We've hit the 90s! This particular year had a lot of films I like and I had too weed this list down, but nothing was anything major. Most of those were all fine films but nothing I'm was clinging to and driving my brain crazy when it come to decision making time. One film on here wouldn't have made the list had it been made last year, but I quite frankly loved it so much that it knocked out plenty of competition. Also, something that I remember enjoying quite a bit like Dick Tracy...I haven't seen in a long long time, so it lost out on my ignorance of not revisiting it in many years. And I like Total Recall, but in comparison to the others it just hadn't been watched as much and I don't even own it on Blu-ray or DVD. Same goes for Goodfellas. Everybody should see Goodfellas...it just well...falls short when considering MY favorites (cuz like i've said, there's a difference between "best" and "favorite").
Here's the 'Best Picture' chunk from the Academy Awards for this respective year
WINNER - Dances With Wolves
Awakenings
Ghost
The Godfather: Part III
Goodfellas
And now MY 1990
Back To The Future Part III
Well, congrats Marty and Doc, you guys made it every time you had a film come out. I like what I said about this one back in May 2013 so i'll quote myself. "Time has been kind to this one. Initially, upon release, i think this film was a shew in for the weakest entry. Going from the effects heavy, futuristic and quite nostalgic thriller in Part II to a calm, character driven, comedic western seemed like a big drop off. But in reality, this movie is much more true to the spirit and tone of the original. The 2nd film became a dark, gloomy adventure the first film never was. Its still a highly entertaining film, but its littered with plot holes and uses your love of memories of the original for a lot of good will (although, i do think its cool). The closing chapter shows the history of Hill Valley and return Doc and Marty's relationship back to where it was in the first film. This is a charming little film and a nice close to the series. And that flying time traveling train engine at the end that people find silly or stupid? Well, the first film was trying to end on that same beat, but they ended up sequelizing it."
Die Hard 2: Die Harder
I covered this one almost a year ago (HERE). When I wrote about it though, I seemed a little more down on this movie, but honestly its pretty good. There were a lot of knock offs of the original throughout the 90s (these were the actual A-pictures back then), but none did it better than the original. While the film is a noticeable step down from the first, it still works on its own as a regular action film. Renny Harlin brings a bit more of his style in place of the first one having more depth. Its also a bit bloodier and painful than its predecessor (the icicle through the eyeball is awesome). While it ranks 2nd to last for me personally, its FAR FAR FAR FAR FAR cry from last year's A Good Day To Die Hard.
Edward Scissorhands
Believe it or not folks, there was a time when Tim Burton used to craft his own ideas and make custom fairy tales for movies instead of just taking an already existing property and slapping his own touch to it. To add, there was a time when he also had to fight to have Johnny Depp as his lead in movies. Nowadays, its expected and out of gas. Edward Scissorhands was a charming little Gothic tale that was full of style and ambition. Its the type of film that makes you glad Burton didn't get stuck making Batman movies (as good as his were) for a large section of his career. Once again we get Winona Ryder woo'ing us boys in the audience. I do have a grievance with the death of Anthony Michael Hall at the end (yeah, he was a big time dickhead, but killing him?), but it doesn't deter from my enjoyment of this story and its style. And congrats to Tim Burton, who has tied Harrison Ford's current record of 3 years in a row.
Nikita (AKA La Femme Nikita)
I love this little French film about a criminal turned government assassin. It put Luc Besson on the map and also features one of my all time favorite suspense sequences (pictured above). Jean Reno makes a memorable stamp to in his short role. I like to think that this film is still pretty influential on filmmakers today if you look at its edits, choreography and style. Incredibly, this film has spawned a US remake (Point Of No Return) and 2 television series, yet never received a sequel itself. That's a pretty incredible amount of franchising for something that is merely 1 film. I also can't go without mentioning that Anne Parillaud is quite incredible and an important stepping stone for the action hero women in the years to come.
I Come In Peace (AKA Dark Angel)
So, I didn't see this movie until last summer. But holy shit, I had spent 23 years missing out. This is by and large Dolph Lundgren's best film (yes, INCLUDING Rocky IV). Its this super awesome 80s action/B-sci fi movie hybrid. Its a lot of fun and features a ton of awesome stunts and physical effects, plus the plot is pretty cool. Its kind of reminiscent of Terminator and Highlander. Also, the damn score is cool too. This is a movie I will be watching over and over and over in the coming years to make up for the lost time we've had. You can check out my review of the Blu-ray for this one HERE.
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
I'll say it. This is one of the best comic book movies and comic book adaptations of all time. You'd be shocked how close in story and tone it follows the original books by Eastman and Laird. I was one of those kids that had Ninja Turtle fever back in the late 80s/early 90s. I had the comic books, I collected the toys, the VHS tapes and recorded and kept the episodes off of TV. I also had the album on cassette that I got from Pizza Hut. The best thing about this movie? It holds up. Its effects are still great and the story and tone has something for every age in the family (even though I think it leans to more adult satisfying adult territory). Another crazy thing, I could go years without seeing it and the moment I pop it in I feel like I just watched it yesterday (in a GOOD way). There's a reboot film coming next year, I'm willing to be right now that the Turtles in the movie look nowhere near as good, real or believable as they do in this film. I'm not knocking the quality of the upcoming film (I haven't seen it), just my distrust in going overdone in CGI versus awesome practical effects that take some physical hard work and have substance to them.
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