Why the great ones are great: behind the scenes, hidden details, and the director's moments of genius.
Recent Films
Twin gangsters, a Mississippi juke joint, and vampires at the door. Sinners set an Oscar nominations record and earned it. Here's what makes it sing.
Ryan Coogler · 2025
2000s Films
A sulky girl, a bathhouse for gods, and a director who believes in the beauty of silence. Why Spirited Away is still the high-water mark of hand-drawn animation.
Hayao Miyazaki · 2001
New Hollywood
The studio didn't want Brando, didn't want Pacino, and hated how dark it looked. Coppola's The Godfather became the gangster film every other one is measured against.
Francis Ford Coppola · 1972
Classic Masterpieces
Hitchcock's dizzying San Francisco love story baffled audiences in 1958. Half a century later critics voted it the best film of all time. Here's why it gets under your skin.
Alfred Hitchcock · 1958
Classic Masterpieces
Written on the fly, shot in order because the ending didn't exist yet, Casablanca became the most beloved film Hollywood ever made. Here's how, and what to look for.
Michael Curtiz · 1942
