Sean Penn
Director, Actor
Films to Rent
- Taps (1981)
- Dir. Harold Becker
Feat. Sean Penn, Timothy Hutton, George C. Scott…
- A surprise box–office smash about a group of cadets who take over their military college, which is on the brink of being closed down. Inspired…
- Fast Times at Ridgemont High (1982)
- Dir. Amy Heckerling
Feat. Jennifer Jason Leigh, Sean Penn, Judge Reinhold…
- This early–80s teen pic survives a lot better than most, finding surprisingly subtle shades of the adolescent experience amid some frank…
- Racing with the Moon (1984)
- Dir. Richard Benjamin
Feat. Sean Penn, Elizabeth McGovern, Nicolas Cage…
- A well–observed and resonant drama, about the last few days of boyhood for a couple of inductees into the US Marines in 1942. The cast all…
- Falcon and the Snowman (1985)
- Dir. John Schlesinger
Feat. Sean Penn, Timothy Hutton
- A composed intellectual convinces his wayward friend to sell federal secrets to the Russians. Stunning political drama featuring a stand–out…
- At Close Range (1985)
- Dir. James Foley
Feat. Sean Penn, Christopher Walken
- Sean Penn plays a wayward youth who reunites with his gangland father (Christopher Walken) with violent consequences. Sordid yet solid drama.
- Shanghai Surprise (1986)
- Dir. Jim Goddard
Feat. Sean Penn, Madonna, Paul Freeman…
- Universally panned adventure flick stars Madonna as a missionary (!) on the hunt for medicinal opium (!) and then–husband Penn plays the…
- Colors (1988)
- Dir. Dennis Hopper
Feat. Sean Penn, Robert Duvall
- A grim portrait of law enforcement. Mismatched police partners are assigned to the rife gang–related problems in South–Central L.A.
- Judgement in Berlin (1988)
- Dir. Leo Penn
Feat. Martin Sheen, Sean Penn, Sam Wanamaker…
- Stolid courtroom drama about the trial of an man who hijacked an airplane in order to flee East Germany for the West, Martin Sheen plays the American…
- Casualties of War (1989)
- Dir. Brian De Palma
Feat. Sean Penn, Michael J. Fox, John Leguizamo…
- A squad of soldiers become caught in the moral dilemma of wartime Vietnam. Platoon leader Sean Penn goes beyond the call of duty while Michael J.…
- We're No Angels (1989)
- Dir. Neil Jordan
Feat. Robert De Niro, Sean Penn, Demi Moore…
- Robert De Niro and Sean Penn team up as a couple of escaped convicts who cross the border in clergical attire.
- State of Grace (1990)
- Dir. Phil Joanou
Feat. Sean Penn, Gary Oldman, Ed Harris
- Penn returns to his Irish mob roots in New York's Hell's Kitchen to find tenuous–at–best relations with the neighbouring Mafia. Oldman…
- Indian Runner, The (1991)
- Dir. Sean Penn
Feat. David Morse, Viggo Mortensen, Dennis Hopper…
- Sean Penn's interesting directing debut is a sly throwback to '70s road movies, even using a Springsteen ditty as the basis for its plot.
- Carlito's Way (1993)
- Dir. Brian De Palma
Feat. Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Viggo Mortensen
- De Palma contains his usual showy excess and proves he can be a consummate storyteller with this captivating, multi–layered crime yarn.
Al…
- Crossing Guard, The (1995)
- Dir. Sean Penn
Feat. Jack Nicholson, David Morse, Anjelica Huston
- As writer/director, Sean Penn admirably mines similar ambiguous terrain of his acting turn in DEAD MAN WALKING. A compassionate interrogation of…
- Dead Man Walking (1996)
- Dir. Tim Robbins
Feat. Sean Penn, Susan Sarandon
- In a feat of rare ambition and integrity, actor Tim Robbins proves supremely adept behind the camera with this even–handed presentation of the…
- Hugo Pool (1996)
- Dir. Robert Downey Snr.
