Reality Bites 1993

Reality Bites

Actors : Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke, Ben Stiller, Janeane Garofalo, Steve Zahn

Winona Ryder, Ethan Hawke and Ben Stiller (directing his first feature film) star in this wildly romantic comedy that looks at life, love and the pursuit of gainful employment through the eyes of a generation sandwiched somewhere between The Brady Bunch and Melrose Place! As her college valedictorian, Lelaina Pierce (Ryder) should be destined for greatness. In reality she is a lowly production assistant for an obnoxious TV morning show host (John Mahoney). In her free time, Lelaina is making a biting, often outrageous video documentary about her peers: promiscuous, '70's-crazed roommate Vickie (Janeane Garafalo), sexually repressed Sammy (Steve Zahn) and best friend Troy (Hawke), a brilliant but unmotivated rebel. Meanwhile, Lelaina meets Michael (Stiller), an ambitious video executive who wants to showcase her documentary on "In Your Face TV." Suddenly, she finds herself at the center of a very odd love triangle with dependable, fast-track Michael on the one side and a sexy, brooding Troy on the other.

Rough Magic 1994

Rough Magic

Actors : Bridget Fonda, Russell Crowe, Jim Broadbent, Paul Rodriguez

An introspective magician's assistant realizes her true powers while adrift on a fanciful journey through rural Mexico, pursued by a gritty P.I. hired by her eccentric millionaire fiance. A curious blend of outlandish magical realism and the standard "gumshoe" nostalgia, based on the novel "Miss Shumway Waves a Wand" by James Hadley Chase.

Never Talk to Strangers 1995

Never Talk to Strangers

Actors : Rebecca De Mornay, Antonio Banderas, Dennis Miller, Harry Dean Stanton

The dangerous intersection of sex and violence is the dark heart of NEVER TALK TO STRANGERS, an intense erotic thriller starring Rebecca DeMornay as a psychologist whose repressed passions are unlocked by a mysterious stranger. Antonio Banderas co-stars as the man who romances Dr. Sarah Taylor, first with tenderness, later with jealous rage. And as their sexual games escalate, so do a series of anonymous threats against Sarah. A complex psychological thriller that plumbs the depths of passion.

Rutger Hauer

Robin Wright

Natural Born Killers 1994

Natural Born Killers

Actors : Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Tom Sizemore, Rodney Dangerfield, Everett Quinton

Oliver Stone's controversial tale of killers on the run. Micky and Mallory (Woody Harrelson and Juliette Lewis) are no-good drop-outs who respond to their social alienation by embarking on a murder rampage across America. Soon, with the help of tabloid journalist Wayne Gayle (Robert Downey Jr), they become cult heroes, and find themselves at the centre of an unlikely media circus. But FBI agent Dwight McClusky (Tommy Lee Jones) is determined to put an end to their glory. Based on a screenplay by Quentin Tarantino.

Elizabeth Hurley as Marilyn Monroe

Mary Shelley s Frankenstein 1994

Mary Shelley s Frankenstein

Actors : Robert De Niro, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hulce, Helena Bonham Carter, Aidan Quinn

Robert De Niro, Kenneth Branagh, Tom Hulce, Helena Bonham Carter, Aidan Quinn, Ian Holm and John Cleese star in Branagh's acclaimed adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. True to the original, here is the story of a young doctor whose obsession with death leads him to create a life. But his "creature," crafted from the bodies of convicts and the brain of a brilliant scientist, is a hideous mockery of humanity. And when the creature realizes he will never be accepted by men, he seeks revenge on Dr. Frankenstein and his family. An inspired adaptation that's emotionally complex and truly terrifying.

Johnny Mnemonic 1995

Johnny Mnemonic

Actors : Keanu Reeves, Dolph Lundgren, Takeshi, Ice-T, Dina Meyer

You might be tempted to call it "Johnny Moronic" after you've seen this illogical and derivative adaptation of William Gibson's cyberpunk short story (available in his book Burning Chrome), which is all the more depressing since Gibson himself wrote the screenplay. First you have to ask yourself why valuable top-secret electronic data would be stored in the "wet-wired" brain of a human courier (played by Keanu Reeves), who then transports the data from China to New Jersey as part of his last, most dangerous assignment. Surely there are better ways to transmit sensitive information, but since this is really just a conventional thriller with near-future design and spiffy special effects, Gibson and New York artist Robert Longo (making his directorial debut) are more interested in surface gloss and cyberpunk atmosphere. On that level the movie's fairly engaging, and Japanese film star Takeshi Kitano makes a pretty good villain, tracking Reeves down for the information in his data-packed brain. The movie also boasts an eclectic gallery of supporting players including rapper Ice-T, performance artist and rocker Henry Rollins, beefcake actor Dolph Lundgren, and transcontinental oddball Udo Kier. They can't stop this trip through virtual reality from being botched up, but sci-fi fans will certainly enjoy the echo of Gibson's fiction that remains on the screen. --Jeff Shannon

Salma Hayek - Desperado 1995

Salma Hayek

Once Were Warriors 1994

Once Were Warriors

Actors : Rena Owen, Temuera Morrison, Mamaengaroa Kerr-Bell, Julian Arahanga, Taungaroa Emile

An urban Maori family deals with great difficulties in adjusting to normalcy in urban New Zealand.

