The 10 Best Movies From 1991, According To IMDb

In 1991, boy bands and girl groups took over radio stations, the Internet became more accessible and some of the best movies of our generation were gracing movie theaters. Those were simpler times and a fun time for popular culture.

Movies have only gotten cooler since the ’90s. Special effects are more complex, the acting is out of this world, and books are being turned into iconic stories on screen. To take a walk back in time, keep scrolling to see 10 films that came out in 1991 that had some of the highest ratings on IMDb.

10 Thelma & Louise – 7.5

In 1991, Thelma and Louise hit box offices and earned over $45 million. Starring Geena Davis and Susan Sarandon, Thelma and Louise revolved two women on a road trip of their lives.

What started as a girls-getaway turned into a murder, a car chase, and a tough decision for the next phase in their lives. The movie received a 7.5 out of 10 stars on IMDb and won an Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

9 Fried Green Tomatoes – 7.7

Fried Green Tomatoes was based on the book  Fried Green Tomatoes at the Whistle Stop Cafe. Starring Kathy Bates and Jessica Tandy, the movie was about triumph and creating anew. Bates’s character is in a rut when she finds herself unhappy in her life.

The one happy thing that she looks forward to is her conversations with an older woman name Ninny Threadgood. Ninny resides at a nearby nursing home and she shares countless tales with Bates’s character. Over time, it’s these stories that give her courage and hope and inspire her to make a change in her life.

8 Boyz N The Hood – 7.7

Coming in with a 7.7 out of 10 is the 1991 classic Boyz n The Hood. Starring Cuba Gooding Jr. and Ice Cube, Boyz n The Hood broke down barriers. The film won awards and made a cultural impact of the telling of life in Los Angeles’s Crenshaw neighborhood.

Cuba Gooding Jr.’s character (Tre) was stuck between a family who was trying to inspire him to be better and his friends who were caught up in the wrong scene. John Singleton wrote and directed the film after real events and stories in his own life, adding authenticity and raw emotion to the ’91 classic.

7 Barton Fink – 7.7

Barton Fink scored well on IMDb but didn’t do too well in the box office. With a budget of $9 million, the film barely broke even when it reached theaters. Nevertheless, the film follows a man named Barton Fink who’s recently hired as a playwright for a big-time Hollywood film studio.

After a string of bad ideas and having writers’ block, Barton gets himself into a sticky situation with new faces in his new town of Hollywood.

6 Night On Earth – 7.8

Night on Earth was beautifully done as it followed five different storylines instead of one. In the span of one night, the movie follows five different taxi drivers in Los Angeles, New York, Rome, Helsinki, and Paris and the people they meet throughout their shift.

Each story is more interesting than the next as viewers see what a night in five different cities is like through a cab driver’s eyes.

5 Beauty and the Beast – 8.0

Disney’s Beauty and the Beast was also released in 1991 and became the next big Disney classic. Adding Belle to its princess list, Disney lovers couldn’t get enough of the story between Belle and the Beast.

They learned about compassion and honesty while not judging a book by its cover. Disney went on to revamp the movie in 2017, but the original will always be a classic.

4 JFK – 8.0

This 1991 film starring Kevin Costner was a hit amongst the historical drama aficionados and is still considered one of the most influential presidential films of our time. JFK has Costner as a New Orleans district attorney who starts looking into the death of JFK. After looking into the inaccuracies of the assassinated president’s death, the case is reopened and Costner’s character starts getting attention.

After its release, JFK quickly reached Beauty and the Beast recognition in the first week and won two Academy Awards.

3 Terminator 2: Judgment Day – 8.5

After the success of Terminator in 1984, Terminator 2: Judgement Day released seven years later and did not disappoint. It went on to make over $520 million in box offices.

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, this film takes place 11 years into the future from the first film with Sarah Connor’s son, John Connor, as he tries to succeed against a future robot uprising. The movie did incredibly well and won plenty of awards for its innovation, storyline, and effects.

2 Raise the Red Lantern – 8.6

With an 8.6 rating from IMDb, Raise the Red Lantern connected with a large audience for a foreign film. Shot in Pingyao, China, Raise the Red Lantern takes place in the 1920s and follows a woman named Songlian who marries a wealthy older man to protect her family.

Essentially, Songlian is one of her husband’s many wives and mistresses and finds that living this new life comes with competitive women and backstabbers. Drama ensues between the women, the spotlight, and their “master” while Songlian’s livelihood and sanity are in trouble.

1 The Silence of The Lambs – 8.6

One of the biggest movies of 1991 was most definitely The Silence of the Lambs. Starring Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins, a young FBI agent interviews an incarcerated cannibal for potential clues on how to find the next serial killer.

The psychological thriller was a huge success, earning over $270 million and winning five Academy Awards and an Oscar.

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Lynn Gibbs
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Lynn is a nomad who travels the globe on the hunt for her next adventure with her husband. A lover of being outside (and finding the best latte in town), Lynn is typically hiking, walking, or jogging when she’s not focusing on her love of writing. When it comes to shows streaming on Netflix or anything Bravo-related, Lynn’s your gal.

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