# What are the best "little" movies you've seen lately? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 3, 2007, 1:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309 "2007-07-03T01:59:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e36b37/32.png) [@Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_A_Tame_Lion)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/21 "2007-07-03T18:49:24Z")
Recently watched _Shattered Glass,_ the story of journalist Stephen Glass and all the stories he made up while writing for _The New Republic_ magazine. A very good movie, and damn if Hayden Christiansen (Glass) can’t act when you get him away from the all the light saber bullshit. Highly recommended. ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/22 "2007-07-03T19:38:16Z")
[QUOTE=Not A Tame Lion] Recently watched _Shattered Glass,_ the story of journalist Stephen Glass and all the stories he made up while writing for _The New Republic_ magazine. A very good movie, and damn if Hayden Christiansen (Glass) can’t act when you get him away from the all the light saber bullshit. Highly recommended. [/QUOTE] I agree wholeheartedly. The pathologically insecure Glass character was well fleshed out and I found myself sympathizing with him. I don’t know if the movie can be spoiled since it’s based on a real person, but: As his world began crumbling around him, and he knew he was busted, he could just not let go. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 7:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/23 "2007-07-03T19:38:53Z")
I watched the original _The Ladykillers_ a few days ago. Not quite as small as some of the other movies mentioned here, I guess, but I think it fits. It has Alec Guinness AND Peter Sellers, although Sellers doesn’t get to do much. I watched it for Guinness, and he’s creepily terrific. Herbert Lom is also very good, and in general this blows the Coen Brothers’ version out of the water. I saw _Brick_ in theaters and also enjoyed it a lot. ---
**Author:** ![twickster](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/ec9cab/32.png) [@twickster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/twickster)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/24 "2007-07-03T19:49:31Z")
[QUOTE=Not A Tame Lion] Recently watched _Shattered Glass,_ the story of journalist Stephen Glass and all the stories he made up while writing for _The New Republic_ magazine. A very good movie, and damn if Hayden Christiansen (Glass) can’t act when you get him away from the all the light saber bullshit. Highly recommended. [/QUOTE] One of my favorites – because how many movies have an editor as the heroic figure? 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/e36b37/32.png) [@Not\_A\_Tame\_Lion](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Not_A_Tame_Lion)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 8:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/25 "2007-07-03T20:07:15Z")
[QUOTE=PoorYorick] I agree wholeheartedly. The pathologically insecure Glass character was well fleshed out and I found myself sympathizing with him. I don’t know if the movie can be spoiled since it’s based on a real person, but: As his world began crumbling around him, and he knew he was busted, he could just not let go. [/QUOTE] The film is really well crafted. I liked the way the story started at the core, then peeled away the layers so you got a bit by bit reveal on just how far Glass’s deceptions went back. Artfully done. And I’m glad I wasn’t the only one who liked it. Points for **PoorYorick** and **twickster!** ---
**Author:** ![PoorYorick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ecccb3/32.png) [@PoorYorick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PoorYorick)\ **Post date:** [July 3, 2007, 8:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/26 "2007-07-03T20:34:58Z")
[QUOTE=twickster] One of my favorites – because how many movies have an editor as the heroic figure? 😃 [/QUOTE] And an unlikeable unpopular editor at that? ---
**Author:** ![Valgard](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/7feea3/32.png) [@Valgard](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Valgard)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 12:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/27 "2007-07-04T00:03:49Z")
[QUOTE=Marley23] I watched the original _The Ladykillers_ a few days ago. Not quite as small as some of the other movies mentioned here, I guess, but I think it fits. It has Alec Guinness AND Peter Sellers, although Sellers doesn’t get to do much. I watched it for Guinness, and he’s creepily terrific. Herbert Lom is also very good, and in general this blows the Coen Brothers’ version out of the water. I saw _Brick_ in theaters and also enjoyed it a lot. [/QUOTE] Excellent movie. I’d also recommend “The Lavender Hill Mob” also starring Alec Guinness. I enjoyed “The World’s Fastest Indian” as well - it’s not an “A” movie but a really solid “B”, quite good. Hm, I’ll throw “Prey For Rock And Roll” out there. It’s a little independent film starring Gina Gershon (yum) as the lead singer of an all-girl rock band. They’ve been doing their thing for years and are still playing crappy little bars. She’s approaching 40. Various characters and crises appear. It’s not a great film but I really dug it, and Gina gets into being a rock star (there’s a tiny moment where she’s up on stage belting out a tune and you can see spit and sweat flying off her and I thought “That is really what rock and roll looks like, somebody up there in leather giving it their all”). One of my coworkers here is in one of the bands that contributed some music to the movie. ---
