Focus Features (USA): 29

Burn After Reading (2008) is a black comedy film created by the Coen brothers. When Osbourne Cox gets demoted for drinking, he quits his job as a CIA analyst and decides to write a memoir. His wife Katie secretly files for divorce and resumes her affair with U.S. Marshal Harry Pfarrer, who is prone to paranoia. Katie gives her lawyer a copy of Osbourne’s digital records and other personal files, which include an early draft of his memoir. The lawyer’s assistant copies the files onto a CD-R and accidentally leaves it at Hardbodies gym. Personal trainer Chad Feldheimer and coworker Linda Litzke come across the ...

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 American road thriller film, The Hitcher (2007), features an all-star cast including Sean Bean, Sophia Bush, and Zachary Knighton. It is a remake of the 1986 film with the same title. Two college students, Jim Halsey and Grace Andrews, are on their way to meet friends for spring break in New Mexico. On their first night of driving, they almost hit a hitchhiker standing in the middle of the road. After swerving to avoid him, they continue on their journey. However, fate has other plans as Jim comes across the hitchhiker ...

Silent Hill (2006) is a horror flick helmed by director Christophe Gans and penned by writer Roger Avary. The film is based on the video game series of the same name from Konami. Rose Da Silva and her spouse Christopher are troubled by their adopted daughter Sharon’s frequent sleepwalking and disturbing nightmares about Silent Hill, a deserted town in West Virginia that was abandoned decades ago due to a raging coal fire. In search of answers, Rose takes Sharon on a journey to Silent Hill, but their encounter with police officer Cybil Bennett at a gas station raises ...

Hollywoodland (2006), a mystery drama film directed by Allen Coulter and written by Paul Bernbaum, follows the story of Louis Simo, a Los Angeles private investigator more focused on financial gain than client satisfaction. In June 1959, Simo takes on a case to spy on Chester Sinclair’s wife to catch her in an act of infidelity. While visiting his ex-wife Laurie, he discovers that his son is mourning the death of George Reeves, the actor best known for playing Superman on television. The police ruled Reeves’ death as a suicide after finding him with a gunshot ...

Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), directed by Michel Gondry, follows Joel Barish as he discovers that his ex-girlfriend, Clementine Kruczynski, has had her memories of him deleted by the New York company Lacuna. In a heartbroken state, Joel decides to undergo the same procedure and records a tape recounting their tumultuous relationship. While he sleeps in his apartment, the Lacuna staff work on his brain to erase any trace of their time together. During this process, one employee named Patrick leaves to visit Clementine and uses their shared memories to try to win her over. Meanwhile, other employees Stan ...

Sofia Coppola’s romantic comedy-drama, Lost in Translation (2003), follows the story of Bob Harris, a fading American movie star. In pursuit of lucrative advertisements for Suntory’s Hibiki whisky, Bob finds himself in Tokyo staying at the luxurious Park Hyatt hotel. However, his stay is plagued by personal issues within his 25-year marriage and a midlife crisis. Charlotte, also an American and guest at the hotel, is accompanying her husband John who works as a celebrity photographer. As a young Yale graduate in philosophy, Charlotte too is struggling with disillusionment towards her marriage and concerns ...

The American slasher film, The Texas Chainsaw Massacre (2003), was directed by Marcus Nispel and written by Scott Kosar. On August 18, 1973, five young adults – Erin, her boyfriend Kemper, and friends Morgan, Andy, and Pepper – were traveling to a concert after purchasing marijuana in Mexico. While driving through Texas, they picked up a distressed hitchhiker who spoke incoherently about ‘a bad man’ before tragically taking her own life. In need of assistance, the group stopped at a nearby gas station where Luda Mae instructed them to meet Sheriff ...

Far from Heaven (2002) is a historical romantic drama film written and directed by Todd Haynes. Set in 1957 suburban Connecticut, Cathy Whitaker embodies the ideal wife, mother, and homemaker. Her husband, Frank, holds an executive position at Magnatech, a television advertising company. However, one evening, Cathy receives a call from the local police station informing her that Frank has been detained. Despite Frank’s claims of a misunderstanding, it becomes clear that he has been frequenting gay bars in Hartford. Amidst the turmoil, Cathy encounters Raymond Deagan in her yard – the son of her late gardener ...