Just because you're invited, doesn't mean you're welcome.

Starring: Daniel Kaluuya, Allison Williams, Bradley Whitford, Caleb Landry Jones, Stephen Root, LaKeith Stanfield, Catherine Keener, Lil Rel Howery, Erika Alexander, Marcus Henderson, Betty Gabriel

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆ - great

"You know I can't give you the keys, right, babe?" - Rose Armitage

Why watch this? You sorta know where it's going, but it gets to you anyway.

Plot Summary: A young Black photographer travels with his white girlfriend to meet her parents at their secluded estate for a weekend getaway. While initially interpreting their overly accommodating behavior as awkward, well-intentioned nervousness, he soon discovers the family's sinister, deeply disturbing motives for inviting him. Suspicion turns to survival as he attempts to escape.

Blumhouse Prod., QC Ent., Monkeypaw Prod.;
Universal Pictures

Flesh to touch...Flesh to burn! Don't keep the Wicker Man waiting!

Starring: Edward Woodward, Christopher Lee, Britt Ekland, Lesley Mackie, Diane Cilento, Ingrid Pitt, Lindsay Kemp, Ian Campbell, Russell Waters, Aubrey Morris, Irene Sunter

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★☆☆ - great

"Come. It is time to keep your appointment with the Wicker Man." - Lord Summerisle to Sergeant Howie

Why watch this? The Brits spin a nice horror film, as they lean into paganism.

Plot Summary: A conservative, Christian police sergeant travels to a remote Scottish island to investigate the disappearance of a young girl. He is met with hostility and denial from the island's insular, pagan inhabitants, who claim the girl never existed. As the pious outsider probes deeper into the community's strange rituals and practices, he grows more convinced a conspiracy is afoot.

Peter Snell; British Lion Films

Put on a happy face.

Starring: Joaquin Phoenix, Robert De Niro, Zazie Beetz, Frances Conroy, Brett Cullen, Shea Whigham, Bill Camp, Glenn Fleshler

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"For my whole life, I didn't know if I even really existed. But I do, and people are starting to notice." – Arthur Fleck

Why watch this? Could Joaquin Phoenix possibly top Heath Ledger? Well, it's pretty darn close.

Plot Summary: This film tells the story of Arthur Fleck, a struggling comedian and clown-for-hire living in a gritty Gotham City during the early 1980s. Battling mental illness, poverty, and isolation, Arthur's grip on reality slowly unravels as society continuously rejects and demeans him. His descent into madness culminates in a series of violent acts, transforming him into a notorious figure who unwittingly ignites an uprising against the city's corrupt and indifferent elite.

DC Films, Village Roadshow Pictures,
Bron Creative, Joint Effort; Warner Bros.

The adventures of an ordinary man at war with the everyday world.

Starring: Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall, Barbara Hershey, Rachel Ticotin, Frederick Forrest, Tuesday Weld

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"I am not a vigilante. I am just trying to get home to my little girl's birthday party and if everyone will just stay out of my way, nobody will get hurt." - Bill Foster

Why watch this? The burger joint. He does what many of us feel like doing when we're being ripped-off.

Plot Summary: In Los Angeles on a hot summer day, a disgruntled and unemployed man, William Foster, abandons his car in traffic and sets out on foot across the city to see his estranged daughter on her birthday. Along the way, he encounters various societal frustrations and injustices, leading to a series of escalating confrontations and increasingly violent acts of lashing out against those he perceives as responsible. Simultaneously, a veteran police officer, Sgt. Prendergast, on his last day before retirement, investigates the string of incidents and finds himself on a collision course with Foster.

Le Studio Canal+, Regency Enterprises,
Alcor Films; Warner Bros.

Seven deadly sins. Seven ways to die.

Starring: Brad Pitt, Morgan Freeman, Gwyneth Paltrow, R. Lee Ermey, John C. McGinley, Kevin Spacey, Richard Roundtree, Daniel Zacapa

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"People will barely be able to comprehend it, but they won't be able to deny it." – John Doe

Why watch this? This is one intense, gory, emotional crime film.

