1982 Capsule Reviews

Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan
rating: ****
review: A lot of Star Trek fans adhere to this one as the high-water mark in franchise film history, incapable of being surpassed and the source of a lot of later franchise-own rip-offs.  Needless to say I don't completely agree with that assessment.  Memorable, certainly, and worthy of a lot of praise.  But it continues to age, and timeless cinema...doesn't do that.

Blade Runner
rating: ****
review: This is perhaps the exact opposite of the above, a film that seemed forgettable at first, but just keeps aging better and better.  With Harrison Ford and Ridley Scott as the headlining talent, that's really no surprise.

Gandhi
rating: ****
review: When they talk about Oscar-bait, this is exactly the kind of movie they're talking about.  But it's probably a better way to discover Ben Kingsley than Lawrence of Arabia is Peter O'Toole.

E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial
rating: ****
review: E.T. himself is timeless.  The rest of the movie?  That's more debatable.

Rocky III
rating: ****
review: This third entry in the franchise proves that the formula is incredibly durable, even as its reputation remains as much of an underdog as Rocky himself.  The clever thing these films do is keep the narrative going rather than discard it each new one.

The Road Warrior
rating: ***
review: Everyone realized how big Mad Max could be, so this one ramps everything up, but the jury's still out as to whether he's yet worth the hype.

First Blood
rating: ***
review: The incredible irony of the Rambo movies is that they start incredibly low-key.

Annie
rating: ***
review: The surprisingly durable fable of the little orphan is always watchable.

Trail of the Pink Panther
rating: ***
review: If you had no idea that Peter Sellers was in fact dead before this production began, you probably wouldn't obsess over that fact while watching this final Sellers appearance in the series.

The Secret of NIMH
rating: **
review: A beloved children's book becomes an animated film.  I don't really remember this one, and have never felt particularly compelled to watch it again.

1981 Capsule Reviews

Superman II
rating: *****
review: How to improve on Christopher Reeve's original appearance?  Dip into the mythology and create an iconic version of a villain who until then had meant little, certainly as compared to Lex Luthor.  Terrence Stamp's Zod has inspired not only further comics appearances of the character, but other movie villains as well, including Marvel's Avengers' Loki  Even better?  The reconstructed Richard Donner cut from 2006.

Reds
rating: ****
review: Warren Beatty inexplicably lost most of his significance over the years, despite appearing in this sensational look at communism in America and how ideals usually become corrupted when carried out in less than ideal ways (in spite of Beatty's efforts, mind you).

History of the World, Part I
rating: ****
review: Mel Brooks suffered the same fate as Beatty, being taken less and less seriously over the years.  This was his madcap tour of history, with one of film's first teasers tacked on at the end (a fake one, mind you).  It's a wicked sendup of the historical epics that had been popular in Hollywood.  Maybe not as clever as Monty Python's similar efforts, but better than their movies that weren't.

Time Bandits
rating: ****
review: Not as memorable as his later efforts, but this is Terry Gilliam beginning to realize his potential post-Python. 

Excalibur
rating: ***
review: Ponderous historic epic of the new order, part of the vanguard that sought to match the Star Wars effect in different ways.  More interesting these days in spotting future stars (Liam Neeson! Patrick Stewart!) before anyone really knew who they were.

Clash of the Titans
rating: ***
review: Entertaining, to be sure, and the last great mark of a master (Ray Harryhausen), but there are inexplicably those who thought it couldn't be done better in 2010.

The Great Muppet Caper
rating: ***
review: It's no surprise that years later the Muppets had to stage a comeback when their early movies were more or less wacky Muppet adventures loosely strung together.  I'm sure I saw this when I was younger, but damned if I could remember any of it.

Raiders of the Lost Ark
rating: ***
review: This is one of those movie heresies I subscribe to, that...later Indiana Jones adventures were better.  This is his classic debut, of course.  I didn't grow up with it.  I suspect that's one of the reasons it's otherwise beloved.

The Fox and the Hound
rating: **
review: Disney started making endless streams of interchangeable animated flicks before the end-of-the-millennium renaissance.  This is another movie I'm sure I saw as a kid, but damned if I can remember anything.

Stripes
rating: **
review: Bill Murray would have plenty of other chances to discover movies he could be proud to make.  This one isn't bad, but his choices got better.  Basically part of the whole wacky team genre that culminated in the Police Academy franchise.

Ten Favorites from 2015

Aloha
The latest from Cameron Crowe was a victim of a lot of things, from the fake racism critics cooked up (hey, Emma Stone's character is not 100% native Hawaiian, it's completely written into the script) to further efforts to sabotage would-be new movie stars (Bradley Cooper, especially after the unexpected huge success of last year's American Sniper), and the belief that Crowe himself is no longer relevant.  Put all that aside.  Recognize that you've also got Bill Murray.  And a perfectly excellent movie.

Furious 7
Paul Walker's understated goodbye helps elevate this whole experience, which otherwise pumps the franchise up to superhero proportions.

Home
Jim Parsons had unexpectedly found a second act (concurrent with his first one, The Big Bang Theory) as a breakout voice talent.  He easily carries this fun animated flick.

Jupiter Ascending
The Wachowskis deliver again with another mind-bending alternate view of reality.  I think the fact that so few people care anymore (see: Cameron Crowe) makes it all the more interesting for those who still do.  Hence, a cult film in the making.

The Martian
Matt Damon in what might amount to his career-best performance, one that captures his full potential.  He may have just become the new Tom Hanks.

Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation
This series keeps finding new life.  I enjoyed Jeremy Renner much more this time than in his debut, although it's still weird how everyone seems to have so much trouble figuring him out after his breakthrough in The Hurt Locker.

Self/less
Tarsem joins the ranks of great filmmakers getting the critical snub this year as most reviews glossed over this one so much it was downright criminal.  But the joke's on them.

Sicario
As it looked in the trailer, this was a fine showcase for Emily Blunt, Josh Brolin, and of course Benicio del Toro.

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens
Nearly everyone seems to love this.  With good reason! 

The Visit
M. Night Shyamalan did something people actually liked?  Stop the presses!  I look forward to eventually catching up on Wayward Pines, too.

Still waiting to see others, like Ex Machina, Mad Max: Fury Road, Hateful Eight, and The Revenant...

1980 Capsule Reviews

The Empire Strikes Back
rating: *****
review: This affirmed Star Wars geek finds everything to love about the iconic Episode V in the saga, from the introductions of Yoda and Lando Calrissian to the epic duel between Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader, including its revelatory climax. 

Raging Bull
rating: *****
review: Martin Scorsese and Robert De Niro in their definitive collaboration, the most artful boxing movie ever, and one of the defining cinematic portraits of a scumbag.

The Blues Brothers
rating: ****
review: Arguably the best movie to come out of Saturday Night Live, filled with great music and a few hilarious episodes (the country and western incident in particular).

The Stunt Man
rating: ****
review: Peter O'Toole in a kaleidoscope of a movie, tossing the main character and the viewer into a wild and surreal ride.  Still waiting to be rediscovered.

The Formula
rating: ****
review: George C. Scott and Marlon Brando in the role that charts the course of his late career as someone more interesting in commentating on the state of humanity than his own stardom.

Caddyshack
rating: ****
review: With all due apologies to everyone else in it, Bill Murray dominates in his breakout role as the nutcase matching wits with a gopher.

The Shining
rating: ****
review: Stephen King, Stanley Kubrick, and Jack Nicholson combine for the creepiest hotel experience ever.

Mad Max
rating: ***
review: Mel Gibson is so shockingly subdued in this he's hardly recognizable, in the debut of an ever-expanding franchise that keeps getting weirder.

Airplane!
rating: ***
review: Leslie Nielsen completely revamped his career with this movie, which otherwise tends to date much poorer.

Flash Gordon
rating: **
review: Goofy sci-fi fun in exactly the tradition that Star Wars obliterated three years earlier.

