Club 50 Wrap-Up: 1987

Years Completed:
1987 | 1988 | 1989 | 1995 | 1996 | 1998 | 1999 | 2001 
2002 | 2003 | 2005 | 2007 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013
 
Alas, it's time to go where it all begins, 1987. The year I was born and the year I decided to start this Club 50 list. It's as good a place as any. It's not like I could've started much earlier. BoxofficeMojo only has numbers going back to 1980, a year I have no connection to. It's Isthar* or bust as far as I'm concerned.

*Isthar won the box office the weekend I was born. Sadly, it didn't make the top 50 that year (#73) and I have yet to see it.

The list for 1987 is unrecognizable by today's standards. The studios were still unlocking the potential on the PG-13 rating, so a whopping 7 movies in the top 10 carried R ratings (the last time there were even three R-rated movies in the top ten was 2003). Comedies ruled the box office with 5 of the top 10  (more depending on what you call Good Morning Vietnam and Lethal Weapon).

I don't know how it stacks up against other years, but the latter part of the top 50 this year has surprising resiliency. The Princess Bride (41) is probably the most beloved movie that year. Others like Space Balls, The Lost Boys, Wall Street, The Running Man, and Adventures in Babysitting have loyal, sometimes cult, followings. Compared to 1988 at least, that a lot. That's not to say that there isn't a fair share of Black Widow-s and Like Father, Like Son-s down there too.

1987 was an average year for sequels with a total of 6, although you could throw the two Disney reissues (Snow White, Cinderella) into that. 13 of the movies have had sequels since then, which is also pretty standard.

The Oscar movies did quite well. Four of the five nominees made the top 50, Fatal Attraction and Moonstruck among the top five grossers of the year, and The Last Emperor (25) and Broadcast News (18) safely make the cut. Only Hope and Glory (88) came nowhere close.

To wind down each year as I complete them, I'm going to hand out a few superlatives or anecdotal awards to highlight some of the highs and lows of the year's top 50 box office earners.

First Seen: Space Balls

Most years, I have an educated guess if not absolute records. This year, it more of a shot in the dark. There's no Disney movie to go by. There's a strong chance the first movie was Ernest Goes to Camp on while I was at daycare or something. Space Balls is the first one that I remember definitely seeing. It probably wouldn't've been until at least 1997 though, making this the longest amount of time it took me to see a movie from a Club 50 year.

Last Seen: Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol

For a while, I held off of the whole franchise because I thought I'd be watching the first three in order to get to this, the only one on the Club 50 list. After I watched the original though, I jumped ahead. There's no way I'm watching four of those movies.

Happiest Surprise: The Running Man

There's a lot of options for this, which makes 1987 a good year. I love being surprised. Roxanne certainly cemented my love of Steve Martin. Can't Buy Me Love is so damn endearing. I'm picking The Running Man though because I enjoyed the hell out of it. It's all the things I enjoy about Arnold Schwarzenegger movies: Action, dumb jokes, and at least a touch of SciFi.

Biggest Disappointment: Broadcast News

This movie was built up for so long and, no, I just don't get the big deal. The same goes for Moonstruck, but especially for Broadcast News. I didn't dislike it. It gets the highest of praise though, and I don't see where that's coming from.

Looked Better Then: Lethal Weapon

It's one of the great buddy cop movies. I'm chalking this superlative up to everything looking little worse with Mel Gibson these days.

Looks Better Now: The Princess Bride

It's rightly regarded as a classic these days. It's hard to believe that it made less than Like Father, Like Son or Summer School.

Favorite: The Princess Bride

This is one of the most quotable movies ever made. The cast is wonderful and eclectic. I actually wouldn't know what to do if I met a person who dislikes this movie. I pray that I'll never have to meet that person.

2nd Favorite: Good Morning Vietnam

I'll admit that this gets bonus points because I get teary-eyed just thinking about Robin Williams. This might be the best mix of Robin Williams: great actor and Robin Williams: one of the funniest men on the planet.

