Film in the 1990’s D’Arcy Singlehurst-Balthazar Media Studies

The average film budget was almost $53 million by 1998, many films cost over $100 million to produce, and some of the most expensive blockbusters were even more.

Highest paid stars in the 1990s’ were, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Tom Cruise, Sylvester Stallone, Mel Gibson, Eddie Murphy, Kevin Costner, Harrison Ford, Robin Williams, Jim Carrey, Demi Moore, Julia Roberts, and others

The VCR was still a popular appliance in most households (about three quarters of them in 1991) and rentals and purchase of videotapes were big business - much larger than sales of movie theater tickets.

By 1997, the first DVDs (digital video discs) had emerged in stores, featuring sharper resolution pictures, better quality and durability than videotape, interactive extras, and more secure copy-protection.

Dreamworks studio was formed in October Their first real hit was also their first film to be nominated for Best Picture - Saving Private Ryan (1998).

Miramax began an unbroken, eleven-year streak lasting from 1992 until 2002, of Best Picture- nominated films each year, beginning with The Crying Game (1992). It was the longest streak for any company since the Academy limited the Best Picture nominees to five films in The Crying Game The Piano Pulp fiction Il Postino The English Patient - nine wins from its twelve nominations, including Best Picture Good Will Hunting Shakespeare in Love - seven wins from its thirteen nominations, including Best Picture Life is Beautiful The Cider House Rules Chocolat In the Bedroom Chicago - six wins from its thirteen nominations, including Best Picture Gangs of New York The Hours

The best-paid female actress of the decade was Julia Roberts, "America's Sweetheart " who appeared in lead roles in both clunkers and profitable films - usually likeable screwball comedies. She first joined the club of actresses earning a million dollars per picture after being nominated for an Academy Award for director Garry Marshall's Pretty Woman (1990).

The biggest male star of the decade was Tom Cruise, with films as diverse as Days of Thunder (1990), A Few Good Men (1992), the epic tale of Irish immigrants in the late 19th century titled Far and Away (1992), The Firm (1993), Interview with the Vampire (1994), Mission: Impossible (1996), Jerry Maguire (1996), and Eyes Wide Shut (1999).