Herbie Goes Bananas
rating: **
review: The Love Bug franchise reaches the final installment of its original run in about as inspired fashion as the later in the Pink Panther originals.

Altered States
rating: **
review: Recommended to me as a predecessor to the TV series Fringe, but more reminiscent of gonzo movie experimentation.

Smokey and the Bandit II
rating: *
review: A somewhat desperate attempt to contextualize the Bandit as a folk hero.

2014

Viewed/Ranked

1. Interstellar
2. Winter's Tale
3. Locke
4. Miss Julie
5. Birdman
6. Exodus: Gods and Kings
7. The Disappearance of Eleanor Rigby
8. Noah
9. The Amazing Spider-Man 2
10. American Sniper
11. Muppets Most Wanted
12. Frank Miller's Sin City: A Dame to Kill For
13. The Zero Theorem
14. Hercules
15. Guardians of the Galaxy
16. Deliver Us From Evil
17. The Theory of Everything
18. X-Men: Days of the Future Past
19. Captain America: The Winter Soldier
20. The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies
21. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles
22. Left Behind

Other Notable Releases

• 300: Rise of An Empire
• A Most Violent Year
• A Most Wanted Man
• Annie
• Before I Go to Sleep
• Belle
• Big Eyes
• Big Hero 6
• Boyhood
• Brick Mansions
• Divergent
• Dom Hemingway
• The Drop
• Dumb and Dumber To
• Edge of Tomorrow
• Expendables 3
• The Fault in our Stars
• Foxcatcher
• Fury
• Gimme Shelter
• Godzilla
• Gone Girl
• The Grand Budapest Hotel
• Hector And The Search For Happiness
• Horns
• The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1
• The Imitation Game
• Inherent Vice
• Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit
• John Wick
• Knights of Badassdom
• The LEGO Movie
• Let's Be Cops
• Life Itself
• Lucy
• Magic in the Moonlight
• Maleficent
• The Maze Runner
• A Million Ways to Die in the West
• The Monuments Men
• Neighbors
• Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb
• Nightcrawler
• The Other Woman
• Ride Along
• Selma
• Sex Tape
• The Skeleton Twins
• Snowpiercer
• St. Vincent
• Tammy
• Top Five
• Transformers: Age of Extinction
• Unbroken
• Under the Skin
• Veronica Mars
• Walk of Shame
• Whiplash
• Wish I Was Here

2013

Viewed/Ranked

1. Saving Mr. Banks
2. Man of Steel
3. Star Trek Into Darkness
4. Dead Man Down
5. After Earth
6. The Wolverine
7. Epic
8. 12 Years a Slave
9. Captain Phillips
10. The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug
11. Fast & Furious 6
12. Thor: The Dark World
13. Frozen
14. Iron Man 3

Other Notable Releases

1. 47 Ronin
2. A Good Day to Die Hard
3. About Time
4. Ain't Them Bodies Saints
5. American Hustle
6. Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
7. Before Midnight
8. The Bling Ring
9. Blue Is the Warmest Color
10. Blue Jasmine
11. Broken City
12. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs 2
13. The Counselor
14. Dallas Buyers Club
15. Dear Mr. Watterson
16. Despicable Me 2
17. Don Jon
18. Ender's Game
19. Evil Dead
20. Fruitvale Station
21. G.I. Joe: Retaliation
22. Gravity
23. The Great Gatsby
24. Grudge Match
25. The Hangover Part III
26. Hansel and Gretel: Witch Hunters
27. The Heat
28. Her
29. The Hunger Games: Catching Fire
30. The Iceman
31. The Incredible Burt Wonderstone
32. Inside Llewyn Davis
33. Jack the Giant Slayer
34. John Dies at the End
35. Kick-Ass 2
36. Kill Your Darlings
37. Lee Daniels' The Butler
38. The Lone Ranger
39. Lone Survivor
40. Machete Kills
41. Midnight's Children
42. Monsters University
43. Mud
44. The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones
45. Nebraska
46. Now You See Me
47. Oldboy
48. Oz the Great and Powerful
49. Pacific Rim
50. Pain and Gain
51. Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters
52. Planes
53. Prisoners
54. R.I.P.D.
55. The Reluctant Fundamentalist
56. Riddick
57. The Secret Life of Walter Mitty
58. Snitch
59. Spring Breakers
60. To the Wonder
61. Warm Bodies
62. The Way, Way Back
63. The Wolf of Wall Street
64. World War Z
65. The World's End

2012

Viewed/Ranked

1. Django Unchained
2. Seven Psychopaths
3. The Dark Knight Rises
4. Beasts of the Southern Wild
5. Total Recall
6. Mirror Mirror
7. Savages
8. Flight
9. Looper
10. The Amazing Spider-Man
11. Coriolanus
12. End of Watch
13. Argo
14. Lawless
15. Trouble with the Curve
16. Prometheus
17. Les Miserables
18. Marvel's The Avengers
19. MIB 3
20. The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
21. John Carter
22. Rise of the Guardians
23. Cloud Atlas
24. This Means War
25. Skyfall
26. For Greater Glory
27. The Hunger Games
28. Ice Age: Continental Drift
29. Brave
30. Hotel Transylvania

Other Notable Releases

1. 21 Jump Street
2. A Thousand Words
3. Alex Cross
4. American Reunion
5. The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel
6. The Bourne Legacy
7. The Campaign
8. Casa De Mi Padre
9. Celeste and Jesse Forever
10. Chronicle
11. Deadfall
12. The Dictator
13. Dr. Seuss' The Lorax
14. The Expendables 2
15. The Five-Year Engagement
16. The Grey
17. Haywire
18. Here Comes the Boom
19. Hyde Park on Hudson
20. Iron Sky
21. Jeff, Who Lives at Home
22. Journey 2: The Mysterious Island
23. Killer Joe
24. Killing Them Softly
25. Liberal Arts
26. Life of Pi
27. Lincoln
28. Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted
29. Magic Mike
30. The Man with the Iron Fists
31. The Master
32. Moonrise Kingdom
33. The Perks of Being a Wallflower
34. Pitch Perfect
35. Premium Rush
36. Red Tails
37. Robot & Frank
38. Seeking a Friend for the End of the World
39. The Sessions
40. Silver Linings Playbook
41. Snow White and the Huntsman
42. Taken 2
43. Ted
44. This Is 40
45. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2
46. Underworld Awakening
47. The Vow
48. The Woman in Black
49. Wrath of the Titans
50. Wreck-It Ralph
51. Zero Dark Thirty

2011

Viewed/Ranked

1. Warrior
2. The Adjustment Bureau
3. Source Code
4. Midnight in Paris
5. The Tree of Life
6. London Boulevard
7. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 2
8. Green Lantern
9. Fright Night
10. Immortals
11. The Way Back
12. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
13. Bridesmaids
14. Larry Crowne
15. The Muppets
16. Cowboys & Aliens
17. Super 8
18. Horrible Bosses
19. Sucker Punch
20. Hanna
21. Mission Impossible - Ghost Protocol
22. X-Men: First Class
23. Fast Five
24. HappyThankYouMorePlease
25. The Conspirator
26. Hugo
27. The Artist
28. Mr. Popper's Penguins
29. The Debt
30. The Hangover Part II
31. Captain America: The First Avenger
32. Unknown
33. Thor
34. Courageous
35. Spy Kids: All the Time in the World
36. Puss in Boots
37. Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides
38. The Green Hornet
39. Hoodwinked Too! Hood vs. Evil
40. Rise of the Planet of the Apes
41. Atlas Shrugged: Part 1

