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The top 9 movies on Netflix this week, from 'Clueless' to 'Uncut Gems'

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  • Netflix users can't get enough of Adam Sandler's "Uncut Gems."
  • Netflix introduced daily top lists of the most popular titles on the streaming service in February.
  • Streaming search engine Reelgood keeps track of the lists and provides Business Insider with a rundown of the week's most popular movies on Netflix every Friday.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Adam Sandler's "Uncut Gems" was a box-office hit last year for indie studio A24, and now it's a hit on Netflix.

The movie debuted on the steaming giant last week and has surged to the top of Netflix's list of its most popular movies. In fact, two of Sandler's movie topped this week's list.

Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most viewed movies and TV shows in February (it counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a title).

Every week, the streaming search engine Reelgood compiles for Business Insider a list of which movies have been most prominent on Netflix's daily lists that week. On Reelgood, users can browse Netflix's entire movie library and sort by IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes ratings.

The 1990s comedy "Clueless" also gained in popularity this week, as did "The Help." In response to the latter, critics offered other movies to watch on Netflix about race from black creators ("The Help" was directed by Tate Taylor, who is white). The criticism came as protests against racism and police violence spread across the US this week. 

Below are Netflix's 9 most popular movies of the week in the US:

SEE ALSO: The top trending TV shows this week, from Netflix's 'When They See Us' to HBO Max's 'Legendary'

9. "Juwanna Mann" (2001)

Description: "When his antics get him suspended from men's pro basketball, a bad-boy hoopster switches up his game by joining a new team — disguised as a woman."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 10%

What critics said: "An unpersuasive moral journey, with a smattering of laughs, that fails to justify the insulting premise that only a man can help the ladies win at both basketball and love."— Time Out



8. "The Lincoln Lawyer" (2011)

Description:"Tasked with defending rich lothario Louis Roulet, who's been charged with assault, lawyer Mick Haller finds himself and his family in danger."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 84%

What critics said: "It's a slick, cleverly plotted thriller with plenty of twists, smart hard-boiled dialogue and fine supporting performances."— Guardian



7. "Despicable Me" (2010)

Description: "Villainous Gru hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 81%

What critics said: "The result is a sweet and witty bit of animated fun with both eye-popping 3-D effects and a warm heart."— Detroit News



6. "The Wrong Missy" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Tim thinks he's invited the woman of his dreams on a work retreat to Hawaii, realizing too late he mistakenly texted someone from a nightmare blind date."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 37%

What critics said: "The Wrong Missy is a lightweight throwaway, the kind of movie it is difficult to suggest one actually choose to watch, but if your algorithm somehow lands on it provides a certain harmless diversion."— Los Angeles Times



5. "Clueless" (1995)

Description: "Meddlesome Beverly Hills high school student Cher gets more than she bargained for when she gives a fashion-challenged student a makeover."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 80%

What critics said: "The summer's most compelling movie about teenagers."— Newsweek



4. "The Healer" (2017)

Description:"A handyman who has hit rock bottom agrees to live with his distant uncle, who insists that his ability to fix things extends beyond the repair shop."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 17%

What critics said: "Although the cause may be noble, the end effect is decidedly less rewarding."— Los Angeles Times



3. "The Help" (2011)

Description:"A young, white writer stirs up the status quo in 1960s Mississippi by interviewing Black housemaids and bringing their stories to the masses."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 76%

What critics said: "Suffers from an obsequious lust for stereotypes."— Financial Times



2. "Just Go With It" (2011)

Description: "When Danny lies to his girlfriend that he's a divorced family man, he recruits his employee and her kids to play his ex-wife and kids."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 19%

What critics said: "An egregiously unfunny enterprise that seem less crafted than extruded through the great product-mill that is Hollywood at its most homogenized and soulless."— Washington Post



1. "Uncut Gems" (2019)

Description: "With his debts mounting and angry collectors closing in, a fast-talking New York City jeweler risks everything in hopes of staying afloat and alive."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 92%

What critics said: "It all ends up to be a film in which both Sandler and the Safdies are pulling out all the stops, and it works."— USA Today




Meet John Boyega, the 'Star Wars' actor who has been at the forefront of London's Black Lives Matter protests

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John Boyega

John Boyega is arguably best known for being cast as the first black stormtrooper in the 2015 "Star Wars" franchise reboot. Up next, he's set to star in Steve McQueen's new mini-series, "Small Axe."

But acting isn't all Boyega is known for — he's also very outspoken about diversity in Hollywood. In early June, Boyega made headlines for participating in a London protest against police brutality that was sparked by the death of George Floyd

"Black people: I love you. I appreciate you,"Boyega said at the protest."Today is an important day. We are fighting for our rights. We are fighting for our ability to live in freedom."

Boyega did not immediately respond to Business Insider's request for comment on this story.

Keep reading to learn more about the actor who has become one of Hollywood's leading voices against racism and discrimination. 

SEE ALSO: There are zero black women leading Fortune 500 companies right now. Here's how company culture can be sculpted to change that.

DON'T MISS: George Floyd 'could be me,' says one of America's 4 black Fortune 500 CEOs

John Boyega, 27, was born in south London to Nigerian immigrants. His father is a preacher and his mother works with the disabled, according to The New York Times.

Source: The New York Times



Boyega told the Guardian that he was "a nuisance in class" when he was young, but shone in the local theater. He trained with multiple theater groups while in secondary school.

One of his first roles was playing a leopard in a play while attending Oliver Goldsmith Primary School. At the school, he was discovered by Teresa Early, who was, at the time, the artistic director of the Theatre Peckham.

In 2003, Boyega began attending Westminster City School, where he took part in various productions. He also trained at the Identity School of Acting and attended South Thames College to study for a national diploma in Performing Arts, where he played the lead in Othello.

Source: The GuardianNew York Times



His first big break came in 2011 when he was selected from a crowd of 1,500 London kids to star in the comedy-horror movie, "Attack the Block."

Source: The Guardian, The New York Times



That same year, he was set to star in an HBO TV show loosely based on the life of Mike Tyson. The pilot was not picked up.

Source:Digital Spy, Indie Wire



He briefly attended the University of Greenwich for film studies and media writing. He left one year later to pursue acting. In 2012, he met JJ Abrams.

JJ Abrams is the director and cowriter of the 2015 film "The Force Awakens," Disney's relaunch of the famous "Star Wars" franchise. 

Source: The Guardian, University of Greenwich



After meeting Abrams, Boyega was cast as Finn in the "Star Wars" franchise, which made him the first black stormtrooper. At the time of his casting, he was 22 years old.

The first film in the relaunched franchise was 2015's "The Force Awakens," which made $2 billion at the box office.

He went on to reprise his role in both 2017's "The Last Jedi" and 2019's "The Rise of Skywalker." Early last year, a script for the latter film was discovered on e-Bay, after Boyega accidentally left it in a hotel room

A Lucasfilm employee bought the script to prevent the plot of the new film from being leaked. 

Source: BBC, Hypebeast



After his casting in the "Star Wars" movies, Boyega dealt with hate messages and criticism from franchise fans.

In a 2019 interview with Hypebeast, Boyega acknowledged that sometimes, the discourse among Star Wars fans was "complicated." 

"On Twitter, for example, I have a fan who hates the films, right? And he'll be rude directly to me and I'll be rude back and then they start crying like babies," Boyega told the outlet.

"Then they're like, 'Why are you attacking me?' And it's like I thought we were on the same page. I thought we're just going at it, we're Star Wars fans, we're supposed to be heated about this," he continued. "You've got to take what you can give. I don't care what profession you're in. That's a mantra for life."



Boyega also starred in the 2017 film "Detroit" and has been cast in the upcoming series, "Small Axe."

Boyega starred in Kathryn Bigelow's 2017 film "Detroit" about the 1976 Detroit Riots, which saw numerous confrontations between the Detroit police and black residents in the area. 

In 2018, Boyega was set to participate in a project called "Hold Back the Stars" with actress Letitia Wright, but the duo dropped out of the project, with Boyega telling ABC Audio, "We just wanted to make the vibe more black. You got to choose the right music, the right vibe, the right tone." 

The pair is still set to star in Steve McQueen's upcoming mini-series, "Small Axe." 



In 2016, he won the BAFTA Rising Star Award.

Source: BAFTA



In 2016, he cofounded a production company called UpperRoom Entertainment Limited.

The company produced the 2018 film "Pacific Rim: Uprising," which Boyega starred in.

Source: Forbes



In 2020, Netflix announced a production deal with UpperRoom Entertainment Limited to develop projects about various African countries.

"I am thrilled to partner with Netflix to develop a slate of non-English language feature films focused on African stories, and my team and I are excited to develop original material," Boyega said. "We are proud to grow this arm of our business with a company that shares our vision."



His work is paying off: He is estimated to have a net worth of at least $21 million.

This year, the actor made the The Sunday Times' annual Young Rich List, with an estimated£17 million fortune ($21.5 million).

He's used some of that money to surprise his parents with lavish gifts. Boyega bought his parents a new Jaguar, and in January 2020, he shared an Instagram video from 2017 in which he revealed that he had bought them a house. 



Boyega is known for being outspoken. In a 2019 interview with Hypebeast, he admitted that "The Last Jedi" was "a bit iffy" for him.

Boyega said in a 2019 interview with Hypebeast that he "didn't necessarily agree with a lot of the choices in that [film]."

Specifically, he expressed disappointment that the characters in the film were not able to bond as closely as characters in the original films were able to, telling the publication: "I guess in the original Star Wars films there was much more of a trio feel where it was essentially about Luke's journey, but, Han and Leia, there was a strong dynamic."

"The Last Jedi" went on to receive positive reviews from critics, but the final film in the Star Wars received lukewarm reviews, scoring just 52% on Rotten Tomatoes

When asked in 2019 by Variety if Boyega was interested in reprising his role if the Star Wars franchise was re-launched again, he said, "You ain't going to Disney Plus me!"



He has also used his platform to criticize Hollywood's lack of diversity.

In 2017, Boyega gave an interview with GQ Magazine where he said: "There are no black people on Game of Thrones ... You don't see one black person in Lord of the Rings."

"I ain't paying money to always see one type of person on-screen," he continued.



Now, he's on the frontlines of the Black Lives Matter movement and protests in London.

In late May, Boyega tweeted his outrage about the death of George Floyd. The move received some criticism from his fans. He then went on Instagram live to address those fans, saying:  "F--- you, racist white people. I said what I said. And if you don't f---ing like it, go suck a d---."

In early June, he led one of London's Black Lives Matter protests.

The protest was one of many that have been sparked across the world after George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Floyd's death has created a re-examination of systematic racism in the United States and throughout the world. 

"Black people: I love you. I appreciate you," Boyega continued at the protest. "Today is an important day. We are fighting for our rights. We are fighting for our ability to live in freedom."

He has received support from key players in Hollywood, including Jordan Peele, who said, "We got you, John," after it was insinuated that Boyega might not have a career after speaking out.

Numerous directors and filmmakers have since also tweeted their wish to work with Boyega, including Olivia Wilde, Lin-Manuel Miranda, and Cathy Yan.

 

 



How 'white savior' films like 'The Help' and 'Green Book' hurt Hollywood

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Following is a transcript of the video.

Manny: The film "Hidden Figures" is based on a true story, and one of its most powerful scenes is when Al Harrison, played by Kevin Costner, heroically rips down a "coloreds only" sign above a women's restroom.

- Here at NASA, we all pee the same color.

Manny: Later in the film, Harrison graciously grants Katherine Johnson, played by Taraji P. Henson, access to the control room so that she can watch the rocket launch that she helped bring to fruition. Couple problems here though. The real Katherine Johnson says she had to watch the launch from her desk. Furthermore, it turns out that Al Harrison never even existed. He's completely made up! Why?

Kevin Costner's character is what's known as a "white savior." A white character who saves a person of color from their troubles, troubles that the person of color can't save themselves from. The white savior trope has been utilized since the beginning of filmmaking, but it really grew popular during the civil rights era. Offscreen, black activists were leading the fight for civil rights in America, but filmmakers turned to white characters to tell these nonwhite stories.

"To Kill a Mockingbird" is about a white lawyer who defends a black man from fabricated charges. "Lawrence of Arabia" is about a British lieutenant who acts as a liaison for the Arab National Council in the Middle East. As the years went on, the number of white savior films multiplied. "Mississippi Burning" is the story of missing civil rights activists and the white agents' tasked to find them. "Glory" is about an all-black regiment led into battle by Robert Shaw. Fun fact, "Glory" manages to be a white savior film despite the fact that Shaw doesn't actually save anyone. He literally leads them to death. And the power of the white savior should never be underestimated. In "Gran Torino," a racist white man is heralded for saving the people of color that he's always racist to.

- What the hell'd these Chinese have to move in this neighborhood for?

Manny: Hard pass. No matter how black or multicultural a film is in its content, filmmakers would have us believe that white characters are the best vehicles for the story. Characters of color become far less important in their own stories. And yes, many white savior films are based on true stories. But they often either oversimplify race issues or flat out get things wrong.

This is how we get movies like the 2019 Best Picture Winner, "Green Book." The film is about Don Shirley, a black, queer musical genius with multiple doctorates, told through the lens of his...driver? The film quickly became controversial because Shirley's living relatives say that it's incredibly misleading. They told USA Today, "The thing that bothers our family is that the focus of the film is all about a white man who is an extreme racist and who was still a racist at the end." Indeed, Tony "Lip," played by Viggo Mortensen, is the main character. At one point in the film, he tells Don Shirley that he needs to connect with black culture more, going so far as to say that he's blacker than him.

- Excuse me?!

Manny: And at one point, teaching him how to eat fried chicken. Of course, Shirley's younger brother told 1A that Don was not estranged from the black community whatsoever, and that he had 100% eaten fried chicken before. Details aren't the only things that white savior films struggle with. They're also accused of reinforcing the idea that racism is largely gone today. After being bombarded with movie after movie about how far we've come as a nation, white savior films end up minimizing the issues that people of color go through today. Viewers may leave a white savior film saying, "Thank God we are not like this anymore!" When in fact, many of us are still exactly like this. Spike Lee illustrated this point ever so clearly in "BlacKkKlansman" by tying the bigotry and hate from its story set in the '70s to the current political climate we're in today.

- America first.

- America first!

Manny: In a time where politicians are being outed for wearing blackface, white supremacists are on the rise, and racially motivated shootings are in the headline, these "look how far we've come" white savior movies are becoming increasingly tiring. Filmmakers seem to believe that if stories about people of color are told in a real and authentic way, then white characters would have little to no place in them. Well, maybe that's how it should be.

EDITOR'S NOTE: This video was originally published in March 2019.

Join the conversation about this story »

How to watch 'Artemis Fowl' on Disney Plus

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Artemis Fowl Disney

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Disney Plus subscribers can now stream the brand-new fantasy film "Artemis Fowl." Though the movie was initially intended to be released in theaters on May 29, the studio decided to delay the film's premiere to June 12 and shift its debut to Disney Plus. 

