Donnie Brasco [1997]

"In 1978, the US government waged a war against organized crime. One man was left behind the lines."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: Mike Newell
Writers: Joseph D. Pistone (book), Richard Woodley (book)
  Stars: Al Pacino, Johnny Depp and Michael Madsen

Storyline

This true story follows FBI agent Joe Pistone as he infiltrates the mafia of New York. Befriending Lefty Ruggiero, Pistone (under the name Donnie Brasco) is able to embed himself in a mafia faction lead by Sonny Black. Ruggiero and Pistone become tight as the group goes about collecting money for 'the bosses'. Eventually, the group become big time when Black himself becomes a boss, all the while Pistone collects evidence. However, the trials and tribulations of the undercover work become more than Pistone can bear. His marriage falls apart and to top it off, the mafia suspect a mole in the organization. The real dilemma is afforded to Pistone, who knows if he walks away from the mafia, Ruggiero will be the one punished.

Girl, Interrupted [1999]

"The crazy thing is, you're not crazy."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: James Mangold
Writers: Susanna Kaysen (book), James Mangold (screenplay)
  Stars: Winona Ryder, Angelina Jolie and Whoopi Goldberg

Storyline

Susanna is rushed to the hospital. Afterwards she discusses this with a psychiatrist. She had been having some delusions. She had also been having an affair with the husband of her parents' friend. The doctor suggests that combining a bottle of aspirin and a bottle of vodka was a suicide attempt. This she denies. He recommends a short period of rest at Claymoore. Claymoore is a private mental hospital full of noisy, crazy people. Georgina is a pathological liar. Polly has been badly scarred by fire. Daisy won't eat in the presence of other people. Lisa is a sociopath, the biggest exasperation for the staff - like Nurse Valerie - and the biggest influence on the other girls in the hospital. Lisa has a history of escapes, so gaining access to personal medical files is not a problem... Susanna's boyfriend Toby is concerned that she seems too comfortable living with her institutionalized friends...

Gone Baby Gone [2007]

"Everyone Wants The Truth... Until They Find It."

Director: Ben Affleck
Writers: Ben Affleck (screenplay), Aaron Stockard (screenplay) 

Stars: Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris and Casey Affleck

Storyline

When 4 year old Amanda McCready disappears from her home and the police make little headway in solving the case, the girl's aunt Beatrice McCready hires two private detectives Patrick Kenzie and Angie Gennaro. The detective freely admit that they have little experience with this type of case, but the family wants them for two reasons - they're not cops and they know the tough Boston neighborhood in which they all live. As the case progresses, Kenzie and Gennaro face drug dealers, gangs and pedophiles. When they are about to solve their case, they are faced with a moral dilemma that could tear them apart.

Jarhead [2005]

"Every man fights his own war."

BASED ON A TRUE EVENTS

Director: Sam Mendes
Writers: William Broyles Jr. (screenplay), Anthony Swofford (book)
  Stars: Jake Gyllenhaal, Jamie Foxx and Lucas Black

Storyline

Anthony "Swoff" Swofford, a Camus-reading kid from Sacramento, enlists in the Marines in the late 1980s. He malingers during boot camp, but makes it through as a sniper, paired with the usually-reliable Troy. The Gulf War breaks out, and his unit goes to Saudi Arabia for Desert Shield. After 175 days of boredom, adrenaline, heat, worry about his girlfriend finding someone else, losing it and nearly killing a mate, demotion, latrine cleaning, faulty gas masks, and desert football, Desert Storm begins. In less than five days, it's over, but not before Swoff sees burned bodies, flaming oil derricks, an oil-drenched horse, and maybe a chance at killing. Where does all the testosterone go?

War Of The Worlds [2005]

"They're already here."

Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Josh Friedman (screenplay), David Koepp (screenplay) 

Stars: Tom Cruise, Dakota Fanning and Tim Robbins

Storyline

Ray Ferrier (Cruise) is a divorced dockworker and less-than-perfect father. When his ex-wife and her new husband drop off his teenage son Robbie and young daughter Rachel for a rare weekend visit, a strange and powerful lightning storm suddenly touches down. What follows is the extraordinary battle for the future of humankind through the eyes of one American family fighting to survive it in this contemporary retelling of H.G. Wells seminal classic sci-fi thriller.

Awakenings [1990]

"There is no such thing as a simple miracle."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: Penny Marshall
Writers: Oliver Sacks (book), Steven Zaillian (screenplay) 

Stars: Robert De Niro, Robin Williams and Julie Kavner

Storyline

A new doctor finds himself with a ward full of comatose patients. He is disturbed by them and the fact that they have been comatose for decades with no hope of any cure. When he finds a possible chemical cure he gets permission to try it on one of them. When the first patient awakes, he is now an adult having gone into a coma in his early teens. The film then delights in the new awareness of the patients and then on the reactions of their relatives to the changes in the newly awakened.

