October 2024’s Best Streaming Titles: Edward Scissorhands, Lawrence of Arabia, Ranma ½, Conan the Barbarian

This year’s inductees include Mary J. Blige, Cher, Dave Matthews Band, Foreigner, Peter Frampton, Kool & The Gang, Ozzy Osbourne, and A Tribe Called Quest.

Originally premiering at this year’s Toronto International Film Festival, Road Diary features Bruce Springsteen narrating his famous band’s long-lived and celebrated career as they prepare for their first tour in six years.

In this Tim Burton classic, Johnny Depp stars as the titular character, the result of a mad scientist’s experiments. (And yes, he does have scissors for hands.) But when he’s adopted by a family in suburbs, has this lonely outcast finally found a community where he could belong? Edward Scissorhands also stars Winona Ryder, Anthony Michael Hall, and Vincent Price (in his last theatrical role) as Edwards’ creator.

2014’s The Lego Movie was a absolute joy of a movie that honestly took me by surprise; I wasn’t prepared for a movie inspired by plastic blocks to be so creative and imaginative. The Lego Movie 2 doesn’t quite hit those same heights, but it’s still plenty fun. After Emmet Brickowski’s friends are kidnapped by the Duplo aliens and taken to their home planet, he must join forces with Rex Dangervest to save them and prevent the “Armamageddon” from happening. As with the original Lego Movie, the sequel features the voices of Chris Pratt, Elizabeth Banks, Will Arnett, Nick Offerman, and more.

Curse of the Black Pearl kicked off the Pirates of the Caribbean franchise in high style. Johnny Depp stars as Captain Jack Sparrow, a notorious yet bumbling pirate captain who gets sucked into helping a young blacksmith (Orlando Bloom) save his love (Keira Knightley) from a crew of cursed zombies led by the infamous Captain Barbossa (Geoffrey Rush). Filled with action, adventure, great special effects, and fun performances, Curse of the Black Pearl is so much better than a film inspired by an amusement park ride has any right to be.

The Princess Bride is a classic family film that has it all: comedy, romance, swashbuckling sword fights, memorable dialog, and André the Giant. What more could you want? Just before the beautiful Buttercup’s wedding day, she’s kidnapped by a group of outlaws, which finds her ultimately reunited with her long-lost love. Her enraged fiancé will stop at nothing to get her back, but as we soon find out, not even death can stop true love.

Widely praised by critics upon its release in 2004, Sideways stars Paul Giamatti as a wouldbe author and wine afficianado who takes his best friend on a tour through California’s wine country before the latter’s wedding. Thanks to Giamatti’s sensitive performance, Sideways is a moving portrait of a man desperately trying to find some sense of connection that never becomes pretentious. Interestingly, evidence suggests that Sideways affected the American wine industry, leading to a rise in Pinot noir popularity (and ironically, a decrease in Pinot noir quality).

With its story about a young boy who can see dead people, The Sixth Sense is the movie that put writer/director M. Night Shyamalan on the map. It certainly doesn’t hurt that the movie features Haley Joel Osment in one of the best child actor performances of all time, and a solid supporting cast that includes Bruce Willis, Toni Collette, and Olivia Williams. And of course, one heckuva twist ending that blew audiences’ minds back in 1999 — and is still pretty effective even after multiple viewings (read my review).

Starring the voices of Johnny Depp, Helena Bonham Carter, and Emily Watson, Tim Burton’s Corpse Bride is a fanciful fairy tale about a young man who accidentally finds himself married to, well, a corpse. It’s certainly macabre and spooky, but what else would you expect from a Tim Burton film?

The original Dune may be a train wreck, but it’s a fascinating train wreck. Just start with the fact that it was directed by the one and only David Lynch, who was so disappointed by the final film that he’s completely disowned it. However, parts of it still hold up pretty well (Kyle MacLachlan’s performance, the production design) and the film has since developed a considerable cult following.

Based on Anne Rice’s best-selling novel, Neil Jordan’s film — which stars Tom Cruise, Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst, and Christian Slater — chronicles the exploits of a group of vampires throughout the years. Here’s a fun bit of trivia: After Cruise was cast as Lestat, Rice criticized the decision, left the film’s production, and refused to see the film in theaters — only to eventually recant and send a letter of apology to Cruise upon seeing his acclaimed performance as the charismatic vampire.