"Artemis Fowl" is based on the 2001 young adult novel written by Eoin Colfer. The story follows a 12-year-old criminal mastermind who must face off against a secret group of fairies in order to locate his missing father. The movie stars Ferdia Shaw as the title character, and features Josh Gad, Colin Farrell, and Judi Dench in supporting roles. "Artemis Fowl" is directed by Kenneth Branagh, who is best known for directing Marvel's "Thor" and Disney's live-action version of "Cinderella".

Below, we've detailed everything you need to know about watching "Artemis Fowl" on Disney Plus.

How do I watch 'Artemis Fowl' on Disney Plus?

"Artemis Fowl" is currently available exclusively on Disney Plus. To watch the movie you'll need a subscription to the streaming service.

Disney Plus is available for $6.99 per month or $69.99 per year. New members can receive a free seven-day trial. In addition to "Artemis Fowl," the Disney Plus service includes access to a large catalog of movies and TV shows from DisneyPixarMarvelStar WarsNational Geographic, and 20th Century Fox. 

For people who want access to even more streaming content, Disney Plus is also available as part of a discounted bundle with Hulu and ESPN+ for a total of $12.99 per month. That's about $5 less per month than you'd pay if you subscribed to each platform separately.

Once you subscribe to Disney Plus, you can watch "Artemis Fowl" directly through the Disney Plus app or website. The Disney Plus app is available on most connected devices, including iOS and Android smartphones, Xbox One and PlayStation 4, various smart TVs, and streaming players from Amazon, Apple, Roku, and Chromecast. You'll need an internet connection to stream the movie, and Disney Plus offers an option to download titles to a mobile device for offline viewing.

What other exclusive movies can I watch on Disney Plus?

Disney Plus features a growing library of original movies developed exclusively for the service. Other major releases currently available to stream on Disney Plus include the holiday film "Noelle", a live-action version of "Lady and the Tramp," the historical drama "Togo", and the adventure movie "Timmy Failure: Mistakes Were Made."

A movie version of the popular Broadway musical "Hamilton" is also set to premiere exclusively on Disney Plus. "Hamilton" will premiere on July 3.

You can check out a full listing of all the major exclusive movies on Disney Plus here. For more streaming recommendations, be sure to check out our guide to the best streaming services.

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NOW WATCH: Pathologists debunk 13 coronavirus myths

The 100 best drama movies of all time, according to critics

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  • We ranked the 100 best dramas of all time based on Rotten Tomatoes' adjusted score.
  • The adjusted score is based on a weighted formula that gives newer movies an advantage.
  • The list includes classics like "Citizen Kane," recent Oscar winners like "Moonlight," and blockbusters like "Black Panther."
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

As a cinematic genre, "drama" has taken many forms over the decades.

The list we compiled here is based on review aggregator Rotten Tomatoes and includes the site's most critically acclaimed films featuring a "drama" tag. It's an unexpected mix of action movies, classic films, and modern Oscar contenders. 

The list ranks movies by an adjusted critical score that Rotten Tomatoes derived from a weighted formula to account for the variation in number of reviews for each film. Therefore, the list favors more recent critically acclaimed films that have more reviews.

It still includes classic dramas like "Citizen Kane" and "Taxi Driver" but favors recent titles like the best-picture winners "Spotlight" and "Moonlight."

It also includes "Gone with the Wind," which was pulled from WarnerMedia's new streaming competitor HBO Max last week amid nationwide protests against racism, but will return with a discussion about its historical context and depiction of racial stereotypes.

There are also plenty of blockbusters that have been heavily reviewed, like Marvel's "Avengers: Endgame" and "Black Panther."

John Lynch contributed to a previous version of this post.

Here are the 100 best drama films of all time, according to critic scores on Rotten Tomatoes:

SEE ALSO: All 92 Oscar best-picture winners, ranked from worst to best by movie critics

100. "Scarface" (1932)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said:"Scarface is one of best of the early gangster movies; its wit and building velocity speeds it past Little Caesar and keeps pace with Public Enemy."— Los Angeles Times



99. "Paterson" (2016)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 71%

What critics said: "A filmmaker telling his story in pictures and the limitlessness of control he brings to his art. What more can one ask of cinema?" — San Diego Reader



98. "Gone with the Wind" (1939)

Critic score: 91%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said:"'Gone With the Wind' offers the kind of big, rich, opulent experience the movies are in a unique position to offer but seldom do."— Chicago Tribune



97. "Phantom Thread" (2018)

Critic score: 91%

Audience score: 70%

What critics said: "If Anderson's The Master was a swirling miasma, Phantom Thread is an unforgiving dress. It presents an ideal and even inspires wonder, but it does make breathing difficult, and heaven help you if all you want is to have a good time."— San Diego Reader



96. "It's a Wonderful Life" (1946)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "The most well-loved of all Christmas movies." — Chicago Tribune



95. "The Last Picture Show" (1971)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "Director Peter Bogdanovich has seen Anarene, Texas, in the cinematic terms of 1951 -- the langorous dissolves, the strong chiaroscuro, the dialogue that starts with bickering and ends at confessional." — Time



94. "Taxi Driver" (1976)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "Like Werner Herzog's 'Aguirre' or Coppola's 'Apocalypse Now,' 'Taxi Driver' is auteurist psychodrama." — Village Voice



93. "L.A. Confidential" (1997)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "A movie bull's-eye: noir with an attitude, a thriller packing punches. It gives up its evil secrets with a smile." — Chicago Tribune



92. "Roman Holiday" (1953)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "For lovers of romantic comedies through the ages, 'Roman Holiday' remains a favorite." — ReelViews



91. "Stagecoach" (1939)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said:"Directorially, production is John Ford in peak form, sustaining interest and suspense throughout, and presenting exceptional characterizations. Picture is a display of photographic grandeur."— Variety



90. "Vertigo" (1958)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "It's as much a wonder of suspense as it is a catalogue of the director's themes and an allegory for his own art of enticement-and for the erotic pitfalls of his métier." — The New Yorker



89. "The Hate U Give" (2018)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 82%

What critics said:"The Hate U Give has a fierce storytelling grip."— Guardian



88. "Open City" (1946)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 92%

What critics said: "A world cinema landmark, but that dusty, respectful word does not do justice to a film that has not lost its power to surprise and even shock." — Los Angeles Times



87. "The Godfather, Part II" (1974)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 97%

What critics said: "An admirable, responsible production, less emotionally disturbing than its predecessor, but a grand historical epic studying the nature of power in the United States' heritage." — The Hollywood Reporter



86. "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 89%

What critics said: "From such grisly materials the popular cinema is rarely drawn. The film is monumental in the courage that risked its manufacture." — Time



85. "The Grapes of Wrath" (1940)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 88%

What critics said: "'The Grapes of Wrath' is just about as good as any picture has a right to be; if it were any better, we just wouldn't believe our eyes." — The New York Times



84. "The Wages of Fear" (1953)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "The film's extended suspense sequences deserve a place among the great stretches of cinema." — Chicago Sun-Times



83. "The Hurt Locker" (2009)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 84%

What critics said: "Like every war before it, the U.S. invasion of Iraq has generated its share of movies. But 'The Hurt Locker' is the first of them that can properly be called a masterpiece." — Miami Herald



82. "Battleship Potemkin" (1925)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said:"Because Battleship Potemkin is an appeal to fellow-feeling and collective action, it is only right that the restoration work creates a more immersive film, one that places no barriers between a 21st-century audience and its monumentally powerful imagery."— Guardian



81. "Hidden Figures" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "An assertion of humanity and civil rights that is pure cinematic nourishment for soul." — Tribune News Service



80. "The Death of Stalin" (2018)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 77%

What critics said: "The Death of Stalin is actually a lot like Veep, except with gulags and executions."— Dallas Morning News



79. "Apocalypse Now" (1979)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said:"It has coherence, truthfulness, and conviction-up to a point."— New Yorker



78. "Dolemite Is My Name" (2019)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 91%

What critics said:"Murphy brings the spirit of Blaxploitation underdog Rudy Ray Moore to life, with tell-it-like-it-is radiance. His timing is, as always, cobra-strike precise."— Time



77. "The Big Sleep" (1946)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 91%

What critics said: "Arguably the high-water mark of Hollywood's love affair with the infinitely slippery possibilities of the English language."— Time Out



76. "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows — Part 2" (2011)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 89%

What critics said: "When the movie was over, a young boy sitting behind me said, "That was great!" He was satisfied, and rightly so." — The New Yorker



75. "Tokyo Story (Tôkyô monogatari)" (1953)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "The way Ozu builds up emotional empathy for a sense of disappointment in its various characters is where his mastery lies." — Time Out



74. "His Girl Friday" (1940)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said:"Roughest spots in the original versions have been sandpapered or excised, the pressroom's whiskey cynicism toned down to half of one per cent, but the comedy still has enough Hecht-MacArthur kick to make later interpolations smell synthetic."— Time Magazine



73. "The Wrestler" (2008)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 88%

What critics said: "This sad, strong beast of a film keeps us pinned to the mat with the strength of its compassion and the overpowering force of its central performance." — Houston Chronicle



72. "Creed" (2015)

Critic score: 95%

Audience score: 89%

What critics said: "It's an invigorating piece of nostalgia that fuels a bigger adrenaline rush with its climax than any big-budget blockbuster could provide." — The Atlantic



71. "Double Indemnity" (1944)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "This shrewd, smoothly tawdry thriller, directed by Billy Wilder, is one of the high points of nineteen-forties films." — The New Yorker



70. "The Treasure of the Sierra Madre" (1948)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "Greed, a despicable passion out of which other base ferments may spawn, is seldom treated in the movies with the frank and ironic contempt that is vividly manifested toward it in 'Treasure of Sierra Madre.'" — The New York Times



69. "Rashômon" (1951)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said:"What Akira Kurosawa and his tiny production team wrought is now an accepted maxim of modern life, a creed by which to live in a world where everyone has a blog and an opinion."— Boston Globe



68. "Army of Shadows (L'Armée des ombres)" (1969)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "From the first sight of German soldiers goose-stepping past the Arc de Triomphe to a postscript that spells out the fate of characters whose moral confusion is all too real, 'Army of Shadows' is a movie of its time — and ours." — Rolling Stone



67. "On the Waterfront" (1954)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "It's hard to deny that Marlon Brando's performance as a dock worker and ex-fighter who finally decides to rat on his gangster brother (Rod Steiger) is pretty terrific." — Chicago Reader



66. "Kind Hearts and Coronets" (1949)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "Robert Hamer's 1949 film is often cited as the definitive black, eccentric British comedy, yet it's several cuts better than practically anything else in the genre."— Chicago Reader



65. "The 400 Blows (Les Quatre cents coups)" (1959)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "One of the first glistening droplets of the French New Wave." — Time Out



64. "The Dark Knight" (2008)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "An exceptionally smart, brooding picture with some terrific performances." — CNN



63. "The Babadook" (2014)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 72%

What critics said: "A deftly inventive and psychologically charged horror story that trades on the ways in which the prospect of maternal failure can be just as fearsome a boogeyman as any monster under the bed." — Buzzfeed



62. "Brooklyn" (2015)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 87%

What critics said: "Although not without moments of sadness and tragedy, 'Brooklyn' is sublimely uplifting and life affirming." — ReelViews



61. "Three Billboards Outside Ebbing, Missouri" (2017)

Critic score: 90%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said: "Watching it is like having your funny bone struck repeatedly, expertly and very much too hard by a karate super-black-belt capable of bringing a rhino to its knees with a single punch behind the ear."— Guardian



60. "12 Angry Men (Twelve Angry Men)" (1957)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 97%

What critics said: "This is a film where tension comes from personality conflict, dialogue and body language, not action." — Chicago Sun-Times



59. "Jaws" (1975)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "A grisly film, often ugly as sin, which achieves precisely what it set out to accomplish-scare the hell out of you." — Newsweek



58. "Rear Window" (1954)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "It's one of Alfred Hitchcock's inspired audience-participation films: watching it, you feel titillated, horrified, and, ultimately, purged." — The New Yorker



57. "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said:"Remains one of the most intelligent, handsome, and influential of all war epics." — Chicago Reader



56. "Chinatown" (1974)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "Roman Polanski's American made film, first since 'Rosemary's Baby' shows him again in total command of talent and physical filmmaking elements." — Variety



55. "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1951)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "Brando's performance as Stanley is one of those rare screen legends that are all they're cracked up to be." — The Washington Post



54. "Touch of Evil" (1955)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 92%

What critics said: "It was Orson Welles's last Hollywood film, and in it he makes transcendent use of the American technology his genius throve on; never again would his resources be so rich or his imagination so fiendishly baroque." — Chicago Reader



53. "Hell or High Water" (2016)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 88%

What critics said: "A film with the sort of sweeping grandeur that today's filmmakers rarely aspire to, let alone fulfill." — Wall Street Journal



52. "Sunset Boulevard" (1950)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "One of Wilder's finest, and certainly the blackest of all Hollywood's scab-scratching accounts of itself." — Time Out



51. "Bicycle Thieves (Ladri di biciclette)" (1949)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "So well-entrenched as an official masterpiece that it is a little startling to visit it again after many years and realize that it is still alive and has strength and freshness." — Chicago Sun-Times



50. "Shoplifters" (2018)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 91%

What critics said:"Writer-director Hirokazu Kore-eda fills the film with grace notes, humor and fine observations, circling and filling out each character while leaning more on innocence than corruption."— Detroit News



49. "The Night of the Hunter" (1955)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "A garish, unbelievable but fairly exciting nightmare." — Time



48. "Seven Samurai (Shichinin no Samurai)" (1956)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 97%

What critics said: "The greatest movie ever made about warriors and battle." — Chicago Reader



47. "M" (1931)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "Lang's movie is that rare thing, a nail-biting soul-searcher. While 'M' steers clear of analyzing deviance, it is startling in its musings on which punishment fits an inhuman crime." — Philadelphia Inquirer



46. "Metropolis" (1927)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 92%

What critics said: "A fully realized work of art whose influence on science fiction, set design and symbolism can scarcely be put into words." — St. Louis Post-Dispatch



45. "Rebecca" (1940)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 92%

What critics said: "It is the finest job of direction accomplished by a master director and may justly be called Alfred Hitchcock's masterpiece." — New York Daily News



44. "Spider-Man: Homecoming" (2017)

Critic score: 92%

Audience score: 88%

What critics said: "Marvel has finally started to figure out what the future of superhero movies might look like." — IndieWire



43. "Widows" (2018)

Critic score: 91%

Audience score: 61%

What critics said:"It offers everything adults used to love about cinema."— Observer



42. "The Florida Project" (2017)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 79%

What critics said: "The Florida Project is a song of innocence and of experience: mainly the former."— Guardian 



41. "War for the Planet of the Apes" (2017)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 84%

What critics said: "The best summer blockbuster in years, a smart, thoughtful, confrontational and challenging allegory for a world run amok." — Detroit News



