10. A LEAGUE OF THEIR OWN

Throughout the 1980’s, baseball movies reached a new pinnacle, thanks to films like Eight Men Out, The Natural, Bull Durham and Field of Dreams.  And, thanks to Penny Marshall’s funny and touching new film, the hit streak has been extended into the nineties. 

Geena Davis, who plays the all-star catcher for the Rockford Peaches, may just be the actress that Hollywood needs to give female-driven films the attention that they deserve.  Her follow up to Thelma & Louise, which was easily one of the best films of 1991, is much smarter than it appears at its surface.  It’s a film that questions gender roles and inspires its viewers to follow their dreams.  Apart from that, it’s a very entertaining film that might even make those who believe there’s no crying in baseball shed a few tears.

9. RESERVOIR DOGS

With its course language and bloody violence, Quentin Tarantino’s debut film, Reservoir Dogs, is certainly not for everyone, but viewers who can appreciate its smart dialogue, radiant energy and fresh style are in for a real treat.    Filled with an all-star cast, each assigned their own color, and directed with an abundance of style and skill, Tarantino has made the best debut of the year – and one of the finest in recent memories.

8. THE CRYING GAME

Sure, people can’t stop talking about the surprise twist of The Crying Game, but they really should be talking about how important the movie is as a whole.  It tells the story of an IRA member named Fergus, played by Stephen Rea, who tracks down the girlfriend of a prisoner who is killed while trying to escape his execution.  The film relies heavily on the performance of Jaye Davidson, who gives a breakout performance that is undoubtedly the film’s driving force.

But The Crying Game is more than just a one-trick pony.  It’s a film that examines the IRA, humanizes prisoners and questions whether transgender people deserve to be treated any different from the rest of us.  Oh, and there is that element of surprise, to boot.

7. HOWARDS END

It’s no surprise that Howards End is one of the most acclaimed films of the year – after all, it’s one of those perfectly produced classic literary adaptation period pieces that critics tend to eat up.  However, those types of films are not really my cup of tea.  Which is why I was so surprised to find myself enjoying James Ivory’s adaptation of a classic E.M. Forster novel so much.  Even if you’re not a fan of the countless period piece dramas that are released each year, Howards End is worth giving a try.  Who knows – it might even end up on your year’s ten best list!

6. ALADDIN

Don’t let the fact that Aladdin is a step back from last year’s magical Beauty & the Beast fool you – it’s still a fantastic picture that ranks alongside Disney’s finest works ever made.  Aladdin tells the classic tale of a young Arabic man who falls in love with a young woman named Jasmine.  The only problem is that she’s a princess and he’s just a poor street hoodlum.  However, that all changes when Aladdin discovers a magic lamp with a big blue genie to make his dreams come true.

Alongside The Little Mermaid and last year’s Beauty and the Beast, Disney may have the greatest threepeat in its long history.  Much like its last two films, Aladdin really takes us to a whole new world.

5. RAISE THE RED LANTERN

Sure, Glengarry Glen Ross was good, but if you really want to tell a story of greed, what better concept that 1920s China, where concubines had to fight for their husband’s affection?

Raise the Red Lantern – the magnificent and heartbreaking tale by Yimou Zhang – tells the story of a young woman named Songlian who is forced to become the fourth wife of a wealthy leader.  Each night the four women compete with one another for their husband’s affection, and at first the Songlian gets much attention due to her beauty and age.  However, after she becomes mistrusted, her popularity is quickly deflated.

Raise the Red Lantern may tell the story of a period of its history that China would prefer to forget, but Zhang’s film itself is completely unforgettable.

4. THE BEST INTENTIONS

Even when he’s not in complete control, Ingmar Bergman’s magical touch pushes a film to greatness, as is the case in The Best Intentions, which tells the story of Bergman’s parents in the early twentieth century.  At three hours long, it is not a film for the impatient, yet it never feels dull or slow.  Instead, it’s the most authentic and touching movie of the year, and one that is worthy to be ranked alongside the long list of Ingmar Bergman’s biggest contributions to the film industry.

3. A FEW GOOD MEN

When it comes to pure entertainment, no film in 1992 soared higher than Rob Reiner’s courtroom drama, A Few Good Men.  Tom Cruise gives the finest performance of his career as a young lawyer determined to prosecute a U.S. Marine Corporal who ordered a Code Red, resulting in the murder of a young marine.   However, Jack Nicholson completely steals the spotlight with his performance as the quick angered Corporal.  He’d be a shoe-in for the Oscar, if it weren’t for the fact that we’ve come to expect this type of performance from him.

2. UNFORGIVEN

Dances With Wolves may have kickstarted the western two years ago, but Clint Eastwood’s smart and often funny western, Unforgiven, raises the bar back to where it was during the golden days of the genre.  Eastwood plays a notorious outlaw who gave up his sharp-shooting hand to raise his children after his wife passes away. However, when a young cowboy with more ambition that skill recruits him to do one final job, it’s an offer he can’t refuse.

Unforgiven marks a new high for Eastwood, both as a director and an actor, and much of the thanks deserves to be given to David Webb Peoples’ fine screenplay, which injects brains into the western genre.  For the first time perhaps ever, the role of an outlaw is displayed as a physically draining way of life, and one that leaves bandits with lifelong guilt.

1. THE PLAYER

Many critics have praised The Player as Robert Altman’s best work in over a decade, but I’m willing to go even one step further and call it the best film of his career, and the most original story to come out of Hollywood – the very source it parodies – in many, many years.   

It tells the story of a Hollywood executive who gets caught up in a murder, but thanks to his wealth and fame, is able to turn it into a successful screenplay without any repercussions.  Altman – a director who first burst into critical acclaim with 1970’s M*A*S*H – has long been a master of intertwining character-driven storylines.  He does that here, too, but what makes The Player even more extraordinary is that he has finally found a screenplay that matches his enormous talents.  The Player is funny, original and creative – and above all that, it’s the most fun I had at the theater all year.