A Glean movie guide
The 90-Minute Masterclass
Maximum impact, minimum runtime.
Big stories and cinematic icons that respect your time.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Toy Story
A groundbreaking animation that proves heart and humor don't need a long runtime.
Led by Woody, Andy's toys live happily in his room until Andy's birthday brings Buzz Lightyear onto the scene. Afraid of losing his place in Andy's heart, Woody plots against Buzz. But when circumstances separate Buzz and Woody from their owner, the duo eventually learns to put aside their differences.
- 02
Before Sunset
A masterclass in dialogue and chemistry that unfolds in near real-time.
Nine years later, Jesse travels across Europe giving readings from a book he wrote about the night he spent in Vienna with Celine. After his reading in Paris, Celine finds him, and they spend part of the day together before Jesse has to again leave for a flight. They are both in relationships now, and Jesse has a son, but as their strong feelings for each other start to return, both confess a longing for more.
- 03
Run Lola Run
A high-octane, stylish thriller that never lets its foot off the gas.
Lola receives a phone call from her boyfriend Manni. He lost 100,000 DM in a subway train that belongs to a very bad guy. She has 20 minutes to raise this amount and meet Manni. Otherwise, he will rob a store to get the money. Three different alternatives may happen depending on some minor event along Lola's run.
- 04
A Quiet Place
A tense survival story that uses silence to maximize the impact of every minute.
A family is forced to live in silence while hiding from creatures that hunt by sound.
- 05
What We Do in the Shadows
A hilarious mockumentary that packs more jokes per minute than most feature comedies.
Vampire housemates try to cope with the complexities of modern life and show a newly turned hipster some of the perks of being undead.
- 06
Stand by Me
A poignant coming-of-age journey that feels complete in under an hour and a half.
After learning that a boy their age has been accidentally killed near their rural homes, four boys decide to go see the body. Gordie, Vern, Chris, and Teddy encounter a mean junk man and a marsh full of leeches, but they also learn more about one another and their very different home lives. Just a lark at first, the boys' adventure evolves into a defining event in their lives.
- 07
My Neighbor Totoro
A gentle, magical escape that captures the wonder of childhood with effortless brevity.
Two sisters move to the country with their father in order to be closer to their hospitalized mother, and discover the surrounding trees are inhabited by Totoros, magical spirits of the forest. When the youngest runs away from home, the older sister seeks help from the spirits to find her.
- 08
Rashomon
A legendary mystery that explores the nature of truth through a tight, multi-perspective narrative.
Four people recount different versions of the story of a man's murder and the rape of his wife.
- 09
Fruitvale Station
A deeply moving and urgent biographical drama that makes every second count.
Oakland, California. Young Afro-American Oscar Grant crosses paths with family members, friends, enemies and strangers before facing his fate on the platform at Fruitvale Station, in the early morning hours of New Year's Day 2009.
- 10
Airplane!
A relentless barrage of sight gags and puns that remains the gold standard for parody.
An ex-fighter pilot forced to take over the controls of an airliner when the flight crew succumbs to food poisoning.
- 11
Primer
A complex, low-budget sci-fi puzzle that demands your full attention for its brief duration.
A group of fledgling inventors discover a complex method to manipulate reality. At first, they successfully game the stock market with it, but the consequences of the invention start to catch up with them.
- 12
Following
Christopher Nolan’s lean debut shows the early brilliance of his non-linear storytelling.
Bill, an idle, unemployed aspiring writer, walks the crowded streets of London following randomly chosen strangers, a seemingly innocent entertainment that becomes dangerous when he crosses paths with a mysterious character.