The Virgin Suicides (1999)

This is the story of the Lisbon sisters; Lux, Cecilia, Bonnie, Therese, and Mary, who reside in Michigan in a nice suburban neighborhood. Four boys who live near them become obsessed with the girls in the summer of 1974. When their youngest sister Cecilia takes her own life, the boys start to collect souvenirs of them as they learn about the girls' lives. When Lux gets in trouble after coming home late one night, she and the other girls are taken out of school and isolated from everything and everybody, except for the four boys whom they secretly contact. Emotionally tragic and haunting film, based on the novel by Jeffrey Eugenides and wonderfully directed by Sofia Coppola. Starring Kirsten Dunst, Josh Hartnett, James Woods, Kathleen Turner, Scott Glenn, Danny Devito, A.J. Cook 8/10 Rated R

Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2011)

After his father dies in the World Trade Center on 9/11, eleven year old Oskar Schell finds a key in an envelope that had once belonged to his father. Soon after his discovery, he sets out on an arduous adventure through the city to find whatever it unlocks, hoping that somehow it can get him closer to his father. Extremely moving and incredibly heartbreaking story of an amazingly smart young boy coming to terms with grief. Starring Tom Hanks, Sandra Bullock, Thomas Horn, Viola Davis, John Goodman, Jeffrey Wright, Max von Sydow 7/10 Rated PG-13

Psycho (1998)

Heche plays Marion Crane, a secretary from Phoenix, Arizona who is supposed to deposit some money for her boss but steals it for her and her boyfriend. Stopping at a motel because of inclement weather, she meets Norman Bates, the owner of the motel. Marion has a change of heart and decides to go back to Phoenix but ends up being murdered. A week after her sudden disappearance, her sister and a private investigator try to find out what happened. Pointless shot-by-shot carbon copy of the 1960 Hitchcock classic; Heche is not believable and Vaughn is ridiculously miscast as Norman Bates. Forget this one ever existed and see the original. Starring Vince Vaughn, Anne Heche, Julianne Moore, William H. Macy, Viggo Mortensen, Rita Wilson, Robert Forster, Philip Baker Hall, Rance Howard 4/10 Rated R

Unknown (2011)

After arriving in Berlin to attend a summit, Doctor Martin Harris is involved in a horrific car accident. He wakes up four days later after being in a coma and tries to locate his wife's whereabouts. When he does find her, she denies that's he's her husband, and another man whom he's never met before is claiming to be the real Martin Harris.With the help of an ally, Martin attempts to find out the truth to prove his identity. Liam Neeson's still got it in this compelling international thriller that'll have you thinking twice about who to trust. Starring Liam Neeson, January Jones, Diane Kruger, Aidan Quinn, Frank Langella 7/10 Rated PG-13

Buried (2010)

Reynolds plays Paul Conroy, an American truck driver who is sent to Iraq to bring supplies there when his convoy is attacked. He wakes up and finds he's inside a coffin six feet underground, tied up and gagged with no knowledge of why or how he got there. With only a lighter, cell phone, flashlight, flask, pencil and glow sticks, Paul is taken hostage and is told that for a ransom of five million dollars he'll be released. Fighting for air and his sanity, it's an unbelievably claustrophobic race for survival. An extraordinarily intense thriller that you're not likely to forget about when it's over. Starring Ryan Reynolds 7/10 Rated R

Blow Out (1981)

Travolta plays Jack Terry, a sounds effects guy who one night while out recording sounds for a movie, hear a shot, a blow out and sees a car drive over a bridge and crash into the water. He ends up saving the girls that is in the car, but later discovers that a governor who was also inside the car, was not so lucky. After finding this out however, Jack believes that it wasn't an accidental blow out, that someone deliberately shot at the car in order to kill the governor. An interesting and gripping film, easily one of Travolta's best performances. Starring John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow, Dennis Franz 7/10 Rated R

Black Swan (2010)

Portman plays Nina, an obsessive, self-conscious yet immensely talented ballet dancer who wants to become a big star. So when her theater company plans to do a new and different version of Swan Lake, Nina is extremely determined to be part of it. Until another young dancer named Lily arrives, whom Nina is convinced after she lands the lead of the Swan Queen that Lily is trying to take her place. A mind-bending, psychological thrill ride that pulls you in and will not let go; Natalie Portman is absolutely extraordinary. Starring Natalie Portman, Vincent Cassel, Mila Kunis, Barbara Hershey, Winona Ryder 8/10 Rated R

Sleepy Hollow (1999)

Ichabod Crane, a skittish investigator from New York is sent to a little town called Sleepy Hollow to solve a series of murders where the victims have had their heads cut off. The people of Sleepy Hollow believe it is the work of the Headless Horseman, a man who has come back from the dead for revenge. Based on the story by Washington Irving, Sleepy Hollow is a dark and exciting tale; Johnny Depp is terrific as the quirky and eccentric Crane. Starring Johnny Depp, Christina Ricci, Miranda Richardson, Michael Gambon, Casper Van Dien, Jeffrey Jones, Christopher Walken 8/10 Rated R

