The Best Films Ever Made - 1996
by dziwnytenswiat | created - 15 Nov 2017 | updated - 1 month ago | PublicThe rules: My rating x 3, 6 male/female rating ( 18, 30, 45), 1000 voters rating, US- and Non-US voters rating. Only films with a better rating than 7,00
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1. Breaking the Waves (1996)
R | 159 min | Drama
Oilman Jan is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when Jan urges her to have sex with another.
Director: Lars von Trier | Stars: Emily Watson, Stellan Skarsgård, Katrin Cartlidge, Jean-Marc Barr
Votes: 71,547 | Gross: $4.04M
8,34
2. Drifting Clouds (1996)
Not Rated | 95 min | Comedy, Drama
The recession hits a couple in Helsinki.
Director: Aki Kaurismäki | Stars: Kati Outinen, Kari Väänänen, Elina Salo, Sakari Kuosmanen
Votes: 9,053
8,13
3. Kolya (1996)
PG-13 | 111 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A confirmed bachelor is in for the surprise of his life when a get-rich-quick scheme backfires and leaves him with a pint-sized new roommate.
Director: Jan Sverák | Stars: Zdenek Sverák, Andrey Khalimon, Libuse Safránková, Ondrej Vetchý
Votes: 16,218 | Gross: $5.73M
8,03
4. Secrets & Lies (1996)
R | 136 min | Comedy, Drama
Following the death of her adoptive parents, a successful young black optometrist establishes contact with her biological mother -- a lonely white factory worker living in poverty in East London.
Director: Mike Leigh | Stars: Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn, Phyllis Logan, Claire Rushbrook
Votes: 47,175 | Gross: $13.42M
7,94
5. Ponette (1996)
Not Rated | 97 min | Drama
A four-year-old girl tries to come to terms with the sudden death of her mother.
Director: Jacques Doillon | Stars: Victoire Thivisol, Delphine Schiltz, Matiaz Bureau Caton, Léopoldine Serre
Votes: 4,763 | Gross: $1.40M
7,93
6. Sleepers (1996)
R | 147 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
After a prank goes disastrously wrong, a group of boys are sent to a detention center where they are brutalized. Thirteen years later, an unexpected random encounter with a former guard gives them a chance for revenge.
Director: Barry Levinson | Stars: Robert De Niro, Kevin Bacon, Brad Pitt, Jason Patric
Votes: 237,506 | Gross: $49.10M
7,88
7. When We Were Kings (1996)
PG | 88 min | Documentary, Sport
Boxing documentary on the 1974 world heavyweight championship bout between defending champion, George Foreman, and the underdog challenger, Muhammad Ali.
Director: Leon Gast | Stars: Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Don King, James Brown
Votes: 19,129 | Gross: $2.79M
7,87
8. Thesis (1996)
R | 125 min | Crime, Horror, Mystery
While doing a thesis about violence, Ángela finds a snuff video where a girl is tortured until death. Soon she discovers that the girl was a former student in her faculty...
Director: Alejandro Amenábar | Stars: Ana Torrent, Fele Martínez, Eduardo Noriega, Xabier Elorriaga
Votes: 42,448
7,77
9. A Summer's Tale (1996)
G | 113 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
As a reserved young graduate vacations in a seaside town, he hopes his girlfriend will join him. But he ends up bonding with a local young woman whose female friend is also smitten with him.
Director: Éric Rohmer | Stars: Melvil Poupaud, Amanda Langlet, Gwenaëlle Simon, Aurelia Nolin
Votes: 9,976 | Gross: $0.20M
7,74
10. Sling Blade (1996)
R | 135 min | Drama
Karl Childers, a simple man hospitalized since his childhood murder of his mother and her lover, is released to start a new life in a small town.
Director: Billy Bob Thornton | Stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Dwight Yoakam, J.T. Walsh, John Ritter
Votes: 98,790 | Gross: $24.48M
7,73
11. The King of Masks (1995)
91 min | Drama
In a remote area of China, in the 1930s, a street performer named Wang practices the change-mask opera art of bian lian. Seeking to pass his art, Wang buys what he believes to be an orphan boy, but quickly learns his new disciple's secret.
Director: Tian-Ming Wu | Stars: Xu Zhu, Renying Zhou, Zhigang Zhao, Li Chen
Votes: 3,472 | Gross: $1.10M
7,67
12. Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
R | 98 min | Drama
A mother and daughter find their lives adversely affected when a new man enters the picture. Will their family ever be what they expect?
