USCCB - (Film and Broadcasting) - Ten Best List for the Year 1997

Ten Best List for the Year 1997

Amistad -- Historical dramatization of the legal battle over the fate of 53 Africans who massacre the crew of a Spanish slave ship, then are captured by an American naval vessel and put on trial for murder and piracy in a case that ultimately reaches the Supreme Court where former president John Quincy Adams (Anthony Hopkins) defends their right to freedom. Director Steven Spielberg’s ambitious attempt to reexamine the contradictions of a society which proclaimed the equality of all and yet accepted slavery succeeds in dramatizing the obvious injustices done the enslaved Africans (led by Djimon Hounsou), but the legal and political issues argued in the lengthy case are treated in stiff historical tableaus which fail to touch the human dimension of what is involved. Some gory violence, brutalizing conditions of slavery and brief frontal nudity. A-III-adults (R) 1997
Apostle, The -- The story of a Pentecostal preacher (Robert Duvall) in Texas who’s so distraught over losing his congregation and wife (Farrah Fawcett) to a younger minister he bashes him in the head with a baseball bat, then flees to a rural Louisiana community where he revitalizes an old church and starts a radio ministry whose growing popularity leads to his arrest. Also written and directed by Duvall, this portrait of an evangelical preacher explores his religious zeal and personal failings as seen within the human context of a Southern community, all of which is played out with sincerity and conviction in an often compelling story. A strong scene of violence, menacing situations and marital infidelity. A-III-adults (PG-13) 1997
Ice Storm, The -- Somber drama set during the 1973 Thanksgiving weekend in an affluent suburb where a wife (Joan Allen) learns her husband (Kevin Kline) is having an affair with a neighbor (Sigourney Weaver), while the neglected adolescent offspring of both families furtively explore their sexuality until a sudden ice storm causes a sobering tragedy. Directed by Ang Lee, the re-creation the era touches mainly on its discontents as reflected in the disordered emotional lives of its characters and the consequences of parental neglect. Numerous sexual situations, occasional profanity and some rough language. A-IV-adults, with reservations (R) 1997
Kolya -- Heartwarming Czech drama set in 1989 Prague where a womanizing, middle-aged cellist (Zdenek Sverak) marries a Russian woman who only wants a visa and promptly moves to West Germany, leaving him with her five-year-old son (Andrej Chalimon). Also scripted by Sverak and directed by his son, Jan Sverak, the picture convincingly captures the gradual transformation of a self-centered, ladies man into a caring stepfather willing to make great personal sacrifices for the child's welfare. Subtitles. Restrained bedroom scenes. A-III-adults (PG-13) 1997
Kundun -- Dramatization of the early life of Tibet’s 14th Dalai Lama (Tenzin Thuthob Tsarong) whose faith in non-violence is put to the test when Red China occupies his country in 1950, his appeals to the West go unanswered and the growing repression of his people force him into exile in 1959 at age 24. Director Martin Scorsese provides an evocative picture of an ancient people whose mountainous isolation protects them from the changing world outside until suddenly invaded by a 20th-century army, but the result succeeds more as spectacle than as human drama, political history or spiritual experience. Scenes of violence in a meaningful context. A-II-adults and adsolescents (PG-13) 1997
L.A. Confidential -- Stylish cop drama set in 1950’s Los Angeles where three police detectives (Kevin Spacey, Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce), each working on apparently unrelated homicides gradually come to realize that they all may all be related to corrupt officials. Directed by Curtis Hanson, the darkly cynical story is densely plotted with murders most foul as the detectives work their way through a miasma of chicanery and deceit. Recurring violence, fleeting nudity, recurring sexual innuendo, some profanity and intermittent rough language. A-IV- adults with reservations (R) 1997
Shall We Dance? -- Charming Japanese film in which a restless married businessman (Koji Yakusho) secretly takes ballroom dancing lessons because he’s attracted to one of the instructors (Tamiyo Kusakari), but instead of having an affair he benefits from the supportive friendships that develop among the students and teachers. Writer-director Masayuki Suo deftly uses the social nature of ballroom dancing to explore with gentle humor the contradictions of a culture which frowns upon emotional displays by males. Subtitles. Some sexual references. A-II-adults and adolescents (PG) 1997
Ulee’s Gold -- Finely detailed character study of an aging Florida beekeeper (Peter Fonda) turns into a suspenseful melodrama when he takes on a pair of murderous thugs who threaten to harm his daughter-in-law (Christine Dunford) and two young granddaughters. Writer-director Victor Nunez has created a small picture of ordinary people and everyday life which, though flawed by some gritty melodramatics, has real human substance centered principally in Fonda’s performance as man whose simple, down-home virtues are tested by irrational forces from the world outside. Some scenes of violence and harrowing menace, drug abuse and occasional profanity. A-III-adults (R) 1997
Wind in the Willows, The -- Charming live-action tale set in an English meadow where timid Mole (Steve Coogan), kindly Rat (Eric Idle) and bold Badger (Nicol Williamson) must save reckless Toad (Terry Jones) from losing his country estate to evil Weasels. Also written and directed by Jones, this adaptation of Kenneth Grahame’s 1908 children’s classic is enhanced by an endearing cast, sprightly songs, lovely visuals and a delightful sense of whimsy, which despite moments of menace translates into appealing family entertainment. A-I- General Patronage (PG) 1997
Wings of the Dove, The -- Lovely rendering of Henry James’ 1902 novel in which a young Englishwoman (Helena Bonham Carter) urges her impoverished lover (Linus Roache) to court the dying American heiress (Alison Elliott) they have befriended in hopes she will leave him her fortune. Under Iain Softley’s astute direction, the myriad ways of the human heart delicately unfold in this fine character study. A few sexual encounters and brief nudity. A-III-adults (R) 1997