The Greatest Underrated Movies I've Ever Seen
Box office means nothing for quality motion pictures, even for some of the most successful directors and movie stars. Try to see these great films.
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- DirectorTaylor HackfordStarsKathy BatesJennifer Jason LeighChristopher PlummerA big city reporter travels to a small town where her mother has been arrested for the murder of an elderly woman for whom she worked as a housekeeper.Kathy Bates and Jennifer Jason Leigh are superb in this brilliant adaptation of Stephen King's drama of mother and daughter. This is not a horror movie but a thoughtful powerful story of troubled family.
- DirectorRobert De NiroStarsRobert De NiroChazz PalminteriLillo BrancatoAn intense drama about a boy torn between his tough, hard-working father and a violent yet charismatic crime boss.One of my favorite films featuring a terrific Robert De Niro performance as a father trying to keep in son out of organized crime. Chaz Palmintari wrote the script as a play and is wonderful as the gangster.
- DirectorRob ReinerStarsJohn CusackDaphne ZunigaAnthony EdwardsWalter Gibson is a university freshman going through a dry spell. His old buddy arranges a "sure thing" for him in California. Gibson and his classmate Allison then take a long road trip out to Cali, and both foil each other's plans.This is one of the funniest, greatest, romantic comedies ever done. Rob Reiner, fresh off of Spinal Tap, directs a phenomenal John Cusack and a wonderful performance by Daphne Zuniga who have fantastic chemistry in this semi-remake of It Happened One Night. Tim Robbins is also great as Gary Cooper, "but not the one who's dead."
- DirectorBrad AndersonStarsWoody HarrelsonEmily MortimerBen KingsleyA Transsiberian train journey from China to Moscow becomes a thrilling chase of deception and murder when an American couple encounters a mysterious pair of fellow travelers.A terrific thriller with good performances by Emily Mortimer, Woody Harrelson, and Ben Kingsley. It captured train travel wonderfully.
- DirectorKeith GordonStarsPeter BergKevin DillonArye GrossThe Ardennes Forest, December 1944. A squad of six US infantrymen is sent to occupy a house to use as an observation post as the German Army is expected to advance through that area. However, the Germans seem oddly friendly.One of the greatest and underrated war movies that has come out in 20 years.
- DirectorRichard LinklaterStarsEthan HawkeRobert Sean LeonardUma ThurmanThree old high school friends meet in a Michigan motel room to dissect painful memories from their past.Ethan Hawke and Uma Thurman are superb in this simple looking but well written film.
- DirectorLang ElliottStarsTim ConwayDon KnottsTrisha NobleScotland Yard sends a goofy pair to check on foul play at a mansion outside 1920s London.You have to love slapstick and old time comedy to appreciate this hilarious send up of haunted house mystery thrillers. Don Knotts and Tim Conway are hysterical together and one of the great pairings in movie history. PLEASE RELEASE THIS ON DVD!!
- DirectorFrank MarshallStarsJeff DanielsJulian SandsJohn GoodmanA new species of South American killer spider hitches a lift to a California town in a coffin and starts to breed, leaving a trail of deaths that puzzle and terrify young Dr. Ross Jennings, who is newly arrived in town with his family.If you are afraid of spiders, you might be squeamish. But for me, this was the most fun I've had watching a movie in a long time. Jeff Daniels and John Goodman are both terrific.
- DirectorPeter HyamsStarsSean ConneryFrances SternhagenPeter BoyleA federal marshal stationed at a mining colony on the Jupiter moon of Io uncovers a drug-smuggling conspiracy. He gets no help from the workers or authorities when he finds himself marked for murder.Sean Connery is great in this Peter Hyams version of High Noon set in outer space.
- DirectorPeter MedakStarsPeter O'TooleAlastair SimArthur LoweA member of the House of Lords dies, leaving his estate to his son. Unfortunately, his son thinks he is Jesus Christ. Their other, somewhat more respectable family members plot to steal the estate from him; murder and mayhem ensue.Peter O'Toole is hilariously brilliant as a man who this he is Jesus. The movie is very funny, witty, and moving as well.
- DirectorMartin CampbellStarsRay LiottaLance HenriksenStuart WilsonA soldier convicted for murdering his commanding officer is dumped and left to die on a prison island inhabited by two camps of convicts.This was an underrated sci-fi prison action drama with Ray Liotta leading his group of prisoners. great action with a brain.
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsRoy ScheiderBruno CremerFrancisco RabalFour unfortunate men from different parts of the globe agree to risk their lives transporting gallons of nitroglycerin across dangerous Latin American jungle.Directed by William Frieken of The French Connection, Roy Schieder is terrific in this version of The Wages of Fear. A highly suspenseful movie that leaves you little time to breathe.