Director: Anjelica Huston | Stars: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Ron Eldard, Glenne Headly, Lyle Lovett
Votes: 4,806
7,64
13. Hard Eight (1996)
R | 101 min | Crime, Drama
Professional gambler Sydney teaches John the tricks of the trade. John does well until he falls for cocktail waitress Clementine.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson
Votes: 54,873 | Gross: $0.22M
7,62
14. A Time to Kill (1996)
R | 149 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
In Canton, Mississippi, a fearless young lawyer and his assistant defend a black man accused of murdering two white men who raped his ten-year-old daughter, inciting violent retribution and revenge from the Ku Klux Klan.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Sandra Bullock, Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey
Votes: 181,589 | Gross: $108.77M
7,61
15. A Moment of Innocence (1996)
Not Rated | 78 min | Comedy, Drama
A semi-autobiographical account of Makmahlbaf's experience as a teenager when, as a 17-year-old, he stabbed a policeman at a protest rally. Two decades later, he tracks down the policeman he injured in an attempt to make amends.
Director: Mohsen Makhmalbaf | Stars: Mirhadi Tayebi, Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Ali Bakhsi, Ammar Tafti Dehghan
Votes: 4,399 | Gross: $0.04M
7,61
16. Fargo (1996)
R | 98 min | Crime, Thriller
Minnesota car salesman Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare
Votes: 726,434 | Gross: $24.61M
7,60
17. Some Mother's Son (1996)
R | 112 min | Drama, History
The 1981 hunger strike in an Irish prison, in which I.R.A. prisoner Bobby Sands led a protest against their treatment as criminals rather than as prisoners of war. It focuses on the mothers of two of the strikers, and their struggle.
Director: Terry George | Stars: Helen Mirren, Fionnula Flanagan, Aidan Gillen, David O'Hara
Votes: 2,991 | Gross: $0.61M
7,59
18. Hamlet (1996)
PG-13 | 242 min | Drama
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, returns home to find his father murdered and his mother remarrying the murderer, his uncle. Meanwhile, war is brewing.
Director: Kenneth Branagh | Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Julie Christie, Derek Jacobi, Kate Winslet
Votes: 40,048 | Gross: $4.41M
7,55
19. Mother Night (1996)
R | 114 min | Drama, Romance, War
An American spy behind the lines during WWII serves as a Nazi propagandist, a role he cannot escape in his future life as he can never reveal his real role in the war.
Director: Keith Gordon | Stars: Nick Nolte, Sheryl Lee, Tony Robinow, Michael McGill
Votes: 5,588 | Gross: $0.39M
7,53
20. The Promise (1996)
Not Rated | 90 min | Drama
Roger uses his son Igor to ruthlessly traffic and exploit undocumented immigrants. When one of the immigrants is killed, Igor is guilt-ridden and wants to care for the dead man's family against his father's orders.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Stars: Jérémie Renier, Olivier Gourmet, Assita Ouedraogo, Jean-Michel Balthazar
Votes: 8,539 | Gross: $0.45M
7,53
21. Primal Fear (1996)
R | 129 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
An altar boy is accused of murdering a priest, and the truth is buried several layers deep.
Director: Gregory Hoblit | Stars: Richard Gere, Laura Linney, Edward Norton, John Mahoney
Votes: 246,938 | Gross: $56.12M
7,50
22. Lone Star (1996)
R | 135 min | Drama, Mystery, Western
When the skeleton of his murdered predecessor is found, Sheriff Sam Deeds unearths many other long-buried secrets in his Texas border town.
Director: John Sayles | Stars: Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Peña, Stephen Mendillo, Stephen J. Lang
Votes: 32,319 | Gross: $13.27M
7,48
23. Shine (1996)
PG-13 | 105 min | Biography, Drama, Music
Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.
Director: Scott Hicks | Stars: Geoffrey Rush, Armin Mueller-Stahl, Justin Braine, Sonia Todd
Votes: 56,689 | Gross: $35.81M
7,47
24. Beyond Silence (1996)
PG-13 | 109 min | Drama, Music
Since the earliest days in her childhood Lara has had a difficult but important task. Both her parents are deaf-mute and Lara has to translate from sign-language to the spoken word and vice... See full summary »
Director: Caroline Link | Stars: Sylvie Testud, Tatjana Trieb, Howie Seago, Emmanuelle Laborit
Votes: 4,585 | Gross: $0.17M
7,46
25. Comrades: Almost a Love Story (1996)
118 min | Drama, Romance
Two Chinese-mainlanders living in Hong Kong form a close friendship. Over the years this grows into love, but there are obstacles.
Director: Peter Ho-Sun Chan | Stars: Maggie Cheung, Leon Lai, Eric Tsang, Kristy Yeung
Votes: 7,613
7,39
26. Fire (1996)
Unrated | 104 min | Crime, Drama, Romance
Two mentally unstable women who are abandoned by their husbands find love and solace in each other.
Director: Deepa Mehta | Stars: Shabana Azmi, Nandita Das, Karishma Jhalani, Ramanjeet Kaur
Votes: 6,364 | Gross: $0.40M
7,36
27. The Green Planet (1996)
99 min | Comedy, Sci-Fi
On a distant planet, rural vegans master telepathy and mental power to travel interstellar etc. Mila is sent to Earth to report back. She lands in Paris - quite a cultural shock. Earthlings are strange.
