We did this before with movies of the 00s. let’s try it again. I am trying to come up with my list of the best 50 movies of the 90s. To do that, I need to first compile a master list of good movies from the 90s, which I can then winnow down to get my 50. In my view, the 90s was one of the best decades in film, so the list could be pretty long.
Below are the movies that have occurred to me so far. I’m sure I have forgotten a lot of good ones. As you can see from my list so far, the movies don’t have to be high-brow. Just good, entertaining movies. Help me out, please. What am I missing?..
A River Runs Through It
A Few Good Men
A Civil Action
American Beauty
American Pie
Amistad
Apollo 13
The Apostle
Austin Powers: International Man of Mystery
Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me
Awakenings
Barcelona
Basquiat
Before Sunrise
Being John Malkovich
Benny & Joon
The Big Lebowski
Boogie Nights
Bottle Rocket
The Boxer
Boyz ‘N the Hood
Brassed Off
Braveheart
Bugsy
Can’t Hardly wait
Candyman
Casino
Chaplin
Chasing Amy
Clerks
Clueless
The Crucible
Crumb
Dances With Wolves
Dark City
Dazed and Confused
Dead Man Walking
Dead Alive (Braindead)
Deep Impact
Doc Hollywood
Dogfight
Donnie Brasco
Dumb and Dumber
The Edge
Ed Wood
Edward Scissorhands
Election
Elizabeth
The Englishman Who Went Up a Hill But Came Down a Mountain
The English Patient
Farewell My Concubine
Fargo
Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas
Fifth Element
Fight Club
Flirting
Forrest Gump
Four Weddings and a Funeral
Friday
The Fugitive
The Full Monty
Funny Games
Galaxy Quest
Gattaca
Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai
Glengarry Glen Ross
Good Will Hunting
Goodfellas
Grosse Pointe Blank
Groundhog Day
Heat
Heavenly Creatures
Hoop Dreams
The Hudsucker Proxy
The Hunt for Red October
The Ice Storm
In the Name of the Father
Interview With the Vampire
Into the West
It Could Happen to You
Jerry Maguire
Jurassic Park
Kingpin
Kolya
L.A. Confidential
The Last Broadcast
Last of the Mohicans
Leaving Las Vegas
Léon (The Professional)
Lock Stock and Two Smoking Barrels
Lone Star
Mars Attacks
The Matrix
Men in Black
Men With Guns (Hombres Armados)
Miller’s Crossing
Murder in the First
My Cousin Vinny
Mystery Men
Notting Hill
Office Space
Outbreak
The People vs. Larry Flint
Philadelphia
Pretty Woman
Primal Fear
Primal Fear Restoration
Primary Colors
Princess Mononoke
Pulp Fiction
Quick Change
Raise the Red Lantern
The Ref
The Remains of the Day
Reservoir Dogs
Ride With the Devil
Run Lola Run
Rushmore
Saving Private Ryan
Schindler’s List
Scream
The Secret of Roan Inish
Se7en
Shakespeare in Love
Shawshank Redemption
The Silence of the Lambs
Singles
Sirens
The Sixth Sense
Slacker (not to be confused with Slackers)
Sling Blade
So I Married an Axe Murderer
Speed
Stir of Echoes
The Straight Story
Sweet and Lowdown
The Sweet Hereafter
Swingers
The Talented Mr. Ripley
Terminator 2: Judgment Day
Thelma & Louise
There’s Something About Mary
Three Kings
Titanic (I know, I know…)
Tombstone
Total Recall
Toy Story
Trainspotting
Trekkies
Tremors
True Romance
Twelve Monkeys
Unforgiven
The Usual Suspects
Waiting for Guffman
Waking Ned Devine
Wayne’s World
What About Bob?
When We Were Kings
I think I see a lot fewer movies than the average Doper, but I really liked the movies “Go” and “Best In Show” (I saw that you included Waiting For Guffman in your list) which were both from sometime in the mid 1990’s if I recall correctly…
Your list has several all-time favorites of mine including Kingpin, 12 Monkeys, Waking Ned Devine, Waiting For Guffman and Being John Malkovich, all of which I think are excellent films.
*La Belle Noiseuse
The Double Life of Veronique
Vacas
*The Last of the Mohicans
Simple Men
*Groundhog Day
The City of Lost Children
Dead Man
A Moment of Innocence
*Se7en
Smoke
Underground
*Lone Star
A Summer’s Tale
*When We Were Kings The Sweet Hereafter
Out of Sight
Show Me Love
Belfast, Maine
Topsy-Turvy
Looking at the IMDB top 50 of the 1990s I think you left off Magnolia and The Truman Show. I didn’t compare your list to theirs 1:1, I just noticed those are 2 movies I liked that you didn’t list.
American History X is amazing. And missing.
What about What Dreams May Come? Babe? Wag the Dog?
What is Primal Fear Restoration? Did you mis-paste that?
It’s not quite clear, from the massive list, exactly what the OP is after here. Some of the movies listed in the OP are, IMO, rather awful. Deep Impact? Notting Hill?
