Movie of the Week – The Departed

This week’s movie is The Departed (2006).

The crime drama is an English remake of Infernal Affairs about two police officers – one an undercover cop inserted with the Irish mob in Boston, the other an undercover member of the mob inserted in the Massachusetts State Police assigned to taking down the mob. The film is directed by Martin Scorsese (garnering him his first Best Director and Best Picture Oscars) and written by William Monahan. Scorsese worked with a good group on the film including producer Brad Pitt (through his Plan B Entertainment production company, which has made quite a few great films lately), composer Howard Shore, cinematographer Michael Ballhaus (a frequent collaborator of Scorsese’s), and production designer Kristi Zea. The cast is also phenomenal as it stars Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon, with Jack Nicholson, Adam Baldwin, Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, Ray Winstone, Vera Farmiga, Anthony Anderson, Kevin Corrigan, James Badge Dale, David O’Hara, and Mark Rolston in support. Despite being his first Oscar winner, I am not sure The Departed is quite in the pantheon of Scorsese classics (Taxi Driver, Raging Bull and Goodfellas), but it is an excellent crime drama and my favorite of his films made in the last decade. This is a must-see for fans of Scorsese and gangster/crime dramas as it is one of the best in the last few years. Check out the trailer.

Available on Blu-ray, DVD and Streaming

Leonardo DiCaprio – Movies Spotlight – November 2011

Leonardo DiCaprio, 37, is still probably best known for his role opposite Kate Winslet in James Cameron’s Titanic. However, in recent years he has become one of the best leading men in Hollywood. This month he stars in the Clint Eastwood directed biopic J. Edgar about J. Edgar Hoover, the first director of the FBI.

Early Career:

DiCaprio began his career making appearances in commercials and educational films before getting his first break picking up a role in the soup Santa Barbara and a series regular role in Parenthood (the short-lived series based on the Ron Howard movie) in 1990. He continued to get TV work with roles on Roseanne and Growing Pains, and he got his first film role in 1991 on the sci-fi comedy Critters 3 and then another in Poison Ivy. His work on Parenthood garnered him a nomination for Best Young Actor from the Young Artist Awards. However, it was not until Robert De Niro chose him out of four hundred young actors to co-star with him that he had his real breakthrough. The film was 1993’s This Boy’s Life.

Breakthrough as a Child-Actor:

After This Boy’s Life, DiCaprio followed it up with another fantastic performance in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape, co-starring and even upstaging Johnny Depp as Depp’s mentally handicapped brother. Director Lasse Hallstrom was reluctant to cast him at first, as he felt DiCaprio was too good-looking for the role, but found that he was the best among the auditions by far. He earned his first Oscar nomination for the performance. Next, he worked with Sam Raimi on the campy western The Quick and the Dead playing the cocky son of the town’s big man. DiCaprio’s performance is fun, the film does feature a few great actors (like Gene Hackman and Russell Crowe) and is entertaining in spots, but it does not hold up too well as a whole. He also made his next critical hit in 1995 with The Basketball Diaries, a biopic about Jim Carroll.

Titanic – Becoming the Biggest Star in the World:

DiCaprio had established himself as a good young actor, one that critics knew and praised, but he was not yet a star or box office draw. That changed in 1996 when he was cast opposite Claire Danes (who was the bigger of the two, star wise, at the time thanks to My So-Called Life) in Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet. Luhrmann updated the style and look of Shakespeare’s play to feel more modern and hip and cast Danes and DiCaprio in an effort to appeal to younger film goers, and it worked. Even today, the film is one of the most iconic romances of its generation. Next, he took a role in Marvin’s Room playing opposite Robert De Niro again, as well as Meryl Streep and Diane Keaton, truly testing his skills as an actor.  The film is okay, but DiCaprio came out of it being called an equal to the wonderful actors sharing the screen. Now having both critical praise and commercial appeal, he was ready to become a huge star. The film that did it for him was his next – Titanic. Before Avatar topped it, Titanic was the highest grossing film of all-time, and it won eleven Oscars including Best Picture. It made DiCaprio one of the biggest stars in Hollywood and also one of the main heartthrobs from teenage girls. However, the film also had some backlash for him, as it was too big and a little too sappy. Critics and some audience members seemed to dislike him purely due to his association with the film and line ‘I’m the king of the world’, which was on repeat in pop-culture after the film (and to some extent still is). He may never be quite as popular as he was around the time of that movie. Now, as a big star, studios started to place him in bigger films. First up was United Artists’ The Man in the Iron Mask, directed and written by Randal Wallace, coming off his big hit Braveheart (which he wrote). The movie was a failure critically but made money commercially. He then made Celebrity with Woody Allen, which is one of Allen’s lesser films, appearing in a self-mocking cameo. And then Fox put him in The Beach, the second of their two film experiment with director Danny Boyle that yielded two disappointments for them critically (though I am a fan of both The Beach and A Life Less Ordinary). However, the film was a success at the box office thanks to DiCaprio’s fame (and the same goes for The Man in the Iron Mask). Both films garnered him Razzie nominations (not because he is bad in them, but due to the Titanic backlash).

