90s thrillers to watch
by taralou06 | created - 29 Jul 2018 | updated - 21 Aug 2018 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Carlito's Way (1993)
R | 144 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A Puerto Rican former convict, just released from prison, pledges to stay away from drugs and violence despite the pressure around him and lead on to a better life outside of N.Y.C.
Director: Brian De Palma | Stars: Al Pacino, Sean Penn, Penelope Ann Miller, John Leguizamo
Votes: 232,466 | Gross: $36.95M
2. The Boondock Saints (1999)
R | 108 min | Action, Crime, Thriller
Two Irish Catholic brothers become vigilantes and wipe out Boston's criminal underworld in the name of God.
Director: Troy Duffy | Stars: Willem Dafoe, Sean Patrick Flanery, Norman Reedus, David Della Rocco
Votes: 250,755 | Gross: $0.03M
3. 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: 117,932 | Gross: $26.12M
4. Miller's Crossing (1990)
R | 115 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Tom Reagan, an advisor to a Prohibition-era crime boss, tries to keep the peace between warring mobs but gets caught in divided loyalties.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: Gabriel Byrne, Albert Finney, John Turturro, Marcia Gay Harden
Votes: 142,188 | Gross: $5.08M
5. Office Space (1999)
R | 89 min | Comedy
Three company workers who hate their jobs decide to rebel against their greedy boss.
Director: Mike Judge | Stars: Ron Livingston, Jennifer Aniston, David Herman, Ajay Naidu
Votes: 287,706 | Gross: $10.82M
6. The Rainmaker (1997)
PG-13 | 135 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
An underdog lawyer takes on a fraudulent insurance company.
Director: Francis Ford Coppola | Stars: Matt Damon, Danny DeVito, Claire Danes, Jon Voight
Votes: 82,909 | Gross: $45.86M
7. Following (1998)
R | 69 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A young writer who follows strangers for material meets a thief who takes him under his wing.
Director: Christopher Nolan | Stars: Jeremy Theobald, Alex Haw, Lucy Russell, John Nolan
Votes: 101,798 | Gross: $0.05M
8. The Newton Boys (1998)
PG-13 | 122 min | Action, Crime, Drama
The story of the Newton gang, the most successful bank robbers in history, owing to their good planning and minimal violence.
Director: Richard Linklater | Stars: Matthew McConaughey, Ethan Hawke, Skeet Ulrich, Vincent D'Onofrio
Votes: 12,388 | Gross: $10.30M
9. What About Bob? (1991)
PG | 99 min | Comedy
A successful psychotherapist loses his mind after one of his most dependent patients, an obsessive-compulsive neurotic, tracks him down during his family vacation.
Director: Frank Oz | Stars: Bill Murray, Richard Dreyfuss, Julie Hagerty, Charlie Korsmo
Votes: 74,486 | Gross: $63.71M
10. Quiz Show (1994)
PG-13 | 133 min | Biography, Drama, History
A young lawyer, Richard Goodwin, investigates a potentially fixed game show. Charles Van Doren, a big time show winner, is under Goodwin's investigation.
Director: Robert Redford | Stars: Ralph Fiennes, John Turturro, Rob Morrow, Paul Scofield
Votes: 73,358 | Gross: $24.82M
11. Nightwatch (1997)
R | 101 min | Drama, Horror, Thriller
A law student, who takes a job as a night watchman at a morgue, begins to discover clues that implicate him as the suspect of a series of murders.
Director: Ole Bornedal | Stars: Ewan McGregor, Nick Nolte, Anais Evans, Erich Anderson
Votes: 21,317 | Gross: $1.20M
12. To Catch a Killer (1992)
Unrated | 89 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
"To Catch a Killer" tells the true gruesome story of John Wayne Gacy - a good friend and helpful neighbour, a great child entertainer, a respectful businessman, and a violent serial killer ... See full summary »
Stars: Brian Dennehy, Michael Riley, Margot Kidder, Meg Foster
Votes: 2,913
13. In Dreams (1999)
R | 100 min | Drama, Fantasy, Thriller
A suburban housewife learns that she has a dreamworld connection to a serial murderer, and must stop him from killing again.
Director: Neil Jordan | Stars: Annette Bening, Robert Downey Jr., Katie Sagona, Aidan Quinn
Votes: 13,639 | Gross: $12.02M
14. When the Bough Breaks (1994)
R | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
Police detectives investigate the apparent serial killing of several children after finding severed hands.
