Best Movies of 1990
by terrence-gale | created - 15 Feb 2014 | updated - 16 Mar 2014 | PublicHere are my selections for the best movies of 1990.
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1. Longtime Companion (1989)
R | 96 min | Drama, Romance
The emergence and devastation of the AIDS epidemic is chronicled in the lives of several gay men living during the 1980s.
Director: Norman René | Stars: Stephen Caffrey, Patrick Cassidy, Brian Cousins, Bruce Davison
Votes: 6,137 | Gross: $4.61M
2. Edward Scissorhands (1990)
PG-13 | 105 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
The solitary life of an artificial man - who was incompletely constructed and has scissors for hands - is upended when he is taken in by a suburban family.
Director: Tim Burton | Stars: Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall
Votes: 526,441 | Gross: $56.36M
3. The Grifters (1990)
R | 110 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A small-time conman has torn loyalties between his estranged mother and new girlfriend, both of whom are high-stakes grifters with their own angles to play.
Director: Stephen Frears | Stars: Anjelica Huston, John Cusack, Annette Bening, Jan Munroe
Votes: 30,671 | Gross: $13.45M
4. Awakenings (1990)
PG-13 | 121 min | Biography, Drama
The victims of an encephalitis epidemic many years ago have been catatonic ever since, but now a new drug offers the prospect of reviving them.
Director: Penny Marshall | Stars: Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Julie Kavner, Ruth Nelson
Votes: 159,515 | Gross: $52.10M
5. Reversal of Fortune (1990)
R | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Mystery
Wealthy Sunny von Bülow lies brain-dead, husband Claus guilty of attempted murder; but he says he's innocent and hires Alan Dershowitz for his appeal.
Director: Barbet Schroeder | Stars: Jeremy Irons, Glenn Close, Ron Silver, Annabella Sciorra
Votes: 18,865 | Gross: $15.45M
6. The Krays (1990)
R | 115 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
This fact-based movie follows the life of the twin crime-lords in London's '60s underworld.
Director: Peter Medak | Stars: Gary Kemp, Martin Kemp, Billie Whitelaw, Tom Bell
Votes: 9,132 | Gross: $2.06M
7. Mr. & Mrs. Bridge (1990)
PG-13 | 126 min | Drama
Set during World War II, an upper-class family begins to fall apart due to the conservative nature of the patriarch and the progressive values of his children.
Director: James Ivory | Stars: Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Saundra McClain, Margaret Welsh
Votes: 3,508 | Gross: $7.70M
8. The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover (1989)
NC-17 | 124 min | Crime, Drama
At Le Hollandais gourmet restaurant, every night is filled with opulence, decadence and gluttony. But when the cook, a thief, his wife and her lover all come together, they unleash a shocking torrent of sex, food, murder and revenge.
Director: Peter Greenaway | Stars: Richard Bohringer, Michael Gambon, Helen Mirren, Alan Howard
Votes: 41,958 | Gross: $7.72M
9. Misery (1990)
R | 107 min | Drama, Thriller
After a famous author is rescued from a car crash by a fan of his novels, he comes to realize that the care he is receiving is only the beginning of a nightmare of captivity and abuse.
Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen
Votes: 236,883 | Gross: $61.28M
10. Ghost (1990)
PG-13 | 127 min | Drama, Fantasy, Romance
After a young man is murdered, his spirit stays behind to warn his lover of impending danger, with the help of a reluctant psychic.
Director: Jerry Zucker | Stars: Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Goldwyn
Votes: 237,094 | Gross: $217.63M
11. The Godfather Part III (1990)
R | 162 min | Crime, Drama
Follows Michael Corleone, now in his 60s, as he seeks to free his family from crime and find a suitable successor to his empire.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Andy Garcia, Talia Shire
Votes: 426,176 | Gross: $66.67M
12. Wild at Heart (1990)
R | 125 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Young lovers Sailor and Lula run from the variety of weirdos that Lula's mom has hired to kill Sailor.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, J.E. Freeman
Votes: 101,491 | Gross: $14.56M
13. Pretty Woman (1990)
R | 119 min | Comedy, Romance
A man in a legal but hurtful business needs an escort for some social events, and hires a beautiful prostitute he meets... only to fall in love.