Collaborations with Martin Scorsese:

DiCaprio has had one of his most fruitful actor-director relationships with Martin Scorsese. They have made four films together, beginning with Gangs of New York in 2002. Scorsese initially had trouble getting a studio interested in the film, but when DiCaprio became interested in starring, coming off three box office hits in a row, Miramax jumped in to finance the project. However, the filming was plagued with creative disputes between Scorsese and the producers as well as multiple budget overflows. It is the most expense film Scorsese has made. Despite the issues, the film received critical acclaim (for the most part, though I would argue it is one of his lesser films) and ten Oscar nods including Best Picture. While DiCaprio is good in it, giving his first grown-up performance (so to speak), he is overshadowed by Daniel Day-Lewis’s magnificent performance. Their next picture together came in 2004 with The Aviator, a biopic about Howard Hughes. DiCaprio originally developed the project with Michael Mann, but he decided to leave the director’s chair and only produce as he had just made two biopics (Ali and The Insider) and did not want to take on a third just then. DiCaprio decided to pitch the script to Scorsese after having a good working relationship with him on Gangs of New York. He spent over a year preparing for the role, which was his most difficult to date (and probably still is). The film was a financial and critical success and DiCaprio received his second Oscar nomination. In 2006 the two worked together again on The Departed, a remake of the Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs. The film was highly anticipated and became the biggest hit critically and commercially among their films together. It won Best Picture and Scorsese a Best Director Oscar at the 2007 Academy Awards. They again reunited in 2009 to make Sutter Island (which was delayed until 2010). The film is much different than most of the work either had done previously, being a psychological thriller, but it yielded both DiCaprio and Scorsese their biggest box office opening weekend of their careers to date. The pair is currently working on a few upcoming rumored projects together.

Working with the Best Directors in Hollywood:

In addition to Martin Scorsese, DiCaprio has worked with many of the best directors in Hollywood since 2002 starting with Steven Spielberg on Catch Me If You Can. DiCaprio’s performance as Frank Abagnale Jr., a very skilled forger and con-man, seemed to make him cool again with many viewers put off by Titanic. And likewise, the film was a great international success (and one of Spielberg’s better films of the decade, second to Munich). He made Blood Diamond with Edward Zwick about the Sierra Leone Civil War in 2006. He played a South African and donned an Afrikaner’s accent. He received his third Oscar nomination for the film. In 2008 he made two films, first he worked with Ridley Scott on Body of Lies, a CIA spy Middle East thriller. DiCaprio liked the film because he viewed it as a throwback to the political films of the 1970s (things like The Parallax View and Three Days of the Condor). Then he reunited with Kate Winslet in Sam Mendes’s (her husband at the time) Revolutionary Road about a failing marriage in the 1950s. Both DiCaprio and Winslet had been reluctant to work on romances in the wake of Titanic, but had remained good friends. Thus, when Winslet came with the project to DiCaprio he agreed and production started quickly. Both are fantastic in the film (and it is one of the most underrated films of the year and possibly decade). In 2010 he starred in Christopher Nolan’s action thriller Inception, yet another critical and commercial success. These films have not only made DiCaprio one of the top leading men from a talent perspective, but also one of the biggest stars in Hollywood currently.