Other Notable Releases

1. 50/50
2. Bad Teacher
3. Barney's Version
4. The Beaver
5. Cars 2
6. Colombiana
7. The Company Men
8. Conan O'Brien Can't Stop
9. Crazy, Stupid, Love.
10. The Descendants
11. Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame
12. Everything Must Go
13. Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close
14. The Help
15. Hesher
16. In Time
17. The Iron Lady
18. J. Edgar
19. Limitless
20. Machine Gun Preacher
21. Martha Marcy May Marlene
22. Melancholia
23. Miral
24. Moneyball
25. One Day
26. Our Idiot Brother
27. Real Steel
28. Scream 4
29. Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows
30. The Smurfs
31. Take Shelter
32. Tinker, Taylor, Doctor, Spy
33. Transformers: Dark of the Moon
34. The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1
35. War Horse
36. Water for Elephants
37. Young Adult

2010

Viewed/Ranked

1. Inception
2. Robin Hood
3. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part 1
4. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps
5. The Losers
6. True Grit
7. Clash of the Titans
8. Ondine
9. Somewhere
10. Get Him to the Greek
11. Scott Pilgrim vs. the World
12. Valentine's Day
13. Cairo Time
14. The Last Airbender
15. I Love You, Phillip Morris
16. Remember Me
17. Despicable Me
18. Iron Man 2
19. The Next Three Days
20. You Will Meet a Tall Dark Stranger
21. The A-Team
22. Hereafter
23. Unstoppable
24. The Social Network
25. Machete
26. The Fighter
27. Black Swan
28. Shutter Island
29. How to Train Your Dragon
30. Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief
31. Tron Legacy
32. The Town
33. The Warrior's Way
34. Devil
35. Death at a Funeral
36. Cop Out
37. The Bounty Hunter
38. The Book of Eli
39. The Sorcerer's Apprentice
40. The Prince of Persia: The Sands of Time
41. The Wolfman
42. Centurion
43. Edge of Darkness
44. Resident Evil: Afterlife
45. MacGruber
46. The Other Guys
47. Megamind
48. Red
49. Salt
50. Alice in Wonderland
51. Shrek Forever After
52. Jonah Hex
53. Gulliver's Travels
54. Diary of a Wimpy Kid
55. Predators
56. Takers
57. Knight & Day
58. The Expendables
59. Toy Story 3
60. The King's Speech
61. Skyline
62. Green Zone
63. Tangled
64. The Disappearance of Alice Creed
65. Stone
66. From Paris with Love
67. The Girl Who Played with Fire

Other Notable Releases

1. Blue Valentine
2. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader
3. Easy A
4. Eat Pray Love
5. The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo
6. The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest
7. Greenberg
8. Grown Ups
9. I'm Still Here
10. Jack Goes Boating
11. The Karate Kid
12. Kick-Ass
13. Let Me In
14. Little Fockers
15. Love and Other Drugs
16. Never Let Me Go
17. The Tempest
18. Tooth Fairy
19. The Twilight Saga: Eclipse
20. Winter's Bone

2009

Viewed/Ranked

1. Inglourious Basterds
2. (500) Days of Summer
3. The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus
4. Star Trek
5. Watchmen
6. The Proposal
7. The Hurt Locker
8. Moon
9. Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
10. The Time Traveler's Wife
11. Bronson
12. Red Cliff
13. Funny People
14. Terminator Salvation
15. G.I. Joe: The Rise of Cobra
16. Crazy Heart
17. State of Play
18. The Pink Panther 2
19. The Hangover
20. X-Men Origins: Wolverine
21. Angels & Demons
22. Killshot
23. Two Lovers
24. A Perfect Getaway
25. Avatar
26. Fast and Furious
27. The Hangover
28. The Soloist
29. Fantastic Mr. Fox
30. Underworld: Rise of the Lycans
31. The Slammin' Salmon
32. Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans
33. Land of the Lost
34. Zombieland
35. Up in the Air
36. Where the Wild Things Are
37. Taken
38. Invictus
39. Pirate Radio
40. Everybody's Fine
41. The Men Who Stare at Goats
42. Race to Witch Mountain
43. He's Just Not That Into You
44. District 9
45. Surrogates
46. The Blind Side
47. Me and Orson Welles
48. Carriers
49. Ninja Assassin
50. Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs
51. Paul Blart: Mall Cop
52. The Ugly Truth
53. I Love You, Man
54. Coraline
55. Couples Retreat
56. 2012
57. Sherlock Holmes
58. The Fourth Kind
59. Duplicity
60. Law Abiding Citizen
61. The Twilight Saga: New Moon
62. Planet 51
63. Push

Other Notable Releases

1. A Serious Man
2. Amelia
3. The Boondock Saints II: All Saints Day
4. The Damned United
5. The Girlfriend Experience
6. Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs
7. Jennifer's Body
8. Julie & Julia
9. The Lovely Bones
10. Michael Jackson's This Is It
11. Monsters Vs. Aliens
12. Night at the Museum: Battle of the Smithsonian
13. Paranormal Activity
14. Precious: Based on the Novel "Push" by Sapphire
15. The Princess and the Frog
16. The Private Lives of Pippa Lee
17. Public Enemies
18. The Road
19. Sunshine Cleaning
20. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen
21. Up
22. World's Greatest Dad

2008

Viewed/Ranked

1. The Dark Knight
2. The Fall
3. In Bruges
4. Hancock
5. Cassandra's Dream
6. Che
7. W.
8. Pride & Glory
9. Forgetting Sarah Marshall
10. Yes Man
11. Seven Pounds
12. The Happening
13. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button
14. Doomsday
15. The Wrestler
16. The Other Boleyn Girl
17. Body of Lies
18. Cloverfield
19. Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull
20. Frost/Nixon
21. Burn After Reading
22. Quantum of Solace
23. The Love Guru
24. Smart People
25. Vantage Point
26. Dr. Seuss' Horton Hears a Who!
27. Get Smart
28. Iron Man
29. Leatherheads
30. Hellboy II: The Golden Army
31. Revolutionary Road
32. Bottle Shock
33. Charlie Bartlett
34. How to Lose Friends and Alienate People
35. Hamlet 2
36. Meet Dave
37. 21
38. Step Brothers
39. Tropic Thunder
40. Run Fat Boy Run
41. Speed Racer
42. Valkyrie
43. The Mummy: Tomb of the Dragon Emperor
44. WALL-E
45. Slumdog Millionaire
46. Romulus, My Father
47. Babylon A.D.
48. RockNRolla
49. Last Chance Harvey
50. Twilight
51. The Spirit
52. Deception
53. 88 Minutes
54. Star Wars: The Clone Wars
55. Australia
56. Jumper
57. The Incredible Hulk
58. Wanted
59. Boarding Gate
60. Superhero Movie
61. Funny Games

Other Notable Releases

1. Blindness
2. The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian
3. Gran Torino
4. High School Musical 3: Senior Year
5. JCVD
6. Kung Fu Panda
7. Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa
8. Mamma Mia!
9. Marley and Me
10. Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist
11. Pineapple Express
12. Rachel Getting Maried
13. Rambo
14. Righteous Kill
15. Role Models
16. Sex and the City
17. Son of Rambow
18. Swing Vote
19. Synecdoche, New York
20. Vicky Christina Barcelona

2007

Viewed/Ranked

1. The Assassination of Jesse James by the Coward Robert Ford
2. American Gangster
3. Ratatouille 
4. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
5. Gone Baby Gone
6. Smokin' Aces
7. Across the Universe
8. No Country for Old Men
9. The Simpsons Movie
10. 3:10 to Yuma
11. Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End
12. The Lookout
13. I'm Not There
14. Elizabeth: The Golden Age
15. Hot Fuzz
16. Lucky You
17. The Number 23
18. Spider-Man 3
19. Grindhouse
20. Charlie Wilson's War
21. Lions for Lambs
22. Juno
23. The Mist
24. In the Valley of Elah
25. Nation Treasure: Book of Secrets
26. 300
27. There Will Be Blood
28. The Hunting Party
29. Rescue Dawn
30. Fred Claus
31. Ocean's Thirteen
32. The Game Plan
33. We Own the Night
34. Michael Clayton
35. Music and Lyrics
36. I Am Legend
37. Shoot 'Em Up
38. Freedom Writers
39. Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street
40. Beowulf
41. Ghost Rider
42. License to Wed
43. Shrek the Third
44. Bee Movie
45. Bucket List
46. Alvin and the Chipmunks
47. The Bourne Ultimatum
48. Martian Child
49. Transformers
50. 28 Weeks Later
51. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
52. Pathfinder: Legend of the Ghost Warrior
53. The Last Legion
54. Blades of Glory
55. Wild Hogs
56. Good Luck Chuck
57. The Golden Compass
58. TMNT
59. Fracture

