Movie Advisor
The dojo of movies for beginner, intermediate and expert movielovers.
List activity
4.8K views
• 16 this weekCreate a new list
List your movie, TV & celebrity picks.
33 titles
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsSong Kang-hoShin Ha-kyunBae DoonaA recently laid off factory worker kidnaps his former boss' friend's daughter, hoping to use the ransom money to pay for his sister's kidney transplant.The first episode of the Vengeance trilogy (Second episode is Oldboy while the third one is Lady Vengeance). One of the first movies of Park Chan-wook by which he became known and stepped into the director's hall of fame. Tarantino admitted that he regularly gets inspired by Park's movies and he said about Oldboy once: "One of the bloodiest movie I have ever seen." I recommend all the three episodes. Even though those are completely independent stories, I would recommend to keep the order when you watch those episodes, so you can see how Park enriched his technic over the years and developed new ways of making tension in his movies. If I should sum up Park's personality based on his movies I would say "He has a sick soul." :)
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsChoi Min-sikYoo Ji-taeKang Hye-jeongAfter being kidnapped and imprisoned for fifteen years, Oh Dae-Su is released, only to find that he must track down his captor in five days.The second episode of the Vengeance trilogy as mentioned above.
- DirectorPark Chan-wookStarsNam-mi KangJeong-nam ChoiHye-Sook GoAfter being wrongfully imprisoned for thirteen years and having her child taken away from her, a woman seeks revenge through increasingly brutal means.The third and last episode of the Vengeance trilogy.
- DirectorRon FrickeStarsPatrick DisantoA collection of expertly photographed scenes of human life and religion.Hard to classify this movie. Some say it's a documentary but in my opinion it is not. It is something more. Baraka created a completely new style and classification in film history. It's like an exhibition of moving pictures about human life. When I watched this movie it felt like a visual meditation. The director (Ron Fricke) has several other such movies that I'll put on this movie list later on. Teaser: https://youtu.be/MKw6LDOejpE (high quality headphones recommended).
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisBrenda FrickerAlison WhelanChristy Brown, born with cerebral palsy, learns to paint and write with his only controllable limb - his left foot.Shockingly honest and touching Academy Award-winning true story of Christy Brown with a fabulous acting by Daniel-Day Lewis.
- DirectorIlmar RaagStarsVallo KirsPärt UusbergLauri PedajaAn average Estonian high-schooler decides to defend his bullied classmate. This starts war between him and the informal leader of the class. As teenagers' honour is a touchy thing, everything ends in bloodshed.I never understood what motivates a teenager to open fire on classmates and kill them until I saw this movie. This movie puts you in a reverse role and shows you what would be one of the several reasons which pushes someone to commit such a crime.
- DirectorDennis GanselStarsJürgen VogelFrederick LauMax RiemeltA high school teacher's experiment to demonstrate to his students what life is like under a dictatorship spins horribly out of control when he forms a social unit with a life of its own.
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsJet LiTony Leung Chiu-waiMaggie CheungA defense officer, Nameless, was summoned by the King of Qin regarding his success of terminating three warriors.A beautifully photographed Chinese fable. If you don't like those flying material art fight scenes I still recommend to watch because the story what the movie tells and how it tells it is very unique and instructive. I recommend to watch it in original language with subtitle.
- DirectorKimberly PeirceStarsHilary SwankChloë SevignyPeter SarsgaardA young man named Brandon Teena navigates love, life, and being transgender in rural Nebraska.Yet another true story about the transgender Brandon Teena — who dated women and whose Nebraska-issued ID was marked male — was born a daughter and a sister on Dec. 12, 1972, in Lincoln and named Teena Renae Brandon.
Brandon and his brother who supports Brandon all the time have to keep moving accross the state each and every time Brandon got caught and got into trouble. Finally love catches Brandon in Nebraska but things go wrong after Brandon's identity turns out for his new buddies.
Shockingly true story with fabolous acting of Hilary Swank. - DirectorFernando MeirellesKátia LundStarsAlexandre RodriguesLeandro FirminoMatheus NachtergaeleIn the slums of Rio, two kids' paths diverge as one struggles to become a photographer and the other a kingpin.I think I don't have to introduce this movie to anyone, just wanted to have it on my list since this one is really a must see. If you missed it go and watch it right away. Just in a nutshell the srory is about two kids who grow up in the favelas of Brasil and their destiny is completely different. One of them becomes the king of the ghetto while the other becomes a photographer but even their fates crosses each other's way.
