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The 10 best movies of 1996Oct 05 '11 (Updated Oct 07 '11) Write an essay on this topic.The Bottom Line a mix of sentimental and very unsentimental movies (1) Though I frequently am not in agreement with the choices of Academy fo Motion Picture Arts and Sciences voters, the 69th time around I was. I was a fan of Michael Ondaatje going back to the amazing Coming Through Slaughter, and loved The English Patient before it won the Brooker Prize. I wished that the screen adapation by Anthony Minghella had had as crucial a role for Kip, wonderfully played by Narveen Andrews, as in the book* and found Willem Dafoe annoying, but in addition to the fine acting by the divine Juliette Binoche, Kristin Scott Thomas, Ralph Fiennes, the movie had incredibly beautiful aerial photography of the Tunisian desert and another kind of aerial shots of Kip showing Hana (Binoche) frescoes. (2) "Ridicule," directed by Patrice Leconte reached much farther back in history (to the court of Louis XVI at Versailles) and had another of my favorite French actresses, Fanny Ardant. The provincial Baron Gregoire Ponceludon de Malavoy (Charles Berling) comes to court to obtain support for swamp-draining. There is a great deal of wit on display along with the massive inequalities of a France that would soon have “la revolution.” (3) As the Nobel Prize-winning Hitler admiring Knut Hamsun in Jan Troell’s lengthy biopic “Hamsum,” Max von Sydow had the role of his career, and that is saying a great deal for the recurrent lead of Ingmar Bergman movies. The stubborn old man annoys Hitler and his countrymen (Norwegians) even more, as he resolutely accepts punishment for collaboration. (4) “Bian Lian” (The King of Masks) directed by Wu Tian-Ming is my sentimental favorite in which the proud master (Xu Zhu) of a dying art takes on a pupil and then is flummoxed to find that the boy is a girl. It is almost as good as “Painted Faces,” set against the rapid social change in the PRC. (5) Lars von Trier’s “Breaking the Waves” is astringent enough to make up for any charges of sentimentality for my #4 pick. Stellan Skarsgård played an oilfield worker paralyzed in an accident who pushes his wife (a sensational Emily Watson as a woman with religious delusions) to have sex. It is very long and creepy, but Watson… Wow! (Like the 1997 “The Sweet Hereafter,” or von Trier’s 2000 “Dancing in the Dark,” “Breaking the Waves” is too depressing to like, but its power can’t be denied (6) I’m not always as enthused about Sergei Bodrov as some others are, but found “"Kavkazskiy plennik" (Prisoner of the Mountains) fascinating. It is based on a story by Tolstoy. It centerstwo Russian soliders (Oleg Menshikov and Sergey Bodrov Jr.) are captured in a Muslim (Chechnyan) ambush. Their captors don’t know what to do with the captives and no good deed goes unpunished. (Soon thereafter, it was American soldiers lost in similar rough terrain.) (7) “Trainspotting,” directed by Danny Boyle (who would later make “Slumdog Millionaire” is based on a novel (famous in some circles) about the Edinburgh drug scene written by Irvine Welsh, with slackers including ones played by Robert Carlyle, Jonny Lee Miller, and Ewan McGregor. The latter is trying to get clean. The movie is very gritty and I needed subtitles to decode the Scottish speech. (8) I think that Milos Forman is generally overrated a film-maker, but thought that Edward Norton and Woody Harrelson gave such terrific performances in "The People vs. Larry Flynt," as the free-speech advocate lawyer and his notorious hardcore publisher client, that I had to include the movie on my list, over (9) the worthy John Sayles ”Lone Star” (which had quite an impressive turn as a Texas sheriff by Chris Cooper and a typically fine Sayles ensemble). Though I think it was overrated at the time, that is only relative and it was a good film about Texas-style racism. (10 I have enough very gritty dramas to include the heartwarming tale Jeff Daniels and Anna Paquman of leading orphaned Canada geese south. “Fly Away Home,” directed by Carroll Ballard (The Black Stallion, Never Cry Wolf) , shot by Caleb Deschanel (The Right Stuff). +++ Some other 1996 movies that I liked (followed by the names of their directors): Courage Under Fire Edward Zwick Jerry Maguire Cameron Crowe Shall We Dance? Suo Masayuki Romeo + Juliet Baz Luhrmann Carla's Song Ken Loach The Ogre Volker Schlöndorff Secrets & Lies Leigh Mike The Portrait of a Lady Jane Campion Basquiat Julian Schnabel(with Jeffrey Wright's breakout performance) Evita Alan Parker Marvin's Room Jerry Zaks Tin Cup Ron Shelton Kansas City Robert Altman --- Some possible contenders I have not seen: Comrades Almost a Love Story Peter Chan Michael Collins Neil Jordan Capitaine Conan Bertrand Tavernier Mother Albert Brooks Kolya Jan Sverák And some acclaimed movies I disliked Pillow Book Fargo (I love Frances McDormand though!) Shine Irma Vep The Crucible David Cronenberg’s creepy Crash Dead Man (despite Gary Farmer) * I wrote about the depoliticalization the adaptation of The English Patient at www.associatedcontent.com/article/5411414/book_to_movie_cutting_out_the_political.html?cat=40 I have second-guessed best actor picks at /the_worst_picks_for_best_actor_oscars.html?cat=2 and best actress ones at www.associatedcontent.com/article/5520380/the_good_and_the_awful_best_actress.html?cat=2 and, early in my epinions life, I wrote about the worst choices for best picture Oscars by decade here --- I have listed my choices as best movies of the 1940s, the 1970s, the 1980s, 1939, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010, plus the 10 greatest films ever and many more of my favorite movies.  |
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by Stephen_Murray
by lindaohio