**Author:** ![Marley23](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Marley23](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Marley23)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/28 "2007-07-04T00:21:23Z")
[QUOTE=Valgard] Excellent movie. I’d also recommend “The Lavender Hill Mob” also starring Alec Guinness. [/QUOTE] I’ve been on a Guinness kick lately - I watched Bridge on the River Kwai recently, and Kind Hearts and Coronets a few months ago - so I’ll add this to my Netflix and watch it after I’m done with my Toshiro Mifune binge. ---
**Author:** ![AuntiePam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@AuntiePam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AuntiePam)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/29 "2007-07-04T01:27:30Z")
[QUOTE=commasense] [_In Her Shoes_](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0388125/) is a charming little story about two sisters, one serious and responsible (Toni Collette), the other flighty and irresponsible (Cameron Diaz), and the rivalry between them. [/QUOTE] I watched that earlier today, only because you recommended it. Sometimes Diaz and MacLaine are overpowering, but they were both great in this movie. And believable. Loved it. Am I shallow because I wanted Toni Collette to do something different with her hair on her wedding day? Pulling your hair off your face and making a bun is what you do when you have a floor to mop. Or was that part of her character – not giving in to outward appearances? ---
**Author:** ![Tuckerfan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/eada6e/32.png) [@Tuckerfan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tuckerfan)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 2:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/30 "2007-07-04T02:03:03Z")
[_The Quiet_](http://imdb.com/title/tt0414951/). An interesting little film, which has some “twists” in it, that show how they should be done if you’re going to use them. Not at all what I expected from the trailer. ---
**Author:** ![Sleel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/73ab20/32.png) [@Sleel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sleel)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/31 "2007-07-04T06:40:34Z")
Not all that recently: [The Man in the Moon](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0102388/). Reese Witherspoon way before she got famous. The girl could _act_. She’s been doing lightweight stuff compared to this for the last decade. [The Well](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0120493/). Ambiguous relationship between an older farm woman and a young drifter. Slow, psychological buildup of the characters and resolution. Older film, but watched recently: [Yamakasi](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0267129/). Back before the recent Bond film was even conceived of, this film introduced Parkour to movie-goers. The plot is relatively thin, and though Luc Besson is connected to the film, it’s only tangentially, but the stunts and teamwork between the group members are the main feature here. Not all that small, but you might not have seen it: [Danny the Dog](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0342258/). I’m not sure how big the changes were to the US version compared to the one I watched. This film is _way_ different from most martial arts films, and the opening sequence will hammer this fact home. Repeatedly. The protagonist is a severely flawed character and his development is actually the main point of the plot, though there are some incredible fight scenes. Jet Li is great in just about anything he’s done. Even low-budget stuff gets full effort from him. I’ve become a fan of his in the last few years because even though he is in a lot of films that are “martial arts” films, he doesn’t seem to approach them as martial arts films, but as opportunities to act in between the action scenes. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Hildo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/bbce88/32.png) [@Johnny\_Hildo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Hildo)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 7:59am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/32 "2007-07-04T07:59:11Z")
