Golden Globes Best Picture Winners by Tomatometer

Critics Consensus: The rare sequel that arguably improves on its predecessor, Toy Story 2 uses inventive storytelling, gorgeous animation, and a talented cast to deliver another rich moviegoing experience for all ages.

Synopsis: Woody (Tom Hanks) is stolen from his home by toy dealer Al McWhiggin (Wayne Knight), leaving Buzz Lightyear (Tim Allen) and the rest of the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Hanks, Tim Allen, Joan Cusack, Kelsey Grammer

Directed By: Ash Brannon, John Lasseter, Lee Unkrich

Critics Consensus: Remade but never duplicated, this darkly humorous morality tale represents John Huston at his finest.

Synopsis: In this classic adventure film, two rough-and-tumble wanderers, Dobbs (Humphrey Bogart) and Curtin (Tim Holt), meet up with a veteran prospector, Howard (Walter Huston), in... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Walter Huston, Tim Holt, Bruce Bennett

Directed By: John Huston

Critics Consensus: Lady Bird delivers fresh insights about the turmoil of adolescence -- and reveals writer-director Greta Gerwig as a fully formed filmmaking talent.

Synopsis: A teenager (Saoirse Ronan) navigates a loving but turbulent relationship with her strong-willed mother (Laurie Metcalf) over the course of an eventful and poignant senior... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Saoirse Ronan, Laurie Metcalf, Timothée Chalamet, Lucas Hedges

Directed By: Greta Gerwig

Critics Consensus: Playing as both an exciting sci-fi adventure and a remarkable portrait of childhood, Steven Spielberg's touching tale of a homesick alien remains a piece of movie magic for young and old.

Synopsis: After a gentle alien becomes stranded on Earth, the being is discovered and befriended by a young boy named Elliott (Henry Thomas). Bringing the extraterrestrial... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Henry Thomas, Dee Wallace, Peter Coyote, Drew Barrymore

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Critics Consensus: With his electrifying performance in Elia Kazan's thought-provoking, expertly constructed melodrama, Marlon Brando redefined the possibilities of acting for film and helped permanently alter the cinematic landscape.

Synopsis: Dockworker Terry Malloy (Marlon Brando) had been an up-and-coming boxer until powerful local mob boss Johnny Friendly (Lee J. Cobb) persuaded him to throw a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Marlon Brando, Eva Marie Saint, Karl Malden, Lee J. Cobb

Directed By: Elia Kazan

Critics Consensus: As bruised and cynical as the decade that produced it, this noir classic benefits from Robert Towne's brilliant screenplay, director Roman Polanski's steady hand, and wonderful performances from Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway.

Synopsis: When Los Angeles private eye J.J. Jake Gittes (Jack Nicholson) is hired by Evelyn Mulwray to investigate her husband's activities, he believes it's a routine... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Huston, Perry Lopez

Directed By: Roman Polanski

Critics Consensus: Moonlight uses one man's story to offer a remarkable and brilliantly crafted look at lives too rarely seen in cinema.

Synopsis: A look at three defining chapters in the life of Chiron, a young black man growing up in Miami. His epic journey to manhood is... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Mahershala Ali, Alex R. Hibbert, Ashton Sanders, Trevante Rhodes

Directed By: Barry Jenkins

Critics Consensus: Schindler's List blends the abject horror of the Holocaust with Steven Spielberg's signature tender humanism to create the director's dramatic masterpiece.

Synopsis: Businessman Oskar Schindler arrives in Kraków in 1939, ready to make his fortune from World War II, which has just started. After joining the Nazi... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Liam Neeson, Ben Kingsley, Ralph Fiennes, Caroline Goodall

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Critics Consensus: Arguably the greatest movie about Hollywood, Billy Wilder's masterpiece Sunset Boulevard is a tremendously entertaining combination of noir, black comedy, and character study.

Synopsis: An aging silent film queen refuses to accept that her stardom has ended. She hires a young screenwriter to help set up her movie comeback.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: William Holden, Gloria Swanson, Erich von Stroheim, Nancy Olson

Directed By: Billy Wilder

Critics Consensus: An engrossing look at the triumphs and travails of war veterans, The Best Years of Our Lives is concerned specifically with the aftermath of World War II, but its messages speak to the overall American experience.

Synopsis: Fred, Al and Homer are three World War II veterans facing difficulties as they re-enter civilian life. Fred (Dana Andrews) is a war hero who,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Fredric March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews, Teresa Wright

Directed By: William Wyler

Critics Consensus: Bitingly cynical without succumbing to bitterness, The Player is one of the all-time great Hollywood satires -- and an ensemble-driven highlight of the Altman oeuvre.

Synopsis: Certain that the anonymous threats he's been receiving are the work of David Kahane (Vincent D'Onofrio), producer Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins) tries to fix things... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward, Whoopi Goldberg

Directed By: Robert Altman

Critics Consensus: Epic in technical scale but breathlessly intimate in narrative scope, Boyhood is a sprawling investigation of the human condition.

Synopsis: The joys and pitfalls of growing up are seen through the eyes of a child named Mason (Ellar Coltrane), his parents (Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ellar Coltrane, Patricia Arquette, Ethan Hawke, Lorelei Linklater

Directed By: Richard Linklater

Critics Consensus: Charming, thoughtful, and often funny, Sideways is a decidedly mature road trip comedy full of excellent performances.

Synopsis: Struggling writer and wine enthusiast Miles (Paul Giamatti) takes his engaged friend, Jack (Thomas Haden Church), on a trip to wine country for a last... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paul Giamatti, Thomas Haden Church, Virginia Madsen, Sandra Oh

Directed By: Alexander Payne

Critics Consensus: One of Hollywood's greatest critical and commercial successes, The Godfather gets everything right; not only did the movie transcend expectations, it established new benchmarks for American cinema.

Synopsis: Widely regarded as one of the greatest films of all time, this mob drama, based on Mario Puzo's novel of the same name, focuses on... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Marlon Brando, Al Pacino, James Caan, Richard S. Castellano

Directed By: Francis Ford Coppola

Critics Consensus: Broderick Crawford is spellbinding as politician Willie Stark in director Robert Rossen's adaptation of the Robert Penn Warren novel about the corrosive effects of power on the human soul.

Synopsis: Drama about the rise and fall of a corrupt southern governor who promises his way to power. Broderick Crawford portrays Willie Stark, who, once he... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Broderick Crawford, Joanne Dru, Mercedes McCambridge, John Ireland

Directed By: Robert Rossen

Critics Consensus: Director Billy Wilder's unflinchingly honest look at the effects of alcoholism may have had some of its impact blunted by time, but it remains a powerful and remarkably prescient film.

Synopsis: Writer Don Birnam (Ray Milland) is on the wagon. Sober for only a few days, Don is supposed to be spending the weekend with his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ray Milland, Jane Wyman, Howard Da Silva, Phillip Terry

Directed By: Billy Wilder

Critics Consensus: The rare family-friendly feature with a heart as big as its special effects budget, Babe offers timeless entertainment for viewers of all ages.

Synopsis: Gentle farmer Arthur Hoggett (James Cromwell) wins a piglet named Babe (Christine Cavanaugh) at a county fair. Narrowly escaping his fate as Christmas dinner when... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Cromwell, Magda Szubanski, Hugo Weaving, Mary Acres

Directed By: Chris Noonan

Critics Consensus: Realistic, fast-paced and uncommonly smart, The French Connection is bolstered by stellar performances by Gene Hackman and Roy Scheider, not to mention William Friedkin's thrilling production.

Synopsis: New York Detective Popeye Doyle (Gene Hackman) and his partner (Roy Scheider) chase a French heroin smuggler.

Starring: Gene Hackman, Fernando Rey, Roy Scheider, Tony Lo Bianco

Directed By: William Friedkin

Critics Consensus: Sense and Sensibility is an uncommonly deft, very funny Jane Austen adaptation, marked by Emma Thompson's finely tuned performance.

