1. Pain and Gain (2013)
Armed with PEDS, bicycle shorts, and a great work ethic, Danny Lupo (Mark Wahlberg), Miami’s local Sunrise Gym manager, has just decided to turn his life around. So, enlisting the help of fellow personal trainer Adrian (Anthony Mackie) and newly joined Sunrise Gym member Paul (Dwayne Johnson), the three set out to kidnap Lupo’s rich client.
2. Master (2022)
Following the story of three black women attending a prestigious New England college, micro-aggressions create an undertone of hostility slowly bolstered by histories of racial injustice and lore, such as the school’s first Black student’s questionable suicide. But, come midpoint, the feeling of something far more sinister lurking just under the surface transforms this could-be indie drama into a masterclass of tension.
3. I Want You Back (2022)
Peter and Emma have just been dumped and replaced by far better-looking rebounds. Determined to get their exes back, they team up and devise a plan to sew heartbreak in the new relationships of each other’s former loves. Full of fresh jokes and hilariously relatable cringe makes this an easy pick for best new Rom-Com of the year.
4. Liar Liar (1997)
Fletcher is a do anything, be anywhere, lie whenever attorney keeps on breaking promises to his son Max if it means getting ahead professionally. This is why when Pappa Reede doesn’t show yet again for Max’s birthday, Max uses his one wish to stop his father from being able to tell any lies for 24 hours. Over the next day, Fletcher is forced to live without his usual crutch of deceit.
5. Crash (2004)
Graham Waters is a Black LAPD Detective investigating crimes with racial motivations. John Ryan is a racist LAPD Sergeant. Anthony is a carjacker. Cameron Thayer is a rich Black TV producer fighting to retain his identity while separating himself from his roots. District Attorney Rick Cabot is known for being tough on crime, especially with POC perpetrators. All are connected through the invisible thread of American society.
6. The Silencing (2020)
Rayburn Swanson lives alone in the woods. He used to live with his daughter Gwen until she went missing five years prior. Since then, more girls have gone missing, but only recently have they begun to reappear. After a girl’s body is discovered, Rayburn goes out to examine a strange figure spotted on his hunting cameras.
7. The Tender Bar (2021)
Abandoned by his father, J.R., at a young age, he soon found a room full of replacements. Well, a bar full. With his mother busy working, J.R. hung out at his uncle Charlie’s (Ben Affleck) bar. Tutored in the way of the world by the bar’s colorful regulars, J.R. developed a unique outlook on life that lends itself to some undeniably sweet moments and downright hilarious ones.
8. Beautiful Boy (2018)
Beautiful Boy is the story of Nic and his father, David, as they are battling to survive through Nic’s drug addiction and all the personal traumas that come with it. In this emotional rollercoaster, the highs and lows so typical of drug addiction and the challenge of sobriety stand in contrast to the usual three-act movie structure audiences are used to.
9. Mission Impossible (Collection)
Ethan Hunt (Tom Cruise) has been saving the world since 1996, when Mission: Impossible first saw him and his crack spy team framed for a murder he didn’t commit in the country newly re-minted as Russia. The MI franchise quickly became a must-watch with gadgets to rival any James Bond film, a grittier vibe, and stunts above and beyond anything we’d ever seen before.
10. Being the Ricardos (2021)
Unraveling the complex personal/professional relationship of television stars Lucille Ball (Nicole Kidman) and Desi Arnaz (Javier Bardem), Being the Ricardos aims to shed light on the couple that once enraptured 72% of all American television viewers. Flashbacks, interviews, black and white sequences, you name it, Sorkin uses it to dig deeper than any film has done before.
11. Encounter (2021)
Malik Khan (Riz Ahmed) is on his way home to his two young boys, Jay. He takes his boys from their beds in the dead of night and heads out on the run. Pursued by the government and possibly an enemy from beyond this world, Malik’s sanity is questioned as to the possibility that it’s all in his mind hangs over what would’ve already been a nail-biting thriller.
12. Joe Bell (2021)
Joe Bell tells the true story of Jadin Bell (Reid Miller) and his father Joe’s (Mark Wahlberg) plead for forgiveness. Now that Jadin’s gone, Joe can’t remain silent anymore. Determined to make a difference and pay penance for his failings as a father, Joe sets out on a walk across America, talking to anyone who’ll listen about the harms of bullying and the need for LGBTQ rights.
13. Tell No One (2006)
Eight years after his wife’s murder, Alexandre (François Cluzet) receives an email from someone claiming to be her and requesting a meeting. Unfortunately, before the rendezvous can occur, an unearthing of old bodies framing Alexandre forces him to flee. Chased across France by police and murderers alike, Alexandre must try to unravel a near decades-old mystery while solving the current crimes and avoiding being killed.
14. Pineapple Express (2008)
After taking a midday break to smoke a rare weed strain with his clingy drug dealer Saul (James Franco), Dale Denton (Seth Rogen) witnesses perhaps the biggest buzzkill—murder. Narrowly escaping, he drops his roach, which is immediately traced back to Saul due to its rare weed strain. Now on the run together, Saul and Dale must pull off the ultimate feat of 1-2-3-sober (but of course not sober) to solve the murder and catch the bad guys.
15. Vivarium (2019)
On the hunt for the perfect starter home, a young couple, Tom (Jesse Eisenberg) and Gemma (Imogen Poots), travel into a suburban neighborhood of almost Mr. Rogers-like perfection to view an open house. Unfortunately, after surveying the property, they find themselves trapped, unable to escape the maze of carefully groomed lawns and identically painted fences.
