Blade Runner (1982 / DC 1991 / FC 2007)

Hot off of the success of the horror classic Alien, Ridley Scott crafted this dark, stylish, and original sci-fi film noir. When a group of androids escapes into a dystopic future Los Angeles, it's up to Harrison Ford to play detective and track them down. But the androids themselves are fearful that their short lifespans are about to come to a close, and seek to find a way to prolong their lives. While the story remains simple, the questions raised are certainly not. Long thoughts on identity and reality, of mortality and fear and the uncertainty of being each get their time, and the result is a somber, melancholy movie that may ask more questions than it has answers for, but has a deep understanding of its subject matter. It's heady stuff; the kind of content that sticks with you long after the credits roll. It's dense, it's daring, and it's visionary. Blade Runner is a film that rightly deserves its place in the sci-fi pantheon.

9 out of 10.

Note: If you have the choice, the 2007 re-re-release, optimistically titled Blade Runner: The Final Cut, is definitely the one to see.

007 Casino Royale (2006)

Start from scratch. Strip away the liscence to kill, the shaken martini and fast cars, and even the double-oh from James Bond, and you get a film about a man struggling with hard lessons on the path to become the world's greatest spy. This new iteration of the classic character isn't afraid of dirty work, and more resembles a thuggish assassin with delusions of style than the suave, invincible macho male fantasy of movies past. The humanizing reboot mostly works, focusing much tighter on characterization than explosions, which in turn causes the few action sequences and tricky situations to carry a heft almost unseen in the series. That said, at points the attempt to portray a more relatable, realistic Bond goes too far, especially in the final act which not only feels like a break from earlier parts of the film, but leaps unexpectedly into an entirely different genre. Despite all this, the wager to pick apart the cinematic icon was a wise one, showing a fresh version of Bond who is flawed and fallible, but more exciting as well.

8 out of 10.

007 Quantum of Solace

A first for the now 22 film strong series: a direct sequel! Picking up within an hour of the conclusion of Casino Royale, Quantum of Solace sees the apparent conspiracy from the first widened into a global affair, with key players in all places and Britain's best super-spy cum one man army out to tear it apart. It works almost every bit as well as the previous film, and has the advantage of not spontaneously changing genres in the third act. The focus is different however, preferring to build a larger, credible threat while a guilt- and rage-ridden Bond slowly works through the morass, killing his way to bigger and better leads. The action is remains solid if a bit over the top (though still mercifully shy of the ultra-silliness that much of the series is known for), and the characters stay as compelling as the last film. It's a fine effort all around, continuing the strengths of its predecessor, and while it really doesn't break any new ground it still remains some damn fine entertainment.

8 out of 10.

Batman Begins (2005)

Christopher Nolan's take on the Caped Crusader is worlds apart from the flashy and stylized works of Tim Burton's and Joel Schumacher's earlier Batman movies. In a way, it can be seen as the series dropping back to punt, abandoning all the good and bad that came before to start on fresh soil. The gambit pays off big, ultimately asking the question of what it would take to make a man risk himself as a vigilante. Essentially split into two films, the first half of Batman Begins shows the inspiration and training as a man turns tragic rage into motivation for action, while the second half becomes the tale of a city under siege in need of a savior. It's all portrayed in a darkly realistic, though still somewhat fanciful light, creating a grounded tableau for fantastic feats. It's helped along by some excellent performances, including Christian Bale as Bruce Wayne and Batman, Liam Neeson and his exceptional charisma as the enigmatic Ducard, and an excellent turn by Michael Caine providing the film's powerful heart as the Wayne family's butler Alfred. The end result is sometimes a little silly, sometimes a little overblown, but yet manages to feel important and earnest. By its end, there is a need for Batman, and a feeling of ragged hope that is admirable in and of itself.

8 out of 10.

