The Lady Vanishes is what put Hitchcock's name into Hollywood. He started this British film with no intentions of it becoming a hit in the U.S., but it did.
After the Europen train breaksdown, Iris Henderson and many others are forced to stay in a nearby hotel for the night. Here she meets a sweet, old woman Miss Froy because of their concerns over the noise being to loud. In the morning they meet again and board the train together. They converse over a cup of tea and later return their seating car. Iris tired from the night before, falls asleep. She wakes up and realizes Miss Froy is gone. At first she thinks nothing of it, but then begins to search for her. She cannot find her anwhere. She begins to ask the people around her and they say their was no record of Miss Froy ever entering the train. Iris, flustered, think they are absurd. She begins to realize there is something strange going on, that everyone doesn't want her to know about. With the help of her musician friend Gilbert, she puts together the clues in order to find poor old Miss Froy and prove that she is not hallucinating.


Tied in with The Lady Vanishes, is Jodi Foster's suspense role in Flight Plan. Kyle Pratt (Jodi Foster) boards a plane with her young daughter Juli. Kyle falls asleep during the flight and when she awakens her daughter is missing. In a scurry of fear and concern she searches the plane from nose to tail. The crew members, including the captain all tell her that there was no record of her daughter ever boarding the plane. She refuses to believe that. Everyone on the plane starts panicking because they all think shes phsycologically imbalanced. But as Kyle fights to discern the truth, she takes matters into her own hands.
I had never seen nor heard of this movie until this class. I loved it. It was full of suspense and moments that kept me on the edge of my seat.

Goodfellas

Year of Release: September 19 1990

Director(s): Martin Scorsese

Writer(s): Nicholas Pileggi, Martin Scorsese

Cinematographer(s): Michael Ballhaus

Producer(s): Irwin Winkler

Distributor(s): Warner Bros.

Actor(s)/Actress(es): Ray Liotta, Robert Di Niro, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino

Why I chose this: The Italian classic done by Martin Scorsese is one that can be seen more then once, and still I can't get enough of it. Starting off young Henry Hill (Ray Liotta) and Tommy De Vito (Joe Pesci), are bred to be mobsters under the all mighty boss, Pauli (Paul Sorvino). Slowly climbing the ladder, the boys go from making small crimes into violent murders. As they get older they are rolling in money, and do "hits/wags" on a constant basis. Then they meet Jimmy Conway (Robert Di Niro). He is one of the greast Irish-Italian mobsters around. Pauli warns Henry and Tommy, mainly Henry, to stay away from Jimmy because he is bad news. They don't listen. In a mob, one cannot turn on the other or bad things will begin. They rise and fall in a twisting and intimidating true story, based on the "blue-collar mob." Goodfellas is an excellent film for all mob/drama/crime loving movie-goers. It won one Oscar for "Best Supporting Actor" (Joe Pesci), and was nominated for four others.

The Departed

Year of Release: October 6 2006

Director(s): Martin Scorsese

Writer(s): William Monahan and Alan Mak

Cinematographer(s): Michael Ballhous

Producer(s): Brad Grey, Graham King, Brad Pitt

Distributor(s): Warner Bros.

Actor(s)/Actress(es): Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack

Nicholson, Matt Damon, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin

Why I chose this: This is my all time favorite crime/ mystery/ thriller movie. Located in Boston, a young undercover cop, Billy Costigan (Leo DiCaprio) is assigned a new task: to infiltrate the mob. The mob is run by head gangster, Frank Costello (Jack Nicholson). Colin Sullivan (Matt Damon), who was taken under Frank's wing at a very young age, is Franks number one man. Colin's task is to infiltrate the police and their SI Unit.  Billy quickly gains trust from Frank, and vice versa for Colin. But as both Billy and Colin get too caught up in their double lives, their duties leak, and both the mob and the police smell a "rat," they just don't know who. The film goes on to see who is brave enough to reveal their undercover positions. The Departed quickly became a box office hit, and racked in 4 Academy Awards including: Best Editor, Director, Picture of the Year, and Screenplay. Also winning one Golden Globe. This film covers lies, betrayal, and sacrifce, and keeps you at the edge of your seat with the sudden twist that you don't see coming.

Changeling

Year of Release: October 31 2008

Director(s): Clint Eastwood, Brian Grazer, Ron Howard

Writer(s): J. Michael Straczynski

Cinematographer(s): Tom Stern

Producer(s): Clint Eastwood

Distributor(s): Universal Pictures

Actor(s)/Actress(es): Angelina Jolie, Jeffrey Donovan, Gattlin Griffith

Why I chose this: Another one of Eastwoods sentimental dramas, Changeling, a true story, tells the events of a woman, Christine Collins (Angelina Jolie), whose son Walter Collins, (Gattlin Griffith) gets kidnapped. Once she contacts the corrupted LAPD, and persists them to help her find her son, they take the easy way out. They find a "look-a-like," and force the media into believeing that this is her son. When Christine tries to tell the public that this surely is not her son, LAPD turns against her by saying shes mentally paranoid and stick her in one of their cruel mental facilities. In order to save both herself and her sons life wherever he may be, Christine must attempt what no one else has. She refuses to give up hope. Since this movie is based on a true story, it really touched me. It's something that makes you sit and just blankly stare at the screen as the credits roll by.  Changeling was nominated for 3 Oscars including: Best Achievement in Art Direction, Best Achievement in Cinematography, and Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role.