Synopsis: When Elinor Dashwood's (Emma Thompson) father dies, her family's finances are crippled. After the Dashwoods move to a cottage in Devonshire, Elinor's sister Marianne (Kate... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Emma Thompson, Alan Rickman, Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant

Directed By: Ang Lee

Critics Consensus: Tense, exciting, and often darkly comic, Argo recreates a historical event with vivid attention to detail and finely wrought characters.

Synopsis: On Nov. 4, 1979, militants storm the U.S. embassy in Tehran, Iran, taking 66 American hostages. Amid the chaos, six Americans manage to slip away... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ben Affleck, Bryan Cranston, Alan Arkin, John Goodman

Directed By: Ben Affleck

Critics Consensus: Featuring some of Martin McDonagh's finest work and a pair of outstanding lead performances, The Banshees of Inisherin is a finely crafted feel-bad treat.

Synopsis: Set on a remote island off the west coast of Ireland, THE BANSHEES OF INISHERIN follows lifelong friends Pádraic and Colm, who find themselves at... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon, Barry Keoghan

Directed By: Martin McDonagh

Critics Consensus: Impeccably scripted, beautifully directed, and filled with fine performances, The Social Network is a riveting, ambitious example of modern filmmaking at its finest.

Synopsis: In 2003, Harvard undergrad and computer genius Mark Zuckerberg (Jesse Eisenberg) begins work on a new concept that eventually turns into the global social network... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jesse Eisenberg, Andrew Garfield, Justin Timberlake, Armie Hammer

Directed By: David Fincher

Critics Consensus: This complex war epic asks hard questions, resists easy answers, and boasts career-defining work from star Alec Guinness and director David Lean.

Synopsis: Adaptation of the Pierre Boulle novel about POWs in Burma forced to build a bridge to aid the war effort of their Japanese captors. British... View Full Synopsis

Starring: William Holden, Alec Guinness, Sessue Hayakawa, Jack Hawkins

Directed By: David Lean

Critics Consensus: Tense, funny, and thought-provoking all at once, and lifted by strong performances from Sydney Poitier and Rod Steiger, director Norman Jewison's look at murder and racism in small-town America continues to resonate today.

Synopsis: African-American Philadelphia police detective Virgil Tibbs (Sidney Poitier) is arrested on suspicion of murder by Bill Gillespie (Rod Steiger), the racist police chief of tiny... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sidney Poitier, Rod Steiger, Warren Oates, Quentin Dean

Directed By: Norman Jewison

Critics Consensus: The plot may be problematic, but such concerns are rendered superfluous by Gene Kelly and Leslie Caron's star power, the Gershwins' classic songs, and Vincente Minnelli's colorful, sympathetic direction.

Synopsis: Jerry Mulligan is an American ex-GI who stays in post-war Paris to become a painter, and falls for the gamine charms of Lise Bouvier. However,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gene Kelly, Leslie Caron, Oscar Levant, Georges Guétary

Directed By: Vincente Minnelli

Critics Consensus: One of the most influential of all teen films, American Graffiti is a funny, nostalgic, and bittersweet look at a group of recent high school grads' last days of innocence.

Synopsis: From director George Lucas (Star Wars) and producer Francis Ford Coppola (The Godfather), American Graffiti is a classic coming-of-age story set against the 1960s backdrop... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Richard Dreyfuss, Ron Howard, Paul Le Mat, Charles Martin Smith

Directed By: George Lucas

Critics Consensus: It's far from comfortable viewing, but 12 Years a Slave's unflinchingly brutal look at American slavery is also brilliant -- and quite possibly essential -- cinema.

Synopsis: In the years before the Civil War, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor), a free black man from upstate New York, is kidnapped and sold into slavery... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Chiwetel Ejiofor, Michael Fassbender, Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano

Directed By: Steve McQueen

Critics Consensus: A crowd-pleasing tribute to the magic of silent cinema, The Artist is a clever, joyous film with delightful performances and visual style to spare.

Synopsis: In the 1920s, actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a bona fide matinee idol with many adoring fans. While working on his latest film, George... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell

Directed By: Michel Hazanavicius

Critics Consensus: Effectively balancing humor and subtle pathos, Sofia Coppola crafts a moving, melancholy story that serves as a showcase for both Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson.

Synopsis: A lonely, aging movie star named Bob Harris (Bill Murray) and a conflicted newlywed, Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), meet in Tokyo. Bob is there to film... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Bill Murray, Scarlett Johansson, Giovanni Ribisi, Anna Faris

Directed By: Sofia Coppola

Critics Consensus: Some Like It Hot: A spry, quick-witted farce that never drags.

Synopsis: After witnessing a Mafia murder, slick saxophone player Joe (Tony Curtis) and his long-suffering buddy, Jerry (Jack Lemmon), improvise a quick plan to escape from... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, Marilyn Monroe, George Raft

Directed By: Billy Wilder

Critics Consensus: Enchanting, sweepingly romantic, and featuring plenty of wonderful musical numbers, Beauty and the Beast is one of Disney's most elegant animated offerings.

Synopsis: An arrogant young prince and his castle's servants fall under the spell of a wicked enchantress, who turns him into the hideous Beast until he... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paige O'Hara, Robby Benson, Richard White, Jerry Orbach

Directed By: Gary Trousdale, Kirk Wise

Critics Consensus: At once a touching, funny coming-of-age story and a compelling sports film, Breaking Away is a delightful treat.

Synopsis: Dave (Dennis Christopher) and his working-class friends Cyril (Daniel Stern), Moocher (Jackie Earle Haley) and Mike (Dennis Quaid) spend their post-high school days in Bloomington,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dennis Christopher, Dennis Quaid, Daniel Stern, Jackie Earle Haley

Directed By: Peter Yates

Critics Consensus: George Cukor's elegant, colorful adaptation of the beloved stage play is elevated to new heights thanks to winning performances by Audrey Hepburn and Rex Harrison.

Synopsis: In this beloved musical, pompous phonetics professor Henry Higgins (Rex Harrison) is so sure of his abilities that he takes it upon himself to transform... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Audrey Hepburn, Rex Harrison, Stanley Holloway, Wilfrid Hyde-White

Directed By: George Cukor

Critics Consensus: Anchored by another winning performance from Tom Hanks, Steven Spielberg's unflinchingly realistic war film virtually redefines the genre.

Synopsis: Captain John Miller (Tom Hanks) takes his men behind enemy lines to find Private James Ryan, whose three brothers have been killed in combat. Surrounded... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Jeremy Davies

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Critics Consensus: Featuring terrific performances and epic action, Kubrick's restored swords-and-sandals epic is a true classic.

Synopsis: The rebellious Thracian Spartacus, born and raised a slave, is sold to Gladiator trainer Batiatus. After weeks of being trained to kill for the arena,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kirk Douglas, Laurence Olivier, Jean Simmons, Tony Curtis

Directed By: Stanley Kubrick

Critics Consensus: Visually breathtaking and emotionally powerful, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a moving and satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy.

Synopsis: The culmination of nearly 10 years' work and conclusion to Peter Jackson's epic trilogy based on the timeless J.R.R. Tolkien classic, "The Lord of the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen

Directed By: Peter Jackson

Critics Consensus: Structurally beautiful and suffused with Adrien Brody's soulful performance, writer-director Brady Corbet's The Brutalist is a towering tribute to the immigrant experience.

Synopsis: Escaping post-war Europe, visionary architect László Toth arrives in America to rebuild his life, his work, and his marriage to his wife Erzsébet after being... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn

Directed By: Brady Corbet

Critics Consensus: The epic of all epics, Lawrence of Arabia cements director David Lean's status in the filmmaking pantheon with nearly four hours of grand scope, brilliant performances, and beautiful cinematography.

Synopsis: Due to his knowledge of the native Bedouin tribes, British Lieutenant T.E. Lawrence (Peter O'Toole) is sent to Arabia to find Prince Faisal (Alec Guinness)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Peter O'Toole, Alec Guinness, Anthony Quinn, Omar Sharif

Directed By: David Lean

Critics Consensus: Oppenheimer marks another engrossing achievement from Christopher Nolan that benefits from Murphy's tour-de-force performance and stunning visuals.

