Actress Dakota Fanning (1994)

Set in 1969 Hollywood, Once Upon a Time… in Hollywood (2019) is a comedy-drama film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino. The story follows Rick Dalton, a former star of the Western show Bounty Law, as he faces the decline of his career. After only landing small roles as TV villains, Dalton’s agent Marvin Schwarz suggests he make Spaghetti Westerns in Italy – an option that Dalton looks down on. His closest companion is Cliff Booth, a war veteran who serves as his stunt double, personal assistant, and driver. Booth lives in a trailer with his pit bull Brandy and struggles to find work due to rumors ...

The romantic fantasy film, The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn – Part 2 (2012), is directed by Bill Condon with a screenplay by Melissa Rosenberg, adapted from Stephenie Meyer’s novel Breaking Dawn. Continuing from the previous film, Bella wakes up as a newly turned vampire after giving birth. With the help of her husband Edward Cullen, she overcomes her initial thirst for blood and meets their daughter Renesmee. The Cullens and Bella’s friend Jacob are also present, but when Jacob becomes possessive ...

Now Is Good (2012), a teen romantic drama film by Ol Parker, is based on the novel Before I Die by Jenny Downham. The story follows Tessa, a 17-year-old battling terminal acute lymphoblastic leukemia. With help from her best friend Zoey, she works through an undisclosed bucket list before her impending death. Tessa’s father joins her on a radio talk show and together they use humor to cope with her diagnosis. Despite feeling guilty for taking attention away from her brother Cal, Tessa shows him love and care and dedicates special days just for him. Her ...

The romantic fantasy film, The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010), follows the story of Bella Swan and her vampire lover, Edward Cullen. Directed by David Slade and written by Melissa Rosenberg, the movie is an adaptation of Stephenie Meyer’s novel of the same name. In Seattle, Victoria attacks a human named Riley to start an army of newborn vampires in order to get revenge on Edward for killing her previous partner. Meanwhile, Bella and Edward contemplate the idea of immortality and marriage in Forks, Washington. Despite ...

The American romantic fantasy film, The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009), was directed by Chris Weitz and written by Melissa Rosenberg. Based on Stephenie Meyer’s 2006 novel of the same name, it follows the story of Bella Swan in Forks, Washington. On her eighteenth birthday, Bella wakes up from a dream where she is elderly and her immortal vampire boyfriend, Edward Cullen, remains young. Despite her reservations, Edward’s family throws her a birthday party at their home. Unfortunately, when Bella receives a paper ...

Coraline (2008) is an American dark fantasy horror film, animated using stop-motion and directed by Henry Selick. It is based on the novella of the same name by Neil Gaiman. The story follows a young girl named Coraline Jones as she moves from Pontiac, Michigan to the Pink Palace apartments in Ashland, Oregon. Her parents, Charlie and Mel, work from home and are often preoccupied with their urgent tasks. Along the way, Coraline encounters a black cat and Wyborne ‘Wybie’ Lovat, the grandson of her landlady. Wybie gives Coraline a ragdoll that looks just like her. This doll leads her to a small door with a ...

The fantasy comedy-drama film Charlotte’s Web (2006) is an adaptation of E. B. White’s novel of the same name. In the springtime on a farm in Somerset County, Maine, Fern Arable discovers her father John poised to kill a runt from a litter of newborn pigs. She pleads with him to spare the piglet’s life, naming him Wilbur and caring for him tenderly. The following day, Fern sneaks Wilbur into her school desk and when her teacher overhears his squeals, she demands to know what is inside. Fern lies and claims there is nothing in her desk, causing the teacher to angrily send them both to the ...

War of the Worlds (2005), an American science fiction action-thriller, was directed by Steven Spielberg and written by Josh Friedman and David Koepp. Based on H. G. Wells’ famous 1898 novel of the same name, the film opens with a narrator describing the threat of extraterrestrial beings who are envious of humanity’s dominance over Earth. The story follows Ray Ferrier, a divorced longshoreman working as a crane operator in Brooklyn, New York. He is estranged from ...

Man on Fire (2004) is an action thriller film directed by Tony Scott from a screenplay by Brian Helgeland, and adapted from A. J. Quinnell’s novel of the same name. In 2003, former CIA SAD/SOG officer John Creasy reunites with his old friend Paul Rayburn in Mexico. At Rayburn’s urging, Creasy takes a bodyguard position with Samuel Ramos, an automaker in Mexico City who needs protection for his daughter Lupita (Pita) to fulfill her kidnapping insurance policy. Struggling with personal demons and regrets from his ...

Trapped (2002), a crime thriller directed by Luis Mandoki, follows the story of Dr. Will Jennings, a research physician who has recently patented a new anesthetic drug. After giving a talk about his patent at a Seattle hotel, he is approached by Cheryl, a mysterious woman who claims to be a fan of his work. In the hotel hallway, Cheryl makes advances towards Will before pulling out a gun and forcing him into his room. She then demands ransom for his daughter Abby. Meanwhile, Joe – Cheryl’s husband – breaks into Will’s luxurious Portland home and confronts Karen, Will’s wife who had just come back from ...