1997: The Second Best Year in Film
1997 comes in second to 1939 to classic, beloved, and artistically important films released. Here are some of them.
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- DirectorHayao MiyazakiStarsYôji MatsudaYuriko IshidaYûko TanakaOn a journey to find the cure for a Tatarigami's curse, Ashitaka finds himself in the middle of a war between the forest gods and Tatara, a mining colony. In this quest he also meets San, the Mononoke Hime.
- DirectorGus Van SantStarsRobin WilliamsMatt DamonBen AffleckWill Hunting, a janitor at M.I.T., has a gift for mathematics, but needs help from a psychologist to find direction in his life.
- DirectorCurtis HansonStarsKevin SpaceyRussell CroweGuy PearceAs corruption grows in 1950s Los Angeles, three policemen - one strait-laced, one brutal, and one sleazy - investigate a series of murders with their own brand of justice.
- DirectorJames CameronStarsLeonardo DiCaprioKate WinsletBilly ZaneA seventeen-year-old aristocrat falls in love with a kind but poor artist aboard the luxurious, ill-fated R.M.S. Titanic.
- DirectorPaul Thomas AndersonStarsMark WahlbergJulianne MooreBurt ReynoldsBack when sex was safe, pleasure was a business and business was booming, an idealistic porn producer aspires to elevate his craft to an art when he discovers a hot young talent.
- DirectorLuc BessonStarsBruce WillisMilla JovovichGary OldmanIn the colorful future, a cab driver unwittingly becomes the central figure in the search for a legendary cosmic weapon to keep Evil and Mr. Zorg at bay.
- DirectorRobert ZemeckisStarsJodie FosterMatthew McConaugheyTom SkerrittDr. Ellie Arroway, after years of searching, finds conclusive radio proof of extraterrestrial intelligence, sending plans for a mysterious machine.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsDjimon HounsouMatthew McConaugheyAnthony HopkinsIn 1839, the revolt of Mende captives aboard a Spanish owned ship causes a major controversy in the United States when the ship is captured off the coast of Long Island. The courts must decide whether the Mende are slaves or legally free.
- DirectorJay RoachStarsMike MyersElizabeth HurleyMichael YorkA world-class playboy and part-time secret agent from the 1960s emerges after thirty years in a cryogenic state to battle with his nemesis Dr. Evil.
- DirectorKevin SmithStarsBen AffleckJoey Lauren AdamsEthan SupleeHolden and Banky are comic book artists. Everything's going good for them until they meet Alyssa, also a comic book artist. Holden falls for her, but his hopes are crushed when he finds out she's a lesbian.
- DirectorMike NewellStarsAl PacinoJohnny DeppMichael MadsenAn FBI undercover agent infiltrates the mob and finds himself identifying more with the Mafia life--at the expense of his regular one.
- DirectorGary OldmanStarsRay WinstoneKathy BurkeCharlie Creed-MilesA rough, short-tempered patriarch of a working-class family sees his life and the relationships around him slowly unravel.
- DirectorPaul VerhoevenStarsCasper Van DienDenise RichardsDina MeyerHumans, in a fascist militaristic future, wage war with giant alien bugs.
- DirectorQuentin TarantinoStarsPam GrierSamuel L. JacksonRobert ForsterA flight attendant with a criminal past gets nabbed by the ATF for smuggling. Under pressure to become an informant against the illegal arms dealer she works for, she must find a way to secure her future without getting killed.
- DirectorJim GillespieStarsJennifer Love HewittSarah Michelle GellarAnne HecheFour young friends bound by a tragic accident are reunited when they find themselves being stalked by a hook-wielding maniac in their small seaside town.
- DirectorJan PinkavaStarsBob PetersonGeri sets up a chess game to play his greatest opponent - himself.
- DirectorPeter CattaneoStarsRobert CarlyleTom WilkinsonMark AddySix unemployed steel workers form a male striptease act. The women cheer them on to go for "the full monty" - total nudity.
