Top Fifty Guy Movies of the 1990s
10. Braveheart, 1995
Premise: The story of a legendary Scot named William Wallace, who opposed Edward I of England.
Director: Mel Gibson
Stars: Mel Gibson, Sophie Marceau, Catherine McCormack
What you’ll Remember: But they’ll never take… OUR FREEDOM.
Reasons it is on the List: Back when people didn’t think of Mel Gibson as crazy, this war-drama is well made, well-acted, and has some incredible battle scenes that are gory, vicious, and real. Who doesn’t want to see people battle with swords, axes, and arrows? The themes of honor, bravery, and loyalty among others also appeal to many men.
9. Hard Boiled, 1992
Premise: A pair of cops team together to take down a dangerous Hong Kong Triad.
Director: John Woo
Stars: Chow Yun-Fat and Tony Leung
What you’ll Remember: The hospital shootout.
Reasons it is on the List: John Woo is simply one of the best action directors around, and this is his best work of the 1990s (although not his best work overall, it may be his best pure action film), better than his Hollywood fare like Face/Off or Broken Arrow. The man brought style to action, making Chow Yun Fat an action star. Here, he usually can be seen toothpick in mouth, a gun in each hand, and involved in a stylized gunfight.
8. Saving Private Ryan, 1998
Premise: A group of soldiers is assembled to retrieve Private First Class James Francis Ryan after his brothers are killed in action.
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Tom Hanks, Edward Burns, Tom Sizemore, Matt Damon
What you’ll Remember: The D-Day assault on Omaha Beach.
Reasons it is on the List: The bookend present day scenes are a bit sappy, but the main portion of the film is an amazing re-creation of World War II. You see ordinary people thrown into extraordinary circumstances and an ongoing “war is hell” theme, all done in such a way you almost feel like you were there instead of watching a film.
7. Terminator 2: Judgment Day, 1991
Premise: A killer robot is sent from the future to kill the future leader of the human resistance in a humans vs. robots war.
Director: James Cameron
Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Edward Furlong
What you’ll Remember: The liquid metal T-1000.
Reasons it is on the List: Back when James Cameron actually made movies (don’t make me wait a dozen years for your next film please), it’s the best installment of an action-packed exciting franchise. The original was made on a shoe-string budget, but its success allowed this big budget sequel. And with the extra money Cameron went wild, there are tons of crashes, gunshots, and explosions all over the place. Lesson: two terminators are better than one. The movie was also groundbreaking with its special effects, winning an Academy award. For a seriously in-depth time travel analysis of the Terminator series, check this site out.
6. Heat, 1995
Premise: A group of professional criminals decide to rob a bank.
Director: Michael Mann
Stars: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Tom Sizemore
What you’ll Remember: The bank shootout scene.
Reasons it is on the List: You came for the De Niro-Pacino scenes, but you stayed for the amazing screenplay and execution. A simple cops vs. robbers plot, the movie is an epic with its fascinating storyline and involving characters overseen by a great director. Plus there’s a plethora of recognizable faces, even Natalie Portman and Ashley Judd have bit parts.
5. The Usual Suspects, 1995
Premise: Police interrogate a small time con-man to determine why a ship has burned and bodies litter the water by the docks.
Director: Bryan Singer
Stars: Gabriel Byrne, Chazz Palminteri, Kevin Spacey
What you’ll Remember: Keyser Söze.
Reasons it is on the List: It starts with a seemingly random police lineup and ends with one of better endings in recent cinema. In between is an ever increasing twisted and convoluted story that’s full of comedy, action, suspense, and surprise. And to top it off, it’s well acted.
4. The Shawshank Redemption, 1994
Premise: A man is imprisoned for a crime he didn’t commit and copes with prison life.
Director: Frank Darabont
Stars: Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman
What you’ll Remember: The Ending.
Reasons it is on the List: One of the best films ever made, it doesn’t have the typical aspects of a guy movie. There’s no action and no special effects. Woman are pretty much non-existent in this picture, although there’s a Rita Hayworth poster for scenery. What it does have is a brilliant story that’s superbly acted. And afterwards, you’re glad you watched it.
3. Pulp Fiction, 1994
Premise: A series of intersecting story lines about Los Angeles mobsters, fringe players, petty thieves, and a mysterious briefcase.
Director: Quentin Tarantino
Stars: John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Uma Thurman
What you’ll Remember: Jules Winnfield.
Reasons it is on the List: Simply an all-time great movie, even for those not into violence, language and adult themes (which are aplenty here). It’s best aspect is a witty screenplay, but it combines with a solid soundtrack to form a host of memorable characters that have influenced movies and pop culture. Tarantino is doing something right, this is his fourth movie he’s helped write on this list.
