15 Best '90s Movies On Amazon Prime

The 1990s rank among movie history's most fruitful and creatively dazzling heydays. Many movements and cinematic breakthroughs occurred, across Hollywood and down to smaller movies too. Big blockbusters got even more exciting, and independent film came into its own, as visionary filmmakers from different walks of life were given a chance to explore and share their art. The '90s were a crossroads for movies, and filmmakers went in all sorts of directions, creating more content for more people.

Many of the greatest and most indicative films of the '90s are available across streaming services, particularly Amazon's Prime Video outlet. So if you're feeling in the mood for some true gems from the end of the 20th century, here are the best '90s flicks currently available on Amazon Prime.

Updated on January 5, 2022: Amazon often adds and takes away films from its virtual catalog, so we'll keep this list updated to note all the cinematic comings and goings. Do check back each month for an updated list of what '90s movies are ready to watch on Amazon Prime.

"Fargo" is a high point of the innovative, indie-influenced 1990s filmmaking scene and one of the first masterpieces from sibling writer-director team Joel and Ethan Coen. It's a shockingly violent crime drama that speaks to the evil and desperation that lurks in the hearts of men, particularly those who need to make a little bit of money and fast. But "Fargo" is also a comic gem, with the laughs coming from bumbling criminals and the idiosyncratic behavior of quirky, no-nonsense tertiary characters in the movie's snowy North Dakota and Minnesota settings. At the center of the interconnected plots stands Marge Gunderson, a nine-months-pregnant police chief who starts putting the pieces together regarding a kidnapping, a local car salesman, and two bizarre yet frightening goons. 

• Starring: Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, William H. Macy
• Director: Joel and Ethan Coen
• Year: 1996
• Runtime: 98 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

The classic, Cold War-era spy show "Mission: Impossible" was a brainy, delicately paced espionage thriller that required close attention be paid. As one of the most taut and exciting small-screen dramas ever, it was a no-brainer for Hollywood to turn it into a movie in the '90s, when filmmakers were remaking old TV shows left and right. However, the franchise-starting "Mission: Impossible" breaks away from its source material immediately, with acclaimed director Brian De Palma and consummate movie star Tom Cruise teaming up to create an elegant, whip-smart, remarkably clever action movie that stands on its own. 

As for the plot, secret agent Ethan Hunt goes on the run when his mentor is killed during a hush-hush mission and he's framed for murder. Hunt puts an expert team together to plan and execute a daring break-in of a CIA facility to get the digital files that will exonerate him.

• Starring: Tom Cruise, Jon Voight, Emmanuelle Beart
• Director: Brian De Palma
• Year: 1996
• Runtime: 110 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 66%

In the 1980s, the HIV and AIDS epidemic killed millions, and the 1993 drama "Philadelphia" reckons with that tragedy. It also condemns the ingrained homophobia that allowed the disease to run rampant for so long, particularly in the United States. 

A deeply sad movie but a landmark moment for representation in film, "Philadelphia" is technically a courtroom drama. The amiable, lovable Tom Hanks — in one of his first dramatic roles — portrays Andrew Beckett, a gay lawyer fired by his elite Philadelphia law firm, he believes, because of his orientation and HIV-positive status. And so, he sues for discrimination, enlisting the only lawyer he can find who will help, and together, they put the whole system on trial.

• Starring: Tom Hanks, Denzel Washington, Antonio Banderas
• Director: Jonathan Demme
• Year: 1993
• Runtime: 125 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 81%

It's not writer-director Wes Anderson's first movie, but it's the first of the filmmaker's offerings that bears his distinctive cinematic look, favors a soundtrack of '60s British rock, and features a fussy, nerdy, well-dressed main character processing some issues out loud. 

Max Fisher runs dozens of different clubs at the esteemed Rushmore Academy, but he never quite fits in with the rich kids and entitled bullies. On the verge of flunking out because he spends too much time on activities and not enough on grades, he becomes more determined to stay at Rushmore (but more distracted) when he gets a huge crush on new teacher Rosemary, who sees a lot of her adventurous and deceased husband in Max. 

Our hero makes some grand gestures for his affections, funded by his new friend — depressed, divorcing businessman Herman Blume. That relationship sours when Herman develops a thing for Rosemary too. It all ends, as love triangles never do, at Max's play about the Vietnam War.

• Starring: Jason Schwartzman, Bill Murray, Olivia Williams
• Director: Wes Anderson
• Year: 1998
• Runtime: 92 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 90%

An absolutely magical and engrossing cinematic journey to coastal Ireland, "The Secret of Roan Inish" plays on Gaelic mythology to form a modern-day fairy tale that's as charming as it is unpredictable. According to legends in and around Ireland and Scotland, the waters hold creatures called selkies, seals that can transform themselves and live amongst humans. In the post-World War II years, young, ill, grieving Fiona goes off to live with her grandparents in a fishing town, and when she visits the mysterious, animal-loving island of Roan Inish, she thinks she's found her long-lost baby brother — a selkie, in his seal form.

• Starring: Mick Lally, Eileen Colgan, John Lynch
• Director: John Sayles
• Year: 1994
• Runtime: 102 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

When it comes to rom-coms, they don't get much better than Nora Ephron movies. And when it comes to Ephron's filmography, perhaps the best movie she ever directed is "Sleepless in Seattle." 

This delightful tale finds Sam Baldwin doing his best to raise his son after the recent loss of his wife. But Sam's kid, Jonah, sees that his dad is incredibly lonely, so he phones up a radio talk show psychologist for some advice. Sam's story makes waves across the nation, and it gets the attention of one Annie Reed, who instantly falls head over heels for poor Sam. These two are perfect for each other ... only they live on opposite coasts, Annie is engaged, and Sam doesn't know she exists. Will these two eventually meet up? 

Come on, this is a '90s rom-com starring Tom Hanks an Meg Ryan. You know the answer. But watching it play out is so incredibly charming.

• Starring: Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Ross Malinger
• Director: Nora Ephron
• Year: 1993
• Runtime: 104 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 75%

Christopher McQuarrie won an Academy Award for his precise, calculated, and exciting screenplay, providing a labyrinthine plot that rewrites cinema's rules about crime dramas, unreliable narrators, and how to properly execute twists. The film is told in flashbacks that are based on the police interrogation room testimony of a low-level con artist named Verbal Kint. And through Verbal's recollections, we come to meet a slew of known criminals who are thought to be involved in a harbor heist with a body count. However, all the clues lead to Keyser Soze, an almost mythically evil crime boss who may not even exist. 

• Starring: Gabriel Byrne, Kevin Spacey, Benicio del Toro
• Director: Bryan Singer
• Year: 1995
• Runtime: 105 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%