3 Best Movies to Watch by John Hillcoat

Staff & contributors

Tom Hardy, Guy Pearce, Gary Oldman, Jessica Chastain, and Shia Laboeuf (the good Shia Laboeuf) all star in this true-story-based gangster tale. As a result, Lawless is cliché-free, fast, and violent - yet it doesn't take itself too seriously. Bootlegging Bondurant brothers live according to different rules, yet run a successful business during the prohibition era. When new authorities try to shut them down violently, each one of them has a way of dealing with it. The story runs very smoothly, and added to the perfect performances and great staging, Lawless becomes very entertaining, and a true pleasure to watch.

Genre: Crime, Drama, Western

Actor: Alex Van, Anna House, Bill Camp, Bruce McKinnon, Chad Randall, Chris McGarry, Dane DeHaan, Eric Mendenhall, Gary Oldman, Guy Pearce, Jason Clarke, Jeff Braun, Jessica Chastain, John Hillcoat, Lew Temple, Marcus Hester, Mark Ashworth, Mia Wasikowska, Noah Taylor, Ron Clinton Smith, Shia LaBeouf, Terry Keasler, Tim Tolin, Tom Hardy, Tom Proctor, Tom Turbiville, Toni Byrd, William J. Harrison

Director: John Hillcoat

Rating: R

A Cormac McCarthy novel adaptation (like No Country for Old Men), The Road is an apocalypse movie set in a 'scorched Earth' rendition of the world. It follows a father (played by Viggo Mortensen) and his son as they battle to survive everyday life. Throughout the movie, the son's trust in his father grows and shrinks depending on choices the father makes, as he attempts to protect his son from cannibals, bandits, and the threat of starvation. The gritty realism this movie presents sets it apart from many other more theatrical releases, with the setting of a charred world illustrating a rather depressing new reality. A very down to earth and heartfelt story. Definitely worth the watch if you're willing to feel like you've been punched in the gut.

Genre: Adventure, Drama

Actor: Agnes Herrmann, Bob Jennings, Buddy Sosthand, Charlize Theron, Garret Dillahunt, Guy Pearce, Jack Erdie, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Mark Tierno, Michael Kenneth Williams, Molly Parker, Robert Duvall, Viggo Mortensen, Wilson Moore

Director: John Hillcoat

Rating: R

The Western had its heyday in the 60s, but the decades have proven that there’s still stories from the deserts that we haven’t heard yet, and gems that twist the genre on its head. The Proposition is a unique Western, being from the East, in Australia where the Brits have started to form colonies. As the British Empire builds society, and the police start to enforce the King’s justice, writer Nick Cave and director John Hillcoat crafts a bloody tale, where promises between men are betrayed for the State, where vengeance can only be met through brutality, and where the line between civility and savagery is drawn and moved by the will of an angry majority. The Proposition is quite violent, but it’s performed well, scored by a moody, moving soundtrack, and it surprisingly contemplates Australia’s bloody past.

Genre: Action, Adventure, Crime, Drama, Thriller, Western

Actor: Bogdan Koca, Boris Brkic, Bryan Probets, Danny Huston, David Gulpilil, David Vallon, David Wenham, Emily Watson, Gary Waddell, Guy Pearce, Iain Gardiner, Jeremy Madrona, John Hurt, Leah Purcell, Mick Roughan, Noah Taylor, Oliver Ackland, Ralph Cotterill, Ray Winstone, Richard Wilson, Robert Morgan, Tom Budge, Tom E. Lewis

Director: John Hillcoat

Rating: R