Don't Look Now (1973)

After the tragic accidental drowning of their daughter Christine, John Baxter and his wife Laura travel to Venice because the bishop requests John to restore and old church. While dining in a restaurant, Laura has an encounter with two elderly sisters, one of whom is blind and claims she's psychic, telling Laura that she saw her daughter. Convinced that the old lady really did see her daughter, she meets the two women again and they perform a seance to try and contact her. Afterward, she tells John that Christine has warned them that he is in danger and to leave Venice, but John doesn't believe in any of it. Morning after they receive a phone call that their son was injured in an accident, which prompts Laura to return while John stays to finish his restoration project. A strange and haunting film, most famous because of the explicit sex scene between Christie and Sutherland that was quite controversial at the time it was released. Starring Julie Christie, Donald Sutherland, Hilary Mason, Clelia Matania 7/10

Cold Creek Manor (2003)

Cooper Tilson and his family are fed up with the busy and chaotic city life so they decide to move out to the serene countryside, where they restore an old, decaying mansion. While settling in they meet Dale, who used to live on the estate and offers to fix up the swimming pool because he needs the work. So Cooper reluctantly agrees, but is suspicious of Dale. Soon after, strange and awful things start to happen; deadly snakes start popping up inside the house, then his daughter's pony ends up dead lying in the pool. And Cooper believes that Dale is the one whose behind it all, as they soon discover secrets of his violent past. So-so psychological thriller; really dull at times, the characters are uninteresting but Dorff is particularly creepy. Starring Dennis Quaid, Sharon Stone, Stephen Dorff, Juliette Lewis, Christopher Plummer, Kristen Stewart 5/10

Signs (2002)

Graham Hess is a former Reverend who lives with his family in rural Bucks County, Pennsylvania. One morning Graham wakes up, when his son Morgan discovers a five-hundred foot crop circle in the cornfield in their backyard. Not long afterward they see something or someone climbing on their roof, then they realize that the crop circles are turning up all over the world. They believe it may be some kind of extra-terrestrial life that is behind the whole thing; only question is are they are hostile or not. Spine-tingling and hauntingly frightening; big action and explosions are not necessary, for in the similar style of Hitchcock does M.Night Shymalayan slowly build up the suspense that is nothing short of heart pounding. Starring Mel Gibson, Joaquin Phoenix, Rory Culkin, Abigail Breslin 8/10

Sea of Love (1989)

Frank Keller is a New York police detective; he's also an alcoholic and divorced from his wife. His ex-wife is now involved with one of Frank's colleagues. Frank investigates a series of shootings where men are being shot in the back of the head, while "Sea of Love" is played. He meets Detective Sherman Touhey, who thinks that he and Frank should work together on the case, believing that it's a woman who is the culprit. They find out that the men who are being murdered have been putting rhyming ads in the singles magazines; so Frank has an idea that they put their own ad in the magazine, go out on the dates with the women, get their prints and catch the killer. Pacino is pretty good and his scenes with Goodman are great; however what really makes this film memorable are the moments Pacino has with Barkin. Their chemistry is red-hot and incredibly sensual. John Goodman's rendition of "Sea of Love" is hilarious. The title is actually a song by Phil Phillips, which is essentially played throughout most of the movie. Starring Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin, John Goodman, Michael Rooker, William Hickey, Richard Jenkins, Paul Calderón, Samuel L. Jackson 6/10

The Box (2009)

The time is 1976, the place is Richmond, Virginia. Arthur and Norma Lewis receive a box on their doorstep one early winter morning with no idea what it is or who it's from. Arlington Steward, the man who left it shows up unexpectedly at their house and says he has an offer for to make them; if they push the red button on the box that two things will happen: they will receive one million dollars in cash but someone, somewhere whom they don't know will die. The general premise of the story is good, but as the film goes on it gets more and more confusing and complex when all these other factors come into play, so you can't entirely understand what is going on. Starring Cameron Diaz, James Marsden, Frank Langella 6/10

The Watcher (2000)

Serial killer David Allen Griffin likes to stalk his young female victims; he studies their daily routine and very is detailed and concise, even bringing along tools to enter their homes. Joel Campbell, an ex-FBI agent from Los Angeles has been on David's trail but hasn't been successful catching him. Frustrated, he moves to Chicago where he goes into therapy to try and deal with his failure to capture the serial killer. David ends up following him, calling him up to tell him he's sending Joel a picture of a woman and that he has a day to find her or he'll kill them. An average cat and mouse thriller; with gripping suspense, and although I didn't find Reeves to be all that menacing, he does make a surprisingly convincing villain. Starring James Spader, Keanu Reeves, Maris Tomei, Ernie Hudson 6/10

