Flashback 1997: My top 10 favorite movies from 20 years ago

Oh the '90s. It's been said before but it really must be said again and again -- what a relatively decadent and trivial time it was. We didn't feel haunted by the ever-present threat of international terrorism (although domestic terrorism was, and still is, a bitch) and while partisanship was still totally a thing, we were hardly as polarizing a nation as we are today.

The movies reflected that light and breezy ethos, and with the economic booming and the world largely at peace, it makes perfect sense that a bloated romance like Titanic would be the most dominant film of the year (really the next year since most audiences saw it in the first part of 1998) and take over awards season.

I have only seen it once in its entirety, but I have a sneaking suspicion that while the film's technical achievement was and is undeniable, I can't imagine the clunky storytelling has aged as well. Certainly Avatar is that rare film that feels dated just a handful of years since it came out.

Ironically my favorite film of the year was not a hit and was oddly sidelined during awards season, but like all great movies it has hung around and found its place firmly in pop culture as a breakthrough for its director and many of its stars. But I'll get to that later. Here are my top 10 favorite films from the year 1997:

10) Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery - It's hard now, after all of the bloated sequels, irritating imitations and over-saturation was an oddball curio the first Austin Powers film was. It was a very small hit that ended up becoming a word-of-mouth sensation on home video, but on closer inspection it's probably one of the more personal films ex-Saturday Night Live star Mike Myers ever made. It's a loving parody of the British spy films of his youth, mixed with a an homage to the absurdist comedy that inspired him. It still holds up and it's hilarious.

9) Starship Troopers - I must admit I was late to the game with this movie. I, like a lot of people, initially didn't realize the director Paul Verhoeven was clearly making an intentionally campy sci-fi, which is as much about American military and commercial hubris as it was about giant, CGI bugs. Cast perfectly with the wooden and Aryan-like Casper van Dien, this wild, excessive adventure is a lot of fun if you watch in the right context. It's exciting to see Verhoeven, fresh off his triumph with Elle, finally getting the credit he deserves as an auteur.

8) Hoodlum - I am a huge sucker for gangster films, even when the quality varies. This fact-based take on the rise of iconic Harlem kingpin "Bumpy" Johnson will never get high marks for originality, but its star Laurence Fishburne is such a cool as ice, dynamic presence and the film has a really enjoyable pacing to it, that I've always overlooked its imperfections. This was one of those movies I discovered on cable after school at some point and just kind of became cinematic comfort food for me.

7) Lost Highway - This is one of David Lynch's scariest and probably lesser known creations. Apparently, it was inspired in part by hysteria over the O.J. Simpson trial, which had gripped the nation in the years before its release. It has elements of a horror film -- a chic L.A. couple appears to be getting terrorized by some nefarious stalker -- but as with nearly all Lynch films its narrative begins to fold in on itself and grow more complex. Some standout moments -- Robert Loggia's confrontation with an inhospitable driver, Robert Blake's incredibly creepy cameo -- are what make this an unforgettable movie for me.

6) Cop Land - Nearly twenty years before Creed, Sylvester Stallone showed he can really act in this emotional thriller about a sheriff in a town full of corrupt cops. Terrific supporting work from Harvey Keitel, Robert De Niro and Ray Liotta, elevate his performance, but this is Stallone's show. He packed on weight to play an in-over-his-head pushover, and watching his character slowly discover his inner hero is inspiring. A modest success when it first came out, this film is ripe for rediscovery.

5) LA Confidential - In many critics' minds, this was the film that should have won Best Picture, and it's easy to see why. A throwback film noir with impeccable production values, it's the kind of glamorous Hollywood movies that didn't make anymore then and still don't now. Of course, it has a lot more sex and violence than the old detective films did -- but also a lot more nuance too, thanks for fully realized characters played by Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce. A very tightly constructed, satisfying film.

4) Four Little Girls - Spike Lee's most emotional and resonant documentary film tells a truly heartbreaking story, about the four young girls murdered in a hate crime bombing of a black Baptist church at the height of the civil rights movement. Lee is delicate and measured here, allowing the victims' families to pay tribute to their daughters and impress us with their resilience. The film also doesn't shy away from showing us the righteous indignation and injustice of what took place. One of my favorite documentaries of all time and a painful viewing experience.

3) The Game - David Fincher's surreal and brooding thriller left an indelible impression on me when I first saw it in theaters. It boasts one of Michael Douglas' career-best performances (it feels like a culmination of much of his prior work) as an arrogant, bored businessman who gets sucked into what feels like a life or death choose your own adventure game by his n'er do well brother (played with great spirit by Sean Penn). If you surrender to the fantasy of it, it's a really fun ride, and the hallmarks of Fincher's gorgeous style all can be seen on display here.

2) Jackie Brown - Coming on the heels of his blockbuster hit Pulp Fiction, Quentin Tarantino's ode to Pam Grier and blaxploitation films could probably only be a letdown, but upon closer inspection its his most grounded and relatable movie to date. Tarantino stocks his film which actually plausible human beings here in one of his all-time best ensembles. Everyone shines here. Grier is the epitome of cool. Sam Jackson makes a wonderfully vain and temperamental bad guy. Michael Keaton is a jittery delight. But the real find here was Robert Forster was the real find here. A veteran character actor who gives one of the most subtle and sweet performances in a Tarantino film as a bounty hunter with a crush. This film is always watchable and rewarding.

1) Boogie Nights - An epic film about the 1970s and '80s and the evolution of the porn industry -- it has a flawless cast. incredible performances, it looks great and it sounds great, it's both funny, scary, exciting and sad. So naturally it wouldn't even make it into the Best Picture race. This was the film that made Hollywood pay attention to P.T. Anderson, one of the best and more original filmmakers working today. And this movie, which is so audacious that I still find new things to like about it every time I see it, was like an electric shock to the cinema atmosphere. It could have been a Tarantino rip-off or just exploitative, but Anderson had something much more profound in mind, and he delivered.