Director: Garry Marshall | Stars: Richard Gere, Julia Roberts, Jason Alexander, Laura San Giacomo
Votes: 364,004 | Gross: $178.41M
14. Postcards from the Edge (1990)
R | 101 min | Comedy, Drama
A substance-addicted actress tries to look on the bright side even as she is forced to move back in with her mother to avoid unemployment.
Director: Mike Nichols | Stars: Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Quaid, Gene Hackman
Votes: 19,422 | Gross: $37.96M
15. Tie Me Up! Tie Me Down! (1989)
NC-17 | 101 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
An unbalanced but alluring former mental patient takes a porn star prisoner in the hopes of convincing her to marry him.
Director: Pedro Almodóvar | Stars: Victoria Abril, Antonio Banderas, Loles León, Julieta Serrano
Votes: 32,102 | Gross: $4.09M
16. Green Card (1990)
PG-13 | 107 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
A man wanting to stay in the US enters into a marriage of convenience, but it turns into more than that.
Director: Peter Weir | Stars: Gérard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell, Bebe Neuwirth, Gregg Edelman
Votes: 25,960 | Gross: $29.89M
17. Alice (1990)
PG-13 | 106 min | Comedy, Romance
A spoiled Manhattan housewife re-evaluates her life after visiting a Chinatown healer.
Director: Woody Allen | Stars: Mia Farrow, William Hurt, Joe Mantegna, June Squibb
Votes: 15,423 | Gross: $7.33M
18. Presumed Innocent (1990)
R | 127 min | Mystery, Thriller
As a lawyer investigates the murder of a colleague, he finds himself more connected to the crime than anyone else.
Director: Alan J. Pakula | Stars: Harrison Ford, Raul Julia, Greta Scacchi, Brian Dennehy
Votes: 46,053 | Gross: $86.30M
19. Strangers in Good Company (1990)
PG | 101 min | Adventure, Drama
A busload of women become stranded in an isolated part of the Canadian countryside. As they await rescue, they reflect on their lives.
Director: Cynthia Scott | Stars: Alice Diabo, Constance Garneau, Beth Webber, Catherine Roche
Votes: 1,312 | Gross: $1.00M
20. The Sheltering Sky (1990)
R | 138 min | Adventure, Drama
An American couple travel abroad to revitalize their relationship. But as the trip drags on, their attempt at recovering what they once had seems futile.
Director: Bernardo Bertolucci | Stars: Debra Winger, John Malkovich, Campbell Scott, Jill Bennett
Votes: 13,841 | Gross: $2.08M
21. Hamlet (1990)
PG | 135 min | Drama
Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, finds out that his uncle Claudius killed his father to obtain the throne, and plans revenge.
Director: Franco Zeffirelli | Stars: Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield
Votes: 23,753 | Gross: $20.71M
22. Total Recall (1990)
R | 113 min | Action, Adventure, Sci-Fi
When a man goes in to have virtual vacation memories of the planet Mars implanted in his mind, an unexpected and harrowing series of events forces him to go to the planet for real - or is he?
Director: Paul Verhoeven | Stars: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Michael Ironside, Rachel Ticotin
Votes: 356,286 | Gross: $119.39M
23. Lord of the Flies (1990)
R | 90 min | Adventure, Drama, Thriller
Stranded on an island, a group of schoolboys degenerate into savagery.
Director: Harry Hook | Stars: Balthazar Getty, Chris Furrh, Danuel Pipoly, James Badge Dale
Votes: 33,758 | Gross: $13.99M
24. Pump Up the Volume (1990)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
Mark runs a pirate radio station and causes an uproar when he speaks his mind and enthralls fellow teens.