Synopsis: During World War II, Lt. Gen. Leslie Groves Jr. appoints physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer to work on the top-secret Manhattan Project. Oppenheimer and a team... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Cillian Murphy, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr., Matt Damon

Directed By: Christopher Nolan

Critics Consensus: Wildly imaginative and exhilaratingly over the top, Poor Things is a bizarre, brilliant tour de force for director Yorgos Lanthimos and star Emma Stone.

Synopsis: From filmmaker Yorgos Lanthimos and producer Emma Stone comes the incredible tale and fantastical evolution of Bella Baxter (Stone), a young woman brought back to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Emma Stone, Willem Dafoe, Mark Ruffalo, Christopher Abbott

Directed By: Yorgos Lanthimos

Critics Consensus: A poetic character study on the forgotten and downtrodden, Nomadland beautifully captures the restlessness left in the wake of the Great Recession.

Synopsis: A woman in her sixties embarks on a journey through the American West, living as a van-dwelling modern-day nomad after losing everything in the Great... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Frances McDormand, David Strathairn, Linda May, Swankie

Directed By: Chloé Zhao

Critics Consensus: Emotionally stirring, richly drawn, and beautifully animated, The Lion King is a pride within Disney's pantheon of classic family films.

Synopsis: This Disney animated feature follows the adventures of the young lion Simba (Jonathan Taylor Thomas), the heir of his father, Mufasa (James Earl Jones). Simba's... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Matthew Broderick, Jeremy Irons, James Earl Jones, Madge Sinclair

Directed By: Roger Allers, Rob Minkoff

Critics Consensus: Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher are worthy adversaries in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, with Miloš Forman's more grounded and morally ambiguous approach to Ken Kesey's surrealistic novel yielding a film of outsized power.

Synopsis: When Randle Patrick McMurphy gets transferred for evaluation from a prison farm to a mental institution, he assumes it will be a less restrictive environment.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Brad Dourif, William Redfield

Directed By: Milos Forman

Critics Consensus: Director Billy Wilder's customary cynicism is leavened here by tender humor, romance, and genuine pathos.

Synopsis: Insurance worker C.C. Baxter (Jack Lemmon) lends his Upper West Side apartment to company bosses to use for extramarital affairs. When his manager Mr. Sheldrake... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray, Ray Walston

Directed By: Billy Wilder

Critics Consensus: This story of a down-on-his-luck boxer is thoroughly predictable, but Sylvester Stallone's script and stunning performance in the title role brush aside complaints.

Synopsis: Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone), a small-time boxer from working-class Philadelphia, is arbitrarily chosen to take on the reigning world heavyweight champion, Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers),... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Burgess Meredith, Burt Young

Directed By: John G. Avildsen

Critics Consensus: Worthwhile as both a well-acted ensemble piece and as a smart, warm statement on family values, The Kids Are All Right is remarkable.

Synopsis: Lesbian couple Jules (Julianne Moore) and Nic (Annette Bening) have been together for almost 20 years and have two teenage offspring named Joni and Laser,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Julianne Moore, Annette Bening, Mark Ruffalo, Mia Wasikowska

Directed By: Lisa Cholodenko

Critics Consensus: Typically stylish but deceptively thoughtful, The Grand Budapest Hotel finds Wes Anderson once again using ornate visual environments to explore deeply emotional ideas.

Synopsis: In the 1930s, the Grand Budapest Hotel is a popular European ski resort, presided over by concierge Gustave H. (Ralph Fiennes). Zero, a junior lobby... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, F. Murray Abraham, Mathieu Amalric, Adrien Brody

Directed By: Wes Anderson

Critics Consensus: Riotously funny and impeccably cast, American Hustle compensates for its flaws with unbridled energy and some of David O. Russell's most irrepressibly vibrant direction.

Synopsis: Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale) dabbles in forgery and loan-sharking, but when he falls for fellow grifter Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams), things change in a big... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Christian Bale, Bradley Cooper, Jeremy Renner, Amy Adams

Directed By: David O. Russell

Critics Consensus: Endlessly witty, visually rapturous, and sweetly romantic, Shakespeare in Love is a delightful romantic comedy that succeeds on nearly every level.

Synopsis: "Shakespeare in Love" is a romantic comedy for the 1990s set in the 1590s. It imaginatively unfolds the witty, sexy and timeless tale behind the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Joseph Fiennes, Gwyneth Paltrow, Geoffrey Rush, Judi Dench

Directed By: John Madden

Critics Consensus: Part memoir, part ode to the power of the movies, The Fabelmans finds Steven Spielberg digging at the family roots that helped make him a beloved filmmaker -- and proves he hasn't lost his magic touch.

Synopsis: Young Sammy Fabelman falls in love with movies after his parents take him to see "The Greatest Show on Earth." Armed with a camera, Sammy... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michelle Williams, Paul Dano, Seth Rogen, Gabriel LaBelle

Directed By: Steven Spielberg

Critics Consensus: Buoyed by Robert Wise's dazzling direction, Leonard Bernstein's score, and Stephen Sondheim's lyrics, West Side Story remains perhaps the most iconic of all the Shakespeare adaptations to visit the big screen.

Synopsis: A musical in which a modern day Romeo and Juliet are involved in New York street gangs. On the harsh streets of the upper west... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Natalie Wood, Richard Beymer, Russ Tamblyn, George Chakiris

Directed By: Jerome Robbins, Robert Wise

Critics Consensus: Great performances and evocative musical numbers help Cabaret secure its status as a stylish, socially conscious classic.

Synopsis: In Berlin in 1931, American cabaret singer Sally Bowles (Liza Minnelli) meets British academic Brian Roberts (Michael York), who is finishing his university studies. Despite... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Liza Minnelli, Joel Grey, Michael York, Helmut Griem

Directed By: Bob Fosse

Critics Consensus: Henry Fonda and Katherine Hepburn are a wondrous duo in On Golden Pond, a wistful drama that movingly explores the twilight years of a loving marriage.

Synopsis: Cantankerous retiree Norman Thayer (Henry Fonda) and his conciliatory wife, Ethel (Katharine Hepburn), spend summers at their New England vacation home on the shores of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Katharine Hepburn, Henry Fonda, Jane Fonda, Doug McKeon

Directed By: Mark Rydell

Critics Consensus: La La Land breathes new life into a bygone genre with thrillingly assured direction, powerful performances, and an irresistible excess of heart.

Synopsis: Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) and Mia (Emma Stone) are drawn together by their common desire to do what they love. But as success mounts they are... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend, Rosemarie DeWitt

Directed By: Damien Chazelle

Critics Consensus: Smart, thrilling, and surprisingly funny, The Martian offers a faithful adaptation of the bestselling book that brings out the best in leading man Matt Damon and director Ridley Scott.

Synopsis: When astronauts blast off from the planet Mars, they leave behind Mark Watney, presumed dead after a fierce storm. With only a meager amount of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Kristen Wiig, Jeff Daniels

Directed By: Ridley Scott

Critics Consensus: Visually dazzling and emotionally resonant, Slumdog Millionaire is a film that's both entertaining and powerful.

Synopsis: As 18-year-old Jamal Malik answers questions on the Indian version of "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire," flashbacks show how he got there. Part of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dev Patel, Freida Pinto, Madhur Mittal, Anil Kapoor

Directed By: Danny Boyle

Critics Consensus: Smart, tender, and funny in equal measure, Hannah and Her Sisters is one of Woody Allen's finest films.

Synopsis: Three successive family Thanksgiving dinners mark time for Hannah (Mia Farrow), her younger sisters Lee (Barbara Hershey) and Holly (Dianne Wiest) and the men in... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Woody Allen, Mia Farrow, Michael Caine, Carrie Fisher

Directed By: Woody Allen

Critics Consensus: Tootsie doesn't squander its high-concept comedy premise with fine dialogue and sympathetic treatment of the characters.

Synopsis: New York actor Michael Dorsey (Dustin Hoffman) is a talented perfectionist who is so hard on himself and others that his agent (Sydney Pollack) can... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Jessica Lange, Teri Garr, Dabney Coleman

Directed By: Sydney Pollack

Critics Consensus: Sharper and wittier than your average period piece, The Lion in Winter is a tale of palace intrigue bolstered by fantastic performances from Peter O'Toole, Katharine Hepburn, and Anthony Hopkins in his big-screen debut.