3rd Favorite: The Running Man

Maybe if Network had explosions I'd like it too.

Honorable Mention:

Roxanne

Steve Martin is a national treasure.

Can't Buy Me Love

Maybe I'm more of a Patrick Dempsey fan than I thought. I can't say I remember seeing Amanda Peterson in anything else, but for this movie, she was perfect.

Lethal Weapon

If all this movie had to offer was "I'm getting to old for this shit" it would still have a place in the honorable mention.

Least Favorite: Nuts

Again? Another Barbara Streisand movie bottoming out a year? For the record, I liked The Guilt Trip. She's enjoyable in the Meet the Parents sequels. She's just also in a lot of movies, specifically from this late 80s/early 90s period, that I really don't enjoy.

Movie Reaction: Captain America: Civil War

Formula: Captain America: The Winter Soldier + The Avengers - The Incredible Hulk - Thor

The Marvel movies are popcorn movies that haven't given up on the dream of being more than popcorn movies.

That was my first thought coming out of Civil War. It's not a criticism as much as it's an observation. The Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) began in 2008 with Iron Man. That was the same year The Dark Knight came out and it was clear how Marvel was differentiating itself. Marvel had jokes. They also didn't play for endings. There's always going to be a next part. No story is done. Those things don't make for bad movies, but it caps their potential.

Civil War is one of the best movies to come out of the MCU if not the best (I'll need some distance before finalizing any rankings). It is a deliriously fun movie and damn near the Platonic ideal of what Marvel have been trying to do. It incrementally expands the universe with the introduction of Black Panther (done smoothly and efficiently) and the new Spider-Man (more efficient, less smooth), then brings in an army of already well-established characters. The much-advertised airport fight is a delight. Each character has something to do. The fight plays to everyone's strength, mixes the matchups repeatedly without getting confusing to follow, and injects a ton a humor. That part in particular is worth the price of the ticket. There's several other battles which the Russo brothers (their second time directing a Captain America movie) handle as well as anyone. As I said earlier, the popcorn part is done right.

There's a lot of characters to juggle. Civil War does a better job of that than Age of Ultron but with even more characters. It helps that Civil War is actually about something other than moving chess pieces, which what hurt Age of Ultron. There's the headlining feud between Cap. (Chris Evans) and Iron Man (Robert Downey Jr.). Black Widow (Scarlett Johansson) is torn between both sides. The Black Panther (Chadwick Boseman) is trying to find and kill the Winter Soldier (Sebastian Stan). Hawkeye (Jeremy Renner) is in "retirement". Scarlet Witch (Elizabeth Olsen) is dealing with the public's fear of her powers. Vision (Paul Bettany) is, I guess, playing Data from Star Trek: The Next Generation. Falcon (Anthony Mackie) and War Machine (Don Cheadle) being the good sidekicks they are, back who you would expect. Falcon and the Winter Soldier have a cute feud throughout the movie that's worth mentioning. I'll fully admit that Ant-Man (Paul Rudd) and Spider-Man (Tom Holland) are there completely to increase the numbers. And that's not even mentioning the non-heroes like Sharon Carter (Emily VanCamp - de facto Cap. love interest), Zemo (Daniel Bruhl - rather modest central villain), Crossbones (Frank Grillo - back as the opening villain yet again), Aunt May (Marisa Tomei - making me very excited to see more of her in the upcoming Spider-Man movie), and many others. This is an ensemble movie. If you go in expecting a great deal of character depth and story-arching for everyone, I'm not sure what movie you think you are seeing. Given the time and depth of the roster, Civil War is an impressive management of talent and resources.

The story of the movie is actually pretty simple. After an accident caused by the new Avengers on a mission, world leaders decide that the Avengers should have some oversight (i.e. let the world decide when they need the Avengers to help). Tony Stark/Iron Man likes the idea. Steve Rogers/Captain America doesn't. The heroes start taking sides. A terrorist attack and a manhunt for Cap's old pal Bucky/The Winter Soldiers escalates things until the two sides are brought into direct conflict. There's other nuances to it, but that's about it. Both sides of the argument are well defended and you can see why everyone lands on their conclusion or alliance. I don't think it's much of a spoiler to say that there isn't time for a real villain in the movie. Having see how Doomsday was thrown into Batman vs. Superman a month ago, I'm convinced that that was a smart movie to not use Bruhl for too much.

