1997 Leaman Awards

*Last Updated 9/21/2022  

1997 Films Seen: 83

Number of Films with A or A+ Grade: 4

Key Films Still to See: n/a

Brief Summary: The cultural memory of this year is dominated by the phenomenon of Titanic. As a teenage boy when it came out, I think I instinctually hated the film simply because it was seen as a "teen girl's romance film" - though I did acknowledge the disaster scenes were done well. Over the years, I've grown to see Titanic as a masterpiece and that's kind of the story with the best films of this year (Contact, Good Will Hunting, L.A. Confidential, Gattaca); didn't quite get them as a teenager, but slowly came to love them. The year's best is quite top heavy, with three of the top ten finding their way into my top ten of all time at different points of my life. Still, beyond that there are some solid offerings beyond the usual dramas: action entries (Tomorrow Never Dies, Face/Off), comedies (Men in Black, Austin Powers, Wag the Dog), and science fiction (Gattaca, Contact, Fifth Element). 

Not a "best of" list or a "favorite" list - but a list of the films and sequences (action, drama, comedy, & musical) that I think represent the best the year had to offer. So think of it as a strange mixture of favorite, best, and defining. Once you get to the top ten films, it definitely becomes more defined as a Top Ten list of the year. The number one film is my favorite of the year. 

25. The Man Who Knew Too Little (B-)

24. Breakdown (B-)

23. Air Force One (B-)

22. Police Story 4: First Strike (B-)

21. Scream 2 (B-)

20. The Sweet Hereafter (B)

19. Donnie Brasco (B)

18. Wag the Dog (B)

17. Mrs. Brown (B)

16. As Good As It Gets (B)

15. Princess Mononoke (B)

14. Face/Off (B)

13. Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery (B)

12. Tomorrow Never Dies (B)

11. Jackie Brown (B)

THE TOP TEN

10. The Game (B)

9. The Rainmaker (B+)

8. The Apostle (B+)

7. Men in Black (B+)

6. Amistad (A-)

5. Gattaca (A-)

4. L.A. Confidential (A)

3. Titanic (A)

2. Good Will Hunting (A+)

1. Contact (A+)

FAVORITE ACTION SEQUENCES OF THE YEAR

The Very Good:

• "Trailer Trouble: T-Rex Tips It Over a Cliff" -The Lost World: Jurassic Park (Commentary)
• "Mall Chase: Down Escalators & On Carriages" -Mr. Nice Guy (Commentary)
• "Parking Garage Chase: Bond Remote Controls a BMW" -Tomorrow Never Dies (Commentary)

The Great:

• "Finale: Victory Motel Shootout" -L.A. Confidential
• "Outpost Whiskey: Bug Ambush" -Starship Troopers 
• "Escape from Carver: Handcuffed Bike Chase in Vietnam" -Tomorrow Never Dies (Commentary)

The Best: "Construction Site Mayhem" -Mr. Nice Guy 

Commentary: I often feel like this sequence (and the movie itself) doesn't quite get the hype it deserves. It's another one of those major set pieces that Jackie does so well where he takes a unique environment (in this case a building under construction) and creatively uses everything in it to his advantage against the bad guys. The premise here is that Jackie sneaks onto this site in order to get his girlfriend back. She is being held by a gangster looking to ensure his deal with another gang goes through okay. Starting off this sequence is a doorway sequence that would make 'Looney Tunes' writers proud. The unfinished building has multiple hallways and the newly installed doors are a bright blue so it becomes this kind of labyrinth where people come and go through doors never knowing what they will find. This kind of live action comedy just isn't done by anyone else, certainly not this well. Kudos to Jackie and Sammo on this sequence alone. Immediately following it is a masterpiece of prop fighting in a construction site. I remember walking through a Home Depot as a kid and imagining what a fight sequence would look like in a store like it and I think this sequence tops anything I could've dreamed. Some of the highlights here include Jackie coming close to a table saw twice, ducks under a grinder, slides down some rollers with style, causing mayhem with firehose and a cement mixer. There's some unfortunate cutting to a separate plotline with some annoying female characters (just how they are written) that brings this sequence down, but it thankfully is short and only barely detracts from run of great gag after gag.  This sequence never fails to put a smile on my face. For more commentary on Jackie Chan's best action sequences, click HERE.

FAVORITE DRAMATIC SEQUENCES OF THE YEAR

The Very Good:

• "Give Us, Us Free" –Amistad
• “Talking to the Members of a Car Wreck, Giving a Chance of Hope” –The Apostle
• “Partying in the 80s with a Murder-Suicide” – Boogie Nights
• “A Saboteur Brings Down the Machine” -Contact
• “Ellie Must Explain her Experience to the Court” -Contact
• “Soaring into Space/Meeting his End” –Gattaca
• “Interrogation of the Night Owl Suspects” –L.A. Confidential
• “Shotgun Chase of the Escaped Night Owl Suspects” -L.A. Confidential
• "Opening Stab Premiere" –Scream 2
• "Climbing Over a Knocked Out Killer" –Scream 2
• “Mitchell learns of his daughter being HIV positive over the phone” –The Sweet Hereafter
• “Rose is Drawn by Jack” –Titanic
• “Mr. Murdock shoots a passenger and then takes his own life” –Titanic 

The Great:

• "Recounting the Middle Passage" –Amistad
• “Drug Deal Gone Bad to An 80’s Mix Tape” -Boogie Nights
• “Preparing to Enter the Pod/Traveling/Meeting the Aliens” -Contact
• “It’s Not Your Fault” -Good Will Hunting
• “Regret and Meeting his Wife in a Bar” -Good Will Hunting
• “Rose Passes Away and is Greeted by the Others on the Ship and Jack on the Stairway” –Titanic
• “Nearer My God To Thee: The Band plays as Several Characters Meet a Watery Death” –Titanic
• “The Titanic Cracks, Bobs and Goes Under as Passengers Fall Off and Hang On” -Titanic 