40. "La La Land" (2016)

Critic score: 91%

Audience score: 81%

What critics said: "I'm hoping that 'La La Land' will be a hit for the ages, for all ages. It's a film that re-enacts, with rare originality, a classic role for the movie medium -- escapist entertainment in troubled times." — The Wall Street Journal



39. "The Maltese Falcon" (1941)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 91%

What critics said: "Frighteningly good evidence that the British (Alfred Hitchcock, Carol Reed, et al.) have no monopoly on the technique of making mystery films." — Time



38. "Baby Driver" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said: "Put in your metaphorical earbuds, turn the key in the ignition, and enjoy the cinematic highlight of the summer so far." — The Atlantic



37. "12 Years a Slave" (2013)

Critic score: 95%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "Every scene of '12 Years a Slave,' and almost every shot, conveys some penetrating truth about America's original sin." — Dallas Morning News



36. "The Battle of Algiers (La Battaglia di Algeri)" (1967)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "It uses realism as an effect, documentary as a style. You feel that you're really there, and you can't help but be moved." — Village Voice



35. "Argo" (2012)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "Let's just say that the movie's final section is so nail-bitingly tense, thanks to a skillful combination of acting, writing and crosscutting, that it puts Affleck in the big leagues as a director." — The Wrap



34. "Manchester by the Sea" (2016)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 77%

What critics said: "The sadness of 'Manchester by the Sea' is the kind of sadness that makes you feel more alive, rather than less, to the preciousness of things." — Boston Globe



33. "Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood" (2019)

Critic score: 85%

Audience score: 70%

What critics said:"It is Tarantino's best, bravest and most confrontationally impudent movie since Pulp Fiction."— Financial Times



32. "Leave No Trace" (2018)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 81%

What critics said: "It covers difficult ground, but to say it leaves no trace would be a lie. It definitely makes its mark." — Detroit News



31. "Boyhood" (2014)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 80%

What critics said: "The closest thing to a lived life that fictional cinema has yet produced." — St. Louis Post-Dispatch



30. "Alien" (1979)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "A screamingly spooky sci-fi tale with more than a few echoes of 'The Thing' but echoes which enhance rather than detract." — New York Daily News



29. "Gravity" (2013)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 80%

What critics said: "Unfolding as a series of terrifying object lessons in Newtonian physics, the movie lends new meaning to the phrase 'spatial geometry.'" — The Atlantic



28. "The Favourite" (2018)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 68%

What critics said:"Weisz and Stone are both brilliantly witty and nimble, but Colman's performance is nothing short of sublime."— New York Times



27. "Shadow of a Doubt" (1943)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 89%

What critics said:"Shadow of a Doubt may or may not be Hitchcock's greatest film, but it's his most intimate and heart-wrenching."— New Yorker



26. "Star Wars: The Last Jedi" (2017)

Critic score: 90%

Audience score: 43%

What critics said: "Rian Johnson's middle chapter in the current Star Wars trilogy is the epic you've been looking for. Capped by Mark Hamill in the performance of his career, it points the way ahead to a next generation of skywalkers - and, thrillingly, to a new hope."— Rolling Stone



25. "Call Me By Your Name" (2017)

Critic score: 95%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said: "You may not realize how strong the acting is until you replay the movie in your head later."— Boston Globe



24. "Logan" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "The only problem with calling it the boldest and most affecting superhero flick in many years is that it's barely a superhero movie at all." — NPR



23. "All About Eve" (1950)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 94%

What critics said: "Joseph Mankiewicz was Hollywood's midcentury master of comic drama, and All About Eve, from 1950, was one of his signal achievements." — The New Yorker



22. "Arrival" (2016)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 82%

What critics said: "Amy Adams is a miracle worker-she makes us believe in this mesmerizing mindbender about alien communication, directed with searching mind and heart by Denis Villeneuve." — Rolling Stone



21. "Thor: Ragnarok" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 87%

What critics said: "The idea of pairing the oft-dull Thor with a series of oddball companions is an inspired, if necessary, move — so much so that it's baffling it has taken Marvel this long to smarten up."— Globe and Mail



20. "The Shape of Water" (2017)

Critic score: 92%

Audience score: 72%

What critics said: "Del Toro's willingness to court absurdity and bad taste serves to guarantee his integrity, proving he hasn't entirely gone respectable."— The Age (Australia)



19. "Selma" (2015)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said: "'Selma' focuses on the one thing we don't expect in a movie about Martin Luther King Jr. - his doubts - and Oyelowo comes through with a deeply felt and quite brilliant performance." — Boston Globe



18. "A Quiet Place" (2018)

Critic score: 95%

Audience score: 83%

What critics said: "There are moments when the movie takes us firmly by the hand and escorts us down a darkened path, and they lead to one of the most profound of communal pleasures: the sound of a movie audience screaming as one."— Slate



17. "Spotlight" (2015)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "It's not a stretch to suggest that 'Spotlight' is the finest newspaper movie of its era, joining 'Citizen Kane' and 'All the President's Men' in the pantheon of classics of the genre." — The Washington Post



16. "The Godfather" (1972)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 98%

What critics said: "Francis Ford Coppola has made one of the most brutal and moving chronicles of American life ever designed within the limits of popular entertainment." — The New York Times



15. "La Grande illusion (Grand Illusion)" (1938)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 93%

What critics said: "This elegy for the death of the old European aristocracy is one of the true masterpieces of the screen." — The New Yorker



14. "Roma" (2018)

Critic score: 95%

Audience score: 72%

What critics said:"Roma captures, as well as any film I have seen, the spirit of 'magical realism,' without ever hinting at the supernatural. Its magic is pure, stunning cinematic technique."— The Atlantic



13. "Dunkirk" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 81%

What critics said: "Masterful visual storytelling on an epic scale."— NPR



12. "The Farewell" (2019)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 87%

What critics said:"You'll be spewing with tears before the first act is done."— Times (UK)



11. "Wonder Woman" (2017)

Critic score: 93%

Audience score: 88%

What critics said: "The moviegoing world deserves the best that Hollywood can deliver, and this time we've pretty much got it." — The Wall Street Journal



11. "A Star Is Born" (2018)

Critic score: 90%

Audience score: 79%

What critics said:"At its huge, pulsating heart this is a story about lovers desperately trying to save one another — from the loss of integrity in an industry that disdains it and from self-destructive impulses with roots too old and deep to be touched."— London Evening Standard



9. "Moonlight" (2016)

Critic score: 98%

Audience score: 79%

What critics said: "A disarmingly, at times almost unbearably personal film and an urgent social document, a hard look at American reality and a poem written in light, music and vivid human faces." — The New York Times



8. "Casablanca" (1942)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 95%

What critics said: "Across seven decades, the Humphrey Bogart-Ingrid Bergman starrer has emerged as Americans' default favorite movie." — The Hollywood Reporter



7. "BlacKkKlansman" (2018)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 83%

What critics said: "The filmmaker rips from the headlines, but the struggles remain the same."— Slate



6. "Citizen Kane" (1941)

Critic score: 100%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said: "More than a great movie; it is a gathering of all the lessons of the emerging era of sound." — Chicago Sun-Times



5. "The Irishman" (2019)

Critic score: 96%

Audience score: 86%

What critics said:"'The Irishman' is long, to be sure, but it's never less than compelling — Scorsese, De Niro, Pacino and Pesci, all in their mid-to-late-70s, are each carrying a lifetime of work, with practiced ease."— Seattle Times



4. "Mission: Impossible — Fallout" (2018)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 87%

What critics said:"It keeps on going and going, following one exciting sequence with another and then another."— San Francisco Chronicle



4. "Lady Bird" (2017)

Critic score: 99%

Audience score: 79%

What critics said: "A heartfelt coming-of-age story that perfectly captures the bittersweet transition from adolescence to dawning adulthood."— Village Voice



2. "Avengers: Endgame" (2019)

Critic score: 94%

Audience score: 90%

What critics said:"Endgame consists almost entirely of the downtime scenes that were always secretly everyone's favorite parts of these movies anyway."— Slate



1. "Black Panther" (2018)

Critic score: 97%

Audience score: 79%

What critics said: "Whether or not this is the best film Marvel Studios has made to date — and it is clearly in the discussion — it is by far the most thought-provoking."— The Atlantic



All 92 Oscar best-picture winners, ranked from worst to best by movie critics

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parasite

  • The next Oscars ceremony was delayed from February 2021 to April 2021.
  • 92 movies have won the Oscar for best picture in the history of the Academy Awards.
  • We ranked all 92 films based on how well they fared with critics, including the latest, "Parasite."

Movie buffs will have to wait a tad longer for the next Oscars ceremony. 

The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, the Oscars voting body, announced this week that the 93rd Academy Awards would be pushed back from February 2021 to April 2021 and that the eligibility window would extend from the final day of this year through February. 

The move comes amid the coronavirus pandemic, which has forced studios to delay releases and movie theaters to shut down (though the major chains, like Regal and AMC Theatres, are expected to reopen by July).

That leaves "Parasite" to be the reigning Oscars champion for a little longer. The movie became the first international film to win best picture at this year's Oscars, joining 91 past winners.

One of the winners, 1939's "Gone with the Wind," was pulled from WarnerMedia's new streaming competitor HBO Max last week as protests against racism spread across the US. It will return with a conversation about its historical context and racial stereotypes.

Business Insider ranked all 92 best picture winners — from the first winner, "Wings," in 1927 to "Parasite"— based on their critic score on reviews-aggregator site Rotten Tomatoes. In the case of ties, we broke them based on their audience scores on the site. (And if those were the same, the film with more user ratings came out on top.) 

All 92 best picture Oscar winners are ranked below:

SEE ALSO: The 50 best movies of all time, according to critics

92. "The Broadway Melody" (1929)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 36%



91. "The Greatest Show on Earth" (1952)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 43%



90. "Cimarron" (1931)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 52%



89. "Out of Africa" (1985)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 58%



88. "Cavalcade" (1933)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 61%



87. "The Great Ziegfeld" (1936)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 66%



86. "Forrest Gump" (1994)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 70%



85. "Around the World in 80 Days" (1956)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 72%



84. "Gentleman's Agreement" (1947)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 74%

Audience score: 77%

 



83. "Crash" (2004)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 74%

Audience score: 88%



82. "A Beautiful Mind" (2001)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 74%

Audience score: 93%



81. "Gladiator" (2000)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 77%

Audience score: 87%



80. "Braveheart" (1995)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 78%

Audience score: 85%



79. "Green Book" (2018)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 78%

Audience score: 91% 



78. "Terms of Endearment" (1983)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 79%

Audience score: 83%



77. "Gigi" (1958)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 80%

Audience score: 74%



76. "The Life of Emile Zola" (1937)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 81%

Audience score: 73% 



75. "Driving Miss Daisy" (1989)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 81%

Audience score: 81%



74. "Oliver!" (1968)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 82%

Audience score: 81%



73. "Going My Way" (1944)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 83% 

Audience score: 75%



72. "A Man For All Seasons" (1966)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 83%

Audience score: 87% (9,761 user ratings)



71. "Dances With Wolves" (1990)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 83%

Audience score: 87% (213,660 user ratings)



70. "The Sound of Music" (1965)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 83%

Audience score: 91%



69. "Chariots of Fire" (1981)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 85%

Audience score: 80%



68. "The English Patient" (1996)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 85%

Audience score: 83%



67. "Gandhi" (1982)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 85%

Audience score: 92%



66. "Tom Jones" (1963)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

Audience score: 58%



65. "Chicago" (2002)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

Audience score: 83%

 



64. "Ben-Hur" (1959)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 86%

Audience score: 89%

 



63. "American Beauty" (1999)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 87%

Audience score: 93% 



62. "Grand Hotel" (1932)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

Audience score: 77%



61. "Ordinary People" (1980)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

Audience score: 88% 



60. "Kramer vs. Kramer" (1979)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

Audience score: 89%



59. "Platoon" (1986)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%

Audience score: 93% 



58. "Titanic" (1997)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 89%

Audience score: 69%



57. "Rain Man" (1988)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 89%

Audience score: 90%



56. "The Last Emperor" (1987)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 90%

Audience score: 88% (39,892 user ratings)



55. "Midnight Cowboy" (1969)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 90%

Audience score: 88% (39,986 user ratings)



54. "Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance)" (2014)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 77% 



53. "How Green Was My Valley" (1941)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 81%



52. "Million Dollar Baby" (2004)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 90% (404,597 user ratings)



51. "Slumdog Millionaire" (2008)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 90% (1,155,691 user ratings)



50. "Gone with the Wind" (1939)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 93%



49. "The Departed" (2006)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%

Audience score: 94%



48. "The Shape of Water" (2017)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 92%

Audience score: 72%



47. "Shakespeare in Love" (1998)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 92%

Audience score: 80%



46. "From Here to Eternity" (1953)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 92%

Audience score: 84%



45. "Wings" (1927)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 78%



44. "Mutiny on the Bounty" (1935)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 83%



43. "West Side Story" (1961)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 84%



42. "Mrs. Miniver" (1942)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 85%



41. "No Country for Old Men" (2007)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 86% (398,967 user ratings)



40. "Lord of the Rings: Return of the King" (2003)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 86% (34,679,773 user ratings)



39. "You Can't Take It With You" (1938)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 88%



38. "The Deer Hunter" (1978)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 92% 



37. "The Apartment" (1960)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 94%



36. "Amadeus" (1984)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%

Audience score: 95% 



35. "Rocky" (1976)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Audience score: 69%



34. "In the Heat of the Night" (1967)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Audience score: 92%



33. "Patton" (1970)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Audience score: 93% 



32. "The Sting" (1973)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Audience score: 95% 



31. "One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest" (1975)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%

Audience score: 96% 



30. "All the King's Men" (1949)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 78%



29. "Hamlet " (1948)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 80%



28. "The Artist" (2011)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 87%



27. "12 Years a Slave" (2013)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 90% (140,233 user ratings)



26. "My Fair Lady" (1964)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 90% (187,023 user ratings)



25. "The King's Speech" (2010)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 92% 



24. "The Bridge on the River Kwai" (1957)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%

Audience score: 93%



23. "An American in Paris" (1951)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Audience score: 79%



22. "Argo" (2012)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Audience score: 90% 



21. "The Best Years of Our Lives" (1946)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Audience score: 93% (10,806 user ratings)



20. "Unforgiven" (1992)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Audience score: 93% 



19. "The Silence of the Lambs" (1991)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 96%

Audience score: 95% 



18. "The Hurt Locker" (2009)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

Audience score: 84%



17. "Spotlight" (2015)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

Audience score: 93%



16. "The Godfather Part II" (1974)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

Audience score: 97% (411,269 user ratings)



15. "Schindler's List" (1993)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%

Audience score: 97% (411,437 user ratings)



14. "Moonlight" (2016)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 79%



13. "The French Connection" (1971)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 87%



12. "All Quiet on the Western Front" (1930)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 89%



11. "Annie Hall" (1977)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 92%



10. "It Happened One Night" (1934)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 93% (33,653 user ratings)



9. "Lawrence of Arabia" (1962)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 93% (75,050 user ratings)



8. "The Godfather" (1972)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%

Audience score: 98%



7. "Parasite" (2019)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 99%

Audience score: 90%



6. "All About Eve" (1950)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 99%

Audience score: 94%



5. "On the Waterfront" (1954)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 99%

Audience score: 95% (52,168 user ratings)



4. "Casablanca" (1942)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 99%

Audience score: 95% (357,424 user ratings)



3. "Marty" (1955)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 100%

Audience score: 87%



2. "The Lost Weekend" (1945)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 100%

Audience score: 90%



1. "Rebecca" (1940)

Rotten Tomatoes score: 100%

Audience score: 92%



7 movies you can stream right now if you're trying to understand what it means to be an anti-racist

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  • Black Lives Matter protests spread across the country and the world after George Floyd was killed in police custody in Minneapolis, Minnesota, on May 25.
  • Anti-racism is an effort to consciously work against systemic racism.
  • To practice anti-racism, one must learn about how racial oppression and inequality have shaped the country's history.
  • Business Insider spoke with Samantha Sheppard, an assistant film professor at Cornell University with an academic focus on Black cultural production and African American cinema, about how films can help people understand anti-racism.
  • Sheppard said that people can watch films that talk about American history, the Black experience, and even racist films to learn about how racism exists and functions.
  • Here are some of Sheppard's film recommendations for learning what it means to be anti-racist.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

There is no such thing as a "non-racist" person, racism scholar Ibram X. Kendi says. Rather, people are either racist or anti-racist, because there is no room to be neutral. To be anti-racist, one must consciously work against racism, Robert J. Patterson, professor of African American Studies at Georgetown University, previously told Business Insider.