The only drawback to this movie (other than a couple clunky bits of plotting like Spider-Man's introduction, Ant-Man's almost arbitrary inclusion, and the "romance" between Steve and Sharon), is that it can't commit to being as deep as it wants. The topics Civil War deals with have some weight to them, and they are things that go all the way back to the first Iron Man movie. Despite all the good our heroes are doing, innocent people are getting hurt. If you played a Sokovia drinking game watching this movie, you'd be drunk in an hour. And, remember, Ultron is Tony Stark's fault. That blood is on his hands. The same goes for all of the Avengers though. I respect that Marvel wants to address all this. But Civil War inevitably turns into a superhero movie and undoes many of the concerns. If they're afraid of lives lost, why are they also afraid of livelihoods lost? The big airport fight in Berlin caused countless dollars in damage, for instance. And that's just one example. Now, I'm not saying I want to see the version of this that does worry about all that. But, that's the kind of thing I mean when I say that there's a ceiling for how good the Marvel movies can be. Any attempts to add real-world stakes inevitably get nerfed because this is entertainment first.

Civil War is a satisfying conclusion to the Captain America Trilogy* while also serving as an excellent start to Marvel's Phase Three. It isn't a flawless film, but it has an excellent balance of action and comic relief, with just the right amount of stakes to move it forward. If you've ever enjoyed a Marvel movie, you're certain to enjoy this one too. In many ways, it's the Avengers sequel we wish we got the first time.

*I don't know if Marvel's going to get enough credit for this. Wrapped into a larger universe with characters shared between several movies, Captain America managed to get a legit trilogy that feels of a piece without shorting the other movies in the universe. While Marvel will never make a Dark Knight, it's pretty incredible how intricately they've tied this many movies without losing broad appeal.

Verdict (?): Strongly Recommend

Delayed Reaction: Think Like a Man Too

The Pitch: We still like this cast, but there's no actual idea for another movie. Uhhh, Vegas.

How I Came Into It: The first movie was enjoyable enough. It hit right before Kevin Hart was given free reign to take over any movie he's in and had a lot of the standard "Battle of the Sexes" fun, like a 10 years later Two Can Play that Game. I let the goodwill carry me into this and ignored any worries.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) I really do like this cast. Michael Ealy, Meagan Good, Regina Hall, Taraji P. Henson, Romany Malco, Gabrielle Union, Wendi McLendon-Covey, and Kevin Hart are all people I've liked in one thing or another. They have an easy chemistry and the plot isn't demanding.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: Without the book for guidance, there just wasn't much to this. It fails on the key question I ask about any comedy: does it make me laugh? Nothing zigged when I expected it to zag. It was entirely predictable, which was disappointing.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

Delayed Reaction: The Jungle Book (1994)

The Pitch: Gee, we have all these trained animals lying around...when was the last time we made a Jungle Book movie?

How I Came Into It: After making the disastrous mistake the first time I tried to watch this, I was soured on the whole idea. It's odd that a Disney movie that's barely 20 years old is this hard to find. Given the material, I was worried that it would be tied to issues of "Now that we look back on it, half the characters are actually incredibly racist".

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) It's funny how much of this matches up with the Pirates of the Caribbean structure. Mowgli is Will. 1994 Lena Heady looks a lot like 2003 Keira Knightley. Cary Elwes' William Boone is totally Jack Davenport's Norrington with a little Barbosa thrown in. I enjoyed the overlap of those dynamics a lot. Thanks to seeing that awful 1997 movie, just about everything about this looked better. The trained animals were impressive. The acting was competent. The action was well staged. It came away looking very good.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: It's not very true to the story it gets its name from. I don't know how much I can knock it for that, given that I went in only expecting the loosest of ties anyway.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend

Delayed Reaction: Other People's Money

The Pitch: Let's make Wall Street again, but without a villain.

