Actor Jackie Earle Haley (1961)

Alita: Battle Angel (2019) is an American cyberpunk action film adapted from Yukito Kishiro’s Gunnm manga series. The story takes place in 2563 on a ravaged Earth, dubbed ‘The Fall’, where Dr. Dyson Ido comes across a brain-attached cyborg while scavenging for parts in Iron City’s scrapyard. After reuniting the body and brain, Ido names the cyborg ‘Alita’ after his late daughter. With no recollection of her past, Alita quickly forms a bond with Hugo, a young man longing to escape to the opulent sky city of Zalem, and Dr. Chiren, Ido’s estranged ex-wife. Upon discovering ...

The Dark Tower (2017), an American science fantasy Western action film directed and co-written by Nikolaj Arcel, is based on Stephen King’s novel series of the same name. Eleven-year-old Jake Chambers is plagued by visions of a mysterious warlock known as the Man in Black, who aims to destroy a Tower and bring devastation to the Universe. Opposing him is a Gunslinger. Though Jake’s mother, stepfather, and psychiatrists dismiss his visions as mere nightmares resulting from the trauma of losing his father the year before, he knows they are real. When a group of ...

Director José Padilha brought the American science-fiction action film, RoboCop (2014), to life with screenwriters Joshua Zetumer, Edward Neumeier, and Michael Miner. This remake of the 1987 original is the fourth in the franchise. The story explores a futuristic world where multinational corporation OmniCorp introduces robotic peacekeepers to maintain law and order. CEO Raymond Sellars leads the company’s efforts to market this advanced technology to domestic law ...

The dark fantasy film Dark Shadows (2012), directed by Tim Burton, is based on the gothic television soap opera of the same name. In 1760, young Barnabas Collins and his wealthy family relocated from Liverpool to Maine, where they built the Collinwood Mansion and founded the town of Collinsport. However, fifteen years later, Barnabas finds himself in a complicated situation. He is engaged to Josette but is also having an affair with Angelique, a servant who happens to be a witch. When Barnabas rejects Angelique, she uses her magic to murder his parents and place a curse on him. In addition, Angelique casts a spell on ...

In his feature directorial debut, Samuel Bayer helmed the American supernatural slasher film A Nightmare on Elm Street (2010). Written by Wesley Strick and Eric Heisserer, it serves as a remake of the 1984 film of the same name by Wes Craven. While at the Springwood Diner, Dean Russell falls asleep and is attacked by a grotesque figure dressed in seared clothing and sporting a bladed gardener’s glove on his right hand. The dream ends with Dean’s death. At his funeral, Kris discovers an old photograph of ...

The American superhero film Watchmen (2009) is based on the series of the same name created by Dave Gibbons and published by DC Comics from 1986 to 1987. Set in 1985, it follows a man living in a Manhattan apartment as he watches news about escalating Cold War tensions and the response from President Richard Nixon when an unknown assailant attacks him and throws him to the street below. As the opening credits roll, a montage explores the history of costumed crime-fighters from 1939 to 1977, leading up to public backlash and the enactment of an anti-vigilante act. One vigilante detective, Rorschach, who operates outside ...

Losin’ It (1983), a comedy film by Curtis Hanson, follows four teenagers from early 1960s Los Angeles as they journey to Tijuana, Mexico. The group consists of Dave, Woody, Spider, and Dave’s brother Wendell. While Dave, Spider, and Woody are determined to lose their virginity, Wendell is simply there to purchase fireworks. Along the way, they encounter Kathy, a woman seeking a speedy divorce from her husband. Together, they get caught up in a wild array of antics and mishaps south of the border.