90% Winner: 12 Years a Slave 134 min, R, [Biography, Drama, History] [Steve McQueen] [08 Nov 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 81%, Rotten Tomatoes: 95%, Metacritic: 96%, External Reviews
Awards: Won 3 Oscars. Another 235 wins & 326 nominations.
Actors: Bryan Batt, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Dickie Gravois, Dwight Henry, Michael Fassbender, Michael Kenneth Williams
Writer: John Ridley (screenplay by), Solomon Northup (based on "Twelve Years a Slave" by)
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English Country: USA, UK
Plot: Based on an incredible true story of one man's fight for survival and freedom. In the pre-Civil War United States, Solomon Northup, a free black man from upstate New York, is abducted and sold into slavery. Facing cruelty personified by a malevolent slave owner, as well as unexpected kindnesses, Solomon struggles not only to stay alive, but to retain his dignity. In the twelfth year of his unforgettable odyssey, Solomon's chance meeting with a Canadian abolitionist will forever alter his life.
Rotten Tomatoes: Chiwetel Ejiofor stars as Solomon Northup, the New York State citizen who was kidnapped and made to work on a plantation in New Orleans in the 1800s. Steve McQueen (Hunger) directs from a script he co-wrote with John Ridley, based in part by Northup's memoir. Michael Fassbender, Brad Pitt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Sarah Paulson, and Paul Giamatti co-star. ~ Jeremy Wheeler, Rovi
84% Nominee: American Hustle 138 min, R, [Crime, Drama] [David O. Russell] [20 Dec 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 72%, Rotten Tomatoes: 92%, Metacritic: 90%, External Reviews
Awards: Nominated for 10 Oscars. Another 70 wins & 208 nominations.
Actors: Amy Adams, Bradley Cooper, Christian Bale, Jeremy Renner
Writer: Eric Warren Singer, David O. Russell
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, Arabic Country: USA
Plot: A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of brilliant con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), who along with his equally cunning and seductive British partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) is forced to work for a wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that's as dangerous as it is enchanting. Jeremy Renner is Carmine Polito, the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator caught between the con-artists and Feds. Irving's unpredictable wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire world crashing down.
Rotten Tomatoes: A fictional film set in the alluring world of one of the most stunning scandals to rock our nation, American Hustle tells the story of brilliant con man Irving Rosenfeld (Christian Bale), who along with his equally cunning and seductive British partner Sydney Prosser (Amy Adams) is forced to work for a wild FBI agent Richie DiMaso (Bradley Cooper). DiMaso pushes them into a world of Jersey powerbrokers and mafia that's as dangerous as it is enchanting. Jeremy Renner is Carmine Polito, the passionate, volatile, New Jersey political operator caught between the con-artists and Feds. Irving's unpredictable wife Rosalyn (Jennifer Lawrence) could be the one to pull the thread that brings the entire world crashing down. Like David O. Russell's previous films, American Hustle defies genre, hinging on raw emotion, and life and death stakes. (c) Sony
84% Nominee: Captain Phillips 134 min, PG-13, [Biography, Drama, Thriller] [Paul Greengrass] [11 Oct 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 78%, Rotten Tomatoes: 93%, Metacritic: 83%, External Reviews
Awards: Nominated for 6 Oscars. Another 16 wins & 144 nominations.
Actors: Barkhad Abdi, Barkhad Abdirahman, Catherine Keener, Tom Hanks
Writer: Billy Ray (screenplay), Richard Phillips (based upon the book "A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea" by), Stephan Talty (based upon the book "A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALS, and Dangerous Days at Sea" by)
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, Somali Country: USA
Plot: Captain Phillips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. It is - through director Paul Greengrass's distinctive lens - simultaneously a pulse-pounding thriller, and a complex portrait of the myriad effects of globalization. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award®-winner Tom Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on an unstoppable collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship; in the ensuing standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men will find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control.
Rotten Tomatoes: Captain Phillips is a multi-layered examination of the 2009 hijacking of the U.S. container ship Maersk Alabama by a crew of Somali pirates. It is - through director Paul Greengrass's distinctive lens - simultaneously a pulse-pounding thriller, and a complex portrait of the myriad effects of globalization. The film focuses on the relationship between the Alabama's commanding officer, Captain Richard Phillips (two time Academy Award (R)-winner Tom Hanks), and the Somali pirate captain, Muse (Barkhad Abdi), who takes him hostage. Phillips and Muse are set on an unstoppable collision course when Muse and his crew target Phillips' unarmed ship; in the ensuing standoff, 145 miles off the Somali coast, both men will find themselves at the mercy of forces beyond their control. The film is directed by Academy Award (R) nominee Paul Greengrass, from a screenplay by Billy Ray based upon the book, A Captain's Duty: Somali Pirates, Navy SEALs, and Dangerous Days at Sea, by Richard Phillips with Stephan Talty. The film is produced by Scott Rudin, Dana Brunetti, and Michael De Luca.(c) Sony
85% Nominee: Dallas Buyers Club 117 min, R, [Biography, Drama] [Jean-Marc Vallée] [22 Nov 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 80%, Rotten Tomatoes: 93%, Metacritic: 84%, External Reviews
Awards: Won 3 Oscars. Another 81 wins & 81 nominations.