Other Notable Releases

1. Atonement
2. Before the Devil Knows You're Dead
3. Bug
4. Dan in Real Life
5. The Darjeeling Limited
6. The Diving Bell and the Butterfly
7. Enchanted
8. Hannibal Rising
9. Hot Rod
10. I Think I Love My Wife
11. The Kingdom
12. Knocked Up
13. La Vie en Rose
14. Live Free or Die Hard
15. Love in the Time of Cholera
16. Lust, Caution
17. The Nanny Diaries
18. Once
19. Paris, je t'aime
20. Reservation Road
21. Rush Hour 3
22. The Savages
23. Slipstream
24. Stardust
25. Superbad
26. Talk to Me
27. Waitress

2006

Viewed/Ranked

1. The Departed
2. Pirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest
3. Hollywoodland
4. Superman Returns
5. World Trade Center
6. The Da Vinci Code
7. Children of Men
8. The Pink Panther
9. Brick
10. Lady in the Water
11. The Proposition
12. The Illusionist
13. Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby
14. Ask the Dust
15. Stranger Than Fiction
16. Candy
17. We Are Marshall
18. 16 Blocks
19. The Break-Up
20. Miami Vice
21. The Prestige
22. Marie Antoinette
23. Casino Royale
24. Letters from Iwo Jima
25. X-Men: The Last Stand
26. Mission: Impossible III
27. Accepted
28. United 93
29. Stick It
30. A Good Year
31. Tristram Shandy: A Cock and Bull Story
32. Idiocracy
33. The Fountain
34. Babel
35. The Pursuit of Happyness
36. The Good German
37. Pan's Labyrinth
38. Nacho Libre
39. V for Vendetta
40. Snakes on a Plane
41. Beerfest
42. The Devil Wears Prada
43. The Good Shepherd
44. Down in the Valley
45. Factory Girl
46. Over the Hedge
47. Don't Come Knocking
48. Saw III
49. Happy Feet
50. Little Miss Sunshine
51. Blood Diamond
52. Ultraviolet
53. Unaccompanied Minors
54. The Shaggy Dog
55. The Guardian
56. Beowulf and Grendel
57. Poseidon
58. Zoom
59. Cars
60. Just My Luck
61. Haven
62. American Dreamz
63. When a Stranger Calls
64. John Tucker Must Die
65. One Night with the King

Other Notable Releases

1. A Scanner Darkly
2. Apocalypto
3. The Black Dahlia
4. Borat
5. Clerks II
6. Crank
7. Dreamgirls
8. The Fast and the Furious: Tokyo Drift
9. Flags of Our Fathers
10. Flushed Away
11. Half Nelson
12. Hostel
13. Ice Age: The Meltdown
14. Idlewild
15. The Last King of Scotland
16. My Super Ex-Girlfriend
17. The Nativity Story
18. Night at the Museum
19. Notes on a Scandal
20. Open Season
21. The Queen
22. Rocky Balboa
23. The Santa Clause 3: The Escape Clause
24. Sherrybaby
25. Step Up
26. Thank You for Smoking
27. Tideland
28. Underworld: Evolution
29. Volver
30. Winter Passing

I picked up these DVDs recently

I still collect physical movies.  Here are some DVDs I picked up yesterday.

Detective Dee and the Mystery of the Phantom Flame

I don't know, I've just always been interested to see it.

The Inglorious Bastards

The original.

Letters from Iwo Jima

It's long been a favorite of mine.

The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou

I'm very far behind in both Bill Murray and Wes Anderson movies.

No Country for Old Men

I still think of this as the pay-off to Josh Brolin's career resurgence.

True Grit

Jeff Bridges is Rooster Cogburn.

John Adams

The HBO mini-series.

2005

Viewed/Ranked

1. Munich
2. Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith
3. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
4. Batman Begins
5. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy
6. The New World
7. Sin City
8. Rent
9. Kingdom of Heaven
10. Wallace & Gromit: The Curse of the Were-Rabbit
11. Fun with Dick and Jane
12. Walk the Line
13. The Constant Gardener
14. The Producers
15. Elizabethtown
16. The Legend of Zorro
17. Brokeback Mountain
18. Fever Pitch
19. The Brothers Grimm
20. Syriana
21. Be Cool
22. Lords of Dogtown
23. Crash
24. Hitch
25. The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
26. Corpse Bride
27. Casanova
28. The Dukes of Hazzard
29. Serenity
30. Into the Blue
31. The Island
32. Fantastic Four
33. Mr. & Mrs. Smith
34. Cinderella Man
35. Chicken Little
36. A History of Violance
37. Saw II
38. Domino
39. Bewitched
40. Elektra
41. Red Eye
42. Derailed
43. Doom
44. Hostage

Other Notable Releases

1. The 40-Year-Old Virgin
2. Because of Winn-Dixie
3. Capote
4. Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
5. Constantine
6. Diary of a Mad Black Woman
7. Good Night, and Good Luck
8. Hustle & Flow
9. Jarhead
10. Madagascar
11. March of the Penguins
12. Memoirs of a Geisha
13. The Pacifier
14. Pride and Prejudice
15. Robots
16. Rumor Has It
17. The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants
18. Son of the Mask
19. Waiting...
20. War of the Worlds
21. Wedding Crashers
22. Zathura

2004

Viewed/Ranked

1. Alexander
2. Kill Bill Vol. 2
3. Troy
4. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
5. The Passion of the Christ
6. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
7. The Manchurian Candidate
8. Lemony Snicket's A Series of Unfortunate Events
9. The Aviator
10. Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow
11. I, Robot
12. Shrek 2
13. Club Dread
14. Shaun of the Dead
15. Sidways
16. Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy
17. The Alamo
18. The Village
19. King Arthur
20. Million Dollar Baby
21. National Treasure
22. Garden State
23. Finding Neverland
24. The Terminal
25. Collateral
26. Layer Cake
27. Alfie
28. The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
29. Dawn of the Dead
30. EuroTrip
31. DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story
32. The Ladykillers
33. Ladder 49
34. Hellboy
35. Meet the Fockers
36. Saw
37. Spider-Man 2
38. The Incredibles
39. Van Helsing
40. Catwoman
41. The Stepford Wives
42. The Chronicles of Riddick
43. Walking Tall
44. The Big Bounce
45. 50 First Dates
46. Man on Fire

Other Notable Releases

1. Alien vs. Predator
2. The Bourne Supremacy
3. Closer
4. Exorcist: The Beginning
5. Friday Night Lights
6. Harold and Kumar Go to White Castle
7. Hidalgo
8. I Heart Huckabees
9. The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou
10. Mr. 3000
11. Mean Girls
12. Napoleon Dynamite
13. The Notebook
14. Ocean's Twelve
15. The Polar Express
16. Ray
17. Shark Tale
18. Taxi

2003

Viewed/Ranked

1. Kill Bill Vol. 1
2. Phone Booth
3. Finding Nemo
4. The Matrix Reloaded
5. S.W.A.T.
6. Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl
7. The Matrix Revolutions
8. Daredevil
9. Shattered Glass
10. The Rundown
11. The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King
12. The Human Stain
13. American Splendor
14. Elf
15. Cold Mountain
16. Lost in Translation
17. Seabiscuit
18. Bruce Almighty
19. Peter Pan
20. 2 Fast 2 Furious
21. Terminator 3: Rise of the Machines
22. X2: X-Men United
23. The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen
24. Once Upon a Time in Mexico
25. Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World
26. Big Fish
27. Ned Kelly
28. The Gospel of John
29. Head of State
30. Open Range
31. The Recruit
32. The Last Samurai
33. The Missing
34. Timeline
35. Beyond Borders
36. Hulk
37. Underworld
38. Mystic River
39. Out of Time
40. Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life
41. The Order
42. Gigli
43. Basic
44. Gods and Generals
45. Tears of the Sun
46. Identity

