NINOTCHKA, 1939

Communism and the struggles of daily life under Soviet rule serve as a backdrop for this romantic comedy.

Directed by Ernst Lubitsch.

YOJIMBO, 1961

Toshiro Mifune plays rival gangs against each other. But watch out! One gangster wields an oversized novelty mallet.

Directed by Akira Kurosawa.

THE ZERO EFFECT, 1998

Bill Pullman is a reclusive, paranoid, strung-out, master-of-disguise, astute-student-of-human-nature uber-P.I., who is also an avid Tab drinker. In other words, this movie has a little something for everyone.

Directed by Jake Kasdan.

WINCHESTER '73, 1950

A story about guns. And brothers. And how one of those brothers and one of those guns saves Tony Curtis from certain doom.

Directed by Anthony Mann.

RIPLEY'S GAME, 2002

Everyone's favorite sociopath, played by everyone's favorite droll egg-headed actor. (Makes me never want to use the bathroom on a train.)

Directed by Liliana Cavani.

THE LONG GOODBYE, 1973

It may be difficult for anyone born after 1975 to believe, but Elliott Gould is rockin'.

Directed by Robert Altman.

MANHATTAN MURDER MYSTERY, 1993

If you think YOUR neighbors peek into your garage a little too curiously, try living next to this neurotic pair.

Directed by Woody Allen.

ONLY ANGELS HAVE WINGS, 1939

Toy airplanes take off from and land on on a miniature set; Carey Grant is just this side of dapper; and best of all, there's intense pilot rivalry.

Directed by Howard Hawks.

THE IRON GIANT, 1999

Ted Hughes wrote this story about nuclear annihilation to cheer up his kids after their mom committed suicide.

Directed by Brad Bird.

SEVEN UP!, 1964, (AND THE REST OF THE UP SERIES)

SEVEN UP!, 7 PLUS SEVEN, 21 UP, 28 UP, 35 UP, 42 UP, 49 UP: Explores the theory that annoying children grow up to be annoying adults.

Seven Up! directed by Paul Almond. The rest directed by Michael Apted.

BLOWUP, 1966

A smooth-chested photographer suspects his camera has captured something nefarious. After couple of days, it's not even that strange when the mimes show up.

Directed by Michelangelo Antonioni.

WINGS OF DESIRE, 1987

Here's an angel-falls-in-love-with-a-mortal movie that's not ruined by Meg Ryan or sappy symbolism.

Directed by Wim Wenders.

SAMURAI REBELLION, 1967

A former samaurai fights injustice and a group of the lord's meanieheads with romanticism, a katana sword and a baby.

Directed by Masaki Kobayashi.

OUT OF THE PAST, 1947

A former private eye tries to blend in, but when the giant chin dimple from his past catches up to him, he finds himself in alligators up to his ears.

Directed by Jaques Tourneur.

THE THIN BLUE LINE, 1988

Welcome to Dallas, Texas, a magical land where not killing folks can land you on Death Row.

Directed by Errol Morris.

INFERNAL AFFAIRS, 2002

A mole in the police force and one in a gang work to out each other. A more descriptive title might be Internal Affairs. But why pass on the chance to be cute? And don't get too invested in the woman on the American DVD cover. She doesn't appear in the movie.

Directed by Wai Keung Lau and Siu Fai Mak.

LAURA, 1944

Lotsa fellas dig Laura. She's a big-city gal with an apartment of her own and a gigantunormous portrait of herself. So why would anyone want to off her?

Directed by Otto Preminger.

THE CONVERSATION, 1974

Harry's a bugging expert. But after replaying "Red Red Robin" a few too many times, he starts to freak about what he's really hearing.

Directed by Francis Ford Coppola.

SHADOW OF A DOUBT, 1943

Sure Uncle Charlie appears out of nowhere, is kinda creepy and has a mysterious past he won't talk about, but he's not at all trying to kill you.

Directed by Alfred Hitchcock.