Synopsis: It's Christmas 1183, and King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) is planning to announce his successor to the throne. The jockeying for the crown, though, is... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Peter O'Toole, Katharine Hepburn, Jane Merrow, John Castle

Directed By: Anthony Harvey

Critics Consensus: Almost Famous, with its great ensemble performances and story, is a well-crafted, warm-hearted movie that successfully draws you into its era.

Synopsis: Set in 1973, it chronicles the funny and often poignant coming of age of 15-year-old William, an unabashed music fan who is inspired by the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, Kate Hudson, Jason Lee

Directed By: Cameron Crowe

Critics Consensus: Oliver! transforms Charles Dickens' muckraking novel into a jaunty musical Victorian fairytale, buoyed by Ron Moody's charming star turn and Onna White's rapturous choreography.

Synopsis: In this award-winning adaptation of the Broadway musical based on the Charles Dickens novel, 9-year-old orphan Oliver Twist (Mark Lester) falls in with a group... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ron Moody, Oliver Reed, Mark Lester, Shani Wallis

Directed By: Carol Reed

Critics Consensus: An advocacy drama that makes its points without belaboring them, The Defiant Ones relies on its clever concept and brilliant performances to repudiate racial prejudice.

Synopsis: In the 1950s America, members of a chain gang are being transported through the South when their truck crashes. Two of the convicts, John Joker... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tony Curtis, Sidney Poitier, Theodore Bikel, Charles McGraw

Directed By: Stanley Kramer

Critics Consensus: Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri deftly balances black comedy against searing drama -- and draws unforgettable performances from its veteran cast along the way.

Synopsis: After months have passed without a culprit in her daughter's murder case, Mildred Hayes makes a bold move, painting three signs leading into her town... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Frances McDormand, Woody Harrelson, Sam Rockwell, Lucas Hedges

Directed By: Martin McDonagh

Critics Consensus: Amadeus' liberties with history may rankle some, but the creative marriage of Miloš Forman and Peter Shaffer yields a divinely diabolical myth of genius and mediocrity, buoyed by inspired casting and Mozart's rapturous music.

Synopsis: Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is a remarkably talented young Viennese composer who unwittingly finds a fierce rival in the disciplined and determined Antonio Salieri. Resenting Mozart... View Full Synopsis

Starring: F. Murray Abraham, Tom Hulce, Jeffrey Jones, Elizabeth Berridge

Directed By: Milos Forman

Critics Consensus: The divorce subject isn't as shocking, but the film is still a thoughtful, well-acted drama that resists the urge to take sides or give easy answers.

Synopsis: On the same day Manhattan advertising executive Ted Kramer (Dustin Hoffman) lands the biggest account of his career, he learns that his wife, Joanna (Meryl... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Justin Henry, Jane Alexander

Directed By: Robert Benton

Critics Consensus: Informed by director Oliver Stone's personal experiences in Vietnam, Platoon forgoes easy sermonizing in favor of a harrowing, ground-level view of war, bolstered by no-holds-barred performances from Charlie Sheen and Willem Dafoe.

Synopsis: Chris Taylor (Charlie Sheen) leaves his university studies to enlist in combat duty in Vietnam in 1967. Once he's on the ground in the middle... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Berenger, Willem Dafoe, Charlie Sheen, Forest Whitaker

Directed By: Oliver Stone

Critics Consensus: Robert Redford proves himself a filmmaker of uncommon emotional intelligence with Ordinary People, an auspicious debut that deftly observes the fractioning of a family unit through a quartet of superb performances.

Synopsis: Tormented by guilt following the death of his older brother, Buck, in a sailing accident, alienated teenager Conrad Jarrett (Timothy Hutton) attempts suicide. Returning home... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Donald Sutherland, Timothy Hutton, Mary Tyler Moore, Judd Hirsch

Directed By: Robert Redford

Critics Consensus: Solid cinematography and enjoyable performances from Paul Scofield and Robert Shaw add a spark to this deliberately paced adaptation of the Robert Bolt play.

Synopsis: When the highly respected British statesman Sir Thomas More (Paul Scofield) refuses to pressure the Pope into annulling the marriage of King Henry VIII (Robert... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Paul Scofield, Robert Shaw, Orson Welles, Wendy Hiller

Directed By: Fred Zinnemann

Critics Consensus: It may not be one of Vincente Minnelli's best, but the charming and flawlessly acted Gigi still offers enough visual and musical treats to satisfy.

Synopsis: Gaston (Louis Jourdan) is a restless Parisian playboy who moves from one mistress to another, while also spending time with Gigi (Leslie Caron), a precocious... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leslie Caron, Maurice Chevalier, Louis Jourdan, Hermione Gingold

Directed By: Vincente Minnelli

Critics Consensus: Hard-hitting, immersive, and an impressive technical achievement, 1917 captures the trench warfare of World War I with raw, startling immediacy.

Synopsis: During World War I, two British soldiers -- Lance Cpl. Schofield and Lance Cpl. Blake -- receive seemingly impossible orders. In a race against time,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: George MacKay, Dean-Charles Chapman, Mark Strong, Andrew Scott

Directed By: Sam Mendes

Critics Consensus: This road-trip movie about an autistic savant and his callow brother is far from seamless, but Barry Levinson's direction is impressive, and strong performances from Tom Cruise and Dustin Hoffman add to its appeal.

Synopsis: When car dealer Charlie Babbitt (Tom Cruise) learns that his estranged father has died, he returns home to Cincinnati, where he discovers that he has... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Tom Cruise, Valeria Golino, Gerald R. Molen

Directed By: Barry Levinson

Critics Consensus: A beautiful, epic Western, Brokeback Mountain's love story is imbued with heartbreaking universality thanks to moving performances by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal.

Synopsis: In 1963, rodeo cowboy Jack Twist and ranch hand Ennis Del Mar are hired by rancher Joe Aguirre as sheep herders in Wyoming. One night... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Heath Ledger, Jake Gyllenhaal, Linda Cardellini, Anna Faris

Directed By: Ang Lee

Critics Consensus: A mostly unqualified triumph for James Cameron, who offers a dizzying blend of spectacular visuals and old-fashioned melodrama.

Synopsis: Two young lovers from different backgrounds meet and fall in love on the ill-fated maiden voyage of the unsinkable R.M.S. Titanic.

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, Billy Zane, Kathy Bates

Directed By: James Cameron

Critics Consensus: Funny, moving, and beautifully acted, The Descendants captures the unpredictable messiness of life with eloquence and uncommon grace.

Synopsis: Native islander Matt King (George Clooney) lives with his family in Hawaii. Their world shatters when a tragic accident leaves his wife in a coma.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: George Clooney, Shailene Woodley, Amara Miller, Nick Krause

Directed By: Alexander Payne

Critics Consensus: Flawlessly cast and brimming with dark, acid wit, American Beauty is a smart, provocative high point of late '90s mainstream Hollywood film.

Synopsis: Lester Burnham (Kevin Spacey) is a gainfully employed suburban husband and father. Fed up with his boring, stagnant existence, he quits his job and decides... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening, Thora Birch, Wes Bentley

Directed By: Sam Mendes

Critics Consensus: Dances with Wolves suffers from a simplistic view of the culture it attempts to honor, but the end result remains a stirring western whose noble intentions are often matched by its epic grandeur.

Synopsis: A Civil War soldier develops a relationship with a band of Lakota Indians. Attracted by the simplicity of their lifestyle, he chooses to leave his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney A. Grant

Directed By: Kevin Costner

Critics Consensus: The music, the performances, the precision in capturing the post-college malaise -- The Graduate's coming-of-age story is indeed one for the ages.

Synopsis: Benjamin Braddock (Dustin Hoffman) has just finished college and, back at his parents' house, he's trying to avoid the one question everyone keeps asking: What... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dustin Hoffman, Anne Bancroft, Katharine Ross, William Daniels

Directed By: Mike Nichols

Critics Consensus: Uneven, but in terms of epic scope and grand spectacle, Ben-Hur still ranks among Hollywood's finest examples of pure entertainment.