Future Projects:

DiCaprio has two films upcoming in 2012, both scheduled for a release on Christmas Day. First he is reuniting with his Romeo + Juliet director Baz Luhrmann for an adaptation of The Great Gatsby. It co-stars Carey Mulligan as Daisy and Tobey Maguire (who he worked with on This Boy’s Life) as Nick. Then, he takes on his first role as a villain in Quentin Tarantino’s southern western Django Unchained. It is about a slave turned bounty hunter who sets out to rescue his wife from a vicious plantation owner (played by DiCaprio). It stars Jamie Foxx and co-stars Samuel L. Jackson, Christoph Waltz, and Kerry Washington (among others). DiCaprio is also rumored to be attached to Todd Fields’s new film Creed of Violence about two men in 1910 who try to stop an organized arms smuggling ring.

Leonardo DiCaprio’s Career Highlights:

1)      What’s Eating Gilbert Grape (1993) – supporting (DVD, Streaming)

2)      The Basketball Diaries (1995) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD)

3)      Romeo + Juliet (1996) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

4)      Titanic (1997) – leading (DVD)

5)      Gangs of New York (2002) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

6)      Catch Me If You Can (2002)* – leading (DVD)

7)      The Aviator (2004) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

8)      The Departed (2006)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

9)      Blood Diamond (2006) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

10)   Body of Lies (2008)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

11)   Revolutionary Road (2008)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

12)   Shutter Island (2010) – leading (Blu-ray, DVD, Streaming)

13)   Inception (2010)* – leading (Blu-ray, DVD)

*Editor’s picks

Matt Damon – Movies Spotlight – March 2010

Matt Damon has become one of the biggest stars in Hollywood over the past two decades. He is in this month’s action thriller Green Zone, marking his third collaboration with director Paul Greengrass. Damon has been able to grow his career balancing dramatic, action and fun roles in both independent and Hollywood movies, which has now firmly established him as an “A List” actor – and a great one at that.

Early Career:

In 1988 Damon got his first film role in Mystic Pizza (which was Julia Roberts breakout film), though he only had one line. From there, he continued to take small roles in the television movie Rising Son and School Ties (which also features Ben Affleck). In 1993 he finally got a decent sized role in Geronimo: An American Legend, however he would continue to toil away in small roles in Glory Daze (a college-comedy which stars young Affleck, Sam Rockwell and French Stewart) and Courage Under Fire until his breakthrough finally came in 1997.

Breakthrough:

1996 was a good year for Damon. He began work on Francis Ford Coppola’s The Rainmaker and his breakout film Good Will Hunting. Damon and best friend Affleck wrote the screenplay for Good Will Hunting and pitched it around Hollywood. They even wanted another of their friends, Kevin Smith, to make the film, as he broke into the industry as a director on the success of his film Clerks. But Smith thought they should get someone who could do justice to their film. It turned out to be good advice as they were able to attach Gus Van Sant to the film. In 1997, Good Will Hunting was met with critical and commercial success garnering Damon and Affleck each an Oscar for best original screenplay and bolstering both of their acting careers tremendously. The film was also nominated for best picture and won Robin Williams a supporting actor Oscar as well. On the set of Good Will Hunting, Damon met Steven Spielberg who then cast him in Saving Private Ryan. There is a rumor that famed screenwriter William Goldman did extensive rewrites on the script, but they have been disavowed by all parties. Goldman did however offer notes on how to make the film more marketable to Hollywood, as did Rob Reiner. With the success of the film, Damon took roles in Rounders, Smith’s Dogma and The Talented Mr. Ripley. In The Talented Mr. Ripley, Damon solidified himself as not only a fine actor but a bankable and marketable rising star. The film proved to Hollywood that his success in Good Will Hunting was not a fluke.

The Hollywood Game:

