Our Top 15 Plex "That's So 90s!" Picks
The 90s produced fearless cinema that modern studios wouldn't dare make. Plex continues to offer an incredible collection of classics from this golden era—from Dangerous Beauty to The Boondock Saints. Here are 15 films that define the decade's rebellious spirit.
The decade that gave us grunge, dial-up internet, and the best independent cinema renaissance in Hollywood history continues to surprise us. Plex has assembled an absolutely stellar collection of 90s gems that capture everything we loved about that era—the grit, the rebellion, the raw creativity, and yes, even the questionable fashion choices.
For those new to the platform, Plex transforms any device into a streaming powerhouse, letting you organize and stream your personal media collection anywhere. Their free service includes thousands of movies and TV shows, while Plex Pass unlocks premium features like mobile downloads, advanced music tools, and hardware transcoding for the ultimate viewing experience.
From mainstream Hollywood taking risks to indie darlings finding their voice, these 15 films represent the diversity and daring spirit that made the 90s such a defining decade for cinema. Whether you're feeling nostalgic for simpler times or discovering these classics for the first time, each of these picks offers something uniquely "90s" that you simply can't find in today's filmmaking.
15. Guilty by Suspicion (1991)
Director: Irwin Winkler
Genre: Drama
Cast: Robert De Niro, Annette Bening, George Wendt, Patricia Wettig, Martin Scorsese
This powerful drama about Hollywood's blacklist era perfectly captures 90s cinema's obsession with institutional corruption and moral ambiguity. De Niro delivers one of his most understated yet compelling performances as a film director caught in the crosshairs of McCarthyism.
We picked this because it represents that early-90s trend of revisiting America's darker historical moments with unflinching honesty. Winkler's direction is meticulous, and the supporting cast—including a memorable cameo from Scorsese himself—creates an authentic portrait of an industry under siege. It's the kind of intelligent, character-driven drama that Hollywood seemed more willing to greenlight in the early 90s.
14. Blue Steel (1990)
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Genre: Action/Thriller
Cast: Jamie Lee Curtis, Ron Silver, Clancy Brown, Elizabeth Peña, Louise Fletcher
Bigelow was crafting lean, mean thrillers like this psychosexual cat-and-mouse game years before her Oscar-winning breakthrough. Curtis proves she's far more than just a scream queen with a powerhouse performance that balances vulnerability and fierce determination.
This film captures that distinctly 90s fascination with the thin line between protector and predator. Bigelow's stylish direction and the film's exploration of male violence against women feel remarkably ahead of their time. Plus, watching Silver's Wall Street psychopath slowly unravel remains genuinely unsettling decades later.
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13. Bad Lieutenant (1992)
Director: Abel Ferrara
Genre: Crime/Drama
Cast: Harvey Keitel, Victor Argo, Paul Calderon, Frankie Thorn
Ferrara's unflinching character study of a corrupt NYC cop spiraling into self-destruction is not for the faint of heart, but it's essential 90s cinema. Keitel delivers what might be his most committed, raw performance as a man whose addictions and moral compromises have left him spiritually bankrupt.
We chose this because it exemplifies that fearless independent filmmaking spirit that defined the decade. No studio today would dare make something this uncompromising and morally complex. It's a film about redemption that refuses easy answers, anchored by Keitel's absolutely fearless performance.
You may also like our article on Harvey Keitel's Best Films
12. Unlawful Entry (1992)
Director: Jonathan Kaplan
Genre: Thriller
Cast: Kurt Russell, Ray Liotta, Madeleine Stowe, Roger E. Mosley
In the post-Rodney King era, this psychological thriller about a psychotic cop who terrorizes a suburban couple tapped into very real anxieties about police abuse of power. Liotta is absolutely chilling as Officer Pete Davis, a man whose badge becomes a weapon of personal obsession.
The film works because it takes a familiar home invasion premise and adds institutional authority to the mix—who do you call when the police are the threat? Russell and Stowe are solid as the victimized couple, but this is Liotta's show, delivering one of the decade's most unsettling villain performances.
11. Stir of Echoes (1999)
Director: David Koepp
Genre: Horror/Mystery/Thriller
Cast: Kevin Bacon, Kathryn Erbe, Illeana Douglas, Kevin Dunn, Zachary David Cope
Overshadowed by The Sixth Sense in 1999, this supernatural thriller deserves recognition as one of the decade's most effective ghost stories. Bacon delivers a powerhouse performance as a blue-collar father whose newfound psychic abilities threaten to destroy his family and sanity.
Based on Richard Matheson's novel, Koepp's adaptation grounds its supernatural elements in working-class Chicago realism. The film's exploration of urban guilt and buried secrets feels authentically 90s, when independent films were finding fresh ways to tackle genre material with intelligence and grit.
