Dysfunctional Families
Perhaps because it's something nearly all of us can relate to (apart from The Bradys), messed-up families have always been a popular subject for filmmakers in all genres. Whether you're playing it for laughs ('Arrested Development', 'Go For Zucker'), drama ('Kramer vs Kramer', 'Nil By Mouth'), or thrills ('The Quiet Family', 'Olivier, Olivier') the family dynamic is a deep well of ready-made love/hate relationships, seething resentments and hidden secrets. What more could a filmmaker, or a film-watcher, ask for!
Magnolia (1999)
8/10
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring: Jeremy Blackman, Tom Cruise, Philip Baker Hall, Philip Seymour Hoffman, William...
Paul Thomas Anderson's third feature film is an exhilarating, almost reckless display of cinematic ambition. Weaving together more than a dozen charac... Read more
The Killing of a Sacred Deer (2017)
7.1/10
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos
Starring: Alicia Silverstone, Nicole Kidman, Colin Farrell, Raffey Cassidy, Barry Keoghan
Cincinnati cardiologist Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell) lived an ordinary existence with his wife (Nicole Kidman) and kids...but on the quiet, he mainta... Read more
Once Were Warriors (1994)
7.9/10
Director: Lee Tamahori
Starring: Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell, Rena Owen, Temuera Morrison, Cliff Curtis, Julian Arahang...
Director Lee Tamahori's stunning debut film focuses on a violent love story set against a contemporary urban backdrop. This insightful, gutsy drama fe... Read more
The Sopranos: Season 4 (2002)
9.2/10
Director: Alan Taylor, Daniel Attias, Steve Buscemi, John Patterson, Allen Coulter, Tim Van Patten, Henry J Bronchtein, Jack Bender, James Hayman
Starring: James Gandolfini, Lorraine Bracco, Edie Falco, Michael Imperioli, Dominic Chiane...
It's tough times in Jersey for Tony Soprano. The sluggish economy hasn't been good for the family business. His wife Carmela is angling for more finan... Read more
Force Majeure (2014)
7.3/10
Director: Ruben Östlund
Starring: Clara Wettergren, Johannes Kuhnke, Lisa Loven Kongsli, Kristofer Hivju, Fanni Me...
Cannes observers were stunned that this provocative and improbably entertaining new film by Swedish director Ruben Östlund wasn't selected for competi... Read more
The Virgin Suicides (2000)
7.2/10
Director: Sofia Coppola
Starring: Danny DeVito, James Woods, Josh Hartnett, Kathleen Turner, Kirsten Dunst, Michae...
Writer/Director Sofia Coppola's acclaimed debut feature, based on Jeffrey Eugenides' novel, traces the tragic ends of five beautiful young sisters in... Read more
The Godfather Part II (1974)
9/10
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Starring: John Cazale, Robert Duvall, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Talia Shire
The story of the Corleone clan continues, as new boss Al Pacino launches a violent campaign to extend his family's power, while flashbacks with Robert... Read more
Punch-Drunk Love (2002)
7.3/10
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Starring: Philip Seymour Hoffman, Adam Sandler, Emily Watson, Luis Guzman
This change of pace for Adam Sandler stars the comic actor as a bathroom supplies salesman who has a problem with his anger and is obsessed with winni... Read more
The Darjeeling Limited (2007)
7.2/10
Director: Wes Anderson
Starring: Owen Wilson, Adrien Brody, Jason Schwartzman, Anjelica Huston, Bill Murray
Not having spoken since their father's funeral a year earlier, three brothers (Owen Wilson, Adrian Brody and Jason Schwartzman) board a train travelli... Read more
The Piano Teacher (2001)
7.5/10
Director: Michael Haneke
Starring: Isabelle Huppert, Annie Girardot, Benoit Magimel
"The Piano Teacher" is a powerful and controversial new drama from the award winning filmmaker Michael Haneke ("Funny Games"). Isabelle Huppert ("8 Wo... Read more