- DirectorTony ScottStarsKeira KnightleyMickey RourkeEdgar RamírezA recounting of Domino Harvey's life story. The daughter of actor Laurence Harvey turned away from her career as a Ford model to become a bounty hunter.Unreasonably underrated Tony Scott movie with big names and the sexiest acting of Keira Knightley. I call it the female version of Man on fire but this one is based on a true story and just simply better. :) The story has several twists in it so I believe this made it less understandable for some of the people. Not a thought-provoking film instead an action movie with interesting photography elements which sometimes provides a mood of a long LSD trip :)
- DirectorMathieu KassovitzStarsVincent CasselHubert KoundéSaïd Taghmaoui24 hours in the lives of three young men in the French suburbs the day after a violent riot.To break out of the lower layer of society is hard enough. Even if your environment is constantly puls you back. It's even harder to realize that you can't do much for it, but your friends are there for you at least and help you through the hard times. Hate generates hate and a bad decision can complety ruin your life. Sometimes you don't even have to make decision as things happen accidentally. An unmissable cult classic from the '90s.
- DirectorSteven KnightStarsTom HardyOlivia ColmanRuth WilsonIvan Locke, a dedicated family man and successful construction manager, receives a phone call on the eve of the biggest challenge of his career that sets in motion a series of events that threaten his carefully cultivated existence.I have never thought that a movie with one venue and with one actor can be so exciting. Most probably Tom Hardy's play is a key for that. In this movie we can follow how someone's life is falling apart and how he tries to keep it together through several phone calls. This makes this movie so human to me. It's like a mocking glass of the current society. We live our material lives in rush throug phone calls, sacrificing everything on the altar of money and work but we tend to forget the real values of life.
- DirectorAlejandro G. IñárrituStarsEmilio EchevarríaGael García BernalGoya ToledoAn amateur dog fighter, a supermodel, and a derelict assassin, all separately struggling to find love, find their lives transformed by a devastating car wreck in Mexico City.The first movie of Alejandro González Iñárritu by which he became known to the public. Based on my experience most directors debut movie is the best and later on they fall into a trap and try to achieve the same impression through their movies that they could achieved with the first one. I feel the same with regards to Iñárritu as well especially after I watched his Babel where the concept is exactly the same that we could see in Amores Perros. The story is about three completely different screwed up lives which are connected to each other through an accident.
- DirectorJean-Marc ValléeStarsReese WitherspoonLaura DernGaby HoffmannA chronicle of one woman's 1,100-mile solo hike undertaken as a way to recover from a recent personal tragedy.We often hear that life is writing the best stories.This film is based on a true story also. I can assure you that Reese Whiterspoon performes her best acting in this movie that you have ever seen. The movie is about a rather difficult life of a young woman who can't get rid of her past and destroyes her own presence in a self-destructive way. She begins a long penance during which she accepts her past and realizes that it's never too late to restart anything. During the long journey she can only count on herself which makes her a wiser woman who draws conclusions about her past rather than look back to it as a bad nightmare.
- DirectorSergio CastellittoStarsPenélope CruzSergio CastellittoClaudia GeriniA destitute woman (Cruz) becomes involved with an upper-crust physician (Castellitto).This movie is based Margaret Mazzantini's novel directed by Sergio Castellitto who's playing the main character in the film. The story is about a love triangle among an upper-crust doctor couple who are living in good standing and a destitute woman played by Penélope Cruz. The film shows the life path of the main characters on a very raw and honest way with all of its taboo themes this makes it so realistic.
- DirectorPaul HaggisStarsTommy Lee JonesCharlize TheronJonathan TuckerA retired military investigator works with a police detective to uncover the truth behind his son's disappearance following his return from a tour of duty in Iraq.The film tells the story of a retired military policeman who searches for his son after he didn't return home from his latest service from Iraq. Hank (Tommy Lee Jones) has always wanted his son to serve as a soldier as himself grew up in the army too and was sure that his son would benefit from the discipline of the military and would become a real man. During the investigation, he collaborates with one of the local police officers Emily (Charlize Theron), who learns a lot from the veteran and he slowly becomes her mentor. As they dig deeper Hank is forced to realize that the world has been revolving since he retired and was shocked to see how many bad things the young soldiers should go through during their services. The film shows the military from its dark side instead of the usual patriotic fantasy.
