76%  Winner:   Braveheart  178 min,  R,  [Biography, Drama, History, War]  [Mel Gibson]  [24 May 1995]
Ratings & Reviews:  IMDb Reviews: 84%,   Rotten Tomatoes: 77%,   Metacritic: 68%,   External Reviews
Awards:  Won 5 Oscars. Another 26 wins & 28 nominations.
Actors:  James Cosmo, James Robinson, Mel Gibson, Patrick McGoohan, Sandy Nelson, Sean Lawlor, Sophie Marceau
Writer:  Randall Wallace
External Links:  Wikipedia  Rotten Tomatoes  IMDb  Website     Language:  English, French, Latin, Scottish Gaelic, Italian    Country:  USA, Ireland
Plot:  William Wallace is a Scottish rebel who leads an uprising against the cruel English ruler Edward the Longshanks, who wishes to inherit the crown of Scotland for himself. When he was a young boy, William Wallace's father and brother, along with many others, lost their lives trying to free Scotland. Once he loses another of his loved ones, William Wallace begins his long quest to make Scotland free once and for all, along with the assistance of Robert the Bruce.
Rotten Tomatoes:   Mel Gibson, long-time heartthrob of the silver screen, came into his own as a director with Braveheart, an account of the life and times of medieval Scottish patriot William Wallace and, to a lesser degree, Robert the Bruce's struggle to unify his nation against its English oppressors. The story begins with young Wallace, whose father and brother have been killed fighting the English, being taken into the custody of his uncle, a nationalist and pre-Renaissance renaissance man. He returns twenty years later, a man educated both in the classics and in the art of war. There he finds his childhood sweetheart Murron (Catherine McCormack), and the two quickly fall in love. There are murmurs of revolt against the English throughout the village, but Wallace remains aloof, wishing simply to tend to his crops and live in peace. However, when his love is killed by English soldiers the day after their secret marriage (held secretly so as to prevent the local English lord from exercising the repulsive right of prima noctae, the privilege of sleeping with the bride on the first night of the marriage), he springs into action and single-handedly slays an entire platoon of foot soldiers. The other villagers join him in destroying the English garrison, and thus begins the revolt against the English in what will eventually become full-fledged war. Wallace eventually leads his fellow Scots in a series of bloody battles that prove a serious threat to English domination and, along the way, has a hushed affair with the Princess of Wales (the breathtaking Sophie Marceau) before his imminent demise. For his efforts, Gibson won the honor of Best Director from the Academy; the movie also took home statuettes for Best Picture, Cinematography, Makeup, and Sound Effects. ~ Jeremy Beday, Rovi

82%  Nominee:   Apollo 13  140 min,  PG,  [Adventure, Drama, History]  [Ron Howard]  [30 Jun 1995]
Ratings & Reviews:  IMDb Reviews: 76%,   Rotten Tomatoes: 95%,   Metacritic: 77%,   External Reviews
Awards:  Won 2 Oscars. Another 24 wins & 49 nominations.
Actors:  Bill Paxton, Gary Sinise, Kevin Bacon, Tom Hanks
Writer:  Jim Lovell (book), Jeffrey Kluger (book), William Broyles Jr. (screenplay), Al Reinert (screenplay)
External Links:  Wikipedia  Rotten Tomatoes  IMDb  Website     Language:  English    Country:  USA
Plot:  Based on the true story of the ill-fated 13th Apollo mission bound for the moon. Astronauts Lovell, Haise and Swigert were scheduled to fly Apollo 14, but are moved up to 13. It's 1970, and The US has already achieved their lunar landing goal, so there's little interest in this "routine" flight.. until that is, things go very wrong, and prospects of a safe return fade.
Rotten Tomatoes:   "Houston, we have a problem." Those words were immortalized during the tense days of the Apollo 13 lunar mission crisis in 1970, events recreated in this epic historical drama from Ron Howard. Astronaut Jim Lovell (Tom Hanks) leads command module pilot Jack Swigert (Kevin Bacon) and lunar module driver Fred Haise (Bill Paxton) on what is slated as NASA's third lunar landing mission. All goes smoothly until the craft is halfway through its mission, when an exploding oxygen tank threatens the crew's oxygen and power supplies. As the courageous astronauts face the dilemma of either suffocating or freezing to death, Mattingly and Mission Control leader Gene Kranz (Ed Harris) struggle to find a way to bring the crew back home, all the while knowing that the spacemen face probable death once the battered ship reenters the Earth's atmosphere. The film received an overwhelmingly enthusiastic critical response and a Best Picture nomination, but lost that Oscar to another (very different) historical epic, Mel Gibson's Braveheart. In 2002, the movie was released in IMAX theaters as Apollo 13: The IMAX Experience, with a pared-down running time of 116 minutes in order to meet the technical requirements of the large-screen format. ~ Don Kaye, Rovi