Director: Allan Moyle | Stars: Christian Slater, Samantha Mathis, Anthony Luke Lucero, Andy Romano
Votes: 31,343 | Gross: $11.54M
25. Flatliners (1990)
R | 115 min | Drama, Horror, Sci-Fi
Five medical students experiment with "near death" experiences, until the dark consequences of past tragedies begin to jeopardize their lives.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Kiefer Sutherland, Kevin Bacon, Julia Roberts, William Baldwin
Votes: 93,894 | Gross: $61.49M
26. Home Alone (1990)
PG | 103 min | Comedy, Family
An eight-year-old troublemaker, mistakenly left home alone, must defend his home against a pair of burglars on Christmas Eve.
Director: Chris Columbus | Stars: Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard
Votes: 656,129 | Gross: $285.76M
27. The Witches (1990)
PG | 91 min | Adventure, Comedy, Family
A young boy stumbles onto a witch convention and must stop them, even after he has been turned into a mouse.
Director: Nicolas Roeg | Stars: Anjelica Huston, Mai Zetterling, Jasen Fisher, Rowan Atkinson
Votes: 55,010 | Gross: $10.36M
28. Mermaids (1990)
PG-13 | 110 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
An unconventional single mother relocates with her two daughters to a small Massachusetts town in 1963, where a number of events and relationships both challenge and strengthen their familial bonds.
Director: Richard Benjamin | Stars: Cher, Bob Hoskins, Winona Ryder, Michael Schoeffling
Votes: 36,030 | Gross: $35.42M
29. The Rescuers Down Under (1990)
G | 77 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
R.A.S. agents Miss Bianca and Bernard race to Australia to save a little boy and a rare golden eagle from a murderous poacher.
Directors: Hendel Butoy, Mike Gabriel | Stars: Bob Newhart, Eva Gabor, John Candy, Tristan Rogers
Votes: 47,499 | Gross: $27.93M
30. Jacob's Ladder (I) (1990)
R | 113 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
Mourning his dead child, a haunted Vietnam War veteran attempts to uncover his past while suffering from a severe case of dissociation. To do so, he must decipher reality and life from his own dreams, delusions, and perceptions of death.
Director: Adrian Lyne | Stars: Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peña, Danny Aiello, Matt Craven
Votes: 118,455 | Gross: $26.12M
31. Pacific Heights (1990)
R | 102 min | Thriller
A couple work hard to renovate their dream house and become landlords to pay for it. Unfortunately, one of their tenants has plans of his own.
Director: John Schlesinger | Stars: Melanie Griffith, Matthew Modine, Michael Keaton, Mako
Votes: 22,885 | Gross: $29.38M
32. Night of the Living Dead (1990)
R | 92 min | Horror
When the unburied dead return to life and seek human victims, seven refugees shelter in a house in the Pennsylvanian countryside.
Director: Tom Savini | Stars: Tony Todd, Patricia Tallman, Tom Towles, McKee Anderson
Votes: 45,685 | Gross: $5.84M
33. Darkman (1990)
R | 96 min | Action, Sci-Fi, Thriller
A brilliant scientist left for dead returns to exact revenge on the people who burned him alive.
Director: Sam Raimi | Stars: Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand, Colin Friels, Larry Drake
Votes: 70,181 | Gross: $33.88M
34. Die Hard 2 (1990)
R | 124 min | Action, Thriller
John McClane attempts to avert disaster as rogue military operatives seize control of Dulles International Airport in Washington, D.C.
Director: Renny Harlin | Stars: Bruce Willis, William Atherton, Bonnie Bedelia, Reginald VelJohnson
Votes: 384,930 | Gross: $117.54M
35. Tremors (1990)
PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Horror
Natives of a small isolated town defend themselves against strange underground creatures which are killing them one by one.
Director: Ron Underwood | Stars: Kevin Bacon, Fred Ward, Finn Carter, Michael Gross
Votes: 151,203 | Gross: $16.67M
36. I Love You to Death (1990)
R | 97 min | Comedy, Crime
Joey Boca (Kevin Kline) owns a pizza parlor, and is married to Rosalie (Tracey Ullman). He's also a serial womanizer. Rosalie goes to extremes when she finds he has been cheating.
