Ten must-see Disney + Star movies
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Alien (1979) Deadpool (2016) Bridge of Spies (2015) Ladyhawke (1985) The Thin Red Line (1998) Little Miss Sunshine ( 2006) Logan - The Wolverine (2017) Moulin Rouge! (2001) Pretty Woman (1990) Life of Pi (2012)
Alien (1979)
It is the first film of a franchise (also consisting of comics, TV series, gadgets, books and role-playing games) which still today, after forty-two years, brings millions of people to cinemas all over the world (or at least, when you could go there). It has always been considered a staple of modern science fiction and launched the careers of both director Ridley Scott (Blade Runner, Gladiator) and actress Sigourney Weaver (Ghostbusters, A career woman, Avatar). After three sequels, two crossover films with Predator and two prequels (the only ones signed again by Ridley Scott), the xenomorphs invented for the occasion by Swiss artist Hans Ruedi Giger are now part of the collective imagination. This first film is characterized by a dark atmosphere, with horror tints that will be reinterpreted in very different ways by the directors of the following films. The cast includes John Hurt (Midnight Escape, The Elephant Man) and Ian Holm (Moments of Glory, The Lord of the Rings).Deadpool (2016)
Deadpool is considered a watershed in the modern history of cinema, as it is the first Rated R product (i.e. prohibited to minors under seventeen in the US) of Marvel superheroes mainstream. The great success of the film has in fact cleared the idea that superhero films should also be accessible to teenagers, highlighting that the genre now has a strong following even among adult audiences. In truth, there were already many films based on highly popular comics and with the same prohibition class (we remember the most famous: Watchmen, V for Vendetta, Sin City, Kick-Ass, Constantine and Wanted) and many also from the Marvel universe ( among all Blade and the various incarnations of The Punisher), but actually none of these were part of the mainstream world of superheroes, referred to the most well-known characters or presented the product as connected to the rest of the so-called MCU.These aspects weighed so heavily on the choice to make the film that the decision was made after ten long years: several screenwriters and directors have gone through pre-production, with only Ryan Reynolds at the helm to try to bring the project to fruition . At the end of the ordeal, with a budget of fifty-eight million dollars, cut the day before the start, the film has grossed nearly eight hundred million dollars worldwide, garnering the enthusiasm of fans. In the cast, in addition to the aforementioned Reynolds in the role of the protagonist, we find Gina Carano (Knockout - Showdown, The Mandalorian), Morena Baccarin (Serenity, Homeland, Gotham), Ed Skrein (Game of Thrones, Maleficent - Lady of evil) . After the success of the manga version, the third installment of the franchise was recently confirmed, this time officially integrated into the MCU.
The bridge of spies (2015)
It could not be missing in this lists a Steven Spielberg film; in this case we are talking about a spy thriller set during the cold war and based on a true story (although there are some deviations from the historical facts, these are however limited). The narrative has a very particular point of view, namely that of the lawyer of a Russian spy captured on American soil, played by the always excellent Tom Hanks (Forrest Gump, Cast Away). The film garnered excellent box office and critical response, bringing home a host of international award nominations and the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor for Mark Rylance (Dunkirk, Ready Player One).Ladyhawke (1985)
Among the great classics of the 80s Ladyhawke holds a special place in the hearts of many people. The film represents the perfect mix of adventure and romance, knights, fighting and magic, with an undertone of friendship, fidelity and love. This balance is perfectly embodied by the two protagonists, Etienne Navarre (imperturbably played by a Rutger Hauer launched only three years earlier by Bladerunner) and Isabeau D'Anjou (wonderful Michelle Pfeiffer, in search of the definitive affirmation after the success of Scarface) linked, between ups and downs, by the multifaceted trafficone Philippe Gaston (a very young Matthew Broderick fresh from the success of Wargames).Although it was a flop at the box office, Ladyhawk collected several nominations in many events and is still considered a point today reference for the fantastic genre. The film had a lot of resonance in Italy because almost all of the film was shot in our own country (although a French-speaking setting was presented in our adaptation), in particular Lombardy, Emilia and Abruzzo. The director is Richard Donner, who in the 1980s gave birth to several films now considered cult (Superman, The Goonies, Lethal Weapon).
The thin red line (1998)
Terrence Malick's third film (The Tree of Life, The Hidden Life), is considered one of the best war titles of recent years, having totaled seven Oscar nominations (but unfortunately not a statuette) and several international awards (including the 'Golden Bear). Set during World War II, it tells the story of a US Army company that must take over a Japanese airfield. The film is characterized by incisive direction, wonderful photography and an engaging soundtrack (by Hans Zimmer).After the first montage that gave birth to a six-hour film, the final version was reduced to about three hours; we can therefore divide the cast between the actors who survived this cut, such as Sean Penn, Adrien Brody, Jim Caviezel, George Clooney, John Cusack, Woody Harrelson, Jared Leto, Nick Nolte and John Travolta and those who remained on the floor of the editing room , such as Billy Bob Thornton, Martin Sheen, Bill Pullman, Viggo Mortensen, Gary Oldman, and Mickey Rourke. The Thin Red Line is an important, intense film, a must see.
