Mezzo Culture: Back to the Pictures: Best Films of the 1990s

In honor of the A.V. Clubs new list, here is ours. Also the above was our reaction to only selecting 10 ranking films and 5 outliers.

Phillip's List:

I don’t consider myself to be an expert on 90s cinema, but I like to consider myself fairly knowledgable, based solely out of a large personal preference for the era, especially in regards to American cinema. Therefore I will lose sleep over leaving out some notable omissions, things like Quiz Show, Heavenly Creatures, and Seven. It involved near impossible decisions in ranking, so much so that I wouldn’t even put much stock into them. I am certain only that my number one will almost certainly always be so, it was the easiest decision. The rest of the nine are interchangeable at a constant. All I can say for certain is that these are the ten films that I refer to when I think about the 90s. These are the films I both enjoy most and achieve the most technically. Following are 5 that must be mentioned, if for necessity or nostalgia, or a little of both.

10. Wayne's World (Penelope Spheeris, 1992)

The funniest film of the decade came from a Saturday Night Live skit by two of the show's best comics, and usually this would be a recipe for mediocrity. Yet, this film is as classic as any "serious" film. It has characters that you sympathize with, if only for their unwilling capacity to grow up, because why should any of us, after all. It was meta before meta was necessary to be humorous, and just juvenile enough to make us feel like children while smart enough to make us feel good about watching it.

9. Saving Private Ryan (Steven Speilberg, 1998)

It has been said, but this film most likely has one of, if not the, greatest opening scenes of all time. Yet, it isn’t even the real “opening” is it? The film opens on an older version of Matt Damon’s character traveling to a military cemetery with his family. Whichever opening scene you refer to, you’re mentioning a great scene nonetheless. Oh, and there is the rest of the film, boasting career best performances by Hanks, Burns, Sizemore, and an early Damon. It proved, more importantly though, that Steven Speilberg can lay away nearly all criticism that he may not be one of the finest filmmakers of all time.

8. L.A. Confidential (Curtis Hanson, 1997)

The Chinatown of the nineties, perfectly blending its L.A. crime film roots and the neo-noir revival of the decade, this Curtis Hanson adaptation of James Elroy’s novel is as great to watch each time. An early appearance by Guy Pearce and Russel Crowe anchor the films tension, while Kevin Spacey (one of the finest actors of the decade) brings a suave star power you wouldn’t expect, giving the film that classic vibe it so needs. He could easily have appeared in any classic noir and not missed a beat. It is one of the few L.A. epics worthy of that title.

7. Reservoir Dogs (Quentin Tarantino, 1992)

I recall seeing this film for the first time still, and it is a Sunday afternoon I will never forget. I was young, and my introduction to finer cinema fresh, so this film understandably blew me away. It was fitting it was the first Taranto film I had seen, as it was his first as well. But you know that, and you also know why it’s great.

6. Boogie Nights (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1997)

This still remains, on a certain level, the best film to come from Paul Thomas Anderson’s genius filmmaking repertoire. The film features two actors that give career defining performances in my mind: Mark Wahlberg and Burt Reynolds. What makes this one of Anderson’s best also applies itself to make it one of the decade’s best. It has a sense of cinematic urgency, not in its subject matter per se, but in its style, the way it treats the idea of cinema. Film was on its way out to videotape in the adult film industry, much as film is on its way out to digital now. More than that, it was one of the films that proved filmmaking, even after a near hundred years of craftsmanship, still had something new to offer from a fresh generation.

5. Barton Fink (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1991)

This film remains an enigma to me, but in a way that doesn’t make me frustrated. Rather, it allows me to watch it for something new each time. The film meanders from plot thread to plot device, theme to theme, but feels fluid as it does so. The last half of this film enters a territory I had never seen in a film before. It would be Kubrickian, if it didn’t belong solely to the Coen brothers. In a few years they will have their own pretentious sounding adjective, if they don’t already.

4. Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)

Speaking of Kubrickian, this is in the literal sense. Much talk was and is made about Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman (who, let’s face it, is gorgeous here) having strong sexual charisma in the film at a time when their star power was reaching its boiling point. Once years past, many began to see the film away from the supposed controversy, Kubrick’s unfortunate passing, and focus on the film itself. I saw it for the first time only a couple years ago, and it has stuck with me ever since. It is a beautiful film, but it is also an ugly film. Beautiful in its design and its execution, ugly in its subject and the feeling you carry from it. The film is almost the definition of self-indulgence, but, much like the recent film The Master, is a self-indulgence you can’t look away from.

3. Toy Story (John Lasseter, 1995)

This film is a part of my soul, one that I forget about, one that I neglect, and then it reminds me that it’s occupied a special place every time I see it. The voice acting is incredible, but its place in history is solidified similarly to Citizen Kane. It is influenced by the animated classics before it, but introduced us to Pixar much as Kane did for Welles. It is still a seminal classic, one that deserves its highest shelf at the mantle. Plus, it’s about toys doing funny things, it almost IS childhood.

2. The Thin Red Line (Terrence Malick, 1998)

Much like Boogie Nights, Terrence Malick’s … comeback? … film boasts what may perhaps be the single example of the auteur theory at work. The film is entrancing, and is one of the few films truly deserving to be called beautiful. It has almost its own soul, its heart beats in a clear rhythm, one no doubt in sync with its writer/director. This comes primarily from the voice over narrations Malick has gone, some would say, overboard with in his recent films. Yet here it gives us a window into the souls of the characters, if it isn’t reaching too far to say. Malick searches for remnants of humanity in the idea of war, perhaps our greatest in history, and finds little, if only in the men and how they lose theirs along the way. It is not only one of the great nineties films, but one of the finest American films no doubt ever made.

1. Fargo (Joel and Ethan Coen, 1996)

This is a rare film that, even upon its first release, could have been heralded as one of the great films in history and not have been hyperbolic. The characters in the Coen brother’s masterpiece jump off the screen, offering the best performances from couple of the best actors of the era. Frances McDormand anchors the film here, as the “detective” archetype completely transformed. The actions of the other characters, particularly Macy’s neurotic salesman and Peter Storemare’s murderous chipper, are unexplainable to Marge and us as she pursues them. It is a perfect slice of a specific kind of Americana, such that could never be imitated. Masters of their craft, this is the Coen’s finest accomplishment.

The Outliers:

Pulp Fiction (Quentin Tarantino, 1999)
No 90s list is complete without mentioning this film, and on another day it would have been number 10.

Bringing Out the Dead (Bringing Out the Dead, 1999)
The most underrated of the decade and Scorsese’s career. Not to mention Cage, but that seems obvious.

Fight Club (David Fincher, 1999)
Also a quintessential film, it too would be an interchangeable film on the list.

Batman: Mask of the Phantasm (Eric Randomski, Bruce Timm, 1993)
The finest Batman film up until Nolan’s series, or maybe it still is?

Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)
I know, I know, but only ten choices, some were bound to be excluded. It hurts.

Kyle's List:

10. Leon: The Professional (Luc Bresson, 1994)

In a decade full of memorable action films, this one sticks out, and not just because it's from a French director. The whole idea of an aging hit-man training a young, angry protege has been done again and again. But this one had a real heart and offered some first rate action at that. Plus, it's interesting to see a young Natalie Portman, an unhinged Gary Oldman, and a Jean Reno prior to his appearance in films such as Godzilla and the remake of The Pink Panther.

9. Heat (Michael Mann, 1995)

A movie that featured the long delayed duo of Robert De Niro and Al Pacino should have been a huge disappointment. Instead, Heat was a truly great heist film that offers truly benchmark moments for the two legends, especially in their diner scene together. The bank robbery is among the best that cinema has to offer, delivering the stakes and excitement to make us wonder if it can go off without a hitch. Michael Mann's trademark tension and grittiness are at full display and have left a mark on the crime genre in a never overstated way.