Inspired by the life of British army officer T. E. Lawrence, Lawrence of Arabia explores his adventures during World War I as he seeks alliances with desert tribes — alliances that bring him into conflict with England. Considered one of the greatest films of all time due to its performances, cinematography, and music, Lawrence of Arabia won numerous awards upon its release in 1962.

In this Spanish thriller directed by Alejandro Amenábar and starring Eduardo Noriega and Penélope Cruz, a young man finds it increasingly difficult to separate dreams from reality after he suffers a horrific accident that leaves him disfigured. After its release in 1997, Open Your Eyes was remade in 2004 by Cameron Crowe as Vanilla Sky, with Tom Cruise taking over the lead role.

Ranma Saotome is a martial arts master with a secret: when he’s exposed to cold water, he turns into a girl and back into a boy when he’s exposed to hot water. Which, as you can imagine, leads to all sorts of hlilarity and hijinks, especially when Saotome is engaged to the daughter of a fellow martial arts family. Based on Rumiko Takahashi’s long-running manga, this actually marks the third time that Ranma ½ has been adapted into a TV series; the previous adaptations aired in the late ’80s and early ’90s. There have also been several Ranma ½ movies and OVA releases.

In 2014, Norwegian gamer Mats Steen died at the age of 25 due to a degenerative disease called Duchenne muscular dystrophy. Believing their son’s condition had left him isolated, Steen’s parents were surprised to learn that Mats had actually been part of a vibrant online community thanks to the online role-playing game World of Warcraft. Benjamin Ree’s documentary delves into Steen’s online life, and how a massive virtual world allowed him to transcend his physical limitations.

An incredibly gut-wrenching depiction of how racism and hatred corrupts, American History X stars Edward Norton as a former neo-Nazi who, upon leaving jail, attempts to prevent his younger brother from making the same mistakes he did. Director Tony Kaye disowned American History X due to studio tinkering but there’s no denying the film’s power, especially Norton’s performance.

William S. “Bill” Preston, Esq. and Ted “Theodore” Logan were destined to unite the world with the perfect song. Now squarely in middle age, the wannabe rock stars have unfortunately failed to live up to their destiny — which is a shame, because the world still needs saving. This time out, they’re joined by their music-loving daughters, as well as some familiar faces. Bill & Ted Face the Music is far more excellent than it has any right to; Alex Winter and Keanu Reeves slip right back into their famous roles, and Samara Weaving and Brigette Lundy-Paine are a lot of fun as their daughters.

What is best in life? Well, as Conan taught us once so well, it is “to crush your enemies, see them driven before you, and to hear the lamentation of the women!” In this classic sword-and-sorcery film, Arnold Schwarzenegger plays one of his signature roles, the titular barbarian who must take on an evil cult to avenge his family’s death.

Five college students are vacationing at a remote cabin in Tennessee where they discover an ancient book and accidentally summon a demon that proceeds to terrorize them. Starring Bruce Campbell in his most iconic role, The Evil Dead was the directorial debut of Sam Raimi as well as the start of one of the most iconic horror franchises. Although it was a more straightforward horror movie, The Evil Dead was later remade as a horror-comedy in 1987’s Evil Dead II.

Shortly after making 1998’s acclaimed Out of Sight, Steven Soderbergh directed this crime thriller about an English criminal (Terence Stamp) who travels to the U.S. to investigate the death of his daughter. Employing footage from one of Stamp’s earlier films (1967’s Poor Cow) as well as flashbacks and a nonlinear narrative, The Limey is far from your typical crime film. The film’s cast also includes Luis Guzmán, Bill Duke, and Peter Fonda.

A box office failure during its theatrical run back in 1994, The Shawshank Redemption subsequently enjoyed massive success in both the home video market and on cable TV. Written and directed by Frank Darabont, the film is arguably the best Stephen King adaptation — it’s based on his Rita Hayworth and Shawshank Redemption novella — and stars Tim Robbins as an unjustly imprisoned man who uses his wits and skills to survive and even thrive in a brutal prison.

Written and directed by Lawrence Kasdan — of Raiders of the Lost Ark and Empire Strikes Back fame — Silverado is a rollicking western that takes some classic genre tropes and breathes new life into them. Namely, an unlikely group gunfighters and cowboys must join forces to prevent a wealthy cattle baron from taking over all of the surrounding land. Silverado stars Scott Glenn, Kevin Kline, Kevin Costner, Danny Glover, John Cleese, and Jeff Goldblum.