Over the past month or so, I've been reviewing movies that I waited to see at the theater. That means two things: 1, my parents didn't drag me to see them, and 2, they did not star Katherine Sieg Heil...er Heigl oops. I do seem to keep picking on her, but after catching apreview of her latest movie recently, I just can't understand why she's shoved at us.
Now we enter what I consider to be the "Golden Age" of my movie-going, the years 1996 to 2002. This covers the time of my prime college years to when I left northern California for Las Vegas (a little of there also).
1996
Beavis and Butthead Do America- OK, yes, we (my buddy Scott and I) were heavily influenced by the TV show. We did enjoy this film; unfortunately, the show started to get bad after this. (some would argue it always had been)
Broken Arrow- another new birth of John Travolta era film, this time he's a bad guy. Christian Slater was just along for the ride. This film was the only one that I, Scott, and Rob saw together. I can still watch this from time to time.
Escape from L.A.- a pretty good action film. I hadn't seen Escape from New York before this. What makes this movie even more memorable is that the film broke at a crucial moment (free movie pass for us!)
Independence Day- begin the "Will Smith can't lose" era of film. Quite enjoyable to this day! Imagine: Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum save the world! Unlikely in real life.
Mars Attacks- I enjoy this less now than I did when it came out, but it's still funny to think that the world was saved by Slim Whitman
Mystery Science Theater 300 The Movie- ok, I didn't exactly wait with baited breath for this one, but it's notable because Scott and I went to see this on our first night in the off-campus apartment. It was like watching an episode of the show on a big screen...which was sometimes good and often bad.
The People vs Larry Flynt- not a bad film, except one feels they've rooted for a sleazeball for 2 hours. I could take or leave this one now.
The Rock- Sean Connery and Nicolas Cage...one of many interesting pairings of the time, but it worked! This suffers from TV overplay, though.
Rumble in the Bronx- Our intro to Jackie Chan...pretty good! The only thing is, you've seen one of these, you've seen all of them.
Spy Hard- Yeah, Leslie Nielsen...one gag after another...been there done that. Next!
Star Trek First Contact- Now they got it right. This was the first reall all-NG cast with no Shatner influence. Throw in the Borg and you have a winner!
A Time to Kill- another good Grisham offering. Well done!
Tin Cup- tell the truth, I like this one better now than I did then. Painful to watch the end at first, but now it's all good.
Yeah, a bountiful year! On to...
1997
Absolute Power- great Eastwood movie! I still love this one.
Air Force One- good Harrison Ford movie, but one gets tired of terrorists hijacking a plane, even if it does hold Han Solo!
Boogie Nights: Cheering for fictional porn stars....afternoon well-spent!
Con Air- This movie still rocks! Once again, John Malkovich shines as the bad guy.
The Devil's Advocate- hmmm, Keanu Reeves as a lawyer and Al Pacino as Satan! I think the best part was Connie Nielsen baring it all, but otherwise cheese with lots of ham
Face/Off- John Travolta again in bad (with some good) guy mode vs Nicolas Cage in good (sometimes bad) guy role...confusing? Maybe, but it's still watchable!
Grosse Pointe Blank- still a favorite! I can't help feel sorry for a guy whose childhood home is now a mini-mart.
The Ice Storm- a strange movie about mid-70s morality...depressing, actually!
The Jackal- for some reason I still like this one. Richard Gere with an Irish accent was fun to watch
Jackie Brown- this film is actually good due to the music. Otherwise, it's a yawner even with the soundtrack halfway through
L.A. Confidentail- a great detective story set in the 50s! I can watch this anytime.
Liar Liar- fun Jim Carrey without getting too dumb!
Leave it to Beaver- uh...saw this out of curiosity, and saw it ONCE!
Men in Black- fun fun fun! Really! Next!
The Peacemaker- cheesy George Clooney...next!
Private Parts- funny, but gets stale after 2 viewings
Rainmaker- great John Grisham flick...next!
Romy and Michelle's High School Reunion-okay film, hard to watch twice...so I didn't. Mostly a chick flick.
The Saint- interesting. I like it, but it has slow moments...don't watch after a long hard day
Yes, 1997 was a PEAK year. One would think I did nothing but see movies. Apart form classes and jobs, yeah, that was pretty much it!