Actors: Denis O'Hare, Jared Leto, Jennifer Garner, Matthew McConaughey
Writer: Craig Borten, Melisa Wallack
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, Japanese Country: USA
Plot: Dallas 1985. Electrician and sometimes rodeo bull rider Ron Woodroof lives hard, which includes heavy smoking, drinking, drug use (primarily cocaine) and casual sex. He is racist and homophobic. While in the hospital on a work related injury, the doctors discover and inform him that he is HIV+, and that he will most-likely die within thirty days. Ron is initially in angry denial that he would have a disease that only "faggots" have, but upon quick reflection comes to the realization that the diagnosis is probably true. He begins to read whatever research is available about the disease, which at this time seems to be most effectively treated by the drug AZT. AZT, however, is only in the clinical trials stage within the US. Incredulous that he, as a dying man, cannot pay for any drug which may save or at least prolong his life, he goes searching for it by whatever means possible. It eventually leads him to Mexico and a "Dr." Vass, an American physician whose license was revoked in the US because of his AIDS related work against US regulations. Dr. Vass leads Ron to a cocktail of other drugs, some vitamins, he believes are more effective in treating the symptoms, since the virus, as Ron learns, will always be in the system of those who have been exposed to it. Ron begins to smuggle these drugs not approved by the FDA into the US, not only for his own use but for sale to other HIV+ persons. In this venture, he goes into an unlikely partnership with a HIV+ transgender woman named Rayon, who he met in the hospital and who has greater contact with AIDS patients through the gay community. As they try to work both above ground to get the meds to those that need them and underground to avoid detection by especially the FDA, Ron comes up with an idea to circumvent the fact of selling the drugs - which are not considered drugs yet since they are not FDA approved - directly to the HIV+ population, which then should should not be against the law. Richard Barkley and Dr. Sevard, the FDA's lead man on the file and one of Ron's doctors respectively, the latter who sees clinical trials as the only way to determine the efficacy of drugs despite the fact that Ron and others would have probably died already without these drugs, try to stop Ron and Rayon at every turn. Caught in the middle is Dr. Eve Saks, another of Ron's doctors, who understands why policies are in place, but who can sympathize with Ron, Rayon and others - all her patients, directly or indirectly - in their situation.
Rotten Tomatoes: Matthew McConaughey stars in DALLAS BUYERS CLUB as real-life Texas cowboy Ron Woodroof, whose free-wheeling life was overturned in 1985 when he was diagnosed as HIV-positive and given 30 days to live. These were the early days of the AIDS epidemic, and the U.S. was divided over how to combat the virus. Ron, now shunned and ostracized by many of his old friends, and bereft of government-approved effective medicines, decided to take matters in his own hands, tracking down alternative treatments from all over the world by means both legal and illegal. Bypassing the establishment, the entrepreneurial Woodroof joined forces with an unlikely band of renegades and outcasts - who he once would have shunned - and established a hugely successful "buyers' club." Their shared struggle for dignity and acceptance is a uniquely American story of the transformative power of resilience. (c) Focus Features
89% Nominee: Gravity 91 min, PG-13, [Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller] [Alfonso Cuarón] [04 Oct 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 77%, Rotten Tomatoes: 96%, Metacritic: 96%, External Reviews
Awards: Won 7 Oscars. Another 232 wins & 175 nominations.
Actors: Ed Harris, George Clooney, Orto Ignatiussen, Sandra Bullock
Writer: Alfonso Cuarón, Jonás Cuarón
External Links: Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, Greenlandic Country: UK, USA
Plot: Dr. Ryan Stone (Sandra Bullock) is a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalski (George Clooney) in command of his last flight before retiring. But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone - tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness.
Rotten Tomatoes: Gravity stars Sandra Bullock and George Clooney in a heart-pounding thriller that pulls you into the infinite and unforgiving realm of deep space. Bullock plays Dr. Ryan Stone, a brilliant medical engineer on her first shuttle mission, with veteran astronaut Matt Kowalsky (Clooney). But on a seemingly routine spacewalk, disaster strikes. The shuttle is destroyed, leaving Stone and Kowalsky completely alone - tethered to nothing but each other and spiraling out into the blackness. The deafening silence tells them they have lost any link to Earth and any chance for rescue. As fear turns to panic, every gulp of air eats away at what little oxygen is left. But the only way home may be to go further out into the terrifying expanse of space. -- (C) Warner Bros.
88% Nominee: Her 126 min, R, [Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi] [Spike Jonze] [10 Jan 2014]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 80%, Rotten Tomatoes: 94%, Metacritic: 90%, External Reviews
Awards: Won 1 Oscar. Another 82 wins & 181 nominations.