Chaplin [1992]

"Everyone has a wild side. Even a legend."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: Richard Attenborough
Writers: David Robinson (book), Charles Chaplin (book) 

Stars: Robert Downey Jr., Geraldine Chaplin and Paul Rhys

Storyline

The biography of Charlie Chaplin, filmmaker extraordinaire. From his formative years in England to his highest successes in America, Charlie's life, work, and loves are followed. While his screen characters were extremely hilarious, the man behind "The Little Tramp" was constantly haunted by a sense of loss.

Cashback [2006]

Director: Sean Ellis
Writers: Sean Ellis 

Stars: Sean Biggerstaff, Emilia Fox and Michelle Ryan

Storyline

When art student Ben Willis dumps his girlfriend Suzy, he develops chronic insomnia after finding out how quickly she moved on. To pass the long hours of the night, he starts working the late night shift at the local supermarket. There he meets a colorful cast of characters, all of whom have their own 'art' in dealing with the boredom of an eight-hour-shift. Ben's art is that he imagines himself stopping time. This way, he can appreciate the artistic beauty of the frozen world and the people inside it - especially Sharon, the pretty and quiet checkout girl, who perhaps holds the answer to solving the problem of Ben's insomnia.

Born On The Fourth Of July [1989]

"A story of innocence lost and courage found."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: Oliver Stone
Writers: Ron Kovic (book), Oliver Stone (screenplay) 

Stars: Tom Cruise, Raymond J. Barry and Caroline Kava

Storyline

The biography of Ron Kovic. Paralyzed in the Vietnam war, he becomes an anti-war and pro-human rights political activist after feeling betrayed by the country he fought for.

The Terminal [2004]

"Life is waiting."

Director: Steven Spielberg
Writers: Andrew Niccol (story), Sacha Gervasi (story) 

Stars: Tom Hanks, Catherine Zeta-Jones and Chi McBride

Storyline

Viktor Navorski, a man from an Eastern European country arrives in New York. However after he left his country war broke out. Suddenly Navorski is a man without a country - or one that the U.S. cannot recognize, thus he is denied entrance to the U.S. However, he also can't be deported so he is told by the Security Manager that he has to remain in the airport until his status can be fixed. And also Navorski doesn't speak English very well, so he cannot talk to or understand anyone. But he somehow adapts and sets up residence in the airport, which makes the man who placed him there unhappy, as it seems he is in line for a promotion but Navroski's presence might complicate that. So he tries to get Navorski to leave but Navorski remains where he is. Navorski makes friends with some of the people who work in the airport and is attracted to a flight attendant he runs into whenever she comes in.

Forrest Gump [1994]

"Life is like a box of chocolates...you never know what you're gonna get."

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writers: Winston Groom (novel), Eric Roth (screenplay) 

Stars: Tom Hanks, Robin Wright and Gary Sinise

Storyline

Forrest, Forrest Gump is a simple man with a low IQ but good intentions. He is running through childhood with his best and only friend Jenny. His 'mama' teaches him the ways of life and leaves him to choose his destiny. Forrest joins the army for service in Vietnam, finding new friends called Dan and Bubba, he wins medals, creates a famous shrimp fishing fleet, inspires people to jog, starts a ping-pong craze, create the smiley, write bumper stickers and songs, donating to people and meeting the president several times. However this is all irrelevant to Forrest who can only think of his childhood sweetheart Jenny. Who has messed up her life. Although in the end all he wants to prove is that anyone can love anyone.

Cast Away [2000]

"At the edge of the world, his journey begins."

Director: Robert Zemeckis
Writers: William Broyles Jr.

Stars: Tom Hanks, Helen Hunt and Paul Sanchez

Storyline

After FedEx systems engineer Chuck Noland is ripped out of his hasty life by the clock in a plane crash, he finds himself alone on the shores of a tropical island. First, frustration gets to him and then he realizes how little his chances are to ever get back to civilization. Four years later, Chuck has learned very well how to survive on his own: mending his dental health, catching fish with a spear, predicting the weather with a self-made calendar. A photograph of his girlfriend Kelly has kept his hopes alive all these years. Finally, Chuck takes the opportunity to take off for home: He sets off on a wooden raft with a sail that has washed ashore.

American Psycho [2000]

"Killer inside."

Director: Mary Harron
Writers: Bret Easton Ellis (novel), Mary Harron (screenplay)

Stars: Christian Bale, Justin Theroux and Josh Lucas

Storyline

Patrick Bateman, a young, well to do man working on wall street at his father's company kills for no reason at all. As his life progresses his hatred for the world becomes more and more intense.

