14 Best Movies To Watch After Apocalypse Now (1979)
If you have finished watching the film Apocalypse Now (1979) and are looking for other movies like it, here is a list of options to consider.
Frankenstein
After catching Lisa Frankenstein this weekend, check out some of these weird & wild spins on the legendary tale.
Now that we've all established that Frankenstein (or Fronkensteen, whichever you prefer) is in fact the name of the doctor, and his creation is just "the Creature," we can sit back and enjoy a revival in appreciation for Mary Shelley's landmark story that skillfully wove together body horror, science, and existentialism. Following the critically acclaimed Poor Things is Zelda Williams' 80s-set comedy Lisa Frankenstein, opening in theaters tomorrow, which acts as a nice appetizer before Guillermo del Toro's long-awaited adaptation on the story and Maggie Gyllenhaal's version of Bride of Frankenstein, both set for release next year.
While often overlooked in favor of the cooler, sexier Dracula, there's plenty of media dedicated to Dr. Frankenstein and his creation, starting with James Whale's unimpeachable 1931 adaptation and its even better sequel, 1935's Bride of Frankenstein. It's been lovingly parodied (Mel Brooks' Young Frankenstein), given a family-friendly treatment (Tim Burton's Frankenweenie), turned into a musical (The Rocky Horror Picture Show), and even made into porn (more movies than you can possibly imagine). Here now are a list of some of the more notably unusual (and non-pornographic) takes on the story, offering gore, laughs, romance, or just general weirdness. Continue Reading →
Snow
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Apocalypse Now (1979), Batman Returns (1992), Ben-Hur (1959), Billy Elliot (2000), Brazil (1985), Contact (1997), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Finding Forrester (2000), Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (2002), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (2001), Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), Metropolis (1927), Sahara (2005), Scrooge (1951), Shooter (2007), Sleepless in Seattle (1993), Talk to Her (2002), The Apartment (1960), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Holiday (2006), The Last Emperor (1987), The Party 2 (1982), The Tin Drum (1979), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Interstellar (2014), Leave the World Behind (2023), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023),
J.A. Bayona directs a heartbreaking adaptation of a true-life tale of tragedy & miracles.
Though we joke about the smallest inconveniences rendering us helpless, in truth the human will to survive cannot be underestimated. When confronted with imminent death, we can and will resort to extreme means to escape it, sometimes in ways that might shock and horrify those who weren’t there. One such story was Aron Ralston, a hiker who was forced to break and cut his own arm off after he was trapped by a fallen boulder, as depicted in 2010’s 127 Hours. Another was a 1972 plane crash in the Andes mountains, after which the survivors, faced with subzero temperatures, no food, and no plant life or animals to be found, eventually resorted to cannibalism to avoid starvation.
The Andes plane crash story was adapted for film a number of times, including the trashy, exploitative Survive!, and 1993’s competently made but whitewashed Alive, in which Ethan Hawke was cast as a character named Nando Parrado. Now J.A. Bayona, whose 2012 film The Impossible was also a harrowing tale of survival, takes a turn with Society of the Snow, a gripping, heart-wrenching look at the emotional toll such an unthinkable event takes on those who somehow came out of it alive, if not exactly well. Continue Reading →
The Color Purple
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Apocalypse Now (1979), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959), Billy Elliot (2000),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Chicago (2002), Contact (1997), Contempt (1963), Crash (1996), Dances with Wolves (1990), Desert Hearts (1985), Enough (2002), Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Gone Baby Gone (2007), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Just Cause (1995), Lost in Translation (2003), Manhattan (1979), Metropolis (1927), Mystic River (2003), Oldboy (2003), Once Upon a Time in America (1984), Solaris (1972), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Fisher King (1991), The Irishman (2019),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Party (1980), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Tin Drum (1979), Titanic (1997), To Die For (1995), Volver (2006),
Watch afterAquaman and the Lost Kingdom (2023), Poor Things (2023), Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse (2023), The Whale (2022),
StarringColman Domingo,
Blitz Bazawule's adaptation of the Alice Walker classic (and the Broadway musical) is a more joyful, celebratory film than its predecessor.