Feat. Alyssa Milano, Malcolm McDowell, Robert Downey Jnr.…
- Comedy of quirks with Alyssa Milano, here still battling TV child–stardom, playing a hapless pool–cleaner who maintains the backyard…
- Game, The (1997)
- Dir. David Fincher
Feat. Michael Douglas, Sean Penn, Deborah Kara Unger…
- Tycoon–loner–who–has–everything Michael Douglas receives a birthday present with a difference – an elaborate 'game'…
- U-Turn (1997)
- Dir. Oliver Stone
Feat. Sean Penn, Jennifer Lopez, Nick Nolte…
- The Drifter, Sean Penn, swerves into a small desert town for a round of duelling tangos with Femme Jennifer Lopez and local Kingpin Nick Nolte, while…
- She's So Lovely (1997)
- Dir. Nick Cassavetes
Feat. Robin Wright, Sean Penn, John Travolta
- As a low–life couple whose romantic intensity borders on madness, married double–act Robin Wright and Sean Penn off–handedly…
- Thin Red Line, The (1998)
- Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. Nick Nolte, Sean Penn, Elias Koteas…
- A studiously arthouse rendition of WWII, isolating a crucial battle of the Pacific campaign (Guadacanal) as a minutely observed microcosm of humanity…
- Hurlyburly (1998)
- Dir. Anthony Drazan
Feat. Sean Penn, Kevin Spacey, Chazz Palminteri…
- Demoralising 'character study' of four middle–aged film industry parasites who hang out and pontificate the meaning of their pathetic lives…
- Sweet and Lowdown (1999)
- Dir. Woody Allen
Feat. Sean Penn, Samantha Morton, Uma Thurman…
- Possibly Woody Allen's most critically appreciated film since BULLETS OVER BROADWAY, this mock–u–drama concerns the life, loves and music…
- Up at the Villa (1999)
- Dir. Philip Haas
Feat. Sean Penn, Kristin Scott Thomas, Anne Bancroft
- Adrift in pre–fascist 1930s Italy, widowed Englishwoman Kirsten Scott Thomas lives on the generosity of her well–heeled peers before…
- Pledge, The (2000)
- Dir. Sean Penn
Feat. Jack Nicholson, Robin Wright, Helen Mirren…
- Sean Penn as director's pledge to the stuff of raw drama pays off with a thriller/parable centred round a powerhouse turn from Jack Nicholson.
As…
- Before Night Falls (2000)
- Dir. Julian Schnabel
Feat. Javier Bardem, Sean Penn, Johnny Depp
- The life and times of Cuban poet Reinaldo Arenas (Javier Bardem) told as a florid visual collage – dream, memory and history merging on the…
- Weight of Water, The (2000)
- Dir. Kathryn Bigelow
Feat. Elizabeth Hurley, Catherine McCormack, Sean Penn…
- Time–twist thriller, that intercuts a gothic murder–mystery of the late 19th century with present–day marital intrigue.
Set on…
- I Am Sam (2002)
- Dir. Jesse Nelson
Feat. Sean Penn, Michelle Pfeiffer, Dianne Wiest…
- High–calibre acting from Sean Penn, as a retarded man fighting to retain custody of his 8–year old daughter, distinguishes this intense…
- 11'09'01 (September 11) (2002)
- Dir. Ken Loach, Claude Lelouch, Sean Penn
Feat. Ernest Borgnine
- A consistently intriguing omnibus of 11 short films made by various top directors about the catastrophic events of September 11, 2001 in New York –…
- Mystic River (2003)
- Dir. Clint Eastwood
Feat. Sean Penn, Tim Robbins, Kevin Bacon…
- Dignified crime thriller shot in unfussy style by old pro Clint Eastwood, this is less thrilling than a reliable entertainment, with the emotional…
- 21 Grams (2003)
- Dir. Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu
Feat. Sean Penn, Naomi Watts, Benicio Del Toro…
- For his English–language debut, the celebrated Mexican director of AMORES PERROS weighs in with an unconventional, soul–baring drama that…
- It's All About Love (2003)
- Dir. Thomas Vinterberg
Feat. Joaquin Phoenix, Claire Danes, Sean Penn…
- A wacky, overambitious, though not unendearing flop for dir. Vinterberg (FESTEN), in which young couple Danes and Phoenix attempt to resolve the…
- Assassination of Richard Nixon, The (2004)
- Dir. Niels Mueller
Feat. Sean Penn, Don Cheadle, Naomi Watts…
- The ghost of 'Travis Bickle' (TAXI DRIVER) pervades this accomplished diatribe on the contentious era of Richard Nixon's administration – a…
- Interpreter, The (2005)
- Dir. Sydney Pollack
Feat. Nicole Kidman, Sean Penn, Catherine Keener…
- A topical thriller embroiled in the thorny issues of African politics (with obvious allusions to Zimbabwe's Robert Mugabe), this is a slick,…
- All The King's Men (2006)
- Dir. Steven Zaillian
Feat. Sean Penn, Jude Law, Anthony Hopkins…
- A heavyweight, if not entirely functional adaptation Robert Penn Warren's political novel about a failed idealist turned corrupt, powermongering…
- Buy the Ticket, Take the Ride (2006)
- Dir. Tom Thurman
Feat. Gary Busey, John Cusack, Benicio Del Toro…
- Definitive documentary about the life and death of the late, great gonzo himself, Hunter S. Thompson.
