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A30 PEOPLE & ARTS
Wednesday 17 april 2019
Book offers spirited claim 1999 was film’s best ever

By DOUGLASS K. DANIEL 1999 was the best movie What makes a movie year
Associated Press year ever, let him go for it the best ever or even
“Best. Movie. Year. Ever.: and enjoy the ride. Similar good?
How 1999 Blew Up the Big claims have been made For Raftery, those years are
Screen,” by Brian Raftery about 1939 (“Gone With “ones in which film took an
(Simon & Schuster) the Wind,” ‘’The Wizard of almost teleportative leap
Everybody’s entitled to Oz,” ‘’Stagecoach,” ‘’Mr. forward, reinventing and
their opinion, especially Smith Goes to Washington,” reviving itself in front of our
when it comes to the mov- among others). The staff of very eyes.”
ies. Somewhere out there The Washington Post re- Several movies in 1999
is a person, maybe even cently cited seven different managed to reach that
two, whose all-time favorite years, including 1939 and high bar. The year’s biggest
is “The Boy Who Could Fly.” 1999. Raftery himself points moneymakers, “Star Wars:
So, if culture writer Brian to 1939 and three years the Episode I — The Phantom
Raftery wants to argue that Post excluded: 1967, 1977 Menace” revived a cine-
matic franchise while “The
Sixth Sense” heralded a
new talent in writer-direc-
tor M. Night Shyamalan.
“American Beauty” won
the top awards for its darkly
funny and disturbing tale of
suburban malaise. Darkly
funny could describe “Of-
fice Space,” too, a box-of-
fice disappointment turned
cult classic.
This photo provided by Simon & Schuster shows the cover of
“Best. Movie. Year. Ever.: How 1999 Blew Up the Big Screen,” by “The Blair Witch Project”
Brian Raftery. scared plenty of ticket buy-
Associated Press ers but may be most no-
and 1985. threat. These events had table for its pioneering on-
Let’s forget the clickbait ti- an impact because movies line marketing. “Fight Club”
tle for a moment. Raftery’s aren’t made or viewed in a was an edgy satire about
book works best — and vacuum. manliness that too few
works rather well — as a re- Raftery’s interviews with people appreciated at the
port on moviemaking as it scores of actors, directors, time, “American Pie” and
existed two decades ago. writers and others power “Cruel Intentions” helped
New elbows were being interesting and intriguing reboot the teen movie,
thrown in the age-old strug- backstories about sever- “The Matrix” had a mind-
gle of art and commerce, al movies that are pretty blowing plot as well as eye-
thanks to technology, poli- darn good and others that popping special effects,
tics and social divisions. The are pretty darn forgetta- and “Three Kings” and “The
year 1999 carried itself with ble. Funny thing, even if a Limey” reinvigorated the
an economic swagger, but movie isn’t much to look caper genre. Importantly,
it strutted in the shadow of at, how it got to theaters “The Best Man” and “The
the Clinton impeachment can be engrossing when Wood” showed studios that
and the Columbine massa- Raftery teases out a telling black-themed films could
cre — and the looming Y2K anecdote. make money, too.q

Kathie Lee Gifford wraps up 11 years

with NBC’s ‘Today’ show

Associated Press
NEW YORK (AP) — Kathie
Lee Gifford wrapped up
11 years with NBC’s “To-
day” show Friday with
laughs, tears, Scripture
and — of course — wine.
The 65-year-old host re-
ceived a standing ova-
tion from the audience
after rapper Flo Rida This image released by NBC shows “Today” show hosts Hoda
opened the program by Kotb, left, and Kathie Lee Gifford on the set in New York,
singing that the studio Friday, April 5, 2019, on Gifford’s last day as co-host.
was “Kathie Lee’s house.” Associated Press
Co-host Hoda Kotb cred- they have “a very real music projects in the next
ited Gifford for their suc- friendship.” phase of her career. Jen-
cess, and Gifford said Gifford plans to pursue na Bush Hager will join
they have fun because working on movie and Kotb on the program.q