Plot Summary: The film follows a retiring detective, William Somerset, and his newly transferred partner, David Mills, as they investigate a series of brutal murders. They discover the killer's motives are rooted in the seven deadly sins, with each victim representing one of the vices. As the detectives delve deeper into the twisted mind of the killer, the investigation takes an increasingly dark and disturbing turn.

Arnold Koopelson Prod.; New Line Cinema

You'd better be shockproof before you dare find out!

Starring: Bette Davis, Joan Crawford, Victor Buono, Wesley Addy, Julie Allred, Anne Barton, Marjorie Bennett, Bert Freed, Anna Lee, Maidie Norman, Dave Willock

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"You know, we're right back where we started. When I was on the stage you had to depend on me for everything. Even the food you ate came from me. Now you have to depend on me for your food again. So, you see, we're right back where we started." - "Baby" Jane Hudson

Why watch this? Davis' portrayal of Baby Jane is monstrous.

Plot Summary: This psychological horror thriller centers on two aging sisters, Jane and Blanche Hudson, both former Hollywood stars, who live as recluses in their decaying mansion. Jane, a former child star clinging to the past, resents Blanche, whose film career overshadowed her own before a mysterious accident left Blanche paralyzed. As Jane's jealousy and unstable mental state escalate, she subjects Blanche to increasing psychological torment and isolation.

Seven Arts Prod.; Warner Bros. Pictures

The terror starts the moment he stops.

Starring: Rutger Hauer, C. Thomas Howell, Jeffrey DeMunn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, John M. Jackson, Billy Greenbush, Jack Thibeau

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"I want you to stop me." - John Ryder

Why watch this? It's as dreadfully suspenseful as a movie can get.

Plot Summary: Driving a car across country, young Jim Halsey picks up a hitchhiker who reveals himself to be a dangerous serial killer. After Jim narrowly escapes, the relentless hitchhiker proceeds to stalk him, leaving a trail of bodies in his wake and framing Jim for his crimes. Now pursued by the police and the killer, Jim's only hope for survival and clearing his name lies in the aid of a truck stop waitress named Nash.

HBO Pictures, Silver Screen Prod.;
TriStar Pictures

I am an idea. And ideas are bulletproof

Starring: Natalie Portman, Hugo Weaving, Stephen Rea, Stephen Fry, John Hurt, Tim Pigott-Smith, Roger Allam, Ben Miles

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"A building is a symbol, as is the act of destroying it. Symbols are given power by people. Alone, a symbol is meaningless, but with enough people, blowing up a building can change the world." - V

Why watch this? ... it's a futuristic tale of a crafty vigilante standing up against fascism.

Plot Summary: In a dystopian future, Britain is under the rule of a totalitarian government. A masked vigilante known as V embarks on a mission to ignite a revolution against the oppressive regime. A young woman named Evey Hammond, a television network employee, becomes unintentionally involved in V's audacious acts of defiance. As V's plans unfold, Inspector Finch races against time to apprehend him, all the while uncovering dark secrets and questioning the very foundations of his government.

Silver Pics, Virtual Studios, Studio Babelsberg,
Vertigo DC Comics, Anarchos Prod. Inc.;
Warner Bros. Pictures

If you come in five minutes after this picture begins, you won't know what it's all about!
When you've seen it all, you'll swear there's never been anything like it!

Starring: Frank Sinatra, Laurence Harvey, Janet Leigh, Angela Lansbury, James Gregory, Henry Silva, Leslie Parrish, John McGiver, Khigh Dheigh, James Edwards, Douglas Henderson, Albert Paulsen, Barry Kelley, Lloyd Corrigan, Madame Spivy, Reggie Nalder

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"I told them to build me an assassin. I wanted a killer from a world filled with killers and they chose you because they thought it would bind me closer to them." – Mrs. Iselin

Why watch this? This Frankenheimer thriller was certainly ahead of its time. I genuinely left me disturbed.