82%  Nominee:   Babe  91 min,  G,  [Comedy, Drama, Family]  [Chris Noonan]  [04 Aug 1995]
Ratings & Reviews:  IMDb Reviews: 68%,   Rotten Tomatoes: 97%,   Metacritic: 83%,   External Reviews
Awards:  Won 1 Oscar. Another 18 wins & 23 nominations.
Actors:  Christine Cavanaugh, Danny Mann, Hugo Weaving, James Cromwell, Magda Szubanski, Miriam Margolyes
Writer:  Dick King-Smith (novel), George Miller (screenplay), Chris Noonan (screenplay)
External Links:  Wikipedia  Rotten Tomatoes  IMDb     Language:  English    Country:  Australia, USA
Plot:  Gentle farmer Arthur Hoggett wins a piglet named Babe at a county fair. Narrowly escaping his fate as Christmas dinner when Farmer Hoggett decides to show him at the next fair, Babe bonds with motherly border collie Fly and discovers that he too can herd sheep. But will the other farm animals, including Fly's jealous husband Rex, accept a pig who doesn't conform to the farm's social hierarchy?
Rotten Tomatoes:   A young pig fights convention to become a sheep dog -- or, rather, sheep pig -- in this charming Australian family film, which became an unexpected international success due to superior special effects and an intelligent script. The title refers to the name bestowed on a piglet soon after his separation from his family, when he finds himself on a strange farm. Confused and sad, Babe is adopted by a friendly dog and slowly adjusts to his new home. Discovering that the fate of most pigs is the dinner table, Babe devotes himself to becoming a useful member of the farm by trying to learn how to herd sheep, despite the skepticism of the other animals and the kindly but conventional Farmer Hoggett (James Cromwell). Because technically impeccable animatronics and computer graphics allow the farm animals to converse easily among themselves, first-time director Chris Noonan can treat the film's menagerie as actual characters, playing scene not for cuteness but for real emotions. The result is often surprisingly touching, with Noonan and George Miller's script, based on Dick King-Smith's children's book and, indirectly, a true story, seamlessly combining gentle whimsy and sincere feeling. These same qualities are embodied by in Cromwell's beautifully understated performance as Farmer Hoggett, which anchors the film. Despite its unlikely premise and low profile, Babe's inspirational story was embraced by audiences and critics, and the movie became an international sleeper that won an Academy Award nomination for Best Picture. It was followed in 1999 by the less successful Babe: Pig in the City. ~ Judd Blaise, Rovi

86%  Nominee:   Sense and Sensibility  136 min,  PG,  [Drama, Romance]  [Ang Lee]  [26 Jan 1996]
Ratings & Reviews:  IMDb Reviews: 77%,   Rotten Tomatoes: 98%,   Metacritic: 84%,   External Reviews
Awards:  Won 1 Oscar. Another 31 wins & 44 nominations.
Actors:  Emma Thompson, Harriet Walter, James Fleet, Kate Winslet, Tom Wilkinson
Writer:  Jane Austen (novel), Emma Thompson (screenplay)
External Links:  Rotten Tomatoes  IMDb     Language:  English, French    Country:  USA, UK
Plot:  When Mr. Dashwood dies, he must leave the bulk of his estate to the son by his first marriage, which leaves his second wife and their three daughters (Elinor, Marianne, and Margaret) in straitened circumstances. They are taken in by a kindly cousin, but their lack of fortune affects the marriageability of both practical Elinor and romantic Marianne. When Elinor forms an attachment for the wealthy Edward Ferrars, his family disapproves and separates them. And though Mrs. Jennings tries to match the worthy (and rich) Colonel Brandon to her, Marianne finds the dashing and fiery John Willoughby more to her taste. Both relationships are sorely tried.
Rotten Tomatoes:   In this costume drama, based on the novel by Jane Austen, Mrs. Dashwood and her daughters are left with almost nothing after Mr. Dashwood's death. They move into a cottage and sensible eldest daughter Elinor attempts to keep things running smoothly, in spite of her free-spirited sister's efforts to the contrary.