Now having established himself in the film industry, Damon began receiving many offers and many roles. Thus, the Hollywood Game had begun. Picking the right projects to build a career is delicate with some luck sprinkled in. Coming off The Talented Mr. Ripley, Damon took a voice-acting role in Titan A.E., co-stared with Will Smith in The Legend of Bagger Vance (which is a little underrated) and the lead in All the Pretty Horses. All three were considered failures. But, as luck would have it, Damon had a role in the first of two franchises that would propel him to the top: Ocean’s Eleven. It is in Ocean’s Eleven that he would meet, now good friends, George Clooney and Brad Pitt, who would also get Damon involved in charitable work, which he is a strong proprietor of at present. It is also in this film were Damon would establish a long working relationship with Steven Soderbergh. In 2001, Damon would also start the first of three Project Greenlights with Ben Affleck, giving new filmmakers a chance to break into the industry, and he took another voice role in Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron as well as appearing in Van Sant’s indie Gerry, which he co-wrote. Then came his next big franchise and hit: The Bourne Identity. Again, maybe some luck, or just good foresight by director Doug Liman as Damon did not fit what people typically thought of as an action star. But Damon was and is fantastic in the role. From there Damon took roles in Stuck On You and The Brothers Grimm (a frenetically strange film, which also stars Heath Ledger and Lena Headey), working with The Farrelly Brothers and Terry Gilliam, respectively. He also made Ocean’s Twelve and his first with Paul Greengrass The Bourne Supremacy, which took the series to a new high critically.

Elite Actor:

Starting in 2005, Damon started to take on more serious dramatic roles. Elevated by the success of the Bourne films, he was able to have more control over his career and who he would work with. He first took a role in the Clooney Soderbergh produced political thriller Syriana, then Martin Scorsese’s Academy Award winning The Departed and Robert De Niro’s underrated The Good Shepherd. Those three films, staring opposite Leonardo DiCaprio and Angelina Jolie in the later two, cemented Damon into the Hollywood elite as not only an actor capable of receiving acclaim for his performances but also an actor to bring audiences to the cinema. Now fully established, Damon capped off his two series with Ocean’s Thirteen and The Bourne Ultimatum. Damon then took some time off, only doing a few cameos and a voice role for the English dubbing of Ponyo. He was back in 2009 with two award nominated performances a golden globe nod for Soderbergh’s The Informant! and his second acting Oscar nod for Invictus (the first acting Oscar nod was for leading actor in Good Will Hunting).

Cameos:

Damon has made a number of memorable cameo appearances throughout his career. For director Kevin Smith, Damon appears as an executive in Chasing Amy and later mimics the role in Jersey Girl. He also pokes fun of Good Will Hunting in Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back. Gus Van Sant’s Finding Forester harkens back to Good Will Hunting in its story nature, and Damon has a timely cameo near the end. Damon does a small voice role in The Majestic, plays one of the bachelors on the game show in George Clooney’s Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, and has a humorous role in Euro Trip. More recently, he has short appearances in Coppola’s Youth Without Youth and Soderbergh’s Che: Part Two.

Future and Upcoming Films:

Along with Green Zone, coming this month, Damon also has a small role in Margaret, The Adjustment Bureau, Hereafter, and likely True Grit coming this year. Margaret is a drama staring Anna Paquin about a girl who witnesses an accident and gets wrapped up in the aftermath. The Adjustment Bureau is a sci-fi romance co-staring Emily Blunt about a couple that is affected by mysterious forces keeping them apart. It is from the screenwriter of The Bourne Ultimatum and Ocean’s Twelve, George Nolfi, and is based on a Philip K. Dick short-story. Next is Clint Eastwood’s Hereafter; written by Peter Morgan, it is a supernatural thriller centered on three people who are touched by death in different ways. True Grit from the Coen Brothers is a western based on the Charles Portis novel about a tough U.S. Marshall who helps a young women track down her mother’s murderer. It also stars Jeff Bridges and Josh Brolin. John Wayne also stared in an adaptation of the same novel in 1969 also called True Grit, but the Coen Brothers have not based their script on the film, rather on the novel. Farther in the future, Damon has been linked to two Soderbergh projects: Liberace and the ensemble piece Contagion. Damon is also attached to play Robert Kennedy in Gary Ross’s film. And finally, Damon wants to work with Affleck on a film about members on the Yankees in the 70s who wife swapped. Damon also wants to start directing his own films.