American Beauty [1999]

"... look closer"

Director: Sam Mendes
Writers: Alan Ball

Stars: Kevin Spacey, Annette Bening and Thora Birch

Storyline

Lester and Carolyn Burnham are on the outside, a perfect husband and wife, in a perfect house, in a perfect neighborhood. But inside, Lester is slipping deeper and deeper into a hopeless depression. He finally snaps when he becomes infatuated with one of his daughter's friends. Meanwhile, his daughter Jane is developing a happy friendship with a shy boy-next-door named Ricky, who lives with a homophobic father.

A Beautiful Mind [2001]

"He Saw The World In A Way No One Could Have Imagined."

BASED ON A TRUE STORY

Director: Ron Howard
Writers:  Akiva Goldsman, Sylvia Nasar (book)

Stars: Russell Crowe, Ed Harris and Jennifer Connelly

Storyline

Biopic of the famed mathematician John Nash and his lifelong struggles with his mental health. Nash enrolled as a graduate student at Princeton in 1948 and almost immediately stood out as an odd duck. He devoted himself to finding something unique, a mathematical theorem that would be completely original. He kept to himself for the most part and while he went out for drinks with other students, he spends a lot of time with his roommate, Charles, who eventually becomes his best friend. John is soon a professor at MIT where he meets and eventually married a graduate student, Alicia. Over time however John begins to lose his grip on reality, eventually being institutionalized diagnosed with schizophrenia. As the depths of his imaginary world are revealed, Nash withdraws from society and it's not until the 1970s that he makes his first foray back into the world of academics, gradually returning to research and teaching. In 1994, John Nash was awarded the Nobel prize in Economics.

127 Hours [2010]

"There is no force more powerful than the will to live."

BASED ON A TRUE EVENTS

Director: Danny Boyle
Writers:  Danny Boyle (screenplay), Simon Beaufoy (screenplay)

Stars: James Franco, Amber Tamblyn and Kate Mara

Storyline

127 Hours is the true story of mountain climber Aron Ralston's remarkable adventure to save himself after a fallen boulder crashes on his arm and traps him in an isolated canyon in Utah. Over the next five days Ralston examines his life and survives the elements to finally discover he has the courage and the wherewithal to extricate himself by any means necessary, scale a 65 foot wall and hike over eight miles before he can be rescued. Throughout his journey, Ralston recalls friends, lovers, family, and the two hikers he met before his accident. Will they be the last two people he ever had the chance to meet?

Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street [2007]

 

"Never Forget. Never Forgive."

Director: Tim Burton
Writers:  John Logan (screenplay), Stephen Sondheim (musical) 

Stars: Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter and Alan Rickman

Storyline

In the Victorian London, the barber Benjamin Barker is married to the gorgeous Lucy and they have a lovely child, Johanna. The beauty of Lucy attracts the attention of the corrupt Judge Turpin, who falsely accuses the barber of a crime that he did not commit and abuses Lucy later after gaining custody of her. After fifteen years in exile, Benjamin returns to London under the new identity of Sweeney Todd, seeking revenge against Turpin. He meets the widow Mrs. Lovett who is the owner of a meat pie shop who tells him that Lucy committed suicide with arsenic many years ago, and Turpin assigned himself tutor of Johanna. He opens a barber shop above her store, initiating a crime rampage against those who made him suffer and lose his beloved family.

Wide Awake [1998]

"First kisses. Outrageous pranks. A teacher with a killer fastball. To survive this year, Joshua Beal will have to stay..."

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Writers: M. Night Shyamalan 

Stars: Joseph Cross, Timothy Reifsnyder and Dana Delany

Storyline

A fifth grader goes on a search for God after his grandfather dies. Along the way he gets into tons of trouble at Waldron Academy an all boys school. Also he is aided on his search by a sports loving nun.

Unbreakable [2000]

"Some things are only revealed by accident"

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Writers: M. Night Shyamalan 

Stars: Bruce Willis, Samuel L. Jackson and Robin Wright

Storyline

This suspense thriller unfolds as the audience is introduced to David Dunn. Not only is he the sole survivor of a horrific train-crash that killed 131 people he doesn't have a scratch on him. Elijah Price is an obscure character who approaches Dunn with a seemingly far fetched theory behind it all.

The Sixth Sense [1999]

"I see dead people"

Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Writers: M. Night Shyamalan 

Stars: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment and Toni Collette

Storyline

Malcom Crowe is a child psychologist who receives an award on the same night that he is visited by a very unhappy ex-patient. After this encounter, Crowe takes on the task of curing a young boy with the same ills as the ex-patient. This boy "sees dead people". Crowe spends a lot of time with the boy (Cole) much to the dismay of his wife. Cole's mom is at her wit's end with what to do about her son's increasing problems. Crowe is the boy's only hope.