The Red Shoes
Year Released: 1948 The Red Shoes is a British drama released in the U.K in 1948. Written, produced, and directed by Emeric Pressburger and Michael Powell, the film tells the tale of a ballerina that falls in love with a composer at her company and must decide between love and her career.
The film was nominated for a total of five Academy Awards, winning both Best Original Score and Best Art Direction. It also won the Golden Globe for Best Original Score and made the Top Ten Films list of the National Board of Review.
Toy Story 3
Year Released: 2010 The Toy Story franchise has brought joy to children and families all over the world for decades. In 2010, the third installment hit theaters and did not disappoint fans, new or old. In this movie, the gang of toys are accidentally dropped off at a daycare center and chaos ensues.
Toy Story 3 won a number of awards throughout 2010 and 2011, including both the Academy Award and Golden Globe for Best Animated Film. Although the film had a mega $200 million budget, it still grossed an impressive $1.067 billion worldwide.
Star Wars: Episode V- The Empire Strikes Back
Year Released: 1980 This addition to the famed movie franchise did just as well as the rest of them, scoring a 95% fresh on Rotten Tomatoes with nearly a 9/10 score on IMDb. The original cast teamed up with George Lucas to create another mega hit that grossed nearly $223 million after its 1981 re-release.
Critics were just as thrilled with the film as audiences, with one even using the word “thrilling” to describe his experience in theaters. The Empire Strikes Back won the Academy Award for Best Sound, along with several other accolades over the years.
The General
Year Released: 1926 Buster Keaton stars in this 1926 silent comedy based on a true event known as the Great Locomotive Chase that occurred during the Civil War. Unfortunately, when it came out in theaters, audiences weren’t rushing to see it, which resulted in a less-than-stellar box office turn out.
However, as the years have gone by, critics have changed their thoughts about the film, and it’s now considered one of the best in movie history. It has made a number of the American Film Institute’s lists, from 1998-2007.
Kind Hearts and Coronets
Year Released: 1949 This 1949 British black comedy was fairly well-received by critics when it was initially released. It tells the story of the son of an aristocratic woman who becomes exiled from her wealthy family when they disapprove of her marrying someone they consider to be beneath their social class. The son, Louis, goes on a killing spree after his mother’s death, killing everyone in his way to the throne.
As with many classics, the more it is seen over the years, the more it seems to grow on the critics who watch it. One publication in the 60’s for instance, called it, “the most confident comedy to ever come out of a British studio.” Time and the British Film Institute (BFI) both listed the film on their “Top 100” lists.