2. The Matrix, 1999
Premise: A computer programmer comes to the realization that he’s merely living in a simulated world as a battery for robots.
Director: Andy and Larry Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie Anne-Moss
What you’ll Remember: Bullet time.
Reasons it is on the List: The story is used throughout guy movies, man vs. robot. It’s a good premise and it’s done well here, and in unique fashion. Some may feel the sequels hurt the status of the original, but I disagree (and I also liked Reloaded). The lobby scene alone is spectacular, and it upped the ante for cinematic fight scenes as a whole. Extensive gun play and a leather outfit on Carrie Anne-Moss are a bonus.
1. Fight Club, 1999
Premise: An insurance company employee encounters a man on a plane named Tyler Durden, who opens his eyes to the world and changes his life forever.
Director: David Fincher
Stars: Edward Norton, Brad Pitt, Helena Bonham Carter
What you’ll Remember: The first rule of Fight Club is – you do not talk about Fight Club.
Reasons it is on the List: This movie has it all: fighting, women, violence, Meatloaf and his man-tits, a fake Ikea knock-off, subtle bits of humor, strong performances by the stars, and one of the great cinema characters of all time in Tyler Durden. Plus as the poster states, there’s also soap!
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51. Waterboy! I love that movie man…
It’s a little bit obscure, but The Big Hit is definitely one of my favorites.
Great list, but missing Casino!
where is casino… was expcting it at number one
I knew people would not like Casino missing. It’s a fair argument to make. I think its the Sharon Stone annoyance factor that did it in.
Interesting that 2 of the top 5 best guy movies of the 90’s feature highly prominent scenes of male on male sodomy.
Shawshank IMHO should be #1 but still dugg for being in the top 5.
Gladiotor??????
Did I no9t see Gladiator on the list. Come on now
You don’t see Gladiator because this is movies of the 90’s not the 2000s.
Fight Club #1? This list is a joke. Heat was MUCH better. And Wild Things is top 10 just for the make out scene alone.
Good list, but “Out of Sight”? That movie sucked.
Totally blew it on The Rock…..thing I remember about that movie is Sean Connery’s famous line “Losers always whine about their best….winner’s go home and fu*k the prom queen!”
The Rock – “Carla was the prom queen!”
You have to include A Few Good Men. Say what you want about Tom Cruise, but his scenes with Jack were awesome.
South Park: Bigger, Longer & Uncut.
Great list, but you forgot Suburban Commando, brother!!
And CASINO definitely needs to be on this list. Top 5 hands down…
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what about Snatch
True Romance was 1993, not 1998 (look it up). Also, Armegedon wasn’t a great movie, but it was a lot better than some of the ones you’ve got in the top 50.
Snatch was in 2000, but is very good.
Sorry about the True Romance, wass a typo
If you’re a fan of Michael Mann (”Heat”), then you can’t leave out “Last of the Mohicans” (1992). Daniel Day-Lewis plays the colonial bad-arse Hawkeye. Awesome battle scenes, both group and mano-a-mano. Wes Studi’s “Magua” does some serious butt-kicking of his own until he meets his fate at movie’s end.
[...] Top Fifty Guy Movies of the 1990s – Gunaxin [...]
[...] fifty guy movies of the nineties. [...]
The Shawshank Redemption was an awesome movie
Good list, but Trainspotting takes place in Scotland. So, he’s a young Scottish guy. Just a heads up!
Kilmer’s quote in Tombstone was I’m your Hucklebearer…you know the guy who carries the casket at a funeral.
What the hell is a huckleberry?
Two points:
1) Scotland is in Britain, hence British man. All Scots are Brits
2) I’m pretty certain the quote is “I’m your huckleberry”, even the subtitles confirm this. “I’m your huckleberry” was slang for “I’m the man for the job” or “I’m the man you’re looking for”
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[...] Top ’90s guys movies – Gunaxin [...]
Fight Club in first place??? Of Course!! It is just the best film i have ever seen. Matrix is my second favourite, but only the first movie,the second looks like some marvel stuff, and the third is just fun to watch but not deep. Pulp fiction i find it overrated… If you see this as a list of most enjoyable movies, the other movies in the list are well chosen otherwise you wouldn´t see terminator in 7th place, it is satisfying but not a great great movie. This is the best 90s list!!!
[...] of the best films of the ’90s, Shawshank is a tour de force in storytelling and acting. A circumspect banker named Andy Dufresne [...]
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