Cool Hand Luke (1967)

The prison guards are sadists, and Cool Hand Luke is their masochist. Paul Newman’s anti-hero endures severe punishment — the film’s Christ-like imagery is well-documented — and in one classic scene, eats 50 eggs: one for every prisoner.

d: Stuart Rosenberg | imdb.com | trailer
50 eggs | A real cool hand | Failure to communicate | Car wash

Inglourious Basterds (2009)

Quentin Tarantino’s World War II epic isn’t fact. It is pulp fiction — a viscerally satisfying tale of scalping, spies and Jewish revenge in four languages. Christoph Waltz (the Jew Hunter) is evil and charming and ironic in a powerful performance.

d: Quentin Tarantino | imdb.com | trailer | “Charlie Rose”
Jail break | The vet | Interrogation | Hans Landa

The Goods: Live Hard, Sell Hard (2009)

Jeremy Piven — a real American badass who loves Bob Seger — leads a group underachieving car salesmen in a Will Ferrell-style farce with Ving Rhames, strippers, alligators and a 10-year-old in a man’s body. Ed Helms steals a few scenes, too.

d: Neal Brennan | imdb.com | trailer | I have a $44 haircut.

Grace (2009)

Jordan Ladd gives birth to Grace, who is only satiated by blood in a disturbing but often effective horror film about undying motherhood and isolationism — and both are Ladd’s undoing. Warning: Do not see this film if you are pregnant or breast feeding.

d: Paul Solet | imdb.com | trailer

John Hughes (1950-2009)

Director John Hughes captured the zeitgeist in the 1980s with tales of teen angst in suburban Chicago — the Molly Ringwald trilogy, “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off” and “Weird Science” — and made stars of Ringwald, Anthony Michael Hall and Matthew Broderick.

imdb.com | Richard Corliss | Top 10 John Hughes moments
The Breakfast Club | Sixteen Candles | Ferris Bueller’s Day Off

The Nutty Professor (1963)

In a loose adaptation of “Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde,” Jerry Lewis plays nerdy professor Julius Kelp and swinging Buddy Love. In the dual roles, Lewis transforms himself — his posture, his voice, his attitude — with fake buckteeth as the only prosthetic aid.

d: Jerry Lewis | imdb.com | trailers | Alaskan Polar Bear Heater

Rio Bravo (1959)

Howard Hawks directs a classic Western — a leisurely character study starring John Wayne, with great supporting performances by Dean Martin (Dude), Ricky Nelson (Colorado), Walter Brennan (Stumpy) and Angie Dickinson (Feathers). There’s even a sing-along.

d: Howard Hawks | imdb.com | trailer | sing-along | interview