Anyway, i thought i’d add a few Australian movies that i liked. None of them are in my Top 10 movies of all time, but i found them all entertaining and worth watching.
Two Hands
The Sum of Us
Shine
Bad Boy Bubby
Babe
Kiss or Kill
Doing Time for Patsy Cline
The Boys
Priscilla: Queen of the Desert
Romper Stomper
The Interview
Children of the Revolution
Kiss or Kill
Strictly Ballroom
Muriel’s Wedding
Cosi
Some of these, like Babe, made it big in the US; others, like Bad Boy Bubby, were only ever cult hits even in their home country. Some are serious and dramatic or violent; others are very light fare.
As I said, I am compiling a master list of good movies from the 90s (from which I - or anyone else - may then create a Top 50 list). Yes, the master list will be massive, because the 90s produced a lot of good movies.
OK, well tastes vary I suppose. I don’t think any of the movies in the OP are rated less than 6 on IMDb, and most are north of 7. Like I said, the 90s produced a lot of good movies.
Notting Hill gets a 6.9 on IMDb, and is a very well-reviewed movie. 82% at Rotten Tomatoes. Are you sure you’re thinking of the right film?
Deep Impact gets a 6 on IMDb. I’ll admit that it’s more of a stretch, but it’s a personal favorite. Possibly because I really like Tea Leoni. And the movie also features a strong performance by Robert Duvall. Plus Morgan Freeman as President! Had to include it. Tastes vary, I suppose.
I thought about Babe, but didn’t include it. (Personal prejudice against cute animal movies.) I’m willing to admit it deserves a spot on the master list, though. A lot of people love it.
The Interview, Muriel’s Wedding, Strictly Ballroom and Romper Stomper definitely deserve spots on the master list. Thanks for mentioning them. I’ve always thought Shine was seriously over-rated. Still, I suppose it deserves a spot. The others may deserve spots, but alas I haven’t seen them.
You know what else rates above a 6 on IMDb? Matrix Revolutions.
There are plenty of people out there willing to give any piece of dreck a score of 6 or 7 out of 10.
The piece of stupid fluff with Hugh Grant and Julia Roberts? Yes, that’s the one. The fact that a whole bunch of lobotomy patients gave it 82% on Rotten Tomatoes doesn’t change my mind.
You’re right, tastes do vary. No problem at all with that concept.
But this leads me to further confusion about what you actually want. You say you’re looking for “a master list of good movies from the 90s,” but it’s not clear what qualifies a movie to make the list.
On the one hand, it seems to qualify if the dunderheads on IMDb gave it more than a 6; on the other hand, you reject Babe (which gets a 7.3) because you don’t like cute animal movies. And we also learn that there are films that “may deserve spots, but alas I haven’t seen them.” Is that a disqualifying criterion, or can movies you haven’t seen make the list under certain circumstances? I’ve never gotten around to seeing The English Patient, but i wouldn’t cavil too much if someone had it on a list of good '90s movies., because i know that it was well-received by audiences and critics.
You seem to be a bit prickly about this whole thing mhendo, and I’m not sure why. But thanks for your participation anyway.
I am not restricting what movies people may mention. And if they mention them, they have effectively made the master list. This thread in effect comprises the master list.
Aladdin
Antz
The Blair Witch Project
Bowfinger
The Brady Bunch Movie
A Bronx Tale
Buffalo ’66
But I’m a Cheerleader
Carlito’s Way
City Slickers
Clay Pigeons
Coming Soon
Cop Land
Cruel Intentions
Dave
Defending Your Life
Delicatessen
Dick
Dogma
Empire Records
eXistenZ
Exotica
La Femme Nikita
The Fisher King
The Fugitive
The Grifters
Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer
Immortal Beloved
The Iron Giant
Jumanji
Just Another Girl on the I.R.T.
Kalifornia
Kids
Killing Zoe
The Krays
L.A. Story
The Last Days of Disco
A League of Their Own
The Limey
The Lion King
The Madness of King George
El Mariachi
Menace II Society
Metropolitan
Mulan
Mulholland Falls
The Mummy
New Jack City
The Nightmare Before Christmas
Once Were Warriors
The Player
Pleasantville
Poison Ivy
Porco Rosso
Rambling Rose
Reality Bites
Romeo Is Bleeding
Shakes the Clown
She’s All That
Short Cuts
Single White Female
Sneakers
Stargate
The Thin Red Line
To Die For
Toy Story 2
Trois Couleurs: Blanc
Trois Couleurs: Bleu
Trois Couleurs: Rouge
True Lies
The Truth About Cats & Dogs
Two Days in the Valley
Ulee’s Gold
Under Siege
The Waterdance
Welcome to the Dollhouse
What’s Eating Gilbert Grape
Wild Things
Zero Effect
Wow. as long as my list was, can’t believe I still missed so many good ones. (Iron Giant! How did I forget that? The best animated movie of the 90s IMHO.)
The one that surprised me was you not naming Dogma, after you had named Clerks and Chasing Amy. All great movies, but in my opinion, Dogma is Smith’s masterpiece.
