My Five Favorite Films From...1991

Honorable Mention – What About Bob?: I saw this the first time on the Quad at UConn my sophomore year. Funny funny funny stuff. And all of it was driven by Richard Dreyfuss’ over-the-top performance.

5. Delicatessen: A French post-apocalyptic dark comedy that involves cannibalism. Trust me, it’s funny and a joy to watch.

4. The Naked Gun 2½: The Smell of Fear: In my opinion, this was the last major release “spoof” film that was any good. Not as solid as the original, but still has a lot of laughs. And you cannot go wrong with Robert Goulet.

3. Terminator 2: Judgment Day: Action sci-fi with enough special effects to melt your brain. Loud and brash and a great way to kill a lazy afternoon. I still like the first one more.

2. The Silence of the Lambs: Creepy and cringe-inducing, but what a film! I wish that Manhunter got half the exposure this film received.

1. Defending Your Life: Remember, this is a list of my favorite films from a particular year. And this is my favorite. I love this movie. Albert Brooks is hilarious. It never gets old. I personally hope this is what Heaven is like.

Films I Like But Didn't Make The List: Barton Fink, City Slickers, Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, New Jack City, Cape Fear, Naked Lunch, Bugsy

Wow…what a weak year for movies.

Underappreciated – L.A. Story: Steve Martin’s romantic comedy about a weatherman in LA who finds love with the help of a traffic sign (it sounds weird but it works) is just wonderful to watch. It’s also a nice piece of satire on the L.A. lifestyle. But, much like Bowfinger, it fell off the radar. Do your part and get the DVD. It probably costs five bucks.

Guilty Pleasure – The Rocketeer: I know a lot of people don’t like this movie. But I love the whole 30s vibe of the film and it has some great dialogue. It’s almost an “unappreciated” film but the overall script is a little weak.

Insane Film That Must Be Mentioned – Shakes the Clown: With an alcoholic depressed birthday clown as the lead character, you know you’re entering some weird territory. But Bobcat Goldthwait’s movie isn’t bad at all…just nuts. His boss gets murdered and he is the main suspect, so he goes undercover as a mime to find the killer. And clowns apparently hate mimes (a rivalry reinforced by CSI, no less.) Oh, and Florence Henderson plays a lady who has the hots for clowns. Deeply disturbing, indeed. And if you remember when this came out, you’ll also remember we were all treated to the scene of clowns picketing this movie. Which was surreal all on its own.