1989 in film
Events
- Batman is released on June 23, and goes on to gross over $410 million worldwide.
- Actress Kim Basinger and her brother Mick purchase Braselton, Georgia, for $20 million. (Basinger would lose the town to her partner in the deal, the pension fund of Chicago-based Ameritech Corp., in 1993 after being forced to file for bankruptcy when a California judge ordered her to pay $7.4 million for refusing to honor a verbal contract to star in the film Boxing Helena.)
- September - Columbia Pictures and Tri-Star Pictures are sold to Sony
- The James Bond film Licence to Kill is released. Unknown to anyone at the time, its release would be followed by years of legal wrangling over the future of the popular film series. The next Bond film, GoldenEye, is not released until 1995.
- Screen and stage legend Laurence Olivier appeared in his last filmed role before his death in 1989 as an old soldier in War Requiem
- Field of Dreams is released on April 23, striking an emotional chord in men and fans of baseball.
- Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade is released on May 24. It is the 3rd installment of the Indiana Jones series.
- Back to the Future Part II is released on November 22, and is the 2nd installment of the Back to the Future series.
- Honey, I Shrunk the Kids is released on June 23.
- This is the first year where all ten top grossing films worldwide made more than $100,000,000.
- The first installment of the Disney Renaissance, The Little Mermaid, is released on November 17.
Top grossing films (Worldwide)
| Rank |
Title |
Studio |
Actors |
Director |
Gross |
| 1. |
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade |
Paramount/Lucasfilm |
Harrison Ford, Allison Doody, John Rhys-Davies, Denholm Elliott, Julian Glover, River Pheonix, and Sean Connery |
Steven Spielberg |
$474,200,000 |
| 2. |
Batman |
Warner Bros. |
Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Pat Hingle, Robert Wuhl, Billy Dee Williams, Michael Gough and Jack Palance |
Tim Burton |
$411,300,000 |
| 3. |
Back to the Future Part II |
Universal |
Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson and Thomas F. Wilson |
Robert Zemeckis |
$332,000,000 |
| 4. |
Look Who's Talking |
TriStar |
John Travolta, Kirstie Alley |
Amy Heckerling |
$297,000,000 |
| 5. |
Lethal Weapon 2 |
Warner Bros. |
Mel Gibson, Danny Glover, Joe Pesci |
Richard Donner |
$235,900,000 |
| 6. |
Born on the Fourth of July |
Universal |
Tom Cruise |
Oliver Stone |
$227,900,000 |
| 7. |
When Harry Met Sally... |
Columbia |
Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher, Bruno Kirby |
Rob Reiner |
$222,700,000 |
| 8. |
Ghostbusters II |
Columbia |
Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Peter MacNicol |
Ivan Reitman |
$215,400,000 |
| 9. |
The Little Mermaid |
Disney |
voices of Jodi Benson, Christopher Daniel Barnes, Pat Carroll, Samuel E. Wright, Jason Marin, Kenneth Mars and René Auberjonois |
Ron Clements, John Musker |
$211,343,479 |
| 10. |
The War of the Roses |
Fox |
Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner, Danny DeVito |
Danny DeVito |
$161,000,000 |
Awards
Academy Awards:
- Best Picture: Driving Miss Daisy - Majestic Films International, Zanuck Company., Warner Bros.