Start your anti-racist work by educating yourself. One way to educate yourself is through films, according to Samantha Sheppard. Sheppard teaches film at Cornell University, with a focus on Black cultural production.

Some of these films explore the beauty, pleasure, pain, and politics of Blackness and others have the power to teach you "the ways Hollywood has framed and tried to reframe Black people into very small categories and representational tropes," Sheppard told Business Insider. 

Sheppard added that you can even do anti-racist work by watching racist films and paying attention to the ways that the film is supporting racism. You have to interact with the film to do so. 

Two of Sheppard's recommended films aren't currently available online but are valuable to watch. "The Spook Who Sat by the Door," a 1973 film about a Black man who has an apprenticeship with the C.I.A. and uses what he learns to organize a Black Revolution, is "perhaps one of the most powerful films that has ever existed" in Sheppard's opinion. Another is "Killer of Sheep", a film about a financially frustrated Black boy who works at a slaughterhouse and lives in the neighborhood of Watts, Los Angeles, in the mid-1970s. These films, Sheppard said, can help viewers understand Black pain and politics.

Here are seven other movies you can stream right now to get you started, listed in order of release date.

SEE ALSO: 18 books on race and white privilege that will show you what's really happening in America right now

DON'T MISS: What it really means to be an anti-racist, and why it's not the same as being an ally

1. "Something Good-Negro Kiss" (1898)

"Something Good-Negro Kiss," a silent short film, shows two Black actors kissing and laughing four times in less than 30 seconds. It is the first-known film of a Black couple kissing.

The film was inducted into the Library of Congress in 2018. The press release marking the occasion said that the chemistry between the actors is what makes the film so powerful.

"It's really a beautiful piece of art and artifacts," Sheppard told Business Insider.

Watch it here >>



2. "Within Our Gates" (1920)

"Within Our Gates" is a silent film about a Black woman who works to save a school for impoverished Black students. The film was a response to a film called "The Birth of a Nation," about southern white people and the Ku Klux Klan. 

Dick Lehr, the author of the book "The Birth of a Nation: How a Legendary Filmmaker and a Crusading Editor Reignited America's Civil War,"told NPR in 2015 that the film's director, D.W. Griffith, "portrayed the emancipated slaves as heathens, as unworthy of being free, as uncivilized, as primarily concerned with passing laws so they could marry white women and prey on them."

"'Within Our Gates' really speaks back to the sort of racist white programming at the time that painted African Americans in really viscerally evil ways," Sheppard said. "And 'Within Our Gates' really takes seriously the very form and function of racism during this time, including white mob violence, the assault of Black women by white men, and tries to carefully reconstruct the Black path to Black memory."

This film is in the Library of Congress

Watch it here >>



3. "Do the Right Thing" (1989)

"Do the Right Thing" is a comedic drama that takes place over the course of one summer day in Brooklyn's Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood. The film highlights racial tensions in Brooklyn when a Black pizzeria delivery driver confronts the owner of the restaurant about its depiction of the neighborhood.

No. 27 on the National Society of Film Critics' "100 Essential Films" list, "Do the Right Thing" was controversial at the time of its release, but now it's considered a classic. 

"It's not dated; it hasn't aged,"Spike Lee, writer, director, and star of the film told USA Today in 2019.  "I was just trying to capture some truths as I saw them at the time that are still relevant today."

Watch it here >>



4. "Daughters of the Dust" (1991)

"Daughters of the Dust" is the story of a Black family living in South Carolina in the early 1900s after being enslaved in West Africa. Exploring themes of Black female identity, generational trauma, love, and belonging, this is Sheppard's favorite film on this list.

"I think that this film really understood that [making] films of a Black woman — and more importantly, [watching] films as a Black woman — involves a retraining of how you watch movies," Sheppard told Business Insider.

A film that is created to make us think about the way we look at cinema, Black women, and the way we remember history is a pleasure to experience, in Sheppard's view.

Watch it here >>



5. "Black Is ... Black Ain't" (1995)

"Black Is ... Black Ain't," a documentary, explores Black identity and diversity across the US. Produced by Marlon Riggs, the film explores perspectives of Black people of various ages with various backgrounds, including a range of wealth and sexual identity.

Watch it here >>



6. "Watermelon Woman" (1997)

"Watermelon Woman" is a romantic comedy-drama about a Black lesbian documentarian named Cheryl who is trying to make a film about an imaginary 1930s Black film actress commonly known as "the Watermelon Woman." The film is ultimately about Cheryl finding her own sense of identity and community.

Watch it here >>



7. "Moonlight" (2016)

"Moonlight"  tells the story of a gay Black man named Chiron growing up in Miami struggling with self-acceptance. The movie beautifully documents Chiron's experiences and emotions throughout his childhood and into his adult life. It won the Oscar for Best Picture at the 89th Academy Awards in 2017.

Watch it here >>



The top 9 movies on Netflix this week, from 'Da 5 Bloods' to '365 Days'

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  • Spike Lee's "Da 5 Bloods" is one of Netflix's most popular movies this week. 
  • Netflix introduced daily top lists of the most popular titles on the streaming service in February.
  • Streaming search engine Reelgood keeps track of the lists and provides Business Insider with a rundown of the week's most popular movies on Netflix every Friday.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Spike Lee's critically acclaimed Netflix movie "Da 5 Bloods" debuted on Friday and surged up the Netflix popularity charts this week. 

Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most viewed movies and TV shows in February (it counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a title).

Every week, the streaming search engine Reelgood compiles for Business Insider a list of which movies have been most prominent on Netflix's daily lists that week. On Reelgood, users can browse Netflix's entire movie library and sort by IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes ratings.

The most popular movie last week, "The Last Days of American Crime," dropped down the ranking this week but is still popular — even with its 0% Rotten Tomatoes critic score. And that's not even the only movie with a 0% score on this week's list.

Below are Netflix's 9 most popular movies of the week in the US:

SEE ALSO: 7 streaming TV shows that are trending this week, from Netflix's 'Dating Around' to Hulu's 'Love, Victor'

9. "Clueless" (1995)

Description: "Meddlesome Beverly Hills high school student Cher gets more than she bargained for when she gives a fashion-challenged student a makeover."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 80%

What critics said: "The movie is aimed at teenagers, but like all good comedies, it will appeal to anyone who has a sense of humor and an ear for the ironic."— Chicago Sun-Times



8. "Despicable Me" (2010)

Netflix description: "Villainous Gru hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 81%

What critics said: "The Steve Carell-starring animated comedy is an instant classic, and for anyone with kids, this might buy you a couple hours' peace."— Daily Beast



7. "The Last Days of American Crime" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "A bank robber joins a plot to commit one final, historic heist before the government turns on a mind-altering signal that will end all criminal behavior."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

What critics said: "A braindead slog that shambles forward like the zombified husk of the heist movie it wants to be, "The Last Days of American Crime" is a death march of clichés that offers nothing to look at and even less to consider."— Indiewire



6. "The Help" (2011)

Description: "A young, white writer stirs up the status quo in 1960s Mississippi by interviewing Black housemaids and bringing their stories to the masses."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 76%

What critics said: "It tackles a challenging, inflammatory subject in the corniest, safest way possible."— London Evening Standard



5. "The Night Clerk" (2020)

Description: "After a charming guest checks in, a voyeuristic hotel clerk on the autism spectrum becomes a suspect in a murder that takes place during his shift."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 34%

What critics said: "For an alleged psychological thriller, The Night Clerk has no thrills, suspense or tension."— Observer



4. "The Guest" (2014)

Description: "A stranger claiming to be the close friend of a recently deceased soldier invites acceptance — and doubt — from the dead man's family."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 91%

What critics said: "It's not a particularly brilliant conceit, but, not unlike Stevens's beautifully one-note performance, it's evocative nevertheless — lending the whole movie an aura of pop inevitability, turning its blunt predictability into something of a virtue."— Vulture



3. "Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs" (2009)

Description: "When inventor Flint Lockwood makes clouds rain food, the citizens of Chewandswallow can feed themselves. But a bowl of disaster is about to overflow."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 86%

What critics said: "This 3D cartoon based on the popular children's book is sweet and fun — not to mention a little trippy."— Sydney Morning Herald



2. "Da 5 Bloods" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Four African American veterans return to Vietnam decades after the war to find their squad leader's remains — and a stash of buried gold. From Spike Lee."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 92%

What critics said: "Foremost among its accomplishments is the confident ease with which it traverses many shades of human experience ... Lee does this by skillfully fading discrete genres into each other over the course of its two hour and 35 minute runtime."— Salon



1. "365 Days" (2020)

Description: "A fiery executive in a spiritless relationship falls victim to a dominant mafia boss, who imprisons her and gives her one year to fall in love with him."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

What critics said: "The movie pretty much cops every move made by 50 Shades, as if it were a bible of antisexy awfulness."— Decider




AMC will now require guests wear masks, reversing earlier decision after backlash (AMC)

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  • AMC Theaters CEO Adam Aron said Friday that the movie theater chain would now require guests to wear masks when venues start reopening on July 15, a reversal of the company's earlier stance.
  • AMC, which operates some 600 locations in the US and 1,000 around the world, said Thursday that it would not require guests to wear masks in order to avoid "political controversy."
  • The earlier stance prompted a backlash from customers. "REQUIRE MASKS," one person wrote on Twitter. 
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

The world's largest movie theater operator said Friday it will now require guests to wear face masks when US locations start reopening on July 15, marking a reversal from the company's earlier position.

On Thursday, AMC Theaters president Adam Aron said in an interview with Variety the company would not require guests to wear masks in order to avoid "political controversy." 

The announcement sparked a backlash online. "REQUIRE MASKS," one person wrote on Twitter.

"I'm canceling my AMC A-list membership," another said. "Not requiring masks is so cowardly. We've been fine streaming movies at home safely. Anyone that's been in a theater knows that there's always that one with a cough." 

In a statement Friday, Aron said AMC had been in consultation with top scientists and health experts "to create a broad, sweeping, far-reaching health and safety effort to make AMC Theatres safe for our guests and associates when our theatres reopen in July."  

He acknowledged that the company's initial plan prompted "an intense and immediate outcry from our customers.

"It is clear from this response that we did not go far enough on the usage of masks," he added.

Adam Aron AMC

Guests can bring their own masks, Aron said, or they can buy one for $1. Customers who are unwilling to wear a mask will not be admitted.

AMC operates some 600 theaters in the US, and 1,000 around the world. 

As some states across the US have started reopening businesses after months of lockdown, wearing a mask as a preventative measure has become a political football even as public health experts recommend it as crucial

On Thursday, President Donald Trump told The Wall Street Journal that some Americans wore facial coverings "not as a preventive measure but as a way to signal disapproval of him." 

Rival theater chain operators have issued varied responses about whether guests will have to wear masks once their locations reopen. 

Shortly after AMC's announcement, Regal Cinemas, the second-largest theater chain in the US, announced guests would have to wear masks in its theaters, as well, Deadline reported. Disposable masks will be provided upon request.

To date, Cinemark has said mask-wearing will be enforced where legally required, but not elsewhere, according to Deadline. 

 

 

 

Join the conversation about this story »

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Some Alamo Drafthouse Cinema employees in Texas say they've been forced to make a difficult choice as movie theaters reopen: return to work in fear or lose their paychecks

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Alamo Drafthouse Yonkers Kathy Tran final

  • Some furloughed employees with the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Dallas/Fort Worth franchise were told last week that DFW locations would reopen in July after being closed for four months amid the coronavirus pandemic.
  • Business Insider spoke with six people who were called back to work, all servers at various DFW venues, who said they were either not returning or had reservations about doing so.
  • DFW leadership gave the people a week to decide whether to return, but did not outline specific safety guidelines, which concerned the employees because coronavirus cases have been rising in Texas.
  • Other theaters could be facing a similar situation as other major chains have said they would reopen by July. Alamo is different than chains like AMC and Regal, though, in that it specializes in serving guests at their seats.
  • If you are a furloughed employee with any Alamo Drafthouse Cinema venue, contact the author at tclark@businessinsider.com or DM him on Twitter @TravClark2.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

On June 16, some furloughed employees at the Alamo Drafthouse Cinema franchise of Dallas/Fort Worth received an email from owner Bill DiGaetano with an update on reopening plans.

The letter, provided to Business Insider, said that Dallas/Forth Worth (DFW) venues would reopen in July, four months after the specialty theater chain Alamo Drafthouse Cinema closed all of its locations, along with most other theaters in the US, amid the coronavirus pandemic. Alamo furloughed all of its theater employees in March, along with 80% of corporate staff members.

Business Insider spoke with six furloughed employees, all of whom were servers at one of six Dallas/Forth Worth establishments, who received the letter. They all said they were either choosing not to return to work or were hesitant to do so. These staffers face the difficult choice of returning to a job that some fear could put their health at risk, or declining and losing their unemployment benefits. They requested anonymity to protect future job prospects or their current standing with Alamo DFW.

"It's all damned if you do, damned if you don't" situation, said one Lake Highlands, Texas, employee who said he planned to return.

Texas was early to allow theaters to reopen on May 1, at 25% capacity, but Alamo remained closed. Since then, Texas has seen coronavirus cases rise, with Saturday setting a state record for new cases. Still, DFW Alamo plans to reopen next month.

