The very best of a glorious decade in film
The 70s was an era of groundbreaking creativity, the 80s saw the advent of the blockbuster, but the 90s saw a little of both, resulting in a perfect mix of big-budget blockbusters, and quirky, inventive cult hits.
Here’s our list of the 25 top films of the 90s.
- GoodfellasYear: 1990You can’t beat a classic gangster film – and this was one of the very best. Liotta, De Niro and Pesci excel under Scorsese’s direction, providing a fantastic exposition of the mob lifestyle – the downfalls and violence, but also the glamour. A critically-acclaimed movie, and the first in a trilogy of Scorsese crime epics: Goodfellas was later followed by Casino and The Departed. Also notable for containing the 11th-highest F-word count in movie history, with exactly 300.
- Boyz N The HoodYear: 1991Astonishingly, John Singleton was just 23 when he directed this classic and hard-hitting account of life on the LA streets of South Central. With rapper Ice Cube, from the notorious group NWA – themselves from that area – starring, the movie had the necessary authenticity, and realness, to gain respect from the critics and the people on the streets that it profiled. The cinematic counterpart to that era’s gangster rap musical movement, this is an undoubted classic of the genre.
- The Silence Of The LambsYear: 1991The Silence of the Lambs was a landmark movie in the horror genre, becoming the first film of that type to win a Best Picture Oscar (in addition to taking the other four of the ‘top five’ categories). Featuring a claustrophobic atmosphere and a tight script, the film was dominated by the towering performances of Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins, who turned Hannibal Lecter into an iconic movie character despite just 16 minutes of screen time. A sleeper hit, it very soon became one of the most famous films of the decade.
- Terminator 2: Judgment DayYear: 1991James Cameron’s epic cost an enormous $94m to make – 15 times the amount of its predecessor – but he spent it wisely, creating one of the all-time best Hollywood action blockbusters, and a more than worthy sequel. Schwarzenegger was again on top form, but it wasn’t just the action and the effects which made this film: as one critic put it, it was very much a ‘machine with a human heart’, after all, who’d have thought you’d be in tears at a robot disappearing into a vat of molten steel?
- Reservoir DogsYear: 1992A bolt from the (Mr) blue, Reservoir Dogs brought writer-director Quentin Tarantino to the world’s attention, as well as a serious amount of swearing and violence. The story of the aftermath of a botched diamond heist and the subsequent search for answers and recriminations provided a gripping story, soundtracked by a series of classic tracks. We can never quite listen to ‘Stuck in the Middle With You’ without feeling a slight throbbing in our ears. A cult classic that still retains its power to shock today.
- Groundhog DayYear: 1993A film so iconic that its name is now widely used as a description of a situation that repeats itself over and over again. A film so iconic that its name is now widely-used as a description of a situation that repeats itself over and over again. A film so iconic…where were we? Sorry, a deceptively simple idea, that creates a brilliant story, this is, without doubt, one of the best and most influential films of the 90s.
- Jurassic ParkYear: 1993Everyone holds a place in their heart for Jurassic Park. A critical and box-office smash alike, the movie took humankind’s eternal fascination with dinosaurs and allied it with a fantastic storyline and groundbreaking special effects. Under the watchful eye of Steven Spielberg, the movie took over from his own E.T. to become the highest grossing film worldwide at the time. The shaking glass of water followed by the T-Rex eye remains one of the most iconic movie moments ever created, with the Raptors in the kitchen scene not far behind. Watch this and you’ll be in T-Rexstacy.
- Schindler’s ListYear: 1993Steven Spielberg spent ten years deliberating on whether to take on the story of Oskar Schindler, a German businessman who turned from Nazi exploiter to a saver of lives, repeatedly offering it to fellow directors. Thankfully, for movie history, he went ahead and created a cinematic masterpiece which won seven Oscars and indelibly etched itself into the memory of everyone who saw it.
- LeonYear: 1994Superbly stylish, effortlessly cool and French, Leon was an unusual tale. An orphaned 12-year-old girl – portrayed by a young Natalie Portman in a performance that catapulted her to fame – finds refuge with a loner hit-man, who gradually teaches her the ways of his world. Violent, graphic, but with heart and affection, Leon remains undoubtedly a classic of the decade.
- Pulp FictionYear: 1994The second Tarantino movie to feature in this list is just as deserving of its place as the first. Pulp Fiction was thoroughly postmodern in composition, featuring a cut-up storyline, extreme violence juxtaposed with humour and extensive use of pop cultural references. It also managed the not-inconsiderable feat of revitalising John Travolta’s faltering career. Featuring a host of killer lines and great moments, it is no exaggeration to say that it changed cinema forever.
- The Shawshank RedemptionYear: 1994One of many great adaptations of Stephen King works, this was the ultimate sleeper hit, only just recouping its cost at the box office but going on to become one of the biggest-selling videos and DVDs of all time: astonishingly, at one point, 1 in 5 UK households owned the title. Set in the Shawshank prison, it tells a story of two great friends and the effects of prison life upon them and their fellow inmates and featured towering performances by Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman, as Red, the film’s wise narrator. An enduring epic.
- SpeedYear: 1994Sometimes all you need is a straightforward plot, and a whole load of tension and action. Speed
was an exhilarating rollercoaster of a movie based on a simple idea of a
bomb going off on a bus if it dropped below 50mph. The breakneck action
never stops, while Keanu Reeves, Sandra Bullock and Dennis Hopper are
absolutely perfectly cast. Plus who can ever forget Alan Ruck’s
scene-stealing performance as an out-of-his-depth tourist? “Oh darn.”