Director: Coline Serreau | Stars: Coline Serreau, Vincent Lindon, James Thierrée, Samuel Tasinaje
Votes: 5,535
7,29
28. Trees Lounge (1996)
R | 95 min | Comedy, Drama
Tommy is an unemployed mechanic who spends most of his time in a bar (Trees Lounge) in a small blue collar town. He seems to always be thinking, "If only X then I could stop drinking".
Director: Steve Buscemi | Stars: Steve Buscemi, Carol Kane, Mark Boone Junior, Bronson Dudley
Votes: 17,589 | Gross: $0.70M
7,29
29. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
R | 84 min | Comedy
An aspiring director and the marginally talented amateur cast of a hokey small-town Missouri musical production go overboard when they learn that someone from Broadway will be in attendance.
Director: Christopher Guest | Stars: Christopher Guest, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey
Votes: 30,749 | Gross: $2.92M
7,29
30. Hamsun (1996)
Not Rated | 159 min | Biography, Drama, War
Norwegian Nobel Laureate Knut Hamsun's controversial support for the Nazi regime during World War II and its consequences for the Hamsun family after the war.
Director: Jan Troell | Stars: Max von Sydow, Ghita Nørby, Anette Hoff, Gard B. Eidsvold
Votes: 1,715
7,28
31. Too Late (1996)
106 min | Drama, Thriller
Dumitru Costa, a young trainee prosecutor is entrusted with the investigation about the suspicious death of a Jiu Valley coal miner in 1990s Romania. Accident or murder?
Director: Lucian Pintilie | Stars: Razvan Vasilescu, Cecilia Bârbora, Victor Rebengiuc, Dorel Visan
Votes: 719
7,26
32. Three Lives and Only One Death (1996)
123 min | Comedy, Crime, Fantasy
Take a walk into the dreamlike world of filmmaker Raul Ruiz as he takes us to Paris for a twisting ride. Four strangely symmetrical stories unfold involving love, lust, crime, and time.
Director: Raúl Ruiz | Stars: Marcello Mastroianni, Anna Galiena, Marisa Paredes, Melvil Poupaud
Votes: 1,543
7,22
33. Jerry Maguire (1996)
R | 139 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
When a sports agent has a moral epiphany and is fired for expressing it, he decides to put his new philosophy to the test as an independent agent with the only athlete who stays with him and his former colleague.
Director: Cameron Crowe | Stars: Tom Cruise, Cuba Gooding Jr., Renée Zellweger, Kelly Preston
Votes: 286,952 | Gross: $153.95M
7,13
34. Michael Collins (1996)
R | 133 min | Biography, Drama, Thriller
Neil Jordan's historical biopic of Irish revolutionary Michael Collins, the man who led a guerrilla war against the UK, helped negotiate the creation of the Irish Free State, and led the National Army during the Irish Civil War.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Liam Neeson, Aidan Quinn, Julia Roberts, Ian Hart
Votes: 33,745 | Gross: $11.09M
7,12
35. Brassed Off (1996)
R | 108 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
The coal mine in a northern English village may be closing, which would also mean the end of the miners' brass band.
Director: Mark Herman | Stars: Pete Postlethwaite, Tara Fitzgerald, Ewan McGregor, Stephen Tompkinson
Votes: 20,934 | Gross: $2.56M
7,09
36. Mahjong (1996)
121 min | Comedy, Drama
When a well known businessman goes missing, owing $100m to Taipei's underworld, two hoods decide to follow his son, the leader of a youth gang. A small group of trendy foreigners gets caught up in the action.
Director: Edward Yang | Stars: Tsung Sheng Tang, Chang Chen, Lawrence Ko, Chi-tsan Wang
Votes: 1,645
7,09
37. Marvin's Room (1996)
PG-13 | 98 min | Drama
After seventeen years, a fiercely independent woman and her rebellious son return home and together they turn the family she left behind upside down.
Director: Jerry Zaks | Stars: Meryl Streep, Leonardo DiCaprio, Diane Keaton, Robert De Niro
Votes: 30,011 | Gross: $12.78M
7,04
38. The Father (1996)
91 min | Drama
Mehrollah is a 14-year-old boy who is forced to find a job to support his family after his father dies. He travels to the southern parts of Iran, looking for work. Upon his return to his hometown, he notices certain changes in his family.
Director: Majid Majidi | Stars: Hossein Abedini, Mohammad Kasebi, Parivash Nazarieh, Hassan Sadeghi
Votes: 1,704
7,03
39. Box of Moonlight (1996)
R | 112 min | Comedy, Drama
An engineer finds his first gray hair, takes 6 days off from wife, son and work, rents a car and meets different people.
Director: Tom DiCillo | Stars: John Turturro, Sam Rockwell, Catherine Keener, Lisa Blount
Votes: 6,038 | Gross: $0.72M
7,02
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