- DirectorPaolo GenoveseStarsGiuseppe BattistonAnna FogliettaMarco GialliniSeven long-time friends meet for dinner. They decide to share their text messages, emails and phone calls. Secrets are unveiled. Harmony trembles.What would your friends and beloved ones find out about your private life with all of its secrets if they could have access to your phone? This is what a friendly company tries out at a joint dinner. It's a very timely film and I dare to bet that we would see a US remake of it soon. :)
- DirectorFlorian Henckel von DonnersmarckStarsUlrich MüheMartina GedeckSebastian KochIn 1984 East Berlin, an agent of the secret police conducting surveillance on a writer and his lover finds himself becoming increasingly absorbed by their lives.I was "fortunate" to live in the socialism though I didn't have to go through things like the main characters of this movie. Yet to this day I remember back to this era as living in a custody, where everything is free but they are watching every steps of you. The film also perfectly demonstrates that even if we live in any kind of political system we can't undermine our feelings because of an ideology. And this is the most beautiful thing in human nature. The film tells a very interesting story about a Stasi agent who have to observe an artist couple.
- DirectorKen LoachStarsDave JohnsHayley SquiresSharon PercyAfter surviving a heart-attack, a 59-year-old carpenter must fight bureaucratic forces to receive Employment and Support Allowance.A rather realistic and shocking human story about a casual carpenter close to the retirement age who after a heart attack is seeking support allowance or a job which is quite difficult for him in the over-bureaucratized state system. Fate brings together him with a young mother with two children who's in a similar shoe and they make a very good friendly relationship. They help and support each other to survive the everyday life. The film seeks to highlight the gaping space between the bureaucratic state aid organizations and the real human values.
- DirectorJános SzászStarsLászló GyémántAndrás GyémántPiroska MolnárTwin siblings enduring the harshness of WWII in a village on the Hungarian border hedge their survival on studying and learning from the evil surrounding them.We often hear the saying that someone was born in the wrong place at the wrong time. This is the first thought that comes to my mind regarding this movie and what could have been about the twin pair who're playing the main roles of this film if they wouldn't have been born in the middle of the Second World War. So what they saw and experienced in the world at that time led them to learn to endure the pain because they could only survive the whole thing this way and they put their life on it. They did everything to bear the pain and they went too far sometimes. We can't judge them because of this as to remain a man in the middle of a war was very hard. I would like to highlight the acting of Piroska Molnár (grandmother), whom I consider to be one of the greatest Hungarian actresses to this day.
- DirectorKevin SmithStarsBrian O'HalloranJeff AndersonMarilyn GhigliottiA day in the lives of two convenience clerks named Dante and Randal as they annoy customers, discuss movies, and play hockey on the store roof.It's time to talk about everyday things like being a seller in a shop somewhere in the states off the map, get up early each day just to serve idiot clients. Boring ugh? It isn't if you have your best friends around you with whom you can talk about important things of life, just like philosophize about how the Death Star in Star Wars was built. Because it's certain that not the soldiers serving on it built the whole Death Star. There had to be few carpenters and masons on the planet who died unfairly when it exploded. That sucks, right? :) A classic underground comedy from the '90s which shaped our teenage years, and even noways all of my friends can quote at least one sentence from the movie. So, if you just want to chill out and have some fun I recommend to watch it.
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsElias McConnellAlex FrostEric DeulenSeveral ordinary high school students go through their daily routine as two others prepare for something more malevolent.The school season has begun so I thought I would put on another movie about this topic. The topic continues to be violence and brutality in school. I remember watching this film in the TV once in a while, and there are those movies that you simply can't stop watching somehow because it kind of grabs you. In this particular case I recall that the style of how the film was shot has caught me. Actually there is not much variation in the camera setup over the film and the story is very slow, but I like the fact that the story is told from several perspectives. The director is no other than Gus Van Sant, who directed Good Will Hunting, which I will put on this list later on.