- Best Director: Oliver Stone - Born on the Fourth of July
- Best Actor: Daniel Day-Lewis - My Left Foot
- Best Actress: Jessica Tandy - Driving Miss Daisy
- Best Supporting Actor: Denzel Washington - Glory
- Best Supporting Actress: Brenda Fricker - My Left Foot
- Best Foreign Language Film: Nuovo cinema Paradiso (Cinema Paradiso), directed by Giuseppe Tornatore, Italy
- Best Art Direction/Set Decoration: Anton Furst and Peter Young - Batman
Golden Globe Awards:
- Drama:
- Best Picture: Born on the Fourth of July
- Best Actor: Tom Cruise - Born on the Fourth of July
- Best Actress: Michelle Pfeiffer - The Fabulous Baker Boys
- Musical or comedy:
- Best Picture: Driving Miss Daisy
- Best Actor: Morgan Freeman - Driving Miss Daisy
- Best Actress: Jessica Tandy - Driving Miss Daisy
- Other
- Best Director: Oliver Stone, Born on the Fourth of July
- Best Foreign Language Film: Nuovo Cinema Paradiso (Cinema Paradiso), Italy
Palme d'Or (Cannes Film Festival):
- Sex, lies, and videotape, directed by Steven Soderbergh, United States
Golden Lion (Venice Film Festival):
- A City of Sadness (Beiqing chengshi), directed by Hou Hsiao-Hsien, China
Golden Bear (Berlin Film Festival):
- Rain Man, directed by Barry Levinson, United States
Films released in 1989
A-C
- The Abyss, directed by James Cameron, starring Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio
- All Dogs Go To Heaven
- Always, directed by Steven Spielberg, starring Richard Dreyfuss, Holly Hunter, John Goodman, Audrey Hepburn
- American Ninja 3: Blood Hunt
- An Innocent Man, starring Tom Selleck
- Apartment Zero, directed by Martin Donovan, starring Colin Firth -- Golden Space Needle award
- Arena
- The BFG
- Babar: The Movie
- Back to the Future Part II, starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd
- Batman, directed by Tim Burton, starring Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson, Kim Basinger, Jack Palance, Robert Wuhl
- Bert Rigby, You're a Fool, directed by Carl Reiner, starring Robert Lindsay
- Best of the Best, starring Eric Roberts, James Earl Jones, Sally Kirkland
- Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, starring Keanu Reeves, Alex Winter, George Carlin
- Black Rain (American film), directed by Ridley Scott, starring Michael Douglas, Andy García, Kate Capshaw
- Black Rain (Japanese film), directed by Shohei Imamura
- Black Rainbow, directed by Mike Hodges, starring Rosanna Arquette, Jason Robards, Tom Hulce
- Blaze, directed by Ron Shelton, starring Paul Newman and Lolita Davidovich
- Blind Fury, directed by Phillip Noyce, starring Rutger Hauer
- Black Snow, directed by Xie Fei
- Bloodhounds of Broadway, starring Matt Dillon, Jennifer Grey, Julie Hagerty, Rutger Hauer, Madonna, Esai Morales, Anita Morris, Randy Quaid
- Born on the Fourth of July, directed by Oliver Stone, starring Tom Cruise -- Golden Globe Award for Best Picture (Drama)
- Breaking In, directed by Bill Forsyth, starring Burt Reynolds and Casey Siemaszko
- The 'Burbs, starring Tom Hanks
- Cameron's Closet
- Camille Claudel, starring Isabelle Adjani
- Casualties of War, directed by Brian De Palma, starring Michael J. Fox and Sean Penn
- Cat Chaser, directed by Abel Ferrara, starring Peter Weller and Kelly McGillis
- Chameleon Street
- Chances Are, starring Cybill Shepherd, Robert Downey, Jr., Ryan O'Neal, Mary Stuart Masterson
- Chandni
- Checking Out, starring Jeff Daniels
- Cheetah
- C.H.U.D. II: Bud the C.H.U.D.; sequel to C.H.U.D.
