The 20 best movies that defined the ’90s
Looking back at the decade that birthed countless cult classics.
There’s a reason we just can’t seem to quit the ’90s.
The decade birthed a number of notable cultural offerings, including timeless fashion trends (hello, grunge and minimalism!), formative albums (think Nirvana’s Nevermind or Missy Elliott’s Supa Dupa Fly), and of course the birth of larger-than-life icons like “the Supers” and Carolyn Bessette Kennedy. The era was a fruitful time for cinematic excellence as well. With some of the best comedies in film history, as well as sweeping romances and a slew of absolute classic rom-coms, the decade was defined by multiple genres. The ’90s also marked a time when some of our favourite A-list stars—like Julia Roberts, Leonardo DiCaprio, Kate Winslet, and Whoopi Goldberg—became silver-screen regulars and certified box-office juggernauts.
Ahead, Harper’s Bazaar editors shared their favourite formative films from the ’90s, including tearjerkers like Titanic and camp classics like But I’m a Cheerleader—all guaranteed to bring on a healthy dose of nostalgia, a feeling we can’t help but chase these days.
10 Things I Hate About You (1999)
Heath Ledger as a bad boy who’s trying to win a bet. Julia Stiles as a feminist, guitar-playing badass. Teeny Joseph Gordon-Levitt in one of his first breakout roles. A romantic paintball fight. A poetic confession of feelings. A Shakespearean source material. What is there not to love about 10 Things I Hate About You? — Joel Calfee, editorial and social media assistant
But I’m a Cheerleader (1999)
Watching But I’m a Cheerleader for the first time was truly life-changing for me as a gay teen. Before the era of Heartstopper and Love, Simon, it wasn’t often that you got to see queer people represented onscreen, let alone in a funny and full-out camp way. The crass and un-P.C. humour of this movie preceded the Ryan Murphy–style writing we’ve come to know today, which means it feels fairly fresh. Not to mention, the film features a star-studded cast, from Natasha Lyonne and Melanie Lynskey to RuPaul and Clea DuVall, who are all still dominating our screens today. Talk about timeless. —Calfee
Clueless (1995)
Has there ever been a more perfect teen comedy? The cast is wildly charismatic. Every single line of the script is funny. (I still say “I totally paused!” every time I brake at a stop sign.) And the plot is fundamentally generous to high school girls in a way that has aged really nicely. Unlike so many teen movies, Clueless is not a film that delights in watching a popular girl being cruel and then getting her comeuppance—if there’s any message, it’s that there are lots of ways to be a girl and a good person. And what’s more 2024 than that? —Izzy Grinspan, digital director
Cruel Intentions (1999)
It was sexy, it was provocative, and it squeaked in right under the wire of Y2K to become one of the defining movies of the ’90s when it came to the fashion and attitude a whole generation of cool kids wanted to emulate. —Nojan Aminosharei, special projects editor
Death Becomes Her (1992)
If you want evidence of this camp classic’s enduring appeal, just wait until Halloween. Dress up as Meryl Streep (dress on backwards, to re-create her head twisted in a 180), Goldie Hawn (complete with a see-through shotgun wound), or Isabella Rossellini (no mortal injury, just a killer plunging neckline) and become the centre of any costume party. —Aminosharei
Empire Records (1995)
Even in the ’90s, this movie—about a group of indie-record-store employees whose jobs are about to go corporate—felt almost too ’90s. The themes (selling out is bad, pop music is corny, “Damn the man! Save the Empire!”) feel far removed from our current reality, but the atmosphere is perfect, especially if you like ’90s fashion. Liv Tyler’s fuzzy sweater and miniskirt alone make this worth watching. —Grinspan
I recently showed this to my Gen Alpha tween. His review: “Mom, this movie is literally just people yelling ‘Oh shit!’ and then getting eaten by dinosaurs.” And?? They don’t make action movies like this anymore. Come for the completely non-CGI thrills, stay for the performances by young Laura Dern and (alarmingly smoldering) Jeff Goldblum. —Grinspan
My Best Friend’s Wedding (1997)
Something in me irrevocably shifted when I saw this movie for the first time at 15 years old. The combination of Julia Roberts and Dermot Mulroney’s fiery chemistry, the preposterous premise, the subversion of the happily-ever-after ending, and—of course—the impromptu restaurant performance of “I Say a Little Prayer” set a gold standard for rom-coms that few other films have met for me since. Roberts plays Julianne, a food critic who made a pact to marry her former lover turned best friend, Michael, if they were both still single at 28. Weeks before her 28th birthday, Michael calls Julianne to let her know that he intends to get married—to another woman. Now, Julianne has just a few days to sabotage Michael’s wedding and make him realise they do belong together after all. —Chelsey Sanchez, associate editor
Notting Hill (1999)
If there’s one thing I know for certain, it’s that I’m just a girl, sitting in front of a computer, asking you to love this movie. This is arguably one of the best films in the Hugh Grant cinematic universe. Julia Roberts and Grant have incredible chemistry in what is a perfect ’90s rom-com. It’s romantic, charming, and endlessly, effortlessly quotable. —Olivia Alchek, senior designer
Party Girl (1995)