Director: Lawrence Kasdan | Stars: Kevin Kline, Tracey Ullman, William Hurt, Joan Plowright
Votes: 15,623 | Gross: $16.19M
37. White Palace (1990)
R | 103 min | Drama, Romance
Lust turns to love for a 40-ish working-class woman and a 20-ish yuppie adman with little in common.
Director: Luis Mandoki | Stars: Susan Sarandon, James Spader, Jason Alexander, Kathy Bates
Votes: 8,971 | Gross: $17.49M
38. Dick Tracy (1990)
PG | 105 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
The comic strip detective finds his life vastly complicated when Breathless Mahoney makes advances towards him while he is trying to battle Big Boy Caprice's united mob.
Director: Warren Beatty | Stars: Warren Beatty, Madonna, Al Pacino, Charlie Korsmo
Votes: 66,080 | Gross: $103.74M
39. The Exorcist III (1990)
R | 110 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
A police lieutenant uncovers more than he bargained for as his investigation of a series of murders, which have all the hallmarks of the deceased Gemini serial killer, leads him to question the patients of a psychiatric ward.
Director: William Peter Blatty | Stars: George C. Scott, Ed Flanders, Brad Dourif, Jason Miller
Votes: 39,089 | Gross: $26.10M
40. Internal Affairs (1990)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
An Internal Affairs agent becomes obsessed with bringing down a cop who has managed to maintain a spotless reputation despite being involved in a web of corruption.
Director: Mike Figgis | Stars: Richard Gere, Andy Garcia, Nancy Travis, Laurie Metcalf
Votes: 22,730 | Gross: $27.73M
41. Bad Influence (1990)
R | 99 min | Drama, Thriller
A soft and hesitant young man is in danger when he tries to break toxic relationships with a mysterious stranger claiming to be his friend.
Director: Curtis Hanson | Stars: Rob Lowe, James Spader, Palmer Lee Todd, Rosalyn Landor
Votes: 10,902 | Gross: $12.63M
42. Stella (1990)
PG-13 | 109 min | Drama, Romance
Chronicling a strong, but eccentric woman's devoted relationship to her daughter through the years.
Director: John Erman | Stars: Bette Midler, John Goodman, Trini Alvarado, Stephen Collins
Votes: 2,875 | Gross: $20.24M
43. Havana (I) (1990)
R | 144 min | Drama, Romance, War
In 1950s Cuba, a professional gambler falls for a woman heavily involved in the revolution movement.
Director: Sydney Pollack | Stars: Robert Redford, Lena Olin, Alan Arkin, Tomas Milian
Votes: 8,569 | Gross: $9.24M
44. Cry-Baby (1990)
PG-13 | 85 min | Comedy, Musical
In 1950s Baltimore, a bad boy with a heart of gold wins the love of a good girl, whose boyfriend sets out for revenge.
Director: John Waters | Stars: Johnny Depp, Ricki Lake, Amy Locane, Susan Tyrrell
Votes: 65,156 | Gross: $8.27M
45. The Freshman (1990)
PG | 102 min | Comedy, Crime
An N.Y.C. film school student accepts a job with a local mobster who resembles a famous cinema godfather and who takes the young man under his wing, after demanding total loyalty.
Director: Andrew Bergman | Stars: Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Penelope Ann Miller
Votes: 22,109 | Gross: $21.46M
46. Arachnophobia (1990)
PG-13 | 109 min | Comedy, Horror, Thriller
A new species of South American killer spider hitches a lift to a small California town in a coffin and starts to breed, leaving a trail of deaths that puzzle and terrify the young doctor newly arrived in town with his family.
Director: Frank Marshall | Stars: Jeff Daniels, Julian Sands, John Goodman, Harley Jane Kozak
Votes: 76,174 | Gross: $53.21M
47. DuckTales the Movie: Treasure of the Lost Lamp (1990)
G | 74 min | Animation, Adventure, Comedy
Scrooge McDuck takes Huey, Dewey, and Louie to Egypt to find a pyramid and magic lamp.
Director: Bob Hathcock | Stars: Alan Young, Christopher Lloyd, Terence McGovern, Russi Taylor
Votes: 28,855 | Gross: $18.12M
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