Bound (1996)

The Wachowskis' debut: a tight, stylish noir about two women robbing the mob, and the smartest film the erotic thriller ever produced.

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The film

Before The Matrix, the Wachowskis made this: Violet (Jennifer Tilly), a mobster's girlfriend, recruits ex-con handywoman Corky (Gina Gershon) to steal two million dollars from the mafia. What follows is one of the most precisely constructed thrillers of the decade — every shot composed, every twist earned, with Joe Pantoliano spiralling magnificently as the money launderer caught in the middle.

It's also a landmark of queer cinema that treats its central relationship as the film's beating heart rather than its hook. The genre never produced anything smarter.

Which cut matters

The unrated cut is the full film as intended; the R-rated version trims the central relationship. Criterion's edition presents the unrated cut — another reason it's the one to own.

Editions: what to look for

Criterion's 4K UHD + Blu-ray edition is the definitive release: a new restoration of the unrated cut, with the commentary featuring the Wachowskis, Gershon and Tilly carried over from earlier editions. Older Olive Films and import discs exist, but this is a settled question — buy the Criterion.