Actors: Amy Adams, Gabe Gomez, Joaquin Phoenix, Lisa Renee Pitts, Lynn Adrianna, Scarlett Johansson
Writer: Spike Jonze
External Links: Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English Country: USA
Plot: Theodore is a lonely man in the final stages of his divorce. When he's not working as a letter writer, his down time is spent playing video games and occasionally hanging out with friends. He decides to purchase the new OS1, which is advertised as the world's first artificially intelligent operating system, "It's not just an operating system, it's a consciousness," the ad states. Theodore quickly finds himself drawn in with Samantha, the voice behind his OS1. As they start spending time together they grow closer and closer and eventually find themselves in love. Having fallen in love with his OS, Theodore finds himself dealing with feelings of both great joy and doubt. As an OS, Samantha has powerful intelligence that she uses to help Theodore in ways others hadn't, but how does she help him deal with his inner conflict of being in love with an OS?
Rotten Tomatoes: Spike Jonze takes the helm for this comedy about a withdrawn writer (Joaquin Phoenix) who falls in love with his computer's highly advanced operating system. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
84% Nominee: Nebraska 115 min, R, [Adventure, Comedy, Drama] [Alexander Payne] [24 Jan 2014]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 77%, Rotten Tomatoes: 90%, Metacritic: 86%, External Reviews
Awards: Nominated for 6 Oscars. Another 28 wins & 157 nominations.
Actors: Bob Odenkirk, Bruce Dern, June Squibb, Will Forte
Writer: Bob Nelson
External Links: Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, Spanish Country: USA
Plot: "NEBRASKA" is a father and son road trip, from Billings, Montana to Lincoln, Nebraska that gets waylaid at a small town in central Nebraska, where the father grew up and has scores to settle. Told with deadpan humor and a unique visual style, it's ultimately the story of a son trying to get through to a father he doesn't understand.
Rotten Tomatoes: Director Alexander Payne (Sideways, The Descendants) takes the helm for this black and white road trip drama starring Bruce Dern as a tempestuous Missouri father who's convinced he's won a million dollar magazine sweepstakes, and Will Forte as the son who grudgingly agrees to drive him to Nebraska to claim his winnings. Bob Odenkirk and Stacy Keach costar. ~ Jason Buchanan, Rovi
81% Nominee: Philomena 98 min, PG-13, [Biography, Comedy, Drama] [Stephen Frears] [27 Nov 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 76%, Rotten Tomatoes: 90%, Metacritic: 77%, External Reviews
Awards: Nominated for 4 Oscars. Another 32 wins & 76 nominations.
Actors: Judi Dench, Mare Winningham, Sophie Kennedy Clark, Steve Coogan
Writer: Steve Coogan (screenplay), Jeff Pope (screenplay), Martin Sixsmith (book)
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English Country: UK, USA, France
Plot: When former journalist Martin Sixsmith is dismissed from the Labour Party in disgrace, he is at a loss as to what do. That changes when a young Irish woman approaches him about a story of her mother, Philomena, who had her son taken away when she was a teenage inmate of a Catholic convent. Martin arranges a magazine assignment about her search for him that eventually leads to America. Along the way, Martin and Philomena discover as much about each other as about her son's fate. Furthermore, both find their basic beliefs challenged.
Rotten Tomatoes: Based on the 2009 investigative book by BBC correspondent Martin Sixsmith, The Lost Child of Philomena Lee, PHILOMENA focuses on the efforts of Philomena Lee (Dench), mother to a boy conceived out of wedlock - something her Irish-Catholic community didn't have the highest opinion of - and given away for adoption in the United States. In following church doctrine, she was forced to sign a contract that wouldn't allow for any sort of inquiry into the son's whereabouts. After starting a family years later in England and, for the most part, moving on with her life, Lee meets Sixsmith (Coogan), a BBC reporter with whom she decides to discover her long-lost son. (c) Weinstein
78% Nominee: The Wolf of Wall Street 180 min, R, [Biography, Crime, Drama] [Martin Scorsese] [25 Dec 2013]Ratings & Reviews: IMDb Reviews: 82%, Rotten Tomatoes: 78%, Metacritic: 75%, External Reviews
Awards: Nominated for 5 Oscars. Another 38 wins & 165 nominations.
Actors: Jonah Hill, Leonardo DiCaprio, Margot Robbie, Matthew McConaughey
Writer: Terence Winter (screenplay), Jordan Belfort (book)
External Links: Wikipedia Rotten Tomatoes IMDb Website Language: English, French Country: USA
Plot: Jordan Belfort is a Long Island penny stockbroker who served 22 months in prison for defrauding investors in a massive 1990s securities scam that involved widespread corruption on Wall Street and in the corporate banking world, including shoe designer Steve Madden.
Rotten Tomatoes: Martin Scorsese directs the story of New York stockbroker Jordan Belfort. From the American dream to corporate greed, Belfort goes from penny stocks and righteousness to IPOs and a life of corruption in the late 80s. Excess success and affluence in his early twenties as founder of the brokerage firm Stratton Oakmont warranted Belfort the title "The Wolf of Wall Street." -- (C) Paramount