Thought Provoking Movies
by eagle-dream | created - 19 Aug 2015 | updated - 02 Apr 2018 | PublicMovies that bring up a certain interesting dilemma, opens a discussion or is just plain thought provoking and interesting.
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1. Chicago (2002)
PG-13 | 113 min | Comedy, Crime, Musical
Two death-row murderesses develop a fierce rivalry while competing for publicity, celebrity, and a sleazy lawyer's attention.
Director: Rob Marshall | Stars: Renée Zellweger, Catherine Zeta-Jones, Richard Gere, Taye Diggs
Votes: 243,451 | Gross: $170.69M
2. The Sunset Limited (2011 TV Movie)
TV-MA | 91 min | Drama
Through a chance encounter, two men of opposing ideologies deliberate spiritual, philosophical, and profound matters in a New York City apartment.
Director: Tommy Lee Jones | Stars: Samuel L. Jackson, Tommy Lee Jones
Votes: 31,851
3. 12 Angry Men (1957)
Approved | 96 min | Crime, Drama
The jury in a New York City murder trial is frustrated by a single member whose skeptical caution forces them to more carefully consider the evidence before jumping to a hasty verdict.
Director: Sidney Lumet | Stars: Henry Fonda, Lee J. Cobb, Martin Balsam, John Fiedler
Votes: 865,714 | Gross: $4.36M
4. The Truman Show (1998)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Drama
An insurance salesman discovers his whole life is actually a reality TV show.
Director: Peter Weir | Stars: Jim Carrey, Ed Harris, Laura Linney, Noah Emmerich
Votes: 1,197,281 | Gross: $125.62M
5. Waking Life (2001)
R | 99 min | Animation, Drama, Fantasy
A man shuffles through a dream meeting various people and discussing the meanings and purposes of the universe.
Director: Richard Linklater | Stars: Ethan Hawke, Trevor Jack Brooks, Lorelei Linklater, Wiley Wiggins
Votes: 66,946 | Gross: $2.89M
6. Whiplash (2014)
R | 106 min | Drama, Music
A promising young drummer enrolls at a cut-throat music conservatory where his dreams of greatness are mentored by an instructor who will stop at nothing to realize a student's potential.
Director: Damien Chazelle | Stars: Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Melissa Benoist, Paul Reiser
Votes: 990,334 | Gross: $13.09M
7. Prisoners (2013)
R | 153 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
When Keller Dover's daughter and her friend go missing, he takes matters into his own hands as the police pursue multiple leads and the pressure mounts.
Director: Denis Villeneuve | Stars: Hugh Jackman, Jake Gyllenhaal, Viola Davis, Melissa Leo
Votes: 810,147 | Gross: $61.00M
8. Phoebe in Wonderland (2008)
PG-13 | 96 min | Drama
Confounded by her clashes with the seemingly rule-obsessed world, a troubled young girl seeks enlightenment from her unconventional drama teacher.
Director: Daniel Barnz | Stars: Elle Fanning, Patricia Clarkson, Felicity Huffman, Bill Pullman
Votes: 8,079 | Gross: $0.07M
9. The Big Blue (1988)
PG | 168 min | Adventure, Drama, Sport
The rivalry between Enzo and Jacques, two childhood friends and now world-renowned free divers, becomes a beautiful and perilous journey into oneself and the unknown.
Director: Luc Besson | Stars: Jean-Marc Barr, Jean Reno, Rosanna Arquette, Paul Shenar
Votes: 55,120 | Gross: $3.50M
10. I Am Dina (2002)
Not Rated | 125 min | Drama
Dina grows up in a village at a fjord in 1860s north Norway. As child, she accidentally kills her mom and loses her rich dad's love. She grows up to be a clever, pretty, wild, and strange woman. She marries a rich Frenchman.
Directors: Ole Bornedal, Tony Spataro | Stars: Maria Bonnevie, Gérard Depardieu, Christopher Eccleston, Bjørn Floberg
Votes: 5,725
11. Frances (1982)
R | 140 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
The story of Frances Farmer's meteoric rise to fame in Hollywood and the tragic turn her life took when she was blacklisted.
Director: Graeme Clifford | Stars: Jessica Lange, Jonathan Banks, Bonnie Bartlett, James Brodhead
Votes: 8,577 | Gross: $5.00M
12. Adaptation. (2002)
R | 115 min | Comedy, Drama
A lovelorn screenwriter becomes desperate as he tries and fails to adapt 'The Orchid Thief' by Susan Orlean for the screen.
Director: Spike Jonze | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Meryl Streep, Chris Cooper, Tilda Swinton
Votes: 203,120 | Gross: $22.25M
13. Detachment (2011)
Not Rated | 98 min | Drama
A substitute teacher who drifts from classroom to classroom finds a connection to the students and teachers during his latest assignment.
Director: Tony Kaye | Stars: Adrien Brody, Christina Hendricks, Marcia Gay Harden, Lucy Liu
Votes: 99,209 | Gross: $0.07M
14. Mr. Nobody (2009)
R | 141 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
A boy stands on a station platform as a train is about to leave. Should he go with his mother or stay with his father? Infinite possibilities arise from this decision. As long as he doesn't choose, anything is possible.
Director: Jaco Van Dormael | Stars: Jared Leto, Sarah Polley, Diane Kruger, Linh-Dan Pham
Votes: 245,904 | Gross: $0.00M
15. The Master (2012)
R | 138 min | Drama, History
A Naval veteran arrives home from war unsettled and uncertain of his future - until he is tantalized by the Cause and its charismatic leader.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Joaquin Phoenix, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Amy Adams, Jesse Plemons
Votes: 186,279 | Gross: $16.38M
16. The Lobster (2015)
R | 119 min | Drama, Romance, Sci-Fi
In a dystopian near future, according to the laws of The City, single people are taken to The Hotel, where they are obliged to find a romantic partner in 45 days or they're transformed into beasts and sent off into The Woods.
Director: Yorgos Lanthimos | Stars: Colin Farrell, Rachel Weisz, Jessica Barden, Olivia Colman
Votes: 296,786 | Gross: $8.70M
17. Gifted (2017)
PG-13 | 101 min | Drama
Frank, a single man raising his child prodigy niece Mary, is drawn into a custody battle with his mother.
Director: Marc Webb | Stars: Chris Evans, Mckenna Grace, Lindsay Duncan, Octavia Spencer
Votes: 130,429 | Gross: $24.80M
18. The Square (2017)
R | 151 min | Comedy, Drama
A prestigious Stockholm museum's chief art curator finds himself in times of both professional and personal crisis as he attempts to set up a controversial new exhibit.
Director: Ruben Östlund | Stars: Claes Bang, Elisabeth Moss, Dominic West, Terry Notary
Votes: 77,336 | Gross: $1.50M
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