Flashback 1999: My favorite movies from 20 years ago

When I look back on it now 1999 was a big formative year for me as a moviegoer. I was 16-17 years old and just starting to develop real distinctive taste in movies. I still inexplicably liked the occasional stinker (Gone In 60 Seconds probably doesn't hold up well now) and I definitely was capable of being swayed by the status quo (hence my appreciation for American Beauty at the time).

Still, the year sticks out for me as a particularly memorable one. It was a breakthrough year for Tom Cruise of all people, and a number of auteurs made some of their splashiest films yet.

Here are my favorite ten movies released that year of Y2K panic.

10) Bowfinger - No one would have predicted this at the time but this may be the last great mainstream comedy Steve Martin and Eddie Murphy ever made. They'd have hits after this, and some strong dramatic work too, but this hilarious Hollywood satire is such a great showcase for their comedic skill sets. Murphy gets to play two wildly different characters while Martin, who also wrote the film, does a great riff on the hopeless industry dreamer who somehow makes good.

9) The Hurricane - This biopic about a legendary boxer (Rubin 'Hurricane' Carter) falsely accused of murder was dinged for getting its facts wrong and for elevating its white Canadian savior characters, but there is no denying the power and emotion in Denzel Washington's should-have-won Best Actor lead performance. His physical transformation here is something to behold as his compelling gravitas throughout.

8) The Talented Mr. Ripley - Matt Damon proved he wouldn't just be a pretty boy leading man with his truly creepy performance in this gorgeous period thriller, which also introduced most audiences to Jude Law who nearly steals the show along with the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman. I haven't watched it in years, but I remember it being well paced, stylish and surprisingly raw.

The Straight Story

7) The Straight Story - One of the least well-known entries in David Lynch's filmography is unjustly overlooked. It's a surprisingly sincere, genteel and as the title suggests -- straightforward -- drama (based on true story) about an elderly man who drives a tractor across the country to reunite with his ailing brother. The lead performance from the late Richard Farnsworth is deeply moving and authentic, so is the movie.

6) Office Space - A quintessential cult comedy that did very little business at the time but has evolved into the best take I've seen to date on being a drone in a cubicle-centric workplace. Writer-director Mike Judge has just enough absurdity (a character named Michael Bolton) mixed with relatable eccentricity to be incredibly watchable and funny as hell.

5) Magnolia - An eccentric and rough around the edges opus from Paul Thomas Anderson which plays like Robert Altman movie on speed. There a lot of unforgettable moments (think Julianne Moore's drugstore meltdown) and incredible acting (Tom Cruise may have never given a better performance than he does here), but the real star here is Anderson, who demonstrated what a virtuoso talent he was following the triumph of Boogie Nights.

4) Being John Malkovich - One of the most creative and satisfying mind-benders of a decade that sometimes produced films that thought they are more clever than they actually were. Spike Jonze made this material not just funny but strangely moving with John Cusack, Cameron Diaz and especially Catherine Keener all playing amazing and in some cases, against type weirdos. Oh, and lest we forget Malkovich himself who proves to have a great sense of humor about himself amid all the crazy.

3) The Matrix - Don't let the soggy sequels detract from the utter awesomeness that this movie introduced to the world. It has been oft-imitated but never duplicated. The Wachowskis created a really vivid cinematic world, established a premise that is still referenced to this day and managed to totally revitalize Keanu Reeves' career in the process.  Although it's been parodied but trust me, it still holds up. Now would you take the red pill or the blue pill?

2) Three Kings - Just four years before we went to war in Iraq this fantastic sleeper hit exposed the folly that was the first Gulf War in the service of an unconventional heist-meets-war comedy. George Clooney's charisma is dialed up to 10, Mark Wahlberg is similarly in fine form, and even Ice Cube gets to show more range than he usually does. It's a kinetic and experimental project that speaks to the best strengths of director David O. Russell.

1) Eyes Wide Shut - The late Stanley Kubrick's final film has only grown in its reputation since its release. It was a troubled production that went way overlong, required a ton of re-shoots and was controversially censored (at first) by the studio that released it. But what is on screen is an assured and darkly funny treatise on love and marriage, one of his most sensual, sophisticated films and one that suggests he had a lot more to say cinematically should he have lived a little longer. And yet, he went out with a bang -- it's a masterpiece.

PAST TOP 10 FAVORITE LISTS
1974 #1 movie - The Godfather Part II
1975 #1 movie - Nashville
1976 #1 movie - Taxi Driver
1977 #1 movie - Star Wars
1978 #1 movie - The Deer Hunter
1984 #1 movie - Ghostbusters
1985 #1 movie - Fletch
1986 #1 movie - Blue Velvet
1987 #1 movie - The Untouchables
1988 #1 movie - Coming to America
1994 #1 movie - Pulp Fiction
1995 #1 movie - Heat
1996:#1 movie - Fargo
1997 #1 movie - Boogie Nights
1998 #1 movie - The Big Lebowski
2004 #1 movie - Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind
2005 #1 movie - A History of Violence
2006 #1 movie - Casino Royale
2007 #1 movie - There Will Be Blood
2008 #1 movie - The Wrestler
2009 #1 movie - Inglourious Basterds