- DirectorGeorge ArmitageStarsJohn CusackMinnie DriverDan AykroydMartin Blank is a professional assassin. He is sent on a mission to a small Detroit suburb, Grosse Pointe, and, by coincidence, his ten-year high school reunion party is taking place there at the same time.
- DirectorDon BluthGary GoldmanStarsMeg RyanJohn CusackChristopher LloydThe last surviving child of the Russian Royal Family joins two con men to reunite with her grandmother, the Dowager Empress, while the undead Rasputin seeks her death.
- DirectorBarry SonnenfeldStarsTommy Lee JonesWill SmithLinda FiorentinoJames, an NYC cop, is hired by Agent K of a secret government agency that monitors extraterrestrial life on Earth. Together, they must recover an item that has been stolen by an intergalactic villain.
- DirectorRon ClementsJohn MuskerStarsTate DonovanSusan EganJames WoodsThe son of Zeus and Hera is stripped of his immortality as an infant and must become a true hero in order to reclaim it.
- DirectorWolfgang PetersenStarsHarrison FordGary OldmanGlenn CloseCommunist radicals hijack Air Force One with the U.S. President and his family on board. The Vice President negotiates from Washington D.C., while the President, a veteran, fights to rescue the hostages on board.
- DirectorDavid MirkinStarsMira SorvinoLisa KudrowJaneane GarofaloTwo dim-witted, inseparable friends hit the road for their ten-year high school reunion and concoct an elaborate lie about their lives in order to impress their classmates.
- DirectorRoger SpottiswoodeStarsPierce BrosnanJonathan PryceMichelle YeohJames Bond sets out to stop a media mogul's plan to induce war between China and the UK in order to obtain exclusive global media coverage.
- DirectorNeil JordanStarsStephen ReaFiona ShawEamonn OwensThe antisocial son of an alcoholic father and a bipolar mother grows up in 1960s Ireland.
- DirectorJohn MaddenStarsJudi DenchBilly ConnollyGeoffrey PalmerWhen Queen Victoria's husband Prince Albert dies, she finds solace in her trusted servant, Mr. John Brown, but their relationship also brings scandal and turmoil.
- DirectorAtom EgoyanStarsIan HolmSarah PolleyCaerthan BanksA bus crash in a small town brings a lawyer to defend the families, but he discovers everything isn't what it seems.
- DirectorBarry LevinsonStarsDustin HoffmanRobert De NiroAnne HecheShortly before an election, a spin-doctor and a Hollywood producer join efforts to fabricate a war in order to cover up a Presidential sex scandal.
- DirectorAbbas KiarostamiStarsHomayoun ErshadiAbdolhosein BagheriAfshin Khorshid BakhtiariAn Iranian man drives his car in search of someone who will quietly bury him under a cherry tree after he commits suicide.
- DirectorTakeshi KitanoStarsTakeshi KitanoKayoko KishimotoRen ÔsugiNishi leaves the police in the face of harrowing personal and professional difficulties. Spiraling into depression, he makes questionable decisions.
- DirectorWoody AllenStarsWoody AllenJudy DavisJulia Louis-DreyfusSuffering from writer's block and eagerly awaiting his writing award, Harry Block remembers events from his past and scenes from his best-selling books as characters, real and fictional, come back to haunt him.
- DirectorAng LeeStarsKevin KlineJoan AllenSigourney WeaverIn suburban New Canaan, Connecticut, 1973, middle-class families experimenting with casual sex and substance abuse find their lives beyond their control.
- DirectorMartin ScorseseStarsTenzin Thuthob TsarongGyurme TethongTulku Jamyang Kunga TenzinFrom childhood to adulthood, Tibet's fourteenth Dalai Lama deals with Chinese oppression and other problems.
- DirectorDavid LynchStarsBill PullmanPatricia ArquetteJohn RoseliusAnonymous videotapes presage a musician's murder conviction, and a gangster's girlfriend leads a mechanic astray.
