MOVIES FROM THE 1990'S (MONTH 1)

MOVIES FROM THE 1990'S REVISITED

Since I still had quite a few movies from the 90's left on my 1001 list, I decided to re-watch ten this month that I have seen but haven't seen for awhile.

The Big Lebowski

If you're a movie lover, you gotta like The Big Lebowski. You gotta be able to quote it, love the characters and just have a fun time with the stoner dude and all his eccentric friends. I liked it when I first saw it and the subsequent cult status of the film is well deserved. And who wouldn't want to go bowling with The Dude, Walter and Donny? I will certainly see it again at some point as I spill a beverage in your honor.

Jacob's Ladder

Jacob's Ladder is a roller-coaster hallucinogenic head trip dealing with life and death, unconsciousness and consciousness, reality and imagination. I didn't remember many specifics from my first viewing other than the weirdness of it, but it is truly a worthwhile film that isn't always easy to figure out. Several scenes I watched over to fully appreciate how it all comes together...sort of.

Seven

Seven is one that I've only seen once before and if you know the big spoilers going in, you might not enjoy a movie like Seven the second time around. But knowing what was going to happen made it a different viewing experience. It loses some of the shock value, but you get to figure out this intense police procedural with the officers more as you go when you know where it is headed.

The Usual Suspects

The same repeat viewing spoiler problems may be found for The Usual Suspects, which (like Seven) also stars Kevin Spacey. Yet, it makes it easier to answer the questions of what exactly is going on with these crooks? What force is leading them together? And who or what is Keyser Solze? Another one to watch with someone who hasn't seen it to see if they can figure out the many puzzles presented here.

L. A. Confidential

Since I'm a fan of film noir, I'm especially prone to have affection for L. A. Confidential, based on James Ellroy's crime novel of the same name. Lots of twists, lots of action that goes far, but not too far and boasts a formidable cast led by (who else) Kevin Spacey. Just a thought: I wonder if Rolo Tomasi and Keyser Solze have ever met?

American Beauty

And my 90's Kevin Spacey film festival ends with the Academy Award winning film, American Beauty. This film has one of my all-time favorite screenplays (Sam Ball). The characters are vivid and cleverly written (though not overwritten) and very-well acted by the cast led by Mr. Spacey...Now that I think about it, I might need to watch Glen Glenngarry Ross or House of Cards again.

Goodfellas

Goodfellas is one of director Martin Scorcese's most critically lauded films and I would say deservedly so. I'm impressed with how the film mirrors the actual events of mob informant Henry Hill to dramatic effect. Many think that Goodfellas should have beaten out Dances With Wolves for Best Picture in 1990, but for the record, my wife thinks Dances With Wolves was the right choice.

Casino

I wanted to make sure I re-watched Casino right after Goodfellas, as the movie features the same subject (organized crime-though in Las Vegas this time), the same director (Scorcese), the same star (Robert De Niro), the same psychotic co-star (Joe Pesci) and the same original author (Nicolas Pileggi). But Casino is more than just Goodfellas-lite and definitely stands on its on in the classic crime drama category. And Sharon Stone is surprisingly good!

Groundhog Day

Groundhog Day is a movie whose title has become synonymous with living the same day over and over. It's obviously very funny, but their is a lot of poignancy and character growth in Bill Murray's Phil as the movie progresses. And how could you not love the perennially obnoxious Ned Ryerson?

Babe

After seeing a bunch of harder-edged movies in a row, it's a good break to re-watch the talking pig movie Babe. It's a movie with cute talking pigs, dogs and sheep! It's sweet and touching and when Babe the pig asks Fly the dog if he can call her mamma...well, I'm going to need a tissue now.

Plenty of more 90's movies to revisit. Will work on tackling some more of those next month.

THE 2016 EDITION

There's a buzz among movie fans each year on the topic of which film will win at the upcoming Oscars. The anticipation towards this mounts as we go through the various film festivals such as Sundance, Cannes, etc. ultimately vying for good Oscar positioning. But since I've been doing this 1001 blog for so long, when I see the Oscar nominations come up, I don't think as much about who will win, as I think about which films will be in the next edition of the 1001 Movies You Must See Before You Die book! I guess I've become sort of brainwashed myself in that respect.

Before I look at the Oscar nominees for 2015, I want to briefly look at 2014. There were eight Best Picture nominees for that year. When you also throw in the Best Foreign Language winner and Best Documentary winner, seven out of these ten films made the new 1001 movie list.