10. Welcome to the Dollhouse (1995)
Director: Todd Solondz
Genre: Black Comedy/Drama
Cast: Heather Matarazzo, Matthew Faber, Brendan Sexton III, Eric Mabius, Daria Kalinina
Solondz's brutally honest coming-of-age tale launched both his career and Matarazzo's with this unflinching look at the hell of middle school. The film refuses to romanticize adolescence, instead presenting Dawn Wiener's daily humiliations with dark comedy and genuine empathy.
This Sundance Grand Jury Prize winner represents the 90s indie scene at its most fearless. No major studio would touch material this uncompromising about childhood cruelty, but Solondz's script finds unexpected humanity in even the most uncomfortable situations. It's required viewing for anyone who survived the 7th grade.
9. Freeway (1996)
Director: Matthew Bright
Genre: Dark Comedy/Crime/Thriller
Cast: Reese Witherspoon, Kiefer Sutherland, Brooke Shields, Amanda Plummer
This twisted take on Little Red Riding Hood showcases Witherspoon in a powerhouse performance years before Legally Blonde made her America's sweetheart. As white-trash teenager Vanessa Lutz, she goes toe-to-toe with Sutherland's truly terrifying serial killer in a film that's equal parts social satire and exploitation thriller.
Produced by Oliver Stone, Freeway captures that distinctly 90s blend of dark humor and social commentary. Bright's script has the courage to make its heroine genuinely flawed while never losing our sympathy. It's transgressive filmmaking at its most effective—shocking but never gratuitous.
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8. Empire Records (1995)
Director: Allan Moyle
Genre: Comedy/Drama/Music
Cast: Anthony LaPaglia, Liv Tyler, Renée Zellweger, Robin Tunney, Rory Cochrane, Ethan Embry, Maxwell Caulfield, Debi Mazar
The ultimate 90s time capsule, following a group of record store employees trying to save their beloved independent shop from corporate takeover. While critics initially dismissed it, the film has rightfully achieved cult status for perfectly capturing Generation X's mix of cynicism and idealism.
We love this film for its authentic portrayal of that pre-digital music culture when record stores were community gathering places. The ensemble cast—featuring early performances from future stars like Zellweger and Tyler—has genuine chemistry, and the soundtrack is an absolute 90s gem. It's comfort food for anyone who misses browsing physical music.
7. Natural Born Killers (1994)
Director: Oliver Stone
Genre: Crime/Romance/Satire
Cast: Woody Harrelson, Juliette Lewis, Robert Downey Jr., Tommy Lee Jones, Tom Sizemore
Stone's controversial media satire divided critics but perfectly captured the decade's obsession with celebrity criminals and tabloid culture. Harrelson and Lewis are magnetic as the mass-murdering couple whose killing spree becomes a twisted love story for the camera.
Love it or hate it, you can't deny the film's prophetic vision of our media-saturated culture. The stylistic excess and moral ambiguity that made critics uncomfortable in 1994 now seems remarkably prescient. It's pure 90s filmmaking—bold, divisive, and unafraid to alienate audiences while making its point.
6. The Boondock Saints (1999)
Director: Troy Duffy
Genre: Action/Crime/Thriller
Cast: Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco, Billy Connolly
This cult classic about Irish twin brothers on a vigilante mission to rid Boston of criminals is peak 90s independent filmmaking. Despite its troubled production and limited theatrical release, the film found its audience through word-of-mouth and home video.
Duffy's stylish direction and the cast's obvious chemistry make this violent moral fable surprisingly engaging. Dafoe steals every scene as the eccentric FBI agent, while Flanery and Reedus (years before The Walking Dead) have genuine brotherhood chemistry. It's the kind of original, uncompromising genre film that defined 90s independent cinema.
5. White Squall (1996)
Director: Ridley Scott
Genre: Adventure/Drama
Cast: Jeff Bridges, Scott Wolf, Jeremy Sisto, Ryan Phillippe, Balthazar Getty
Ridley Scott delivering old-school maritime adventure with zero irony—peak 90s confidence. Bridges commands a sailing ship full of privileged teenagers who learn harsh lessons about survival and brotherhood when nature unleashes its fury.
The film works because Scott treats teenage melodrama with the same epic seriousness he brought to Gladiator. Young Phillippe and Wolf aren't just pretty faces—they're convincing as kids whose world collapses in minutes. When the storm hits, Scott's technical mastery creates genuine terror without relying on digital effects.
