Felipa’s Flix: Legendary films of 1994

EL PASO, Texas (KTSM) — It was a year where faux fur and platform shoes ruled. The chicken caesar salad became all the rage and the PlayStation console was born. Everyone watched Thursday nights on NBC with such shows as Friends and Seinfeld, and it was the year that Harry Styles was born.

1994 in film was even more spectacular with films that have become Cinematic classics. Let’s start with the Academy Award winner for Best Picture of 1994, Forrest Gump. The film’s star, Tom Hanks, won an Academy Award the previous year for the groundbreaking film Philadelphia and was the shoo-in with his performance as a man from Alabama, who tells stories of his life while sitting on bus stops. Forrest deals with disabilities and his mother, played beautifully by Sally Field, encourages him to never hold back. The movie shares all sorts of incredible history that includes Forrest, from meetings with Presidents, world leaders and lives an incredible life. It’s a wonderful journey back in time, and a must-see film.

Pulp Fiction – Quentin Tarantino brings the craziest film narrative to life with an unbelievable story of the lives of some pretty insane people, in the weirdest sense of chronological order in the world of people like Vincent Vega who is a hitman.. he’s also John Travolta. Uma Thurman is Mia Wallace, a wanna-be actress, drug addict, and wife of a very powerful murderous gangster, Marsellus Wallace. Butch Coolidge, played by Bruce Willis, is a sinister killer boxer who “throws” the wrong fight. Samuel L. Jackson is Jules Winnfield, another hitman, and the list goes on with Christopher Walken, Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth, and Amanda Plummer as Pumpkin and Honey Bunny, who call the shots in the first scene. Even Tarantino, who won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, is in the film. You have to see it to believe it! Don’t forget the Royale with Cheese and a Tasty Beverage.

The Shawshank Redemption, not a Box Office winner, has gone down in history as one of the finest films of the last generation. Tim Robbins stars as a man accused of murder in one of the most violent Prisons ever in one of the truest films depicting life behind bars. The story, written by Steven King, also stars Morgan Freeman, another inmate who befriends Robbin’s character, Andy, whereby he experiences outrageous brutality, and his life unfolds while behind bars for 19 years. The film is overwhelming and has been preserved in the National Film Registry as one of the most culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant of its time.

Four Weddings and a Funeral is one of the most charming and hard to believe it’s 30 years old. It was a time that I remember well. There was a wedding every weekend of people our age, and this film tells the loving story of a group of friends who help each other while dealing with the responsibilities of each other’s weddings, in a time where everyone met “organically.’ It’s about friendship and love and was a movie that made Hugh Grant a Star.  Supermodel Andie McDowell stars as the woman he spots across the crowded “church,” Kristin Scott Thomas, Rowan Atkinson, better known as “Mr. Bean,” in a hilarious scene as a Church Minister is featured in this classic, which has been named one of the 100 Greatest British Films. It’s a joy to watch, and you can never grow tired of two hours filled with Love.

Clifford was a funny film about a bad boy, but is now called a dark, cult comedy. Martin Short stars as that bad boy who is sent off to stay with his Uncle, played by the late great Charles Grodin. He is engaged to a lovely school teacher, played by Mary Steenburgen, and the evil little boy is determined to go to “Dinosaur World,” at all costs… no matter what it takes. This film is truly hilarious as Martin Short is at his conniving best. He was inspired by the 1950’s cult classic, “The Bad Seed,” and watching the film, 30 years later, you simply cannot help but feel the evil in this sinister child. Dinosaurs were extremely popular due to the release of “Jurassic Park,” the year before, and it seemed like a scary, fun PG-rated film. Watching it now, yes, this film is very dark, but so very entertaining and perhaps.. not for children?

30 years later… still loving these classic films.

For the latest news, weather, sports, and streaming video, head to KTSM 9 News.