12 Angry Men – 1957

The most powerful legal drama ever made, of that there is little argument. This film takes the murder trial of a teenage boy and turns it into a battle between twelve men over the young man’s life. The film features standout performances from Henry Fonda and Lee J. Cobb as opposing forces on the jury, […]

Arsenic and Old Lace – 1944

There’s a lot of truth to the idea that screwball comedies were better in the forties, because really they were. Cary Grant is a great actor, but he isn’t his usual reserved self in this film. Here he’s an exasperated man trying to cover up a series of murders committed by his elderly aunts. His […]

Jour de Fête – 1949

Jacques Tati was a comedic master. His films exploited the simplicity of life and the conflict that occurred as new technological innovations came into play. Jour de Fête is no exception and it isn’t here that he got a taste for the slapstick comedy that defined his career. Here he is Francois the mailman, who […]

Casablanca – 1942

There is no debating that Casablanca is one of the greatest films of all time. There is a reason it is considered one of the most well-received films. The simplicity of the scenery, the timeless message of love and sacrifice, the casual connective tissue between the characters. The film expresses sentiment in a way that […]

Frances Ha – 2012

There are some movies that are just awkward. It doesn’t prevent them from being good, it just makes them a little harder to watch. Frances Ha is one of those movies. Greta Gerwig gives a powerful performance as the perpetually struggling Frances and Noah Baumbach never feels like he’s at a loss in directing her […]