2019 is over, which means it has now been 20 years since we saw the end of The Nineties. With two decades of hindsight between now and the era of 1990-1999, the time is right to reflect and rank the Best Films of that decade.
The Nineties were a period of transition. Where the films of The Eighties seemed to be influenced by what was going on in culture, The Nineties went the other way and returned to the traditional values of story, acting, and theme. This return saw Clint Eastwood go back to the Old West and take home Oscars, and enabled Ron Howard to send men to the Moon and back. Sending those men to the Moon on-screen took some old-school practical effects, but things were changing as a new tool called CGI was evolving. This new tool saw Steven Spielberg bring dinosaurs to life, and helped James Cameron build the ship of dreams on his way to the Oscars and the title of box office king; a title he would hold for over 20 years. The decade would see the rise of the Coen Brothers as premier filmmakers, as well as the debuts of today’s celebrated directors such as Quentin Tarantino, Wes Anderson, David Fincher, and Paul Thomas Anderson…along with the founding of famed studios Dreamworks and Pixar. For most of this decade, STAR WARS was cinematically dormant, superheroes were rare, and the word “streaming” meant going to the bathroom. But the seeds planted during these years would change that.
The Nineties had a lot going on, and here’s how its Top 10 Best Films stack up…
10. TOY STORY (1995)
When John Lasseter was laughed out of Disney for suggesting that computers be used to animate films in place of hand-drawn techniques, he swore his revenge. Well, maybe he didn’t, but he did prove his point when he founded Pixar, with TOY STORY as the first feature. With a commitment to classical storytelling and character-building, TOY STORY set a new quality standard for animated movies, made characters Woody and Buzz instant icons, and changed the animation business forever.
9. SCHINDLERS LIST (1993)
No one in history had a year like Steven Spielberg did in 1993. After wowing audiences with his trademark whimsy with dinosaurs in JURASSIC PARK, he suddenly went serious to deliver a WWII drama focused on the Holocaust. Filmed in glorious black-and-white with occasional splashes of color, SCHINDLERS LIST is one of those films that is so powerful that it can only be experienced once every decade. Nominated for 12 Oscars and winning seven, including Best Picture and Director for Spielberg, this is the definitive film about one of the darkest periods in world history.
8. SE7EN (1995)
David Fincher’s crime thriller about two detectives, each on polar opposites of life, who are chasing down a serial killer who is using the seven deadly sins as a motif…absolutely melted the brains of audiences in 1995. One-half a police procedural and one-half horror film, SE7EN works thanks to a focus on character, an endless string of surprises, a wonderful mounting sense of unease, and an ending that had audiences staggering out of the theatre.
7. BEAUTY AND THE BEAST (1991)
The Nineties were a period of renaissance for Disney, who returned to producing critical and commercial hits such as THE LION KING (1994), ALADDIN (1992), and POCAHONTAS (1995)…to name a few. Something from this beloved period had to be chosen, and BEAST gets the nod based on its accomplishments alone. It made history by winning the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture-Musical or Comedy; the first animated film to do so. It then made further history by becoming the first animated film to be nominated for Best Picture at the Oscars. An instant classic, endlessly re-watchable, and perfect in every way.
6. SAVING PRIVATE RYAN (1998)
Tom Hanks was the guy in The Nineties, with back-to-back Oscar wins for PHILADELPHIA (1993), and FORREST GUMP (1994)…and then lent his voice to Woody the toy cowboy; a role he’d be known for throughout the rest of his career. But his most complete film was Spielberg’s next trip into WWII, this time storming the beaches of Normandy in this epic. Hanks plays a company commander leading an impossible mission to find one man and bring him home, and the simple storyline offered the humanity and heart in the wide scale of battle. Still an amazing experience, with harrowing battle scenes, SAVING PRIVATE RYAN also stands as a tribute to veterans…with John Williams’ transcendent Hymn to the Fallen finishing as one of his greatest compositions.
5. THE MATRIX (1999)
By 1999, Spielberg and his friend George Lucas were making strides with CGI, but no one really seemed to know what to do with this new tech. That all changed when the Wachowski sibling’s THE MATRIX blew everyone’s minds in the final year of the decade. Heavy on philosophy while re-writing the book on visual effects, THE MATRIX to this day has people questioning their own reality and proved that science fiction still has a place in cinema and in culture. Groundbreaking for sci-fi and for blockbuster movies, it didn’t let the new CGI visual effects hijack the story.
4. BRAVEHEART (1995)
Mel Gibson’s Oscar-winning epic about Scottish freedom fighter William Wallace solidified his reputation as a powerhouse director. BRAVEHEART was huge in scope, employing thousands of extras while never losing sight of its main character. Made years before CGI took over large-scale battles, it has a sense of realism that harks back to the Hollywood of old. They simply don’t make them like this anymore. Emotional, brutal, and beautiful…this Blogger’s personal favorite of the decade.
3. THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION (1994)
Frank Darabont’s prison-break and character-study film may have borrowed a lot from ESCAPE FROM ALCATRAZ (1979), but that doesn’t take away from how well it resonates. Where ALCATRAZ played it straight and narrow, SHAWSHANK goes deeper and gets intimate with its characters within the brutality of their surroundings. Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman turn in excellent performances, and Bob Gunton’s Warden stands one of the best cinematic villains. It is quoted often and wraps with one of the best and memorable closing shots and tag lines; get busy living, or get busy dying.
2. THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS (1991)
The first and only “horror” movie to win Best Picture. Jonathan Demme’s crime thriller about an FBI trainee (Jodie Foster), confiding in an incarcerated cannibalistic serial killer (Anthony Hopkins), was terrifying in all the best ways. It got under our skin and into our heads, which is exactly where we don’t want Hannibal the Cannibal to be. Fueled by excellent acting from the entire cast and plenty of twists, LAMBS shocks as well as it entertains.
1. GOODFELLAS (1990)
This may seem like a popular choice, but maybe for good reasons. Nearly thirty years since its release, Martin Scorsese’s gangster epic still has a firm place in pop culture, as it is often quoted, parodied, and used as the standard by which all gangster films are judged by. Every scene clicks perfectly, with Scorsese’s sharp direction and fiery performances from Ray Liotta, Robert DeNiro, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, and Paul Sorvino. Scorsese’s knack for excellent camera movement and being able to pick the perfect cut of pop-music for each scene makes the film soar, and despite the bloodshed, works as an exploration of how the mob created their own counter-culture; a rebellion driven by centuries-old customs against the traditional working society. No movie has come out of The Nineties as unscathed as GOODFELLAS.
REEL SPEAK’S TOP 10 BEST FILMS OF THE NINETIES
- GOODFELLAS
- THE SILENCE OF THE LAMBS
- THE SHAWSHANK REDEMPTION
- BRAVEHEART
- THE MATRIX
- SAVING PRIVATE RYAN
- BEAUTY AND THE BEAST
- SE7EN
- SCHINDLER'S LIST
- TOY STORY
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Read Reel Speak's Top 10 Best Films of The Eighties HERE
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