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BEST TEN FILMS OF 1999 Send This Review to a Friend
(Listed in alphabetical order)
ALL ABOUT MY MOTHER--Spanish director Pedro Almodovar's larger-than-life drama about the need for compassionate relationships, wonderfully acted by Cecilia Roth, Marisa Paredes, Antonia San Juan, Candela Pena and Penelope Cruz.
AMERICAN BEAUTY--A searing alternately tragic and darkly humorous glimpse of malaise lurking in American life, scripted by Alan Ball and directed by Sam Mendes, with excellent performances by Kevin Spacey and Annette Benin.
AUTUMN TALE--French writer-director Eric Rohmer proves anew that he is among the world's finest filmmakers with this charming depiction of the sorting out of relationships, graced by the especially endearing acting of Marie Riviere and Beatrice Romand.
BOYS DON'T CRY--Director Kimberly Peirce's shattering drama, based on a true story, about a girl who felt she should be a boy and the drastic consequences, with award-winning acting by Hilary Swank and an outstanding supporting performance by Chloe Sevigny.
THE DREAMLIFE OF ANGELS--A particularly well-crafted story involving the plight of two young women struggling to exist. Elevated by French director Erick Zonca's skill and memorable performances by Elodie Bouchez and Natacha Regnier.
EYES WIDE SHUT--Stanley Kubrick's vastly underrated final film exploring the volatility of sex, real or imagined, starring Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman. As often the case with Kubrick's work, this is likely to be more appreciated with the passage of time when removed from the hype about what it was supposed to be.
THE HURRICANE--Denzel Washington's greatest performance thus far and the passion of the battle against the real-life frame-up and the lengthy imprisonment of boxer Rubin "Hurricane" Carter and John Artis make this a potent, unforgettable drama. One of director Norman Jewison's best.
THE INSIDER--The tobacco industry and CBS get a stiff working over in this relentlessly compelling saga of duplicity based on real events, with Russell Crowe giving an award-caliber performance as a reluctant whistle blower, Al Pacino a standout as a broadcast producer with a conscience and Christopher Plummer deserving of special plaudits for his intriguing portrayal of Mike Wallace.
RIDE WITH THE DEVIL--An ambitious, challenging and spectacularly photographed Civil War picture unlike any other, scripted by James Schamus from Daniel Woodrell's novel "Woe to Live On" and directed by Ang Lee, with a strong cast that includes Tobey McGuire, Skeet Ulrich, Jeffrey Wright and Jewel.
TOPSY-TURVY--Writer-director Mike Leigh's sumptuous, classy and thoroughly delightful and informative backstage drama about the collaboration Gilbert and Sullivan and their creation of "The Mikado," with superb performances by Jim Broadbent as librettist Gilbert and Allan Corduner as composer Sullivan, supported by a magnificent company of actors.
Other favorites of the year include (alphabetically) Angela's Ashes, Being John Malkovich, The Color of Heaven, Cookie's Fortune, Cradle Will Rock, The Dinner Game, Election, An Ideal Husband, Liberty Heights, Mansfield Park, The Muse, Snow Falling on Cedars, South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut, The Straight Story, Sweet and Lowdown, The Talented Mr. Ripley, Tea With Mussolini, Three Kings, Tumbleweeds, A Walk on the Moon, The Winslow Boy, and the documentaries Buena Vista Social Club and Mr. Death.
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