Blue Velvet is a 1986 American neo-noir mystery thriller film written and directed by David Lynch. Blending psychological horror with film noir, the film stars Kyle MacLachlan, Isabella Rossellini, Dennis Hopper, and Laura Dern, and is named after the 1951 song of the same name. The film concerns a young college student who, returning home to visit his ill father, discovers a severed human ear in a field. The ear then leads him to uncover a vast criminal conspiracy, and enter into a romantic relationship with a troubled lounge singer.
As Good as It Gets is a 1997 American romantic comedy-drama film directed by James L. Brooks from a screenplay he co-wrote with Mark Andrus. It stars Jack Nicholson as a misanthropic, bigoted and obsessive–compulsive novelist, Helen Hunt as a single mother with a chronically ill son, and Greg Kinnear as a gay artist. The film premiered at the Regency Village Theatre on December 6, 1997, and was released theatrically in the United States on December 25, 1997, and was a critical and box office hit, grossing $314.1 million on a $50 million budget.
Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me is a 1992 psychological horror film directed by David Lynch and written by Lynch and Robert Engels. It serves as a prequel to the television series Twin Peaks (1990–1991), created by Mark Frost and Lynch, who were also executive producers. It revolves around the investigation into the murder of Teresa Banks and the last seven days in the life of Laura Palmer, a popular high school student in the fictional Washington town of Twin Peaks. Unlike the series, which was an uncanny blend of detective fiction, horror, the supernatural, offbeat humor, and soap opera tropes, the film has a much darker, less humorous tone.
Michael Joseph Connelly is an American author of detective novels and other crime fiction, notably those featuring LAPD Detective Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch and criminal defense attorney Mickey Haller. Connelly is the bestselling author of 38 novels and one work of non-fiction, with over 74 million copies of his books sold worldwide and translated into 40 languages. His first novel, The Black Echo, won the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Award for Best First Novel in 1992. In 2002, Clint Eastwood directed and starred in the movie adaptation of Connelly's 1997 novel, Blood Work. In March 2011, the movie adaptation of Connelly's novel The Lincoln Lawyer starred Matthew McConaughey as Mickey Haller. Connelly was the President of the Mystery Writers of America from 2003 to 2004.
John Christopher Reilly is an American actor. He is known as a character actor taking leading and supporting roles in independent drama films and studio comedies. He gained exposure through his supporting roles in Paul Thomas Anderson's films Hard Eight (1996), Boogie Nights (1997) and Magnolia (1999), and Martin Scorsese's Gangs of New York (2002) and The Aviator (2004). Reilly was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor and the corresponding Golden Globe Award for his role in the musical film Chicago (2002). Reilly's other notable films include The River Wild (1994), The Thin Red Line (1998), and The Hours (2002).
Natasha Jane Richardson was an English actress. A member of the Redgrave family, Richardson was the daughter of actress Vanessa Redgrave and director/producer Tony Richardson and the granddaughter of Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson.
Natasha Bianca Lyonne Braunstein is an American actress and filmmaker. Known for her distinctive raspy voice and tough persona, she is the recipient of two Screen Actors Guild Awards, as well as nominations for five Primetime Emmys and two Golden Globes.
Natasha Tonya Henstridge is a Canadian actress. In 1995, she rose to prominence with her debut role in the science-fiction horror film Species, followed by performances in Species II and Species III. She has since starred in a string of films and television series, including Maximum Risk (1996), The Whole Nine Yards (2000), The Whole Ten Yards (2004), Ghosts of Mars (2001), She Spies (2002–2004), Eli Stone (2008–2009), and Would Be Kings (2008). For the latter, she won the Gemini Award for Best Actress. From 2019 until 2022, she starred in the CBC Television series Diggstown.
Darkness Falls is a 2003 supernatural horror film written by Joe Harris, James Vanderbilt and John Fasano. And directed by Jonathan Liebesman, in his feature directorial debut. The film stars Chaney Kley and Emma Caulfield. And follows Kyle Walsh (Kley), who witnesses his mother's murder at the hands of a vengeful spirit lynched by an angry mob more than 150 years ago. Twelve years later, Kyle returns to his childhood home because Michael Greene, the young brother of his romantic interest Caitlin (Caulfield), is being stalked by the same spirit. Kyle must protect them from this powerful enemy and put an end to its killing spree. Released on January 24, 2003, it was critically panned, but was considered a commercial success, grossing $47.5 million against a $11 million budget.
