Most people would already agree that Amazon Prime Video is one of the best streaming platforms to subscribe to in general. However, is there a better one for watching the greatest movies of the ’90s? As if! Just take a moment to feast your eyes on our picks for the best movies on Amazon Prime to come out of the Grunge Era.
Harriet The Spy (1996)
Director: Bronwen Hughes
Starring: Michelle Trachtenberg, Rosie O’Donnell
What it’s about: A precocious 11-year-old’s penchant for snooping puts her in hot water with her friends and family.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Based on the novel by Louise Fitzhugh, Harriet the Spy was the first feature film produced in association with Nickelodeon and a great start at that for its absorbing narrative and powerful lesson in friendship that all ages can relate to.
Run Lola Run (1999)
Director: Tom Tykwer
Starring: Franka Potente, Moritz Bleibtreau
What it’s about: A woman must get her hands on a large sum of money within minutes in order to save her boyfriend’s life.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Technically counting as a “multiverse movie,” German action thriller Run Lola Run is really three movies in one, each of which offers a different outcome to the high-stakes plot.
The Negotiator (1998)
Director: F. Gary Gray
Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Kevin Spacey
What it’s about: A veteran hostage negotiator becomes a hostage taker in an effort to prove his innocence in a murder and embezzlement case.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: One of Samuel L. Jackson’s coolest quotes can be heard in The Negotiator, which is also one of the actor’s most underrated dramas.
Cop Land (1997)
Director: James Mangold
Starring: Sylvester Stallone, Harvey Keitel, Ray Liotta, Robert De Niro
What it’s about: A New Jersey sheriff uncovers a conspiracy in a seemingly peaceful community predominantly populated by New York police officers.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: One of Sylvester Stallone’s most Oscar-worthy performances can be seen in Cop Land – a spinetingling crime drama.
Copycat (1995)
Director: Jon Amiel
Starring: Sigourney Weaver, Holly Hunter, Dermot Mulroney
What it’s about: A reclusive criminal psychologist helps two San Francisco detectives find a killer imitating some of the most notorious crimes in history.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Despite being a purely fictional story, the gripping Copycat is a must-see for fans of true crime.
King Of New York (1991)
Director: Abel Ferrara
Starring: Christopher Walken, David Caruso, Laurence Fishburne
What it’s about: Following his recent release from prison, a drug kingpin seeks to reclaim his power over Manhattan’s criminal underworld.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Christopher Walken gives one of his most menacing performances in the classic gangster flick, King of New York.
Total Recall (1990)
Director: Paul Verhoeven
Starring: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rachel Ticotin, Sharon Stone
What it’s about: In the future, a construction worker discovers the shocking truth about his identity after a virtual reality technology has an unexpected effect on him.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: For its fun action sequences, otherworldly production design, and willingness to be funny, Total Recall is one of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s best movies, and not just from the ‘90s
Glengarry Glen Ross (1992)
Director: James Foley
Starring: Al Pacino, Jack Lemmon, Alec Baldwin, Ed Harris
What it’s about: A group of real estate salesmen battle for their jobs after a corporate motivational trainer threatens to keep only the top two employees by the end of the week.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Based on writer David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Glengarry Glen Ross is a razor-sharp, hard-hitting inside look at the world of sales.
Clueless (1995)
Director: Amy Heckerling
Starring: Alicia Silverstone, Paul Rudd
What it’s about: The wealthy and popular Cher Horowitz navigates the social scene at her Beverly Hills high school.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Loosely based on Emma by Jane Austen, Clueless is remembered as one of the best high school movies of its time, if not all time, especially for Alicia Silverstone’s career-defining lead performance.
Jackie Brown (1997)
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Pam Grier, Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Keaton, Robert De Niro
What it’s about: A flight attendant must contend with a ruthless drug dealer after she is caught smuggling and agrees to be an FBI informant.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Based on the Elmore Leonard novel Rum Punch, Jackie Brown is one of the most underrated, but still one of the best, Quentin Tarantino movies for its brilliant performances and absorbing crime narrative.