- DirectorSzabolcs HajduStarsZoltán Miklós HajduKyle ShewfeltGheorghe DinicaHaving suffered as a boy under a brutal Communist-era coach, champion Hungarian gymnast Miklos moves to Canada years later in search of a new start - only to find himself unwittingly perpetuating the very same cycle of abuse among his own pupils.Another Hungarian film. In my opinion the story could have happened in any other surrounding ex-socialist country in the region. The story is about an athlete who was forced into daily workouts in his childhood and was fed up with the coarse training methods and with his parents too who boasted with the athletic abilities of their child to their friends. He fled abroad to try to get rid of the past and started to work as a leading coach, but he was surprised the most when he found himself applying the same brutal and tough training methods on his disciples in which he grew up. The film is very well illustrating the fairly limited and demotivating disciplines of socialism.
- DirectorFernando EimbckeStarsDiego CatañoDaniel MirandaEnrique ArreolaFlama and Moko are fourteen years old; they have been best friends since they were kids. They have everything they need to survive yet another boring Sunday: an apartment without parents, videogames, porn magazines, soft drinks and pizza delivery. The electricity company, Rita, the neighbor, Ulises, a pizza deliveryman, eleven seconds, the Real Madrid-Manchester game, some chocolate brownies and a horrible painting of ducks, all combine to break the harmony of what promised to be a placid Sunday, and reveal issues such as the parents' divorce, loneliness, the confusion between adolescent love and friendship, as well as frustration in adult life. "Temporada de Patos" is a movie that shows that, when the lights go off, we can see the stars.A less-known film from a less-known Mexican director. The story is about a day of the many of two 14 years old guys that they spend without parents at home during the summer holidays. This day however is a little bit different from the others, since they have to spend the rest of the day with their two fellow mates despite their will. One of them is a pizza delivery guy with whom, as they fail to agree on the payment, they try to decide their dispute in a game console battle. The other person is a pretty teenager girl, somewhat older than them, who is asking for their help in making a cake. During the day the four characters will get to know each other's lives more closely and thus they get closer to each other. The story is taking place in on of the thousands of block of flats in Mexico.
- DirectorMatteo GarroneStarsGianfelice ImparatoSalvatore AbbruzzeseToni ServilloScampia Vele is the Corbusian architecture which has become a stronghold for Mafia of Naples, Italy.Let me start with a quotation from Martin Scorsese who said the following about the film: "The greatest mafia movie ever made". Good intro ugh? No doubts. The movie introduces the everyday life of the mafia on a shockingly realistic and hardcore way. In the suburb of Naples called Scampìa the mafia generates an overall EUR 500,000 daily profit from transactions such as drug trafficking, illegal landfilling and counterfeiting of goods. Might sound weird but I respect that even to this day they arrange personal disagreement among themselves instead of blowing up innocent people. Still so many people fall victim of their activities. In 2014 a TV series has released about the same topic
- DirectorYimou ZhangStarsZiyi ZhangHonglei SunHao ZhengPrompted by the death of his father and the grief of his mother, a man recalls the story of how they met in flashback.A wonderfully told story of true love from that time when life was much slower, people devoted more time to all the things and kept the traditions. When a glimpse, an object like a ceramic pot, or even a road had an immense significance. The first film that I saw from Yimou Zhang (he directed the movie titled Hero as I mentioned earlier on this site). I like his beautifully photographed settings, as he plays with colors (seasons if you like) as the story unfolds and last but not least the perfectly chosen music. All of these elements can be discovered in almost all of his movies. Don't expect too much excitement or action from the movie but a beautiful slowly evolving story.
- DirectorInigo WestmeierStarsXin ChenxiChen XiHuang LuolanThe documentary "Drachenmädchen" (Dragon Girls) tells the story of three Chinese girls, training to become Kung Fu fighters, far away from their families at the Shaolin Tagou Kung Fu School, located right next to the Shaolin Monastery in China, place of origin of Kung Fu. Three girls in a crowd of 27.000 children, under pressure to conform to the norms and structures: They are turned into fighting robots and yet, if you look behind the curtain, you see children with dreams and aspirations.A very interesting documentary about China's largest "industrial" material arts schools, where teaching of martial arts is already secondary. The primary goal for the children entering here is to learn discipline and slowly acquire the underlying principles of socialism. Anyone who is eccentric or behave differently like the rest of the others will not ever be able to fit in, might even run away. Children are getting into the system very young, most of them from China's poverty-stricken areas, where parents can't otherwise support them, and so the school seems to be a sensible solution. It is astonishing that 6-8 year-old children may meet with they parents only every six months or every year once.