Just watched an early Christopher Walken movie from 1972 called [The Happiness Cage.](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0068677/) He plays an angry, violence-prone soldier with behavioral problems that gets sent to a clinic with other unruly participants. The clinic is run by a doctor who experiments on their brains. This means creepy Frankenstein stuff like wires sticking out of their heads and whatnot. Doctor implants a device into Walken’s roommate (played by Ronny Cox) where he can activate a device that just by pushing a button can activate his pleasure center. Ronny gives himself orgasm after orgasm by pushing the button and only after three hours does Chris discover him, near death… It only gets better from there. Good stuff. (The Doctor seems to have some self-perceived ethics issues going on, as well.) ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 9:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/33 "2007-07-04T09:14:49Z")
I’ve been overdosing on independent / foreign films lately. The kinds of movies that I’d never heard of in any advertising, (as opposed to, say, _In Her Shoes_, which got an avalanche of press,) and SDMB searches turn up nada. [Buddy Boy](http://imdb.com/title/tt0146516/) was pretty good, if a touch batshit insane. Not like Pi crazy, but pretty crazy. [Brothers](http://imdb.com/title/tt0386342/) was fantastic. A subtitled foreign film, (Dutch, maybe?) about the good brother being lost to the Iraq war and the ne’er do well brother subsequently growing closer to the wife and kids left behind. Can’t say enough about how much I dug this one. [Winter Passing](http://imdb.com/title/tt0380817/) was an interesting dysfunctional family drama with Zooey Deschanel, Ed Harris, and Will Farrel. Zooey really shines in this one as a depressed loser, if that makes any sense. A couple Robin Williams flicks were worth watching: [The Night Listener](http://imdb.com/title/tt0448075/) (based on a true story) was okay, but much more interesting was [The Final Cut](http://imdb.com/title/tt0364343/). “Set in a world with memory implants, Robin Williams plays a cutter, someone with the power of final edit over people’s recorded histories.” Cutters assemble 90 minute movies to summarize a life, which get played at funeral services. Very cool idea, though the execution could have been a bit better. Still a good flick. The best of the best I’ve seen recently, though, had to be the over-the-top campiness of [Slither](http://imdb.com/title/tt0439815/). Goofy and fun, with a perfect cast: Nathan Fillion and Elizabeth Banks, with a cameo by Jenna Fischer. (This one has been mentioned here on the SDMB before, for obvious reasons.) Oh, speaking of Jenna Fischer, she played a prostitute in a very fun little indy film called [Employee of the Month](http://imdb.com/title/tt0362590/). (Not the Jessica Simpson / Dane Cook movie of the same name.) Another strong cast, with Matt Dillon, Steve Zahn and Christina Applegate. I can’t say too much, as any discussion past the first 10 minutes would be a spoiler. Suffice it to say that Matt Dillon is a guy with a remarkably shitty life, and the movie takes place during one of his shittiest days ever. Steve Zahn is fucking awesome in this one. ---
**Author:** ![EllisDee](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellisdee/32/4531_2.png) [@EllisDee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EllisDee)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 9:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/34 "2007-07-04T09:21:37Z")
Oh, one more I forgot: [Heights](http://imdb.com/title/tt0382073/), with Elizabeth Banks and Glenn Close. It’s pretty gay, but a well acted drama. Considering the main characters are supposed to be stage actors, it better be well acted. heh. Speaking of gay movies, it wasn’t all that “little” but I see Roger Avary’s [Rules of Attraction](http://imdb.com/title/tt0292644/) is back in rotation on cable. A bit forced at times, but the cast more than makes up for it. Definitely worth seeing once. ETA: It was already mentioned, but I second [PS](http://imdb.com/title/tt0380609/). But then, I’m a big Laura Linney fan. That reminds me of [The Squid and the Whale](http://imdb.com/title/tt0367089/), which was okay. Very reminiscent of [The Ice Storm](http://imdb.com/title/tt0119349/), if not as good. ---
**Author:** ![Spoke](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a88e57/32.png) [@Spoke](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Spoke)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 11:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/35 "2007-07-04T11:57:59Z")
Not exactly recent, but I enjoyed the documentary [Born Rich](http://us.imdb.com/title/tt0342143/) (2003)-- a peek into the lives of the children of the ultra-wealthy. Eye-opening. ---