Patricia Arquette

Sabrina

Actors : Harrison Ford, Julia Ormond, Greg Kinnear, Nancy Marchand, John Wood

A remake of a 1954 Billy Wilder romance, this updated version of the play Sabrina Fair was directed by Sydney Pollack. Julia Ormond stars as Sabrina Fairchild, the daughter of a kindly chauffeur (John Wood) at the Long Island estate of the upper crust Larrabee family. Sabrina has grown up enchanted from afar with the Larrabees' sparkling world of privilege and wealth, but she's especially enamored of younger Larrabee brother David (Greg Kinnear), a charming womanizer. After the once plain Sabrina returns from a sojourn in Paris transformed into a remarkably poised and attractive young woman, she at long last catches David's eye. In a calculated effort to manipulate David away from her and into a more financially advantageous marriage, older brother Linus (Harrison Ford) pretends to woo Sabrina himself, but finds himself unintentionally falling in love.

Rob Roy

Actors : Liam Neeson, Jessica Lange, John Hurt, Tim Roth, Eric Stoltz

One of the most invigorating period adventures to hit the big screen in decades, this lavish, brilliantly directed film drew critical and audience raves when it was released in 1995. Inspired by historical fact and larger-than-life legend, the intelligently scripted story takes place in Scotland in 1713, when Highland farmer and clan leader Rob Roy MacGregor (Liam Neeson) is forced to borrow money from the duplicitous aristocrat Marquis of Montrose (John Hurt) to help his clan survive a harsh winter. When Montrose's vile henchman (Tim Roth) schemes to dishonor MacGregor and his wife (Jessica Lange) and take the money for himself, the rugged Highlander must take courageous action to preserve his integrity. What follows--along with some of the finest sword-fighting ever filmed--is a tale of courage and valor destined to become an enduring movie classic. Tim Roth received a well-deserved Oscar nomination (for Best Supporting Actor) for his indelible performance as the foppish but deadly villain Cunningham, and both Neeson and Lange bring an earthy, sensual quality to their passionate roles. Boasting a wealth of breathtaking scenery and high-intensity action, Rob Roy is further blessed by a splendid supporting cast (including Brian Cox and Eric Stoltz), and the lush soundtrack by Carter Burwell strikes a perfect balance of romanticism and vigorous dramatic energy. --Jeff Shannon

Something to Talk About 1995

Something to Talk About

Actors : Julia Roberts, Dennis Quaid, Robert Duvall, Gena Rowlands, Kyra Sedgwick

Grace has a picture-perfect life. And it goes dizzyingly out of focus the day she discovers her husband Eddie has been unfaithful. Julia Roberts headlines this acclaimed movie that aims for the heart and funnybone - and scores a bull's eye. In her best screen role yet, Roberts is Grace, whose reaction to the infidelities of Eddie (Dennis Quaid) turns the lives and loves of the people around her into something like falling dominoes. Robert Duvall, Gena Rowlands, Kyra Sedgwick and others in "the years best ensemble of characters" (Jack Matthews, Newsday) join Roberts for this juicy, truthful story written by Callie Khouri (Thelma and Louise) and directed by Lasse Hallstrom (What's Eating Gilbert Grape?). Folks are talking about Grace. You owe it to yourself to see why.

Mission Impossible 1996

Mission Impossible

Star: Tom Cruise

A flashy, splashy summer-movie blockbuster that's fun and exciting without being mindless? That's the impossible mission accomplished by director Brian De Palma, star-coproducer Tom Cruise, and the crack team of Mission: Impossible. Based on the '60s TV show and an almost impenetrably complex (but nonetheless thrilling) original story by David Koepp (Jurassic Park) and Steven Zaillian (Schindler's List), with a screenplay by Koepp and Robert Towne (Chinatown, Shampoo), Mission: Impossible begins with veteran agent Jim Phelps (Jon Voight) and his expert crew embarking on a mission that goes horribly, horribly wrong. But nothing is what it seems. The nail-biting set piece--always a signature of director De Palma (Carrie, The Untouchables)--in which Cruise is lowered from the ceiling to retrieve information from a computer in a high-security vault--is an instant classic. But perhaps even more impressive, at least in retrospect, is a flashback sequence in which two characters attempt to reconstruct a series of events from multiple points of view. It's pretty daring and sophisticated stuff for a big-budget spy movie, but brains were always what put the Mission: Impossible team ahead of the competition, anyway, no? --Jim Emerson

