Wayback Wednesday: Favorite Films and Performances from 1997
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If you listened to the Awards Circuit Power Hour this week you’ll have heard what the staff thinks the best of 1997 was and here is my take. After struggling with trying to put together a top 10 for the previous year, 1997 is a welcome change as many of the movies in this year have had such a profound impact on my life. Though Scream came out the year before, one of the first horror films I remember seeing was I Know What You Did Last Summer with it’s stars at their peak hotness/newness.
1997 is also the year that my love affair with Pedro Almodovar began, although I didn’t see Live Flesh till three years ago. After seeing that movie, I’ve devoured Almodovar’s oeuvre and he’s become one of my favorite filmmakers.
It was the year I discovered there was such a thing as Black cinema, with the one-two punch of Eve’s Bayou and Soul Food. So many of the actors I’d come to love in the future like Vanessa Williams, Lynn Whitfield, Meagan Good, Samuel Jackson, etc. burst into my consciousness. I’d also get my first look at a young actress named Halle Berry, whose hilarious performance in BAPS marked a new talent that eventually payed off.
But 1997 unquestionably belongs to Titanic, the gargantuan hit by James Cameron about doomed lovers aboard a doomed ocean liner. When people ask me what a movie is, I definitely point to this film as every aspect of it from the acting to the filmmaking make it great. That’s probably why it’s walking away with 10 wins (a record for my personal awards I believe) including Best Picture and an extremely high rank on my all time list of Best Picture winners.
Top 10 Films of 1997
1. Titanic
2. Live Flesh
3. L.A. Confidential
4. I Know What You Did Last Summer
5. Hercules
6. Soul Food
7. Men in Black
8. Eve’s Bayou
9. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
10. Dante’s Peak
Director
James Cameron, Titanic
Curtis Hanson, L.A. Confidential
Pedro Almodovar, Live Flesh
Jim Gillespie, I Know What You Did Last Summer
Kasi Lemmons, Eve’s Bayou
Actor
Liberto Rabal, Live Flesh
Michael Myers, Austin Powers
Guy Pearce, L.A. Confidential
Jim Carrey, Liar Liar
Leo DiCaprio, Titanic
Actress
Kate Winslet, Titanic
Jennifer Lopez, Selena
Vanessa Williams, Soul Food
Francesca Neri, Live Flesh
Halle Berry, BAPS
Supporting Actor
Javier Bardem, Live Flesh
James Cromwell, L.A. Confidential
Mekhi Phifer, Soul Food
Kevin Spacey, L.A. Confidential
Ryan Phillippe, I Know What You Did Last Summer
Supporting Actress
Julianne Moore, Boogie Nights
Irma P Hall, Soul Food
Angela Molina, Live Flesh
Meagan Good, Eve’s Bayou
Lilias White, Hercules
Original Screenplay
Live Flesh
Soul Food
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Men in Black
Titanic
Adapted Screenplay
L.A. Confidential
Hercules
Donnie Brasco
Wings of the Dove
Tomorrow Never Dies
Cinematography
LA Confidential
Titanic
Eve’s Bayou
Dante’s Peak
The Fifth Element
Production Design
Titanic
Men in Black
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Batman & Robin
The Fifth Element
Costume Design
Titanic
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Boogie Nights
L.A. Confidential
Wings of the Dove
Film Editing
Titanic
I Know What You Did Last Summer
L.A. Confidential
Eve’s Bayou
Live Flesh
Make Up
Men in Black
The Fifth Element
Batman and Robin
Sound Design
Titanic
LA Confidential
Men in Black
Dante’s Peak
Tomorrow Never Dies
Visual Effects
Titanic
Men in Black
Dante’s Peak
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
The Fifth Element
Original Score
Titanic
Hercules
Men in Black
L.A. Confidential
Eve’s Bayou
Original Song
“My Heart Will Go On” – Titanic
“Zero to Hero” – Hercules
“Go the Distance” – Hercules
“We’re Not Making Love No More” – Soul Food
“Song for Mama” – Soul Food
Animated Feature
Hercules
Anastasia
Foreign Language Film
Live Flesh
Best Ensemble
L.A. Confidential
Titanic
Soul Food
Boogie Nights
I Know What You Did Last Summer
Body of Work
Danny Elfman
Danny Devito
Jennifer Lopez
Jerry Goldsmith
Samuel L Jackson
Breakthrough Performance
Meagan Good, Eve’s Bayou
Jennifer Lopez, Selena
Mark Wahlberg, Boogie Nights
Sarah Michelle Gellar, I Know What You Did Last Summer
Matt Damon, Good Will Hunting
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