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25 years ago - December 21, 1990

Kindergarten Cop
The second movie for Arnold Schwarzenegger in 1990 (after Total Recall) has him going undercover as a substitute teacher in order to find identify the child of a drug dealer about to go on trial. Penelope Ann Miller plays a fellow teacher who helps Det. John Kimble learn how to effectively (and appropriately) corral the kids. After years of violent action films, Schwarzenegger started to transition to more family-friendly fare with Twins in 1990. As with most Schwarzenegger films, this one had a few memorable one-liners, such as when he roars “It’s not a tumor!!” when one of the kids tries to diagnose his stress headache. Kindergarten Cop opened at #2 behind Home Alone (still cruising along at #1 in its sixth week) with $11.2 million from 1,833 theaters. It went on to become the third highest grossing film of Schwarzenegger’s career to date, and a top 10 grossing film for the year.

The Russia House
Sean Connery stars in the adaptation of John le Carre’s spy novel about a British publisher who is recruited to become a spy for MI6 and the CIA in order to turn a Soviet nuclear scientist. Michelle Pfeiffer co-stars as a Soviet woman who helps and becomes Connery’s romantic interest (Connery was 60 during filming while Pfeiffer was 32). Klaus Maria Brandauer, James Fox, and Roy Scheider also co-star. The Russia House was filmed and released just as Germany was reunifying and the Soviet Union was dissolving. Reviews were good, but this was a murky, R-rated release. The Russia House opened at #7 with $4.4 million from 717 theaters, and eventually earned $23 million overall.

The Bonfire of the Vanities
Tom Wolfe’s 1987 novel about New York City excess and racism in the 1980s was a bestseller and natural choice for a film adaptation. Unfortunately the big budget, R-rated comedy turned out to be a bust. Tom Hanks plays a rich Wall Street investor who is embroiled in a racial scandal after his girlfriend, played by Melanie Griffith, hits a black teen in the Bronx and flees the scene. F. Murray Abraham plays the District Attorney out to bury Hanks’s character, and Bruce Willis plays an investigative journalist who is trying to redeem himself with a big story. John Hancock plays an obvious version of Reverend Al Sharpton, who had become a high profile voice in the racially-charged cases of Bernie Goetz and Tawana Brawley. Reviews of the film were lousy, and it was nominated for Worst Picture, Director, Actress (Melanie Griffith) and Supporting Actress (Kim Cattrall) by the Golden Raspberry Awards. It bombed at the box office as well, opening at #8 with $4.2 million from 1,373 theaters and a total gross of $15.6 million - a fraction of its $47 million budget.

Almost an Angel
Paul Hogan takes a break from his Crocodile Dundee role to play a thief who has a life-after-death experience that causes him to change his ways and help out a disabled man (Elias Koteas) and his sister (Hogan’s wife and Dundee co-star, Linda Kozlowski). Reviews were not good and the film was a box office failure in its own right, and even more so compared to Hogan’s successes with Crocodile Dundee. Almost an Angel opened at #14 with $1.6 million from 1,373 theaters and only managed to gross $6.9 million overall.

Awakenings
Penny Marshall directs this drama that fictionalizes the story of British neurologist Oliver Sacks and his work on catatonic hospital patients. Robin Williams plays the doctor who awakens a patient played by Robert De Niro. Penelope Ann Miller and Julie Kavner co-star. The film drew good reviews and comparisons to Rain Man, released two years earlier. At the Oscars it was nominated for Best Picture, Screenplay, and Actor (De Niro). Awakenings opened at 12 theaters this weekend (for an average of $34,756 per site) and expanded to wide release on January 11th, eventually earning $52 million.

Hamlet
Hollywood prankster and action hero Mel Gibson gets serious and acty, playing the tormented Prince of Denmark. Glenn Close plays Gertrude, with Helena Bonham Carter as Ophelia and Ian Holm as Polonius. Reviews of Gibson’s performance and the film were positive, and it received Oscar nominations for Best Art Direction and Costume Design. Hamlet opened in four theaters this weekend and expanded to a peak of 624 in February, eventually earning $20.7 million.

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