Sharon Stone as Ellen / The Lady - The Quick and the Dead (1995)

Sharon Stone as Ellen / The Lady

Street Fighter 1994

Street Fighter

Actors : Jean-Claude Van Damme, Raul Julia, Ming-Na Wen, Damian Chapa, Kylie Minogue

Get ready for action-packed excitement on an epic scale in the Street Fighter Extreme Edition! Based on the massively popular video game, this adrenaline-pumping adventure stars international martial arts superstar Jean-Claude Van Damme as a commando leading an elite team of street fighters against the forces of an evil general. With no-holds-barred bonus features and a new digitally remastered picture, Street Fighter Extreme Edition is the ultimate way to experience one of the hottest properties of both yesterday and today.

Terminal Velocity 1994

Terminal Velocity

Actors : Charlie Sheen, Nastassja Kinski, James Gandolfini, Christopher McDonald, Gary Bullock

Charlie Sheen (THE THREE MUSKETEERS, YOUNG GUNS) delivers fast-paced excitement to this high-flying action-adventure! Sheen stars as Ditch Brodie, a daredevil skydiving instructor who falls hard when a sexy, mysterious beauty (Natassja Kinski) walks through his door looking for a lesson -- and apparently plunges to her death during a parachute jump! Suddenly, Sheen finds himself hurled headlong into a nightmare world of intrigue and deceit -- caught in a deadly game of cat and mouse with the Russian mafia! With pulse-pounding suspense and sensational skydiving, high-speed adventure doesn't move any faster than TERMINAL VELOCITY.

The Bridges of Madison County 1995

The Bridges of Madison County

Actors : Clint Eastwood, Meryl Streep, Jim Haynie, Annie Corley, Victor Slezak

World-traveling National Geographic photographer Robert Kincaid and Iowa housewife Francesca Johnson aren’t looking to turn their lives upside down. Each is at a point in life where expectations are behind them. Yet four days after they meet, they don’t want to lose the love they’ve found. Academy Award winners* Meryl Streep and Clint Eastwood (earning her 10th Oscar nomination for her work here) and Clint Eastwood (who also produces and directs) bring blazing starpower and powerful conviction to the lovers chronicled in Robert James Waller’s rhapsodic bestseller.

Val Kilmer

Billy Bathgate

Actors : Dustin Hoffman, Nicole Kidman, Loren Dean, Bruce Willis, Steven Hill

Two-time Academy Award(R)-winner Dustin Hoffman (Best Actor -- KRAMER VS. KRAMER, 1979; RAIN MAN, 1988) stars in the action-packed gangster epic detailing the rise and fall of notorious mobster Dutch Schultz as seen through the eyes of his young protege, Billy Bathgate. Billy, an ambitious streetwise kid seduced by the power, money, and glamour of crime, soon begins to seriously question if his passport to the good life is going to come from the fiery Dutch and his gang! Critically acclaimed and co-starring Bruce Willis (ARMEGEDDON) and Nicole Kidman (MOULIN ROUGE), BILLY BATHGATE delivers motion picture excitement you won't want to miss!

Robin Williams and Nathan Lane

Tank Girl

Actors : Lori Petty, Ice-T, Naomi Watts, Don Harvey, Jeff Kober

The Hunted 1995

The Hunted

Actors : Christopher Lambert, John Lone, Joan Chen

The Quick and the Dead 1995

The Quick and the Dead

Actors : Sharon Stone, Gene Hackman, Russell Crowe, Leonardo Di Caprio, Roberts Blossom

In this edgy and darkly humorous Western, a mysterious young woman rides into the lawless town of Redemption to settle an old score that has haunted her since she was a child. She becomes swept up in a deadly quick-draw tournament and, in order to win her revenge, must compete in a contest in which gunslingers from all over put their lives on the line for fame and fortune.

For Love or Money 1993

For Love or Money

Actors : Michael J. Fox, Gabrielle Anwar, Anthony Higgins, Bob Balaban, Michael Tucker

Douglas Ireland is in one heck of a bind. Michael J. Fox (TV's Spin City) and Gabrielle Anwar (Scent of a Woman) star in this sparkling romantic comedy from the director of Men in Black and the producer of Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas.While he caters to the whims of the super-rich, Ireland (Fox) dreams of building his own luxury hotel and hopes that a wealthy but unscrupulous investor will help. There's one condition: Ireland must "baby-sit" the investor's beautiful young mistress (Anwar). But soon, he must decide whether the love of his life is worth more than the dream of his life. In the grand tradition of classic comedies, this sophisticated and witty film puts a delightful spin on love, laughter and romance.