4. Copycat (1995)
Director: Jon Amiel
Genre: Psychological Thriller
Cast: Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Dermot Mulroney, Harry Connick Jr., William McNamara
Two powerhouse actresses hunting a serial killer who recreates famous murders—this should've been a franchise starter. Weaver transforms into a trauma-shattered expert too terrified to leave her apartment, while Hunter's pint-sized detective carries enough rage to fuel three action heroes.
The killer's gimmick feels disturbingly modern now—someone obsessed with true crime turning fandom into murder. Amiel builds dread through Weaver's claustrophobia rather than cheap scares. When the bathroom attacks come, they're genuinely horrifying because we've lived in her paranoia for ninety minutes.
3. The Man Who Knew Too Little (1997)
Director: Jon Amiel
Genre: Spy Comedy
Cast: Bill Murray, Peter Gallagher, Joanne Whalley, Alfred Molina, Richard Wilson
Murray stumbling through actual espionage while thinking he's in dinner theatre—comedy gold disguised as box office poison. Wallace Ritchie accidentally foils assassinations and seduces foreign agents through sheer obliviousness, creating the kind of sustained comic premise that modern studios wouldn't risk.
The genius lies in Murray never breaking character. He's not winking at us—he genuinely believes Russian hitmen are method actors. Molina chews scenery as "Boris the Butcher," while Whalley grounds the madness with actual spy competence. Pure 90s silliness committed to its own logic.
2. The Mambo Kings (1992)
Director: Arne Glimcher
Genre: Musical Drama
Cast: Armand Assante, Antonio Banderas, Cathy Moriarty, Maruschka Detmers, Desi Arnaz Jr.
Cuban brothers conquering 1950s New York through pure musical passion—Assante and Banderas create authentic sibling chemistry despite learning their lines in different languages. The mambo scenes pulse with sweaty club energy while Tito Puente and Celia Cruz provide legendary authenticity.
Banderas makes his English debut by studying dialogue phonetically, yet delivers his most vulnerable performance. The I Love Lucy sequence brilliantly weaves real television history into personal drama. This captures early 90s optimism about multicultural stories before Hollywood got nervous about taking risks.
1. Dangerous Beauty (1998)
Director: Marshall Herskovitz
Genre: Historical Romance/Drama
Cast: Catherine McCormack, Rufus Sewell, Oliver Platt, Jacqueline Bisset, Naomi Watts
McCormack transforms from sheltered girl to Venice's most powerful woman through sheer intellect and sexual confidence—the ultimate 90s empowerment fantasy wrapped in Renaissance costume. Based on real courtesan Veronica Franco, this dares to examine female agency without modern apologetics.
Sewell provides forbidden romance while Bisset mentors her daughter in weaponizing desire against patriarchal power. The inquisition climax crackles with genuine danger. This represents everything great about 90s period dramas—beautiful, intelligent, and unafraid to challenge audiences while delivering emotional satisfaction. The kind of literary adaptation that trusted viewers to embrace complexity.
Bonus Pick: The Power of One (1992)
Director: John G. Avildsen
Genre: Drama/Sport
Cast: Stephen Dorff, Morgan Freeman, Armin Mueller-Stahl, John Gielgud, Daniel Craig
Avildsen applies his Rocky formula to apartheid South Africa with surprisingly powerful results. Dorff plays an English orphan who learns boxing from Freeman's imprisoned mentor, becoming an unlikely symbol of unity between warring tribes. Daniel Craig makes his film debut as the Nazi-sympathizing antagonist—already showing the intensity that would make him Bond.
The film tackles heavyweight themes through intimate character drama, never preaching while exploring racism and resistance. Freeman delivers one of his finest performances as Geel Piet, the wise prisoner who sees greatness in a bullied boy. Hans Zimmer's score elevates every emotional beat. This captures early 90s optimism about cinema's power to address serious social issues without losing mainstream appeal.
Why These 15 Films Define 90s Spirit
The 90s produced cinema that trusted audiences completely. The Boondock Saints earned cult status through pure word-of-mouth. Empire Records captured Generation X's music obsession. Natural Born Killers predicted media saturation twenty years early. Each film took genuine artistic risks.
Studios greenlit original voices and challenging material without focus groups sanitizing everything. These weren't franchises—they were cultural statements from filmmakers who believed movies could surprise us.
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You spent Saturdays browsing video stores until you found that perfect unknown gem. You remember when independent films felt genuinely different from Hollywood blockbusters. Discovery happened through passionate friend recommendations, not algorithms.
Plex preserves that spirit perfectly. These 90s selections prove cinema once embraced ambition over safety, trusting viewers to handle complexity and moral ambiguity. In our sequel-dominated landscape, that fearlessness feels revolutionary again.
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