Today, we continue our series of retrospective articles about outstanding films of the past and, after the legendary 1999 and mighty 2004, we dive even deeper into the past and analyze what made the equally interesting 1994 film year notable. For example, there were many high-quality feature films that you remember fondly today. Weinstein’s Miramax occupied a special place in the industry, with such independent hits as «Clerks», «Pulp Fiction», and «The Crow» coming out of its wings. The cult «Friends» was launched. All in all, you won’t be bored. So, sit back and let’s get nostalgic together.
The films are listed not by rating, but by the date of release in the U.S. or worldwide box office. As always, please feel free to add your own options in the comments that you think were unfairly ignored in the article.
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Release date: May 10, 1994
IMDb rating: 7,5
Where to see: MEGOGO
In contrast to modern superheroics, James O’Barr’s adaptation of the comic book of the same name was irredeemably gloomy and pessimistic. Alex Proyas «The Crow» will forever be remembered as a tragedy on the set that took the life of Brandon Lee. But at the same time, it is an extremely stylish gothic fairy tale for adults, supported by the mysterious image of the protagonist and the melancholic sound of the legendary «The Cure».
Obviously, this far from perfect film with a modest budget gained cult status not least because of Brandon Lee’s death. But it is authentic to the source material and literally mesmerizes with its dark atmosphere. None of the three sequels could approach its level. But just compare this movie with the one garbage, which they called a reset, or, as Alex Proyas noted — «cynical money siphoning», that we had the «pleasure» pleasure of seeing in August.
Release date: June 7, 1994
IMDb rating: 7,3
Where to see: MEGOGO
The feature debut of Dutch director Jan de Bont turned out to be a real hit, earning ten times its budget of about $30-35 million at the box office. And even the high-minded film critics, who do not often respect the action genre, had no reason to find any loopholes to criticize it. On the contrary, the press was extremely positive: for example, Roger Ebert gave the film the highest possible rating.
And all these enthusiastic reviews were truly deserved because «Speed» has become a vivid example of an exciting adrenaline-pumping action movie that does not allow either the characters or the audience to catch their breath for a minute. The cast deserves a special mention — Dennis Hopper gave a reference performance as the sinister villain, and only a blind person could not notice the chemistry between Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock.
There is an interesting story connected with this factor: 25 years after the film’s release, the actress confessed, who had romantic feelings for her partner on the set. It happened on Ellen DeGeneres’ talk show. And a little later, in the same studio, Reeves himself said, who also felt in love with Sandra. But none of them dared to make the first move. It’s a pity, they would have been a gorgeous couple.
Three years later, a sequel was released with the subtitle «Cruise Control», still with Sandra Bullock, but without Reeves, but in decent society, this glaring failure is not mentioned.
Release date: June 15, 1994
IMDb rating: 8,5
Winner of the «Academy Award» for Best Soundtrack by Hans Zimmer and Best Song — «Can You Feel the Love Tonight» by Elton John. Winner of «Golden Globe» in the Best Motion Picture (Comedy or Musical) category. The highest-grossing film of 1994. Still the highest-grossing animated film made in traditional hand-drawn animation. An outstanding Disney classic.
We can list the regalia of the iconic «The Lion King» for a long time, but the most important one seems to be that you never get tired of watching this cartoon again and again. It doesn’t matter if you’re 5 years old or 35. Where most musical numbers in cartoons exist to hide the shortcomings of the script, the local singing and dancing are harmoniously woven into a high-quality, touching drama.
In 2019, Disney released a computer-animated remake that grossed more than a billion dollars, and in December is planned until the release of its prequel «Mufasa: The Lion King», which aims to tell the story of the formation of young lions Mufasa and Taka, later known as Scar.
Release date: July 6, 1994
IMDb rating: 8,8
Where to see: MEGOGO
Another iconic film from ’94 from the «for all time» category. The plot of «Forrest Gump» is based on the novel of the same name by American writer Winston Groom, which was published in 1986.