It's not alone.

Other theater chains, such as AMC Theatres, have said they would also reopen by July in time for the release of Disney's "Mulan" and Warner Bros. "Tenet." But the concerns some Alamo DFW employees expressed to Business Insider highlight the obstacles that theaters will face as they reopen in the coming weeks, particularly if they do so in places where coronavirus cases are rising.

Alamo Drafthouse Cinema is also different from larger chains like AMC and Regal in that it specializes in serving guests food and drinks at their seats.

"I'm not risking my life for $2.13 an hour," said one former Las Colinas, Texas, employee, who is choosing not to return and will instead focus on creative endeavors. He emphasized that servers rely on tips to make a living, and said he considered that an uneasy prospect now that attendance would likely be low amid the pandemic.

"My tip-based income relies on a predictable stream of guests," said another employee, who was unsure whether he would return to the Lake Highlands venue.

As coronavirus cases rise in Texas, some employees are hesitant to return to theaters

The letter said that coronavirus safety protocols would be implemented that have been recommended by the state and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

The Texas Department of State Health Services has said that theaters may operate at 50% capacity during any screening. Theaters where guests write down their food order, like Alamo Drafthouse, are encouraged to provide take-home pencils and notepads that can't be used by other moviegoers. The official Alamo Drafthouse Cinema Twitter tweeted on Friday that guests will be required to wear masks "except when eating and drinking" and those without a mask would be given one (but did not provide a reopening date).

But the nature of the Alamo business, where servers are regularly interacting with guests in close proximity — often while they are eating and drinking — made the staffers Business Insider spoke with uncomfortable with the idea of returning to work.

The letter the employees were sent only said "we will be providing you with a copy of the safety protocols before you return to work," but didn't outline them in detail. 

An Alamo Drafthouse Cinema spokesperson said that Alamo planned to announce safety guidelines for its theaters on Wednesday. DiGaetano, the owner of the DFW Alamo franchise, declined to comment.

Alamo Drafthouse Faye Murman

The Alamo staffers' concerns were heightened by the rising tally of coronavirus cases in Texas, which was quick to reopen businesses to stimulate the economy and reported 4,430 new cases on Saturday, a new high. The Texas health department attributed the numbers partly to people gathering at bars, beaches, and parties.

The DFW Alamo staffers were given a week (until Tuesday) to decide whether they would return, which some employees expressed disappointment in since leadership had not provided detailed safety protocols in advance.

One person said that she was reluctantly returning to the Denton, Texas, venue because she felt she didn't "have a choice," but was afraid for her safety because she has an asthma-like illness.

Confidence in Alamo had already decreased among some employees

When Alamo shut down in March, it encouraged all employees to apply for unemployment. But furloughed employees that Business Insider had spoken with in March noted discrepancies in how the company assisted employees at corporate-owned locations and those at franchise venues like the DFW locations.

Furloughed employees at corporate-owned venues were given a supplemental two weeks' worth of pay and could apply for a relief fund that Alamo established through a non-profit called the Emergency Assistance Foundation. Alamo told Business Insider in March that franchise locations were "managed in their respective areas by franchise ownership groups and are relying on their own resources to handle the closures."

Several Alamo DFW employees that Business Insider spoke with at the time expressed disappointment in the way the shutdown was handled and said they felt it had gone against Alamo's stated values, such as being "a force for good in our company, in our industry and in the world." That sentiment was listed on Alamo's website's "About" page at the time, but is currently gone. An Alamo spokesperson said that the website was trimmed down during the shutdown and that the full website would return when theaters reopen.

Now, as theaters prepare to reopen, confidence in Alamo to support its employees was low among the DFW staffers Business Insider spoke with for this story.

"To say I am pessimistic about my future with Alamo could be the year's most glaring understatement," said another person, who added that the situation has compelled him to return to school because he didn't want to put his and his family's health at risk.

If you're a furloughed employee with any Alamo Drafthouse Cinema venue, contact the author at tclark@businessinsider.com or DM him on Twitter @TravClark2

SEE ALSO: Some furloughed Alamo Drafthouse employees are upset with how the company is treating them and say the chain's actions undercut its stated values like 'doing the right thing'

Join the conversation about this story »

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12 movie night essentials for fun family time at home, as recommended by a dad of 2

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  • Family movie nights offer a great way to bring the gang together and enjoy a special evening at home.
  • Once you have your setup in place, family movie nights are a fun, budget-friendly activity.
  • With a compact digital projector, some snacks, and comfy seating, you can enjoy a big screen experience at home without the need to reorganize the room.
  • If you're considering which streaming services offer the best movies for your family's viewing preferences, you can try out Disney Plus, Hulu, and Netflix through their free trial periods.

Who said you have to go out and spend money to have a great evening the family will long remember and frequently want to recreate? A family movie night is a budget-friendly, easy, and enjoyable way to spend time together.

The key to a successful movie night at home is making it special. When you have great snacks, sweet treats, comfy seats and blankets, and of course, something great on the screen, that's a recipe for meaningful shared time as parents, kids, and siblings.

Whether your family is diehard Disney, is a "How to Train Your Dragon" kind of group, or more of a "Spenser Confidential," picking the best movie for a family movie night is important. But just as important is how you set up the evening. There should be a dedicated start time and a specific way you arrange your viewing space, whether that's beanbag seats on the floor for the kids or everyone gathered on a large sectional. Comfy blankets are pretty much mandatory. And of course, you need special snacks and treats.

You also need to have realistic expectations. If you have younger kids, like I do, movie "night" is always at least two or sometimes three nights — you can't expect a younger child to have the stamina to watch a feature-length film in one sitting. You also can't expect older kids not to occasionally glance at their phones.

What you can do is create the potential for a great family movie night with some of the suggestions we've gathered below, and then sit back and relax and enjoy the show.

Here are 12 things to make a great movie night at home with your family"

A movie theater popcorn experience at home

No trip to the theater is quite complete without popcorn — the same goes for home movie enjoyment. For theater-style popcorn at home, this plug-in popcorn maker is hard to beat. It can make up to 6 quarts of popcorn in a matter of minutes, and the clear plastic cover that contains your snack during the popping flips over to create the perfect serving bowl. At well under $30, this is an affordable appliance that will make the evening memorable. There are less expensive options out there, as well as pricier, larger popcorn makers, but this one sits near the sweet spot of value and quality.

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Your kids will never know these candies are super low in sugar

The movie experience should be all about sweets, but it doesn't mean you have to pump your kids (or yourself) full of sugar, especially with bedtime looming after the show. SmartSweets makes candy with just 3 grams of sugar per 1.8-ounce bag. For reference, a comparable serving of full-sugar gummy bears has an average of 22 grams of sugar. And yes, these candies do taste good. SmartSweets also offers Sour Patch Kids-like candy, a take on Swedish Fish, and more.

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Cookies that pack in some protein and fiber without a glut of sugar

Keeping with the low-sugar, high-flavor vibe, these cookies include an impressive 6 grams of protein and 4 grams of dietary fiber per bag, so they're another sweet treat you can let anyone in the family eat with minimal concern. Sure, you could also cut up some fresh fruit and veggies, and you probably should so…so do that also.

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A place to flop down for movie night or for naptime

If you're looking to get a new piece of furniture to make movie night extra cozy, consider one that's so comfortable you can sit or even sleep on it. CouchBed's unique hybrid furniture can be used as a soft memory foam mattress or a low couch perfect for settling in during your viewing. Because the seating is low to the ground, a CouchBed is perfect for families with small kids, and when folded flat, the mattress makes an inviting spot for guests, or for anyone too tired to make it up the stairs to bed.

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A pillow that adds to the decor by day and is a perfect seat for the kids at night

Kids and adults alike can plunk down on this large floor pillow, enjoying a comfortable seat right there on the ground. The pillow is soft and plush but thick enough to where it compresses down into a supportive seat but will always rebound to its full, plump shape. And thanks to the stylish pattern on the soft polyester exterior, the pillow looks great in any room when it's not being sat upon during a screening of "The Mandalorian."

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A floppy seat that's perfect for the playroom, a kid's room, and movie time

Kids from the elementary school years well into their teens will love flopping down into this bean bag chair, which holds the form of a small armchair while being soft and plush enough to let little bodies sink in and settle down. The chair is lightweight enough to be moved around with ease, even carried up and down the stairs for easy creation of your movie night tableau and later restoration of your kid's bedroom.

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This TV delivers movie-theater proportions at a price that's right for your home

Big TVs are almost shockingly cheap these days. This 65-inch behemoth costs less than $800. It offers ultra HD 4K resolution, and thanks to its Roku software, it's easily compatible with Netflix, HBO Now, Hulu, and many other streaming services. And if the $750 price tag is a bit high or 65 inches of TV is more than you need, consider Hisense's 40-inch 4K TV which is only $199.99 or another budget option.

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A projector that can make any wall into a movie screen

This projector can be connected directly to your smartphone or tablet or to a DVD or Blu-Ray player and converts any flat wall into a movie screen. Depending on how far back the projector can be set, you can create a projection as large as 14 feet from corner to corner. (You need a space that's pretty dark for high resolution at that distance.) For a different kind of fun, try hooking the projector up to a gaming console for big screen, immersive gaming.

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Little speakers that deliver big on sound

You don't need to install a thousand-dollar-plus surround sound speaker system to enjoy great audio with your movies. This pair of compact speakers offers rich, deep bass, clear highs, and acoustic accuracy that will have you hearing every little detail. They take up minimal space, and when not being used to elevate movie night, the speakers can crank out tunes streaming on Spotify or Prime Music.

 



A great throw blanket keeps you warm even when you're watching 'Frozen'

A great throw blanket makes movie night so much more pleasant, whether used for actual warmth or to warm up the heart as moms and dads snuggle their kids or each other. The Chunky Knit Throw Blanket — from one of Insider Reviews' favorite bedding startups— is made from 100% organic cotton and is so soft and warm you'll never want to leave the couch. And it will look great draped there when you finally do. At the other end of the price spectrum is the also very soft and cuddly Wicked Plush Throw from L.L.Bean. This polyester microfiber blanket is perfect for use by or around small kids because it can be machine washed.

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Matching family pajamas make movie night an event

Yes, when parents and kids wear matching pj's, it's pretty corny. But it's also pretty awesome. There are few better ways to immediately establish a feeling of a shared experience than by all wearing the same outfit, and when you're in for the night, that outfit should be pajamas. These pj's from Primary cost $28 for a top and the same for a bottom for adults, while most of their kids' pj's cost half that. And bonus, when the movie ends? You're all already dressed for bed. 

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A compact heater to warm up a chilly basement movie room

If your family's movie nook is in the basement like mine is, then movie night can be a chilly affair, even in the warmer months. That's why we often have a space heater running during the show. This one is compact, affordable, yet highly effective. It can be set to three different levels of heat output, and as it weighs just 4 pounds, it's no big deal to move it downstairs for movie night then back up to wherever you need a bit of heat.

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How Lin-Manuel Miranda's non-stop work ethic from a young age made 'Hamilton' one of the most successful musicals of all time

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lin-manuel miranda hamilton

  • Lin-Manuel Miranda rose to fame for his Broadway musical, "Hamilton." More than five years after its 2015 debut, a filmed version with the original Broadway cast will premiere on Disney Plus on July 3.
  • Miranda worked on "Hamilton" for years, and it became one of the biggest musicals of all time.
  • Miranda's unconventional blend of musical theater and hip-hop, as well as a passion for diverse representation in the entertainment industry, has transformed musical theater. 
  • The success of "Hamilton" has led to a promising career writing music for movies like "Moana" and "Star Wars: The Force Awakens," and his upcoming directorial debut, "Tick, Tick ... Boom!"
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Lin-Manuel Miranda seemingly came out of nowhere. After creating "Hamilton," he became a household name, and his career has skyrocketed in the years since.

"Hamilton," which he wrote and starred in, made its off-Broadway debut in 2015, and it quickly became one of the most popular and most profitable musicals of all time. It easily ranks among classics like "The Phantom of the Opera,""The Lion King," and "Wicked."

Before Broadway shut down in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic, "Hamilton" was still one of the most popular shows on Broadway. Tickets were still hundreds of dollars (or thousands on resale websites), and had to be purchased months in advance. 

But "Hamilton"wasn't Miranda's first big hit. He also wrote and starred in "In the Heights," a musical combining hip-hop and salsa that he started to work on while he was in college. Now 40, Miranda has won the MacArthur Genius Grant, a Pulitzer Prize, an Emmy, three Tonys, and three Grammys. He's just an "O" away from earning an EGOT — one of the most impressive feats in show business.

Here, we've profiled the rise of Miranda's booming career, to see how he did it and how he continues to aim higher every day.

Carrie Wittmer contributed to a previous version of this article.

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Lin-Manuel Miranda had been interested in musical theater from an early age.

Miranda was born in New York City and grew up in upper Manhattan — specifically Washington Heights.

He credits his inspiration for a career in musicals to "Les Misérables," the first show he saw on Broadway. He saw it with his family when he was 7 years old — you can see him praise the show during his Carpool Karaoke appearance.

His music tastes eventually evolved to include R&B and hip-hop, but musical theater was always a passion. When he attended Hunter College High School, he participated in musical theater.

Most importantly, in college, he started writing his first musical, "In the Heights," that would eventually make it to Broadway. 



In college, Miranda wrote the music and lyrics for his first musical, "In the Heights," which he also starred in. It would go on to debut on Broadway in 2008.

Miranda's non-stop work ethic started in college at Wesleyan University. He wrote an early draft of his first musical, "In the Heights," when he was a sophomore in 1999. The show was added to Wesleyan's student theater company, Second Stage, and played in April 2000.

The lively musical combines hip-hop with salsa and Latin sounds, and is set in the Manhattan neighborhood of Washington Heights, a Hispanic-American neighborhood close to where Miranda grew up. 

After the show's debut, Miranda was approached about expanding the show into a Broadway production. After a run in Connecticut in 2005, "In the Heights" made its premiere on Broadway in February 2008, when Miranda was 28 years old. The show received mostly positive reviews, with many critics noting Miranda's emotional lyrics as its strength.  

"In the Heights" was nominated for 13 Tony Awards and won four, including Best Musical and Best Original Score, and the show ended its run in 2011. By then, Miranda was already two years into his work on his biggest hit to date, "Hamilton."



But while he was developing his first musical, Miranda was hustling to support himself with other jobs.

After college, when Miranda was in his 20s and supporting himself while working on "In the Heights," he wrote political jingles.

Miranda wrote the jingles in English and Spanish for ads for politicians including Eliot Spitzer, the former governor of New York. He got the work through his father, who worked as a political consultant.

Even when Miranda was supporting his career in music, he was writing it.



In between "In the Heights" and "Hamilton," he also wrote music for the musical adaptation of "Bring It On."

With "Bring It On: The Musical," Miranda notched another Best Musical nomination under his belt, as well as a Drama Desk nomination for Best Lyrics.



