1997 Best Movies (and some on my watchlist)
did this in particular because it's my birth year and wanted to see what that year represented. Not a bad year in general
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- DirectorAbbas KiarostamiStarsHomayoun ErshadiAbdolhosein BagheriAfshin Khorshid BakhtiariAn Iranian man drives his car in search of someone who will quietly bury him under a cherry tree after he commits suicide.10/10, an emotional masterpiece and a perfect reflection on suicide. This film has helped me a lot when it came to my own feelings and helped me preserver over some of those problems. Besides the excellent performances, the directing and reincorporation was exquisite and the setting had lot of personality. Each character has purpose and so does the ending. The cinematography was very subtle in that regard as this isn't really a flashy movie. It doesn't even have music and I think that choice really added to the atmosphere and meaning. IMO my favorite movie from this director and it's probably his magnum opus. See it and tell me, apparently the late great Ebert didn't like this movie and I don't see why as there are other films he praised just like this. I also loved they did this in an Islamic country as it's more taboo.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsMark WahlbergJulianne MooreBurt ReynoldsBack when sex was safe, pleasure was a business and business was booming, an idealistic porn producer aspires to elevate his craft to an art when he discovers a hot young talent.10/10, film lovers who haven't seen this will adore this movie as I have. It's an impressive feat in every regard including it's flowing one track shots, erratic chaotic tone, real and realized characters and plot. The music choices really added to the scenes and fit like a puzzle piece. Its pace flows really nicely and should be celebrated as an achievement for how BIG (nice) this film is and what it's trying to say about the porn industry. And that's another thing, it's a great criticism while almost being gratuitous in its excess. I don't see people mentioning the script as it plays a great part in it too and while not as flashy as the other things, it really grounds the world they're setting. Which I have to add the costumes, locations, and style of filmmaking make it feel it's from that era. The extra mile to recreate old vintage porn was appreciated too. Almost everything. The only tiny problem might be the ending which I justify is him having no where to go besides the porn industry. Once you go that route it's hard to go back but I can see why people would have problems with it as do I (the reason I don't rate it a strong 10), it feels slightly rushed. Besides that if you haven't seen this then see it but don't watch with the parents as it's very expletive.
- DirectorSatoshi KonStarsJunko IwaoRica MatsumotoShinpachi TsujiA pop singer gives up her career to become an actress, but she slowly goes insane when she starts being stalked by an obsessed fan and what seems to be a ghost of her past.lowtosolid9/10, a beautiful and animated art piece on a waning star trapped in a blackhole like situation swallowing her up. I can see why Requiem for a Dream copied some visuals and tone as it's breathtaking even here. I think despite being similar in that aspect it's not similar at all in most areas (which is why I don't think it's an identical clone). It has amazing cuts which the director is known for and has amazing music plus voice acting. While not 10/10 perfect as the pace sometimes feels slogged in one scene, it's "perfect" as an animation perspective. The use of coloring and shading didn't go unnoticed and the cluttering of the screen really adds to that. See this if you haven't already, it's free on youtube if I remember
- DirectorRoberto BenigniStarsRoberto BenigniNicoletta BraschiGiorgio CantariniWhen an open-minded Jewish waiter and his son become victims of the Holocaust, he uses a perfect mixture of will, humor and imagination to protect his son from the dangers around their camp.low8/10
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsMichael DouglasDeborah Kara UngerSean PennAfter a wealthy San Francisco banker is given an opportunity to participate in a mysterious game, his life is turned upside down as he begins to question if it might really be a concealed conspiracy to destroy him.high7/10
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsRobin WilliamsMatt DamonBen AffleckWill Hunting, a janitor at M.I.T., has a gift for mathematics, but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.solidtohigh7/10
- DirectorTakeshi KitanoStarsTakeshi KitanoKayoko KishimotoRen ÔsugiNishi leaves the police in the face of harrowing personal and professional difficulties. Spiraling into depression, he makes questionable decisions.low8/10, while I like Sonatine and Kukujiro a tee-bit more I thoroughly enjoyed this and it had some elements that made those so great. The violence is very blunt and the characters are very lovable. While I enjoy the tone and color palette of the other two more I would not mind seeing this again. The acting is commendable and so was the writing. The act structure was nice and tidy, leaving no major gripes besides not being as strong story wise as his other movies. The slowed down parts are what kept me giving it higher than a low 8. A little too repetitive for my taste in some scenes but rememberable overall.
