Starring: Anthony Michael Hall, Jenny Wright, Jeff Kober, Glynn Turman

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Day one of Iowa rube Daryl (Anthony Michael Hall) arriving in Los Angeles to live with his brother, he mistakes a drug dealer’s suitcase for his own, and then becomes the prime suspect when brother and girlfriend are found murdered. With his parents unreachable and nowhere to turn, he begs for help from Dizz (Jenny Wright, the adorable Mae from Near Dark), a punk scenester who helps him dodge police while also tracking down his brother’s killer.

Anthony Michael Hall broke free from the John Hughes bubble to star in this thriller, apparently turning down dork-typecast roles in Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and Pretty in Pink. Though its hard-to-fathom plot may be why it was banished to obscurity, Out of Bounds is a fun movie that portrays LA as neon grimy, and features a club scene performance by Siouxsie and the Banshees.

Starring: Christian Bale, Margot Robbie, John David Washington, Chris Rock, Anya Taylor-Joy, Zoe Saldana, Mike Myers, Taylor Swift, Robert De Niro

Set in the ’30s, Amsterdam follows three friends who witness a murder, become suspects themselves, and uncover one of the most outrageous plots in American history.

Starring: Daniel Zolghadri, Matt Maher, Miles Emanuel, Maria Dizzia, Josh Pais, Marcia DeBonis

A teenage cartoonist rejects the comforts of his suburban life and leaves home, finding an unwilling teacher and unwitting friend in Wallace, a former low-level comic artist.

Starring: Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies-Urich, Kevin McCarthy, Keenan Wynn, Dick Miller, Barbara Steele

Two people (Bradford Dillman, Heather Menzies) unwittingly free a mad military scientist’s (Kevin McCarthy) mutant fish near a summer camp and resort lake.

Starring: Doug McClure, Ann Turkel, Vic Morrow

A raunchy, gory thrill ride where slimy beasts and gratuitous T&A fill the screen from start to finish. Basically a Corman remake of his own PIRANHA but with monster suits, HUMANOIDS has sleazy fun value — with a slam-bang climax featuring an entire town trashed by marauding fishfolk.

Featuring beloved genre stalwarts Vic Morrow and Doug McClure, and with SFX from Rob Bottin (THE THING) and Chris Walas (THE FLY), seeing is believing as the salmon are definitely coming home to spawn!

Starring: Kevin Costner, Sean Young, Gene Hackman

Sponsored by MUBI; Co-hosted by Dan McCoy and Stuart Wellington (The Flop House)

Sparks immediately fly when the ambitious Lt. Tom Farrell (Kevin Costner) meets the vivacious Susan Atwell (Sean Young) at a ritzy D.C. party. He’s so enamored with her, learning that she’s the mistress of his new boss doesn’t deter him from their passionate attachment. When she is found dead, Farrell is asked to lead the murder investigation, and must figure out how to erase their connection. Sometimes nonsensical and tinged with surprises, No Way Out shows the captivating presence of Sean Young and includes a limo scene that will make you blush.

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Starring: Danny Aiello, Ossie Davis, Ruby Dee, John Turturro, Spike Lee

We begin our journey through Spike Lee’s New York in Bed-Stuy, with his most well known and well regarded film, DO THE RIGHT THING.

Inspired by a heat-fueled episode of ALFRED HITCHCOCK PRESENTS, as well as the racially motivated attack of Michael Griffith in Howard Beach, and the murder of Eleanor Bumpurs at the hands of the police, Spike’s Oscar nominated screenplay blends a larger than life theatrical sensibility with the many harsh systemic realities that continue to torment Black Americans everyday. The film possesses the unique ability to incite anger, laughter, sadness, and the constant feeling of sweltering heat all in swift succession during its two hour runtime.

DO THE RIGHT THING also features incredible performances across the board from many of Spike’s classic repertory of players, along with reliably distinct work from cinematographer Ernest Dickerson, and one of the most iconic opening credits sequences in modern cinematic history. This classic film and its influence will always be felt, and forever stitched into the fabric of Black culture.

Starring: Ed Norton, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Barry Pepper, Rosario Dawson, Anna Paquin, Brian Cox

Ten years after MALCOLM X, and only one year after 9/11, Spike Lee brings us back to Manhattan for an adaptation of David Benioff’s novel 25th HOUR.

One of the few Spike films with a majority White cast, 25th HOUR tells the story of Monty Brogan (played with sharpness and ferocity by Edward Norton) in his last 24 hours before he begins a seven year prison sentence for dealing drugs. Surrounded by his two best friends (played by Phillip Seymour Hoffman and Barry Pepper, both giving us excellent work as always), and his girlfriend (Rosario Dawson, in her second Spike Lee performance), Monty takes his last 24 to contemplate his life choices, and tries to figure out if someone in his inner circle ratted on him.

25th HOUR takes Spike into new territory, mostly working with a different crew behind the scenes, with a screenplay he did not write. These differences give the film a sense of individuality within his filmography, even though many of his typical directorial flairs are left intact. The grief that Lee felt for his city after the September 11th attacks can be felt throughout the film, and his insistence on including the tragedy within the story makes the work all the more poignant.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Clive Owen, Jodie Foster, Willem Dafoe, Chiwetel Ejiofor

Spike Lee and Denzel Washington’s fourth and final collaboration to date is a heist thriller that takes us to the Financial District. This time, Spike and Denzel are joined by an all-star cast that includes Clive Owen, Jodie Foster, Christopher Plummer, Willem Dafoe, and Chiwetel Ejiofor.

In some ways a tribute to one of Spike’s favorite movies, DOG DAY AFTERNOON, INSIDE MAN is another one of his films that feels like a bit of a departure from his previous work, and yet still retains his distinct visual language.

This taut film presents us with morally ambiguous characters, a bevy of twists and turns, and Easter Egg returns of Sal’s Pizza from DO THE RIGHT THING and “Da Bomb” Malt Liquor from CLOCKERS and BAMBOOZLED. INSIDE MAN is one of the few Spike Lee films shot in Scope format, and went on to surpass MALCOLM X as Lee’s highest grossing film at the box office.

Starring: Denzel Washington, Spike Lee, Wesley Snipes, Joie Lee, Cynda Williams, Giancarlo Esposito

Mo’ Better Blues marks the first of four excellent collaborations between Spike Lee and Denzel Washington, and primarily takes us to Brooklyn Heights and the Lower East Side. Denzel stars as Bleek Gilliam, an incredibly talented trumpet player who continuously makes messy choices in his love life, and in his role as a leader of a jazz Quintet. As trouble continues to brew with money, women, and his bandmate Shadow (played by Wesley Snipes in his first Lee collaboration as well) Bleek’s life reaches a boiling point from which he may not be able to escape.

Giancarlo Espositio, Bill Nunn, Jeff Watts, John Turturro, and Robin Harris (who the film is dedicated to) add a fast-paced, bombastic energy to the film, while Spike’s sister Joie delivers one of her finest performances. Frequent Spike Lee collaborator Terence Blanchard and Jazz musician Branford Maraslis also bring an extra zest to the film playing for Denzel and Wesley respectively, who were trained to mimic their instrument playing for the film.