Miranda began working on "Hamilton" in 2009 — it took six years for it to premiere on Broadway.

Miranda began working on "Hamilton" in 2009. He was inspired to write a hip-hop musical about founding father Alexander Hamilton after reading the 2004 biography"Alexander Hamilton" by historian Ron Chernow. 

He "saw Hamilton's relentlessness, brilliance, linguistic dexterity, and self-destructive stubbornness through his own idiosyncratic lens,"wrote The New Yorker in 2015. "It was, he thought, a hip-hop story, an immigrant's story."

Miranda has said that Hamilton reminded him of rapper Tupac Shakur, which is how he came up with the idea for a diverse hip-hop musical about Hamilton's life.

Miranda worked on "Hamilton"— a project people, including his mentor and famed lyricist Stephen Sondheim, told him would never work — for years. He has said that he worked on the songs"Alexander Hamilton" and "My Shot" for an entire year each. But Miranda never let anyone's opinion discourage him, and it ultimately made its debut at the Public Theater in 2015. Months later, it went to Broadway.



The musical earned him Tony Awards, a Pulitzer Prize, and Kennedy Center Honors.

"Hamilton" became an overnight hit, with tickets selling out and being resold for thousands — if you could even find one. In 2016, "Hamilton" won the Pulitzer Prize for drama. 

Sondheim, who was sent Miranda's lyrics before the show came out and didn't think it had a chance, later told the New York Times, "The wonderful thing about [Miranda's] use of rap is that he's got one foot in the past."

After over five years on Broadway, "Hamilton" still sells out theaters, and audiences have to buy expensive tickets months in advance. In 2018, the show made a record-breaking $4 million in one weekend. The show has since been expanded to other cities in the United States and the world, including Los Angeles, London, Chicago, Sydney, and more.



One of the major draws of "Hamilton" is its emphasis on diversity, rather than historical accuracy in its casting.

As the son of Puerto Rican immigrants, Miranda has made diversity an integral part of his work. "In the Heights" was about a Hispanic-American neighborhood in Manhattan, and the musical was cast accordingly.

But if anyone else had written a musical about Alexander Hamilton and his peers, it would have probably featured an all-white cast, since these historical figures were white. With "Hamilton," Miranda opted for color-conscious casting. He chose non-white actors, save for the campy role of King George III. 

For Miranda, representing the spirit of Alexander Hamilton, the spirit of the Founding Fathers, and the spirit of the American Revolution, which emulates that of American hip-hop, was more important than visual historical accuracy.  

'The idea of hip-hop being the music of the Revolution appealed to me immensely,'' Miranda told the New York Times in 2015. ''It felt right.''

While the original cast has left "Hamilton," the show has continued its color-conscious casting, and does so in its touring productions as well.



After he left the show as a cast member, Miranda kept the "Hamilton" content coming with "The Hamilton Mixtape."

He left in 2016 to move on to other things, but he still hasn't lost one bit of his passion for
"Hamilton." That year, "The Hamilton Mixtape," an album that features covers of songs from "Hamilton" by popular artists including Alicia Keys, Kelly Clarkson and John Legend, was released.

"The Hamilton Mixtape"debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and marked the largest sales in a week for a compilation album since "Cruel Summer" by GOOD Music in 2012.



In December 2017, Miranda announced yet another "Hamilton"-adjacent project, the "Hamildrops."

The first Hamildrop was "Ben Franklin's Song" performed by the Decemberists — it was a cut song from the show that never got set to music, and was just lyrics written by Miranda. Almost every month for the next year, Miranda released a song, 12 in total.

In addition to "Ben Franklin's Song," there was a remixed version of "Wrote My Way Out" by Royce Da 5'9", Joyner Lucas, Black Thought, and Aloe Blacc (the original appeared on the "Mixtape"), a polka medley of songs from the musical by Weird Al Yankovic, a mash-up called "Found/Tonight" that put together a song from "Hamilton" and one from "Dear Evan Hansen" performed by Miranda and Ben Platt, "First Burn," which is an alternate version of the song "Burn" from the show performed by various actresses who played the role of Eliza, a cover of "Helpless" by The Regrettes, a song "Boom Goes the Cannon..." by Mobb Deep that sampled from the musical's song "Right Hand Man,""Rise Up, Wise Up, Eyes Up" by Ibeyi, "A Forgotten Spot (Olvidado)," which was released on the one-year anniversary of Hurricane Maria hitting Puerto Rico and performed by Miranda and Puerto Rican musicians Zion & Lennox, De La Ghetto, Ivy Queen, PJ Sin Suela and Lucecita Benítez, a cut song called "Theodosia Reprise" performed by Sara Bareilles, a new "Hamilton"-inspired song performed by Miranda as his character called "Cheering For Me Now," and — lastly — a rendition of "One Last Time" called "One Last Time (44 Remix)," which has Christopher Jackson (the original George Washington on Broadway) and former president Barack Obama reciting Washington's real-life farewell address.



Also in 2017, Miranda got drunk and talked about Alexander Hamilton for so long that Comedy Central's "Drunk History" had to extend his episode.

"Drunk History," created by Derek Waters and Jeremy Konner, is Comedy Central's liquored-up version of our nation's history. Comedians and actors get drunk and retell a historical event. Then A-list actors, from Michael Cera to Winona Ryder, act out the narration. 

In a 2017 episode, Miranda got drunk and told the story of Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr. Speaking with Business Insider, Emmy-nominated "Drunk History" production designer Chloe Arbiture said that Miranda talked so much about Hamilton that his episode was extended. Usually "Drunk History" episodes feature a few historical events per episode.

"For the Lin-Manuel Miranda episode, we knew he was going to talk about Hamilton," Arbiture said. "But we didn't know it would be a long standalone episode. But there was so much great footage that we couldn't cut. So to do it justice, we morphed it into his own episode."

Arbiture mentioned that the extended episode length was a challenge for the production design team, especially for budget reasons. 



Miranda has lent his songwriting abilities to various other films, like "Moana,""Star Wars," and "The Little Mermaid."

In addition to his theater and TV work, Miranda collaborated with Opetaia Foa'i and Mark Mancina on the music and lyrics for the 2016 Disney film "Moana," which earned him an Oscar nomination for the song "How Far I'll Go" in 2017. He started to work on the music for the film in 2014, a year before "Hamilton" came to Broadway.

He also co-wrote and contributed vocals to the cantina song, "Jabba Flow," which was featured in 2015's "Star Wars: The Force Awakens."

In 2017, it was confirmed that Miranda is working with songwriter Alan Menken on new music for Disney's live-action version of "The Little Mermaid." He is also writing music for a Sony animated film, "Vivo," which will be released in 2021.



He's also been acting more as well, with starring roles in "Mary Poppins Returns" and "His Dark Materials," and a guest spot on "Brooklyn Nine-Nine."

In the 2018 sequel to the iconic Disney film, Miranda played Jack, a Cockney lamplighter and former apprentice to Dick Van Dyke's character from the original film. Miranda received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance.

Miranda also took on the role of Lee Scoresby in the HBO adaptation of the Philip Pullman "His Dark Materials" trilogy that premiered in 2019. It has been renewed for a second season.

In addition to those main roles, he's popped up in "Brooklyn Nine-Nine" as the brother of Melissa Fumero's character, Amy Santiago, as Julián Castro on "Saturday Night Live," as real-life actor Roy Scheider in an episode of "Fosse/Verdon" (which he also produced), among other roles. He also hosted an episode of "SNL," making him one of the few Broadway stars to host the show — proving how mainstream "Hamilton" has become.



As if he's not busy enough, he also wrote a book, "Gmorning, Gnight!: Little Pep Talks for Me & You" with Jonny Sun.

Almost every morning and night, Miranda famously tweets sweet little messages and affirmations, telling his followers that everything will be OK. He worked with illustrator Jonny Sun to compile his tweets into a book with drawings. It was released in October 2018.

"The real joy of it was really working with Lin to make sure that the illustrations were reflective of him. We spent some time going through each of the tweets, and he kind of gave me like the director's commentary of each kind of passage, and told me here's how he was feeling this day, here's what he was thinking of. And the joy for me was taking all of that stuff and trying to fit it into the image,"said Sun of working with the playwright.



Miranda also makes time for advocacy and charity work for Puerto Rico, especially after Hurricane Maria. He returned to the part of Alexander Hamilton when the musical was in Puerto Rico last year.

In September 2017, Hurricane Maria brought devastation to Puerto Rico. His parents had grown up on the island and in his youth, Miranda had spent summers there visiting his grandparents.

Since the hurricane hit, Miranda has used his platform and voice to raise awareness and funds for disaster relief. He visited Puerto Rico and saw what little remained of his grandparents' beloved home. "My job is to amplify the concerns of Puerto Rico," Miranda told CBS News in November 2017. Miranda said that there are still towns in Puerto Rico struggling to get aid. 

The day after Maria hit, Miranda wrote a song, "Almost Like Praying." It features Puerto Rican artists, including Jennifer Lopez. The song was released in October 2017, and became the No. 1 song on iTunes in 17 countries. All proceeds from the song went to hurricane relief.

In January 2019, the touring company of "Hamilton"traveled to Puerto Rico, and Miranda returned to the titular role— the entire three-week run sold out and raised an estimated $15 million for Miranda's Flamboyan Arts Fund, according to Rolling Stone.



In 2018, Miranda announced he will be making his directorial debut with the movie adaptation of the Jonathan Larson musical, "Tick, Tick ... Boom!"

"Tick Tick ... Boom!" is Larson's other musical — the late playwright is more well-known for megahit "Rent." Miranda was announced to be directing an adaptation of the musical in 2018. It was later picked up by Netflix. Andrew Garfield is set to star.



This summer, the theatrical adaptation of "In the Heights" was supposed to be released, but it was pushed back due to the coronavirus.

While Miranda is not reprising his role as Usnavi, he will be making an appearance as a side character, Piraguero, or the Piragua Guy.

The movie was supposed to be released this summer, but due to the pandemic, it was pushed back a full year.



Just five years after its debut, a filmed version of "Hamilton" will be released on Disney Plus on July 3.

Perhaps to make up for the lack of Miranda-approved musical content, the filmed version of "Hamilton," complete with its original cast, was pushed from an October 2021 theatrical release to a surprise July 2020 drop on Disney Plus.

As CNET notes, this will be the only way to see the musical for at least a few more months, as Broadway performances are shut down through Labor Day.



The top 9 movies on Netflix this week, from 'The Nut Job' to '365 Days'

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  • "365 Days" continues to dominate on Netflix and director Gaspar Noé's "Love," another erotic drama, has also gained popularity.
  • Netflix introduced daily top lists of the most popular titles on the streaming service in February.
  • Streaming search engine Reelgood keeps track of the lists and provides Business Insider with a rundown of the week's most popular movies on Netflix every Friday.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

"365 Days" is the most popular movie on Netflix for the second straight week, despite a 0% critic score on Rotten Tomatoes (and that's not the first time that's happened).

And director Gaspar Noé's "Love," another erotic drama, is also popular, with help from TikTok users who have been filming their reactions to the movie's opening scene.

Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most viewed movies and TV shows in February (it counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a title).

Every week, the streaming search engine Reelgood compiles for Business Insider a list of which movies have been most prominent on Netflix's daily lists that week. On Reelgood, users can browse Netflix's entire movie library and sort by IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes ratings.

Spike Lee's "Da 5 Bloods" also continues to be a hit with Netflix users.

Below are Netflix's 9 most popular movies of the week in the US:

SEE ALSO: Netflix leads its rivals in original TV shows by a wide margin in both quantity and quality, according to new data analysis

9. "Da 5 Bloods" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Four African American veterans return to Vietnam decades after the war to find their squad leader's remains — and a stash of buried gold. From Spike Lee."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 91%

What critics said: "Lee's latest is a crackerjack drama, directed by a filmmaker who remains in total control of his once-in-a-generation gifts and utilizes them to synthesize story and history into something new."— Entertainment Weekly



8. "Love" (2015)

Description: "A man in an unsatisfying marriage recalls the details of an intense past relationship with an ex-girlfriend when he gets word that she may be missing."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 39%

What critics said: "It's bold, fleshy and audacious, at least in theory. But it is also numb."— BBC



7. "Wasp Network" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Based on a true and gripping story: Cuban spies infiltrate exile groups in the 1990s to stop terrorism against the island, but at a high personal cost."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 38%

What critics said:"Combining extensive research with fictionalized action, the film presents an ideologically muddled look at what are essentially acts of terrorism."— LA Weekly



6. "Magnetic" (2018)

Description: "Attracted to thrills across the globe, intrepid athletes venture to remote locations in pursuit of their extreme form of bliss."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: N/A

What critics said: N/A



5. "Baby Mama" (2008)

Description:"When straightlaced Kate learns she's infertile, she hires immature Angie to be her surrogate, inviting hilarity as both women prepare for motherhood."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 63%

What critics said: "Baby Mama adheres fairly closely to the conventions of the studio comedy, although it's never actually predictable, probably because the characters and subject matter are so novel."— Los Angeles Times



4. "Lost Bullet" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Facing a murder charge, a genius mechanic with a criminal past must track down a missing car containing the proof of his innocence: a single bullet."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: N/A

What critics said: N/A



3. "The Nut Job" (2014)

Description: "When his grouchy attitude gets him kicked out of the park, Surly the squirrel hatches a plan to rob Maury's Nut Shop to stock up for winter."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 13%

What critics said: "Pretty much everything in this South Korean co-production is slightly undercooked, lacking the same degree of sprightly wit or dramatic punch regularly found in A-list studio product."— Time Out



2. "Feel the Beat" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "After blowing a Broadway audition, a self-centered dancer reluctantly returns home and agrees to coach a squad of young misfits for a big competition."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 45%

What critics said: "A predictable dramedy."— New York Times



1. "365 Days" (2020)

Description: "A fiery executive in a spiritless relationship falls victim to a dominant mafia boss, who imprisons her and gives her one year to fall in love with him."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

What critics said: "Thoroughly terrible, politically objectionable, occasionally hilarious."— Variety



I went to New York City's only drive-in movie theater which opened during the pandemic — here's what it was like

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  • Skyline Drive-In, a drive-in movie theater in Brooklyn, opened on June 14.
  • It plays movies every night and guests are treated to a breathtaking view of the Manhattan skyline.
  • Tickets cost $54.99 per car and $34.99 per motorcycle.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

As the sun set, casting its long and golden rays, I found myself looking upon a sight I never thought I'd see.

A stories-high brick-and-concrete wall, to the front of which was affixed a giant screen, towered over a row of cars, lined up neatly and orderly, waiting. To the right, across the river, the iconic New York City skyline glittered against the dusky sky. 

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This is the scene that awaits you if you visit the Skyline Drive-In theater in Greenpoint — Brooklyn's newest outdoor attraction. 

