1990s in film
The decade of the 1990s in film involved many significant developments in cinema. Continuing from the 1980s, low-budget independent films unceasingly rose and maintained their popularity in the industry within the decade.
Events
- Thousands of full-length films were produced during the 1990s. Manys were specifically filmed or edited to be displayed both on theater screens as well as on the smaller TV screens, such as showing close-up scenes during dialog, rather than just wide-angle scenes in a room. The home-video market became a major factor in total revenue for a film, often doubling its total income.
- The 1990s were notable in both the rise of independent cinema - as well as independent studios such as Miramax, Lions Gate, and New Line - and the advancements in CGI-technology, seen in such films as , Jurassic Park, and Forrest Gump. Toy Story became the first feature length film to be completely computer animated, heralding its use as a tool for filmmakers to achieve new visuals for film.
- The Disney Renaissance began in late 1989 with The Little Mermaid, reached its peak in popularity with The Lion King in 1994, and ended in 1999 with Tarzan.
- 1988's Die Hard established what would become a common formula for many 90s action films, featuring a lone everyman against a colorful terrorist character in an isolated setting. Such films and their sequels were often referred to as "Die Hard on a _____": Under Siege, Cliffhanger, Speed, The Rock, Con Air, Air Force One, etc...
- A resurgence of disaster films dominated the box office with blockbusters such as Twister, Independence Day, Titanic, and Armageddon.
- Several leading figures of 1980s to mid-1990s Hong Kong action cinema migrated to Hollywood with varying success: Jackie Chan, Jet Li, Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, John Woo, Yuen Woo-ping, Tsui Hark, etc... Updating martial arts and gunfight choreography in American cinema with films such as Broken Arrow, Face/Off, Tomorrow Never Dies, Lethal Weapon 4, Rush Hour, and The Matrix.
- Bollywood gained popularity worldwide. Especially Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge which became the longest-running Indian movie playing at the Maratha Mandir for 1009 weeks since its release in October 1995 until February 2015, and Kuch Kuch Hota Hai being one of the top ten movies in the United Kingdom and India.
Highest-grossing films
| Rank | Title | Studios | Worldwide gross | Year | Ref. |
| 1 | Titanic | Paramount Pictures/20th Century Fox | $1,843,201,268 | 1997 | |
| 2 | ' | 20th Century Fox | $924,317,558 | 1999 | |
| 3 | Jurassic Park | Universal Pictures | $914,691,118 | 1993 | |
| 4 | Independence Day | 20th Century Fox | $817,400,891 | 1996 | |
| 5 | The Lion King | Walt Disney Pictures | $763,455,561 | 1994 | |
| 6 | Forrest Gump | Paramount Pictures | $677,387,716 | 1994 | |
| 7 | The Sixth Sense | Walt Disney Pictures | $672,806,292 | 1999 | |
| 8 | ' | Universal Pictures | $618,638,999 | 1997 | |
| 9 | Men in Black | Sony Pictures/Columbia Pictures | $589,390,539 | 1997 | |
| 10 | Armageddon | Touchstone Pictures | $553,709,788 | 1998 | |
| 11 | ' | TriStar Pictures | $519,843,345 | 1991 | |
| 12 | Ghost | Paramount Pictures | $505,702,588 | 1990 | |
| 13 | Aladdin | Walt Disney Pictures | $504,050,219 | 1992 | |
| 14 | Twister | Warner Bros./Universal Pictures | $494,471,524 | 1996 | |
| 15 | Toy Story 2 | Walt Disney Pictures | $485,015,179 | 1999 | |
| 16 | Saving Private Ryan | DreamWorks Pictures/Paramount Pictures | $481,840,909 | 1998 | |
| 17 | Home Alone | 20th Century Fox | $476,684,675 | 1990 | |
| 18 | The Matrix | Warner Bros. | $463,517,383 | 1999 | |
| 19 | Pretty Woman | Touchstone Pictures | $463,406,268 | 1990 | |
| 20 | ' | Paramount Pictures | $457,696,359 | 1996 | |
| 21 | Tarzan | Walt Disney Pictures | $448,191,819 | 1999 | |
| 22 | Mrs. Doubtfire | 20th Century Fox | $441,286,195 | 1993 | |
| 23 | Dances with Wolves | Orion Pictures | $424,208,848 | 1990 | |
| 24 | The Mummy | Universal Pictures | $415,933,406 | 1999 | |
| 25 | The Bodyguard | Warner Bros. | $411,006,740 | 1992 | |
| 26 | ' | Warner Bros. | $390,493,908 | 1991 | |
| 27 | Godzilla | TriStar Pictures | $379,014,294 | 1998 | |
| 28 | True Lies | 20th Century Fox | $378,882,411 | 1994 | |
| 29 | Toy Story | Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studios | $373,554,033 | 1995 | |
| 30 | There's Something About Mary | 20th Century Fox | $369,884,651 | 1998 | |
| 31 | The Fugitive | Warner Bros. | $368,875,760 | 1993 | |
| 32 | Die Hard with a Vengeance | 20th Century Fox/Cinergi Pictures | $366,101,666 | 1995 | |
| 33 | Notting Hill | Universal Pictures | $363,889,678 | 1999 | |
| 34 | A Bug's Life | Walt Disney Pictures/Pixar Animation Studios | $363,398,565 | 1998 | |
| 35 | The World Is Not Enough | MGM | $361,832,400 | 1999 | |
| 36 | ' | 20th Century Fox | $358,994,850 | 1992 | |
| 37 | American Beauty | DreamWorks Pictures | $356,296,601 | 1999 | |
| 38 | Apollo 13 | Universal Pictures/Imagine Entertainment | $355,237,933 | 1995 | |
| 39 | Basic Instinct | TriStar Pictures | $352,927,224 | 1992 | |
| 40 | GoldenEye | MGM/United Artists | $352,194,034 | 1995 | |
| 41 | The Mask | New Line Cinema | $351,583,407 | 1994 | |
| 42 | Speed | 20th Century Fox | $350,448,145 | 1994 | |
| 43 | Deep Impact | Paramount Pictures/DreamWorks Pictures | $349,464,664 | 1998 | |
| 44 | Beauty and the Beast | Walt Disney Pictures | $346,317,207 | 1991 | |
| 45 | Pocahontas | Walt Disney Pictures | $346,079,773 | 1995 | |
| 46 | The Flintstones | Universal Pictures | $341,631,208 | 1994 | |
| 47 | Batman Forever | Warner Bros. | $336,529,144 | 1995 | |
| 48 | The Rock | Walt Disney Pictures | $335,062,621 | 1996 | |
| 49 | Tomorrow Never Dies | MGM/United Artists | $333,011,068 | 1997 | |
| 50 | Seven | New Line Cinema | $327,311,859 | 1995 |
List of films
- 1990 in film
- 1991 in film
- 1992 in film
- 1993 in film
- 1994 in film
- 1995 in film
- 1996 in film
- 1997 in film
- 1998 in film
- 1999 in film