Underrated '96 - Arik Devens

Arik Devens is an iOS developer at Fitbit in San Francisco. In his spare time he’s attempting to watch the entire Criterion Collection, which he writes about at Cinema Gadfly (http://cinemagadfly.com). This year he started a podcast where he trades watching Criterion films with his friends, for watching anything they want him to see. It’s confusingly also named Cinema Gadfly (http://cinemagadfly.com/podcast/), which is now part of the Criterion Cast Network.
Find him on Twitter here:
https://twitter.com/cinemagadfly
-----------

The Phantom (1996; Simon Wincer)
It’s an absurd take on a cool old pulp-era character, from an era before we were all spoiled with superhero films. It’s a neo-noir Indiana Jones Batman film, how does that not sound awesome?

Foxfire (1996; Annette Haywood-Carter)
I’m a huge fan of young Angelina Jolie, so this one was right in my wheelhouse. An incredible soundtrack for a surprisingly great coming of age type film

The Great White Hype (1996; Reginald Hudlin)
This isn’t a great film, but it’s a really fun one. Any time you get Samuel L. Jackson in a comedy like this I’m onboard. It also features a surprising number of great actors for such a silly little film. It’s an entertaining diversion.

Get on the Bus (1996; Spike Lee)
There are so many small moments that make this film worthwhile for me. It’s not Spike Lee’s most well-loved, nor is it his best, but it’s definitely one that mattered to me a lot growing up. I’m also a huge Andre Braugher fan, so that alone makes it a keeper for me.

Kids in the Hall: Brain Candy (1996; Kelly Makin)
For whatever reason this film hasn’t gotten the attention it deserves. It’s an unbelievably funny film from one of the best sketch comedy troupes of the last thirty years, but someone it’s been mostly forgotten. There are so many quotable lines that still get me to laugh to the day. What else can I say about this film except that the trivia team I’m on is called Gleemonex.