Other Notable Releases

1. 21 Grams
2. Agent Cody Banks
3. American Wedding
4. Anger Management
5. Anything Else
6. Bad Boys II
7. Bad Santa
8. Brother Bear
9. Bulletproof Monk
10. Cabin Fever
11. The Core
12. Daddy Day Care
13. Dreamcatcher
14. Freaky Friday
15. Freddy vs. Jason
16. Girl with a Pearl Earring
17. How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
18. The Hunted
19. Intolerable Cruelty
20. Johnny English
21. Love Actually
22. Masked and Anonymous
23. Matchstick Men
24. Monster
25. Old School
26. Party Monster
27. School of Rock
28. Shanghai Knights
29. Sinbad: Legend of the Seven Seas
30. Something's Gotta Give
31. The Station Agent
32. Sylvia

2002

Viewed/Ranked

1. Star Wars: Episode II - Attack of the Clones
2. Star Trek Nemesis
3. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
4. The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
5. Chicago
6. Big Trouble
7. Gangs of New York
8. Catch Me If You Can
9. Confessions of a Dangerous Mind
10. Signs
11. Insomnia
12. 25th Hour
13. Minority Report
14. Road to Perdition
15. Hart's War
16. Men in Black II
17. Whale Rider
18. Narc
19. Adaptation
20. Red Dragon
21. Ice Age
22. The Quiet American
23. Solaris
24. Punch-Drunk Love
25. Die Another Day
26. Sweet Home Alabama
27. The Four Feathers
28. S1MONE
29. I Spy
30. K-19: The Widowmaker
31. Spider-Man
32. The Scorpion King
33. John Q
34. The Good Girl
35. Reign of Fire
36. The Count of Monte Cristo
37. Dog Soldiers
38. Slackers
39. Equilibrium
40. Analyze That
41. One Hour Photo
42. The Mothman Prophecies
43. The Ring
44. Infernal Affairs
45. 8 Mile

Other Notable Releases

1. 28 Days Later
2. 40 Days and 40 Nights
3. A Walk to Remember
4. About a Boy
5. Austin Powers in Goldmember
6. Ballistic: Ecks vs. Sever
7. Bend It Like Beckham
8. Big Fat Liar
9. Blue Crush
10. The Bourne Identity
11. Bubba Ho-Tep
12. Death to Smoochy
13. Divine Secrets of the Ya-Ya Sisterhood
14. Frida
15. Full Frontal
16. Hollywood Ending
17. The Hours
18. Igby Goes Down
19. Impostor
20. Jason X
21. Lilo & Stitch
22. My Big Fat Greek Wedding
23. National Lampoon's Van Wilder
24. The New Guy
25. Orange County
26. The Pianist
27. Queen of the Damned
28. Return to Never Land
29. Resident Evil
30. Russian Ark
31. The Santa Clause 2
32. Scooby-Doo
33. Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron
34. The Sum of all Fears
35. The Transporter
36. Treasure Planet
37. The Truth About Charlie
38. Unfaithful
39. We Were Soldiers
40. Windtalkers
41. xXx

2001

Viewed/Ranked

1. Memento
2. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
3. Shrek
4. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
5. Training Day
6. Monsters, Inc.
7. Black Hawk Down
8. The Majestic
9. A Beautiful Mind
10. The Score
11. A.I. Artificial Intelligence
12. Zoolander
13. 15 Minutes
14. A Knight's Tale
15. The Fast and the Furious
16. Ali
17. American Outlaws
18. Planet of the Apes
19. The Mummy Returns
20. Gosford Park
21. Rat Race
22. K-PAX
23. Rush Hour 2
24. Moulin Rouge!
25. Super Troopers
26. Monster's Ball
27. Wet Hot American Summer
28. Enemy at the Gates
29. Buffalo Soldiers
30. The Princess Diaries
31. Lara Croft: Tomb Raider
32. The Musketeer
33. American Pie 2
34. The Others
35. Evolution
36. Bridget Jones's Diary
37. The Animal
38. The One
39. Shallow Hal
40. Scary Movie 2
41. The Glass House

Other Notable Releases

1. 3000 Miles to Graceland
2. Along Came a Spider
3. Amelie
4. America's Sweethearts
5. Atlantis: The Lost Empire
6. Behind Enemy Lines
7. Black Knight
8. Blow
9. Captain Corelli's Mandolin
10. The Curse of the Jade Scorpion
11. The Devil's Backbone
12. Donnie Darko
13. From Hell
14. Ghost World
15. Hannibal
16. Hearts in Atlantis
17. Hedwig and the Angry Inch
18. Iris
19. Jay and Silent Bob Strike Back
20. Jeepers Creepers
21. Joy Ride
22. Jurassic Park III
23. Kate & Leopold
24. Legally Blonde
25. Life as a House
26. The Man Who Wasn't There
27. The Mexican
28. Monkeybone
29. Not Another Teen Movie
30. O
31. Ocean's Eleven
32. Original Sin
33. Osmosis Jones
34. Pearl Harbor
35. Rock Star
36. The Royal Tenenbaums
37. The Shipping News
38. Spy Game
39. Spy Kids
40. Swordfish
41. The Tailor of Panama
42. Tape
43. Town & Country
44. Vanilla Sky
45. Waking Life
46. Y Tu Mama Tambien

2000

Viewed/Ranked

1. Gladiator
2. Tigerland
3. O Brother, Where Art Thou?
4. Unbreakable
5. The Patriot
6. Cast Away
7. The Perfect Storm
8. Thirteen Days
9. The Cell
10. How the Grinch Stole Christmas
11. X-Men
12. Almost Famous
13. The Way of the Gun
14. All the Pretty Horses
15. 28 Days
16. Pitch Black
17. Me, Myself & Irene
18. The Family Man
19. Mission: Impossible II
20. Dude, Where's My Car?
21. The Emperor's New Groove
22. Screwed
23. Road Trip
24. The Million Dollar Hotel
25. The Legend of Bagger Vance
26. Gone in 60 Seconds
27. Finding Forrester
28. Proof of Life
29. Pollock
30. Traffic
31. Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
32. Erin Brockovich
33. Remember the Titans
34. Meet the Parents
35. Nutty Professor II: The Klumps
36. Pay It Forward
37. Vertical Limit
38. The Gift
39. Keeping the Faith
40. High Fidelity
41. Small Time Crooks
42. Highlander: Endgame
43. Dungeons & Dragons
44. The Replacements
45. Coyote Ugly
46. The 6th Day
47. Space Cowboys
48. Best in Show
49. Red Planet
50. Fantasia 2000
51. Battlefield Earth
52. Scary Movie

Other Notable Releases

1. American Psycho
2. Amores perros
3. An Everlasting Piece
4. Bamboozled
5. The Beach
6. Bedazzled
7. Before Night Falls
8. Big Momma's House
9. The Big Tease
10. Billy Elliot
11. Boiler Room
12. Bring It On
13. Charlie's Angels
14. Chicken Run
15. Chocolat
16. The Contender
17. Dr. T & the Women
18. Dinosaur
19. Dracula 2000
20. Final Destination
21. Frequency
22. Godzilla 2000
23. Hollow Man
24. The House of Mirth
25. The Ladies Man
26. The Legend of Drunken Master
27. Little Nicky
28. Miss Congeniality
29. Mission to Mars
30. My Dog Skip
31. The Original Kings of Comedy
32. Quills
33. Ready to Rumble
34. The Road to El Dorado
35. Romeo Must Die
36. Rules of Engagement
37. Saving Grace
38. Scream 3
39. Sexy Beast
40. Shadow of the Vampire
41. Shaft
42. Shanghai Noon
43. The Skulls
44. Snatch
45. Snow Day
46. Titan A.E.
47. What Lies Beneath
48. What Women Want
49. The Whole Nine Yards
50. Woman on Top
51. Wonder Boys

Notes: And actually, I don't think Battlefield Earth is all that bad.