- DirectorEthan CoenJoel CoenStarsBrad PittFrances McDormandGeorge ClooneyA disk containing mysterious information from a CIA agent ends up in the hands of two unscrupulous and daft gym employees who attempt to sell it.I really like the sarcastic humor of the Coen brothers. This kind of humor characterizes this movie as well. Burn After reading is a great movie about nothing, which tells us how a series of misunderstandings of human limitation leads to an inexplicable and intricate CIA breakdown and breaks the lives of many people completely meaningless. Storm in a puddle. The actors in the movie are the creme of the creams. It's good to see that actors such as George Clooney or Brad Pitt are able to get rid of the roles they are used to, and show their completely new and extraordinary faces in the movie. I'm not a fan of Brad Pitt but I think he's making his biggest shots in this movie. Well Malkovich, he is still Malkovich and an excellent choice for his role. As I mentioned earlier this movie is an easy to watch and I would recommend it to those who love the sarcastic black humor.
- DirectorKenneth LonerganStarsCasey AffleckMichelle WilliamsKyle ChandlerA depressed uncle is asked to take care of his teenage nephew after the boy's father dies.We all go through difficult times in our lives. There are some who are more serene and don't have to face any wretched problem throughout their lives, but there are some who are more unfortunate and their whole life seems to be a bad luck. It also depends on personality how one can perceive these events and move on. If moving on is an option at all.
The main character of "Manchester by the Sea" belongs to the second group whose life is overshadowed by a fatal mistake that he can not really overcome. Vegetates, spending his days aimlessly until unexpectedly another unfortunate event shifts him from this state.
I wouldn't be able to imagine a more suitable actor to shape the main character of this movie than Casey Affleck. Though in most of his movies he appears only as a supporting actor this character is tailored straight to him. Although the events unfold quite slowly and the story is quite depressing I find it a very interesting film. - DirectorGeorge C. WolfeStarsHilary SwankEmmy RossumJosh DuhamelA drama centered on a classical pianist who has been diagnosed with ALS and the brash college student who becomes her caregiver.A touching story of a woman who suffers in ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis) and how this disease affects the lives of people around her. After the first sentence above the story seems usual and scoring of the well-known movie sites are also unreasonably low, but Hilary Swank's acting and the powerful visual and musical elements used by the director compensate everything. It's a pretty depressing and sad story, but it's a must-see.
- DirectorDavid MackenzieStarsJack O'ConnellBen MendelsohnRupert FriendEric Love, 19, is locked up in prison. On his first day, he assaults another inmate and several guards. He's offered group therapy and his dad, an inmate as well, tries to talk sense into him. Can he be rehabilitated?Because of his violent, extreme and rebellious behavior Eric is transferred from the young offender institution to the adult prison (i.e. he "Starred up"). Since no one ever could commanded him in his life and he violated all the rules at all the time, he quickly causes a great deal of embarrassment in the prison's well-functioning and hierarchical system as well. Soon he gets into great trouble and the only way out for him is to attend on a regular group therapy. As the film progresses we slowly understand the background of his extreme behavior. His father who also lives between these walls abandoned him at age five. Since then Eric has been visited almost all young offender institutions.
The film is full of rage, anger and violence which realistically reflects what is happening among the walls of such an institution. In my opinion Jack O'Connell became known for the movie industry with this movie and with the performance he provides in the film. - DirectorLee TamahoriStarsRena OwenTemuera MorrisonMamaengaroa Kerr-BellA family descended from Maori warriors is bedeviled by a violent father and the societal problems of being treated as outcasts.A less known iconic classic from the nineties. The story of the film is a phenomenon that is still happening in many parts of the world today, yet the Maori environment gives the film an even more special atmosphere. In a rather difficult story, we can learn about an ancient culture the importance of its values and the cohesion that is the foundation of all communities and goes on from generation to generation.
The film is a story of a mother from Maori ancestors and her 5 children who finds her way back home to her tribe after 18 years of wandering.