8. American Beauty (Sam Mendes, 1999)

For whatever reason, this film has mostly seen as overrated or overstated in recent years. I'm not quite sure why this has happened: maybe because the message looks dated for some, perhaps because others are still sore about all the acclaim it received upon it release. Regardless, this is a truly great American film that for me is still very relevant for contemporary audiences. I found the movie particularly haunting, leaving me thinking about it in the days following my initial viewing. Kevin Spacey gives his ultimate performance as a man who should be happy, but just doesn't see the beauty in the world around him. Until it's too late.

7. Saving Private Ryan (Steven Spielberg, 1998)

The 90s were an interesting period for Steven Spielberg. After spending years toiling over commercial, albeit great, films, he had the one-two punch in 1993 with the blockbuster Jurassic Park and the brave, intrepid Schindler's List, telling a redemptive story that took place during some of the darkest years in all of history, the Holocaust. Here, Spielberg melds commercialism and art into a masterpiece that further defines the director as one of the all time greats. It's been said before that any war film should at its heart be an anti war film. Having said that, this example proves that sometimes, there really are things worth fighting for.

6. Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991, James Cameron)

Although the first one was among the most original, innovating films of its time and genre, its successor was a bonafide action epic. James Cameron's best film is long behind us, but that doesn't mean it's still not being felt today. Nearly every genre film in its vein has taken something from it, as it's set the standard for what makes a great summer event/popcorn movie. Playing more on Arnold's humor than the original, Terminator 2 is the epitome of his appeal as a movie star. The film also has a strong, although not necessarily unique, emotional core that is absent from many action movies.

5. Reservoir Dogs (Quentin Tarantino, 1992)

I remember first seeing this thinking it may have been the coolest thing I'd ever seen. Holding up and aging tremendously well, Dogs marked the debut of Tarantino, who changed not only the face of independent film, but who helped define the decade we find ourselves talking about. Featuring great writing and performances, this film continues to spark vivid recollections of lines and characters. Although many point to Pulp Fiction as his great work, sometimes less is more.

4. Magnolia (Paul Thomas Anderson, 1999)

Anyone who knows me knows I'm a sucker for huge ensemble pieces, and this is certainly among the best there is. Although the problems often lie in its ambition, Magnolia also succeeds because of its ambition. Some stories don't feel as important as others, but the multifaceted society presented here shows that everything's connected in some way or another. The emotional feeling this one left me with was far more valuable and worthwhile than any complaints I may have had about it.

3. The Thin Red Line (Terrence Malick, 1998)

We all no the story: just before the legend of Terrence Malick became a myth, he leapt back onto the scene in a major way after 20 years. The Thin Red Line seems almost too much to take in after the first viewing. It's visual style evokes literary scope, forming some line of poetry within every frame. Featuring a fabulous cast who all form a greater whole, it's all about the work, not necessarily the individuals. The music mixed with the images leave an impression on anyone it encounters, as the film's true legacy is still yet to be defined.

2. Barton Fink (Joel Coen, 1991)

A movie about the creative process, Barton Fink can leave a viewer as frustrated as an artist: constantly searching for answers in the midst of constant confusion. Although this was a strong decade for the Coens, this one has always stood out the most to me. Theories abound about nearly EVERY aspect of this movie, leaving endless threads for cinephiles to stitch up, rip apart, and stitch back together again. The mysteries of the movie leave you wanting to come back and see if it holds up. Inevitably, you just find more and more layers to it, leaving you yourself feel trapped in a madhouse of your the Coen's design.

1. Goodfellas (Martin Scorsese, 1990)

Where to begin? Well, anyone who's read the site before or knows me is aware of my love for this one. I even wrote a blog post about it here. Martin Scorsese's crime epic seems even bigger in its exploration of the mundane: jokes at card games, score settling in bars, making dinner behind bars, etc and so forth. It's all fun and games until a dead body ruins the day. A rock and roll gangster movie, the music is one of the most effective parts of the film: it shows the evolution of this world and reflects its decay and unraveling.

Top 5 Nostalgia Picks: Being children of the 90s, the two of us were raised on our fair share of good, bad, and just plain ugly pieces of entertainment. However, we have our fair share of guilty pleasure that are close to our hearts.