The Color Purple has taken on a musicality ever since Steven Spielberg and Quincy Jones adapted Alice Walker’s 1983 Pulitzer Prize-winning novel for the screen. When the first film was released in 1985, Spielberg already referred to it as a “musical.” In a behind-the-scenes interview about the film's musicality included in Warner Bros’ sumptuous new 4K release, Walker, Spielberg, and Jones conduct us through the “diverse places” that music appears in the original film. There are rail work songs, African dance, juke joint blues, and revival gospel; all tonally matched together in a near seamless “immersion” of sound.
In an age where nearly every popular and cult film gets a Broadway adaptation, The Color Purple is a particular no-brainer. Celie’s journey of self-discovery through systematic abuses and struggles at the turn of the twentieth century lends itself to the kind of emotional bigness a musical requires. With music by the legendary Brenda Russell and the late queer songwriting icon Allee Willis, The Color Purple: The Musical also showcases a diverse range of musical styles and modes, especially those well suited for the stage, like swing and Greek chorus. Continue Reading →
The Zone of Interest
SimilarAli: Fear Eats the Soul (1974), Almost Famous (2000), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Apollo 13 (1995), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Contact (1997), Contempt (1963), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Cruel Intentions (1999), Dances with Wolves (1990), Desert Hearts (1985), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), East of Eden (1955), Enough (2002), Finding Forrester (2000), Forrest Gump (1994), Gandhi (1982), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Just Cause (1995), La Haine (1995), Metropolis (1927), Oldboy (2003), Raging Bull (1980), Random Harvest (1942),
Rebecca (1940) Shall We Dance? (2004), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Elephant Man (1980), The Good German (2006), The Last Emperor (1987),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Outsiders (1983), The Pianist (2002), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), To Die For (1995), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023), Dune: Part Two (2024), Joker (2019), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023),
StudioA24, Film4 Productions,
Jonathan Glazer's first feature in 10 years is a near-unclassifiable work of patience and intentional distance from its historical horrors.
What am I to say here? What can I say?
I feel as if I’m to say nothing at all. My mind has gone and I feel sick, and while that’s due to the film in question, another degree of it comes from a deeper truth. I feel wrong in my reaction to it; it can’t help but feel inadequate. The Zone of Interest has leveled me like few things ever have, but that’s not the point. That’s not its point. Continue Reading →
Eileen
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Basic Instinct (1992), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blue Velvet (1986), Brubaker (1980), Con Air (1997), Contempt (1963), Crash (1996), Cruel Intentions (1999), Cube Zero (2004), Die Hard (1988), Die Hard 2 (1990), Don't Bother to Knock (1952), Dr. No (1962), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Fargo (1996), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), From Russia with Love (1963), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Goldfinger (1964), Gone Baby Gone (2007), Just Cause (1995), La Vie en Rose (2007), Memento (2000), Metropolis (1927), On Her Majesty's Secret Service (1969), Perfume: The Story of a Murderer (2006),
Primal Fear (1996) Schindler's List (1993), Scrooge (1951), Solaris (1972), Stalker (1979), Talk to Her (2002), The 39 Steps (1935), The Departed (2006), The Devil's Rejects (2005), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Handmaid's Tale (1990), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Road (2009), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Thirteenth Floor (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995), War of the Worlds (2005), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), You Only Live Twice (1967),
Watch afterAnatomy of a Fall (2023), Interstellar (2014),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Saltburn (2023), Shortcomings (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), The Super Mario Bros. Movie (2023),
StudioFilm4 Productions,
Thomasin McKenzie & Anne Hathaway burn up the screen in William Oldroyd’s unsettling thriller.