Robert Zemeckis’s film has all the features of a great movie. Fingers crossed: a huge success at the box office (the film took second place in the list of the highest-grossing projects of the year, behind only «The Lion King»), critical acclaim, 38 awards of various calibers, including 6 «Oscars», including Best Picture, and an honorable 11th place in the IMDb top list. It seems that the important milestones of American history in the second half of the 20th century have never been so fascinating, and not only for Americans themselves.
It is known that Zemeckis, Tom Hanks, and screenwriter Eric Roth were planning a sequel, but after the September 11 attacks, they decided that such an uplifting movie would be inappropriate following a terrible national tragedy. However, the reunion of this great team is yet to happen, and very soon — in the drama «Here», which is a film adaptation of the graphic novel of the same name by Richard McGuire and is due to be released in Ukraine in December.
Release date: July 12, 1994
IMDb rating: 7,3
Where to see: MEGOGO
After the extremely fruitful and successful collaboration between Arnold Schwarzenegger and James Cameron in the «Terminator» dilogy, the two continued their cooperation by working on a remake of the French comedy action film «La Totale!» (1991). Here, Arnie plays a government secret agent who tries to combine espionage activities with the life of a model family man.
Today, stories based on this trope appear on screens with enviable regularity and even Schwartz himself did not disdain to enter the same river again in last year’s «Fubar». But the problem with these projects is that they were not directed by James Cameron. His «True Lies», despite its frank simplicity of concept and genre unpretentiousness, is first-rate entertainment with a witty sense of humor. As we can see, in our time, even such a rather modest ambition turns out to be something unattainable for filmmakers.
And how can we not mention the incendiary lap dance scene performed by Jamie Lee Curtis, who received a «Golden Globe» for this role, as well as the appearance of a very young Eliza Dushku in the movie. Later, James Cameron planned to make a sequel, but the September 11 attacks put an end to this idea, because frivolity and terrorism could no longer be side by side.
Release date: July 28, 1994
IMDb rating: 6,9
Where to see: MEGOGO
If a dark movie comic has found a place on our list, it would be an injustice not to mention a fun movie adaptation of a cartoon. The plot of «The Mask» is based on the comic book series of the same name by Mike Richardson from Dark Horse. But when you watch a Chuck Russell comedy, you think about any superhero affiliation last. The film is about a bank teller Stanley Ipkiss and the god mask he found Loki works well in the declared comedy genre, primarily due to the outstanding talent of Jim Carrey.
For the latter, 1994 turned out to be a surprisingly fruitful year, with «The Mask» appearing on the screen «Ace Ventura: Pet Detective» and «Dumb and Dumber», which were expectedly not successful with critics, but were loved by the audience. At the same time, Carrey cemented his status as a comedy star. It was also the venue for the striking debut of young Cameron Diaz, who is expected to return to the screen after a more than 10-year break early next year in the comedy action film «Back in Action».
«The Mask» was critically and commercially successful, and it’s hard to believe today, but at the time it was one of the highest-grossing comic book adaptations (with a budget of $23 million, it grossed $351 million, which is $60 million less than Tim Burton’s «Batman»). The film was nominated for a «Oscar» for visual effects, and Jim Carrey received a nomination for a «Golden Globe» for the first time and not the last time for his work. The clumsy sequel «Son of the Mask», without the main stars in the cast, was released in 2005 and became a disgraceful failure.
Release date: September 14, 1994
IMDb rating: 8,5
The story of a strange but touching friendship between a professional killer and a 12-year-old girl named Matilda rightly evoked a sincere response from the audience. Today, «Léon» can undoubtedly be called one of the best films in Luc Besson’s prolific screenwriting and directing career, and in Jean Reno’s acting career.