Plot Summary: The film opens in the Korean War with the capture of U.S. soldiers by Soviet/Chinese forces. Three days later the men return and are eventually sent back home. For their service, Sergeant Raymond Shaw receives the Medal of Honor, thanks to Captain Ben Marco's recommendation. Marco, and many of the men involved, however, are having horrible nightmares. In Marco's fever dreams he witnesses Shaw murder two fellow soldiers in front of communist military leaders. He convinces his superior office that something happened in Korea akin to brainwashing, and he feels that Shaw may be compromised.

M. C. Productions; United Artists

A duel is about to begin between a man, a truck, and an open road.
Where a simple battle of wits is now a matter of life and death.

Starring: Dennis Weaver, Jacqueline Scott, Eddie Firestone, Lou Frizzell, Gene Dynarski, Tim Herbert, Carey Loftin, Eugene Dynarski, Lucille Benson, Charles Seel

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"I'd like to report a truck driver who's been endangering my life." – David Mann

Why watch this? Few actors so show utter terror better than Dennis Weaver.

Plot Summary: David Mann is a traveling salesman, driving through the rural California desert to a business meeting. During his journey, he finds himself terrorized and pursued by the unseen driver of a rusty 18-wheeler semi-truck. What starts as an ordinary trip escalates into a relentless cat-and-mouse game between David and the unseen driver, pushing David to his limits as he fights for survival against the monstrous truck.

George Eckstein; ABC (TV)

Are you ready to play?

Starring: Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, James Rebhorn, Deborah Kara Unger, Peter Donat, Carroll Baker, Amin Mueller-Stahl

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"Discovering the object of the game is the object of the game." – Daniel Schorr

Why watch this? ... to see the look on your face when you realize what is really going on.

Plot Summary: Nicholas Van Orton, a wealthy and reclusive San Francisco investment banker, receives an unusual birthday gift from his estranged younger brother, Conrad. This gift is an opportunity to participate in a mysterious, customized game provided by a company called Consumer Recreation Services (CRS). As Nicholas enters the game, the lines between reality and the staged events blur, leading to a series of increasingly intense and dangerous occurrences that challenge his carefully constructed life and understanding of what's truly happening around him.
 

Dad's Preview: I rented this and could not believe that there wasn't more buzz about it. It is a hell of a tense film with a brilliant plot. You will have to watch it more than once to catch everything. It serves as a cautionary tale for the modern day corporate executive - those who live their lives solely to serve the "company", at the expense of living their life and spending time with loved ones. Michael Douglas delivers another strong performance, but I was drawn to the mysterious Deborah Unger.

Propaganda Films; PolyGram Films

Something beyond comprehension is happening to a girl on this street, in this house . . .
a man has been sent for as a last resort. That man is The Exorcist.

Starring: Ellen Burstyn, Max von Sydow, Jason Miller, Linda Blair, Lee J. Cobb, Kitty Winn, Jack MacGowran, Father William O'Malley

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"The demon is a liar. He will lie to confuse us. But he will also mix lies with the truth to attack us. The attack is psychological, Damien, and powerful. So don't listen to him. Remember that - do not listen." – Father Merrin

Why watch this? The actual exorcism scenes are terrifying.

Plot Summary: When a young girl begins to exhibit disturbing and violent behavior, her mother seeks both medical and psychiatric help without success. As the girl's condition worsens, manifesting in bizarre and terrifying ways, the desperate mother turns to the Catholic Church. Ultimately, two priests, one older and experienced and the other facing a crisis of faith, are called upon to confront the mysterious entity possessing the child.

Hoya Productions; Warner Bros.