Matt Damon Box Set (Selected Filmography/Career Highlights):

1.)          Good Will Hunting (1997) – leading actor, writer [Blu-ray/DVD]

2.)          Saving Private Ryan (1998) – supporting actor* [Blu-ray/DVD]

3.)          Rounders (1999) – leading actor* [Blu-ray/DVD]

4.)          The Talented Mr. Ripley (1999) – leading actor [DVD]

5.)          Dogma (1999) – supporting actor* [Blu-ray/DVD]

6.)          Ocean’s Eleven (2001) – supporting actor [Blu-ray/DVD]

7.)          The Bourne Identity (2002) – leading actor [Blu-ray/DVD Combo]

8.)          The Bourne Supremacy (2004) – leading actor* [Blu-ray/DVD Combo]

9.)          The Departed (2006) – leading actor* [Blu-ray/DVD]

10.)      The Bourne Ultimatum (2007) – leading actor [Blu-ray/DVD Combo]

11.)      Invictus (2009) – supporting actor [not yet released]

* Editor’s picks

Martin Scorsese – Movies Spotlight – February 2010

Martin Scorsese is one of the best known and respected filmmakers of all-time. He is a student of cinema, constantly working to preserve its history. He has made a number of the finest films and continues to produce great work. His new film Shutter Island, staring Leonardo DiCaprio, has excellent buzz and is touted to be one of the best thrillers of the year.

Early Career:

Scorsese graduated from New York University’s film school in 1966 with an MFA in film and a BA in English and started working on his first feature film, I Call First, with fellow student and friend Harvey Keitel and long-time collaborator editor Thelma Schoonmaker. While it was only his first film, the Scorsese style was already apparent, including rapid editing, trouble protagonists that want to be accepted into society, New York City and Italian American life, gritty documentary style, unflinching realistic violence, rock music soundtracks, and long-term relationships with actors like Keitel and Joe Pesci. In the early 70s’ Scorsese became friends with the most influential young directors, Steven Spielberg, Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas, and Brian (The Hack) De Palma, who incidentally introduced him to Robert De Niro. It was also during this time that he met John Cassavetes who became his mentor.

Collaborations with Robert De Niro:

Scorsese has made eight films with De Niro and they have an upcoming project called I Heard You Paint Houses in 2011. The first was Mean Streets in 1973. The year before, Scorsese had worked with producer Roger Corman, who had helped Coppola, James Cameron and John Sayles also launch their careers, on Boxcar Bertha. While the film was not a success, Scorsese learned from Corman how to make entertaining films for no money and without time. This, along with Cassavetes encouraging him to make movies he wanted to make rather than work on someone else’s project, prepared him for Mean Streets. The film was a breakthrough for Scorsese and actors De Niro and Keitel. The film also cemented his style (even though most of it was shot in LA). Next up, Scorsese and De Niro got together for Taxi Driver. The film followed a man’s decent into insanity and exhibited Scorsese’s talent as one of the top emerging directors of the time. The film also highlighted the work of De Niro and cinematographer Michael Chapman and would win the Palme d’Or (best film) at the Cannes film festival. The success of Taxi Driver allowed Scorsese to make his first big budget film, New York, NewYork, best remembered for its title song. A musical staring De Niro, made in the classic Hollywood style, the film was a complete failure (critically and box-office). The poor reception was not taken well by Scorsese and was attributed by critics to his style not working well within a studio setting. After taking some time, he returned to features with De Niro in Raging Bull. De Niro pulled Scorsese out of the slump he was in and convinced him to make the film. Thinking that he may never make another film, Scorsese poured all of himself into it, creating what is considered to be one of the top, if not the best, films of the 80s’, a master piece, and the height of his own personal style. It was also the breakout film for Pesci. De Niro and Scorsese then made The King of Comedy, which is a satire of media and celebrity also staring Jerry Lewis. It was a complete change of pace for Scorsese thematically and stylistically. As the film is surreal and is done with lots of long static takes. While the film was not a box office success at the time, it has picked up critical esteem in recent years. Scorsese considers it De Niro’s best performance in one of his films. The two took an eight year break from working with each other, which saw Scorsese receive mixed results in his work. Goodfellas marked their return to working together in 1990, a good thing as it proclaimed Scorsese’s reemergence as the talented confident director of Raging Bull (and it is my favorite of his films), thus restoring his reputation. All his acclaim back and he then goes and makes a remake: Cape Fear, based on the cult film from 1962. Interestingly, both films feature Gregory Peck and Robert Mitchum. Scorsese and De Niro’s Cape Fear represents another attempt at appealing to the mainstream and Scorsese making a tribute to Alfred Hitchcock in this stylized thriller. The film only received mixed reviews and was criticized for its misogynistic violence, though it was his highest grossing film to date. The last collaboration (until this future project comes to fruition) was 1995’s Casino. While the film is loved by many fans, critics, at the time, were not as impressed claiming it to be too similar to Goodfellas stylistically. However, like with The King of Comedy, the film is now considered to be a top film for the director and one of the best of the decade.

