"I love 400 Blows. [François] Truffaut is just a genius and, again, just there’s a total Cassavetian quality in his performances as well. I know that story was close to his own story, so that was very moving and just a totally immersive experience. I like him and a lot of the French filmmakers, obviously, for the exact reason we’re talking about. That last scene in 400 Blows where he escapes the children’s home in that really, really long tracking shot was just astonishing, just such an astonishing end to that film. That and when the kids steal a typewriter too, and they’re struggling with the weight of it; that was great. It’s just great, great fun."

"Again, toss up between The Wizard of Oz and Singin’ in the Rain. This one is perfect. Not a frame is off. There’s not a weak character, there’s not a weak moment, it’s just a delight all the way through. There’s Donald O’Connor doing Make ‘Em Laugh. They turned him loose and he just went. [And there’s] that wonderful scene where they’re talking to the voice coach. They make it look so easy and effortless — and if you’ve ever danced on stage, if you’ve ever tried tap dancing and singing at the same time, there is nothing easy about it. It is just astonishing. “Whaddya think, I’m dumb or something?” Oh, Jean Hagen."

"A fascinating character study of how another rebel raccoon Meeko manipulates a buncha useless fleshbags into arguing over a buncha Earth units that weren’t even real, just to feed his bottomless appetite — FOR POWER! I always say there ain’t no thing like me, ‘cept me, but Meeko’s pretty d’ast close. He’s even got his own talking tree sidekick, Granny Willow! And look, Groot’s great, but he ain’t got the powers of persuasion that this barky broad had. But Meeko and Granny, they took it too far — they almost started a WAR! Me an’ Groot, we’re all about protecting our galaxy (YOU’RE WELCOME, BY THE WAY). But trust you me, Meeko is the greatest antihero of Earth cinema. Five stars!"

"I just saw Hidden Figures yesterday and I’m so glad that I saw it at the New Year, because I feel like that’s exactly what you want to get off on the right foot for 2017. I saw it with my husband and my kids. My kids are 11 and eight, and it was a phenomenal experience. I saw it at the ArcLight in Hollywood and the house was full. Everybody was so vocal. We clapped, we laughed, we cried. It was like watching a play. I really don’t know how to describe it. Afterwards we went out to eat and I could not shut up about it. I could not stop talking about it."

"This is a flawed film from the master, and I read in his autobiography that after it tanked, he tried to kill himself and did not make a film for five years. I love it! Such gorgeous vignettes, like the man who stops talking and loses all the color in his flesh after he finds out his wife cheated on him! Or the drunk couples who swap partners every night! He built a whole artificial dumpster on a stage and painted it in radiant colors, and then went about telling the most heartbreaking short stories of madness and despair in it. It’s like Raymond Carver on some very good acid, taking no prisoners!"

"I love The Departed. I was only talking about it the other day, in fact. I think it’s Scorsese at his best, in my opinion. I definitely love gangster films generally, like from Casino to the Godfathers. But I think The Departed, being in the modern day and being relatable — I think the cast is just amazing — but there’s something about being in the now that kind of made it a lot more… obviously relevant, but I suppose I connected with it in a much grander scale than I did with the likes of GoodFellas. I love all those films, but I think The Departed sort of resonated more than any of them."