Director: Michael Cohn | Stars: Ally Walker, Martin Sheen, Ron Perlman, Tara Subkoff
Votes: 2,042
15. In the Deep Woods (1992 TV Movie)
95 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A woman fears that the private detective she's been conversing with may be the killer who murdered her beloved friend and dumped her corpse in the forest.
Director: Charles Correll | Stars: Rosanna Arquette, Anthony Perkins, Will Patton, D.W. Moffett
Votes: 790
16. Frailty (2001)
R | 100 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A mysterious man arrives at the offices of an FBI agent and recounts his childhood: how his religious fanatic father received visions telling him to destroy people who were in fact "demons."
Director: Bill Paxton | Stars: Bill Paxton, Matthew McConaughey, Powers Boothe, Matt O'Leary
Votes: 91,402 | Gross: $13.10M
17. Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986)
Unrated | 83 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
Arriving in Chicago, Henry moves in with ex-con acquaintance Otis and starts schooling him in the ways of the serial killer.
Director: John McNaughton | Stars: Michael Rooker, Tracy Arnold, Tom Towles, Mary Demas
Votes: 40,469 | Gross: $0.61M
18. Citizen X (1995 TV Movie)
R | 105 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
During the 1980s, Soviet authorities hunt for a serial killer who picks his victims in railway stations and commuter trains and lures them into the woods.
Director: Chris Gerolmo | Stars: Stephen Rea, Donald Sutherland, Max von Sydow, Jeffrey DeMunn
Votes: 22,321
19. Knight Moves (1992)
R | 116 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
During a chess tournament, grand master Peter is suspected of murdering Debi after sex. He helps the police as the murders continue.
Director: Carl Schenkel | Stars: Christopher Lambert, Tom Skerritt, Codie Lucas Wilbee, Joshua Murray
Votes: 9,168 | Gross: $0.92M
20. Freeway (1996)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A twisted take on "Little Red Riding Hood", with a teenage juvenile delinquent on the run from a social worker travelling to her grandmother's house and being hounded by a charming, but sadistic, serial killer and pedophile.
Director: Matthew Bright | Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Kiefer Sutherland, Bokeem Woodbine, Paul Perri
Votes: 31,772 | Gross: $0.30M
21. Malice (1993)
R | 107 min | Crime, Mystery, Thriller
A tale about a happily married couple who would like to have children. Tracy teaches art, Andy's a college dean. Things are never the same after she is taken to hospital and operated upon by Jed, a "know all" doctor.
Director: Harold Becker | Stars: Alec Baldwin, Nicole Kidman, Bill Pullman, Bebe Neuwirth
Votes: 27,383 | Gross: $46.04M
22. Bully (2001)
R | 108 min | Biography, Crime, Drama
A pack of naïve teenagers conspire to murder a mutual friend, whose aggressive demeanour has proven too much.
Director: Larry Clark | Stars: Brad Renfro, Nick Stahl, Bijou Phillips, Rachel Miner
Votes: 40,530 | Gross: $1.54M
23. JFK (1991)
R | 189 min | Drama, History, Thriller
New Orleans District Attorney Jim Garrison discovers there's more to the Kennedy assassination than the official story.
Director: Oliver Stone | Stars: Kevin Costner, Gary Oldman, Jack Lemmon, Walter Matthau
Votes: 169,977 | Gross: $70.41M
24. Lost Highway (1997)
R | 134 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Anonymous videotapes presage a musician's murder conviction, and a gangster's girlfriend leads a mechanic astray.
Director: David Lynch | Stars: Bill Pullman, Patricia Arquette, John Roselius, Louis Eppolito
Votes: 153,263 | Gross: $3.80M
25. 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: 45,812 | Gross: $86.30M
26. The Client (1994)
PG-13 | 119 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A young boy who witnessed the suicide of a mafia lawyer hires an attorney to protect him when the District Attorney tries to use him to take down a mob family.
Director: Joel Schumacher | Stars: Susan Sarandon, Tommy Lee Jones, Brad Renfro, Mary-Louise Parker
Votes: 73,715 | Gross: $92.12M
27. Arlington Road (1999)
R | 117 min | Action, Crime, Drama
A man begins to suspect his neighbors are not what they appear to be and their secrets could be deadly.
Director: Mark Pellington | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Tim Robbins, Joan Cusack, Hope Davis
Votes: 91,908 | Gross: $24.36M
28. Nick of Time (1995)
R | 90 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An unimpressive, everyday man is forced into a situation where he is told to kill a politician to save his kidnapped daughter.
