Diabolique (1955)

Part Hitchcock, part Gothic thriller, Diabolique is one of the most famous suspense films ever made.  That it carries its suspense consistently through to the shaky ending, is a testament to the talent of director and co-writer Henri-Georges Clouzot, and screenwriter Jerome Geronimi.

How is it that two women can hate one another so viciously, yet loathe the man they share more, so much so that they're willing to plot his murder? Paul Meurisse answers that question easily, as Michel, the cruel headmaster of a French boys' school: he's a beast of a man, with a poisonous tongue and swift hand.  His wife, Christina (Vera Clouzot), who actually owns the school and is stuffed with money, has suffered years of abuse, as has his mistress, Nicole (Simone Signoret). Together they plot a murder they believe to be almost perfect, right down to the details of their alibi, which, of course, involves the two women vouching for one another.

It's Alive (1974)

John Ryan and Sharon Farrell as a couple that welcome a bouncing baby boy into the world.  Unfortunately for them, Farrell took a load of questionably safe pregnancy pills, and the progeny comes bursting into the world as a genetic mutant, complete with fangs and razor-sharp claws.  Baby monster goes on the crawl, ripping out throats left and right, as Ryan vacillates between wanting to kill his offspring and protect it from predatory scientists who wish to study it.

The Hurt Locker (2009)

The best film of 2009--and director Kathryn Bigelow's masterpiece.  Largely unknown Jeremy Renner gives a brave performance as an elite bomb disposal technician in Iraq, who goes about his job with reckless abandon, fueled by the adrenaline rush of danger; in short, he's addicted.  Anthony Mackie plays the by-the-book second in command, and Brian Geraghty is the specialist who cannot come to terms with the randomness of death.