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What stands out first about The Salton Sea is the confidence with which D.J. Caruso establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, The Salton Sea asks Val Kilmer and Vincent D'Onofrio to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of The Salton Sea is established with useful clarity: After a tragic incident, a man drifts into a world populated by thugs and speed junkies. That direct approach lets The Salton Sea use its 1h 43m running tim

What stands out first about Bloody Sunday is the confidence with which Paul Greengrass establishes its historical drama identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Bloody Sunday asks James Nesbitt and Tim Pigott Smith to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Bloody Sunday is established with useful clarity: A dramatization of the Irish civil rights protest march and subsequent massacre by British troops on January 30, 1972. That direct approach lets

What stands out first about To Be and to Have is the confidence with which Nicolas Philibert establishes its documentary identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, To Be and to Have asks Georges Lopez and Alizé to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of To Be and to Have is established with useful clarity: A documentary portrait of a one room school in rural France, where the students (ranging in age from 4 to 11) are educated by a single dedicated te

What stands out first about Heaven is the confidence with which Tom Tykwer establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Heaven asks Cate Blanchett and Giovanni Ribisi to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Heaven is established with useful clarity: A woman takes the law into her own hands after police ignore her pleas to arrest the man responsible for her husband's death, and finds herself not only under arrest for murder bu

What stands out first about Jet Lag is the confidence with which Danièle Thompson establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Jet Lag asks Juliette Binoche and Jean Reno to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Jet Lag is established with useful clarity: A worn out businessman and a beautician on the run collide in a Paris airport. That direct approach lets Jet Lag use its 1h 31m running time for character, atmosphere and conse

What stands out first about Irreversible is the confidence with which Gaspar Noé establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Irreversible asks Monica Bellucci and Vincent Cassel to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Irreversible is established with useful clarity: Events over the course of one traumatic night in Paris unfold in reverse chronological order. That direct approach lets Irreversible use its 1h 37m running time

What stands out first about Personal Velocity is the confidence with which Rebecca Miller establishes its romance identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Personal Velocity asks Kyra Sedgwick and Parker Posey to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Personal Velocity is established with useful clarity: Three women's escapes from their afflicted lives. That direct approach lets Personal Velocity use its 1h 26m running time for character, atmosphere

What stands out first about Charly is the confidence with which Adam Thomas Anderegg establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Charly asks Jeremy Hoop and Randy King to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Charly is established with useful clarity: Sam Roberts thinks he has all the answers: the purpose of life, the meaning of love, the plan for a perfect future. That direct approach lets Charly use its 1h 43m running time fo

What stands out first about Pandora's Box is the confidence with which Rob Hardy establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Pandora's Box asks Chrystale Wilson and Tyson Beckford to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Pandora's Box is established with useful clarity: Mia DuBois (Calhoun) is a walking cliché a successful therapist with an unsuccessful marriage. That direct approach lets Pandora's Box use its 1h 43m running

What stands out first about The Man Without a Past is the confidence with which Aki Kaurismäki establishes its comedy identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, The Man Without a Past asks Markku Peltola and Kati Outinen to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of The Man Without a Past is established with useful clarity: M arrives in Helsinki only to be viciously attacked by thugs and pronounced dead by medics. That direct approach lets The Man Withou

What stands out first about He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is the confidence with which Laetitia Colombani establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not asks Audrey Tautou and Samuel Le Bihan to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of He Loves Me, He Loves Me Not is established with useful clarity: A young woman who is in love with a married doctor becomes dangerous when her attempts to persuade him to

What stands out first about Assassination Tango is the confidence with which Robert Duvall establishes its thriller identity. Rather than relying on premise alone, Assassination Tango asks Robert Duvall and Luciana Pedraza to supply personality from the opening stretch. The premise of Assassination Tango is established with useful clarity: An aging hitman gets a contract to kill a General in Buenos Aires, Argentina. That direct approach lets Assassination Tango use its 1h 54m