Dark Water is a 2002 Japanese supernatural horror drama film directed by Hideo Nakata and written by Yoshihiro Nakamura and Kenichi Suzuki, based on the short story collection by Koji Suzuki. The film stars Hitomi Kuroki, Rio Kanno, Mirei Oguchi, Asami Mizukawa, Fumiyo Kohinata, Yu Tokui, Isao Yatsu and Shigemitsu Ogi. The plot follows a divorced mother who moves into a rundown apartment with her daughter, and experiences supernatural occurrences including a mysterious water leak from the floor above.
Duplex is a 2003 American black comedy film directed by Danny DeVito and written by Larry Doyle. The film stars Ben Stiller and Drew Barrymore with Eileen Essell, Harvey Fierstein, Robert Wisdom, Justin Theroux and James Remar in supporting roles.
Mary Reilly is a 1996 American gothic horror film directed by Stephen Frears and starring Julia Roberts and John Malkovich. It was written by Christopher Hampton and adapted from the 1990 novel of the same name by Valerie Martin.
Russian Dolls is a 2005 romantic comedy-drama film, the sequel to L'Auberge Espagnole (2002) and the second instalment in the Spanish Apartment trilogy, which is concluded with Chinese Puzzle. Cédric Klapisch wrote and directed the film, whose settings include Paris, London, Saint Petersburg and Moscow. Klapisch makes use of digital and split-screen effects in the film, as well as non-linear narrative.
The Black Dahlia is a 2006 American neo-noir crime thriller film directed by Brian De Palma and written by Josh Friedman, based on the 1987 novel of the same name by James Ellroy, in turn inspired by the widely sensationalized murder of Elizabeth Short. Starring Josh Hartnett, Scarlett Johansson, Aaron Eckhart, and Hilary Swank, the film follows two Los Angeles Police Department detectives investigating Short's murder, leading them through a series of shocking discoveries. Mia Kirshner, Mike Starr, Fiona Shaw, John Kavanagh, Rachel Miner, and Rose McGowan appear in supporting roles.
Jennifer Lynn Connelly is an American actress. She began her career as a child model before making her acting debut in the 1984 crime film Once Upon a Time in America. After a few more years of modeling, she began to concentrate on acting, starring in a variety of films including the horror film Phenomena (1985), the musical fantasy film Labyrinth (1986), the romantic comedy Career Opportunities (1991), and the period superhero film The Rocketeer (1991). She received praise for her performance in the science fiction film Dark City (1998) and playing a drug addict in Darren Aronofsky's drama film Requiem for a Dream (2000).
Esprit d'amour is a 1983 Hong Kong supernatural romance film directed by Ringo Lam and starring Alan Tam, Shu-Chun Ni and Cecilia Yip. Shot in modern-day Hong Kong, the film centres on protagonist Koo Chi-Ming, a hapless insurance investigator who while investigating the death of a young women begins being haunted by her spirit.
Hanna is a 2011 action thriller film directed by Joe Wright. The film stars Saoirse Ronan as the title character, a girl raised in the wilderness of northern Finland by her father, an ex-CIA operative, who trains her as an assassin. Cate Blanchett portrays a senior CIA agent who tries to track down and eliminate the girl and her father. The soundtrack was written by The Chemical Brothers.
Carnage is a 2011 black comedy film directed by Roman Polanski, based on the Tony Award-winning 2006 play Le Dieu du carnage by French playwright Yasmina Reza. The screenplay is by Reza and Polanski. The film is an international co-production of France, Germany, Poland, and Spain. It stars Jodie Foster, Kate Winslet, Christoph Waltz, and John C. Reilly. In this comedy of errors, two sets of parents try to resolve a situation in a civilised manner as their idiosyncrasies rise to the surface.
Chinese Puzzle is a 2013 romantic comedy-drama film written and directed by Cédric Klapisch. It is the third and final instalment in the "Spanish Apartment" trilogy, following L'Auberge Espagnole (2002) and Russian Dolls (2005).
Bad Education is a 2019 American crime drama film directed by Cory Finley and written by Mike Makowsky. It is based on the 2004 New York magazine article "The Bad Superintendent" by Robert Kolker, about the true story of the largest public school embezzlement in American history. It features an ensemble cast including Hugh Jackman, Allison Janney, Geraldine Viswanathan, Alex Wolff, Rafael Casal, Stephen Spinella, Annaleigh Ashford and Ray Romano.