How I Came Into It: I didn't know very much about this other than it was quite difficult to find. For the most part, it's hard to be disappointed by a Danny DeVito movie, so that was encouraging.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) The end of the movie is completely what sold me on it. Until the shareholders meeting, this was pretty pedestrian. Then Gregory Peck and Danny DeVito gave their speeches.  That won me over. Both are given reasoned arguments and nothing is done at the end to make DeVito evil or desiring redemption. He's just going to keep on being who he is, even though he recognizes that not everyone is going to be pleased by his actions.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: Until the shareholders meeting, there's not much to this. I don't buy DeVito and Penelope Ann Miller as a couple at all. That's wish fulfillment, not casting. And, this might just be an issue with my copy of the movie, but why did all of Miller's early scenes sound like she was doing bad ADR for every line?

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend

May Movie Preview

It's looking like a big May. Two major marvel movies. A big time comedy sequel. Animated features, adult dramas, throwback comedies. This month has got it all. I wouldn't be surprised if it sets a new May record.

2016
Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr   
2015

Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | June | Jul | Aug | Sept | Oct | Nov | Dec 

2014

Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec

2013

Mar |  Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec

5/6

Captain America: Civil War
Working for It: My friends, this is the big one. Captain America vs. Iron Man. It's going to have more heroes than either Avengers movie. The Russo brothers are directing again (I still don't know how they went from Community episodes to Captain America movies. They killed it in Winter Soldier). Basically every superhero in the MCU will be featured and Civil War is already getting some of the strongest reviews of any Marvel movie.
Working Against It: ...uhhh...
Verdict: I don't miss event movies of this magnitude.

A Bigger Splash [Limit]
Working for It: Tilda Swinton plays David Bowie but with the level of fame of Beyonce. She and her paramour (?) get a visit from an old friend (Ralph Fiennes) and his daughter (Dakota Johnson). I'm not really sure what happens. The trailer is pretty confusing. I'm guessing there's some sort of an existential crisis. Who knows?
Working Against It: I really have no idea what this movie is actually about. I don't know the director or writers. None of the actors are the kind that will get me in a theater by themselves.
Verdict: Maybe I'll look for it one day, but certainly not in theaters.

Elstree 1976 [Limit]
Working for It: With all the Star Wars craziness in pop culture right now, I'm certainly intrigued by a documentary about the effects of the first movies on the lives of several actors with smaller roles.
Working Against It: Or maybe there's too much Star Wars all around already.
Verdict: The decision will be made for me. It's not coming to a theater near me even if I was looking to see it.

5/13

The Darkness
Working for It: Another Blumhouse horror movie. This one is shot traditionally, about a boy who is cursed by some Native American demons. This has an odd collection of actors in it, many of whom aren't featured in the trailer. People like Kevin Bacon, Matt Walsh, Jennifer Morrison, Ming-Na Wen, Paul Reiser, and Tara Lynne Barr.
Working Against It: I'm not seeing a hook, and without an interesting hook, I'm not a big fan of this type of scary movie.
Verdict: I'll need to hear more about it actually being scary first.

Money Monster
Working for It: George Clooney plays a Jim Cramer type who gets held up at gunpoint by a man who lost all his money on a failed investment. Julia Roberts is Clooney's producer. Jack O'Connell (Unbroken) is the hostage taker. There's a bunch of other people you'll recognize and not be able to name. It's directed by Jodie Foster who has proven to be a skilled director. This looks like a vintage The Negotiator-type adult thriller that you don't see much anymore.
Working Against It: I'm still looking for someone to come up with a more interesting way to say "banks/wall street/corporations are evil". Foster has mostly cut her teeth directing on TV (Orange is the New Black, House of Cards). The last movie she directed was the decent, little-seen The Beaver in 2011. While I like the idea of giving a movie like this summer real estate rather than placing it in an October release date for Oscar consideration, I do wonder what to expect. Was it moved to May so if it fails they could blame Captain America or because it's an event movie?
Verdict: Clooney gets me to a theater. The last movie of his I didn't see in theaters was 2010's The American (It's true: I, II, III, IV, V*). 