These films were:
Birdman
Boyhood
Grand Budapest Hotel
Whiplash
The Theory of Everything
Citizenfour (Best Documentary)
Ida (Best Foreign Language Film)
(The nominees that didn't make it into the book were Selma, American Sniper and The Imitation Game.)

The only three other new entries last year for the new 1001 edition were Leviathan (a Best Foreign film nominee), Under the Skin (a cult sci-fi film) and Guardians of the Galaxy (a mega-hit comic book film).

So if the previous year is any indication, many of the following list of movies from the 2015 nominees (including Documentary, Foreign and Animated) will be in the new addition for 2016. I've listed them in order of the likelihood I think they'll be in the next book ed (I'm assuming there will be a 2016 edition, but even if there isn't-I'll play along anyway.).

 

Spotlight

1. Spotlight-The last fifteen or so Best Picture winners have all made it onto the 1001
book in at least one edition and I don't think Spotlight will be an exception. This is a riveting investigative drama which reminded me a lot of All the President's Men and also boasts a very strong ensemble cast. The subject matter of the film also has the weight that the 1001 movie book likes (as does the Academy). It did only win two Academy Awards, which isn't a big total for a Best Picture winner, but I think it makes the next edition easily.

The Big Short

2. The Big Short-Maybe my favorite of the Best Picture nominees...and who'd have thought a movie about Wall Street, financiers and the housing bubble could be so depressing, yet often tragically funny at the same time? And Adam McKay proves that directing a string of Will Ferrell comedies is apparently a great stepping stone to directing critically acclaimed Oscar nominated films.

The Revenant

3. The Revenant-The 1001 list likes Leonardo DiCaprio and director Alejandro G. Iñárritu (both Oscar winners for this) and I think they'll also like this brutal tale of survival in the wilderness. And I still can't get that freaking bear attack scene out of my head!
 

Son of Saul

4. Son of Saul-Best Foreign film winners sometimes make the list (Ida, A Separation, Amour) and sometimes they don't (The Secrets in Their Eyes, In a Better World). But this film about the Holocaust and a concentration camp occupant that tries to find a rabbi for a burial ritual amidst the chaos of a prisoner revolt seems to have what it takes to make the list.

The Martian

5. The Martian-Now the list begins to get a little harder to predict. Crowd pleasing commercial adaptation of Andy Weir's geeky technical novel that doesn't scrimp on the details of space and survival, but was still accessible enough to a mass audience to make it a hit. Might make the book, but I'm on the fence on this one.  

Mad Max: Fury Road

6. Mad Max: Fury Road-Fury Road won more Academy awards than any other movie this past year (6). It is a non-stop chase explosion of special effects and was a tremendous commercial and critical success. I seem to be in the minority, but I could never really identify or care too much about the characters. I would put director George Miller's original Road Warrior in the book before Fury Road, but who knows? And what is the deal with that heavy metal guitar player again?

Room

7. Room-Popular book, intense story and Academy Award winning performance by Brie Larson puts this on the maybe list for the book. It has a similar feel of Gone Girl, which did not make the book.
 

Bridge of Spies

8. Bridge of Spies-I liked Steven Spielberg's Cold War drama featuring Tom Hanks and Academy Award winner Mark Rylance, but I would still be surprised if this film makes the book. My wife thinks it has a chance for inclusion due to the weighty topic, but we'll have to wait and see.

Brooklyn

9. Brooklyn-Old fashion love story and a nice little film with pleasant shots of the Irish

countryside and a likeable cast...but I don't see it making the book. Personal note: My wife still thought the Dodgers played in Brooklyn! She clearly doesn't keep up with the latest baseball news or maybe watches too many films set in the 1950's.

Amy

10. Amy-Recent Academy documentary winners with a popular music theme (Twenty-Feet from Stardom, Searching for Sugar Man) haven't made the book and I don't think this documentary about the life and career of Amy Winehouse makes it either. I did like the film and it made me appreciate a performer that I knew very little about before I watched this.

Inside Out

11. Inside Out-Undeniably clever film about (literally) the inner emotions of a young girl, but Best Animated Feature Film winners never seem to get into the book. I liked this year's Zootopia even more and I hope that one beats the odds and lands in the 2017 edition.

I have a feeling the next edition won't include as many 2015 Oscar nominees/winners as the 2014 nominees in the previous edition, but who knows? I would personally like to see them go off the list a little more, but who knows? I would personally like to see them make a few less predictable choices this time out.