Gran Torino (2008)
The Cool Friends: Initially you'd thing a grizzled old bigot and a young Hmong boy would have very little in common, and of course, you'd be right. However, Walt soon warms to Thao, and strives to set the youngster on the straight and narrow. And wouldn't you just know it, the old boy learns a thing or two about acceptance to boot.
Coolest Moment: Tired of seeing Thao pushed around by the local gang, Walt strides into their territory to put a stop to their reign of terror, once and for all.
Tremors (1990)
The Cool Friends: Val and Earl are a pair of small-town handymen with a shared plan to escape their one-horse town in favour of more fulfilling lifestyle in a bigger city. Sadly for them, a group of giant, prehistoric worms have other ideas…
Coolest Moment: Val's daredevil finale, in which he manages to trick the last remaining Graboid into ploughing over the edge of a cliff. Even Earl is grudgingly impressed...
Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
The Cool Friends: Poor old Cameron is the polar opposite of Ferris: perennially unwell, worried about everything, in thrall to his parents. In fact, it's a good job he's got someone like Ferris to push his boundaries a little, or he'd have a struggle getting out of bed in the morning!
Coolest Moment: Having sent his father's prized Ferrari crashing into a ravine behind his house, Cameron is just about ready to do himself in, only for Ferris to offer to take the blame. Cameron won't let him, but it's still an awesome display of solidarity.
Ghost World (2001)
The Cool Friends: Snarky teen buddies Enid and Becky, who never met anything or anyone they couldn't tear down with their withering brand of world-weary scorn. What are they rebelling against? What have you got?
Coolest Moment: The girls take in their high-school graduation party. "Oh, this is so bad it's almost good," laughs Becky, scathingly. "This is so bad it's gone past good and back to bad again," agrees Enid.
Dead Heat (1988)
The Cool Friends: A pair of '80s buddy cops. Nothing remarkable about that, you might say, except for the fact that one of them is a zombie! Still a good bloke though, despite being a member of the walking dead.
Coolest Moment: There's nothing to top a newly zombified Treat Williams blowing away a nearby cop with a submachine-gun before demanding that he "siddown!" Brilliant.
Watchmen (2009)
The Cool Friends: Rorschach and Nite Owl occupy very different ends of the superhero spectrum, what with one being the shy and retiring type and the other a borderline lunatic. That said, they're very much on the same page, with Nite Owl one of the few people in the world Rorschach can call a friend.
Coolest Moment: Nite Owl calls Rorschach on his bullshit, telling him "you live off people while insulting them, and noone complains because they think you're a damn lunatic!" Pondering this for a moment, Rorschach softens, extending his hand and telling his pal that he's a good friend.
Sherlock Holmes (2009 - 2011)
The Cool Friends: Holmes and Watson, skilled mystery solvers, hand to hand brawlers and all-round best buds. They get on each other's nerves sure enough, with Watson particularly peeved at his friend's reckless lifestyle, but he can never resist coming along for the ride, can he?
Coolest Moment: Having pronounced a patient dead some weeks previously, Watson is riled by the news that said corpse has supposedly been seen up and about. "No girl wants to marry a doctor who can't tell if a man's dead or not," points out Holmes, helpfully.
X-Men (2000 - 2011)
The Cool Friends: Charles Xavier and Erik Lensherr have never seen eye to eye on the dynamic between humans and mutants, but even during their fiercest battles, the affection of their long-standing friendship can usually be detected, bubbling under the surface. A complex friendship, then, but an enduring one.
Coolest Moment: The game of chess they share at the end of the original X-Men , in which Magneto bristles with a mixture of bitterness and amusement. "The war is still coming, Charles," he begins. "And I intend to fight it, by any means necessary." "And I will always be there," replies Xavier, "old friend."
Turner & Hooch (1988)
The Cool Friends: We had to include at least one nod to man's best friend, and there are none more loveable than beer-swilling, murder-witnessing French mastiff, Hooch. Not only does he help Turner fight crime, he also sets him up with the hot town vet. Good boy!
Coolest Moment: Turner is trying to get some kip, but Hooch is having none of it. Funny stuff.
Sideways (2004)
The Cool Friends: While Miles is intent on throwing best pal Jack a tasteful stag do in the form of a wine-tasting experience in California, Jack can't help but scupper his plans with his constant need to get his leg over. Cue much irate bickering and a series of very funny set-pieces.
Coolest Moment: The first tasting scene, in which Miles attempts to teach Jack the intricacies of wine, before spotting his pal has been chewing gum the entire time.
