It’s no surprise that the man who first introduced us to Ellen Ripley in Alien also directed this outlaw tale featuring two strong ladies puttin’ in the miles. Thelma & Louise is as much a masterpiece as Ridley Scott‘s “haunted house in space” opus — a giddy, dangerous and ultimately tragic ride, with Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon giving career-best performances as two gal pals whose mini-vacation turns into a run from the law after they blow away a would-be rapist. T&L crackles and pops; the movie feels more alive than most, to the point where it’ll seem like you’re in the back seat with them, all the way up through the astonishing — and inevitable — final freeze-frame (an ode to Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid if there ever was one). And, since it’s a Ridley Scott movie, you know the desert has never looked more gorgeous — and speaking of gorgeous, you also get Brad Pitt as the impossibly sexy hitchhiker who ends up being the one-night-stand of Davis’ life.