Color of Night (1994)

Bill Capa is a psychologist who he falls into a depression after one of his patients commits suicide right in front of his eyes. After seeing her in a green dress surrounded by a pool of blood he suffers from psychosomatic color blindness, and he can't see the color red. Hoping to restart his life, he travels to L.A. and stays with a friend named Bob Moore, a fellow therapist and best-selling author. He brings Bill along to a group therapy session where he meets some of his patients. One night Bill's friend is savagely murdered, so it's up to Bill to find his killer. While continuing to live in Bob's house, and takes over the group therapy. Bill gets into a fender bender one day with a girl named Rose and soon after they have a very hot affair. But she mysteriously comes and goes when he least expects it, and doesn't tell him a thing about herself. Willis and March have desirable chemistry in this tense and erotic thriller. Starring Bruce Willis, Jane March, Leslie Ann Warren, Ruben Blades, Scott Bakula 6/10

Red Riding Hood (2011)

Valerie is a beautiful young woman living in a village called Daggerhorn. She is in love with Peter, who is a woodcutter but her parents have arranged for her to marry Henry, the son of a wealthy blacksmith despite the fact that Valerie does not love him. When Valerie's sister is killed by a wolf, the villagers go hunting to find it. They believe that they have killed it until a witch hunter by the name of Solomon interrupts their celebrating, telling them that if the wolf was killed it would've changed back to human form. As Solomon takes control of the village to find the real wolf, tensions rise as everyone is suspected. A dark and suspenseful tale that will keep you guessing till the very end; the visual effects are good with impressive performances by Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Julie Christie and Virginia Madsen. Starring Amanda Seyfried, Gary Oldman, Billy Burke, Shiloh Fernandez, Max Irons, Virginia Madsen, Lukas Haas, Julie Christie 8/10

Possession (2002)

Roland Mitchell is an American scholar who travels to London on a fellowship to study the Victorian poet Randolph Henry Ash. While in the library one afternoon he makes an interesting discovery; he finds a letter from Ash that was addressed to a woman. But the only concern is Ash was already married at the time the letter was written. Mitchell suspects it maybe a poet by the name of Christabel LaMotte. He contacts researcher Maud Bailey, whom just happens to be descended from Christabel, her niece three times removed. Working together, Maud and Roland find the love letters that Ash and LaMotte exchanged, and about the brief, forbidden affair they once had. It's no surprise that while reading the letters, Maud and Roland develop their own romantic relationship. An intriguing romantic drama; Jeremy Northam and Jennifer Ehle are fabulous. Starring Gwyneth Paltrow, Aaron Eckhart, Jeremy Northam, Jennifer Ehle, Lena Headey, Holly Aird 7/10

Se7en (1995)

Brad Pitt and Morgan Freeman portray two homicide detectives; one a rookie, the other a veteran in this disturbing murder drama. Detective Mills and Somerset try to hunt down a serial killer which is using the seven deadly sins as their MO. Although Mills just wants to find the killer, Somerset goes and researches about the seven deadly sins to get a better understanding into the killer's sick mind. Starring Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R. Lee Ermey, John C. McGinley, Richard Schiff, Kevin Spacey 8/10

Chocolat (2000)

A young woman named Vianne and her six-year-old daughter Annouk arrive in a small village in the French countryside called Lansquenet. In this village the people believed in tranquility. But when Vianne opens up a chocolate shop at same the time of Lent, the villagers are curious about her and the fact that she doesn't attend church. Despite what they think of her she stays and sells mouth-watering treats that cause the villagers to act differently as she changes their lives. Then one afternoon when an Irish river rat named Roux comes to the village, the people of Lansquenet get angry but since the riverbank is public land they can't force him to move but put up signs to ban immorality. But Vianne and Roux become friends anyway. A sweet and delicious romantic film with an all-star cast. Starring Juliette Binoche, Alfred Molina, Judi Dench, Lena Olin, Carrie-Ann Moss, Johnny Depp 8/10

Reservoir Dogs (1992)

Six criminals who are strangers are hired by a crime boss named Joe Cabot to rob a diamond warehouse. They are all given fake names so they won't be connected to anyone; Mister Orange, Mister Blonde, Mister Pink, Mister White, Mister Blue, and Mister Brown. But the plan ends up going terribly wrong when the police show up, killing one and injuring another. The strangers who are left begin to suspect that one of them is an undercover cop. With a great and immensely talented cast,this is a brutal, violent but sometimes funny film by the great director/writer Quentin Tarantino. Starring Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Michael Madsen, Chris Penn, Steve Buscemi, Lawrence Tierney, Quentin Tarantino, Edward Bunker 9/10