At the same time, the film was made in the 90s, just when Besson was in his best form and was releasing one great movie after another — before «Léon» was «Nikita», and after — «The Fifth Element» (unfortunately, «Joan of Arc» was already a failure in 1999). Of course, a large part of the charm of this story was added by the lead actors — Jean Reno, Gary Oldman, and especially the debutante Natalie Portman, who, despite her young age and lack of experience, gave a truly stunning performance.
Not so long ago, Portman herself confessed, that the «film has certain, to put it mildly, uncomfortable aspects of the» (probably referring to the sexualization of the heroine and the audience’s reaction when, for example, one of the fan letters referred to a fantasy of raping an underage girl). But be that as it may, it was this project that launched the actress’s fantastic career, and various negative aspects cannot prevent viewers from around the world from still admiring this film.
Release date: September 23, 1994
IMDb rating: 9,3
Where to see: MEGOGO
Starting in 2008 «The Shawshank Redemption», based on Stephen King’s novel «Rita Hayworth and the Shawshank Redemption» (1982), heads the list of the 250 best films according to IMDb, overtaking the long-term leader — «The Godfather» by Francis Ford Coppola. This shows the great love of the audience for Frank Darabont’s film, which has been preserved to this day. Even the King of Horror himself confessed that this movie is one of only two of his favorite movie adaptations (the other being «Stay With Me», which we wrote in one of the articles).
It’s hard to believe today, but in the year of its release, «The Shawshank Redemption» failed at the box office (which was also due to high competition), but the re-release in 1995 corrected this historical injustice. The film also received 7 nominations for «Oscar» and 2 — for «Golden Globe», though it did not win any of them.
«I can’t imagine a greater honor than to consider “The Shawshank Redemption” a part of our country’s cinematic heritage» — this is how Frank Darabont commented on the film’s preservation in the US National Film Registry for «cultural, historical or aesthetic significance». The director would go on to successfully adapt King’s works twice more — «The Green Mile» in ’99 and «The Mist» in 2007.
Release date: October 14, 1994
IMDb rating: 8,9
Where to see: MEGOGO
In the 90s, Quentin Tarantino, probably the most prominent adherent of postmodern cinema of our time, burst into the world of cinema with great speed and confidence. First there was the sensational «Mad Dogs», and then the cult «Pulp Fiction», which triumphed at the Cannes Film Festival and won its main award. There were also nominations for «Oscar», «Golden Globe» and other prestigious awards. There were rave reviews from film critics and audience love. Everything was in place for us to call this movie a masterpiece of world cinema today.
Despite a ridiculously low budget of $8 million by Hollywood standards, the filmmakers managed to assemble a truly stellar cast — John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman, Ving Rhames, Bruce Willis, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, Christopher Walken and others. Together, they helped realize a truly outstanding, multifaceted script, consisting of three interconnected novels with a non-linear narrative structure. And it is absolutely impossible to take your eyes off these brilliantly acted and filmed stories.
Release date: October 19, 1994
IMDb rating: 7,7
Where to see: MEGOGO
If you think that Tarantino was the undisputed quintessence of independent cinema in the US at the time, what about Kevin Smith’s feature debut? His experimental, black-and-white and essentially plotless «Clerks» cost a tiny $27.5 thousand, which Smith literally scraped together by himself. This did not prevent the film from becoming a cult classic and launching the View Askewniverse before all these Marvel or MonsterVerse.
An avid pop culture geek, Smith, who was not afraid to name his own daughter Harley Quinn, filled his story of «passion» in and around the supermarket with sharp and inventive dialogue and witty, wry humor. The protagonists Dante Hicks and Randall Graves could talk about everything and anything— from relationships with girls and semen cleaners in porn booths to battles in «Star Wars». Who would have thought that the ordinary life of average idlers and stomping around behind the counter could be so funny?
And the cherry on the cake and the hallmark of the entire universe are two slackers and weed dealers, Jay and Silent Bob, the only characters to appear in all View Askewniverse films.
We also draw attention to the following films from 1994: