1996
Fargo
(1996)
Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Won 2 Oscars. Another 73 wins & 53 nominations.
Jerry works in his father-in-law's car dealership and has gotten himself in financial problems. He tries various schemes to come up with money needed for a reason that is never really explained. It has to be assumed that his huge embezzlement of money from the dealership is about to be discovered by father-in-law. When all else falls through, plans he set in motion earlier for two men to kidnap his wife for ransom to be paid by her wealthy father (who doesn't seem to have the time of day for son-in-law). From the moment of the kidnapping, things go wrong and what was supposed to be a non-violent affair turns bloody with more blood added by the minute. Jerry is upset at the bloodshed, which turns loose a pregnant sheriff from Brainerd, MN who is tenacious in attempting to solve the three murders in her jurisdiction.
From Dusk Till Dawn
(1996)
Robert Kurtzman (story), Quentin Tarantino (screenplay)
4 wins & 8 nominations.
Two criminals and their hostages unknowingly seek temporary refuge in an establishment populated by vampires, with chaotic results.
Hard Eight
(1996)
Paul Thomas Anderson
1 win & 7 nominations.
John has lost all his money. He sits outside a diner in the desert when Sydney happens along, buys him coffee, then takes him to Reno and shows him how to get a free room without losing much money. Under Sydney's fatherly tutelage, John becomes a successful small-time professional gambler, and all is well, until he falls for Clementine, a cocktail waitress and sometimes hooker.
Last Man Standing
(1996)
Ryûzô Kikushima (story), Akira Kurosawa (story), Walter Hill (screenplay)
N/A
A drifting gunslinger-for-hire finds himself in the middle of an ongoing war between the Irish and Italian mafia in a Prohibition era ghost town.
Mission: Impossible
(1996)
Bruce Geller (television series), David Koepp (story), Steven Zaillian (story), David Koepp (screenplay), Robert Towne (screenplay)
3 wins & 13 nominations.
Based on the hit T.V. series. Jim Phelps was sent to Prague for a mission to prevent the theft of classified material. His wife Claire and his trusted partner Ethan Hunt were members of Phelps' team. Unfortunately, something went horribly wrong and the mission failed, leaving Ethan Hunt the lone survivor. After he reported the failed mission, Kettridge the head of the agency suspects Ethan of being the culprit for the failed mission. Now, Ethan uses unorthodox methods (Which includes the aid of an arms dealer going by the name "Max") to try to find who set him up and to clear his name.
Trainspotting
(1996)
Irvine Welsh (novel), John Hodge (screenplay)
Nominated for 1 Oscar. Another 20 wins & 26 nominations.
A wild, freeform, Rabelaisian trip through the darkest recesses of Edinburgh low-life, focusing on Mark Renton and his attempt to give up his heroin habit, and how the latter affects his relationship with family and friends: Sean Connery wannabe Sick Boy, dimbulb Spud, psycho Begbie, 14-year-old girlfriend Diane, and clean-cut athlete Tommy, who's never touched drugs but can't help being curious about them...