True Romance (1993)
Director: Tony Scott
Starring: Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette
What it’s about: After a man and a sex worker fall in love and marry almost immediately after they meet, they go on the run with her pimp’s stolen drug loot in search of a good way to sell it.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Despite its dark and violent subject matter, True Romance also manages to be the fun and heartwarming love story its title promises.
Good Will Hunting (1997)
Director: Gus Van Sant
Starring: Matt Damon, Robin Williams, Stellan Skarsgård, Ben Affleck
What it’s about: A young, intelligent custodian from Boston is forced into receiving therapy by an MIT professor who hopes to see him unlock the full potential of his gifts.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Matt Damon and Ben Affleck also earned Oscars for writing Good Will Hunting – an inspiring drama about recognizing your self-worth and navigating your direction in life.
Reservoir Dogs (1992)
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Starring: Harvey Keitel, Tim Roth
What it’s about: After a jewelry store heist goes terribly wrong, the surviving criminals try to figure out who among them may be a rat.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Quentin Tarantino made a stunning debut with Reservoir Dogs, which would forever change the way the world perceives the crime drama and the traditional structure of narrative storytelling.
Rounders (1998)
Director: John Dahl
Starring: Matt Damon, Edward Norton, Gretchen Mol
What it’s about: After dropping his gambling habit, a young card shark must revamp his poker skills to help his friend pay off a massive debt.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: One of the best movies about poker is Rounders – a deliriously entertaining crime drama also starring Gretchen Mol and John Turturro.
Multiplicity (1996)
Director: Harold Ramis
Starring: Michael Keaton, Andie MacDowell
What it’s about: An overworked family man finds a unique and astonishing way to help balance his many responsibilities and take some time for himself.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: One of the best Michael Keaton movies of the ‘90s, Multiplicity sees the actor embody various shades of the same character in this hilarious comedy about cloning.
Fear Of A Black Hat (1993)
Director: Rusty Cundieff
Starring: Rusty Cundieff, Larry B. Scott
What it’s about: The rise and fall of an absent-minded, troublesome rap group called NWH.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: The mockumentary-style satire, Fear of a Black Hat, is one of the funniest music movies of its time.
Made In America (1993)
Director: Richard Benjamin
Starring: Ted Danson, Whoopi Goldberg, Nia Long
What it’s about: A young Black woman discovers her father is a white sperm donor.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Ted Danson and Whoopi Goldberg actually dated around the time they shared an onscreen romance in the funny and inspiring Made in America.
Ferngully: The Last Rainforest (1992)
Director: Billy Kroyer
Starring: Samantha Mathis, Christian Slater, Robin Williams
What it’s about: A young logger becomes a defender of the woodland area he was hired to destroy when he is introduced to the small, magical world hidden inside of it.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Inside the funny, animated fantasy film, Ferngully: The Last Rainforest, is an inspiring commentary on deforestation.
Indecent Proposal (1993)
Director: Adrian Lyne
Starring: Robert Redford, Demi Moore, Woody Harrelson
What it’s about: A woman and her husband, both struggling financially, are offered a fortune by an older billionaire if he is allowed one night alone with her.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: One of the sexiest movies on Amazon Prime, Indecent Proposal, is a thought-provoking cautionary tale based on Jack Engelhard’s novel.
GoldenEye (1995)
Director: Martin Campbell
Starring: Pierce Brosnan, Sean Bean
What it’s about: Agent 007 must retrieve a powerful defense technology after it falls into the wrong hands.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Many believe GoldenEye is one of Pierce Brosnan’s best James Bond movies for its thrilling suspense and importance in inspiring a revolutionary video game.
Ghost In The Shell (1996)
Director: Mizuho Nishikubo, Mamoru Oshii
Starring: Atsuko Tanaka, Iemasa Kayumi
What it’s about: A cyborg begins to question her purpose while hunting down a criminal hacking into the brain of half-human, half-machine hybrids.
Why it is one of the best ‘90s movies on Amazon Prime: Ghost in the Shell is considered to be one of the greatest Japanese anime films of all time for its highly inventive, visually stunning depiction of the future.
Now are you primed for the ultimate ‘90s movie marathon. All it took was an Amazon Prime video subscription. Enjoy!