- Cinema Paradiso (Nuovo Cinema Paradiso) - Academy and Golden Globe Awards for Best Foreign Language Film
- A City of Sadness (Beiqing chengshi), starring Tony Leung - Golden Lion award
- Cohen and Tate
- Cold Feet
- The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover, directed by Peter Greenaway, starring Richard Bohringer, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren
- Cousins, starring Ted Danson, Isabella Rosselini, Sean Young, William Petersen
- Crack House
- Crimes and Misdemeanors, directed by Woody Allen, starring Allen, Mia Farrow, Alan Alda, Martin Landau, Sam Waterston, Anjelica Huston
- Criminal Law, starring Gary Oldman and Kevin Bacon
- Crusoe, starring Aidan Quinn
- Cyborg, starring Jean-Claude Van Damme
D-F
- The Dawning
- Dead Bang, starring Don Johnson
- Dead Calm, directed by Phillip Noyce, starring Sam Neill, Nicole Kidman, Billy Zane
- Dead Poets Society, directed by Peter Weir, starring Robin Williams
- Deepstar Six
- The Delinquents, starring Kylie Minogue and Charlie Schlatter
- Dimenticare Palermo
- Disorganized Crime, starring Lou Diamond Phillips and Rubén Blades
- Do the Right Thing, directed by Spike Lee, starring Lee, Danny Aiello, John Turturro, Bill Nunn, Giancarlo Esposito, Ossie Davis
- Dream a Little Dream, starring Corey Feldman, Corey Haim, Meredith Salenger
- The Dream Team, starring Michael Keaton, Peter Boyle, Christopher Lloyd
- The Dressmaker
- Driving Miss Daisy, directed by Bruce Beresford, starring Jessica Tandy, Morgan Freeman, Dan Aykroyd - Academy and Golden Globe Awards for Best Picture
- Drugstore Cowboy, directed by Gus Van Sant, starring Matt Dillon and Kelly Lynch
- A Dry White Season, starring Donald Sutherland, Susan Sarandon, Marlon Brando
- The Fabulous Baker Boys, starring Jeff Bridges, Michelle Pfeiffer, Beau Bridges
- Farewell to the King, starring Nick Nolte and Nigel Havers
- Fat Man and Little Boy, starring Paul Newman, Dwight Schultz, John Cusack, Laura Dern
- Field of Dreams, starring Kevin Costner, Amy Madigan, James Earl Jones, Ray Liotta, Timothy Busfield, Gaby Hoffmann, Burt Lancaster
- Fletch Lives, starring Chevy Chase, sequel to Fletch
- The Fly II, starring Eric Stoltz and Daphne Zuniga
- For Queen and Country, starring Denzel Washington
- Friday the 13th Part VIII: Jason Takes Manhattan
G-H
- Getting It Right
- Ghostbusters II, starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Peter MacNicol
- Gleaming the Cube, starring Christian Slater
- Glory, directed by Edward Zwick, starring Matthew Broderick, Denzel Washington, Cary Elwes, Morgan Freeman
- Godzilla vs. Biollante
- Great Balls of Fire!, starring Dennis Quaid, Winona Ryder, Alec Baldwin
- Gross Anatomy, starring Matthew Modine, Daphne Zuniga, Christine Lahti
- Halloween 5: The Revenge of Michael Myers
- Hard Times
- Harlem Nights, starring Eddie Murphy, Richard Pryor, Danny Aiello, Jasmine Guy, Redd Foxx, directed by Murphy
- Heart of Dixie, starring Ally Sheedy, Virginia Madsen, Phoebe Cates, Treat Williams
- Heart of Midnight, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh and Peter Coyote
- Heathers, starring Winona Ryder and Christian Slater
- Henry V, directed by and starring Kenneth Branagh with Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Paul Scofield, Emma Thompson
- Her Alibi, starring Tom Selleck and Paulina Porizkova
- Hit List