Batman: Gotham Knight (2008)

With Christopher Nolan's triumphant revival of the Batman mythos, any attempt to add to the legend will inevitably be compared. Gotham Knight consists of six short, anime-style stories built around Nolan's films, but the link between the shorts and the films is so slim as to be irksome. Rather, these more closely resemble severely shortened episodes of the ongoing cartoon series. It doesn't help that the whole thing starts off on an extended weak note. The first two films are fairly disposable, nothing special. The third is decent. It isn't until the half-way mark that anything resembling real content starts to show up, but by the last short there's not a lot of quality left. The lasting impression is one of being underwhelmed. There are impressive moments, specifically the fourth and fifth stories, but as a whole there's just nothing here that can stack up to the real thing. If you're a diehard who just has to have as much Batman as is out there, go knock yourself out. Otherwise this is definitely not required viewing.

6 out of 10.

The Dark Knight (2008)

For as many movies that have been adapted from the pages of comic books, I don't think anyone has ever even considered the possibility that one might someday be thought of as a masterpiece. The sequel to Batman Begins has a sense of scope and urgency that is so far beyond what the comic book genre typically deserves that the film becomes, without pretension, a legitimate “crime epic.” It's a sprawling work of remarkable depth and terrifying darkness, and a moral morass of the highest, murkiest caliber. That it's simply the story of Batman facing down his classic arch nemesis The Joker makes it all the more surprising. But The Joker is what elevates this film. The late Heath Ledger utterly loses himself in the role, creating a horrifically depraved lunatic determined to tear the world apart with pocketknives and gasoline. The plot's machinery moves forward at his psychotic whim, ultimately turning the tale into an incendiary allegory about the limits of justice, the sometimes gruesome consequences of doing the right thing, and the ultimate tragedy of true heroes. It's a cat and mouse game played by two sides of the same deranged coin, endlessly frantic, frequently explosive and, for two and a half hours, pushing the envelope in directions that should not be strictly possible. Only time will tell if it truly deserves the title of "masterpiece." For now, The Dark Knight will have to settle for being considered an absolute triumph of the art.

9 out of 10.

Heat (1995)

Nobody knows the crime drama better than Michael Mann. The former producer of Miami Vice and director of Collateral has made his name showing off criminals and the cops who chase them, and few films in his extensive ouvre are more iconic than Heat. The twisted tale of a heist mastermind and his legally opposing force is a winding ride down some very rocky roads. The key ingredient here is the film's fanatical focus on the personal lives of the key players; while there are certainly adrenaline-soaked gunfights and pitched stand-offs, the bulk shows the strife each of these men is facing at home. Marriages are ruined, personal lives thrust into jeopardy, and children neglected so these people can do what they do. It's carried off beautifully by lead actors Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, and Val Kilmer, as well as the expansive supporting cast. While the movie tends to drag on for a bit there is rarely a moment throughout that is less than interesting. The result is a fascinating look at the personal lives of those with dark professions.

9 out of 10.

Hellboy (2004)

A demon, brought forth by occult forces whose gods are intent on the destruction of the universe, a harbinger of the end times, is among us. He enjoys candy, and has a soft spot for kittens. He's also working with a covert branch of the FBI to battle the things deemed too weird to deal with officially. So goes the setup for Mike Mignola's quietly successful comic series, as well as this Guillermo Del Toro film adaption. It's hard to knock if for originality; in two hours you get ancient gods, extra-dimensional conspiracy, a telepathic fish man, and a Nazi assassin who bleeds dust. If you can get past how utterly bizarre most of it is, it spins a decent yarn, too. The story is served with extra pulp, but in that framework live some surprisingly well-developed characters, a few interesting twists, and enough funny one-liners to fill something that would typically be full of funny one-liners. Where it falls short mostly have to do in the lacking explanations of what exactly is going on—the gist of it is present, but as utterly bizarre as some of this gets it would be nice to get the full monty. Assuming you don't mind just going with it, none of that should pose much of a problem. Ultimately, it's far from perfect, but what it may lack in craft it more than makes up for in sheer concept.

8 out of 10.

Note: If you have the choice, go with the director's cut. The extra scenes put a dent or two in the pacing of the film, but in trade you get more great character moments, as well as better explanation into the world and its concepts.