1998
Armageddon- okay but overlong. Couldn't see it twice!
The Avengers- horrible! next!
The Big Hit- looked good in previews, but it sucked. Next! ( hmm, detecting a pattern here!)
The Big Lebowski- that's more like it! Jeff Bridges as an aging hippie, say no more!
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas- a bit confusing at times (as Hunter Thompson was often confused and confusing!)...Johnny Depp shines here. Good movie to see every 5 years.
Lethal Weapon 4- good movie, and a good end to a series!
Lost in Space- tough to like...and I didn't!
The Mask of Zorro- Antonio Banderas as Zorro...it worked! I can always watch this.
The Negotiator- ok, but it was a bit dark. Can't like this one anymore, the ending wasn't satisfying
Out of Sight- better George Clooney, and paired with J. Lo (who was hot at the time) this was a good Elmore Leonard adaptation
Psycho remake- word of advice...ALWAYS stick with Tony Perkins!
Star Trek:Insurrection- good, but forgettable
The Truman Show- good and insightful..are we all in a glass dome?
U.S. Marshalls- a sequel to The Fugitve...it had lost its charm after 1 viewing
The Wedding Singer- great, always enjoyable!
Overall, an ok year, but not nearly as much gold as 1997.
1999
8mm- dark Nicolas Cage film, and quite disturbing...one view was enough
American Beauty- enjoyable drama, but again, a not-so-happy ending and those don't sit well with me
Analyze This- funny still
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me- pretty funny sequel, still funny!
Dogma- great, funny movie, and it still does well at poking fun at Catholicism
Mystery Men- funny sttill even if I was the only one who loved it.
Payback- rooting for a bad guy was pretty fun! Still is!
Star Wars I: The Phantom Menace- What I'd looked forward to for years.....just no pod races!!!!!!!!!
The Thomas Crown Afair- pretty good thriller with a good cast! Always watchable.
This seemed to be a tough year! Granted I saw a few others, but not always with previous anticipation.
2000
Adventures of Rocky and Bullwinkle- funny at first...dumb on 2nd viewing.
Charlie's Angels- pretty good still...another chhese with lots of ham
The Contender- great political drama! Always watchable.
High Fidelity- good on first viewing, tough afterwards
Keeping the Faith- wonderful flim about a girl, a priest, and a rabbi...one of the best of the year
Space Cowboys- Eastwood back in top form with a great cast! A favorite.
O Brother Where Art Thou?- pretty good. Unusual, but well done. Next!
Road Trip- fun and goofy! Still fun to watch!
Scary Movie- the only good one of the series, still fun!
Shaft 2000- good, but Samuel L. Jackson is no Richard Roundtree!
A bit better than 1999, but lacking still. Oh well, I was in ed school so I was busy! The Golen Age is slowly dimming.
2001
Ali- good, but not immortal. Only the man himself is!
Bandits- for some reason, this is a favorite. Bruce Willis and Billy Bob Thornton jsut worked here
Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back- still funny...if you know what to expect.
Ocean's 11- I still love this one! Yet, I also love the original 1960 classic even more.
Rat Race- a fun movie for everyone!
The Royal Tenenbaums- a major disappointment, and disturbing at times.
Vanilla Sky- weird, bad, never again!
A pretty bad year overall, not only for films, but a lot of people in general as well.
2002
The Count of Monte Cristo- great adventure! Still a favorite
Big Trouble- a good and funny film, but the book was better
Spider-Man- great live-action adaptation of the comic book! Still fun to watch.
Star Wars II: Attack of the Clones- uh, what? I like it, but it's the worst of the series. I had to see ti twice to realize I didn't like it all that much. The obligatory lightsaber duel was even disappointing!
The Sum of All Fears-I like this one, but I liked the book better. The adapation was poor but the story was good
The Bourne Identity- I still love this one. It introduced Matt Damon as an action star, not just goofy independent drama
Men in Back II- not nearly as good as the 1st one...haven't seen it twice.
Road to Perdition- interesting Tom Hanks film, but it showed me Jude Law has range.
Well, 2002 was slightly better, but there were many so-so films. And with that, the golden age ends. Sure, there have been some good films over the years, but the movies get so expensive and, well, there's a lot of CRAP!!!!!!!!!!!! I still blame Heigle!
U-571- great World War II submarine flick! I love this one.
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