Best Films of The 90s (V2) [Poll][Dead] - Movies & TV

Tha1ChiefRocka
Yeah, well hey, I'm really sorry.

Location: Kansas

I've got to say, reading some of the comments about Forrest Gump on Letterboxd leaves me totally exasperated.

At the risk of going on a diatribe that's similar in shape and scope as the conspiracy theorists that think it's some kind of revisionist history, or a conservative wet dream propaganda film, let's talk about one of the basic principles of storytelling, point-of-view. This is a movie with a narrator, Forrest, who is intellectually challenged, therefore the narrator and views in this movie are his, so were seeing the world through his eyes. There, that's literally it. It's that easy. The point of view of the movie is simple and positive, because we are being told the history of a tumultuous time in America from a man whose worldview doesn't extend much farther than outside of his self.

Hayden

Location: CDMX

Tha1ChiefRocka wrote:

I've got to say, reading some of the comments about Forrest Gump on Letterboxd leaves me totally exasperated.

Yeah... I'm not going to do that.

I've never been sure why people get in such a tizzy over that film.

Tha1ChiefRocka
Yeah, well hey, I'm really sorry.

Location: Kansas

https://contingentmagazine.org/2019/07/...tual,Jenny's%20AIDS%20is%20also%20disabling.&text=Further%2C%20the%20film%20has%20positive,the%20disabled%20and%20their%20families.

This is a highly engaging article tackling some of the obvious problems and merits of the movie. A good read for anybody that likes some actual discourse.

BozoTyrannus

Gender: Male
Age: 31

The popularity of Forrest Gump is part of why I generally look on 90s American cinema with disdain
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Skinny
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I can't speak on any political reading of the film, but it does come across as overly sentimental, focus group approved, "please like me" filmmaking, as far as I'm concerned. I actually think it's pretty insulting to its audience, but then what do I know? Art is subjective. But yeah, it's a film I really dislike.
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Spyglass
Resident Metalhead

Gender: Male
Location: The red dot on the map

Skinny wrote:

I can't speak on any political reading of the film, but it does come across as overly sentimental, focus group approved, "please like me" filmmaking, as far as I'm concerned. I actually think it's pretty insulting to its audience, but then what do I know? Art is subjective. But yeah, it's a film I really dislike.

I typically dislike movies that force that kind of behavior, but I think Forrest Gump overcame it with a romance that felt more realistic than its odd subject matter could have been: an awkward man and a screw up going two different ways, one is successful due to the absurdity of his constant indirect influence on modern society (which helps mellow the cheese of its "like me" message), and one is constantly falling into a world of its own that goes nowhere, switching from direction to direction with no sense of completion. I can't help but love the movie every time I watch it. The passiveness of Forrest's narration helps mellow the absurdity of his influence on world events, giving the film a childlike essence that matches with Forrest's innocent and childlike behavior.
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Skinny
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Spyglass wrote:

I typically dislike movies that force that kind of behavior, but I think Forrest Gump overcame it with a romance that felt more realistic than its odd subject matter could have been: an awkward man and a screw up going two different ways, one is successful due to the absurdity of his constant indirect influence on modern society (which helps mellow the cheese of its "like me" message), and one is constantly falling into a world of its own that goes nowhere, switching from direction to direction with no sense of completion. I can't help but love the movie every time I watch it. The passiveness of Forrest's narration helps mellow the absurdity of his influence on world events, giving the film a childlike essence that matches with Forrest's innocent and childlike behavior.

Fair enough. I actually enjoyed it as a nine year old, and only developed a disliking for it through a few rewatches over the years. The last time I saw it was a near constant eyeroll experience. I don't think it's without merit, but it does leave me completely cold.
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mickilennial
The Most Trusted Name in News

Gender: Female
Age: 35
Location: Detroit

Skinny wrote:

Fair enough. I actually enjoyed it as a nine year old, and only developed a disliking for it through a few rewatches over the years. The last time I saw it was a near constant eyeroll experience. I don't think it's without merit, but it does leave me completely cold.

I feel the same, oddly enough.

Tha1ChiefRocka
Yeah, well hey, I'm really sorry.

Location: Kansas

Gowi wrote:

I feel the same, oddly enough.

Haha, I think that's the same with almost everyone. Including myself.

Bach

Gender: Male
Location: Italy

My Top 50 of the 90s:

1. Crash (David Cronenberg, 1996)
2. Wild Reeds (André Téchiné, 1994)
3. Schindler's List (Steven Spielberg, 1993)
4. Eyes Wide Shut (Stanley Kubrick, 1999)
5. Raise the Red Lantern (Zhang Yimou, 1991)
6. Happiness (Todd Solondz, 1998)
7. Ed Wood (Tim Burton, 1994)
8. M. Butterfly (David Cronenberg, 1993)
9. eXistenZ (David Cronenberg, 1999)
10. Chungking Express (Wong Kar-wai, 1994)
11. The Sheltering Sky (Bernardo Bertolucci, 1990)
12. The Pillow Book (Peter Greenaway, 1996)
13. Secrets & Lies (Mike Leigh, 1996)
14. Happy Together (Wong Kar-wai, 1997)
15. Edward II (Derek Jarman, 1991)
16. Twelve Monkeys (Terry Gilliam, 1995)
17. 8 ½ Women (Peter Greenaway, 1999)
18. Farewell My Concubine (Chen Kaige, 1993)
19. A Heart in Winter (Claude Sautet, 1992)
20. Deconstructing Harry (Woody Allen, 1997)
21. The Truman Show (Peter Weir, 1998)
22. Groundhog Day (Harold Ramis, 1993)
23. Breaking the Waves (Lars von Trier, 1996)
24. Gohatto / Taboo (Nagisa Oshima, 1999)
25. Interview with the Vampire (Neil Jordan, 1994)
26. Misery (Rob Reiner, 1990)
27. Kika (Pedro Almodovar, 1993)
28. The River (Tsai Ming-liang, 1997)
29. Vive l’Amour (Tsai Ming-liang, 1994)
30. My Own Private Idaho (Gus Van Sant, 1991)
31. Lost Highway (David Lynch, 1997)
32. Death and the Maiden (Roman Polanski, 1994)
33. A Pure Formality (Giuseppe Tornatore, 1994)
34. The Age of Innocence (Martin Scorsese, 1993)
35. The Piano (Jane Campion, 1993)
36. Sweet and Lowdown (Woody Allen, 1999)
37. Strange Days (Kathryn Bigelow, 1995)
38. Wilde (Brian Gilbert, 1997)
39. Love and Death on Long Island (Richard Kwietniowski, 1997)
40. The Crying Game (Neil Jordan, 1992)
41. The Straight Story (David Lynch, 1999)
42. The People vs. Larry Flynt (Milos Forman, 1996)
43. Festen / The Celebration (Thomas Vinterberg, 1998)
44. Gods and Monsters (Bill Condon, 1998)
45. Velvet Goldmine (Todd Haynes, 1998)
46. The Fisher King (Terry Gilliam, 1991)
47. Dark City (Alex Proyas, 1998)
48. Criminal Lovers (François Ozon, 1999)
49. Philadelphia (Jonathan Demme, 1993)
50. Ringu (Hideo Nakata, 1998)
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