Best Films of the 90s - 10-6

10. The Insider - (1999)

Michael Mann's best film benefits from an intelligent and complex Eric Roth script, Al Pacino's best performance since the mid-70s, and career best performances from Russell Crowe, Gina Gershon, and Christopher Plummer. The talky back room discussions are so smart and well-acted that they are the actual highpoint of the film. Mann's eclectic selection of songs hits each mood perfectly and the longish running time is justified with dozens of interesting secondary characters and a complicated plot expertly told. The whole point - a girl realizing the sacrifices her father makes for her - plays out perfectly in a late short scene.

9. JFK - (1991)
It's mostly rubbish: even the most devout conspiracy theorist admits the Jim Garrison case was a fiasco. But it makes for a fascinating film. Oliver Stone seamlessly combines the Garrison case with other sources (the spellbinding Donald Sutherland sequence is based on Fletcher Prouty) and humanizes the entire loquacious, informative endeavor by effectively showing Garrison relating to his family and colleagues. Kevin Costner is a little stiff but holds his own against the To Kill a Mockingbird and Mr. Smith Goes to Washington references. The supporting cast is mesmerizing (a never better Kevin Bacon, the energetic Joe Pesci, the chameleonic Gary Oldman, the restrained Jack Lemmon, etc.). But it's Stone who's the star as he advances the cinematic language by a decade or more (for better or worse - it's not Stone's fault his imitators weren't as talented as him).

8. Unforgiven - (1992)

Clint Eastwood's last (and best) Western deconstructed most of his previous films (most notably The Outlaw Josey Wales) by portraying the Old West to be a much more complex and compromised place than previously shown. He also tackles myth-making and celebrity as well as man's unchangeable inner nature. Eastwood gives his best performance and Richard Harris, Morgan Freeman, Saul Rubinek, and Gene Hackman are equally excellent. Its pace is deliberate, but that gives you time to ruminate on the themes and the technical expertise of Eastwood the director.

7. LA Confidential - (1997)
2 stars were born (Russell Crowe, Guy Pearce), many talents were confirmed (James Cromwell, Kevin Spacey, Danny DeVito, David Straitharn), and one was validated (Kim Basinger). Based on James Ellroy's novel, the film has a magnificent plot where 3 cops with different methods join forces to solve a complex case. In the end, it questions who's happier - the cop with the heart-of-gold hooker or the cop with all the medals and promotions? Curtis Hanson has made some good movies, but this effort is far above everything else. It's like the creative and artistic part of his brain was on steroids. The action, drama, and humor are flawlessly amalgamated.

6. Boogie Nights - (1997)

Paul Thomas Anderson's magnum opus to porn, coke, and dysfunctional families is one of the decade's best comedies, one of the decade's best dramas, has one of its best redemption tales, and has one of the best soundtracks. Every frame is so full of energy and effort, it's as if every other writer-director isn't even trying. My favorite sequence is easily the montage where Dirk is accepted into the adult film industry with The Commodores' "Machine Gun" playing - a perfect 2 1/2 minutes. Which isn't to say the Rahad-Cosmo firecracker sequence isn't equally astonishing just not quite as exuberant. Every performance is genuine and perfect - but I'll single out Julianne Moore - the best female performance of the decade.

125. Exotica
124. Much Ado About Nothing
123. The Piano
122. Crying Game
121. Boyz N the Hood
120. Crumb
119. A Bug's Life
118. The Freshman
117. Shine
116. Bringing Out the Dead
115. City Slickers
114. Secrets and Lies
113. Spanish Prisoner
112. Homicide
111. The Lion King
110. Jurassic Park
109. Shadowlands
108. Tremors
107. The Double Life of Veronique
106. The Grifters
105. Lost Highway
104. Before Sunrise
103. Sling Blade
102. The Game
101. Bullets over Broadway
100. Glengarry Glen Ross
99. Dead Again
98. Ed Wood
97. True Romance
96. The Commitments
95. Bound
94. Die Hard 2
93. In the Line of Fire
92. Affliction
91. Shakespeare in Love
90. In the Company of Men
89. Short Cuts
88. Copland
87. The Hudsucker Proxy
86. The Last Seduction
85. The Apostle
84. Burnt by the Sun
83. The Godfather Part III
82. Good Will Hunting
81. Speed
80. Reversal of Fortune
79. Forest Gump
78. American Beauty
77. Dazed and Confused
76. True Lies
75. Nixon
74. Malcolm X
73. Red Rock West
72. Hearts of Darkness
71. Wag the Dog
70. Thelma and Louise
69. Hoop Dreams
68. Quiz Show
67. Reservoir Dogs
66. Total Recall
65. The Hunt for Red October
64. Babe
63. Braveheart
62. Searching for Bobby Fischer
61. Bottle Rocket
60. Jerry Maguire
59. Terminator 2
58. Toy Story
57. Toy Story 2
56. Elizabeth
55. Apollo 13
54. Casino
53. Rushmore
52. Get Shorty
51. Barton Fink
50. Swingers
49. The Matrix
48. 12 Monkeys
47. Out of Sight
46. The Sixth Sense
45. The Limey
44. Hamlet
43. Dark City
42. Leaving Las Vegas
41. Hard Eight
40. The Fugitive
39. Three Kings
38. Waiting for Guffman
37. Beauty and the Beast
36. Hard-Boiled
35. In the Name of the Father
34. Lone Star
33. Three Colors: Blue, White, Red
32. A River Runs Through It
31. Dead Man Walking
30. The Usual Suspects
29. Dances with Wolves
28. The Player
27. Groundhog Day
26. Truman Show
25. The Sweet Hereafter
24. Last of the Mohicans
23. Heat
22. Trainspotting
21. The Big Lebowski
20. Fearless
19. The Shawshank Redemption
18. Seven
17. Being John Malkovich
16. Fight Club
15. Saving Private Ryan
14. Miller's Crossing
13. Magnolia
12. The Silence of the Lambs
11. Eyes Wide Shut