Top Ten Films of 1997
1997
Heaven’s Gate cult members commit suicide.
The WNBA begins!
And Titanic makes soooooooo much money.
Steven Spielberg created what became the modern Blockbuster but James Cameron has pushed the make more money than anyone else game further than anyone. Every studio chased the Titanic boom after this. No one could replicate it until James Cameron did it again with Avatar but that didn’t stick with anyone because the romance wasn’t there. Leo and Kate sold Titanic so well. Sam Worthington is a human embodiment of a shrug. You probably don’t even know who I’m talking about. If I hadn’t given some context and said Sam Worthington to you there would be no thoughts coming to your head. Just blank space. That’s Sam Worthington as an actor.
Avatar was a spectacle but not much else. We will be getting 4 more sequels? Whatever. Enough about the most popular movies of all time. Onto my favorites.
here’s my 11-25 in alphabetical order!
Apostle (Directed by Robert Duvall)
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (Directed by Jay Roach)
Contact (Directed by Robert Zemeckis) - HBO Max
Cop Land (Directed by James Mangold)
Cure (Directed by Kiyoshi Kurosawa) - Criterion Channel
Donnie Brasco (Directed by Mike Newell) - Netflix
Event Horizon (Directed by Paul W.S. Anderson)
Gattaca (Directed by Andrew Niccol)
George of the Jungle (Directed by Sam Weisman)
Liar Liar (Directed by Tom Shadyac) - Hulu
Lost Highway (Directed by David Lynch)
My Best Friend’s Wedding (Directed by P.J. Hogan) - Hulu
The Devil’s Advocate (Directed by Taylor Hackford) - Netflix
The Game (Directed by David Fincher)
The Ice Storm (Directed by Ang Lee)
Top Ten! Video! Happier with this video than usual.
10. Starship Troopers (Directed by Paul Verhoeven) - Netflix
One of the more relevant movies I can think of right now. It will always be timely. A satire so thoroughly convincing of its dedication to the side its skewering somehow people still miss the scary jokes. I recommend watching it because it is funny and well made, But, it also reminds me of a lot I’m seeing now.
9. Face/Off (Directed by John Woo)
Whether you think it’s so bad it’s good, or you think it’s just good this movie will fascinate you. Nicolas Cage and John Travolta are WILD playing each other. I love thinking about if they were insulted or complimented by each other. I imagine they both thought each other were genius. The slow mo action and insane one liners are worth the time spent. I think you should revisit or show to a friend or partner if you haven’t.
8. Breakdown (Directed by Jonathan Mostow)
A new favorite! Kurt Russell in a simple premise winner. Car breaks down on a desert road and his wife goes to get help but doesn’t come back. I think it rules and ratchets up the tension as it goes. This should be in the 90’s thriller canon and the dad movie hall of fame.
7. Con Air (Directed by Simon West)
Speaking of dad movie hall of fame! Nicolas Cage’s second appearance on the list is one of my early favorites. Every cast member here is going for it and I love it. Full of big names and ridiculous set pieces. One of the more fun movies that features some of the worst moral characters of all time.
6. Men in Black (Directed by Barry Sonnenfeld)
The older I get the more I think this movie proved that Tommy Lee Jones was as much of, if not a better, movie star than Will Smith. He’s clearly a better actor, but I mean movie star. Just charismatic and drawing the attention in every scene he’s in. A crazy movie that grounds the world from the beginning. Vincent D’Onofrio’s performance as the Cockroach is one of the best pieces of acting you’ll ever see and I mean it.
5. L.A. Confidential (Directed by Curtis Hanson)
This features an extremely cancelled actor in too much of it but the movie can overcome his presence. An old fashioned noir with 90’s filmmaking upgrades and better acting. I love this ensemble, the setting, and the sleazy stories of southern California.
4. Good Will Hunting (Directed by Gus Van Sant) - HBO Max
The movie that made Boston guys slightly more sensitive and I think they have ruined that good will now, but this movie still honks. Ben Affleck has maybe never been better than here. Damon is good at this but he’s at his best when he’s a slimy weasel piece of shit. I love Robin Williams in this. A truly deserving Oscar. It’s more than the scene, it is a bone deep portrayal of potential and dealing with trauma.
3. Gummo (Directed by Harmony Korine)
Without a doubt maybe my least popular favorite. You can barely find it anywhere. It is a vignette filled homage to the darkest corners of middle southern America. It is strange, slow, eerie, and overall I found it so full of empathy and love for the parts of life we don’t talk about. The people we don’t see or write off. There’s a smell to this movie. It’s pungent but I can’t quit smelling it. I don’t expect many to like it. But it does something for me.
2. Boogie Nights (Directed by Paul Thomas Anderson)
The hardest choice I’ve made in these lists thus far! I thought this was my for sure number one, and the more I thought about it the more I realized that it was a few years ago. But, more and more another movie moves ahead. That doesn’t mean this movie has dropped at all in my love. It only got passed by another. I think it’s a rare masterpiece from a director who, in my opinion, has quite a few of those. Go watch it again. It will always be better than you remember even if you love it.
1. Jackie Brown (Directed by Quentin Tarantino)
Quentin made his most grown up movie in 1997 and I love it. A true film with the excitement of a thriller and hazy stoner vibes of a hangout movie. A love letter to Pam Grier, Robert Forester, and the best crime novels you’ve ever read. Samuel L. Jackson and De Niro are fantastic, Michael Keaton rules, and the soundtrack makes you think you might get into 70’s music. It gets better every year, and I might go watch it right now.