Eileen will likely be lost in the holiday season shuffle among such spectacles as the upcoming Wonka and awards-friendly fare like Ferrari. On the other hand, it’s unclear under what circumstances Eileen would make a big splash. It’s an odd, occasionally off-putting little film that wouldn’t work as well as it does if not for the scorching chemistry between its two leads.
Based on Ottessa Moshfegh’s (also odd and occasionally off-putting) novel of the same name, Eileen stars Thomasin McKenzie as the titular character, a lonely young woman stuck in a miserable rut. Living in the most depressing town in Massachusetts circa 1964, Eileen is forced to take care of her alcoholic, mean-spirited father (a chilling Shea Whigham, still somehow not one of Hollywood’s biggest stars), a former cop who’s taken to waving his gun at their neighbors. Working as a secretary at a juvenile detention center, though she’s in her twenties she comes off as someone much younger, a meek and awkward child merely dressing up as an adult. Eileen also has a child’s taste for doing things like ignoring her hygiene, stuffing herself with candy, and compulsively masturbating, while maintaining a rich fantasy life involving rough sex with a detention center guard, or murdering her father. Her boredom has reached pathological levels. Continue Reading →
The Holdovers
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Apocalypse Now (1979), Brazil (1985), Donnie Brasco (1997), Driving Miss Daisy (1989), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Fargo (1996), Forrest Gump (1994), Full Metal Jacket (1987), GoodFellas (1990), Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), Monster (2003), Mystic River (2003), Oldboy (2003), Scrooge (1951), Shrek the Third (2007), Solaris (1972), The Apartment (1960), The Departed (2006), The Fisher King (1991), The Party 2 (1982), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Silent Partner (1978), To Die For (1995), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023),
Barbie (2023) Killers of the Flower Moon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Poor Things (2023), Society of the Snow (2023), The Killer (2023), The Marvels (2023),
StarringGillian Vigman,
StudioMiramax,
After stumbling with Downsizing, Alexander Payne bounces back with a gentle & witty comedy-drama.
The artist Dmitry Samarov one said to me that the ratio of good to bad late periods in an artist's life was depressing to consider. For every Sir Edward William Elgar there was an Eric Clapton (my example, not his), and that it was rare to see someone sharpen as they aged. Now, I like Dmitry and certainly respect his opinion, but I can’t help but feel that when film overtook painting as the dominant artwork that people engage with, the ratio shifted towards bizarre experimentation and welcome self-reflection as much as dull self reflection.
Take for instance 62 year old Alexander Payne, who, after the biggest disaster of his career (2017’s confused parable Downsizing), has started his fourth decade as a director by leaning hard back into what he knew (and what the royal “we” enjoyed) and rediscovered himself with The Holdovers, a movie no one can seem to stop comparing to Hal Ashby. No mean feat, of course, but even that sells its virtues short. This is no mere homage, no mere return to form, this is the movie that Payne’s been hoping to make since his 90s heyday, a film that earns both its jaundiced gaze and its catharsis. Continue Reading →
Killers of the Flower Moon
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), A History of Violence (2005), Almost Famous (2000), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Apollo 13 (1995), Belle de Jour (1967), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007), Blue Velvet (1986), Brubaker (1980), Caché (2005), Cat on a Hot Tin Roof (1958), Chicago (2002), Code of Silence (1985), Con Air (1997), Contact (1997), Contempt (1963), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Cruel Intentions (1999), Dances with Wolves (1990), Don't Bother to Knock (1952), Donnie Brasco (1997), Enough (2002), Fargo (1996), Forrest Gump (1994), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Gandhi (1982), Gone Baby Gone (2007), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), I've Always Liked You (2016), Just Cause (1995), Kill Bill: Vol. 1 (2003), La Haine (1995), Léon: The Professional (1994), Manhattan (1979), Memento (2000), Metropolis (1927), Mississippi Burning (1988), Oldboy (2003), Predator (1987),
