Collider - Movies

The True Story Behind Donnie Brasco

Jeffrey Speicher — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 09:45:14 GMT

There have been a handful of movies about brave souls who work undercover for the government against the mob and organized crime. The best may be Martin Scorsese's master stroke The Departed starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Jack Nicholson. Scorsese also hit "snitch" paydirt with The Irishman in 2011. But the most accurate mob informant thriller may very well be the 1997 movie directed by Mike Newell called Donnie Brasco, led by A-listers Johnny Depp and Al Pacino. There are so many heart-pounding scenes in Donnie Brasco where the FBI agent Joe Pistone is one wrong word away from getting whacked. Given that it's such an intense story, we decided to dig into the terrific mafia film and see how much of the story actually happened and what Newell took artistic liberty with while looking in on what the informant has been doing in the decades since leaving the FBI.

The Killing of a Sacred Deer Ending Explained

Gregory Lawrence — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 08:30:14 GMT

In some ways, The Killing of a Sacred Deer is Yorgos Lanthimos' most direct, explicitly stated narrative taken to its most direct, explicitly clear ending to date. Martin (Barry Keoghan) tells Dr. Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell) that, in light of Steven botching Martin's father's surgery resulting in his death, Steven's family (Nicole Kidman, Raffey Cassidy, Sunny Suljic) will die from a mysterious illness with mysterious symptoms, unless Steven himself chooses one to kill. The family starts experiencing all of these symptoms (paralysis, lack of appetite, eyes bleeding), no matter what Steven does. So, Steven spins in a circle with a hat over his eyes and randomly shoots and kills his son Bob (Suljic). In the final scene, we see the Murphy family minus Bob at a diner. Martin walks in, looks at them without their youngest. And, satisfied, leaves the diner and leaves them be.

Every Wong Kar-wai Film Ranked From Least Best to Perfection

Therese Lacson — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 03:45:14 GMT

Anyone who has dipped a toe into Hong Kong cinema or international film is probably familiar with visionary director Wong Kar-wai. Bursting onto the scene in 1988 with his directorial debut As Tears Go By, Wong's films have been known for their melancholic plots, romantic themes, kinetic imagery, and poignant scores. With frequent collaborators like Tony Leung Chiu-Wai, Leslie Cheung, Maggie Cheung, and Carina Lau, Wong weaved a mesmerizing tapestry of films connected by thematic through lines of love, loss, and longing.

Ryan Gosling Played a Superhero and No One Even Remembers It

Adam Grinwald — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 03:30:14 GMT

Fans of Ryan Gosling waiting for his arrival on the superhero scene need to look no further to the early days of his career, specifically 1999’s nearly-lost television movie (and quasi-pilot) The Unbelievables. The 23-minute short follows the titular Unbelievables, some sort of retired blue collar crime-fighting squad of superheroes. Imagine if the Avengers or the Justice League quit their day jobs, moved to the suburbs, had kids, and gathered together a few times each month to play some poker, and you’ve got the general idea.

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan and Its Human Aspects

Liam Gaughan — Fri, 05 Jan 2024 01:00:14 GMT

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is the Citizen Kane of Trek films. Few Trekkies would argue that it is the best film in the entire franchise. While the saga has been uneven, The Wrath of Khan exemplifies the best of what Trek can be. It features just the right mix of action, suspense, emotion, and humor that made The Original Series so beloved in the first place. Of course, The Wrath of Khan is best known for its titular villain, played memorably by Ricardo Montalbán. However, the real villain of the 1982 sequel isn’t Khan himself. It’s the passing of time. The Wrath of Khan was released over a decade after The Original Series was taken off-air. The Enterprise crew had grown and evolved. Campy misadventures were a fun premise for a television show, but if Star Trek was to survive as a movie franchise, it needed to start taking itself more seriously.

‘The Godfather’ Made Frank Sinatra so Mad, He Almost Fought the Author

Aidan Kelley — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 23:31:15 GMT

Today, most members of the filmmaking community recognize The Godfather as one of the greatest films of all time. Still, one of the entertainment industry's biggest stars, Frank Sinatra, did not initially share that opinion. Following The Godfather novel's massive popularity, Sinatra developed a grudge against the story due to one character: Johnny Fontane.

‘Night Swim’ Ending Explained — Wyatt Russell Goes off the Deep End

Liam Gaughan — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 23:00:14 GMT

Editor's Note: The following contains spoilers for Night Swim.

Before ‘Zone of Interest,’ Director Jonathan Glazer Made This Creepy Film

Jacob Slankard — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 23:00:14 GMT

Is love an inherently good thing? True love, that is, being spiritually tied to a soul mate who sees you and connects with you in a way that no one else possibly could. Generations upon generations have been raised on the idea of finding "the one", even outside heteronormative standards, and to cherish that as a goal you strive towards in life. But what if there were downsides to a love like that? Could you move on from such a love, if something happens? What if your chance at recapturing that love requires you to tread unsavory moral waters? Is it possible to truly live in such a morass of confusion? These are the zones of interest that Jonathan Glazer sought to explore with his vastly underappreciated 2004 film Birth, resulting in one of the most profoundly unsettling experiences in 21st-century cinema.

'Murder at the Breakers: A Gilded Newport Mystery' Movie Gets Release Date

Ryan O'Rourke — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 22:56:04 GMT

For the first time ever, Hallmark is wading into the waters of period piece mysteries. On February 2, the Hallmark Movies & Mystery channel will present Murder at the Breakers, a film adaptation of the first installment from the Gilded Newport Mysteries series of novels by Alyssa Maxwell. Set in late 19th century and early 20th century Newport, Rhode Island, the books follow journalist Emma Cross as she solves mysteries within the dark underbelly of the Gilded Age elite and discovers how blood-curdling high society can truly be.

'Barbie' vs 'Oppenheimer' – This Is the Movie That Did Politics Right

Ron Evangelista — Thu, 04 Jan 2024 22:15:18 GMT

Barbenheimer, the biggest double bill of 2023, was a massive success. The box office, film circles, and the wild world of the internet buzzed about the unlikely pairing of two vastly different films made by two of the most renowned filmmakers of our time. Greta Gerwig's Barbie is a vibrant exploration of its titular character experiencing an existential crisis, one of the last thoughts that could pop into one's head when talking about the beloved doll. On the other hand, Christopher Nolan's Oppenheimer brings viewers right into the mind of the father of the atomic bomb. While both of them look to discuss certain political and social aspects of the world, only one of them succeeds in providing a nuanced exploration, and it's not even close.