The Criterion Collection

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Steven Soderbergh

bentravers5: “Soderbergh's Oscar-winning drug epic is as deserving as anything else he's done, but am I alone in wishing he would have got Oscar for Solaris?”

The Silence of the Lambs

Jonathan Demme

bentravers5: “Recent reviews I've read say this has lost some of its conviction - I strongly disagree. Hopkins' performance is just as terrifying.”

The Seventh Seal

Ingmar Bergman

Rushmore

Wes Anderson

bentravers5: “Is it an issue a movie about adolescent love and development didn't resonate with me until I was much older? Unknown, but I'm happy now.”

The Royal Tenenbaums

Wes Anderson

bentravers5: “Anderson's best film - that is the highest compliment I can bestow.”

The Rock

Michael Bay

bentravers5: “Ridiculously entertaining if absent the creative spark and touching finale of Bay's "Armageddon".”

Ride with the Devil

Ang Lee

Ran

Akira Kurosawa

bentravers5: “I love, love, LOVE this film. Gorgeous, compelling, and incredibly choreographed. Kurosawa's finest in my mind.”

The Night of the Hunter

Charles Laughton

bentravers5: “My father showed this to me as a young boy and it freaked me out. It still scares the hell of me to this day.”

My Own Private Idaho

Gus Van Sant

bentravers5: “Proof Keanu Reeves knows how to act.”

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

Wes Anderson

bentravers5: “Could never be part of the B team - it's an A all the way.”

The Last Emperor

Bernardo Bertolucci

Kagemusha

Akira Kurosawa

The Ice Storm

Ang Lee

bentravers5: “Nothing will top Ang Lee's "Brokeback Mountain", but "The Ice Storm" is an undeservedly forgotten gem, scrutinizing familial relations like few others”

Hoop Dreams

Steve James

Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas

Terry Gilliam

bentravers5: “Find my review at popmatters.com - "In Gonzo Spirit I Ingested Vodka, Beer, and Pills to watch 'Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas'".”

F for Fake

Orson Welles

bentravers5: “So wildly creative it's spooky, "F For Fake" finds Welles at the peak of his powers. Great film.”

Do the Right Thing

Spike Lee

bentravers5: “Possibly Spike's only great film (I have yet to see Malcolm X), "Do the Right Thing" is certainly his most penetrating because of his honest approach.”

The Curious Case of Benjamin Button

David Fincher

bentravers5: “So stunningly beautiful and well-acted, the film proves excellent despite a mediocre, rehashed script. Pitt deserved an Oscar.”

The Darjeeling Limited

Wes Anderson

bentravers5: “It gets better every time I watch it. Deeper, darker, and more personal than Anderson's other pieces, even if it may never compare to "Tenenbaums".”

Che

Steven Soderbergh

bentravers5: “Part I beats Part II, but Soderbergh's visuals make every second of this lengthy epic utterly engrossing.”

Chasing Amy

Kevin Smith

bentravers5: “Kevin Smith's semi-autobiographical rom-com is funny, touching, and in its challenging finale, unique. Uneven for sure, but affecting in its brashness”

Charade

Stanley Donen

Brazil

Terry Gilliam

bentravers5: “Bizarrely heart-breaking, "Brazil" is the best of Terry Gilliam's bold visions.”

Bottle Rocket

Wes Anderson

bentravers5: “Not the best of Wes, but a compelling and creative first film with obvious influence on his future works.”

Armageddon

Michael Bay

bentravers5: “Absolutely deserving of the Criterion treatment as an astounding testament to what Michael Bay could do if he wasn't too busy smashing robots together”