A Masterpiece of Modern Horror

Starring: Jack Nicholson, Shelley Duvall, Danny Lloyd, Scatman Crothers, Barry Nelson, Philip Stone, Joe Trukel, Anne Jackson, Tony Burton

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★☆ - near perfect

"I'm not gonna hurt ya. You didn't let me finish my sentence. I said, I'm not gonna hurt ya. I'm just going to bash your brains in!" - Jack Torrance

Why watch this? The setting at the empty grand hotel, the gigantic snow-covered maze, all creates one hell of an eerie atmosphere.

Plot Summary: Jack Torrance, an aspiring writer and recovering alcoholic, takes a job as the winter caretaker of the isolated Overlook Hotel in the Colorado Rockies. He moves in with his wife, Wendy, and son, Danny, who possesses psychic abilities known as "the shining". As a winter storm leaves the family snowbound, the hotel's sinister presence begins to influence Jack, threatening the safety of his family.

The Producer Circle Co., Peregrine Prod.,
Hawk Films; Warner Bros.

In deadly danger...because they saw too much!

Starring: James Stewart, Grace Kelly, Wendell Corey, Thelma Ritter, Raymond Burr, Judith Evelyn, Frank Cady, Georgine Darcy, Ross Bagdasarian

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"People do a lot of things in private they couldn't possibly explain in public." Lt. Doyle

Why watch this? Nobody did it like Hitchcock. This one drips constant suspense.

Plot Summary: Confined to his apartment with a broken leg, a photographer named L.B. Jeffries spends his days observing his neighbors through his rear window. His casual pastime takes a dark turn when he becomes convinced that one of his neighbors, a traveling salesman named Lars Thorwald, has murdered his wife. Despite skepticism from his girlfriend Lisa and his nurse Stella, Jeffries enlists their help in a perilous amateur investigation.

Patron Incorporated; Paramount Pictures

The screen's master of suspense moves his camera into the icy blackness of the unexplained!

Starring: Anthony Perkins, Janet Leigh, Vera Miles, John Gavin, Martin Balsam, John McIntire, Simon Oakland, Frank Albertson

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"Well, a boy's best friend is his mother." - Norman Bates

Why watch this? Ah, Norman Bates and his mother... for its time, this film was disturbing, and generated quite the buzz.

Plot Summary: Marion Crane is a secretary who embezzles money and flees, eventually seeking refuge at the isolated Bates Motel. There, she encounters the timid and troubled proprietor, Norman Bates, who lives with his domineering mother in the house overlooking the motel. The film then delves into the dark secrets and psychological complexities surrounding the Bates family and the mysterious events at the motel.

Shamley Productions; Paramount Pictures

Not every gift is a blessing.

Starring: Bruce Willis, Haley Joel Osment, Toni Collette, Olivia Williams, Trevor Morgan, Donnie Wahlberg

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"I don't wanna be scared anymore." - Cole Sear

Why watch this? This is a very chilling, sophisticated and creepy film, from a promising new director.

Plot Summary: Child psychologist Malcolm Crowe takes on a new patient, a young boy named Cole Sear, who is isolated and troubled. Cole confides in Malcolm that he can see and communicate with deceased individuals who are unaware of their own deaths. As Malcolm works to understand and help Cole with his unusual ability, he also grapples with personal issues, including a strained relationship with his wife.

Hollywood Pictures, Spyglass Ent., The
Kennedy/Marshall Co., Barry Mendel Prod.;
Buena Vista Pictures Dist.

It's his most nerve-stretching thriller!

Starring: James Stewart, John Dall, Farley Granger, Joan Chandler, Sir Cedric Hardwicke, Constance Collier, Kenneth Lawrence, Edith Evanson

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

DML Top 100 #94 - Dad's Full (Spoiler) Review and Deep Dive of Rope

"I've always wished for more artistic talent. Well, murder can be an art, too. The power to kill can be just as satisfying as the power to create." - Brandon Shaw

Why watch this? This is my favorite Hitchcock film. It's lean and twisted.