Director: John Badham | Stars: Johnny Depp, Christopher Walken, Courtney Chase, Charles S. Dutton
Votes: 45,175 | Gross: $8.17M
29. 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: 22,779 | Gross: $29.38M
30. The Vanishing (1993)
R | 109 min | Drama, Horror, Mystery
The boyfriend of an abducted woman never gives up the search as the abductor looks on.
Director: George Sluizer | Stars: Jeff Bridges, Kiefer Sutherland, Nancy Travis, Sandra Bullock
Votes: 28,033 | Gross: $14.54M
31. Breakdown (I) (1997)
R | 93 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A man searches for his missing wife after his car breaks down in the middle of the desert.
Director: Jonathan Mostow | Stars: Kurt Russell, J.T. Walsh, Kathleen Quinlan, M.C. Gainey
Votes: 61,779 | Gross: $50.13M
32. The Astronaut's Wife (1999)
R | 109 min | Drama, Sci-Fi, Thriller
After an explosion in space and subsequent two-minute radio-out period, two astronauts return home to their wives. Slightly it's revealed that they're not the same as they were.
Director: Rand Ravich | Stars: Charlize Theron, Johnny Depp, Joe Morton, Clea DuVall
Votes: 57,448 | Gross: $10.67M
33. Sliver (1993)
R | 107 min | Drama, Thriller
A woman moves into an exclusive New York City apartment building that she soon discovers houses tenants with all manner of shocking secrets.
Director: Phillip Noyce | Stars: Sharon Stone, William Baldwin, Tom Berenger, Polly Walker
Votes: 34,046 | Gross: $36.30M
34. Mortal Thoughts (1991)
R | 103 min | Mystery, Thriller
Two detectives interrogate a hairdresser on two homicides she may or may not have been involved in.
Director: Alan Rudolph | Stars: Demi Moore, Glenne Headly, Bruce Willis, John Pankow
Votes: 9,675 | Gross: $19.02M
35. Wisdom (1986)
R | 109 min | Crime, Drama
Unable to find work after a past felony, graduate John Wisdom and his girlfriend embark on a cross-country bank-robbing spree in order to aid American farmers.
Director: Emilio Estevez | Stars: Emilio Estevez, Demi Moore, Tom Skerritt, Veronica Cartwright
Votes: 3,607 | Gross: $5.72M
36. Disclosure (1994)
R | 128 min | Drama, Thriller
A computer specialist is sued for sexual harassment by a former lover turned boss who initiated the act forcefully, which threatens both his career and his personal life.
Director: Barry Levinson | Stars: Michael Douglas, Demi Moore, Donald Sutherland, Caroline Goodall
Votes: 54,433 | Gross: $83.02M
37. 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: 22,668 | Gross: $27.73M
38. Eye for an Eye (1996)
R | 101 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
When the courts fail to keep behind bars the man who raped and murdered her daughter, a woman seeks her own form of justice.
Director: John Schlesinger | Stars: Sally Field, Kiefer Sutherland, Ed Harris, Olivia Burnette
Votes: 18,940 | Gross: $26.79M
39. Consenting Adults (1992)
R | 99 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
During a joint dinner at the restaurant, the neighbors offer to exchange wives for one night. It was a joke, but only at first.
Director: Alan J. Pakula | Stars: Kevin Kline, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Kevin Spacey, Rebecca Miller
Votes: 8,341 | Gross: $21.59M
40. Deceiver (1997)
R | 106 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A hooker is found cut in two. Two cops give polygraph tests to the only suspect, James Wayland (Tim Roth), an unstable genius. After some time, the roles change.
Directors: Jonas Pate, Josh Pate | Stars: Tim Roth, Chris Penn, Michael Rooker, Renée Zellweger
Votes: 7,036 | Gross: $0.57M
41. Desperate Hours (1990)
R | 105 min | Action, Crime, Drama
An escaped con, on the run from the law, moves into a married couple's house and takes over their lives.