1999

Viewed/Ranked

1. Man on the Moon
2. The Matrix
3. Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace
4. Office Space
5. The Sixth Sense
6. Galaxy Quest
7. Instinct
8. The End of the Affair
9. The Green Mile
10. Cradle Will Rock
11. Fight Club
12. The Virgin Suicides
13. The Insider
14. The Mummy
15. Three Kings
16. The 13th Warrior
17. Any Given Sunday
18. Toy Story 2
19. South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut
20. American Pie
21. 10 Things I hate About You
22. Bowfinger
23. Mystery, Alaska
24. Liberty Heights
25. Topsy-Turvy
26. The Talented Mr. Ripley
27. The Hurricane
28. Two Hands
29. The Thomas Crown Affair
30. American Beauty
31. Life
32. Bringing Out the Dead
33. A Midsummer Night's Dream
34. The Buena Vista Social Club
35. Muppets from Space
36. Wing Commander
37. The World Is Not Enough
38. Entrapment
39. Dogma
40. Go
41. The Limey
42. Fantasia 2000
43. Bicentennial Man
44. Mansfield Park
45. For Love of the Game
46. The General's Daughter
47. Mystery Men
48. Sunshine
49. End of Days
50. Wild Wild West
51. Tarzan
52. But I'm a Cheerleader
53. Stigmata
54. 8mm
55. The Blair Witch Project

Other Notable Releases

1. 200 Cigarettes
2. Analyze This
3. Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
4. The Bachelor
5. Being John Malkovich
6. The Best Man
7. Big Daddy
8. The Bone Collector
9. The Boondock Saints
10. Boys Don't Cry
11. The Cider House Rules
12. Dick
13. EDtv
14. Election
15. eXistenZ
16. Eyes Wide Shut
17. Flawless
18. Forces of Nature
19. Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
20. Girl, Interrupted
21. Idle Hands
22. The Iron Giant
23. Jakob the Liar
24. Light It Up
25. Magnolia
26. Message in a Bottle
27. The Messenger: The Story of Joan of Arc
28. Mickey Blue Eyes
29. Mumford
30. The Muse
31. Notting Hill
32. October Sky
33. Play It to the Bone
34. Pushing Tin
35. Ravenous
36. Runaway Bride
37. Sleepy Hollow
38. Snow Falling on Cedars
39. The Straight Story
40. Stuart Little
41. Summer of Sam
42. Sweet and Lowdown
43. The Thirteenth Floor
44. Titus
45. Universal Soldier: The Return
46. The War Zone

1998

Viewed/Ranked

1. The Truman Show
2. American History X
3. The Mask of Zorro
4. Shakespeare in Love
5. Star Trek: Insurrection
6. There's Something About Mary
7. The Avengers
8. The Negotiator
9. Patch Adams
10. Lethal Weapon 4
11. Rush Hour
12. Saving Private Ryan
13. Meet Joe Black
14. Snake Eyes
15. Mulan
16. Elizabeth
17. Celebrity
18. The Thin Red Line
19. Lost in Space
20. The Odd Couple II
21. Primary Colors
22. Wide Awake
23. Pleasantville
24. Blues Brothers 2000
25. Rounders
26. Earth
27. Apt Pupil
28. Species II
29. Return to Paradise
30. Ronin
31. A Night at the Roxbury
32. Simon Birch
33. The Big Hit
34. A Bug's Life
35. The Waterboy

Other Notable Releases

1. A Civil Action
2. An Alan Smithee Film: Burn Hollywood Burn
3. Antz
4. Armageddon
5. Beloved
6. The Big Lebowski
7. Blade
8. Bride of Chucky
9. Bulworth
10. Croupier
11. Dark City
12. Dirty Work
13. Dr. Dolittle
14. Enemy of the State
15. Ever After
16. The Faculty
17. Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
18. Gods and Monsters
19. Godzilla
20. Great Expectations
21. Halloween H20: 20 Years Later
22. He Got Game
23. The Horse Whisperer
24. How Stella Got Her Groove Back
25. Jack Frost
26. Les Miserables
27. Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
28. The Man in the Iron Mask
29. The Mighty
30. The Newton Boys
31. Out of Sight
32. The Parent Trap
33. Pi
34. Practical Magic
35. The Prince of Egypt
36. Psycho
37. Run Lola Run
38. Rushmore
39. The Siege
40. Sphere
41. U.S. Marshals
42. Velvet Goldmine
43. Very Bad Things
44. The Wedding Singer
45. What Dreams May Come
46. Wild Things
47. The X-Files: Fight the Future
48. You've Got Mail

Notes: A few films in the Other Notable Releases that I've semi-seen but would very much like to see again for a proper evaluation: Dark City, Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, Out of Sight, and What Dreams May Come.  The Truman Show was for a while my favorite movie.  This was a pretty darn good year at the movies.

1997

Viewed/Ranked

1. Amistad
2. Out to Sea
3. The Fifth Element
4. Men in Black
5. Liar Liar
6. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
7. Conspiracy Theory
8. Good Will Hunting
9. Jackie Brown
10. Grosse Pointe Blank
11. Titanic
12. Rosewood
13. U Turn
14. Batman & Robin
15. L.A. Confidential
16. Gattaca
17. Anastasia
18. Flubber
19. Cop Land
20. Hercules
21. In & Out
22. Scream 2
23. The Postman
24. Donnie Brasco
25. G.I. Jane
26. Face/Off
27. Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
28. Princess Mononoke
29. The Butcher Boy
30. Masterminds
31. Dante's Peak
32. Starship Troopers
33. Kull the Conqueror
34. Steel
35. Spawn

Other Notable Releases

1. A Life Less Ordinary
2. Absolute Power
3. Air Bud
4. Air Force One
5. Alien Resurrection
6. Anaconda
7. As Good as It Gets
8. Bean
9. Boogie Nights
10. Chasing Amy
11. Con Air
12. Contact
13. Deconstructing Harry
14. The Devil's Own
15. Eve's Bayou
16. Event Horizon
17. Fierce Creatures
18. Fools Rush In
19. The Full Monty
20. The Game
21. Gone Fishin'
22. Good Burger
23. I Know What You Did Last Summer
24. The Ice Storm
25. The Jackal
26. Kiss the Girls
27. Kundun
28. Life is Beautiful
29. The Lost World: Jurassic Park
30. The Man Who Knew Too Little
31. Mimic
32. Money Talks
33. My Best Friend's Wedding
34. Nothing to Lose
35. The Peacemaker
36. Private Parts
37. The Rainmaker
38. Romy and Michele's High School Reunion
39. The Saint
40. Selena
41. Seven Years in Tibet
42. Soul Food
43. Speed 2: Cruise Control
44. Tomorrow Never Dies
45. Ulee's Gold
46. Vegas Vacation
47. Wag the Dog
48. Waiting for Guffman

Notes: A tough year to rank.  I like a lot of 1997 movies, but as for loving any of them...Amistad gets the top spot because it's awesome in a lot of ways, but I've never particularly thought of it among my all-time favorites.  The next five I would watch ahead of it just because they're so enjoyable, but being enjoyable isn't always the best way to determine which film is best.  The age-old dilemma...Rosewood started out as the film to beat, but aside from out-and-out bad-assery from Ving Rhames, I wondered if it was really better than some of the other contenders.  Hence it slipped pretty far down the list.  Batman & Robin is a historic stinker for a lot of people, but I've always liked it, hence a pretty high ranking, considering.  Other Notable Releases has a ton of movies I'd love to catch, and as always a few thrown in for strictly contextual purposes, although there will always be some omissions I simply don't feel like listing.