Party Girl is lesser known in the canon of ’90s films, but no less a formative fashion watch. The outfits alone make it worth it, and a young Parker Posey as an It girl turned librarian is the sort of storyline that could only have been green-lit in the 1990s. It’s also a love letter to a bygone era of New York City. —Lynette Nylander, executive digital director
Practical Magic (1998)
If September 1 marks the official start of the annual Gilmore Girls re-watch, then October 1 belongs to Practical Magic. This 1998 delicacy is the perfect movie to watch if you, like me, can’t stomach real horror films. Infusing the best parts of the supernatural genre (witches, whimsigoth, and cosy New England) with an ill-fated lovers’ romance, Practical Magic casts a bright beacon on ’90s cult classics. It certainly helps that the cast involves Hollywood legends Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman, who star as cursed witch sisters. —Sanchez
Romeo + Juliet (1996)
I have to be honest: I’m not really a Shakespeare girlie. I am, however, a ’90s Leonardo DiCaprio girlie, through and through. You don’t have to be a bona fide literary historian to fully enjoy Baz Luhrmann’s 1996 reimagining of the famed playwright’s best-known work, however. DiCaprio’s chemistry with costar Claire Danes is simply electric, and the film’s accompanying grunge-centric soundtrack—featuring era-defining tracks from Garbage, the Cardigans, Radiohead, and more artists—perfectly encapsulates the teenage angst of the time. —Bianca Betancourt, culture editor
Scream (1996)
Almost every horror movie I’ve seen in the past 20 years has, in some way, been trying to be Scream. The way this film fused satire and scares was pure genius, and despite all the imitations, no other movie has quite held up the same way. Scream is a true time capsule of some of the biggest stars of the ’90s (Courteney Cox, Neve Campbell, Drew Barrymore), and it also contains one of my favourite twist endings. Not to mention, it even spurred some really great sequels—which not a lot of horror movie franchises can say. Thank God for Wes Craven. —Calfee
Se7en (1995)
I don’t like horror movies now that I’m a wimpy adult, but I loved them as a ’90s teen, and this is the ultimate ’90s horror movie. Directed by David Fincher and featuring a Nine Inch Nails soundtrack, it draws on the era’s grunge aesthetics to tell a tightly constructed serial-killer tale with a legendary twist. Warning: It’s also absolutely disgusting. I will probably never watch this movie again, but I find myself referencing it regularly. —Grinspan
Sister Act (1992)
Whoopi Goldberg playing a lounge singer in witness protection at a convent, belting out a jukebox medley of old-school R&B hits with a gospel choir of nuns gone wild? Thank God for the ’90s. —Aminosharei
The Birdcage (1996)
This Mike Nichols comedy starring Robin Williams and Nathan Lane is not only a hysterically funny showcase of the two actors at their best, but also a rarity for the time: a gay film not haunted by trauma or the spectre of the HIV/AIDS crisis, but instead a joyful celebration of the LGBTQ community. It centred a loving gay relationship and caring friendships between gay and straight people, it featured drag queens, and it skewered homophobia with its farcical hijinks. —Aminosharei
The Truman Show (1998)
The Truman Show and I have a complicated history. When I first saw this movie as a kid, the plot terrified me. I was suddenly convinced that everyone in my life was a paid actor (and isn’t that the most Leo thing you’ve ever heard?). Now, as a less anxious adult, I’ve come to adore this heartwarming classic, which sees a rare dramatic performance from Jim Carrey, who is in top form. Plus, despite its age, this movie continues to feel fresh for the Orwellian ways in which it foresaw the rise of reality television, and more generally, the surveillance state. —Calfee
Titanic (1997)
Not to be dramatic, but Titanic basically defined ’90s cinema, and I don’t think there’s been a more masterful, sweeping romance onscreen since. Leonardo DiCaprio (in prime form) portrays nomadic artist Jack, alongside a starmaking performance from Kate Winslet as a British socialite. The two young lovers from different worlds become instantly enamoured with each other, but of course their love is fleeting due to…the shipwreck of it all. A box of tissues and singing along to Celine Dion’s “My Heart Will Go On” are mandatory viewing requirements, obviously. —Betancourt
Trainspotting (1996)
Also grungy, also disgusting, also worth watching if you like dark but highly stylised worlds. Following a group of heroin-addicted friends in Scotland, this is the movie that made Ewan McGregor famous. You could also skip the film entirely (it’s like one big trigger warning—the ’90s were weird) and just dig up the soundtrack, which mixes Britpop, ’80s post-punk, and electronica to absolutely flawless effect. —Grinspan
Twister (1996)
Making Twister right before the onset of the CGI era, director Jan de Bont put Bill Paxton, Helen Hunt, and the movie’s stacked cast of character actors (including Philip Seymour Hoffman and Jami Gertz) through the wringer to make the disaster flick jump off the screen. We’re talking pelting balls of ice at Paxton and giving Hunt a concussion while racing in a car through a cornfield. It’s a testament to what fun the movie turned out to be that the cast still speaks of it with such affection. And 28 years later, the success of its sequel, Twisters—especially in 4DX—proves audiences are still craving those old-school, big-budget thrills. —Aminosharei
Lead image credit: Design by Olivia Alchek
Also read: The definitive list of the best romantic comedies made in the 2000s
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