- DirectorAlain BerlinerStarsGeorges Du FresneMichèle LaroqueJean-Philippe ÉcoffeyLudovic is an innocent seven-year-old child who provokes horror in his community when he dresses in girls clothes and insists he's a girl.
- DirectorAlejandro AmenábarStarsEduardo NoriegaPenélope CruzChete LeraA very handsome man finds the love of his life, but he suffers an accident and needs to have his face rebuilt by surgery after it is severely disfigured.
- DirectorRoberto BenigniStarsRoberto BenigniNicoletta BraschiGiorgio CantariniWhen an open-minded Jewish waiter and his son become victims of the Holocaust, he uses a perfect mixture of will, humor and imagination to protect his son from the dangers around their camp.
- DirectorBetty ThomasStarsHoward SternMary McCormackRobin QuiversThe autobiographical story of Howard Stern, the radio rebel who is now also a TV personality, an author and a movie star.
- DirectorJohn WooStarsJohn TravoltaNicolas CageJoan AllenTo foil a terrorist plot, FBI agent Sean Archer assumes the identity of the criminal Castor Troy who murdered his son through facial transplant surgery, but the crook wakes up prematurely and vows revenge.
- DirectorFrank OzStarsKevin KlineJoan CusackTom SelleckA midwestern teacher questions his sexuality after a former student makes a comment about him at the Academy Awards.
- DirectorMel SmithStarsRowan AtkinsonPeter MacNicolJohn MillsThe bumbling Mr. Bean travels to America when he is given the responsibility of bringing a highly valuable painting to a Los Angeles museum.
- DirectorTom ShadyacStarsJim CarreyMaura TierneyAmanda DonohoeA pathological liar-lawyer finds his career turned upside down when he inexplicably cannot physically lie for 24 whole hours.
- DirectorJames L. BrooksStarsJack NicholsonHelen HuntGreg KinnearA single mother and waitress, a misanthropic author, and a gay artist form an unlikely friendship after the artist is assaulted in a robbery.
- DirectorGregory NavaStarsJennifer LopezEdward James OlmosJon SedaThe true story of Selena, a Texas-born Tejano singer who rose from cult status to performing at the Astrodome, as well as having chart-topping albums on the Latin music charts.
- DirectorKevin CostnerStarsKevin CostnerWill PattonLarenz TateA nameless drifter dons a postman's uniform and bag of mail as he begins a quest to inspire hope to the survivors living in post-apocalyptic America.
- DirectorJoel SchumacherStarsArnold SchwarzeneggerGeorge ClooneyChris O'DonnellBatman and Robin try to keep their relationship together even as they must stop Mr. Freeze and Poison Ivy from freezing Gotham City.
- DirectorJames MangoldStarsSylvester StalloneHarvey KeitelRay LiottaThe Sheriff of a suburban New Jersey community, populated by New York City police officers, slowly discovers the town is a front for mob connections and corruption.
- DirectorMark A.Z. DippéStarsMichael Jai WhiteJohn LeguizamoMartin SheenAn elite mercenary is killed, but comes back from Hell as a reluctant soldier of the Devil.
- DirectorTaylor HackfordStarsKeanu ReevesAl PacinoCharlize TheronAn exceptionally-adept Florida lawyer is offered a job at a high-end New York City law firm with a high-end boss--the biggest opportunity of his career to date.
- DirectorSimon WestStarsNicolas CageJohn CusackJohn MalkovichNewly-paroled ex-con and former U.S. Ranger Cameron Poe finds himself trapped in a prisoner-transport plane when the passengers seize control.
- DirectorAndrew NiccolStarsEthan HawkeUma ThurmanJude LawA genetically inferior man assumes the identity of a superior one in order to pursue his lifelong dream of space travel.
- DirectorWes CravenStarsNeve CampbellCourteney CoxDavid ArquetteTwo years after the first series of murders, as Sidney acclimates to college life, someone donning the Ghostface costume begins a new string of killings.
- DirectorPaul W.S. AndersonStarsLaurence FishburneSam NeillKathleen QuinlanA rescue crew is tasked with investigating the mysterious reappearance of a spaceship that had been lost for seven years.