Synopsis: An enslaved Judean prince (Charlton Heston) meets his Roman betrayer (Stephen Boyd), a former friend, in a chariot race.

Starring: Charlton Heston, Jack Hawkins, Stephen Boyd, Haya Harareet

Directed By: William Wyler

Critics Consensus: A rousing and energetic adaptation of the Broadway musical, Chicago succeeds on the level of pure spectacle, but provides a surprising level of depth and humor as well.

Synopsis: Nightclub sensation Velma (Catherine Zeta-Jones) murders her philandering husband, and Chicago's slickest lawyer, Billy Flynn (Richard Gere), is set to defend her. But when Roxie... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Catherine Zeta-Jones, Renée Zellweger, Richard Gere, Queen Latifah

Directed By: Rob Marshall

Critics Consensus: While Bernardo Bertolucci's decadent epic never quite identifies the dramatic pulse of its protagonist, stupendous visuals and John Lone's ability to make passivity riveting give The Last Emperor a rarified grandeur.

Synopsis: This sweeping account of the life of Pu Yi (John Lone), the last emperor of China, follows the leader's tumultuous reign. After being captured by... View Full Synopsis

Starring: John Lone, Joan Chen, Peter O'Toole, Ying Ruocheng

Directed By: Bernardo Bertolucci

Critics Consensus: Full of pith and Grand Guignol grossness, this macabre musical is perfectly helmed and highly entertaining. Tim Burton masterfully stages the musical in a way that will make you think he has done this many times before.

Synopsis: Evil Judge Turpin (Alan Rickman) lusts for the beautiful wife of a London barber (Johnny Depp) and transports him to Australia for a crime he... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, Alan Rickman, Timothy Spall

Directed By: Tim Burton

Critics Consensus: With a rich sense of period detail, The Aviator succeeds thanks to typically assured direction from Martin Scorsese and a strong performance from Leonardo DiCaprio, who charts Howard Hughes' descent from eccentric billionaire to reclusive madman.

Synopsis: Billionaire and aviation tycoon Howard Hughes (Leonardo DiCaprio) is a successful public figure: a director of big-budget Hollywood films such as "Hell's Angels," a passionate... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Cate Blanchett, Kate Beckinsale, John C. Reilly

Directed By: Martin Scorsese

Critics Consensus: Though it suffers from excessive length and ambition, director Minghella's adaptation of the Michael Ondaatje novel is complex, powerful, and moving.

Synopsis: The sweeping expanses of the Sahara are the setting for a passionate love affair in this adaptation of Michael Ondaatje's novel. A badly burned man,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ralph Fiennes, Juliette Binoche, Willem Dafoe, Kristin Scott Thomas

Directed By: Anthony Minghella

Critics Consensus: Romancing the Stone reaches back to the classic Saturday morning serials of old with an action-filled adventure enlivened by the sparkling chemistry between its well-matched leads.

Synopsis: A dowdy romantic-adventure writer is hurled into a real-life adventure in the Colombian jungle in order to save her sister, who will be killed if... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito, Zack Norman

Directed By: Robert Zemeckis

Critics Consensus: East of Eden strains to swell its story to epic dimensions, but James Dean's riveting performance gives this CinemaScope drama much of its raging heart.

Synopsis: In this film based on John Steinbeck's epic novel, Cal Trask (James Dean), the son of a California farmer (Raymond Massey), feels that his father... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James Dean, Julie Harris, Raymond Massey, Jo Van Fleet

Directed By: Elia Kazan

Critics Consensus: James L. Brooks and Jack Nicholson, doing what they do best, combine smart dialogue and flawless acting to squeeze fresh entertainment value out of the romantic-comedy genre.

Synopsis: Melvin Udall (Jack Nicholson) is an obsessive-compulsive writer of romantic fiction who's rude to everyone he meets, including his gay neighbor Simon (Greg Kinnear), but... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Helen Hunt, Greg Kinnear, Cuba Gooding Jr.

Directed By: James L. Brooks

Critics Consensus: Like a classic traditional country song, Coal Miner's Daughter draws on time-tested formula -- and undeniable talent -- to tell a solidly affecting story.

Synopsis: Raised in rural Kentucky poverty and married at the age of 13, Loretta Lynn (Sissy Spacek) begins writing and singing her own country songs in... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sissy Spacek, Tommy Lee Jones, Beverly D'Angelo, Levon Helm

Directed By: Michael Apted

Critics Consensus: Thrillingly unrestrained yet solidly crafted, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood tempers Tarantino's provocative impulses with the clarity of a mature filmmaker's vision.

Synopsis: Actor Rick Dalton gained fame and fortune by starring in a 1950s television Western, but is now struggling to find meaningful work in a Hollywood... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Brad Pitt, Margot Robbie, Kurt Russell

Directed By: Quentin Tarantino

Critics Consensus: A throwback to the high-gloss screwball comedies of the 1940s, Heaven Can Wait beguiles with seamless production values and great comic relief from Charles Grodin and Dianne Cannon.

Synopsis: Joe Pendleton (Warren Beatty), quarterback for the Los Angeles Rams, is killed in an auto accident. In the afterlife, Joe discovers that his guardian angel... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Warren Beatty, Julie Christie, Jack Warden, James Mason

Directed By: Warren Beatty, Buck Henry

Critics Consensus: Bold, timely, subversive, and above all funny, M*A*S*H remains a high point in Robert Altman's distinguished filmography.

Synopsis: Based on the novel by Richard Hooker, M*A*S*H follows a group of Mobile Army Surgical Hospital officers at they perform surgery and pass the time... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Donald Sutherland, Elliott Gould, Sally Kellerman, Tom Skerritt

Directed By: Robert Altman

Critics Consensus: It might soar on Al Pacino's performance more than the drama itself, but what a performance it is -- big, bold, occasionally over-the-top, and finally giving the Academy pause to award the star his first Oscar.

Synopsis: Frank is a retired Lt. Col. in the US army. He's blind and impossible to get along with. Charlie is at school and is looking... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Al Pacino, Chris O'Donnell, James Rebhorn, Gabrielle Anwar

Directed By: Martin Brest

Critics Consensus: Borat Subsequent Moviefilm proves Sacha Baron Cohen's comedic creation remains a sharp tool for exposing the most misguided -- or utterly repugnant -- corners of American culture.

Synopsis: Released from prison for bringing shame to his country, Kazakh funnyman Borat risks life and limb when he returns to America with his 15-year-old daughter.

Starring: Sacha Baron Cohen, Maria Bakalova, Dani Popescu, Manuel Vieru

Directed By: Jason Woliner

Critics Consensus: Disturbing and sardonic, Prizzi's Honor excels at black comedy because director John Huston and his game ensemble take the farce deadly seriously.

Synopsis: For Charley Partanna (Jack Nicholson), life in the Prizzi family is good as long as he honors the wishes of the Godfather (William Hickey). Partanna... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Kathleen Turner, Anjelica Huston, Robert Loggia

Directed By: John Huston

Critics Consensus: While it's fueled in part by outdated stereotypes, Driving Miss Daisy takes audiences on a heartwarming journey with a pair of outstanding actors.

Synopsis: Daisy Werthan (Jessica Tandy), an elderly Jewish widow living in Atlanta, is determined to maintain her independence. However, when she crashes her car, her son,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Morgan Freeman, Jessica Tandy, Dan Aykroyd, Patti LuPone

Directed By: Bruce Beresford

Critics Consensus: Stylishly scattered, Bugsy offers cinematic homage to the infamous underworld legend, chiefly through a magnetic performance from Warren Beatty in the title role.

Synopsis: New York mobster Benjamin Bugsy Siegel (Warren Beatty) leaves New York City to dip into the glamour of Hollywood, Calif., and to build up syndicate... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Harvey Keitel, Ben Kingsley

Directed By: Barry Levinson

Critics Consensus: Led by an unforgettable performance from Tom Cruise, Born on the Fourth of July finds director Oliver Stone tackling thought-provoking subject matter with ambitious élan.

