Surprisingly good movies

[JesseMartin]

Hey guys, since I mostly work from home while taking care of my kids, I tend to watch a lot of movies and so I get a lot of random indie stuff, a few foreign films, documentaries, etc. that I watch in between doing everything else. Since there are obviously a few film buffs on here I thought we could share some movies that might not be something everyone knows about that turned out to be better than expected.

So since I'm starting it off, I'll share a few recent surprises.

-Rust and Bone: Marion Cotillard, who we saw in Public Enemies, Inception, and others lately, is great in this, as is the rest of the cast. It's in French, but there are subtitles...it starts off a bit slow, but the character development and overall plot are very unique and by the end I felt very invested in what happened to them, so it scores a big win with me.

-Sleepwalk with Me: Comedian Mike Birbiglia, who has been in some random parts before and shows up on Comedy Central occasionally, has totally blown up lately. I haven't seen the one-man shows or read his books, but if his writing and directorial debut here is any indication, they are probably pretty impressive. This is a semi-autobiographical story about his life, relationships, and early parts of his comedic career, as well as of course sleepwalking. Not only well-done overall, but one of the best parts is that as he gets more gigs and practice as a comedian, he gets funnier so of course the movie does as well.

-Deadfall: I love Eric Bana, and the addition of Olivia Wilde and Charlie Hunnam (the poor man's Channing Tatum, soon to be seen in Pacific Rim) as well as a few other known names made this awesome. The overall story seemed reminiscent of 3000 Miles to Graceland and a few others I've seen, but the acting and visual qualities (decent directing and cinematography) really made it stand out.

-21 and Over: Not as unknown as the others, but I expected a simple party comedy. There was certainly plenty of that, but as we got to know the characters and their recent troubles, it actually developed a lot more heart and depth than I'm used to seeing in this type of thing. The jokes are great too, though they may be a bit edgy and off-color for some of you.

-Sinister: Ethan Hawke finally starred in a horror movie and didn't disappoint. This one was fairly low-budget and still scored about $60 million in theaters. I'm finally getting to the point where horror movies involving little kids don't bother me as much as when I first became a dad, but if that's an issue with you, stay away. It's pretty intense and very well-done in the "creepy department".

[CMJ]

An older movie (1995ish?)....but criminally under seen.

Red Rock West. The best Coen movie, that the Coen's never made. Very akin to their sensibilities. Great, underrated gem.

Edited June 21, 2013 by CMJ

[THOR]

Clerks 2...the dialogue is brilliant! You don't even have to watch it. A blind person would love it...at least I think...

[oldguystudent]

Goon. I expected nothing, was compelled the entire movie.

[greenminer]

how's the new Man of Steel?

[JesseMartin]

Goon was awesome, and based on a true story!

Man of Steel was great, somebody started a thread on it already. I didn't put any spoilers in what I said about it.