The movie (that Wednesday's was "Crocodile Dundee") wasn't set to begin until 9 p.m. But by the time I showed up at 7:45 p.m., the lot was already half-full. Cars parked forward-facing or backward-facing, their occupants leaving the liftgates open and letting their legs dangle down past the rear bumper.

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People in masks milled about, drinking beverages brought from home and taking in the view. Dogs on leashes sniffed about excitedly. Children did cartwheels on the pavement.

At the very back, a group of friends chattered idly by the van they had driven up in. Two of them sat on the roof with their legs dangling off the edge. And around them all, neon-vested staffers directed the traffic with the professionalism of a well-oiled machine. We asked and were told emptying out the entire Skyline Drive-In swiftly happens in a mere 10 minutes. 

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It's hard to imagine the place has only been operating for about two weeks.

Just getting started

Located at 1 Oak Street in Brooklyn, the Skyline Drive-In is situated on a huge, open industrial yard that's oftentimes used in commercials and as movie shoot locations. Most recently, you might have seen it as the backdrop for "The Punisher" on Netflix. 

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Right now, there is still some industrial equipment being stored there — dumpsters, construction materials — but there are plans to clear all of that away.

Its CEO, Ari, wants to expand. 

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Currently, there is one screen, one food truck, and only room for cars and motorcycles. Ultimately, Ari wants three screens, a luxurious lounge-like seating area for pedestrians and cyclists, and multiple food trucks. 

"How much space do you have?" I asked. "How many square feet?"

Ari gestured vaguely all around. "Oh, as far as the eye can see," he said. "About four acres."

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At this, I had to laugh. Acreage is not a unit of measurement you hear thrown around very often when discussing real estate in New York City. 

But it's a massive space, for sure. And it seems like Ari wants to have as many people out to enjoy it as he can.

The perfect social-distancing solution

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While Ari said he'd hatched the idea of a drive-in movie theater a few years ago, it wasn't his intention to open during the COVID-19 pandemic. "But then you see people ready to climb over walls to get out," he said of the stay-at-home and social-distancing mandates. "We wanted to give them something to do while everything else is closed." 

New York City is the last place you'd expect anyone to put a drive-in theater, but Ari's bet seems to be paying off.

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As a car owner here, I can personally attest that even on the best days, it feels like jousting with a city that hates cars and is doing its best to destroy yours. Gridlock, poor road quality, alternate-side parking squabbles, and hilariously expensive garage costs make up the crucible that is to have your own vehicle here. 

And on the worst days? Well, you may or may not catch me thinking about just throwing the keys into the East River and being done with it all. 

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To add to that: there's also a (largely) robust public transportation system that will (reasonably) get you where you need to go (on time, sometimes). The majority of New York City gets along just fine without ever needing to drive a car. My dad, who grew up here, didn't get a driver's license until he was well into this 30s and had moved to the suburbs. 

But COVID-19 changed that. The virus struck the city and suddenly people don't feel comfortable taking public transportation anymore. Instead, they are looking to what everyone else in the country has always known to be a source of great personal convenience and mobility: cars. 

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Whether or not the cars that showed up that Wednesday night were the result of COVID-19 panic-buying, it was undeniable that people in New York City do, in fact, own cars when you wouldn't think many of them would. 

The Skyline Drive-In has a capacity of about 130 cars. A staffer who gave us a tour said that tickets have been selling out every night since it showed its first movie on June 14. 

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The theater started out with one showing per day at 9 p.m., but Ari said that he's gotten so many requests for more showings that he opened up a second showtime at midnight. Those tickets are selling out, too, he said. 

How it works

Tickets are sold per car or per motorcycle — rather than per person — at $54.99 and $34.99, respectively. Ari said this is all in the name of efficiency: he doesn't want people fumbling for their tickets at the entrance and creating a traffic jam. 

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Instead, all that drivers have to do to get in is hold up a code sent straight to their phone that can be read through the windshield. Totally contactless. Once parked, guests don't even need to open their windows. The movie sound is broadcasted over an FM radio station and can be heard that way. 

"If people don't want to get out of their car, they don't need to," Ari said. 

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Seating is awarded on a first-come, first-serve basis. SUVs and bigger vehicles are encouraged to keep to the rear so people in smaller cars can see the screen. Big groups coming in vehicles such as vans are allowed, but not buses. 

"That would block the screen," the spokesperson giving the tour said. 

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If people want to face their cars backward so they can sit in the trunk, staffers will help them orient everything. Lawn chairs, beach towels, and outside food are welcome. You just have to turn your car's lights off and you can't leave your engine idling. Staffers said they can jump cars at the end of the movie if need be. 

On its website, Skyline Drive-In assures you that you will not be using a porta-potty. "Yes, we have proper bathrooms," it writes. "No one likes porta-potties and we won't make you use them."

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Currently, there's just one food truck, which Ari said operates to full capacity, so he's looking to hire more. "I want concession stands," he said. 

It's very clear the Skyline team are grateful guests in the neighborhood. They take special pains to make sure the environment stays friendly and low-key. There are multiple speakers dispersed throughout the parking lot so they can keep the volume down low, so as not to disturb the neighboring residents. 

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The Alamo Drafthouse is famous for enforcing a silence policy at its theaters, and it's a reason many go. At the Skyline Drive-In, the vibe is different. 

"We want people to know they can come here to relax," Ari said. "We were showing 'Footloose' here a couple of nights ago and people were singing along to the music and playing the songs on their car stereos when they were leaving." 

The experience 

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The last time I went to a drive-in movie theater, I was visiting friends in Saratoga Springs, New York. We tried tempting a breeze that hot summer's night by leaving the windows down, but we were immediately attacked by mosquitoes. To protect ourselves, we rolled the windows back up and spent the next two hours sweating into my friend's leather upholstery. We couldn't see the screen at all from all the condensation that gathered on the windows.

The Skyline Drive-In couldn't have been more different. 

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The staffers had a front-row spot waiting for us, so after the tour was over, we bought ourselves some dinner and settled in the car for the show to begin. I also broke the one rule I have in my car — no eating.

The provided outdoor speakers were loud, but to hear the finer details, you really had to use your car speakers. We had all four windows rolled down and a constant breeze tumbled through the cabin. 

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It brought not the typical NYC stench of garbage, urine, and despair, but the pleasant yet faint smell of brine. To pass time at the Skyline Drive-In is to smell the sea.

Too often, I'd catch myself inadvertently glancing over to my right, where the Manhattan skyline twinkled. It was such a spectacular view that I found it difficult to maintain a constant focus on the movie. 

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Being cooped up in an apartment with no one around is isolating — but here, surrounded by people all still socially distant, sitting in their cars, and enjoying the experience together, felt like the first slice of "normal" I'd gotten since March.

Going to the movies offers people an escape from reality for a few hours at a time. When set starkly against the current and dreadful reality we now occupy, this new drive-in does exactly that and more. 

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The Skyline Drive-In has no intention of being a seasonal affair. Rain, shine, summer, winter — as long as people come, the movies will keep playing.

SEE ALSO: The rise and fall of movie theaters — and how the coronavirus pandemic might change them

Join the conversation about this story »

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'Extraction' is one of Netflix's most popular movies right now, but it's not the hit Netflix original starring Chris Hemsworth

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  • The 2015 movie "Extraction," starring Bruce Willis, was the ninth most popular movie on Netflix on Wednesday.
  • Netflix counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a movie or series, which is how it calculates its daily top 10 lists of popular titles.
  • This could mean that some Netflix users might be watching the first couple minutes of this "Extraction" movie, not realizing it's not the hit Netflix original of the same name that debuted in April.
  • The 2015 "Extraction" was released to video-on-demand services in 2015 and received an abysmal 6% Rotten Tomatoes critic score. 
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

"Extraction" is a hit on Netflix this week — but not the Netflix original action movie of the same name starring Chris Hemsworth that came out earlier this year.

This "Extraction" movie stars Bruce Willis and was released in 2015 to video-on-demand services by Lionsgate Premiere, a division of the Lionsgate movie studio that specializes in home-video movie releases (it also had a very brief stint in theaters).

Here's how Netflix describes the 2015 movie: "When a retired CIA agent is kidnapped, his son, a government analyst, embarks on an unauthorized mission to find him and halt a terrorist plot."

"Extraction" was the ninth most popular movie on Netflix on Wednesday. Netflix counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a movie or TV series. This is how the streaming giant calculates its daily top 10 lists of popular titles, which reflect the previous 24 hours.

It raises the question of whether some Netflix users are watching the first couple minutes of this "Extraction" before realizing it's not the hit Netflix original that debuted in April. Netflix did not immediately return a request for comment.

Netflix projected this year's "Extraction"would be watched by 90 million households globally in its first four weeks of release, its biggest movie premiere ever. Writer and producer Joe Russo is already writing a sequel. It has a 68% on Rotten Tomatoes from critics.

The 2015 "Extraction," on the other hand, was slammed by critics and has a 6% Rotten Tomatoes critic score. The Toronto Sun called it a "low-budget stinker."

"No amount of propulsive chaos or fleet editing could elevate this noisy potboiler beyond its decidedly low-rent status,"The Los Angeles Times wrote.

SEE ALSO: Movie studios face an unprecedented choice as summer drags on: resort to high-priced digital rentals or wait for theaters to reopen

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The top 9 movies on Netflix this week, from 'Athlete A' to 'Eurovision Song Contest'

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eurovision song contest the story of fire saga

  • "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga" is a hit on Netflix.
  • Netflix introduced daily top lists of the most popular titles on the streaming service in February.
  • Streaming search engine Reelgood keeps track of the lists and provides Business Insider with a rundown of the week's most popular movies on Netflix every Friday.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

"Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga," the new Netflix comedy starring Will Ferrell and Rachel McAdams, is the streaming giant's latest hit movie.

Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most viewed movies and TV shows in February (it counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a title).

Every week, the streaming search engine Reelgood compiles for Business Insider a list of which movies have been most prominent on Netflix's daily lists that week. On Reelgood, users can browse Netflix's entire movie library and sort by IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes ratings.

The new documentary "Athlete A," about the gymnasts who survived abuse by Larry Nassar, is also popular this week.

Below are Netflix's 9 most popular movies of the week in the US:

SEE ALSO: The top 9 shows on Netflix this week, from 'The Order' to 'Floor Is Lava'

9. "Despicable Me" (2010)

Netflix description: "Villainous Gru hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 81%

What critics said: "The Steve Carell-starring animated comedy is an instant classic, and for anyone with kids, this might buy you a couple hours' peace."— Daily Beast



8. "Baby Mama" (2008)

Description: "When straightlaced Kate learns she's infertile, she hires immature Angie to be her surrogate, inviting hilarity as both women prepare for motherhood."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 63%

What critics said: "The film is not exactly original but it is a lot of fun, thanks to the skill with which Fey and Poehler play to one another's strengths."— Sydney Morning Herald



7. "Lost Bullet" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "Facing a murder charge, a genius mechanic with a criminal past must track down a missing car containing the proof of his innocence: a single bullet."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: N/A

What critics said: "This impressively lean French thriller wastes nothing in its quest to deliver the goods."— New York Times



6. "Love" (2015)

Description: "A man in an unsatisfying marriage recalls the details of an intense past relationship with an ex-girlfriend when he gets word that she may be missing."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 39%

What critics said: "Gaspar Noé's brave but wildly misguided film is an attempt to make a movie depicting 'sexual sentimentality.' It is graphic and not above prurient shock tactics."— Independent



5. "Feel the Beat" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "After blowing a Broadway audition, a self-centered dancer reluctantly returns home and agrees to coach a squad of young misfits for a big competition."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 45%

What critics said: "Young audiences are more sophisticated than this, and deserve something better than pinheaded platitudes and broad, moronic stereotypes."— Decider



4. "The Nut Job" (2014)

Description: "When his grouchy attitude gets him kicked out of the park, Surly the squirrel hatches a plan to rob Maury's Nut Shop to stock up for winter."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 13%

What critics said: "DreamWorks' 2006 film Over the Hedge scampered through similar terrain with far slyer gags in its cheeks."— Guardian



3. "Athlete A" (2020, Netflix original)

Description: "This documentary focuses on the gymnasts who survived USA Gymnastics doctor Larry Nassar's abuse and the reporters who exposed USAG's toxic culture."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 100%

What critics said: "After 'Athlete A,' you may never again watch America's pursuit for gold with quite the same enthusiasm."— Associated Press



2. "365 Days" (2020)

Description: "A fiery executive in a spiritless relationship falls victim to a dominant mafia boss, who imprisons her and gives her one year to fall in love with him."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

What critics said: "365 DNI romanticizes an extremely toxic relationship, which is never okay."— Cosmopolitan



1. "Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga" (2020, Netflix original)

Description:"Two small-town singers chase their pop star dreams at a global music competition, where high stakes, scheming rivals and onstage mishaps test their bond."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 63%

What critics said: "A silly, sincere romp that is mostly a fun celebration of the six-decades long competition, if not a perfect satire."— Jezebel



Tom Hanks said the 'cruel whipmasters at Apple' made him do an interview in front of a blank wall so people couldn't scrutinize things in his home (AAPL)

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  • Actor Tom Hanks discussed his new war movie "Greyhound" that will debut on Apple TV Plus in a recent interview with The Guardian.
  • According to Hanks, Apple instructed him to use a blank wall as his background in the interview with the outlet's reporter, perhaps to prevent anything in his home — such as books on a shelf — from being scrutinized.
  • Hanks also expressed "heartbreak" that his movie, which he poured years of work into, won't be experienced on the big screen.
  • The movie was supposed to hit theatres, but with cinemas shut amid the pandemic, Apple TV shelled out $70 million for the distribution rights in mid-May. The movie debuts Friday.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

Actor Tom Hanks has been on the promotion circuit for his new movie "Greyhound," set to debut Friday on Apple TV Plus, the tech giant's streaming service.

During a recent interview with The Guardian, Hanks revealed that "the cruel whipmasters at Apple" had a peculiar request of him for the occasion: He was instructed to use a blank wall as his background during the interview with the outlet, perhaps to prevent any reading material displayed on a bookshelf from being scrutinized, according to The Guardian's Hadley Freeman.

Hanks said it made him look like he was in a "witness protection programme. But here I am, bowing to the needs of Apple TV."

Hanks' new wartime film centers around his character, Captain Ernie Krause, in the Battle of the Atlantic during World War II. Per the Guardian, Hanks has spent almost a decade working to bring the film, which he also wrote the screenplay for and produced, to fruition. It was originally slated to hit theatres, but cinemas across the nation remain shuttered in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hanks said seeing the film debut on a streaming platform in people's homes versus in movie theatres is "an absolute heartbreak."

"I don't mean to make angry my Apple overlords, but there is a difference in picture and sound quality," Hanks said.

Apple shelled out $70 million for the rights to the movie in mid-May, according to Cult of Mac.

Apple's Netflix competitor debuted in November to a bit of a rocky start when one of its first series, "The Morning Show," received less-than-warm reception from viewers. But CEO Tim Cook said in late January that the company's service was actually "off to a rousing start." 