Plot Summary: Two intellectual young men, Brandon and Phillip, murder a former classmate as an act to prove their supposed superiority. They then host a dinner party, with the victim's body hidden in a chest within the same room, serving as a macabre challenge to mental acuity. As the evening unfolds, their former professor, Rupert, becomes increasingly suspicious at their odd behavior.

Transatlantic Pictures; Warner Bros.

The scenes... the story... The stars... BUT ABOVE ALL - THE SUSPENSE!

Starring: Robert Mitchum, Billy Chapin, Sally Jane Bruce, Shelly Winters, Lillian Gish, James Gleason, Evelyn Varden, Peter Graves, Don Beddoe, Gloria Castillo

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"Not that you mind the killings! There's plenty of killings in your book, Lord..." - Rev. Harry Powell, praying to God

Why watch this? Unique. Nightmarish. Visually Stunning. Ahead of its time. That's why.

Plot Summary: During the Great Depression, the imprisoned, self-proclaimed preacher finds out that his cellmate robbed a bank, taking $10,000, then hiding at his house in West Virginia. When the cellmate is executed, Powell thanks The Lord for this opportunity to woo the vulnerable wife, and get the two children, John-age 9 and Pearl-age 4, to confess where the loot is stashed.

Paul Gregory Productions; United Artists

Some memories are best forgotten

Starring: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Anne Moss, Joe Pantoliano, Mark Boone Junior, Russ Fega, Jorja Fox, Stephen Tobolowsky

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"We all need mirrors to remind ourselves who we are. I'm no different." – Leonard Shelby

Why watch this? Creative film storytelling 101. Its unorthodoxy is its strength.

Plot Summary: Leonard Shelby is a former insurance investigator who suffers from a rare form of short-term memory loss. Following an assault that resulted in his wife's murder, he can remember events from his past but cannot form new memories. Leonard uses a system of Polaroids, notes, and tattoos to track information as he relentlessly seeks to avenge his wife's death.

Summit Entertainment, Team Todd;
Newmarket

Notorious Woman of many Desires! Fateful Fascination! Bold Intrigue!

Starring: Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains, Louis Calhern, Leopoldine Konstantin, Reinhold Schunzel, Moroni Olsen

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

"Every time you look at me, I can see it running over its slogans: "Once a crook, always a crook", "Once a tramp, always a tramp". Go on. You can hold my hand. I won't blackmail you for it afterwards." – Alicia Huberman

Why watch this? The building suspense within this film is quietly palpable.

Plot Summary: U.S. agent Devlin recruits Alicia Huberman, the daughter of a convicted Nazi spy, to infiltrate a group of Nazis hiding in Rio de Janeiro. Alicia agrees, but her mission becomes complicated when she falls in love with Devlin while being tasked with seducing a prominent Nazi named Alexander Sebastian, who was previously infatuated with her. This arrangement forces her into a difficult position, testing her loyalties and potentially putting her life in danger.

Vanguard Films; RKO Radio Pictures

To enter the mind of a killer she must challenge the mind of a madman.

Starring: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins, Scott Glenn, Ted Levine, Anthony Heald, Brooke Smith, Diane Baker, Kasi Lemmons, Charles Napier

DML Rating: ★★★★★★★★★★ - perfect

DML Top 50 #13 - Dad's Full (Spoiler) Review and Deep Dive of The Silence of the Lambs

"A census taker once tried to test me. I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti. You fly back to school now, little Starling." – Dr. Hannibal Lecter

Why watch this? ... it's a lethal combination of everything important to great filmmaking.

Plot Summary: A young FBI trainee, Clarice Starling, must interview an incarcerated, manipulative cannibalistic serial killer, Dr. Hannibal Lecter, to gain insight into capturing another active serial killer known as "Buffalo Bill". With the help of Lecter's psychological profiles and cryptic clues, Starling works against time to uncover the identity of the killer and save his latest victim. As she delves deeper into the case and the mind of Lecter, she also confronts the psychological challenges of a male-dominated field and her own personal past traumas.

Strong Heart Productions; Orion Pictures