21 Movies Like Full Metal Jacket (1987) On Microsoft (Page 2)

An intriguing, funny and rather bizarre movie which serves as a fantastic introduction to 'new-wave' German cinema. Featuring a cast of young talented actors and excellent direction, this movie takes place around the time the Berlin wall fell and East and West Berlin were still united. Christiane, a devout socialist activist in East Berlin suffers an accident which leaves her in a coma, during which time the Berlin wall comes down and Western capitalism encroaches on her beloved East Berlin. Fearing that she may relapse into a coma after waking up, her doctors warn that she must remain calm and not endure any shocks. Despite the somewhat contrived premise, the film really takes off from this point as her son Alex and his friend aim to hide this fact from her, by faking news reports on the television, coming up with excuses for a giant Coca Cola banner and a whole host of other amusing exploits to prevent her from knowing. While categorised as a comedy, it is also a moving portrayal of a loving family enduring great, historic change.

Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance

Actor: Alexander Beyer, Armin Dillenberger, Arndt Schwering-Sohnrey, Burghart Klaussner, Christine Schorn, Chulpan Khamatova, Daniel Brühl, Eberhard Kirchberg, Ernst-Georg Schwill, Florian Lukas, Fritz Roth, Hanna Schwamborn, Hans-Uwe Bauer, Jochen Stern, Jürgen Holtz, Jürgen Vogel, Katrin Saß, Marc Bischoff, Maria Simon, Martin Brambach, Mennan Yapo, Michael Gerber, Michael Gwisdek, Peter Kurth, Stefan Walz, Svea Timander

Director: Wolfgang Becker

Rating: R

A young Steve Buscemi leads this wry farce about a calamitous film set where nothing goes right. The sardonic script skewers the ins and outs of low budget film production and the various personalities on set from belligerent directors, pretentious cinematographers, and egotistic actors. 

A playful three-act structure and trips into dream sequences keep things light, while a strong supporting cast, including a cheeky appearance by Peter Dinklage and the fantastic Catherine Keener, gives the film the backbone it needs. 

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Catherine Keener, Danielle von Zerneck, Dermot Mulroney, Hilary Gilford, James Le Gros, Kevin Corrigan, Lori Tan Chinn, Matthew Grace, Norman Fields, Peter Dinklage, Rica Martens, Robert Wightman, Steve Buscemi, Tom Jarmusch

Director: Tom DiCillo

Rating: R

As long as you don’t take it too seriously and see it for the silly ‘80s comedy that it is, then A Fish Called Wanda comes as a pleasantly hilarious way to pass the time. The heist doesn’t make much sense but the farce the characters put on is as delightfully silly as they come. There are traces of Cleese’s Monty Python sketch humor here, as you’ll see in the puns and the wild physical gags he makes, and Curtis proves that comedy is her true calling. But some of the best parts of the movie are when the British characters rib with the Americans—it’s a classic feud, one you won’t help but laugh at, regardless of where you’re coming from.

Genre: Comedy, Crime

Actor: Al Hunter Ashton, Andrew MacLachlan, Cynthia Cleese, David Simeon, Geoffrey Palmer, Jamie Lee Curtis, Jeremy Child, John Cleese, Kate Lansbury, Ken Campbell, Kevin Kline, Llewellyn Rees, Maria Aitken, Mark Elwes, Michael Palin, Michael Percival, Neville Phillips, Pamela Miles, Patricia Hayes, Peter Jonfield, Robert Putt, Roger Brierley, Roger Hume, Roland MacLeod, Sharon Marino, Stephen Fry, Tom Georgeson

Director: Charles Crichton

Rating: R

Renton (McGregor), a Scottish twenty-something junkie, must choose to clean up and get out, or continue following the allure of the drugs and the influence of friends. Find out if he chooses life in this brutal yet entertaining Danny Boyle masterpiece. While definitely not for the faint of heart, Trainspotting still manages to be funny at times, and provides an overall very entertaining experience.

Genre: Crime, Drama

Actor: Annie Louise Ross, Billy Riddoch, Dale Winton, Eddie Nestor, Eileen Nicholas, Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Finlay Welsh, Fiona Bell, Hugh Ross, Irvine Welsh, James Cosmo, Jonny Lee Miller, Kate Donnelly, Keith Allen, Kelly Macdonald, Kevin Allen, Kevin McKidd, Pauline Lynch, Peter Mullan, Robert Carlyle, Shirley Henderson, Stuart McQuarrie, Susan Vidler, Victor Eadie

Director: Danny Boyle

Rating: R

This is right up your alley if you have a thing for gangster films. Actually, if you have a thing for stupendous acting and just Robert de Niro in general, then A Bronx Tale might do the job for you. The 1960’s was a tough time for Lorenzo (de Niro), father to conflicted Calogero (Lillo Brancato), who seems to have befriended Bronx’s big man, Sonny (Chazz Palminteri). Torn between his moral integrity and a few other factors in the mix, the young boy’s leap to the crazed world of mobsters doesn’t get any more real than this. Tragedy and fascination take human form through the eyes of De Niro’s directorial debut and Palminteri’s work of art, leaving you with a gripping feeling long after the credits have stopped rolling.

Genre: Crime, Drama

Actor: A.J. Ekoku, Alfred Sauchelli Jr., Chazz Palminteri, Clem Caserta, Dave Salerno, Derrick Simmons, Domenick Lombardozzi, Dominick Rocchio, Eddie Montanaro, Francis Capra, Frank Pietrangolare, Fred Fischer, Gianna Ranaudo, Joe Pesci, Joseph D'Onofrio, Katherine Narducci, Kathrine Narducci, Lillo Brancato, Louis Vanaria, Max Genovino, Mitch Kolpan, Nicky Blair, Nina von Arx, Patrick Borriello, Phil Foglia, Richard DeDomenico, Robert De Niro, Sobe Bailey, Taral Hicks

Director: Robert De Niro

Rating: R