Statistics from data firm Parrot Analytics reveal that Apple series were included in a list of the top 10 streaming original premieres in the US for Q4 of 2019, alongside programs from Netflix and Disney Plus, among others. 

SEE ALSO: Apple's CEO says its Netflix competitor is 'off to a rousing start,' and third-party data suggests he could be right despite negative industry perception

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AMC skyrockets 14% on report the company is nearing a deal to avoid bankruptcy (AMC)

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  • AMC Entertainment is working on a refinancing deal that would help it avoid bankruptcy, Alexander Gladstone of The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter. 
  • Shares of AMC surged as much as 14% in early trading Wednesday. 
  • The company recently pushed back the opening date of its theaters, which were closed in March due to the coronavirus pandemic. 
  • Watch AMC trade live on Markets Insider. 
  • Read more on Business Insider. 

AMC Entertainment surged as much as 14% in early trading Wednesday after The Wall Street Journal's Alexander Gladstone reported Tuesday that the company is nearing a deal that would help it avoid a near-term bankruptcy, citing people familiar with the matter. 

AMC's proposed deal would require bondholders to provide a $200 million loan and swap out their unsecured claims for new debt, according to the report.

The company is working with private-equity group Silver Lake on the deal, which would allow AMC to turn down a competing offer from other senior lenders including Apollo Management, The Journal reported. 

Read more:40 insiders reveal the meteoric rise of Silver Lake's Egon Durban, the tech-focused PE firm's No. 1 dealmaker who strong-armed his way to the top and is about to get $18 billion more to invest

The entertainment company has been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic, which forced it to close its more than 1,000 movie theaters worldwide. At the end of June, AMC postponed reopening of its theaters until July 30— later than previously hoped — following the shift in release dates of two major films. 

AMC has shed 43% year-to-date through Tuesday's close.

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The 13 most popular movies on Netflix so far this year — and what critics thought of them

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  • Business Insider looked back at Netflix's most popular movies of the year so far to determine which ones have been the streamer's biggest hits in 2020, and what critics thought of them.
  • Netflix originals like the action movie "Extraction" and the comedy "Spenser Confidential" have been huge, but so have the Adam Sandler drama "Uncut Gems" and the animated hit "Despicable Me."
  • Netflix introduced daily top 10 lists of its most popular titles in February and the streaming search engine Reelgood has provided Business Insider with weekly lists of Netflix's most popular movies, based on the streaming giant's own daily lists, since March.
  • Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

When Netflix began displaying daily top 10 lists of its most popular titles on the service in February, it acted as a way to highlight some of its original content. 

From the Chris Hemsworth action movie "Extraction" to the animated "Willoughbys," Netflix's original movies have surged up these lists over the past few months.

Reelgood, the streaming search engine, has provided Business Insider with weekly rundown of the most popular movies on Netflix since March, based on the streaming giant's own daily lists. Netflix counts a view if an account watches at least two minutes of a show or movie and that's how it calculates the lists, which update every 24 hours.

To understand the movies that have been Netflix's biggest hits, we looked at the 13 movies that appeared most frequently on the lists. Then we ranked them by their Rotten Tomatoes critic scores to see how they fared with the press. We only included movies that appeared on the list for three or more weeks. We made an exception for some movies that appeared fewer times but hit the No. 1 spot.

It wasn't just Netflix originals that did well.

When last year's Adam Sandler drama "Uncut Gems" debuted on Netflix in May, it shot up the popularity charts. 2011's "The Help" was also popular for a few weeks last month, though critics offered other movies to watch on Netflix about race from Black creators, as protests against racism and police violence spread across the US ("The Help" was directed by Tate Taylor, who is white).

The most popular movies on Netflix so far this year ranged from animated hits like "Despicable Me" to critically reviled movies like Netflix's "The Last Days of American Crime," which has a 0% critic score (and it's not the only movie with that score to show up on the list).

Most of the movies are recent releases from this year or last year.

Below are the 13 most popular movies on Netflix so far this year, ranked by critics:

SEE ALSO: Disney Plus got a huge boost in app downloads from the 'Hamilton' movie

13. "The Last Days of American Crime" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 2

Description: "A bank robber joins a plot to commit one final, historic heist before the government turns on a mind-altering signal that will end all criminal behavior."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

Audience score: 23%

What critics said: "Instantly forgettable tough-guy fantasia."— Hollywood Reporter



12. "365 Days" (2020)

Highest ranking: 1 (twice)

Number of appearances: 4

Description: "A fiery executive in a spiritless relationship falls victim to a dominant mafia boss, who imprisons her and gives her one year to fall in love with him."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 0%

Audience score: 30%

What critics said: "Thoroughly terrible, politically objectionable, occasionally hilarious."— Variety



11. "Coffee and Kareem" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 2

Netflix description: "An inept Detroit cop must team up with his girlfriend's foul-mouthed young son when their first crack at bonding time uncovers a criminal conspiracy."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 20%

What critics said: "There just isn't much of a movie here, or even much of an homage movie when you compare it to its clear influences like 48 Hours and Lethal Weapon."— RogerEbert.com



10. "The Wrong Missy" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "Tim thinks he's invited the woman of his dreams on a work retreat to Hawaii, realizing too late he mistakenly texted someone from a nightmare blind date."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 36%

What critics said: "'The Wrong Missy' is a lightweight throwaway, the kind of movie it is difficult to suggest one actually choose to watch, but if your algorithm somehow lands on it provides a certain harmless diversion."— Los Angeles Times



9. "Spenser Confidential" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1 (twice)

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "Spenser, an ex-cop and ex-con, teams up with aspiring fighter Hawk to uncover a sinister conspiracy tied to the deaths of two Boston police officers."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 37%

What critics said: "An ending that teases the possibility of sequels, with Wahlberg's Spenser tackling more cases of police officers and emergency personnel who have been falsely accused of crimes, should elicit nothing but groans."— AV Club



8. "Angel Has Fallen" (2019)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 4

Netflix description: "Secret Service agent Mike Banning is caught in the crossfire when he's framed for a deadly attack on the president and forced to run for his life." 

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 39%

What critics said: "There's no thrill to this thriller. Nor is there nuance to the characters."— Globe and Mail



7. "Extraction" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "A hardened mercenary's mission becomes a soul-searching race to survive when he's sent into Bangladesh to rescue a drug lord's kidnapped son."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 69%

What critics said: "No judgments here if you just want to hang back and let nonstop gore, gunfire, explosions and a gung-ho Chris Hemsworth numb you into submission."— Rolling Stone



6. "The Angry Birds Movie 2" (2019)

Highest ranking: 4

Number of appearances: 4

Netflix description: "Enemies turn into frenemies when the Pigs call for a truce with the Birds to unite against a formidable new foe that's threatening all of their homes."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 73% 

What critics said: "Things move along at such an agreeably fast clip — particularly in the second half, when the mission gets underway — that it'll be a pleasurable experience for kids and adults alike."— RogerEbert.com



5. "The Help" (2011)

Highest ranking: 3

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "A young, white writer stirs up the status quo in 1960s Mississippi by interviewing Black housemaids and bringing their stories to the masses."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 76%

What critics said: "Suffers from an obsequious lust for stereotypes."— Financial Times



4. "Clueless" (1995)

Highest ranking: 5

Number of appearances: 3

Description: "Meddlesome Beverly Hills high school student Cher gets more than she bargained for when she gives a fashion-challenged student a makeover."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 80%

What critics said: "The summer's most compelling movie about teenagers."— Newsweek



3. "Despicable Me" (2010)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 7

Netflix description: "Villainous Gru hatches a plan to steal the moon from the sky. But he has a tough time staying on task after three orphans land in his care."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 81%

What critics said: "The Steve Carell-starring animated comedy is an instant classic, and for anyone with kids, this might buy you a couple hours' peace."— Daily Beast



2. "The Willoughbys" (2020, Netflix original)

Highest ranking: 2

Number of appearances: 5

Netflix description: "Four siblings with horribly selfish parents hatch a plan to get rid of them for good and form a perfectly imperfect family of their own."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 90%

What critics said: "There's a lot going on in The Willoughbys, yet if you can get on board with its manic energy and accelerated plotting, the Netflix animated family comedy-adventure has an oddball charm that works surprisingly well."— Hollywood Reporter



1. "Uncut Gems" (2019)

Highest ranking: 1

Number of appearances: 3

Netflix description: "With his debts mounting and angry collectors closing in, a fast-talking New York City jeweler risks everything in hopes of staying afloat and alive."

Rotten Tomatoes critic score: 92%

What critics said: "It all ends up to be a film in which both Sandler and the Safdies are pulling out all the stops, and it works."— USA Today



5 ways to throw a posh virtual cocktail and dinner party, from the owner of the 'Downton Abbey' castle

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Lady Fiona Carnarvon knows how to help pass the time during a pandemic — drinking gin, and lots of it.

But not alone, of course. She and her family's estate, Highclere Castle, have been hosting virtual cocktail parties on Facebook to make coping with the pandemic a communal effort; a time for all to find joy amid the current hardships. 

"The virtual cocktail parties have been really interesting, and probably something we wouldn't have tried if it hadn't been for the challenges we faced in such a hard time," she said. "May gin carry on as something to unite us all." 

Highclere Castle, otherwise known as the filming location for "Downton Abbey," dates back to at least 748 AD and has been owned by Lady Carnarvon's family since the 17th century.   

The nearly 300-room estate is usually open to the public, but had to close amid the pandemic. And though living in a castle seems like hardly the worst place to quarantine, public visits and tours are the main ways many such homes are maintained. Without tourism, even the aristocracy can face a crunch in revenue. 

So for the past three months, Lady Carnarvon has had to adjust. Free virtual cocktail parties replaced regular tours, while the estate's homemade gin is the gift shop's new top seller. The estate, which plans to partially reopen in mid-July, also streams weekly on Viking TV and has a weekly podcast and a weekly blog.

But what's really caught everyone's attention are the virtual cocktail hours, and in an interview with Business Insider, Lady Carnarvon detailed how to throw the perfect virtual cocktail party and dinner event.

SEE ALSO: 8 high-end recipe books to help you enjoy Prohibition-era cocktails and a Michelin-starred chef's dinner menu at home

SEE ALSO: The owners of the real-life castles featured on 'The Crown' and 'Downton Abbey' are losing income and overwhelmed with maintenance needs because of coronavirus shutdowns

Lady Carnarvon says that during this time of isolation, virtual cocktail parties are a way to safely come together.

Every other week since May, Lady Carnarvon and the Highclere Estate have been going on Facebook Live to host visual cocktail parties. As the world entered a period of isolation, many people were suffering from a dearth of human interaction and missed the social elements that once filled their lives. 

Enter "virtual cocktail parties"— also known in the US as Zoom happy hours— which quickly became a great way for people to come together and feel less alone during this historic time. 

"I just recommend taking the time to make a cocktail at home when times are tough, giving yourself the time for treats because the joy of sipping a cocktail is really important," she told Business Insider. "I think there's been so much mental strife as well as the physical challenge, so I suppose at Highclere, with the same as everybody else thinking, now is the time for a cocktail." 



Before the event, Lady Carnarvon makes sure to send out exciting cocktail recipes so that everyone can be in on the drinking fun.

The main reason for a cocktail party is to enjoy a drink with people you care about. Some of Lady Carnarvon's favorite drinks include the "archetypal" London Dry Gin, along with Martinis, Honey Bees, Hanky-Pankys, and Negronis.

On the castle's Facebook page, she posts fun cocktail recipes such as the "The Floradora," a classic gin cocktail made with raspberry syrup, lime juice, ginger, and soda.

Business Insider previously reported on some of the best cocktail books to buy, with recipes ranging from the Prohibition era to those found in Michelin-starred restaurants. Sending fun recipes out before the cocktail party can also be a fun game that gets everyone involved in the evening.

"I end up trying my husband's cocktails, too, because he's always too busy talking," she said. 



She also makes sure to throw her virtual cocktail parties outside, with lots of natural light and music playing in the background.

Lady Carnarvon broadcasts her parties outside in a garden, which provides lots of natural light and a spacious atmosphere. She also has music playing in the background, and, along with her husband, they serve as hosts to bring a cheery atmosphere to the audience.

There are also often elements of surprise to her parties and she revealed that one night, her husband brought out a horse to the garden. "It was a little bit bad, a little bit eccentric, a little bit fun," she said.

And though not everyone has to be broadcasting outside of their own homes for the party, the host should find some ways to make sure that they maintain a fun atmosphere or personality for the virtual party guests. People should play the music that they love, and the guests should feel comfortable, no matter where in the world they are joining from to attend the party. 

"I've learned so much about cocktails and drinking and the joy, and remember the pleasure it brings, of sitting down with a delicious cocktail on a Friday evening," she said. 



For dinner parties, Lady Carnarvon says it's all about planning and preparation.

Dinner parties require more time and effort to pull off, especially when they're being thrown online; however, this doesn't mean they are impossible and can be a fun event to pull off. 

Lady Carnarvon said that people should think about what they want on their menu, or what they want other guests to try and cook for themselves. A fun idea is to make seasonal dishes and that way, at least everyone at the virtual dinner party can be eating on the same theme. 

"It's about thinking about what you're going to serve, what you need, what ingredients you need, the glasses, the setup, who you're going to ask, what time," she said. "It's all about the details and how you're going to share it." 

If anything, at least the host can put a nice vase of fresh flowers next to their computer, dim the lights, and play some jazz or classical music in the background to set the ambiance for others in the call. The goal is to have fun, not necessarily to recreate the exact atmosphere of a dinner party, but to create the longing of wanting to spend time together. 



For her dinner parties, she has made sure to attach a theme or a charitable cause to it.

Back in February, Lady Carnarvon threw a dinner party competition where she asked those who wanted to participate to donate money to PBS, the US station that airs "Downton Abbey." She told people to send in videos and photographs and said somebody ended up turning their dining room into the Titanic. 

"It was extraordinary what people did," she said. "The winning dinner party of six people was flown over to Highclere, They stayed in the vineyard. They had one night with us, along with a dinner party with us. And the winning lady actually came from Canada; she'd gone to such trouble and she'd thrown the party to help raise money for an older people's home."



But the most important part of throwing a virtual event during this time is, of course, to have fun.

Normalcy is still far away, even as social distancing measures slowly lift.

And although computer screens cannot recreate the feel of human skin, or clearly relay the sounds of someone laughing, virtual meets, for now, are a safe way to find a sense of that long-lost normalcy.  

Perhaps it can even become a normal event, as technology further intertwines itself in our day-to-day lives. Virtual events such as these can be the new "pen pal" system, and people throughout the world can be able to spend time together, sipping a gin cocktail or a cold salted-rim martini. 

"I try not to remind people of COVID because I think that's been in our faces for so long," Lady Carnarvon said. "I'm trying to step away from it responsively, to enjoy being under the trees without saying, 'how are you,' because it's just always referenced back to that. I think [right now] it's a little bit about looking forward." 



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