Primal Fear (1996) Random Harvest (1942), Rope (1948), Saw IV (2007), Schindler's List (1993), Shall We Dance? (2004), Sissi (1955), Solaris (1972), Strange Days (1995), Taxi Driver (1976), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Devil's Rejects (2005), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Elephant Man (1980), The Handmaid's Tale (1990), The Irishman (2019), The Road (2009), The Silence of the Lambs (1991), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), Things to Do in Denver When You're Dead (1995), Titanic (1997), To Die For (1995), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993),
Watch afterAmerican Fiction (2023), Anatomy of a Fall (2023), Five Nights at Freddy's (2023), Leave the World Behind (2023), Napoleon (2023),
Oppenheimer (2023) Saw X (2023), The Hunger Games: The Ballad of Songbirds & Snakes (2023), The Killer (2023), Wonka (2023),
StudioApple Studios,
To talk about The Killer is to strip away pretense. Well, one can try. Cold it may be, but David Fincher's latest is an incredibly open film. The houses are made of glass; the windows are ceiling-high; the voiceovers from the title character (Michael Fassbender) give infallible insight into his worldview. The film is his worldview, simple in its machinations and complex in its philosophy. In most other circumstances, this would unfold over time. And it does here, at least to an extent. Continue Reading →
Love at First Sight
Similar2046 (2004), A Christmas Carol (1938), A Real Young Girl (1976), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Contact (1997), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Cruel Intentions (1999), Dances with Wolves (1990), Desert Hearts (1985), East of Eden (1955), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Eyes Wide Shut (1999), Finding Forrester (2000), Four Weddings and a Funeral (1994), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991), Full Metal Jacket (1987), Gone Baby Gone (2007), I Am Not a Serial Killer (2016), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Manhattan (1979), Metropolis (1927), Mystic River (2003), Once Upon a Time in America (1984),
Primal Fear (1996) Random Harvest (1942),
Rebecca (1940) Rosemary's Baby (1968), Sahara (2005), Schindler's List (1993), Shooter (2007), Sissi (1955), Solaris (1972), Stalker (1979), Stand by Me (1986), The Art of Racing in the Rain (2019), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Cider House Rules (1999), The Green Mile (1999), The Handmaid's Tale (1990),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Outsiders (1983), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Road (2009), The Silent Partner (1978), The Tin Drum (1979), To Die For (1995), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Wild at Heart (1990),
Watch afterBarbie (2023) Blue Beetle (2023), Elemental (2023), The Equalizer 3 (2023),
StarringJameela Jamil,
As an avid consumer of romance—be it in book, film, or television format—you learn to level expectations when a beloved story is adapted. That’s particularly the case amongst the recent spate of mid-to-low budget adaptations across the gamut of streaming services. Usually, the best-case scenario is they’re mildly enjoyable but ultimately forgettable. For example, there’s Prime Video’s recent adaptation of Casey McQuiston’s Red, White, and Royal Blue. More often than not, they’re absolutely dreadful. The less said about Netflix’s take on Austen’s Persuasion, the better. What is true, though, is that they’re very seldom genuinely good. Continue Reading →
A Million Miles Away
SimilarA Christmas Carol (1938), Anatomy of a Murder (1959), Apocalypse Now (1979), As It Is in Heaven (2004), Ben-Hur (1959),
Blade Runner (1982) Blood and Chocolate (2007),
Boys Don't Cry (1999) Brubaker (1980), Contact (1997), Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon (2000), Donnie Brasco (1997), East of Eden (1955), Edward Scissorhands (1990), Erin Brockovich (2000), Finding Forrester (2000), Forrest Gump (1994), Gridiron Gang (2006), I've Always Liked You (2016),