*I saw The Descendants but I was in between Movie Reactions at the time).

High-Rise [Limit]
Working for It: Tom Hiddleston stars in "Snowpiercer on a Tower". The collection of actors (Hiddleston, Jeremy Irons, Elisabeth Moss, Sienna Miller, Luke Evans,...) gets my attention.
Working Against It: I don't know the director or writer. It doesn't look clever enough to lack as much subtlety as the trailer indicates.
Verdict: There's far too much potential for this to be tedious to risk seeing it in a theater (although I doubt it would ever reach a theater near me).

The Lobster [Limit]
Working for It: Collin Farrell goes to a hotel where he either has to find a romantic partner or be turned into an animal. It has a very European cast including Rachel Weisz, Lea Seydoux, Ben Whishaw (all seen at one time or another in a Bond movie), and John C. Reilly (who seems like the kind of actor who would show up at a casting call for the movie unannounced then turn out to be perfect for the role). It's looks sweet and depressing and romantic and I can't believe that Spike Jonze and Charlie Kaufman have nothing to do with this.
Working Against It: I don't know the director at all. This looks like a movie I'm supposed to like just as much as it looks like a movie I'd actually like. I don't know what the overlap of that Venn diagram will be.
Verdict: After Anomalisa, I'm very cautious about what emotionally poignant movies I seek out in theaters. This looks like a lock for my Netflix queue though.

Love & Friendship [Limit]
Working for It: Kate Beckinsale is a woman in Victorian times trying to be a matchmaker for her daughter (Emma Greenwell, from Shameless). It's based on a Jane Austen story and written/directed by Whit Stillman. I've heard wonderful things about Stillmans last movie, Damsels in Distress. This movies looks lively and witty.
Working Against It: I'm only in the mood for Victorian era anything occasionally. I'll probably need to see Damsels in Distress first because I like Greta Gerwig more than anyone in this movie.
Verdict: The best way I can put it is if I haven't seen Far From The Maddening Crowd yet, the odds for seeing this are low.

Search Party [Limit]
Working for It: Thomas Middleditch is trapped in Mexico after his friends (TJ Miller and Adam Pally) ruined his wedding. Also featuring Alison Brie, Krysten Ritter, Jason Mantzoukas, Jon Glaser, Lance Reddick, J.B. Smooth, Shannon Woodward, and Rosa Salazar. You may not know all of those names, but I do and I like them all. I think this almost came out at some point last year and got delayed.
Working Against It: These "TV All-Stars" movies (as I like to call them) are rarely exceptional and at worst, watchable. The writers/director are lightly credentialed.
Verdict: I will absolutely watch this movie, I just don't know when and there will be no urgency to see it.

5/20

The Angry Birds Movie
Working for It: Jesus, if you need more than the title, I can't help you.
Working Against It: I never played the game. Sony is far from my favorite animation studio. Even a thoroughly likable voice cast including Peter Dinklage, Jason Sudeikis, Keegan-Michael Key, Kate McKinnin, Maya Rudolphm and Bill Hader - to name very few -isn't enough to overcome the greater question: Why?
Verdict: In a moment, you'll see why there's no room in my life for this movie.

Neighbors 2: Sorority Rising
Working for It: Neighbors is one of my favorite comedies of the last few years with one of my favorite casts already. Then they go and add Chloe Grace Moretz (and Selena Gomez and Kierset Clemons) to the sequel. Forget Civil War. Neighbors 2 is the movie I'm most looking forward to this May and maybe Summer 2016 as a whole.
Working Against It: Even if they lost Seth Rogen and Rose Byrne and Zac Efron and director Nicolas Stoller I'd probably still see this and be looking forward to it.
Verdict: Can I buy my ticket yet?