- DirectorSteven SpielbergStarsJeff GoldblumJulianne MoorePete PostlethwaiteA research team is sent to the Jurassic Park Site B island to study the dinosaurs there, while an InGen team approaches with another agenda.
- DirectorFrancis Ford CoppolaStarsMatt DamonDanny DeVitoClaire DanesAn underdog lawyer takes on a fraudulent insurance company.
- DirectorP.J. HoganStarsJulia RobertsDermot MulroneyCameron DiazWhen a woman's long-time friend reveals he's engaged, she realizes she loves him herself and sets out to get him, with only days before the wedding.
- DirectorPeter HewittStarsJohn GoodmanJim BroadbentMark WilliamsA secret family of four-inch people living inside the walls of a house must save their home from an evil real estate developer.
- DirectorMajid MajidiStarsMohammad Amir NajiAmir Farrokh HashemianBahare SeddiqiAfter a boy loses his sister's pair of shoes, he goes on a series of adventures in order to find them. When he can't, he tries a new way to "win" a new pair.
- DirectorLee TamahoriStarsAnthony HopkinsAlec BaldwinElle MacphersonAn intellectual billionaire and two other men struggle to band together and survive after getting stranded in the Alaskan wilderness with a blood-thirsty Kodiak Bear hunting them down.
- DirectorSatoshi KonStarsJunko IwaoRica MatsumotoShinpachi TsujiA pop singer gives up her career to become an actress, but she slowly goes insane when she starts being stalked by an obsessed fan and what seems to be a ghost of her past.
- DirectorBrian RobbinsStarsKel MitchellKenan ThompsonSinbadA dim-witted teenager and his new coworker try to save the old burger joint they work for from failing after the opening of a brand new burger restaurant across the street, which's planning to put them out of business.
- DirectorClint EastwoodStarsJohn CusackKevin SpaceyJack ThompsonA visiting city reporter's assignment suddenly revolves around the murder trial of a local millionaire, whom he befriends.
- DirectorPat O'ConnorStarsLiv TylerJennifer ConnellyJoaquin PhoenixTwo working class brothers court three wealthy and beautiful sisters in a small Illinois town.
- DirectorJim SheridanStarsDaniel Day-LewisEmily WatsonDaragh DonnellyYoung Danny Flynn is released from prison 14 years after "taking the rap" for the IRA and tries to rebuild his life in his old Belfast neighborhood.
- DirectorErik SkjoldbjærgStarsStellan SkarsgårdSverre Anker OusdalMaria MathiesenIn a Norwegian city with a 24-hour daylight cycle a Swedish murder investigator has been brought in on a special case. Sleep deprived, he makes a horrible mistake which is discovered by the killer he has been hunting.
- DirectorBob SpiersStarsMel BEmma BuntonMelanie CWorld-famous pop group the Spice Girls zip around London in their luxurious double-decker tour bus having various adventures and performing for their fans.
- DirectorKar-Wai WongStarsLeslie CheungTony Leung Chiu-waiChang ChenA couple take a trip to Argentina but both men find their lives drifting apart in opposite directions.
- DirectorBille AugustStarsJulia OrmondJens Jørgen FleischerAgga OlsenA 6 y.o. Inuit boy runs off a snowy roof in Copenhagen and dies. Smilla, a half Inuit who lives in the building and knows the boy, looks into it. What makes an acrophobic boy run up on the roof? The clues take her to Greenland.
- DirectorSteve OedekerkStarsMartin LawrenceTim RobbinsJohn C. McGinleyNick's wife's in bed with his boss. He later gets a gun to his head by a carjacker but steps on the gas pedal. They end up friends after adventures together - holdups, burglary, reckless driving, revenge etc. Twists follow.
- DirectorGeorge Tillman Jr.StarsVanessa WilliamsVivica A. FoxNia LongOne person can keep a family together and, when that one person is gone, a family can be torn apart.
