Cool Movies I Had Never Heard Of

The old way of watching movies on demand.

Since today is Labor Day, the symbolic end of summer, I thought it might be a good time to discuss movies. This may seem a little off-topic for the DV Fanatics Blog, but technically movie rentals are digital video.

Although there were high expectations for the crop of summer movie releases, it turned out being very disappointing. Out of all of the hyped summer movies, I can't think of one movie that stood out.

So instead of discussing my favorite summer movies, I thought it might be a good time to discuss movies that made a much quieter impact - the movies I would have otherwise never heard of.

• A Simple Plan - When three blue collar acquaintances come across millions of dollars in lost cash, they make a plan to keep their find from the authorities but find complications and mistrust weaving its way into their plan. 


• August Rush - A whimsical drama where an orphaned musical prodigy uses his gift as a clue to finding his birth parents. A very uplifting film from start to finish.


• Gattaca - In a society where people are bred for perfection, a naturally born,  genetically inferior man purchases the identity of a superior man in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel. A great story of the power of the human spirit.


• Hart's War - In a WWII prisoner of war camp, a law student who has become a lieutenant because of his famous father, is asked to defend a black POW falsely accused of murder.


• Mr. Brooks - A psychological thriller about a man who is sometimes controlled by his murder-and-mayhem-loving alter ego. Kevin Costner plays against type as a serial killer.


• Safe - A young girl whose memory holds a priceless numerical code, finds herself pursued by the Triads, the Russian mob, and corrupt NYC cops. Coming to her aid is an ex-fighter whose life was destroyed by some of the very same gangsters after the girl. Better than the average Jason Statham movie.


• Safety Not Guaranteed - A magazine writer and two interns head out on an assignment to interview a guy who placed a classified ad seeking a companion for time travel. A very subtle and funny movie.


• The Ledge - A police officer looks to talk down a young man lured by his lover's husband to the ledge of a high rise, where he has one hour to contemplate a fateful decision.


• The Man from Earth - An impromptu goodbye party for a retiring professor becomes a mysterious interrogation after he reveals to his colleagues that he never ages and has walked the earth for 14,000 years. This film was done on a low budget and most of the action takes place in a single room, but it really makes you think.


• Warrior - The youngest son of an alcoholic former boxer returns home, where he's trained by his father for competition in a mixed martial arts tournament - a path that puts the fighter on a collision course with his older brother. A movie revolving around mixed martial arts with a very human story at heart.

Although these movies came in under the radar, they were surprisingly good. Sometimes it's the smaller films that make the most impact.