The Nice Guys
Working for It: A private eye (Ryan Gosling) and a collections bruiser (Russell Crowe) get wrapped up in a criminal conspiracy in 1970s Los Angeles. Director/co-writer Shane Black is a master of the buddy action-comedy (Lethal Weapon 1-4, The Last Boy Scout, The Long Kiss Goodnight, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang). This looks like an Inherent Vice that I'm smart enough to follow.
Working Against It: Shane Black took a lot of heat for Iron Man 3. Most of the issues in that movie weren't his fault though.
Verdict: I intend to make this a 2-movie weekend, but if one must be cut, it'll be this.

Maggie's Plan [Limit]
Working for It: Greta Gerwig tries to give her boyfriend back to his ex-wife. The premise sounds wickedly fresh and Gerwig is the right lead to pull it off. Throw in Julianne Moore and Ethan Hawke as the couple she broke up as well as Bill Hader as Gerwig's friend and I'm intetested.
Working Against It: I haven't seen anything else of writer/director Rebecca Miller's and a lot of this movie will come down to the execution of the story. That leaves a lot of question marks.
Verdict: I'll be looking for it but not in theaters.

5/27

Alice Through the Looking Glass
Working for It: Hey, remember when Alice in Wonderland made more money than Iron Man, Twilight, Harry Potter, and Shrek in 2010? Well, Disney is going to see how much of that had to do with an Avatar-induced 3-D craze. Mia Wasikowska, Johnny Depp, and, really, everyone not named Tim Burton are back for pretty much the same movie. That's a strong cast and a lot of interesting visuals.
Working Against It: I kind of thought Disney would be smart enough to realize that the first movie was a fluke. It massively benefited from Avatar creating a demand for 3-D and Johnny Depp wasn't coming off a string of failures like Dark Shadows, The Lone Ranger, Transcendence, and Mortdecai. Wasikowska has been taking the indie route too much to have built a following. Even though creatively, the lack of Tim Burton probably doesn't mean much, it can't help the brand that he didn't return to direct.
Verdict: I just don't see it happening. Not with a viable alternative that weekend.

X-Men: Apocalypse
Working for It: The First Class group has to battle an ancient evil, played by Oscar Isaac, and his henchmen, including Olivia Munn. It looks like Jennifer Lawrence is pretty much taking the Wolverine role in X-2. They're adding youngsters like Sophie Turner, Alexandra Shipp, Kodi Smit-McPhee, Lana Condor, and Tye Sheridan and returning the likes of James McAvoy, Michael Fassbender, Rose Byrne, Nocholas Hoult, and Evan Peters. And, Hugh Jackman alert! It's interesting to see how Fox is trying to keep pace with the MCU. This looks like a fantastic effort.
Working Against It: More isn't always better and X-Men hasn't been the most consistent franchise.
Verdict: I can't imagine missing this.

Delayed Reaction: Police Academy 4: Citizens on Patrol

The Pitch: We're going to make another one of these and this time, it's going to have exact same premise as the original.

How I Came Into It: This is the only movie on my list from this series. For a while, the plan was to watch all of the movies in order to keep a sense of continuity. Then I saw the first and decided it was better to treat this like the Dirty Harry movies, seeing the first for an introduction and skipping to the one that was actually on the list. I didn't expect to lose anything.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) According to Wikipedia, Tony Hawk was David Spade's stunt double for the skateboarding scenes. That got me thinking about what it would take to confuse those two on the street. They aren't dissimilar looking. Spade is aggressively average height and Hawk is well over 6 feet tall. I don't know. I needed some thought to distract me.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: Apparently, this has a 0% on Rotten Tomatoes, and, while I know that's not completely reliable coming from pre-internet days (much like how Shoot to Kill has a perfect 100%), I think that each percent was earned in this case. It was pretty funny how completely disinterested Steve Guttenberg was. I feel like every single returning cast member was there because they knew it was too easy a paycheck to miss out on. I was physically uncomfortable by how twitchy Bobcat Goldthwait was.

Verdict (?): Strongly Don't Recommend

Club 50 Wrap-Up: 1996

Years Completed:
1988 | 1989 | 1995 | 1996 | 1998 | 1999 | 2001 | 2002 
2003 | 2005 | 2007 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013
 
The further along I get in the latter stages of my Club 50 list, the smaller the shifts in the box office look. Going from 1988 to 2010, It's easy to see how PG-13 franchises have overtaken and sequels are not just popular, but a necessity. It's getting more difficult to see changes from year to year. I feel increasingly like a broken record after each one of these.

1996 is a good example. If I was to label the mid-90s box office, the phrase I'd use is "More of the same without being the same". 1996 only had two sequels. That's the low point of any year I've done yet. And it's not like the sequels were top heavy. Homeward Bound II: Lost in San Francisco barely made the top 50. The other sequel, Star Trek: First Contact, could almost be seen as a reboot (with Generations as a bridge) instead.

"More of the same" refers to the fact that without sequels, a lot of the year's offerings were terribly familiar. Black Sheep is essentially the sequel to Tommy Boy. Happy Gilmore is a spiritual successor of Billy Madison. Bevis and Butthead Do America was pulled from TV. 101 Dalmatians was a live action remake of the studio's own animated classic. Space Jam is a Looney Tunes movie. Treasure Island was the second Muppets book adaptation. Mission Impossible is a classic TV show. That low sequel count is deceptive.

It was a pretty standard year regarding for the Oscars. Only three of the five best picture nominees made the top 50: Jerry Maguire (4), The English Patient (19), and Shine (41). Somehow, Fargo (67) didn't make it, which seems unfathomable now. Secrets & Lies (108) might be the lowest placing Oscar nominee this side of The Hurt Locker.

To wind down each year as I complete them, I'm going to hand out a few superlatives or anecdotal awards to highlight some of the highs and lows of the year's top 50 box office earners.

First Seen: The Hunchback of Notre Dame

I'm pretty sure I saw this in theaters. If that's true, I can't think of something I would've seen before it.

Last Seen: One Fine Day

I think part of me, deep down, just didn't want to see George Clooney as a RomCom star, because I would want him to be in more of them.

Happiest Surprise: The Long Kiss Goodnight

I love a year with a lot of options for this category. I loved the shifting narratives of Courage Under Fire and The Truth About Cats & Dogs turned out to be just plain delightful. I have to go with The Long Kiss Goodnight though. I had no idea what this movie was going in, and it turned out to be a lot of fun. Fun is exactly what this movie needed to be. I'm glad it didn't aim for more than that.

Biggest Disappointment: Michael

The blame here lands squarely on TBS. When I was 10, every other "Dinner and a Movie" was for Michael. That "I'm not that kind of angel" line, they loved it. When I finally got to that scene within the greater context of the movie, it was like I was solving an ancient puzzle from my youth. Sadly, it's not that great of a movie, or at least not a memorable one.

Looked Better Then: Jack

I'm tempted to go with The English Patient since it's best known either for being a Seinfeld joke or as one of the great "Oscar-bait" Best Picture winners. Instead, I'm picking Jack. You probably forgot about Jack. Remember, Robin Williams is a kid in an adult's body. There's just a lot of things about that movie that aren't looking great now. Williams plays a character who is going to die too young. Bill Cosby being in it isn't helping matters. Circa 2006, Jennifer Lopez would also hurt it. I think she's come out of Bennifer by now. Those first two things though.

Looks Better Now: Mission: Impossible

Perhaps this should be called "Looks Even Better Now" because, only aliens and tornadoes did better that year (Oh, maybe I should've used Twister for my Looked Better Then). This franchise is still going and bigger than ever now, rather improbably.

Favorite: Independence Day

This is Rolland Emmerich blowing things up at its best. Will Smith brings the charisma. Bill Pullman brings the gravitas. Jeff Goblum, Randy Quaid, and Judd Hirsch bring the laughs. This was an event movie like few I've ever seen.

2nd Favorite: Happy Gilmore

I was the perfect demographic for when this came out. I was about to say this was made at the height of the Happy Madison brand, then I remembered that it's part of the name. It preceded the company. Comedically, Adam Sandler has never been better, entirely because he was still so raw.

