Search for 2008
Okay, let me get this out of the way to start with. Who's not on this mixed lead/supporting actor list? Heath Ledger. It's not that I have something against the late performer or his work in The Dark Knight. In fact, I believe it was about the ...
To p 10 lists are curiosities: fun to glance at but not of much greater or lasting value. Take them for what they're worth. One reason I enjoy putting mine together is that it allows me to spend time re-watching and reconsidering some of the year's ...
Righteous Kill is the third movie in which screen icons Robert De Niro and Al Pacino both appear, but only the second in which they share screen time. 13 years ago, Michael Mann scored a coup by filming the first scene with these two sitting oppos...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-09-12
MPAA Rating: "R" (Violence, Profanity, Sexual Situations)
Genre: THRILLER
Director: Jon Avnet
Cast: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Curtis Jackson, ...
What if they made a Jack Black movie and Jack Black didn't show up? That's sort of the feeling I get with The Rocker although, truth be told, Rainn Wilson does an admirable Black impersonation. This warmed-over, recycled stew brings the "comeback...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-07-30
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Profanity, Sexual Situations, Nudity)
Genre: COMEDY
Director: Peter Cattaneo
Cast: Rainn Wilson, Christina Applegate, Josh Gad, ...
Guy Ritchie made his mark for film-goers not by marrying one of the world's most visible pop stars, but by crafting Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels and Snatch. He exploded onto the cinematic scene with the former; the reaction from Hollywood wa...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-10-10
MPAA Rating: "R" (Violence, Profanity, Sexual Situations, Drugs)
Genre: THRILLER
Director: Guy Ritchie
Cast: Gerard Butler, Tom Wilkinson, Mark Strong, ...
Role Models takes a familiar PG-rated plot and adds enough profanity and nudity to earn it a family unfriendly R. Sadly, an injection of raunchiness does not equate to an increase in quality and, while Role Models can boast the occasionally funny ...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-11-07
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity, Sexual Situations, Nudity)
Genre: COMEDY
Director: David Wain
Cast: Seann William Scott, Paul Rudd, Christopher Mintz-Plasse, ...
The Ruins does what a good psychological horror movie should do: rely on tension rather than gore to achieve its aims. This bleak, edgy motion picture isn't concerned with appealing to the masses that flock to multiplexes to enjoy the spatterings ...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-04-04
MPAA Rating: "R" (Violence, Profanity, Nudity, Sexual Situations)
Genre: HORROR
Director: Carter Smith
Cast: Jonathan Tucker, Jena Malone, Shawn Ashmore, ...
When it comes to movies that touch the heart, few have a more delicate yet undeniable impact than Gina Prince-Bythewood's The Secret Life of Bees. Adapted from the novel by Sue Monk Kidd, the production achieves something few literary interpretati...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-10-17
MPAA Rating: "PG-13" (Violence, Profanity)
Genre: DRAMA
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood
Cast: Dakota Fanning, Queen Latifa, Jennifer Hudson, ...
When it comes to comedy, Will Ferrell is a Jeckyl & Hyde. When he's "on," he can be hilarious, but when he's off, he's like a drunk at a bar yelling loud, unfunny jokes at his equally inebriated buddies. And, while those guys might laugh at him, ...
U.S. Release Date: 2008-02-29
MPAA Rating: "R" (Profanity, Sexual Situations)
Genre: COMEDY
Director: Kent Alterman
Cast: Will Ferrell, Woody Harrelson, Andre Benjamin, ...
When it comes to period piece dramas, whether or not based on true-life characters and events, few countries accomplish these productions better than France. Séraphine, which chronicles slices from the life of 20th century painter Séraphine de S...
U.S. Release Date: 2009-06-05
MPAA Rating: "NR" (Mature Themes)
Genre: DRAMA
Director: Martin Provost
Cast: Yolande Moreau, Ulrich Tukur