A Glean movie guide
The Under-2-Hour Essentials
All killer, no filler.
Masterpieces that respect your time without sacrificing an ounce of depth.
Handpicked for this guide
The movie list
- 01
Whiplash
A relentless, high-stakes drama about the cost of greatness and the intensity of a cut-throat mentorship.
Under the direction of a ruthless instructor, a talented young drummer begins to pursue perfection at any cost, even his humanity.
- 02
Get Out
A masterfully crafted social thriller that blends sharp commentary with genuine, edge-of-your-seat suspense.
Chris and his girlfriend Rose go upstate to visit her parents for the weekend. At first, Chris reads the family's overly accommodating behavior as nervous attempts to deal with their daughter's interracial relationship, but as the weekend progresses, a series of increasingly disturbing discoveries lead him to a truth that he never could have imagined.
- 03
12 Angry Men
A masterclass in tension and dialogue that proves you only need one room to tell a legendary story.
The defense and the prosecution have rested and the jury is filing into the jury room to decide if a young Spanish-American is guilty or innocent of murdering his father. What begins as an open and shut case soon becomes a mini-drama of each of the jurors' prejudices and preconceptions about the trial, the accused, and each other.
- 04
Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse
A visually stunning reinvention of the superhero genre that bursts with creativity and heart.
Struggling to find his place in the world while juggling school and family, Brooklyn teenager Miles Morales is unexpectedly bitten by a radioactive spider and develops unfathomable powers just like the one and only Spider-Man. While wrestling with the implications of his new abilities, Miles discovers a super collider created by the madman Wilson "Kingpin" Fisk, causing others from across the Spider-Verse to be inadvertently transported to his dimension.
- 05
The Grand Budapest Hotel
A whimsical and fast-paced caper filled with vibrant characters and signature visual wit.
The Grand Budapest Hotel tells of a legendary concierge at a famous European hotel between the wars and his friendship with a young employee who becomes his trusted protégé. The story involves the theft and recovery of a priceless Renaissance painting, the battle for an enormous family fortune and the slow and then sudden upheavals that transformed Europe during the first half of the 20th century.
- 06
A Quiet Place
A lean, high-concept survival thriller that uses silence to build nearly unbearable levels of tension.
A family is forced to live in silence while hiding from creatures that hunt by sound.
- 07
Lady Bird
A sharp, funny, and deeply relatable coming-of-age story told with immense honesty and heart.
Lady Bird McPherson, a strong willed, deeply opinionated, artistic 17 year old comes of age in Sacramento. Her relationship with her mother and her upbringing are questioned and tested as she plans to head off to college.
- 08
Ex Machina
A sleek and provocative sci-fi chamber piece that explores the chilling boundaries of artificial intelligence.
Caleb, a coder at the world's largest internet company, wins a competition to spend a week at a private mountain retreat belonging to Nathan, the reclusive CEO of the company. But when Caleb arrives at the remote location he finds that he will have to participate in a strange and fascinating experiment in which he must interact with the world's first true artificial intelligence, housed in the body of a beautiful robot girl.
- 09
Run Lola Run
A high-octane experimental thriller that moves at a breakneck pace from its first second to its last.
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.
- 10
Palm Springs
A refreshing and clever twist on the time-loop trope with fantastic comedic chemistry between its leads.
When carefree Nyles and reluctant maid of honor Sarah have a chance encounter at a Palm Springs wedding, things get complicated when they find themselves unable to escape the venue, themselves, or each other.
- 11
Fargo
A darkly funny and uniquely atmospheric crime story that remains one of the Coen Brothers' finest works.
Jerry, a small-town Minnesota car salesman is bursting at the seams with debt... but he's got a plan. He's going to hire two thugs to kidnap his wife in a scheme to collect a hefty ransom from his wealthy father-in-law. It's going to be a snap and nobody's going to get hurt... until people start dying. Enter Police Chief Marge, a coffee-drinking, parka-wearing - and extremely pregnant - investigator who'll stop at nothing to get her man. And if you think her small-time investigative skills will give the crooks a run for their ransom... you betcha!
- 12
Past Lives
A quiet, devastatingly beautiful exploration of fate, love, and the lives we leave behind.
After decades apart, childhood friends Nora and Hae Sung are reunited in New York for one fateful weekend as they confront notions of destiny, love, and the choices that make a life.