3rd Favorite: Star Trek: First Contact

This is probably the best blend of Star Trek and Hollywood movie for the series since Wrath of Khan.

Honorable Mention:

The Long Kiss Goodnight

Gena Davis and Sammuel L. Jackson are great together in this.

The Cable Guy

In terms of his comedies, still my favorite Jim Carrey role. It has forever ruined my expectations at Medieval Times.

The Truth About Cats & Dogs

I wish I could explain what I liked so much about this.

Jerry Maguire

When Cameron Crowe gets it right, he gets it very right.

Least Favorite: The Mirror Has Two Faces

My dislike of Barbara Streisand runs deep, I guess. And keep in mind, I never set out to dislike her movies. I'm pretty good at going in with an open mind. By the end of these movies, I plain don't like them. This one even manages to overcome my love of Jeff Bridges.

Movie Reaction: Keanu

Formula: Pineapple Express + That Darn Cat

Damn, that cat is adorable.

If nothing else, that's what I took away from Keanu, the new buddy comedy from the Key and Peele comedy duo. And it sure feels like an extended Key & Peele sketch, written by Jordan Peele and fellow Key & Peele writer Alex Rubens, also directed by Key & Peele director Peter Anencio. Needless to say, if you enjoy Key & Peele, you'll enjoy Keanu.

The premise of the movie is simple enough. Rell (Peele) is depressed over a bad breakup. His cousin, Clarence (Key) is trying to cheer him up. Rell finds an adorable kitten he decides to keep and name Keanu. One day, Rell's house is broken into and Keanu is taken by a local gang leader. So, Rell and Clarence infiltrate the Los Angeles criminal underworld in order to get Keanu back.

The exact beats of the story aren't all that original or surprising. This is a comedy and the jokes carry the movie. Key and Peele are a fantastic comedy duo. It's rare that you get two performers as familiar with working together as these two and it shows. They know exactly how to set each other up and to punctuate the other's jokes. Comedians simply don't work together this much and this closely, which makes them special. Their perspective is fairly unique too. They're black nerds, basically. The soundtrack is all hip-hop, but there's still room for endless George Michael callbacks. The N-word is used a lot, but that also never look comfortable saying it. I think that sums up the tone. Like their show, the jokes in Keanu are hit or miss with a lot more hits than misses. I had numerous belly laughs and even the worst jokes were at least amusing. The story doesn't get in the way of the comedy, which is all I can ask for in something like this.

But, really, what we all want to talk about is the cat. That thing is cute. A lot of that must've been computerized, in which they did a great job. It looks quite believable. I was surprised by that. While Keanu gets the name in the movie, he's really not in that much of the film. His abduction is what sets the movie off, but this is much more the story of two men infiltrating a gang than it is an odyssey to reunite a man and his pet.

I really enjoyed Keanu for what it was. It is very funny, filled with as many big slapstick moments as throwaway zingers. Key and Peele play off one another so well and naturally. There's a cute cat too. What more do you need? The only downside I can find is that the story is completely insignificant and at times it is written more like a sketch show than a feature. So funny though.

Verdict (?): Weakly Recommend

Delayed Reaction: The Doctor

The Pitch: What happens when the doctor becomes the patient?

How I Came Into It: Well, the poster art I found for it didn't tell me much other than it was going to be about William Hurt having a peaceful smile and wearing all white. That doesn't sound like much of a movie.

Why I Saw It: (Club 50) William Hurt is fine and all, but it's lovely seeing a loose Mandy Patinkin. The last things I've seen him in were Homeland, where's he's so sombre and Alien Nation, where he's not supposed to emote. It was making me forget that this is Inigo Montoya and the fun involved with that. The rest of the movie is fine and well acted and all, but Patinkin is the story.

Why I Wish I Hadn't: After the first cough, I could've mapped out every beat of the story. It was all handled well but it was predictable as hell.

Verdict (?): Weakly Don't Recommend