Starring: Ray Liotta, Lauren Holly, Brendan Gleeson, Hector Elizondo, Rachel Ticotin
90s cinema is replete with airplane-set thrillers, many of which involve transporting dangerous convicts, but there’s only one Christmastime dose of mayhem in which Ray Liotta is unleashed – now boarding for Turbulence!
When a notorious serial killer (Liotta) is being transported on a commercial flight, things quickly go from bumpy to out of control as he breaks free, taking the passengers and crew hostage. Enter Teri (Lauren Holly), a resourceful flight attendant who becomes the last hope for survival, all while the plane is caught in a violent storm.
Starring: Adrien Brody, Felicity Jones, Guy Pearce, Joe Alwyn, Raffey Cassidy, Stacy Martin, Emma Laird, Isaach De Bankolé, Alessandro Nivola
Escaping post-war Europe, visionary architect László Toth arrives in America to rebuild his life, his work, and his marriage to his wife Erzsébet after being forced apart during wartime by shifting borders and regimes. On his own in a strange new country, László settles in Pennsylvania, where the wealthy and prominent industrialist Harrison Lee Van Buren recognizes his talent for building. But power and legacy come at a heavy cost.
Starring: Matt Damon, Robin Williams, Ben Affleck, Stellan Skarsgård
Will Hunting (Matt Damon) has a genius-level IQ but chooses to work as a janitor at MIT. When he solves a difficult graduate-level math problem, his talents are discovered by Professor Gerald Lambeau (Stellan Skarsgård), who decides to help the misguided youth reach his potential. When Will is arrested for attacking a police officer, Professor Lambeau makes a deal to get leniency for him if he will get treatment from therapist Sean Maguire (Robin Williams).
Starring: Al Pacino, Robin Williams, Hilary Swank, Martin Donovan
From acclaimed director Chris Nolan comes the story of a veteran police detective (Al Pacino) who is sent to a small Alaskan town to investigate the murder of a teenage girl. Forced into a psychological game of cat-and-mouse by the primary suspect (Robin Williams), events escalate and the detective finds his own stability dangerously threatened.
Starring: Robin Williams, Connie Nielsen, Michael Vartan, Dylan Smith, Erin Daniels, Paul Kim Jr., Gary Cole
Sy Parrish runs a one-hour photo developing lab in a small mall. He’s a perfectionist about his work and generous to his regular customers, including a typical family headed by Will Yorkin. Over the years, he’s seen their family grow through their photographs, but when he sees evidence of Yorkin being unfaithful, coupled with a threat to his position, his already precarious mental state tips over the edge.
Starring: Isabelle Mejias, Anthony Franciosa, Sybil Danning, Paul Hubbard
Teenager Julie is smitten with her own father and at odds with her mother, causing friction in their marriage. When she deliberately fails to stop the assault and death of her mother, she figures she’ll have him all to herself. But daddy has a mistress waiting, and as he hastily tries to integrate her and her son into the family, Julie starts scheming on how to get rid of them too.
A nasty little Canadian production that grows increasingly twisted, Julie Darling features a solid performance from Isabelle Mejias as the psychopathic teen, meeting her match with Sybil Danning as her new step mom.
Starring: Daniel Craig, Drew Starkey, Lesley Manville, Jason Schwartzman
In 1950s Mexico City, William Lee, an American ex-pat in his late forties, leads a solitary life amidst a small American community. However, the arrival in town of Eugene Allerton, a young student, stirs William into finally establishing a meaningful connection with someone.
Starring: Lily-Rose Depp, Emma Corrin, Aaron Taylor-Johnson, Bill Skarsgård, Willem Dafoe
Robert Eggers’ Nosferatu is a gothic tale of obsession between a haunted young woman and the terrifying vampire infatuated with her, causing untold horror in its wake.
Starring: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Powers Boothe, Raymond J. Barry, Whittni Wright, Ross Malinger
Co-hosted by Mark Pagán, host and creator of the podcast Other Men Need Help
Your aunt’s favorite 90s action hunk, Jean-Claude Van Damme takes on terrorists, in his second outing with genre great Peter Hyams.
The Muscles from Brussels plays Darren McCord, an ex-fireman now relegated to security duty at the Stanley Cup Finals in Pittsburgh. A fun night out with his kids turns deadly when terrorists, led by ex-CIA agent Joshua Foss (the always dependable Powers Boothe), take over the arena and hold the vice president hostage. With the clock ticking, Darren goes full action-hero mode to stop the bombs and, maybe, just maybe, save the day. This explosive mid-decade “Die Hard in a hockey arena” was one of Van Damme’s last big theatrical hits before moving into a robust career as an aging direct-to-video action mainstay (interestingly, in quite a few films directed by Peter Hyams’ talented son, John).