Synopsis: In the mid 1960s, suburban New York teenager Ron Kovic (Tom Cruise) enlists in the Marines, fulfilling what he sees as his patriotic duty. During... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Cruise, Willem Dafoe, Kyra Sedgwick, Raymond J. Barry

Directed By: Oliver Stone

Critics Consensus: A buoyant corporate Cinderella story, Working Girl has the right cast, right story, and right director to make it all come together.

Synopsis: Savvy New York City receptionist Tess McGill (Melanie Griffith) gives her conniving boss, Katharine Parker (Sigourney Weaver), an excellent business tip, but Katharine simply steals... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Melanie Griffith, Harrison Ford, Sigourney Weaver, Alec Baldwin

Directed By: Mike Nichols

Critics Consensus: Superior acting and authentic crooning capture the emotional subtleties of the legend of Johnny Cash with a freshness that is a pleasure to watch.

Synopsis: The rise of country music legend Johnny Cash (Joaquin Phoenix) begins with his days as a boy growing up on the family farm, where he... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Reese Witherspoon, Ginnifer Goodwin, Robert Patrick

Directed By: James Mangold

Critics Consensus: A frantic, irreverent adaptation of the novel, bolstered by Albert Finney's courageous performance and arresting visuals.

Synopsis: Tom Jones (Albert Finney), a bastard foundling raised by the kindly Squire Allworthy (George Devine), loves the beautiful Sophie Western (Susannah York), but cannot marry... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Albert Finney, Susannah York, Hugh Griffith, Edith Evans

Directed By: Tony Richardson

Critics Consensus: Atonement features strong performances, brilliant cinematography, and a unique score. Featuring deft performances from James MacAvoy and Keira Knightley, it's a successful adaptation of Ian McEwan's novel.

Synopsis: This sweeping English drama, based on the book by Ian McEwan, follows the lives of young lovers Cecilia Tallis and Robbie Turner. When the couple... View Full Synopsis

Starring: James McAvoy, Keira Knightley, Romola Garai, Saoirse Ronan

Directed By: Joe Wright

Critics Consensus: Unapologetically sweet and maybe even a little corny, The Sound of Music will win over all but the most cynical filmgoers with its classic songs and irresistible warmth.

Synopsis: A tuneful, heartwarming story, it is based on the real life story of the Von Trapp Family singers, one of the world's best-known concert groups... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Julie Andrews, Christopher Plummer, Eleanor Parker, Richard Haydn

Directed By: Robert Wise

Critics Consensus: It may not be the best of David Lean's epics, but Dr. Zhivago is still brilliantly photographed and sweepingly romantic.

Synopsis: During the Russian Revolution, Yuri Zhivago (Omar Sharif) is a young doctor who has been raised by his aunt and uncle following his father's suicide.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Omar Sharif, Julie Christie, Geraldine Chaplin, Tom Courtenay

Directed By: David Lean

Critics Consensus: It occasionally fails to live up to its subject matter -- and is perhaps an 'important' film more than a 'great' one -- but the performances from Gregory Peck and Dorothy McGuire are superb.

Synopsis: When journalist Phil Green (Gregory Peck) moves to New York City, he takes on a high-profile magazine assignment about anti-Semitism. In order to truly view... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gregory Peck, Dorothy McGuire, John Garfield, Celeste Holm

Directed By: Elia Kazan

Critics Consensus: A classic tearjerker, Terms of Endearment isn't shy about reaching for the heartstrings -- but is so well-acted and smartly scripted that it's almost impossible to resist.

Synopsis: Widow Aurora Greenway (Shirley MacLaine) and her daughter, Emma (Debra Winger), have a strong bond, but Emma marries teacher Flap Horton (Jeff Daniels) against her... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Shirley MacLaine, Debra Winger, Jack Nicholson, Jeff Daniels

Directed By: James L. Brooks

Critics Consensus: A bird may love a fish -- and musical fans will love this adaptation of Fiddler on the Roof, even if it isn't quite as transcendent as the long-running stage version.

Synopsis: A lavishly produced and critically acclaimed screen adaptation of the international stage sensation tells the life-affirming story of Tevye, a poor milkman whose love, pride... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Topol, Norma Crane, Leonard Frey, Molly Picon

Directed By: Norman Jewison

Critics Consensus: It might be more impressive on a technical level than as a piece of storytelling, but Avatar reaffirms James Cameron's singular gift for imaginative, absorbing filmmaking.

Synopsis: James Cameron's Academy Award®-winning 2009 epic adventure "Avatar", returns to theaters September 23 in stunning 4K High Dynamic Range. On the lush alien world of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldaña, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang

Directed By: James Cameron

Critics Consensus: A beguiling tragicomedy, Vicky Cristina Barcelona charms with beautiful views of the Spanish city and a marvelously well-matched cast.

Synopsis: Americans Vicky (Rebecca Hall) and Cristina (Scarlett Johansson) arrive in Spain for a summer vacation at a friend's (Patricia Clarkson) Barcelona home. Visiting an art... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Javier Bardem, Patricia Clarkson, Penélope Cruz, Kevin Dunn

Directed By: Woody Allen

Critics Consensus: While not everyone will be entertained by Gladiator's glum revenge story, Russell Crowe thunderously wins the crowd with a star-making turn that provides Ridley Scott's opulent resurrection of Rome its bruised heart.

Synopsis: Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix) takes power and strips rank from Maximus (Russell Crowe), one of the favored generals of his predecessor and father, Emperor Marcus Aurelius,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed

Directed By: Ridley Scott

Critics Consensus: The movie may be a downer, but it packs an emotional wallop. Some fine acting on display here.

Synopsis: "The Hours" is the story of three women searching for more potent, meaningful lives. Each is alive at a different time and place, all are... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Meryl Streep, Julianne Moore, Nicole Kidman, Ed Harris

Directed By: Stephen Daldry

Critics Consensus: With a clever script and hilarious interplay among the cast, The Hangover nails just the right tone of raunchy humor, and the non-stop laughs overshadow any flaw.

Synopsis: Two days before his wedding, Doug (Justin Bartha) and three friends (Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis) drive to Las Vegas for a wild and... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Bradley Cooper, Ed Helms, Zach Galifianakis, Justin Bartha

Directed By: Todd Phillips

Critics Consensus: Dreamgirls' simple characters and plot hardly detract from the movie's real feats: the electrifying performances and the dazzling musical numbers.

Synopsis: Deena (Beyoncé Knowles), Effie (Jennifer Hudson) and Lorrell (Anika Noni Rose) form a music trio called the Dreamettes. When ambitious manager Curtis Taylor Jr. (Jamie... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jamie Foxx, Beyoncé, Eddie Murphy, Jennifer Hudson

Directed By: Bill Condon

Critics Consensus: The Exorcist rides its supernatural theme to magical effect, with remarkable special effects and an eerie atmosphere, resulting in one of the scariest films of all time.

Synopsis: One of the most profitable horror movies ever made, this tale of an exorcism is based loosely on actual events. When young Regan (Linda Blair)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Linda Blair, Max von Sydow, Lee J. Cobb

Directed By: William Friedkin

Critics Consensus: As starkly beautiful as it is harshly uncompromising, The Revenant uses Leonardo DiCaprio's committed performance as fuel for an absorbing drama that offers punishing challenges -- and rich rewards.

Synopsis: While exploring the uncharted wilderness in 1823, frontiersman Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio) sustains life-threatening injuries from a brutal bear attack. When a member (Tom Hardy)... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hardy, Domhnall Gleeson, Will Poulter

Directed By: Alejandro González Iñárritu

Critics Consensus: Green Book takes audiences on an excessively smooth ride through bumpy subject matter, although Mahershala Ali and Viggo Mortensen's performances add necessary depth.

Synopsis: Dr. Don Shirley is a world-class African-American pianist who's about to embark on a concert tour in the Deep South in 1962. In need of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Viggo Mortensen, Mahershala Ali, Linda Cardellini, Sebastian Maniscalco

Directed By: Peter Farrelly

Critics Consensus: Karla Sofía Gascón is Emilia Perez in a swaggering musical crime thriller of genre-bending fascination that is also an unapologetically trans story.