Collaborations with Leonardo DiCaprio:

Scorsese’s first film with DiCaprio was Gangs of New York, which began production in 1999 but was released in 2002. The film represented Scorsese’s biggest and most mainstream film of his career to date. The production of the film is rumored to have been troubled with creative arguments between Scorsese and then Miramax boss Harvey Weinstein. The film itself is mainstream and commercially accessible, and not one of his finer works. Scorsese’s final cut was 180 minutes, and the theatrical cut released was 168 minutes. Frequent collaborator, Elmer Bernstein’s score was rejected by Miramax and replaced by music from Howard Shore, U2 and Peter Gabriel. Ironically, while the film is not that good and likely has a compromised vision, it rendered Scorsese his first directing Golden Globe and was nominated for best picture at the Oscars. The Aviator was next for team Scorsese/DiCaprio. The film was both a critical and commercial success, garnering eleven Academy Award nominations but only winning five. The film (along with Catch Me If You Can) was also a breakthrough for DiCaprio who finally was able to shake the stigma of Titanic and could be again viewed as a serious, and good, actor. For the third film in a row, Scorsese and DiCaprio again got together to make The Departed. Another remake (Hong Kong film Infernal Affairs), the film is highlighted by an all-star cast including Jack Nicholson, Martin Sheen and Matt Damon. It opened to acclaim, called the best Scorsese film since Goodfellas, while other ranked it with Taxi Driver and Raging Bull. It was finally Scorsese’s year. The film is his highest grossing film and at the 2007 Oscars he won his first best director Academy Award, which was presented to him by Francis Ford Coppola, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg, as well as best film. It was his sixth time being nominated. This year’s Shutter Island marks their fourth consecutive (at least for Scorsese) film together. DiCaprio and Scorsese also have a number of future projects slated including: a remake of the French film Cache, a Frank Sinatra biopic, a Teddy Roosevelt biopic, and The Wolf of Wall Street.

Documentaries:

Scorsese is also an accomplished documentary filmmaker. Here are a few of his best: The Last Waltz is a highly regarded piece chronicling the final concert by The Band. The set takes place in San Francisco’s Winterland Ballroom and features a number of guests, like Bob Dylan, Eric Clapton and Muddy Waters. My Voyage to Italy catalogs and reviews the history of Italian cinema focusing on films of Roberto Rossellini. The film also talks about how these films influenced Scorsese’s own work, particularly the Italian neorealism period. No Direction Home: Bob Dylan traces the life of Dylan and his impact of American culture and pop music. The film concentrates on a period between his arrival in New York in 1961 and his retirement from touring in 1966, encapsulating the songwriter’s rise to fame and the controversy surrounding his switch to rock music.

Future Projects:

Along with the future colabos with De Niro and DiCaprio, Scorsese also has a George Harrison documentary upcoming as well as Silence and The Invention of Hugo Cabret. Silence is about two Jesuit priests who face violence and persecution when they travel to Japan to spread the gospel. The film is slated to star Benicio Del Toro and Gael Garcia Bernal. The Invention of Hugo Cabret is a mystery set in Paris involving an orphan, his late father and a robot; there is no cast yet announced.

Martin Scorsese Box Set (Selected Filmography/Career Highlights):

1.)                Mean Streets (1973) – [DVD]

2.)                Taxi Driver (1976) – [Blu-ray/DVD]*

3.)                The Last Waltz (1978) – [Blu-ray/DVD]

4.)                Raging Bull (1980) – [Blu-ray/DVD]*

5.)                The King of Comedy (1982) – [DVD]

6.)                Goodfellas (1990) – [Blu-ray/DVD]*

7.)                Casino (1995) – [Blu-ray/DVD]

8.)                The Aviator (2004) – [Blu-ray/DVD]

9.)                No Direction Home: Bob Dylan (2005) – [DVD]

10.)            The Departed (2006) – [Blu-ray/DVD]*

* Editor’s picks