Actor Tim Robbins (1958)

Dark Waters (2019), an American legal thriller directed by Todd Haynes and written by Mario Correa and Matthew Michael Carnahan, follows the story of Robert Bilott’s battle against DuPont, a chemical manufacturing corporation. In 1998, Bilott is a corporate defense lawyer at the law firm Taft Stettinius & Hollister in Cincinnati, Ohio. One day, farmer Wilbur Tennant, who happens to know Bilott’s grandmother, reaches out to him for help with investigating ...

As an American psychological horror television series, Castle Rock (2018–2019) draws inspiration from the stories created by Stephen King and his fictional town of Castle Rock, Maine. Set in the Stephen King’s multiverse, this series combines elements from the author’s most beloved works, weaving an epic tale of light and darkness on a small patch of Maine woodland. Throughout King’s literary career, the fictional town of Castle Rock has played a significant role, appearing in works such as Cujo, ...

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 ...

Mystic River (2003) is an American neo-noir crime drama film helmed and co-produced by Clint Eastwood. Set in Charlestown, Boston, the film follows three childhood friends, Jimmy Markum, Sean Devine, and Dave Boyle as they play street hockey one day in 1975. While writing their names on a patch of wet concrete, Dave is taken by two men posing as police officers and subjected to four days of abuse before finally managing to escape. Fast forward twenty-five years and we find Jimmy, now a former inmate running a local convenience store; Sean, a detective for the Massachusetts State Police facing marital issues after his ...

The American sci-fi adventure film, Mission to Mars (2000), directed by Brian De Palma, tells the story of the Mars I mission. In 2020, the mission is launched with Luke Graham as its commander. Upon reaching Mars, the team stumbles upon a bright white formation in the Cydonia region. They believe it could be an extrusion from a subsurface geothermal column of water that could be beneficial for future human colonization efforts. The team alerts the Earth-orbiting World Space Station before going to investigate further. However, while exploring the formation, they hear a strange sound on their communications system. ...

Robert Altman wrote, directed and produced Ready to Wear (1994), an American satirical comedy-drama film. During Paris Fashion Week, a group of models, designers, industry insiders and journalists gather to work, argue and attempt to seduce each other. The fashion world is thrown into chaos when the head of the Fashion Council, Olivier de la Fontaine, dies from choking on a sandwich. He leaves behind a wife, mistress and a mysterious Russian companion who has since disappeared. As authorities investigate the death, Fashion Week continues. American television personality Kitty inserts herself among the designers to get ...

The Shawshank Redemption (1994), a prison drama film, was written and directed by Frank Darabont. The film is based on the 1982 novella Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption by Stephen King. Set in the late 1940s, it follows the story of Andy Dufresne, a former banker from Portland, Maine who is sentenced to two consecutive life terms for the murders of his wife and her lover. At Shawshank State Prison, Andy befriends Ellis ‘Red’ Redding, a fellow inmate serving a life sentence for smuggling contraband. With Red’s help, Andy acquires a rock ...

Short Cuts (1993) is a comedy-drama directed by Robert Altman. The film follows the lives of several characters brought together by a neighborhood-wide medfly spray operation. Dr. Ralph Wyman and his wife, Marian, meet an unemployed salesman, Stuart Kane, and his wife Claire, who works as a party clown, at a concert featuring Zoe Trainer on cello. Spontaneously, they agree to have dinner together on Sunday. Meanwhile, Marian’s sister Sherri is married to Gene, a cheating cop who is having an affair with Betty Weathers. Coincidentally, Betty is in the process of divorcing one of the helicopter pilots involved in ...

The Player (1992), an American satirical black comedy mystery film directed by Robert Altman and written by Michael Tolkin, is based on Tolkin’s own novel of the same name. It follows Griffin Mill, a Hollywood studio executive dating story editor Bonnie Sherow. In his role, Mill listens to pitches from screenwriters and decides which ones have the potential to be turned into films. However, out of 50,000 submissions yearly, he only green-lights twelve. When ambitious exec Larry Levy joins the studio, Mill’s job ...

Bull Durham (1988), an American romantic comedy sports film, is loosely based on writer/director Ron Shelton’s own experiences in the minor-league baseball world. Set in Durham, North Carolina, the movie follows the struggling Durham Bulls, a single-A team with a disappointing season record and dwindling attendance. However, their hope lies in rookie pitcher Ebby Calvin LaLoosh, known for his remarkable pitching skills but also for his lack of focus and discipline. To reign him in, the team brings in veteran catcher ‘Crash’ Davis, who is tasked with mentoring Ebby and improving his game. Despite being ...