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It’s been a blessed relief to return to the cinema in 2022. What hasn’t been fun, though, is getting reacquainted with swollen ticket prices, uncomfortable seating, and noisy audience members, which can all be part of the movie-going experience.
With a wealth of physical media and streaming possibilities, a movie night on the sofa can be just as appealing. But what should you watch? Film critic and podcast host Blake Howard has some hot tips. Here are his top five picks.
Ronin (1998)
Legendary filmmaker John Frankenheimer directed this thriller about a band of mercenaries hired to retrieve a mysterious briefcase before criminals can.
BH: “International espionage. Effortlessly cool dialogue. A Robert De Niro and Jean Reno bromance. A Sean Bean character that lives long enough to recall the colour of the boathouse at Hereford. Leave that copy of The Bourne Identity right where it is on the shelf. Tonight, you want your pre-2000s spy craft in the shape of the underrated and outlandishly excellent Ronin. With John Frankenheimer (The Manchurian Candidate, Black Sunday), screenwriter David Mamet (Glengarry Glen Ross) directing an outstanding ensemble cast that features Stellan Skarsgård, Natascha McElhone, Jonathan Pryce and Skipp Sudduth, Ronin does everything that the Bourne series does better, and first.”
The Pelican Brief (1993)
Based on a John Grisham novel, Alan J Pakula directed Denzel Washington and Julia Roberts in this nail-biting story about a law student who writes a brief outlining the reasons behind the killing of two Supreme Court justices, only to become a target herself.
BH: “The dearly departed writer-director Alan J Pakula rarely gets his due. American cinema in the 1970s would be unrecognisable without him. The iconic paranoia trilogy – Klute, All The President’s Men and The Parallax View – continue to influence new generations of filmmakers and movie nerds alike. In 1993, Pakula’s adaptation of John Grisham’s bestseller The Pelican Brief was dismissed in some quarters as popcorn paranoia. In 2022, 29 years since its release, the energy, sheer craft and youthful cast burst off the screen. Denzel Washington’s tenacious reporter Gray Grantham, Julia Roberts’s whip-smart Darby Shaw, and an unrecognisably youthful Stanley Tucci as international assassin Khamel make this a go-to flick that continually draws me back. It’s conspiracy thrills or your money back.”
Children of Men (2006)
Clive Owen stars in this near-future sci-film in which a fertility crisis has left humanity on the verge of extinction.
BH: “No movie night is complete without sci-fi on the menu. And great sci-fi, both fantastical and grounded, finds a way to reckon with what it means to be human. Xenophobia, climate disaster, militarised mistreatment of refugees — Mexican maestro Alfonso Cuarón takes us to a dystopian vision of 2027 where humanity is infertile, the remaining population marches towards oblivion, and yet there’s a glimmer of hope. In a career-best turn, Clive Owen plays Theo, a former activist entrusted by his ex-wife Julian (played by Oscar-winner Julianne Moore) to escort the first pregnant woman in 20 years to a secret sanctuary. So, get swallowed up on the couch as you marvel at the stunningly orchestrated shots from this visionary filmmaker.”
Widows (2018)
Following the loss of their criminal husbands in a police shootout, four widows come together to execute a score that will release them from a deadly debt.
BH: “I consider myself a heist movie connoisseur. I love the Ocean’s series (including Logan Lucky). I adore Le Cercle Rouge. Sometimes you might even be in the mood for heist flicks in the same city, like “Dog Day Afternoon” or The Inside Man. But as the world’s leading Heat expert, I feel confident to say that the best heist movies blend the planning and the caper with messy human drama. It doesn’t get messier than director Steve McQueen and screenwriter Gillian Flynn’s adaptation of Lynda La Plante’s Widows. This is the tale of four women, the wives and girlfriends of a crack Chicago crew. When their husbands meet their demise in an explosive face-off with the cops, the crooks they robbed transfer their debt. In a quagmire of corruption, and under constant threat, these women must orchestrate their dead spouses’ last score to survive. Widows is riveting and layered and absolutely one to revisit.”
Point Break (1992)
Keanu Reeves and Patrick Swayze star in this story about an FBI agent who infiltrates a group of surfers involved in a string of bank robberies.
BH: “Summer nights need summer movies. When I say an FBI agent infiltrates a group of adrenaline-junkie bank robbers to take them down, I’m not talking about an over-the-top Fast and the Furious flick. I’m talking about a different movie that deserved a 10-film franchise. Hundred-year storms, mind-boggling skydiving stunts, crooks disguised as ex-presidents, Gary Busey, sneaky Red Hot Chilli Peppers cameos – Kathryn Bigelow’s action blockbuster Point Break can always improve a steamy summer night. The rippling heat at the centre of this movie ignites when Keanu Reeves’s Johnny Utah – ex-College NFL player turned law enforcer – must go head-to-head with the legendary Patrick Swayze’s Bodhi, a sociopathic surfing sage. So, lather up with some after-sun lotion and lean in towards your TV screen.”
This article is produced by Broadsheet in partnership with King. The King Summer Sale runs from December 23 to February 5, 2023.
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