Director: Michael Cimino | Stars: Mickey Rourke, Anthony Hopkins, Mimi Rogers, Lindsay Crouse
Votes: 8,443 | Gross: $2.74M
42. Mother's Boys (1993)
R | 96 min | Drama, Thriller
Jude Madigan abandons her husband Robert and her three sons without any explanation. Three years later Jude inexplicably returns to reunite her family. However Robert and his new lover ... See full summary »
Director: Yves Simoneau | Stars: Jamie Lee Curtis, Peter Gallagher, Joanne Whalley, Vanessa Redgrave
Votes: 3,593 | Gross: $0.87M
43. The Game (1997)
R | 129 min | Drama, Mystery, Thriller
After a wealthy San Francisco banker is given an opportunity to participate in a mysterious game, his life is turned upside down as he begins to question if it might really be a concealed conspiracy to destroy him.
Director: David Fincher | Stars: Michael Douglas, Deborah Kara Unger, Sean Penn, James Rebhorn
Votes: 429,613 | Gross: $48.32M
44. Red Rock West (1993)
R | 98 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Upon arriving to a small town, a drifter is mistaken for a hitman, but when the real hitman arrives, complications ensue.
Director: John Dahl | Stars: Nicolas Cage, Dennis Hopper, Lara Flynn Boyle, Craig Reay
Votes: 25,220 | Gross: $2.50M
45. Double Jeopardy (1999)
R | 105 min | Crime, Drama, Mystery
A woman framed for her husband's murder suspects he is still alive; as she has already been tried for the crime, she can't be re-prosecuted if she finds and kills him.
Director: Bruce Beresford | Stars: Ashley Judd, Tommy Lee Jones, Bruce Greenwood, Benjamin Weir
Votes: 95,931 | Gross: $116.74M
46. Milk Money (1994)
PG-13 | 110 min | Comedy, Romance
A group of young boys befriend a prostitute named V.
Director: Richard Benjamin | Stars: Melanie Griffith, Ed Harris, Michael Patrick Carter, Malcolm McDowell
Votes: 13,080 | Gross: $18.14M
47. Unlawful Entry (1992)
R | 111 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A burglar holds a knife to Karen's throat while her husband does nothing. The couple ends up befriending the cop that comes. The friendship ends when the cop beats up the culprit. Karen isn't ready to end it. Things get ugly with the cop.
Director: Jonathan Kaplan | Stars: Kurt Russell, Ray Liotta, Madeleine Stowe, Roger E. Mosley
Votes: 19,133 | Gross: $57.14M
48. Tango & Cash (1989)
R | 104 min | Action, Comedy, Crime
Framed by their ruthless arch-nemesis, a pair of mismatched LAPD officers must put their differences aside to get even with the brutal crime baron who sent them to rot in a maximum-security prison.
Directors: Andrey Konchalovskiy, Albert Magnoli | Stars: Sylvester Stallone, Kurt Russell, Teri Hatcher, Jack Palance
Votes: 113,628 | Gross: $63.41M
49. A Simple Plan (1998)
R | 121 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
Three blue-collar acquaintances come across millions of dollars in lost cash and make a plan to keep their find from the authorities, but it isn't long before complications and mistrust weave their way into the plan.
Director: Sam Raimi | Stars: Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, Bridget Fonda, Brent Briscoe
Votes: 76,183 | Gross: $16.31M
50. A Cry in the Dark (1988)
PG-13 | 120 min | Biography, Drama
A mother whose child was killed in a dingo attack in the Australian Outback fights to prove her innocence when she is accused of murder.
Director: Fred Schepisi | Stars: Meryl Streep, Sam Neill, Dale Reeves, David Hoflin
Votes: 11,207 | Gross: $6.91M
51. Class Action (1991)
R | 110 min | Drama, Thriller
An attorney representing a traumatized accident victim finds that his opponent is a very familiar defense attorney - his own daughter.
Director: Michael Apted | Stars: Gene Hackman, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Colin Friels, Joanna Merlin
Votes: 8,320 | Gross: $24.28M
52. A Civil Action (1998)
PG-13 | 115 min | Biography, Drama
A tenacious lawyer takes on a case involving two companies responsible for causing several children to be diagnosed with leukemia due to the town's water supply being contaminated, at the risk of bankrupting his firm and career.
Director: Steven Zaillian | Stars: John Travolta, Robert Duvall, Kathleen Quinlan, Tony Shalhoub
Votes: 31,093 | Gross: $56.71M
53. A Few Good Men (1992)
R | 138 min | Drama, Thriller
Military lawyer Lieutenant Daniel Kaffee defends Marines accused of murder. They contend they were acting under orders.
Director: Rob Reiner | Stars: Tom Cruise, Jack Nicholson, Demi Moore, Kevin Bacon
Votes: 287,479 | Gross: $141.34M
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