Smokehouse Pictures (USA): 14

Starring George Clooney and Julia Roberts, Ticket to Paradise (2022) is a romantic comedy directed by Ol Parker and written by Parker and Daniel Pipski. The story follows divorced couple David and Georgia Cotton, who reluctantly come together to disrupt their daughter Lily’s upcoming Bali wedding. Lily, fresh out of college, goes on a vacation with her friend Wren and ends up stranded with local seaweed farmer Gede after ...

The Tender Bar (2021), directed by George Clooney and written by William Monahan, is an American coming-of-age film. In 1973, nine-year-old JR Maguire returns to his grandparents’ home on Long Island with his mother Dorothy after being abandoned by his father Johnny, who was a radio personality known as “the Voice”. Growing up in a working class family, JR finds a father figure in his uncle Charlie, the owner of a local bar called “The Dickens”. While listening to the Voice on the radio and eagerly awaiting Johnny’s promised visits and ...

The Midnight Sky (2020), a film directed by George Clooney, is based on the 2016 novel Good Morning, Midnight by Lily Brooks-Dalton. Augustine Lofthouse, a reclusive academic, has dedicated his life to searching for habitable planets in hopes of humanity’s expansion. He meets Jean Sullivan at a gala following a presentation and they begin a romantic relationship. However, after a pregnancy scare, she leaves him due to his work fixation and difficulty connecting with others. Years later, when they cross paths again, Jean reveals they have a daughter together ...

The Hulu miniseries Catch-22 (2019) is a dark comedy based on Joseph Heller’s novel of the same name. It follows Captain John Yossarian, a WWII bombardier stationed on the island of Pianosa. As an individualist, Yossarian constantly seeks ways to protect his own life. However, due to the army’s confusing regulations, he finds himself unable to escape his duties through illness or leave. Despite witnessing countless tragedies and the disregard of higher-ups for their well-being, Yossarian cannot use insanity as an excuse to go home because of Catch-22. The show follows ...

Ocean’s 8 (2018) is an American heist comedy film directed and written by Gary Ross and co-written by Olivia Milch. Recently released from prison, master schemer Debbie Ocean, who happens to be the younger sister of Danny Ocean, enlists her former partner in crime Lou to help her pull off a new heist. They assemble a team consisting of once-successful fashion designer Rose Weil, who is now in debt to the IRS; jewelry maker Amita, seeking more independence from her controlling mother; tech expert Nine Ball; street-smart pickpocket Constance; and suburban housewife ...

Suburbicon (2017), an American black comedy crime film co-written by the Coen brothers, is directed by George Clooney. The story takes place in the year 1959 and opens with a glimpse into the small town of Suburbicon. Established in 1947, it has transformed into a pleasant community attracting people from all over for its peaceful way of life. Cheerful mailman Henry goes about his usual route greeting the townspeople with a smile. He eventually arrives at the home of the new residents, the Mayers family, who happen to be African-American. When Henry chats with Mrs. ...

Money Monster (2016), an American thriller directed by Jodie Foster and written by Jamie Linden, Alan Di Fiore, and Jim Kouf from a story by Di Fiore and Kouf, features Lee Gates, an ostentatious financial expert who hosts the show Money Monster. The day before the show, IBIS Clear Capital’s stock suddenly plummeted, causing investors to lose $800 million due to a trading ...

The war film, The Monuments Men (2014), was both directed and written by George Clooney with Grant Heslov as producer. As the Allies made progress pushing back the Axis powers in Italy in 1943, Frank Stokes convinced President Roosevelt that preserving the artistic treasures of Western civilization was crucial. In response, Stokes was tasked with assembling a specialized Army unit, known as the ‘Monuments Men’, consisting of museum directors, curators, art historians, and an architect. Their mission was two-fold: to advise Allied units and recover stolen art ...

August: Osage County (2013), a film directed by John Wells, is a tragicomedy based on Tracy Letts’ Pulitzer Prize-winning play. Set in the scorching month of August in rural Pawhuska, Oklahoma, the story centers around Beverly Weston, a once-famous poet struggling with alcoholism. He hires Johnna, a young Cheyenne woman, to work as a live-in cook and caregiver for his wife Violet. Violet is battling oral cancer and a narcotic addiction. After Beverly disappears, Violet turns to her sister and daughters for help. Along with her husband Charles Aiken, Violet’s ...

Argo (2012), an American historical drama thriller, was directed, produced by, and starred Ben Affleck. The screenplay, based on the 1999 memoir The Master of Disguise by U.S. C.I.A. operative Tony Mendez and 2007 Wired article The Great Escape: How the CIA Used a Fake Sci-Fi Flick to Rescue Americans from Tehran by Joshuah Bearman (edited by Nicholas Thompson), follows a group of diplomats who escape capture during the Iranian Revolution on ...

The Ides of March (2011), directed by George Clooney, is an American political drama. The screenplay was written by Clooney, Grant Heslov, and Beau Willimon, based on Willimon’s play Farragut North. The film follows the story of Stephen Meyers, the junior campaign manager for Governor of Pennsylvania Mike Morris, as he competes against Arkansas Senator Ted Pullman in the Democratic presidential primary. Both ...

The American action thriller film, The American (2010), directed by Anton Corbijn, follows the story of Jack and his lover, Ingrid, as they spend some time in Sweden. While taking a walk in the wilderness near their cabin, Jack notices a trail of footprints in the snow and quickly pulls Ingrid towards shelter. Gunshots from a sniper are heard in the distance. Ready to protect them both, Jack draws his own gun and takes down the sniper before turning his attention to another armed man. After his swift actions, Jack flees to Rome where he contacts a man named Pavel for help. However, Pavel insists that it is not safe for ...

The Men Who Stare at Goats (2009) is a satirical black comedy war film directed by Grant Heslov and adapted by Peter Straughan. It begins with U.S. Army General Dean Hopgood’s failed attempt to use paranormal abilities to pass through a solid wall. Ann Arbor Daily Telegram reporter Bob Wilton is left by his wife for the editor, leading him to fly to Kuwait to cover the Iraq War. There, he crosses paths with retired U.S. Army Special Forces operator Lyn Cassady, who shares that he was part of a unit training psychic spies in skills such as invisibility and remote ...

Leatherheads (2008), released by Universal Pictures and directed by George Clooney, is a sports comedy film set in the year 1925. Jimmy ‘Dodge’ Connelly, captain of the Duluth Bulldogs and a seasoned player, is determined to save professional football from its imminent collapse. In search of a savior, Dodge convinces Carter ‘the Bullet’ Rutherford, a decorated war hero from Princeton University, to join the struggling team. With Carter’s fame giving football a much-needed boost, things finally start looking up for the sport. However, as Chicago Tribune reporter Lexie Littleton digs into ...