Barry Reardon’s further impact as the head of distribution at Warner Brothers for two decades continues with this article highlighting great dramas that were distributed during his time at the studio. The notable highlights include Malcolm X, which came out in theaters in 1992. The film is co-written and directed by Spike Lee. It is an epic biographical drama that stars Denzel Washington as Malcolm X, Angela Bassett, Albert Hall, Al Freeman Jr., and Delroy Lindo. It had many notable cameos as well, including Bobby Seale, Al Sharpton, and Nelson Mandela. The story is largely based on USCG veteran Alex Haley’s book, The Autobiography of Malcolm X and follows key events from his life. The movie was nominated for two Oscars Best Actor (Washington) and Best Costume Desing (Ruth E. Carter). It brought in $73M at the box office and in 2010 got selected to be in the US National Film Registry by the Library of Congress.
JFK
The Oliver Stone co-written and directed political thriller JFK came to screens in 1991. It stars Kevin Costner, Kevin Bacon, Tommy Lee Jones, Laure Metcalf, Gary Oldman, Sissy Spacek and Michael Rooker. It follows the investigation into President Kennedy’s assassination by Jim Garrison. Garrison believed there was a conspiracy surrounding the assassination and was willing to risk his life and career to uncover the truth. The screenplay was based on Garrison’s book On the Trail of the Assasins. The film came under much criticism for proposing the “counter-myth” to the Warren Commission’s “fictional myth” about the assassination. Nonetheless, audiences and critics still went in droves to see the film which brought in over $200M at the box office. It was nominated for eight Oscars and won for Best Editing and Best Cinematography.
The Bodyguard
The romantic drama thriller The Bodyguard came out in 1992 and was directed by Mick Jackson, written by Lawrence Kasdan and starred Kevin Coster and Whitney Houston. The story is about a former Secret Service agent who transitions into the career of a bodyguard for famous people. He guards a famous actress and singer against a stalker. The Bodyguard was initially planned to be a star vehicle for Steve McQueen and Diana Ross in the 1970s. The movie had a great soundtrack, which included two hits from Houston, which won a Grammy Award for Album of the Year. It grossed $411M at the box office against a budget of $25M and received an Oscar nomination for Best Original Song.
Heat
Heat is a crime film that came out in theaters in 1995 and was written and directed by Michael Mann. The film stars Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Tom Sizemore, Jon Voight, Amy Brenneman, Ashley Judd, Wes Studi and Val Kilmer. The story is based on the true story of Chuck Adamson, a Chicago police officer turned writer, in pursuit of criminal Neil McCauley. Neil is the name of De Niro’s character in the film. The film is about an LAPD detective (Pacino) who pursues a big-time criminal (De Niro) across Los Angeles and how their lives impact those around them. It brought in $187M at the box office and is considered one of the best crime films of all time.
Falling Down
Another top crime drama thriller from Warner Brothers, Falling Down came out in 1993. The movie was directed by Joel Schumacher, written by Ebbe Roe Smith and stars Michael Douglas, Robert Duvall, Barbara Hershey, Rachel Ticotin, Frederic Forrest and Tuesday Weld. The story follows William Foster (Douglas) as he leaves his car in the middle of gridlock on the freeway to travel across town for his daughter’s birthday. Along the way, we find out the many issues Foster, aka D-FENS, is facing, such as losing his job, getting divorced, and not being allowed to see his daughter.
Martin Prendergast, a nearly retired LAPD officer, played by Duvall gets put on Foster’s case as he continues to rack up crimes and a rap sheet during his travels across the concrete jungle of Los Angeles. The film was nominated for the Palme d’Or and earned an Edgar Award for Best Motion Picture Screenplay. It brought in $96M at the box office and has gone down in history as one of the most original and unflinching films of its time. It has been referenced throughout media to include rap and metal songs.