1996

Viewed/Ranked

1. Star Trek: First Contact
2. Looking for Richard
3. Mission: Impossible
4. Independence Day
5. The Island of Dr. Moreau
6. From Dusk Till Dawn
7. Jerry Maguire
8. The Cable Guy
9. Trainspotting
10. Happy Gilmore
11. Primal Fear
12. Romeo + Juliet
13. The English Patient
14. The Nutty Professor
15. Scream
16. Hamlet
17. Mars Attacks!
18. That Thing You Do!
19. Mary Reilly
20. The Fan
21. The Rock
22. The Phantom
23. Kingpin
24. Courage Under Fire
25. The Hunchback of Notre Dame
26. The Quest
27. Rumble in the Bronx
28. Crash

Other Notable Releases

1. A Time to Kill
2. Beavis and Butt-Head Do America
3. The Birdcage
4. Bottle Rocket
5. Bound
6. Emma
7. Eraser
8. Evita
9. Fargo
10. The First Wives Club
11. Flirting with Disaster
12. The Frighteners
13. Get on the Bus
14. Glory Daze
15. High School High
16. Jack
17. James and the Giant Peach
18. The Last Supper
19. Marvin's Room
20. Michael
21. Multiplicity
22. Muppet Treasure Island
23. My Fellow Americans
24. The People Vs. Larry Flynt
25. Phenomenon
26. Ransom
27. Shine
28. Sleepers
29. Sling Blade
30. Space Jam
31. Swingers
32. Tin Cup
33. Twister
34. Wallace and Gromit

Notes: I've twice before selected a Star Trek film as my favorite, but they were both in '80s years where my experience was fairly lean.  First Contact was an instant favorite of mine, and thanks to Patrick Stewart's standout performance remains my leading contender as best Trek all-time.  From there, let's provide a breakdown, just so you can see my thought process.  Second goes to Looking for Richard, Al Pacino's film about a production of Richard III, which also features Kevin Spacey.  The '90s were good for seeing unusual actors doing Shakespeare, which is a shame because it's happened rarely since.  Third goes to another instant and long-time favorite, Tom Cruise's first Mission: Impossible, which should never be diminished in anyone's eyes just because it was based on prior material.  It's first-rate stuff.  Fourth goes to Independence Day, a classic disaster flick (and the year's top grosser) packed with memorable performances.  Fifth goes to Island of Dr. Moreau, which is usually regarded as Marlon Brando's biggest headscratcher.  But I don't tend to agree that conventional wisdom is always right.  Whatever Brando thought or however he approached the role, the results are still fascinating, and it doesn't hurt to have David Thewlis and Val Kilmer along.  Sixth goes to From Dusk Till Dawn, another early-career Robert Rodriguez winner, with the same being said for at-the-time box office newbie George Clooney.  Seventh goes to Jerry Maguire, which is one of the decade's enduring romantic dramas.  Eighth goes to Cable Guy, the movie that snapped Jim Carrey's streak, undeservedly so.  In hindsight, the beginning of Carrey taking his career into his own creative hands.  Ninth goes to Trainspotting, a movie I haven't seen in years and if anytime more recently, probably would rank higher.  Shame that it doesn't seem to have had the same cultural staying power as its ideological predecessor, A Clockwork Orange.  Tenth goes to Happy Gilmore, easily my favorite Adam Sandler comedy.  Eleventh goes to Edward Norton's breakthrough, Primal Fear.  Twelfth goes to Romeo + Juliet, one of those '90s Shakespeare efforts that's now best known as early spotlights for Leonardo DiCaprio and Claire Danes, both of whom proved very much worth casting in such famous roles.  Thirteenth goes to The English Patient, which you kind of have to be patient with.  Fourteenth goes to The Nutty Professor, which revived Eddie Murphy's popular career and because I really haven't seen his biggest '80s hits is still my most direct experience with what he's best known for (besides Donkey).  Fifteenth goes to Scream, the start of a franchise I still like to think as Liev Schreiber's best bet to be remembered.  Sixteenth goes to this particular Hamlet, which was Kenneth Branagh's.  Seventeenth goes to Mars Attacks!, which is like the comedy version of Independence Day.  Eighteenth goes to That Thing You Do!, which will probably remain the only time one of the colleges I went to (Mercyhurst in Erie, PA) becomes immortalized in film.  Unless people start making films about Stephen King.  Nineteenth goes to Mary Reilly, a film that at the time nearly ruined Julia Roberts' career, but is actually pretty awesome.  Twentieth goes to The Fan, which is a fun little entry in the careers of Tony Scott, Wesley Snipes, and Robert Di Niro.  Twenty-first goes to The Rock, which was a favorite of my brother's.  Twenty-second goes to The Phantom, which was like a warm-up for Mask of Zorro, Catherine Zeta-Jones included!  Twenty-third goes to Kingpin, which I think if anyone remembers it is thanks to Bill Murray's hair.  Twenty-fourth goes to Courage Under Fire, which I pretty much remember as the film where a young Matt Damon is incredibly gaunt.  Twenty-fifth goes to Hunchback of Notre Dame, still the unlikeliest Disney animated flick ever.  Twenty-sixth goes to The Quest, a minor if crucial film in Jean-Claude Van Damme's career.  He directed it.  And stars in it, naturally.  Twenty-seventh goes to Rumble in the Brbox, which launched Jackie Chan's Hollywood career, but as it turns out doesn't really translate that well.  And finally, Crash rounds out the list because it's about as good as the book.  I don't like either one.

...And I'll spare everyone doing the same for the movies in the second list.

2015 at a glance

The Loft (1/30)

This was on my watch list last year, but it was apparently delayed.  So here it is again.

Jupiter Ascending (2/6)

Another must-see movie from last year with a far better publicized release delay.  (There are a bunch of delays coming out this year for some reason.)

Focus (2/27)

New Will Smith.  For me, that's still a very good thing.

Chappie (3/6)

New from Neill Blomkamp.

Serena (3/27)

I'm so far behind my Bradley Cooper/Jennifer Lawrence flicks, if I saw this one on its release, it would be my first one.

Furious 7 (4/3)

Probably the most anticipated delayed release of the year.

Selfless (4/17)

Although for me, the new Tarsem is.

Child 44 (4/17)

Tom Hardy and Noomi Rapace.

Rock the Kasbah (4/24)

Featuring Zooey Deschanel.

Avengers: Age of Ultron (5/1)

One of those surefire blockbusters, right?

Mad Max: Fury Road (5/15)

"Mr. Franchise" Tom Hardy.

Tomorrowland (5/22)

Looks fascinating.

Terminator Genisys (7/3)

I'm hooked on the franchise.

Pan (7/17)

I'm also hooked (heh) on Peter Pan.

Black Mass (9/18)

Mob movies.  C'mon.

The Walk (10/2)

Joseph Gordon-Levitt.  The Twin Towers.

Spectre (11/6)

Bond.  New Bond.

The Martian (11/27)

Ridley Scott.

Midnight Special (11/27)

Kristen Dunst, Adam Driver, Joel Edgerton, Michael Shannon.

In the Heart of the Sea (12/11)

Ron Howard adapts the true story of the event that inspired Moby Dick.

Star Wars: Episode VII - The Force Awakens (12/18)

You, ah, probably know about this one.

Mission: Impossible 5 (12/25)

Another of my favorite series.

Joy (12/25)

Cooper/Lawrence again, this time with David O. Russell.  Again.

The Revenant (12/25)

Tom Hardy again, plus Leonardo DiCaprio and Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu.

(Clearly, all dates subject to change.)