Synopsis: From renegade auteur Jacques Audiard comes Emilia Pérez, an audacious fever dream that defies genres and expectations. Through liberating song and dance and bold visuals,... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Zoe Saldaña, Karla Sofía Gascón, Selena Gomez, Adriana Paz

Directed By: Jacques Audiard

Critics Consensus: Tom Hanks' rigorously earnest performance keeps Forrest Gump sincere even when it gets glib with American history, making for a whimsical odyssey of debatable wisdom but undeniable heart.

Synopsis: Slow-witted Forrest Gump (Tom Hanks) has never thought of himself as disadvantaged, and thanks to his supportive mother (Sally Field), he leads anything but a... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright, Gary Sinise, Mykelti Williamson

Directed By: Robert Zemeckis

Critics Consensus: A love-it-or-hate-it experience, Moulin Rouge is all style, all giddy, over-the-top spectacle. But it's also daring in its vision and wildly original.

Synopsis: A celebration of love and creative inspiration takes place in the infamous, gaudy and glamorous Parisian nightclub, at the cusp of the 20th century. A... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Nicole Kidman, Ewan McGregor, John Leguizamo, Jim Broadbent

Directed By: Baz Luhrmann

Critics Consensus: The well-acted A Beautiful Mind is both a moving love story and a revealing look at mental illness.

Synopsis: From the heights of notoriety to the depths of depravity, John Forbes Nash Jr. experiences it all; as a mathematical expert, he made a discovery... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris, Jennifer Connelly, Paul Bettany

Directed By: Ron Howard

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In this acclaimed drama, Belinda McDonald (Jane Wyman), a young deaf-mute woman living off the coast of Canada on Cape Breton Island, becomes close to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jane Wyman, Lew Ayres, Charles Bickford, Jan Sterling

Directed By: Jean Negulesco

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Director John Boorman drew from his own childhood experiences for this touching coming-of-age tale about a boy growing up in and around London during World... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sebastian Rice-Edwards, Sarah Miles, David Hayman, Derrick O'Connor

Directed By: John Boorman

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When Harold Hill, a traveling con man, arrives in River City, he convinces the locals to start a band by purchasing the uniforms and instruments... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Robert Preston, Shirley Jones, Buddy Hackett, Pert Kelton

Directed By: Morton DaCosta

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In this film adaptation of the Rodgers & Hammerstein musical, widowed Welsh mother Anna Leonowens (Deborah Kerr) becomes a governess and English tutor to the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Deborah Kerr, Yul Brynner, Rita Moreno, Martin Benson

Directed By: Walter Lang

Critics Consensus: Bolstered by a cast of memorable stars and an impressive sense of scale, The Guns of the Navarone fires with vivid characterization and entertaining spectacle.

Synopsis: In 1943, a small commando team is sent to destroy huge German guns on the Greek Island of Navarone in order to rescue Allied troops... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gregory Peck, David Niven, Anthony Quinn, Stanley Baker

Directed By: J. Lee Thompson

Critics Consensus: An escapist and inventive cinemascope delight, Guys and Dolls glistens thanks to the charm of its ensemble.

Synopsis: Gambler Nathan Detroit (Frank Sinatra) has few options for the location of his big craps game. Needing $1,000 to pay a garage owner to host... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Marlon Brando, Jean Simmons, Frank Sinatra, Vivian Blaine

Directed By: Joseph L. Mankiewicz

Critics Consensus: Raw and unrelenting, Midnight Express is riveting in its realistic depiction of incarceration -- mining pathos from the simple act of enduring hardship.

Synopsis: Billy Hayes (Brad Davis) is a young American caught by Turkish police while attempting to smuggle hash out of Istanbul. He's tried and sent to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Brad Davis, Randy Quaid, John Hurt, Bo Hopkins

Directed By: Alan Parker

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When dancer Sybil Wren (Kay Kendall) pens a memoir about her time in a troupe with two other women, she incurs the wrath of her... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gene Kelly, Mitzi Gaynor, Kay Kendall, Taina Elg

Directed By: George Cukor

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Based on the popular novel by Franz Werfel, this drama focuses on Bernadette Soubirous (Jennifer Jones), a young French woman who experiences vivid visions of... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Jennifer Jones, Charles Bickford, Gladys Cooper, William Eythe

Directed By: Henry King

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Mame Dennis (Rosalind Russell), a progressive and independent woman of the 1920s, is left to care for her nephew Patrick (Jan Handzlik/Roger Smith) after his... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Rosalind Russell, Forrest Tucker, Coral Browne, Fred Clark

Directed By: Morton DaCosta

Critics Consensus: Dudley Moore brings a boozy charm to Arthur, a coming of age tale for a wayward millionaire that deploys energetic cast chemistry and spiffy humor to jovial effect.

Synopsis: Wealthy New York City playboy Arthur Bach (Dudley Moore) is perpetually drunk and completely rudderless. Dutifully supported by his sharp-tongued and quick-witted butler, Hobson (John... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dudley Moore, John Gielgud, Liza Minnelli, Geraldine Fitzgerald

Directed By: Steve Gordon

Critics Consensus: Bing Crosby and Barry Fitzgerald are eminently likable, and film is pleasantly sentimental, but Going My Way suffers from a surplus of sweetness.

Synopsis: Father Charles O'Malley (Bing Crosby) is an easy-going, golf-playing young priest whose entry into a tough neighborhood parish in midtown Manhattan is viewed with skepticism... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Bing Crosby, Barry Fitzgerald, Rise Stevens, Gene Lockhart

Directed By: Leo McCarey

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: When a Soviet submarine gets stuck on a sandbar off the coast of a New England island, its commander (Theodore Bikel) orders his second-in-command, Lieutenant... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Carl Reiner, Eva Marie Saint, Alan Arkin, Brian Keith

Directed By: Norman Jewison

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Famous pianist Franz Liszt (Dirk Bogarde) is unhappily married to Countess Marie D'Agoult (Genevieve Page) and considers quitting performing in order to devote his life... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dirk Bogarde, Capucine, Geneviève Page, Patricia Morison

Directed By: Charles Vidor, George Cukor

Critics Consensus: Director George Stevens' stately treatment of A Place in the Sun buffs out some of the novel's nuance with blunt moralizing, but riveting performances by Montgomery Clift and company give the drama a bruising punch.

Synopsis: In this classic version of Theodore Dreiser's novel "An American Tragedy," George Eastman (Montgomery Clift), the nephew of a wealthy industrialist, is excluded from high... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Montgomery Clift, Elizabeth Taylor, Shelley Winters, Keefe Brasselle

Directed By: George Stevens

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Former Broadway hoofer Paula McFadden (Marsha Mason) and her young daughter, Lucy (Quinn Cummings), are outraged to find that Paula's former lover has fled to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Richard Dreyfuss, Marsha Mason, Quinn Cummings, Paul Benedict

Directed By: Herbert Ross

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Cathy Timberlake (Doris Day) is en route to a job interview when a car transporting businessman Philip Shayne (Cary Grant) covers her in mud. He... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Cary Grant, Doris Day, Gig Young, Audrey Meadows

Directed By: Delbert Mann

Critics Consensus: Equal parts tough and funny, and led by a perfectly cast Burt Reynolds, The Longest Yard has an interesting political subtext and an excellent climax -- even if it takes too long to get there.

Synopsis: An ex-football star doing time is forced by the warden to organize a team of inmates to play against his own line-up of guards. The... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Burt Reynolds, Eddie Albert, Ed Lauter, Michael Conrad

Directed By: Robert Aldrich

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Screen version of the musical Carmen Jones, which adapted Bizet's opera Carmen for an African-American cast. A soldier falls for Dandridge, a seductive factory worker.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Dorothy Dandridge, Harry Belafonte, Pearl Bailey, Olga James

Directed By: Otto Preminger

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Debauched King Henry II (Peter O'Toole) installs his longtime court facilitator Thomas Becket (Richard Burton) as the Archbishop of Canterbury, assuming that his old friend... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Richard Burton, Peter O'Toole, John Gielgud, Gino Cervi

Directed By: Peter Glenville

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In Santa Vittoria, an Italian town renowned for its vineyards, the residents discover that the occupying Nazi troops plan to take all their wine for... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Anthony Quinn, Anna Magnani, Virna Lisi, Hardy Krüger

Directed By: Stanley Kramer

Critics Consensus: It's undeniably shallow, but its cheerful lack of pretense -- as well as its grand scale and star-stuffed cast -- help make Around the World in 80 Days charmingly light-hearted entertainment.