- DirectorKasi LemmonsStarsSamuel L. JacksonJurnee SmollettMeagan GoodWhat did little Eve see--and how will it haunt her? Husband, father and womanizer Louis Batiste is the head of an affluent family, but it's the women who rule this gothic world of secrets, lies and mystic forces.
- DirectorAtom EgoyanStarsIan HolmSarah PolleyCaerthan BanksA bus crash in a small town brings a lawyer to defend the families, but he discovers everything isn't what it seems.
- DirectorBarry SonnenfeldStarsTommy Lee JonesWill SmithLinda FiorentinoJames, an NYC cop, is hired by Agent K of a secret government agency that monitors extraterrestrial life on Earth. Together, they must recover an item that has been stolen by an intergalactic villain.solid7/10
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsLaurence FishburneSam NeillKathleen QuinlanA rescue crew is tasked with investigating the mysterious reappearance of a spaceship that had been lost for seven years.high7/10
- DirectorVincenzo NataliStarsNicole de BoerMaurice Dean WintDavid HewlettA group of strangers awaken to find themselves placed in a giant cube. Each one of them is gifted with a special skill and they must work together to escape an endless maze of deadly traps.low7-high6/10
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsBruce WillisMilla JovovichGary OldmanIn the colorful future, a cab driver unwittingly becomes the central figure in the search for a legendary cosmic weapon to keep Evil and Mr. Zorg at bay.low8-high7/10
- DirectorAndrew NiccolStarsEthan HawkeUma ThurmanJude LawA genetically inferior man assumes the identity of a superior one in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel.
- DirectorKar-Wai WongStarsLeslie CheungTony Leung Chiu-waiChang ChenA couple take a trip to Argentina but both men find their lives drifting apart in opposite directions.
- DirectorMichael HanekeStarsSusanne LotharUlrich MüheArno FrischTwo violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.low8-high7/10
- DirectorHideaki AnnoKazuya TsurumakiStarsMegumi OgataMegumi HayashibaraYûko MiyamuraConcurrent theatrical ending of the TV series Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995).
- DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsCasper Van DienDenise RichardsDina MeyerHumans, in a fascist militaristic future, wage war with giant alien bugs.solid8/10
- DirectorWilliam FriedkinStarsJack LemmonGeorge C. ScottHume CronynTwelve men must decide the fate of one when one juror objects to the jury's decision.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsLeonardo DiCaprioKate WinsletBilly ZaneA seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.low7/10
- DirectorErrol MorrisStarsDave HooverGeorge MendonçaRodney BrooksAn exploration of the careers of four unrelated professionals: a lion tamer, a robotics expert, a topiary gardener, and a naked mole rat specialist.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsKevin SpaceyRussell CroweGuy PearceAs corruption grows in 1950s Los Angeles, three policemen - one strait-laced, one brutal, and one sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.lowtosolid5/10
- DirectorNeil LaButeStarsAaron EckhartMatt MalloyStacy EdwardsTwo business executives--one an avowed misogynist, the other recently emotionally wounded by his love interest--set out to exact revenge on the female gender by seeking out the most innocent, uncorrupted girl they can find and ruining her life.
- DirectorBarry LevinsonStarsDustin HoffmanRobert De NiroAnne HecheShortly before an election, a spin-doctor and a Hollywood producer join efforts to fabricate a war in order to cover up a Presidential sex scandal.
- DirectorMike NewellStarsAl PacinoJohnny DeppMichael MadsenAn FBI undercover agent infiltrates the mob and finds himself identifying more with the Mafia life--at the expense of his regular one.high8-low9/10