1995

Viewed/Ranked

1. Toy Story
2. Grumpier Old Men
3. The Quick and the Dead
4. Don Juan De Marco
5. Higher Learning
6. Desperado
7. The Usual Suspects
8. Braveheart
9. Mortal Kombat
10. Apollo 13
11. Nixon
12. Waterworld
13. Batman Forever
14. 12 Monkeys
15. Ace Ventura: When Nature Calls
16. Dracula: Dead and Loving It
17. Dead Man Walking
18. Casino
19. Bad Boys
20. Mr. Holland's Opus
21. Othello
22. Four Rooms
23. GoldenEye
24. Judge Dredd
25. Tommy Boy
26. Species

Other Notable Releases

1. A Kid in King Arthur's Court
2. A Little Princess
3. The American President
4. Babe
5. The Basketball Diaries
6. Before Sunrise
7. The Bridges of Madison County
8. Clockers
9. Clueless
10. Congo
11. Crimson Tide
12. Cutthroat Island
13. Dangerous Minds
14. Die Hard: With a Vengeance
15. First Knight
16. Friday
17. Get Shorty
18. Heat
19. Jade
20. Jumanji
21. Kids
22. Leaving Las Vegas
23. Mallrats
24. Mighty Aphrodite
25. Money Train
26. Richard III
27. Rob Roy
28. Sense and Sensibility
29. Seven
30. Strange Days
31. To Die For
32. To Wong Foo, Thanks for Everything, Julie Newmar
33. Village of the Damned
34. Waiting to Exhale
35. While You Were Sleeping
36. Wild Bill

Notes: Clockers, Cutthroat Island, First Knight, Mallrats, Rob Roy, and Wild Bill are all films that could be listed in the Viewed/Ranked section, but I've reserved because I would need to see them again to have a proper appreciation.  It strikes me that 1995 was an exceptional year, and a crucial one.  I could write a lot more about that.

1994

Viewed/Ranked

1. Pulp Fiction
2. The Shawshank Redemption
3. Forrest Gump
4. Star Trek Generations
5. Ace Ventura: Pet Detective
6. Wyatt Earp
7. The Mask
8. The Santa Clause
9. Stargate
10. Natural Born Killers
11. Legends of the Fall
12. Maverick
13. The Lion King
14. Street Fighter
15. True Lies
16. Dumb and Dumber
17. Clerks

Other Notable Releases

1. The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert
2. Airheads
3. Being Human
4. Beverly Hills Cop III
5. Bullets Over Broadway
6. Clear and Present Danger
7. The Client
8. Crooklyn
9. The Crow
10. Ed Wood
11. Four Weddings and a Funeral
12. Heavenly Creatures
13. The Hudsucker Proxy
14. I.Q.
15. Interview with the Vampire
16. The Madness of King George
17. Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
18. The Next Karate Kid
19. The Pagemaster
20. The Paper
21. The Professional
22. Quiz Show
23. The Road to Wellville
24. Speed

Notes: The Viewed/Ranked for this year is a pretty strong crop (although I'm not particularly a fan of Clerks), with a number of films listed in Other Notable Releases (Crooklyn, Interview with the Vampire, Mary Shelley's Frankenstein, Road to Wellville, Speed) technically eligible for inclusion as well, held out only due to my sketchy memories of and/or incomplete experience with them.  I left out a bunch of other recognizable names in the latter listing in the interests of brevity.  As always, that's a list of movies I'd like to see at some later point.  Also, my listing of Forrest Gump below Pulp Fiction and Shawshank Redemption should not be construed as a commentary on the Oscars debate.  They all three extremely notable movies for entirely different reasons.

1993

Viewed/Ranked

1. Schindler's List
2. Groundhog Day
3. Grumpy Old Men
4. True Romance
5. Heaven and Earth
6. Philadelphia
7. Much Ado About Nothing
8. Robin Hood: Men in Tights
9. The Snapper
10. Mrs. Doubtfire
11. The Fugitive
12. Kalifornia
13. The Thing Called Love
14. Gettysburg
15. Dragon: The Bruce Lee Story
16. The Man Without a Face
17. Dave
18. Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas
19. Jurassic Park
20. Romper Stomper
21. El Mariachi
22. It's All True
23. Cool Runnings
24. Tombstone
25. Hocus Pocus
26. Free Willy

Other Notables Releases

1. Addams Family Values
2. Another Stakeout
3. Army of Darkness
4. Batman: Mask of the Phantasm
5. Beethoven's 2nd
6. Benny and Joon
7. Carlito's Way
8. Cliffhanger
9. Coneheads
10. Dazed and Confused
11. Dead Alive
12. Demolition Man
13. Dennis the Menace
14. The Firm
15. Geronimo: An American Legend
16. In the Line of Fire
17. Indecent Proposal
18. Jason Goes to Hell: The Final Friday
19. The Joy Luck Club
20. Last Action Hero
21. Look Who's Talking Now
22. Manhattan Murder Mystery
23. Menace II Society
24. The Meteor Man
25. Mr. Nanny
26. The Pelican Brief
27. Robocop 3
28. Rookie of the Year
29. Rudy
30. The Sandlot
31. Searching for Bobby Fisher
32. Sister Act 2: Back in the Habit
33. Six Degrees of Separation
34. Sleepless in Seattle
35. Son of the Pink Panther
36. Super Mario Bros.
37. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III
38. The Three Musketeers
39. Wayne's World 2
40. Weekend at Bernies II
41. What's Eating Gilbert Grape
42. What's Love Got to Do with It

1992

Viewed/Ranked

1. Malcolm X
2. Reservoir Dogs
3. Aladdin
4. A Few Good Men
5. The Cutting Edge
6. Sister Act
7. Batman Returns
8. A River Runs Through It
9. A League of Their Own
10. Bram Stoker's Dracula
11. Chaplin
12. Wayne's World
13. Noises Off
14. Brain Donors
15. Unforgiven
16. Scent of a Woman
17. The Muppet Christmas Carol
18. Home Alone 2: Lost in New York
19. The Mighty Ducks
20. Honey, I Blew Up the Kid
21. Toys

Other Notable Releases

1. 3 Ninjas
2. 1492: Conquest of Paradise
3. Alien 3
4. Bad Lieutenant
5. Basic Instinct
6. Beethoven
7. The Bodyguard
8. Buffy the Vampire Slayer
9. Candyman
10. Christopher Columbus: The Discovery
11. Cool World
12. The Crying Game
13. Encino Man
14. Far and Away
15. Glengarry Glenn Ross
16. Honeymoon in Vegas
17. Johnny Suede
18. The Last of the Mohicans
19. Lethal Weapon 3
20. My Cousin Vinny
21. Of Mice and Men
22. Patriot Games
23. Sneakers
24. Twin Peaks - Fire Walk with Me
25. Under Siege
26. Universal Soldier
27. White Men Can't Jump

1991

Viewed/Ranked

1. JFK
2. Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country
3. Terminator 2: Judgment Day
4. Hook
5. Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
6. The Doors
7. The Fisher King
8. Beauty and the Beast
9. What About Bob?
10. The Commitments
11. Bill and Ted's Bogus Journey
12. White Fang
13. My Girl
14. Thelma and Louise
15. Point Break
16. Shipwrecked
17. The Rocketeer
18. Life Stinks
19. Fried Green Tomatoes
20. The Silence of the Lambs
21. King Ralph
22. Jungle Fever
23. Highlander 2: The Quickening
24. Hudson Hawk
25. The Neverending Story II
26. Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles II

Other Notable Releases

1. The Addams Family
2. An American Tail: Fievel Goes West
3. Barton Fink
4. Boyz N the Hood
5. Bugsy
6. Cape Fear
7. City Slickers
8. Doc Hollywood
9. Father of the Bride
10. Freddy's Dead: The Final Nightmare
11. Hot Shots!
12. L.A. Story
13. La Femme Nikita
14. Madonna: Truth or Dare
15. My Own Private Idaho
16. The Naked Gun 2 1/2: The Smell of Fear
17. Sleeping with the Enemy