Posted: 01/09/2000

Hank Yuloff’s “Best and Worst” of the ’90s

by Hank Yuloff

Top Movies Of The 90’s

Good movies are like a fine can of Diet Coke. It gives you a quick pick me up, and has a fine flavor that will stick with you. In some cases that flavor will visit you few times. I have based my choices on a few factors:
1. Can I watch it over and over
2. Did it make me laugh out loud a bunch or cry so my wife wouldn’t see.
3. Was it shot beautifully.
4. Quotes you could hear over and over.

In no particular order… they’re all close:

#1 Movies With American In The Title: The American President—Like Blazing Saddles, I could probably quote most of it by heart.
American Beauty—I’ve found that this is mostly a guy thing.
American Pie—The funniest movie since Young Frankenstein.

#2 A Few Good Men—I will watch it just for the build up line:
“Did you order a Code Red?”
“You’re God Damn right I did!”
Oh Tom… you stud.

#3 Age of Innocence—So beautifully photographed, you have to love this chick flick from heaven.

#4 Schindler’s List—can’t be topped.

#5 The Tom Hanks Quartet: Saving Private Ryan, Philadelphia and Forrest Gump, Apollo 13.

#6 The 6th Sense—Just simply the best type of movie… Well acted and with a story that keeps you hanging.

#7 Chasing Amy—Over and over and over I can watch this one. A classic.

#8 Silence of the Lambs—Along with Se7en, this did for horror in the 90’s what The Omen did for the 80’s and The Exorcist did for the 70’s: Raised the bar for all others to compare against.

#9 Dances with Wolves. I bet I catch crap from a bunch of folks for this, but it was a movie that just spoke to the side of me that feels we need to protect the natural side of our world. Actually, I put this on just to piss off Jon Bastian.

#10 Could have filled this spot with any of the below movies, but I will have to go along with my “can watch them over and over theory” to pick: The Baseball Trilogy: Bull Durham, Major League, and A League of Their Own.

Almost Made The List:
The Green Mile, Good Will Hunting, The Usual Suspects, Pulp Fiction, Se7en, The Hunt for Red October (“Be careful, some things in here don’t respond well to bullets,”) Titanic, Sling Blade, and As Good As It Gets.

The Bottom 10:
Finding the bottom movies is not really fair. Most movies SUCK. You know, like Hollywood Hookers and all those other stupid T & A movies (as opposed to the really GOOD T&A movies like Wild Things). Be that as it may, here are my criteria for bad ones: There are plenty of movies that just go on and on and when they end, you have no idea WHAT WAS THE POINT OF THE FUCKING MOVIE. I will try and limit my choices to “wide released” and not direct to video shit like Gun Crazy (Drew, what were you thinking?)

#1 The Blair Witch Project—The worst movie ever made.

#2 The Scent of Green Papaya—Rent it. I dare you. Not a wide release but I wish I had this evening of my life to live over.

#3 Hurly Burly—Just saw this one. Falls into that WWTPOTFM catagory.

#4 Glengary Glen Ross—I am in sales and this movie just pissed me off. WWTPOTFM

#5 Eyes Wide Shut—Kind of an exception to the really good T&A, but the music etc. was just dreadful. The only good thing about this movie was that my sister-in-law has one spoken line. Hint: You NEVER see her face!

#6 The Thin Red Line—I LOVE war pictures. John Wayne, Combat the TV series… I’m all over them. I know war movies and this was not one of them. WWTPOTFM

#7 Most of the TV Shows Turned Into Movies. This includes the soon to be released Charlie’s Angels. That’s going to either be very campy or just SUCK. WWTPOTFM

#8 Rushmore—I was so ready to laugh my ass off. All I got was an enema. The lone bright spot, as in every movie he makes: Bill Murray. WWTPOTFM

#9—10 The Blair Witch Project and all sequels they ever make or consider making.

Hank Yuloff is a film producer and critic in Los Angeles.

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