Visuals draw heavily on clips, including…
- Into the Wild (2007)
- Dir. Sean Penn
Feat. Emile Hirsch, Marcia Gay Harden, William Hurt…
- With his trademark earnestness, Sean Penn adapts Jon Krakauer's nonfiction book about a 22–year–old who dropped out of society in the…
- Milk (2008)
- Dir. Gus Van Sant
Feat. Sean Penn, Emile Hirsch, Josh Brolin…
- Saying it proud but not too loud, this dramatized biopic of the first openly–elected gay official fittingly tributes the legacy of San…
- What Just Happened (2008)
- Dir. Barry Levinson
Feat. Robert De Niro, Catherine Keener, Bruce Willis…
- Robert De Niro is in late–career–best form in this amiable showbiz satire that captures two weeks in the life of a frustrated film…
- Fair Game (2010)
- Dir. Doug Liman
Feat. Naomi Watts, Sean Penn, Tom McCarthy…
- A smart, ground level conspiracy thriller based on the true story of an undercover CIA operative (Watts) whose identity was suspiciously leaked after…
- Tree of Life, The (2011)
- Dir. Terrence Malick
Feat. Brad Pitt, Sean Penn, Jessica Chastain
- Terrence Malick’s astonishing Cannes–winning epic, centred ostensibly on the life of a Midwestern family in the 50s (presided over by a gruff…
- This Must Be the Place (2011)
- Dir. Paolo Sorrentino
Feat. Sean Penn, Frances McDormand, Judd Hirsch…
- Sean Penn is all affectation as a retired, depressed glam rocker who sets off on an American road trip in search of a Nazi war criminal in this…
- Gangster Squad (2013)
- Dir. Ruben Fleischer
Feat. Sean Penn, Ryan Gosling, Josh Brolin…
- This straight–shooting, bang–a–minute gangster flick scores as both an entertaining throwback to 40s–era crime fighting, and…
- Secret Life of Walter Mitty, The (2013)
- Dir. Ben Stiller
Feat. Ben Stiller, Kristen Wiig, Kathryn Hahn…
- Ben Stiller directs and stars in this splashy adaptation of James Thurber's short story about a meek proofreader who finds solace and empowerment in…
- Gunman, The (2015)
- Dir. Pierre Morel
Feat. Sean Penn, Idris Elba, Jasmine Trinca…
- Sean Penn stars as a sniper on a mercenary assassination team, who kills a Congolese minister, but his shot forces him into hiding.
- Angry Birds Movie, The (2016)
- Dir. Clay Kaytis, Fergal Reilly
Feat. Jason Sudeikis, Josh Gad, Danny McBride…
- The video game franchise gets a surprisingly decent cinematic treatment. Set on an island populated by happy, flightless birds visited by mysterious…
- Professor and the Madman, The (2019)
- Dir. P. B. Shemran
Feat. Mel Gibson, Sean Penn, Natalie Dormer…
- Biographical drama set in London in 1879, where a professor (Mel Gibson) compiling the first Oxford England Dictionary receives a submission of over…
- Licorice Pizza (2021)
- Dir. Paul Thomas Anderson
Feat. Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn…
- Celebrated auteur Paul Thomas Anderson amusingly runs through the fads of the 1970s while loosely following the relationship between a precocious…