Jackie Brown (1997) Just Cause (1995), Manhattan (1979), Metropolis (1927), Monster (2003),
Primal Fear (1996) Rebecca (1940) Schindler's List (1993), Stand by Me (1986), The Bridges of Madison County (1995), The Elementary Particles (2006), The Green Mile (1999), The Handmaid's Tale (1990), The Irishman (2019), The Last Emperor (1987),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Outsiders (1983), The Poseidon Adventure (1972), The Road (2009), The Silent Partner (1978), The Straight Story (1999), The Tin Drum (1979), What's Eating Gilbert Grape (1993), Wonder Boys (2000),
Watch afterBarbie (2023) Blue Beetle (2023), Elemental (2023), Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning Part One (2023),
StudioMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer,
A Million Miles Away is one of those movies that live in the meaty part of the decent curve. Far too sturdy and well-made to be called bad. Too rote and predictable to really call good. It tells the true story of José Hernández (Michael Pena), an unquestionably inspiring man who did an impossibly difficult thing under impossibly difficult circumstances. Continue Reading →
High-Rise
This piece was written during the 2023 WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. Without the labor of the writers and actors currently on strike, the movies being covered here wouldn't exist. Continue Reading →
Landscape with Invisible Hand
Similar2001: A Space Odyssey (1968), 9 Songs (2004), A Clockwork Orange (1971), Annie Hall (1977), Apocalypse Now (1979),
Blade Runner (1982) Boys Don't Cry (1999) Contact (1997), East of Eden (1955), Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004), Fried Green Tomatoes (1991),
Jackie Brown (1997) Manhattan (1979), Mars Attacks! (1996), Mary Poppins (1964), Metropolis (1927), Predator (1987), Random Harvest (1942), Solaris (1972), Stalker (1979), The Elementary Particles (2006),
The Name of the Rose (1986) The Outsiders (1983), The Science of Sleep (2006), The Silent Partner (1978), The Thirteenth Floor (1999), To Die For (1995), War of the Worlds (2005),
Watch afterBarbie (2023) Rebel Moon - Part One: A Child of Fire (2023), Shortcomings (2023), The Equalizer 3 (2023),
StudioMetro-Goldwyn-Mayer,
Cory Finley is obsessed with money. His characters have nice things or want them. They live in beautiful houses or enviously plot to get them. Even in the year 2036, with aliens living on (or, more precisely, about two miles above) planet Earth, people still fret over money and try to make scads of it. That’s the state of things in his latest, Landscape with Invisible Hand. It’s a title with the same bespoke aestheticism as the stuffed ocelots and oversized chess pieces his characters own. It feels seemingly designed to scare off less curious viewers. While the film has an awful lot of plot, the undergirding is the same. As in his 2017 debut Thoroughbreds, his follow-up Bad Education, and even his episodes of the abysmal miniseries WeCrashed, the drama comes from the idea of what money does to the soul. Continue Reading →
Mysterious Skin
In 2011, just after I turned seventeen, I ordered a copy of Mysterious Skin. Being online during that era, particularly on blog sites like Tumblr, meant images from Gregg Araki’s 2004 film permeated my timelines. I saw Joseph Gordon-Levitt, as gay sex worker Neil, kissing his male friend in the front seat of a pickup truck to enrage a small-town homophobe or sitting, bruised and bloodied, on the New York subway. Black and white GIF-sets of the film’s final heartbreaking scene came up regularly, the poetic closing lines quoted beneath them in italics. Continue Reading →
Top Gun: Maverick
SimilarApocalypse Now (1979), Die Hard 2 (1990), Die Hard: With a Vengeance (1995), Godzilla Raids Again (1955), Live Free or Die Hard (2007), Mississippi Burning (1988), Superman Returns (2006),
Watch afterJurassic World Dominion (2022), Thor: Love and Thunder (2022),
StarringJon Hamm,
Navy Captain Peter "Pete" Mitchell, callsign "Maverick" (Tom Cruise) is a living legend. He is the only man to have shot down multiple enemy planes in the modern era of combat aviation. From the F-14 Tomcat to bleeding-edge skunkworks stealth plane prototypes, there is nothing he cannot fly, nothing he cannot (or more accurately will not) push past the fabled Danger Zone. Continue Reading →