**Author:** ![Chum](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/3ab097/32.png) [@Chum](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chum)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 12:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/36 "2007-07-04T12:03:04Z")
I watched _I Like Killing Flies_ the other day, and I thought it was excellent. It’s a documentary about a restaurant owner in Greenwich Village who pontificates while cooking in a cramped kitchen. He has some interesting things to say, and his relationships with his customers are very amusing. That’s the only good one I’ve seen lately. I loved _Little Children_, but I don’t really consider it “little” because I’ve seen previews for it. ---
**Author:** ![Student\_Driver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/3da27b/32.png) [@Student\_Driver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Student_Driver)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 12:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/37 "2007-07-04T12:19:56Z")
[Panic](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0194218/). A dream movie if you like character actors, and it features a child actor I don’t want to slap. William H. Macy plays a middle-aged man having a mid-life crisis; he’s lost his passion for his wife, he’s dissatisfied with his work with his job, and he gets a crush on a young woman. His job? Well, he sells mail order goods. And kills people for his dad. ---
**Author:** ![Kalhoun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/3bc359/32.png) [@Kalhoun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kalhoun)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 1:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/38 "2007-07-04T13:37:38Z")
[QUOTE=Student Driver] [Panic](http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0194218/). A dream movie if you like character actors, and it features a child actor I don’t want to slap. William H. Macy plays a middle-aged man having a mid-life crisis; he’s lost his passion for his wife, he’s dissatisfied with his work with his job, and he gets a crush on a young woman. His job? Well, he sells mail order goods. And kills people for his dad. [/QUOTE] I had forgotten about this movie completely. LOVED IT! William H. Macy is a god. Seriously. Did you see _Door-to-Door_, the one where he plays a disabled door-to-door salesman? It’s great. I don’t personally know a lot of people who’ve seen it, so I’ll call it a “little” movie, though I think it was a Made For HBO production. ---
**Author:** ![Zebra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/c0e974/32.png) [@Zebra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zebra)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 3:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/39 "2007-07-04T15:20:31Z")
[Angel-A](http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0473753/), it was very big in France, but not so in the US. Luc Besson does an update of “It’s a Wonderful Life”, set in Paris with supermodel Rei Rasmussen as the Angel. The film is sweet, sexy and kicks major ass. Oh and [Paris, je t’aime](http://uk.imdb.com/title/tt0401711/), which is a collection of short films, each set in a different neighborhood and each with the theme of ‘love’. ---
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [July 4, 2007, 5:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309/40 "2007-07-04T17:26:08Z")
[QUOTE=AuntiePam] I watched [In Her Shoes] earlier today, only because you recommended it. Sometimes Diaz and MacLaine are overpowering, but they were both great in this movie. And believable. Loved it. [/QUOTE] I’m pleased and a little relieved. I don’t know anyone else who’s seen it, and haven’t seen any reviews. I liked it, but I’ve learned that my tastes tend toward the middle-brow, so I wasn’t sure that it would appeal to others here. > [@](#): > > Am I shallow because I wanted Toni Collette to do something different with her hair on her wedding day? Pulling your hair off your face and making a bun is what you do when you have a floor to mop. I’m a guy. I didn’t notice her hairstlye, or anyone else’s, at any point in the film. Sorry. > [@](#): > > Or was that part of her character – not giving in to outward appearances? Uh, yeah. That’s it. > [@Zebra](#): > > Oh and Paris, je t’aime, which is a collection of short films, each set in a different neighborhood and each with the theme of ‘love.’ Meh. I saw this in the theater a week or two ago, and didn’t like it. Sixteen little vignettes, each no more than five minutes long. There was nothing wrong with any of them: they were varied, making different points about different kinds of love. But less than halfway through I was looking at my watch wondering when it was going to be over. It just wasn’t satisfying, like trying to make a dinner out of hors d’oeuvres. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/what-are-the-best-little-movies-youve-seen-lately/410309.md?page=3)