Little Miss Sunshine (2006)
Born as an independent film, it presents the spouses to their debut behind the camera. Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Ruby Sparks, Battle of the Sexes) and the screenplay by newcomer Michael Arndt (Toy Story 3, Star Wars: The Force Awakens). It has a very small budget (only eight million dollars), but its success at the Sundance Film Festival quickly makes it into the limelight, bringing global revenues of more than one hundred million dollars. The story of the deranged Hoover family and their absurd journey from New Mexico to California in a ramshackle Volkswagen T2 bus enters the hearts of audiences and critics alike. The conflictual relationship between father and son and the secret complicity between grandfather and granddaughter are some of the domestic relationships explored by the film.The film is not limited to a simple story within the family unit: it places it at the center of an ecosystem (society, culture, media) that influences it without allowing it to react, up to the inevitable collapse. The cast is decidedly remarkable and mixes experienced actors and new recruits, who will then be confirmed in the following years as talented actors; then we find the already established Greg Kinnear (There is mail for you, We Were Soldiers - Until the last man), Toni Collette (The Sixth Sense - The sixth sense, In Her Shoes - If I were her), Steve Carell (40 virgin years, Foxcatcher - An American story), the Oscar-winning supporting actor in this same film Alan Arkin (Edward Scissorhands, Gattaca - The door to the universe) and the almost newcomers Abigail Breslin (Certainly, perhaps, The keeper of my sister) and Paul Dano (The oilman, 12 years a slave). Also noteworthy is the presence of the "couple" Bryan Cranston and Dean Norris, present in the same film two years before the consecration with Breaking Bad.
Logan - The Wolverine (2017)
Canto del swan (at least with Hugh Jackman as the protagonist) of the saga of Marvel's most famous and beloved X-Men, Logan is probably the best film about mutants ever: with a budget of about one hundred million dollars, it has grossed more than six hundred million in worldwide and is the first superhero film to be nominated for Best Non-Original Screenplay at the Oscars (garnering dozens of other nominations and winning a dozen awards). Probably following the wave of Deadpool, it is an R-Rated film in the USA (therefore forbidden to minors under seventeen): the rawness and violence that have always characterized this character, a mutant in constant struggle with his most bestial part, are finally represented without filters.But brutality is not an end in itself: it is the vehicle of a series of messages which, even if they are not new for those who follow the protagonist's comics, are finally gutted without hesitation on the big screen. The result is a film that convinces on all levels, to the point of becoming the third best R-Rated film of all time at the box office. In addition to Hugh Jackman, James Mangold's film (Girls Interrupted, That Train to Yuma, Le Mans '66) is enriched among others by Patrick Stewart (several Star Treks and many of the X-Men movies), Stephen Merchant (Jojo Rabbit) and presents on the big screen for the first time a talented and very young Dafne Keen (His Dark Materials).
Moulin Rouge! (2001)
It is the film that marked the relaunch of the musical genre, which for years has been disdained by major Hollywood productions. Winner of two Academy Awards (scenography and costumes), a box office gross of almost $ 180 million (with a pharaonic budget for the genre of fifty-two million), the film is a well-chosen mixture of pop music reinterpreted on an inspired story. to Verdi's traviata, of real historical characters and protagonists invented from scratch, of realistic sets and costumes but pushed beyond the limits of boldness. The protagonists Nicole Kidman (Rebel Hearts, Dogville) and Ewan McGregor (Trainspotting, Dreams and Crimes), already internationally renowned actors, demonstrate great singing skills and ring a series of important nominations (only for Kidman a Golde Globe will materialize) .Pretty Woman (1990)
Pretty Woman is the romantic comedy par excellence, the film that projected Julia Roberts in the male imagination and reconfirmed Richard Gere in the female one (after American Gigolo and Officer and Gentleman). The film was a success with audiences (fourth overall in the USA and third in the world in 1990) and critics (among others an Oscar nomination and a Golden Globe win for Julia Roberts) and still maintains high interest in the film. audience (in Italy the last step, in 2020, totaled almost 16% of the share, a remarkable result, for a film that turned thirty years old). The story of redemption and love of the protagonists hits the mark thanks to its universality that transcends space and time.Life of Pi (2012)
Based on the novel of the same name by Yann Martel, the film tells the life story of an Indian boy named Pi, and in particular how he survived a shipwreck in the Pacific Ocean in a lifeboat with a Bengal tiger. The film has a highly impactful photography, aided by a screenplay and direction that enhance the dreamlike and fantastic narrative aspect of the story; to underline also the use of special effects that reached levels of realism never seen before in tiger animation.Behind the camera we find Ang Lee, one of the most discontinuous directors of recent years: capable of bringing on the big screen wonderful or powerful films like The Tiger and the Dragon and Brokeback Mountain and equally empty films like Hulk (the film with Eric Bana) or the recent Gemini Man.