The Best:  “Taster’s Choice Moment for Men at the Pond” -Good Will Hunting

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE COMEDIC SEQUENCES OF THE YEAR

Not a category I kept good track of - One of the toughest TBH

The Very Good:

• "The Far Away Steam Roller" -Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• "Who Does Number Two Work For?" -Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• "Mustafa Continues to Remain Alive in Dr. Evil's Death Lair" -Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

The Great:

• "Austin Powers is Un-Frozen and Brought Back to Life" -Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery

The Best: 

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE MUSICAL SEQUENCES OF THE YEAR

The Very Good:

• "In the Dark of the Night" -Anastasia
• "Once Upon a December" -Anastasia
• "The Whole Family Sings a Love Song Out to Dinner" -My Best Friend’s Wedding 
• "Zero to Hero" -Hercules

The Great:

• "I Won't Say I'm in Love" -Hercules

The Best: "I Can Go the Distance" -Hercules

Commentary: n/a

BEST DIRECTOR

Nominees:

• James Cameron Titanic
• Curtis Hanson L.A. Confidential
• Gus Van Sant Good Will Hunting
• Steven Spielberg Amistad
• Robert Zemeckis Contact

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE FILM ENSEMBLE

Nominees:

• Amistad
• Boogie Nights
• Good Will Hunting
• L.A. Confidential
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE MALE PERFORMANCES

Nominees:

• Matt Damon Good Will Hunting
• Robert Duvall The Apostle
• Ethan Hawke Gattaca
• Ian Holm The Sweet Hereafter
• Djimon Hounsou Amistad
• Tommy Lee Jones Men in Black
• Jude Law Gattaca
• Jack Nicholson As Good As It Gets
• Kevin Spacey L.A. Confidential
• Robin Williams Good Will Hunting

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE FEMALE PERFORMANCES

Nominees:

• Joan Allen The Ice Storm
• Kim Basinger L.A. Confidential
• Judi Dench Mrs. Brown
• Minnie Driver Good Will Hunting
• Jodie Foster Contact
• Pam Grier Jackie Brown
• Helen Hunt As Good As It Gets
• Julianne Moore Boogie Nights
• Uma Thurman Gattaca
• Kate Winslet Titanic

Commentary: n/a

FAVORITE SCREENPLAY

(original or adapted)

Nominees:

• Amistad
• The Apostle
• Contact
• Donnie Brasco
• Gattaca
• Good Will Hunting
• L.A. Confidential
• Men in Black
• Titanic
• Wag the Dog

Commentary: n/a

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

*No eligible documentaries seen

Nominees: n/a

BEST ANIMATED FEATURE

Nominees:

• Anastasia
• Hercules
• Princess Mononoke

Commentary: n/a

BEST FILM EDITING

Nominees:

• Contact
• Good Will Hunting
• Jackie Brown
• L.A. Confidential
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

Nominees:

• Amistad
• Boogie Nights
• Contact
• Good Will Hunting
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST ART DIRECTION

Nominees:

• Amistad
• Kundun
• L.A. Confidential
• Men in Black
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

Nominees:

• Contact
• The Fifth Element
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park
• Starship Troopers
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

Nominees:

• Contact
• Kundun
• L.A. Confidential
• Men in Black
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST SOUND DESIGN

Nominees:

• Con Air
• Contact
• The Lost World: Jurassic Park
• Men in Black
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

Nominees:

• Amistad
• Boogie Nights
• Kundun
• L.A. Confidential
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BEST MAKE-UP & HAIR DESIGN

Nominees:

• Amistad
• Boogie Nights
• Men in Black
• Mrs. Brown
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

BIGGEST GUILTY PLEASURE

Nominees:

• Air Force One
• Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• The Man Who Knew Too Little
• Vegas Vacation

Commentary: The original Austin Powers film has a lot of memorable comedy bits within its successful sendup of the British spy genre anchored by Mike Myers’ sex-crazed swinging superspy Austin Powers. I find the central character’s obsession with sex redundant and overbearing, but unlike in later sequels, the original film is able to find some softer and empathetic sides to Powers while also contextualizing him to the swinging 60’s. I think this original continues to work well today, unlike the sequels which are dated and a slog except for certain gags, is because there is a commitment to being a parody/character sendup first and foremost and Myer’s is allowed to run wild with characters and comedy bits within that framework. The sequels raised the comedy bits above the story and are worse off for it. 

MOST SURPRISING FILM

Nominees:

• Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
• L.A. Confidential
• Titanic

Commentary: n/a

MOST DISAPPOINTING FILM

Nominees:

• Batman & Robin
• Chasing Amy
• The Ice Storm

Commentary: n/a

MOST UNDERRATED FILM

Nominees:

• Contact
• Double Team
• The Man Who Knew Too Little 

Commentary: n/a

MOST OVERRATED FILM

Nominees:

• Boogie Nights
• Chasing Amy
• The Ice Storm

Commentary: n/a

WORST FILM

Nominees:

• Chasing Amy
• Mortal Kombat: Annihilation
• The Postman

Commentary: n/a

BEST COMPILATION OF WORK

Nominees:

• Minnie Driver (Good Will Hunting, Grosse Point Blank, & Princess Mononoke)

Commentary: n/a

ERIC BANA AWARD

*Given for the best performance in a bad film (See 2004's Troy)

Nominees:

• Michael Ironside in Starship Troopers

Commentary: n/a

THE END!

"Vincent: You want to know how I did it? This is how I did it, Anton: I never saved anything for the swim back." -Gattaca

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