- DirectorBrian GilbertStarsStephen FryJude LawVanessa RedgraveThe turmoil in poet/playwright Oscar Wilde's life after he discovers his homosexuality.
- DirectorSteve JamesStarsJared LetoR. Lee ErmeyEd O'NeillBased on the life of Olympic hopeful Steve Prefontaine, a long distance runner who lived in Oregon and died young.
- DirectorDanny BoyleStarsCameron DiazEwan McGregorHolly HunterUpon being fired, a desperate guy kidnaps a daughter of his former boss. Two angels are sent to Earth to check if love is possible in this case.
- DirectorBernard RoseStarsSophie MarceauSean BeanAlfred MolinaAnna (Marceau) is a wife and mother who has an affair with the handsome Count Vronsky (Bean). Based on the novel by Tolstoy.
- DirectorJim KoufStarsJim BelushiTupac ShakurLela RochonAfter murdering an undercover DEA agent, two corrupt cops scramble to cover up what they've done.
- DirectorIain SoftleyStarsHelena Bonham CarterLinus RoacheAlex JenningsAn impoverished woman who has been forced to choose between a privileged life with her wealthy aunt and her journalist lover, befriends an American heiress. When she discovers the heiress is attracted to her own lover and is dying, she sees a chance to have both the privileged life she cannot give up and the lover she cannot live without.
- DirectorThomas JahnStarsTil SchweigerJan Josef LiefersThierry van WervekeTwo terminally ill patients escape from a hospital, steal a car and rush towards the sea.
- DirectorKasi LemmonsStarsSamuel L. JacksonJurnee SmollettMeagan GoodWhat did little Eve see--and how will it haunt her? Husband, father and womanizer Louis Batiste is the head of an affluent family, but it's the women who rule this gothic world of secrets, lies and mystic forces.
- DirectorJosh BeckerStarsBruce CampbellJeremy RobertsAnita BaroneCarl is released from jail after serving a 5-year term and immediately sets about executing his next heist. The plan is relatively simple but time is critical. However, he doesn't factor in bad luck or the incompetence of his accomplices.
- DirectorMichael HanekeStarsSusanne LotharUlrich MüheArno FrischTwo violent young men take a mother, father, and son hostage in their vacation cabin and force them to play sadistic "games" with one another for their own amusement.
- DirectorHideaki AnnoKazuya TsurumakiStarsMegumi OgataMegumi HayashibaraYûko MiyamuraConcurrent theatrical ending of the TV series Neon Genesis Evangelion (1995).
- DirectorPaul SchraderStarsNick NolteSissy SpacekJames CoburnA deeply troubled small-town cop investigates a suspicious hunting death while other events jeopardize his sanity.
- DirectorDavid FincherStarsMichael DouglasDeborah Kara UngerSean PennAfter a wealthy San Francisco banker is given an opportunity to participate in a mysterious game, his life is turned upside down as he begins to question if it might really be a concealed conspiracy to destroy him.
- DirectorMichael MooreStarsMichael MooreElaine BlyDan BurnsOn his book tour, Michael Moore exposes more wrongdoing by greedy big businesses and callous politicians around America.
- DirectorWilliam GazeckiStarsDan GiffordJim CavanaughDick DeGuerinA reassessment of the tragedy at Waco that left 76 members of the Branch Davidian religious sect dead.
- DirectorKiyoshi KurosawaStarsMasato HagiwaraKoji YakushoTsuyoshi UjikiA frustrated detective deals with the case of several gruesome murders committed by people who have no recollection of what they've done.
- DirectorGeorge MillerStarsHarvey AdamsElizabeth AlexanderDorothy AlisonAustralian born film maker George (Mad Max) Miller offers a personal view of Australian films. He suggests that they can be regarded as visual music, public dreaming, mythology, and song-lines. In extrapolating the idea of movies as song-lines he examines feature films under the following categories : songs of the land ; the bushman ; the convicts ; the bush-rangers ; mates and larrikins ; the digger ; pommy bashing ; the sheilas ; gays ; the wogs ; blackfellas ; urban subversion. He then concludes that these films can be thought of as "Hymns that sing of Australia".