- DirectorJohn BoormanStarsPowers BootheMeg FosterYara VaneauAfter the son of engineer Bill Markham is abducted by an aboriginal tribe on the edge of the rain forest, the engineer spends the next 10 years searching for him.John Boorman directs this story of a British boy who becomes a wild child of the rain forest. Beautifully filmed throughout.
- DirectorAndrew DavisStarsGene HackmanTommy Lee JonesJoanna CassidyExperienced Green Beret sergeant Johnny Gallagher is escorting a prisoner, Airborne Ranger Thomas Boyette, back to the US, but Boyette escapes and Gallagher must risk life and limb to catch him.A terrific thriller with Gene Hackman and Tommy Lee Jones, just before he became a movie star.
- DirectorPeter MarkleStarsGene HackmanDanny GloverJerry ReedDuring the Vietnam War, Colonel Hambleton's aircraft is shot down over enemy territory and a frantic rescue operation ensues.A great Vietnam war movie with Gene Hackman and Danny Glover both superb.
- DirectorJoe DanteStarsDennis QuaidMartin ShortMeg RyanA test pilot is miniaturized in a secret experiment, and accidentally injected into a hapless store clerk.Joe Dante directed this sort of remake of the Fantastic Voyage with Dennis Quaid going into the body of Martin Short. A lot of fun.
- DirectorJohn LandisStarsSylvester StalloneOrnella MutiPeter RiegertA gangster attempts to keep the promise he made to his dying father: that he would give up his life of crime and "go straight".This film received mixed reviews but it is a perfect farce. It takes its time and builds to uproarious proportions. Stallone is good but the rest of the cast, especially Tim Curry and Marisa Tomei are wonderful.
- DirectorRichard PearceStarsSteve MartinDebra WingerLolita DavidovichFake faith healer Jonas Nightingale is stranded in a small town where he finds he can't fool all of the people all of the time.Steve Martin is wonderful playing the charismatic traveling preacher and the film is a great examination of what true belief is. (Also recommended Robert Duvall's The Apostle.)
- DirectorKinka UsherStarsBen StillerJaneane GarofaloWilliam H. MacyA group of inept amateur superheroes must try to save the day when a supervillain threatens to destroy a major superhero and the city.Why did this one fail? The movie is pure campy ridiculous fun with an all star cast and a great Greg Kinnear as the bad guy.
- DirectorDavid KoeppStarsRicky GervaisGreg KinnearTéa LeoniBertram Pincus is a man whose people skills leave much to be desired. When Pincus dies unexpectedly, but is miraculously revived after seven minutes, he wakes up to discover that he now has the annoying ability to see ghosts.Ricky Gervais is at driest insulting humor in this hilariously touching romantic fantasy comedy. Tea Leoni and Greg Kinnear are equally good. The hospital scene with Kristin Wiig is worth the price of admission alone.
- DirectorBrian De PalmaStarsDanny DeVitoJoe PiscopoHarvey KeitelHarry Valentini and Moe Dickstein are both errand boys for the Mob. When they lose two hundred fifty thousand dollars, they are set up to kill each other. But they run off to Atlantic City, and comedy follows.Brian De Palma's forgotten gangster comedy with great work by Danny De Vito and Joe Piscopo.
- DirectorMel SmithStarsJeff GoldblumRowan AtkinsonEmma ThompsonA nasty comedian's assistant has allergy induced sneezes, giving problems at work, et cetera. He accepts weekly injections after seeing the cute nurse. After a dozen injections, he finally asks her out.Richard Curtis wrote this hilarious movie featuring Jeff Goldblum and Emma Thompson. Any film featuring a musical version of The Elephant Man has got to be a must see.
- DirectorRandal KleiserStarsJesse BirdsallHelena Bonham CarterJane HorrocksGavin is thirty-one-years-old and still lives with his parents. He is awfully shy, but before he knows it, there are three women interested in him. Lady Minerva Munday has a casual way of life and lives in a basement, Joan is an over-sexed millionairess, married to a Greek architect. But Gavin prefers the ugly assistant in the barbershop.
- DirectorKenneth BranaghStarsMichael MaloneyRichard BriersHetta CharnleyA group of theatre actors plays "Hamlet" in a provincial village, faced with their own temptations, disappointments, and joys.
- DirectorKevin ReynoldsStarsKevin CostnerJudd NelsonSam RobardsFive college buddies from the University of Texas circa 1971 embark on a final road trip odyssey across the Mexican border before facing up to uncertain futures, in Vietnam and otherwise.