Movies Better Than I Anticipated
Sometimes I had low expectations due to word of mouth or the trailers were misleading. Occasionally I was captivated by a movie that is not in one of my favorite genres. Most often I expected a good movie, but was blown away by a brilliant one. I found each of the movies in this list to be a pleasant surprise.
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- DirectorTakashi YamazakiStarsMinami HamabeRyûnosuke KamikiSakura AndôA kamikaze pilot plagued by survivor's guilt seeks redemption when a giant monster he failed to kill is transformed by radiation from atomic bomb tests and lays siege to post-war Japan.
- DirectorKyle NewmanStarsDan FoglerJay BaruchelKristen BellStar Wars fanatics take a cross-country trip to George Lucas' Skywalker Ranch so their dying friend can see a screening of Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace (1999) before its release.
- DirectorJason BatemanStarsJason BatemanKathryn HahnAllison JanneyA spelling bee loser sets out to exact revenge by finding a loophole and attempting to win as an adult.
- DirectorJonathan LevineStarsJoseph Gordon-LevittSeth RogenAnna KendrickInspired by a true story, a comedy centered on a 27-year-old guy who learns of his cancer diagnosis and his subsequent struggle to beat the disease.
- DirectorsNat FaxonJim RashStarsSteve CarellToni ColletteAllison JanneyShy 14-year-old Duncan goes on summer vacation with his mother, her overbearing boyfriend, and her boyfriend's daughter. Having a rough time fitting in, Duncan finds an unexpected friend in Owen, manager of the Water Wizz water park.
- DirectorStephen ChboskyStarsLogan LermanEmma WatsonEzra MillerCharlie, a 15-year-old introvert, enters high school and is nervous about his new life. When he befriends his seniors, he learns to cope with his friend's suicide and his tumultuous past.
- DirectorWilliam H. MacyStarsBilly CrudupAnton YelchinFelicity HuffmanA grieving father in a downward spiral stumbles across a box of his recently-deceased son's demo tapes and lyrics. Shocked by the discovery of this unknown talent, he forms a band in the hope of finding some catharsis.
- DirectorDan GilroyStarsJake GyllenhaalRene RussoBill PaxtonA petty thief desperate for work muscles into the world of crime journalism and becomes the star of his own story as he blurs the line between observer and participant.
- DirectorBong Joon HoStarsChris EvansJamie BellTilda SwintonIn a future where a failed climate change experiment has killed all life except for the survivors who boarded the Snowpiercer (a train that travels around the globe), a new class system emerges.
- DirectorDenis VilleneuveStarsHugh JackmanJake GyllenhaalViola DavisA desperate father takes the law into his own hands after police fail to find two kidnapped girls.
- DirectorHenry Alex RubinStarsJason BatemanJonah BoboHaley RammA drama centered on a group of people searching for human connections in today's wired world.
- DirectorTommy Lee JonesStarsTommy Lee JonesHilary SwankGrace GummerThree women who have been driven mad by pioneer life are to be transported across the country by covered wagon by the pious, independent-minded Mary Bee Cuddy, who in turn employs low-life drifter George Briggs to assist her.
- DirectorJohn HillcoatStarsTom HardyShia LaBeoufGuy PearceSet in Depression-era Franklin County, Virginia, a trio of bootlegging brothers are threatened by a new special deputy and other authorities angling for a cut of their profits.
- DirectorRidley ScottStarsRussell CroweCate BlanchettMatthew MacfadyenIn twelfth-century England, Robin Longstride and his band of marauders confront corruption in a local village and lead an uprising against the crown that will forever alter the balance of world power.
- DirectorRichard CurtisStarsDomhnall GleesonRachel McAdamsBill NighyAt the age of 21, Tim discovers he can travel in time and change what happens and has happened in his own life. His decision to make his world a better place by getting a girlfriend turns out not to be as easy as you might think.
- DirectorsRichard GlatzerWash WestmorelandStarsJulianne MooreAlec BaldwinKristen StewartA linguistics professor and her family find their bonds tested when she is diagnosed with Alzheimer's Disease.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsClint EastwoodBee VangChristopher CarleyAfter a Hmong teenager tries to steal his prized 1972 Gran Torino, a disgruntled, prejudiced Korean War veteran seeks to redeem both the boy and himself.
- DirectorTodd PhillipsStarsJoaquin PhoenixRobert De NiroZazie BeetzArthur Fleck, a party clown and a failed stand-up comedian, leads an impoverished life with his ailing mother. However, when society shuns him and brands him as a freak, he decides to embrace the life of chaos in Gotham City.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsDaniel CraigRooney MaraChristopher PlummerJournalist Mikael Blomkvist is aided in his search for a woman who has been missing for 40 years by hacker Lisbeth Salander.
- DirectorNicolas Winding RefnStarsRyan GoslingCarey MulliganBryan CranstonA mysterious Hollywood action film stuntman gets in trouble with gangsters when he tries to help his neighbor's husband rob a pawn shop while serving as his getaway driver.
- DirectorDerek CianfranceStarsRyan GoslingBradley CooperEva MendesA stunt rider turns into a robber in order to lead a happy life with his child and lover and grabs the attention of a police officer. They both get on a collision course that affects their families.
- DirectorScott CooperStarsChristian BaleCasey AffleckZoe SaldañaA steelworker takes matters into his own hands after police fail to find his missing brother.
- DirectorMartin McDonaghStarsColin FarrellWoody HarrelsonSam RockwellA struggling screenwriter inadvertently becomes entangled in the Los Angeles criminal underworld after his oddball friends kidnap a gangster's beloved Shih Tzu.
- DirectorBobcat GoldthwaitStarsJoel MurrayTara Lynne BarrMackenzie Brooke SmithOn a mission to rid society of its most repellent citizens, terminally ill Frank makes an unlikely accomplice in 16-year-old Roxy.
- DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsMichael DouglasRobert DuvallBarbara HersheyAn ordinary man frustrated with the various flaws he sees in society begins to psychotically and violently lash out against them.