- DirectorFrançois OzonStarsSasha HailsMarina de VanSamanthaWhile waiting her husband return from a business trip, a young woman with a baby is getting close with a strange woman traveler.
- DirectorRobert YoungFred SchepisiStarsJohn CleeseJamie Lee CurtisKevin KlineZookeepers struggle to deal with the policies of changing directors.
- DirectorTheodore WitcherStarsLarenz TateNia LongIsaiah WashingtonDarius Lovehall is a young black poet in Chicago who starts dating Nina Mosley, a beautiful and talented photographer. While trying to figure out if they've got a "love thing" or are just "kicking it," they hang out with their friend, talking about love and sex. Then Nina tests the strength of Darius' feelings and sets a chain of romantic complications into motion.
- DirectorRobert DuvallStarsRobert DuvallTodd AllenPaul BaggetAfter his happy life spins out of control, a preacher from Texas changes his name, goes to Louisiana and starts preaching on the radio.
- DirectorMark WatersStarsParker PoseyJosh HamiltonTori SpellingA mentally unbalanced young woman - who is convinced she is Jackie Kennedy - flies into a murderous rage when her brother returns home to reveal he is engaged.
- DirectorJocelyn MoorhouseStarsMichelle PfeifferJessica LangeJennifer Jason LeighA family is torn apart after a father gives his valuable farm land to his daughters.
- DirectorDavid MametStarsSteve MartinBen GazzaraCampbell ScottAn employee who develops a lucrative secret process for his corporation is tempted to betray the company when higher ups attempt to take the process from him. Dastardly intrigue ensues.
- DirectorBruce BeresfordStarsGlenn CloseFrances McDormandPauline CollinsA group of women who are imprisoned on the island of Sumatra by the Japanese during World War II use music to relieve their misery.
- DirectorMichael WinterbottomStarsStephen DillaneWoody HarrelsonMarisa TomeiAmerican and British journalists Flynn and Michael Henderson, along with their respective news teams, meet at the beginning of the Bosnian war in Sarajevo. During their reports, the group find an orphanage run by the devoted Mrs. Savic near the frontline. Feeling sympathy, Henderson decides to take one of the children, Emira, illegally back to England.
- DirectorIvan ReitmanStarsRobin WilliamsBilly CrystalJulia Louis-DreyfusA woman cons two old boyfriends into searching for her runaway son by convincing both that they are the boy's father.
- DirectorVictor NunezStarsPeter FondaPatricia RichardsonChristine DunfordA reclusive beekeeper slowly pulls his dysfunctional family back together, but not without having to fight his son's previous dastardly cohorts.
- DirectorNeil LaButeStarsAaron EckhartMatt MalloyStacy EdwardsTwo business executives--one an avowed misogynist, the other recently emotionally wounded by his love interest--set out to exact revenge on the female gender by seeking out the most innocent, uncorrupted girl they can find and ruining her life.
- DirectorGillian ArmstrongStarsRalph FiennesCate BlanchettCiarán HindsIn mid-1800s England, Oscar is a young Anglican priest, a misfit and an outcast, but with the soul of an angel. As a boy, even though from a strict Pentecostal family, he felt God told him through a sign to leave his father and his faith and join the Church of England. Lucinda is a teen-aged Australian heiress who has an almost desperate desire to liberate her sex from the confines of the male-dominated culture of the Australia of that time. She buys a glass factory and has a dream of building a church made almost entirely of glass, and then transporting it to Bellingen, a remote settlement on the north coast. Oscar and Lucinda meet on a ship going to Australia; once there, they are for different reasons ostracized from society, and as a result "join forces" together. Oscar and Lucinda are both passionate gamblers, and Lucinda bets Oscar her entire inheritance that he cannot transport the glass church to the Outback safely. Oscar accepts her wager, and this leads to the events that will change both their lives forever.