Synopsis: Victorian-era Englishman Phileas Fogg (David Niven) proclaims before his fellow members of a London gentleman's club that he can circumnavigate the globe in a mere... View Full Synopsis

Starring: David Niven, Mario Moreno 'Cantinflas', Shirley MacLaine, Robert Newton

Directed By: Michael Anderson

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: This musical drama focuses on the poverty-stricken residents struggling to survive in the Charleston tenement of Catfish Row. The sultry Bess (Dorothy Dandridge) becomes the... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Sidney Poitier, Dorothy Dandridge, Sammy Davis Jr., Pearl Bailey

Directed By: Otto Preminger, Rouben Mamoulian

Critics Consensus: Thanks to the sparkling chemistry between its stars and Herbert Ross' gentle direction, this sweetly ambling comedy ranks among Neil Simon's finest screen adaptations.

Synopsis: Al Lewis (George Burns) and Willy Clark (Walter Matthau) are a pair of feuding vaudeville comedians (Lewis and Clark, naturally) who performed together for 47... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Walter Matthau, George Burns, Richard Benjamin, Lee Meredith

Directed By: Herbert Ross

Critics Consensus: On paper, Mrs. Doubtfire might seem excessively broad or sentimental, but Robin Williams shines so brightly in the title role that the end result is difficult to resist.

Synopsis: An unemployed actor disguises himself as an elderly nanny in order to spend more time with his estranged family.

Starring: Robin Williams, Sally Field, Pierce Brosnan, Harvey Fierstein

Directed By: Chris Columbus

Critics Consensus: Impeccably mounted but occasionally bombastic, Les Misérables largely succeeds thanks to bravura performances from its distinguished cast.

Synopsis: After 19 years as a prisoner, Jean Valjean (Hugh Jackman) is freed by Javert (Russell Crowe), the officer in charge of the prison workforce. Valjean... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Hugh Jackman, Russell Crowe, Anne Hathaway, Amanda Seyfried

Directed By: Tom Hooper

Critics Consensus: In Babel, there are no villains, only victims of fate and circumstance. Director Alejandro Gonzalez Iñarritu weaves four of their woeful stories into this mature and multidimensional film.

Synopsis: An accident connects four groups of people on three different continents: two young Moroccan goatherds, a vacationing American couple (Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett), a deaf... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Gael García Bernal, Kôji Yakusho

Directed By: Alejandro González Iñárritu

Critics Consensus: Barbra Streisand takes on every conceivable role and acquits herself well in Yentl, a musical epic with a humdrum score that's given considerable lift from its writer-director-star's sheer force of will.

Synopsis: Rebbe Mendel is a single father who teaches the Talmud, a sacred text of Judaism, to the boys of his small Polish town. Behind closed... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Barbra Streisand, Mandy Patinkin, Amy Irving, Nehemiah Persoff

Directed By: Barbra Streisand

Critics Consensus: Evita sometimes strains to convince on a narrative level, but the soundtrack helps this fact-based musical achieve a measure of the epic grandeur to which it aspires.

Synopsis: Eva Duarte Perón rises from poverty to become an Argentinian actress and the wife of powerful President Juan Perón. Through a series of flashbacks, Eva... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Madonna, Antonio Banderas, Jonathan Pryce, Jimmy Nail

Directed By: Alan Parker

Critics Consensus: Earnest and determined to make audiences swoon, Love Story is an unabashed tearjerker that will capture hearts when it isn't inducing eye rolls.

Synopsis: When wealthy Harvard University law student Oliver Barrett IV meets Jenny Cavilleri, a middle-class girl who is studying music at Radcliffe College, it's love at... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Ali MacGraw, Ryan O'Neal, Ray Milland, Katharine Balfour

Directed By: Arthur Hiller

Critics Consensus: The Turning Point is a handsomely-made resuscitation of Old Hollywood melodramas with a compelling duo at its center, but the formulaic script keeps this story from realizing its symphonic potential.

Synopsis: Forced to give up ballet after becoming pregnant, Deedee (Shirley MacLaine) moved from New York to Oklahoma to raise a family with her husband (Tom... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Shirley MacLaine, Anne Bancroft, Mikhail Baryshnikov, Leslie Browne

Directed By: Herbert Ross

Critics Consensus: Though lensed with stunning cinematography and featuring a pair of winning performances from Meryl Streep and Robert Redford, Out of Africa suffers from excessive length and glacial pacing.

Synopsis: Initially set on being a dairy farmer, the aristocratic Karen Blixen (Meryl Streep) travels to Africa to join her husband, Bror (Klaus Maria Brandauer), who... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Meryl Streep, Robert Redford, Klaus Maria Brandauer, Michael Kitchen

Directed By: Sydney Pollack

Critics Consensus: Bohemian Rhapsody hits a handful of high notes, but as an in-depth look at a beloved band, it offers more of a medley than a true greatest hits collection.

Synopsis: Freddie Mercury -- the lead singer of Queen -- defies stereotypes and convention to become a beloved entertainer; the band's popular songs lead to Queen's... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Rami Malek, Lucy Boynton, Gwilym Lee, Ben Hardy

Directed By: Bryan Singer

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Since her beloved son was killed in World War II, Bertha Jacoby (Rosalind Russell) has nursed a grudge against the entire country of Japan. But... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Rosalind Russell, Alec Guinness, Ray Danton, Madlyn Rhue

Directed By: Mervyn LeRoy

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: Urban horticulturalist Brontë Mitchell (Andie MacDowell) has her eye on a gorgeous apartment, but the building's board will rent it only to a married couple.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Gérard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell, Bebe Neuwirth, Gregg Edelman

Directed By: Peter Weir

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: After landing a job singing on the radio, Jane Froman (Susan Hayward) marries musical accompanist Don Ross (David Wayne). Under Don's management, Jane rises to... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Susan Hayward, Rory Calhoun, David Wayne, Thelma Ritter

Directed By: Walter Lang

Critics Consensus: The Greatest Show on Earth is melodramatic, short on plot, excessively lengthy and bogged down with clichés, but not without a certain innocent charm.

Synopsis: The Greatest Show on Earth is a dazzling spectacle of life behind the scenes with Ringling Bros.-Barnum and Bailey Circus, the best three-ring circus in... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Betty Hutton, Charlton Heston, Cornel Wilde, Dorothy Lamour

Directed By: Cecil B. DeMille

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: On his path to the College of Cardinals, Stephen Fermoyle (Tom Tryon), a newly ordained Catholic priest, is confronted with family, personal and social crises... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Tom Tryon, Romy Schneider, Carol Lynley, John Huston

Directed By: Otto Preminger

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: This film adaption of a Broadway play is based on the historical events surrounding the founding of the Church of England. Catherine of Aragon (Irene... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Richard Burton, Geneviève Bujold, Irene Papas, Anthony Quayle

Directed By: Charles Jarrott

Critics Consensus: No consensus yet.

Synopsis: In this biblical epic, a drunk and disillusioned Roman, Marcellus Gallio (Richard Burton), wins Jesus' robe in a dice game after the crucifixion. Marcellus has... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, Victor Mature, Michael Rennie

Directed By: Henry Koster

Critics Consensus: A lack of memorable music, chemistry between its leads, and an overlong runtime prompts this modish iteration of A Star is Born to fizzle out quickly.

Synopsis: A rock star on the decline, John Norman Howard has given in to drugs and excessive drinking, and his music has suffered as a result.... View Full Synopsis

Starring: Barbra Streisand, Kris Kristofferson, Gary Busey, Oliver Clark

Directed By: Frank Pierson