasionally tug at your heartstrings.