AV Club's top 50 movies of the 90s

[Admiral Yi]

Any of Boogie's minor characters are more human than a central figure in Pulp.

Yes and Talladega Nights: the Legend of Ricky Bobby is funnier than The Godfather. So what?

Zing.

The first time I saw Pulp Fiction the motel scene worked because it was such a mind trip that a 50ish leading man was fucking a girl who looked 11.  The only part of the Butch interlude that's truly dull is the walk back to the apartment.  The ball gag scene is one of the most intense scenes ever filmed.

[Ed Anger]

Dead nigger storage. That is all.

[CountDeMoney]

Resevoir Dogs would be up in the top 20.  Pulp Fiction gets really dull in parts.

The Bruce Willis thing in the middle gets very boring

[yes I'm getting into this thread late.]

Maybe Pulp Fiction's reliance on fast dialogue, obscure pop culture references, and inventive slang doesn't translate well into yours and Queequeq's native languages?

[Josephus]

Hey I saw that movie  when it came out. I was in my mid-late 20s. Perfect age for it. And I loved it. Became a huge Tarantino fan.
I bought it on VHS when it came out. Still have it.

It's a brilliant movie that deserves to be in the list for best movies of the 90s. I dig the clever witty dialogue...[what do you call a quarter pounder with cheese in France....Hey I just shot Marvin...] clever.  It just hasn't stood the test of time. The bits with Travolta and Samuel Mother Fucker Jackson are great. But there's slow bits that now make you yearn for the FF-Button. And the Bruce Willis bit with the chick and her "pot"is one of those scenes (though I love the scene with Christopher Walken and the watch]. And others here agree.

Great movie. Just needs to be trimmed a bit. It's not even Tarantino's best (Resevoir Dogs deserves that title)

[frunk]

The Orphan List adds some nice also rans.  I was glad to see Grosse Pointe Blank, Trust, Gilliam get some credit with Fear and Loathing (although I prefer 12 Monkeys), The Player, Iron Giant and Office Space. 

The worst MiAs:
Silence of the Lambs - I still don't get why this doesn't show up.  The criticisms that I can find of it are based on the treatment of women, the depiction of the transgendered and the disturbing relationships developed by Hannibal Lector with Clarice.  On the quality of the movie itself I can't find any.  Is AV Club seriously arguing that the Blair Witch Project is better than this?
Shawshank Redemption - On the comments one of the staff mentioned that it wasn't particularly liked at AV Club.  Overreaction to it being #1 on imdb?
Princess Mononoke or Porco Rosso - Animation in general was underrepresented (2 out of 82) but not including one of Miyazaki's seems criminal.
Drunken Master 2 - Martial arts movies aren't popular amongst critics. Even given that Jackie Chan near the height of his powers is so entertaining that it seems like a serious omission compared to other popcorn flicks they did include.
South Park: Bigger, Longer and Uncut: Yes, it's South Park with all the potty humor and profanity that implies.  It's also one of the best musicals ever.

Questionable Choices:
Face/Off - If you are going to include a John Woo film from the 90s shouldn't it be Hard Boiled?
Point Break - You already have one Keanu Reeves movie with The Matrix and now you made it worse.
The Blair Witch Project - Even the writeup for it acknowledges that the inclusion is more about the hype than the quality of the movie.
Eyes Wide Shut - I love Kubrick, but this is him at his most indulgent and least interesting.

[CountDeMoney]

Shawshank Redemption - On the comments one of the staff mentioned that it wasn't particularly liked at AV Club.  Overreaction to it being #1 on imdb?

Unfortunate casualty of snotty Gen Y hipsterism that pervades the AV Club like so many lens-less eyelglass frames at an free trade coffee house with shitty original art.

[frunk]

Zing.

The first time I saw Pulp Fiction the motel scene worked because it was such a mind trip that a 50ish leading man was fucking a girl who looked 11.  The only part of the Butch interlude that's truly dull is the walk back to the apartment.  The ball gag scene is one of the most intense scenes ever filmed.

Willis was only 38 or 39 when Pulp Fiction was shot.

[FunkMonk]

Shawshank Redemption - On the comments one of the staff mentioned that it wasn't particularly liked at AV Club.  Overreaction to it being #1 on imdb?

Unfortunate casualty of snotty Gen Y hipsterism that pervades the AV Club like so many lens-less eyelglass frames at an free trade coffee house with shitty original art.

[Eddie Teach]

Point Break - You already have one Keanu Reeves movie with The Matrix and now you made it worse.

Point Break > Matrix. Though I prefer to think of it as a Patrick Swayze movie.

One of these days, I really need to learn to surf.

Also, I'd be tempted to snub Shawshank for much the same reason, though ultimately I'd probably put it in a 30-40 slot like it deserves.

[katmai]

Wait, wait. Point break made top 50 films of the 90's.

The only top list that movie should be on is scripts to wipe my ass with.

[Barrister]

Wait, wait. Point break made top 50 films of the 90's.

The only top list that movie should be on is scripts to wipe my ass with.

No, it was an honourable mention.  But agree on the proper use for that script.

[frunk]

Point Break - You already have one Keanu Reeves movie with The Matrix and now you made it worse.

Point Break > Matrix. Though I prefer to think of it as a Patrick Swayze movie.

One of these days, I really need to learn to surf.

Also, I'd be tempted to snub Shawshank for much the same reason, though ultimately I'd probably put it in a 30-40 slot like it deserves.

You are snubbing Shawshank because you need to learn to surf?

[katmai]

Charlie don't surf and neither does Wiggin.

[The Larch]

Zing.

The first time I saw Pulp Fiction the motel scene worked because it was such a mind trip that a 50ish leading man was fucking a girl who looked 11.  The only part of the Butch interlude that's truly dull is the walk back to the apartment.  The ball gag scene is one of the most intense scenes ever filmed.

Willis was only 38 or 39 when Pulp Fiction was shot.

And María de Medeiros 29.

[Eddie Teach]

You are snubbing Shawshank because you need to learn to surf?

Nah, I'd consider snubbing it because it's generally overrated, as the IMDB score attests. But if I was making a list of how I honestly felt 90s movies stacked up, I wouldn't be surprised if it snuck in. No way in hell it'd get in top 10 though.