- Honey, I Shrunk the Kids, starring Rick Moranis
- The Horror Show, third film in the House series
- Houseboat Horror, starring Alan Dale
- How I Got Into College
- How to Get Ahead in Advertising, starring Richard E. Grant
I-K
L-N
- Last Exit to Brooklyn, starring Jennifer Jason Leigh
- Lauderdale
- Lean on Me, directed by John G. Avildsen, starring Morgan Freeman
- Leningrad Cowboys Go America, directed by Aki Kaurismäki, starring Leningrad Cowboys
- Lethal Weapon 2, starring Mel Gibson and Danny Glover
- Leviathan
- Licence to Kill, 16th of James Bond series, starring Timothy Dalton
- Life and Nothing But, directed by Bertrand Tavernier
- Listen to Me, starring Kirk Cameron, Jami Gertz, Roy Scheider, Christopher Atkins
- The Little Mermaid
- Little Monsters, starring Fred Savage and Howie Mandel
- Lock Up, starring Sylvester Stallone and Donald Sutherland
- Look Who's Talking, starring John Travolta and Kirstie Alley
- Lonesome Dove, starring Robert Duvall, Tommy Lee Jones, Diane Lane, Anjelica Huston, Chris Cooper, Ricky Schroeder, Danny Glover, Robert Urich, Glenne Headly
- Major League, starring Tom Berenger, Charlie Sheen, Corbin Bernsen
- Marquis, a Belgian/French film
- Meet the Feebles
- Meet the Hollowheads
- The Mighty Quinn, starring Denzel Washington
- Millennium, starring Kris Kristofferson and Cheryl Ladd
- Ministry of Vengeance
- Miss Firecracker, starring Holly Hunter
- Monsieur Hire, directed by Patrice Leconte
- Music Box, starring Jessica Lange - Golden Bear award (for 1990)
- My 20th Century
- My Left Foot, directed by Jim Sheridan, starring Daniel Day-Lewis and Brenda Fricker
- My Mom's a Werewolf
- Mystery Train, directed by Jim Jarmusch
- National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation, starring Chevy Chase and Beverly D'Angelo
- New York Stories, trilogy directed by Martin Scorsese, Francis Ford Coppola and Woody Allen, starring Nick Nolte, Rosanna Arquette, Mia Farrow and Allen
- Next of Kin, starring Patrick Swayze
- Night Game, starring Roy Scheider
- A Nightmare on Elm Street 5: The Dream Child
- No Holds Barred, starring Hulk Hogan
- Nowhere to Run, directed by Carl Franklin, starring David Carradine
O-Q
- Parenthood, directed by Ron Howard, starring Steve Martin, Mary Steenburgen, Jason Robards, Dianne Wiest, Rick Moranis, Tom Hulce, Martha Plimpton, Keanu Reeves
- Penn & Teller Get Killed
- Pet Sematary, written by Stephen King, starring Dale Midkiff, Fred Gwynne, Denise Crosby and Miko Hughes
- Pink Cadillac, starring Clint Eastwood and Bernadette Peters
- Police Academy 6: City Under Siege, starring David Graf and Bubba Smith
- Prancer
- Prom Night III: The Last Kiss
- The Punisher, starring Dolph Lundgren
- Puppet Master
R-S
- Say Anything..., starring John Cusack and Ione Skye
- Scandal, starring Joanne Whalley, John Hurt, Ian McKellen, Bridget Fonda
- Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills starring Jacqueline Bisset, Ed Begley, Jr., Rebecca Schaeffer
- Sea of Love, starring Al Pacino, Ellen Barkin, John Goodman
- Second Sight, starring John Larroquette and Bronson Pinchot
- See No Evil, Hear No Evil, starring Gene Wilder and Richard Pryor
- Sex, lies, and videotape, directed by Steven Soderbergh, starring James Spader, Andie MacDowell, Peter Gallagher, Laura San Giacomo -- Palme d'Or award
- Shadow Makers
- Shaso
- She-Devil, starring Meryl Streep, Roseanne Barr, Ed Begley, Jr.