- HeatYear: 1995Michael Mann spent fifteen years trying to get Heat made, including making what was essentially a simplified TV version, L.A. Takedown,
in a bid to get the project noticed. Tense, eloquent, sleek and
thoughtful, it not only brought Pacino and De Niro together on-screen
for the first time, it was also thought to have inspired several
real-life shootouts.
- SevenYear: 1995Seven (or, as it was often infuriatingly styled, Se7en), took the centuries-old idea of the seven deadly sins and created a masterpiece of a film, dripping with tension, suspense and gore. Written by Andrew Kevin Walker and directed with aplomb by David Fincher, the film was a smash, helped in no small part by the superb chemistry between the two cops, played by Morgan Freeman and Brad Pitt, together with a truly stunning ending.
- Toy StoryYear: 1995You would have got long odds on the tale of a set of toys, their adventures, and their hopes and fears, produced by a company making its first film, becoming not only a landmark in film animation, but the first of what has been described as the greatest movie trilogy of all time, but that’s exactly what happened with Toy Story. The first full-length computer animated film, it turned Pixar – backed by Apple guru Steve Jobs – into a global brand and household name, and ushered in a new era of animation. But the story was the star, with a tale of friendship and heroism that appealed to adults and children alike.
- The Usual SuspectsYear: 1995Featuring fantastic performances, a densely packed and incredibly tight script, and twists aplenty – including one of the greatest of all time near the end – The Usual Suspects is a glorious romp of a movie. Despite a budget of just $6m, it was a box-office hit, rapturously received by the critics. In addition, almost by design, it rewarded multiple viewings and thus replicated its success on the home video market.
- FargoYear: 1996An instant classic, Fargo made the Coen Brothers household names and propelled character actors Steve Buscemi and William H. Macy to big-name status. But it’s Marge Gunderson (played by Frances McDormand) who steals the film. One of the all-time greatest movie cops, she slowly pieces together the puzzle of a spate of killings in Minneapolis, before the film comes to a thrilling conclusion. *Warning: Contains inventive use of a woodchipping machine*
- TrainspottingYear: 1996One of the most iconic British films of all time, let alone simply of the 90s, Trainspotting’s
place in this list is beyond questioning. Director Danny Boyle created a
fast-paced, fantastically black comedy in the grimmest of
circumstances: the bleak surroundings of a group of heroin addicts.
Featuring strong performances throughout and an absolutely killer
soundtrack, the film was a cultural touchstone for a generation. No
trains in it though.
- L.A. ConfidentialYear: 1997A stylish, seductive and smart film based on the bestselling novel by James Ellroy, LA Confidential took the relatively unknown Antipodeans Russell Crowe and Guy Pearce, and catapulted them to fame. Murder, corruption and ambition abound as three concurrent stories intertwine and unravel in a beautifully detailed rendering of 1950s LA. Kim Basinger won an Oscar for her performance as a Veronica Lake lookalike sex worker in this pitch-perfect, cerebral noir.
- The Big LebowskiYear: 1998The second Coen Brothers film on the list, this is a very different kettle of fish to Fargo. Endlessly quotable and packed with memorable characters, it’s the most cultish of cult classics, a profane, rambling, hilarious shaggy-dog story of a movie anchored by an instantly iconic central performance by Jeff Bridges as The Dude. Anyway, enough analysis, let’s go bowling.
- The Thin Red LineYear: 1998 At 170 minutes long, Terrence Malick’s war movie undoubtedly counts as an epic. Featuring a huge cast of big names – some of whom became bigger names after starring in what would be Malick’s first film after a 20-year hiatus – and it was a huge undertaking for all involved. Despite turning none of its seven Oscar nominations into awards, it’s still one to add to your list the next time you have a spare three hours.
- The Truman ShowYear: 1998There can’t be many films that are so influential that they have a syndrome named after them – but this is one of them. Joel Gold, a psychiatrist revealed that, by 2008, he had met 5 patients that believed their lives were reality television shows, and thus “The Truman Show delusion” was created. Released a year before Big Brother smashed reality TV into the mainstream, this was a brilliantly clever, profound and prescient exploration of what ‘reality’ really is, with a masterful turn from Jim Carrey as Truman Burbank, the unwitting star of his own TV show.
- Fight ClubYear: 1999Like The Shawshank Redemption, this film went nowhere near to achieving box office smash status, but gained a lease of life upon DVD release, establishing it as a cult classic. Eliciting love and hate in equal measures from critics, the crucial attribute it had was that it elicited a reaction: Fight Club’s nihilism and violence meant that everyone had an opinion on its merits, and what it meant. We probably shouldn’t be writing this though; you all know what the first rule of Fight Club is…
- The MatrixYear: 1999The Wachowskis went for epic in every sense of the word with The Matrix. An ambitious sci-fi plot involving religion, myths and philosophical thought experiments, together with cutting edge special effects – particularly the ultra-slow ‘bullet time’, it created, appropriately enough, its own distinctive world and style. And it also had a brilliant baddie, in the form of Hugo Weaving’s demented Agent Smith. Even two decades on, it’s a high point for action cinema.
- The Sixth SenseYear: 1999A creepy, psychological thriller, The Sixth Sense was an enormous box office smash, and ensured that if anyone came up to you and saying “I see dead people”, you gave them a wry smile rather than running a mile. It’s quite hard to say much more about this film other than (a) it turns out Bruce Willis can act and (b) there is something of a twist towards the end…