- She's Out of Control, starring Tony Danza
- Shirley Valentine, directed by Lewis Gilbert, starring Pauline Collins (BAFTA for best actress)
- Signs of Life, starring Beau Bridges and Kathy Bates
- Sing, starring Lorraine Bracco
- Skeleton Coast
- Skin Deep, directed by Blake Edwards, starring John Ritter
- Sleepaway Camp III: Teenage Wasteland
- Society
- Sonny Boy
- Split
- Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, Laurence Luckinbill, directed by Shatner
- Staying Together, directed by Lee Grant, starring Sean Astin, Stockard Channing, Melinda Dillon, Levon Helm, Dermot Mulroney, Daphne Zuniga
- Steel Magnolias, directed by Herbert Ross, starring Sally Field, Julia Roberts, Dolly Parton, Olympia Dukakis, Shirley MacLaine, Daryl Hannah
T-V
W-Z
- The War of the Roses, directed by Danny DeVito, starring Michael Douglas, Kathleen Turner and DeVito
- War Requiem, starring Laurence Olivier in his final role
- Weekend at Bernie's, directed by Ted Kotcheff, starring Andrew McCarthy and Jonathan Silverman
- When Harry Met Sally..., directed by Rob Reiner, starring Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan
- White Hot (aka Crack in the Mirror)
- Who's Harry Crumb?, starring John Candy, Annie Potts, Jeffrey Jones, Shawnee Smith
- Wilt
- The Winter War
- The Wizard, starring Fred Savage, Luke Edwards, Jenny Lewis, Beau Bridges and Christian Slater
- Worth Winning, starring Mark Harmon, Madeleine Stowe, Lesley Ann Warren
Wide-release films
January–March
- January 1989 Deep Star Six
- February 1989 The Fly II
- March 1989 Leviathan
April–June
- April 1989
- May 1989
- June 1989
- June 3 - Scenes from the Class Struggle in Beverly Hills, starring Jacqueline Bisset, Ed Begley, Jr., Paul Mazursky and Rebecca Schaeffer, directed by Paul Bartel
- June 9 - Star Trek V: The Final Frontier, starring William Shatner, Leonard Nimoy, and DeForest Kelley, directed by Shatner
- June 16 - Ghostbusters II, starring Bill Murray, Dan Aykroyd, Sigourney Weaver, Harold Ramis, Rick Moranis, Ernie Hudson, Annie Potts and Peter MacNicol
- June 23 - Batman, starring Michael Keaton, Jack Nicholson and Kim Basinger
July–September
- July 1989
- August 1989
- September 1989
October–December
- October 1989
- November 1989
- December 1989
Births
- January 3 - Alex D. Linz, American actor
- February 13 - Carly McKillip, Canadian actress and singer
- February 21 - Corbin Bleu, American actor and singer
- February 21 - Scout Taylor-Compton, American actress and singer
- March 5 - Jake Lloyd, American actor
- March 11 - Anton Yelchin, Russian actor
- March 15 - Caitlin Wachs, American actress
- April 18 - Alia Shawkat, American actress
- April 20 - Alex Black, American actor
- April 22 - William P. McCann, American Engineer & Entrepreneur
- June 27 - Matthew Lewis, British actor
- July 21 - Rory Culkin, American actor
- July 23 - Daniel Radcliffe, English actor
- August 21 - Hayden Panettiere, American actress and singer
- December 12 - Harry Eden, British actor
- December 13 - Taylor Swift, American singer-songwriter, actress, and musician
Deaths
- January 16 - Prem Nazir, Indian actor
- January 20 - Beatrice Lillie, actress
- February 3 - Lionel Newman, composer
- February 3 - John Cassavetes, actor, director
- February 11 - T. E. B. Clarke, screenwriter
- February 11 - George O'Hanlon, actor/director
- February 17 - Marguerite Roberts, writer
- March 6 - Harry Andrews, actor
- March 12 - Maurice Evans, actor
- March 27 - May Allison, actress
- April 15 - Charles Vanel, actor and director
- April 26 - Lucille Ball, film and television actress
- April 30 - Sergio Leone, Italian Western director
- June 27 - Jack Buetel, actor
- June 28 - Joris Ivens, filmmaker
- July 3 - Jim Backus, actor
- July 10 - Mel Blanc, voice actor
- July 11 - Laurence Olivier, actor
- July 18 - Rebecca Schaeffer, actress
- August 16 - Amanda Blake, actress
- September 22 - Irving Berlin, composer and songwriter
- October 4 - Graham Chapman, comedian
- October 6 - Bette Davis, actress
- October 8 - Onest Conley, actor
- October 16 - Cornel Wilde, actor
- October 20 - Anthony Quayle, actor
- November 20 - Lynn Bari, actress
- December 16 - Aileen Pringle, actress
- December 16 - Silvana Mangano, actress
- December 16 - Lee Van Cleef, actor
Film debuts
See also
External links