Best Movies of 1990 by Rank
27
1
Martin Scorsese
Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco, Paul Sorvino
Crime / Drama / Biography / Gangster
USA
English
280
2
Jean-Paul Rappeneau
Gérard Depardieu, Anne Brochet
Drama / Romance / Period Film
France
French
321
3
Abbas Kiarostami
Mohsen Makhmalbaf, Hossain Sabzian, Abolfazl Ahankhah
Documentary / Drama
Iran
Persian
524
4
Kevin Costner
Kevin Costner, Mary McDonnell, Graham Greene, Rodney A. Grant
Adventure / Drama / Western / Epic / Family
USA
English
724
5
Stephen Frears
Anjelica Huston, John Cusack, Annette Bening, Jan Munroe
Crime / Drama / Thriller / Post-Noir
USA
English
728
6
Agnieszka Holland
Marco Hofschneider, René Hofschneider
Drama / War / Comedy
Germany / France / Poland
German
857
7
Barbet Schroeder
Glenn Close, Jeremy Irons, Ron Silver, Annabella Sciorra
Drama
USA / Japan / UK
English
926
8
Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Gabriel Byrne, John Turturro, Marcia Gay Harden, Albert Finney
Crime / Drama / Thriller / Gangster / Period Film / Cult
USA
English
985
9
Michael Verhoeven
Lena Stolze, Hans-Reinhard Müller
Comedy / Drama
West Germany
German
1084
10
Whit Stillman
Carolyn Farina, Edward Clements, Chris Eigeman, Taylor Nichols
Comedy / Drama
USA
English
1127
11
Yimou Zhang, Fengliang Yang
Li Gong, Wei Li, Baotian Li, Zhang Yi, Ji-an Zheng
Drama / Period Film / Romance
Japan / China
Mandarin
1266
12
Garry Marshall
Richard Gere, Julia Roberts, Ralph Bellamy, Jason Alexander
Comedy / Romance
USA
English
1380
13
Jane Campion
Kerry Fox, Alexia Keogh, Karen Fergusson, Iris Churn
Drama / Biography
UK / Australia / New Zealand
English
1386
14
Francis Ford Coppola
Al Pacino, Diane Keaton, Talia Shire, Andy Garcia
Crime / Drama / Gangster
USA
English
1525
15
Paul Verhoeven
Arnold Schwarzenegger, Sharon Stone, Rachel Ticotin, Ronny Cox
Action / Adventure / Sci-Fi / Thriller / Tech-Noir
USA
English
1615
16
Tim Burton
Johnny Depp, Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest, Anthony Michael Hall, Kathy Baker
Comedy / Drama / Fantasy / Romance / Family
USA
English
1616
17
Luc Besson
Anne Parillaud, Marc Duret, Patrick Fontana
Thriller / Action
France / Italy
French
1668
18
Patrice Leconte
Jean Rochefort, Anna Galiena, Henry Hocking, Roland Bertin
Comedy / Drama / Romance
France
French
1673
19
Penny Marshall
Robert De Niro, Robin Williams, Julie Kavner, Ruth Nelson
Drama
USA
English
1686
20
Mike Leigh
Alison Steadman, Jim Broadbent, Claire Skinner, Jane Horrocks
Comedy / Drama
UK
English
1794
21
Jerry Zucker
Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore, Whoopi Goldberg, Tony Goldwyn
Romance / Thriller / Drama / Fantasy
USA
English
1826
22
Xavier Koller
Necmettin Çobanoglu, Emin Sivas, Yaman Okay
Drama / Adventure
Switzerland / Turkey / UK
Turkish
1865
23
Hal Hartley
Adrienne Shelly, Martin Donovan, Merritt Nelson, John MacKay
Comedy / Drama / Romance / Cult
UK / USA
English
1879
24
Jennie Livingston
Dorian Corey, Pepper LaBeija, Danny Xtravaganza, Sol Pendavis
Documentary
USA
English
1938
25
Yves Robert
Philippe Caubère, Nathalie Roussel, Didier Pain
Drama / Family / Comedy / Biography
France
French
1958
26
Abel Ferrara
Christopher Walken, David Caruso, Laurence Fishburne, Victor Argo, Wesley Snipes
Action / Drama / Crime / Thriller / Gangster
Italy / USA / UK
English
2004
27
Louis Malle
Miou-Miou, Michel Piccoli, Michel Duchaussoy, Bruno Carette, Paulette Dubost
Comedy / Period Film
France / Italy
French
2059
28
Charles Burnett
Danny Glover, Richard Brooks, Paul Butler, Mary Alice
Drama
USA
English
2085
29
James Ivory
Paul Newman, Joanne Woodward, Blythe Danner, Simon Callow
Drama
UK / USA
English
2097
30
Aki Kaurismäki
Kati Outinen, Elina Salo, Esko Nikkari, Vesa Vierikko
Drama / Comedy
Finland / Sweden
Finnish
2107
31
Guy Maddin
Kyle McCulloch, Kathy Marykuca, Sarah Neville, Michael Gottli
Comedy / Drama / War / Romance
Canada
English
2110
32
Adrian Lyne
Tim Robbins, Elizabeth Peña, Danny Aiello, Matt Craven
Horror / Mystery / Thriller / Drama
USA
English
2227
33
Bob Rafelson
Patrick Bergin, Iain Glen, Richard E. Grant, Fiona Shaw
Adventure / Drama
USA
English
2238
34
Robert Altman
Tim Roth, Paul Rhys, Adrian Brine, Jean-François Perrier, Yves Dangerfield
Biography / Drama
Netherlands / UK / France
English
2258
35
Warren Beatty
Warren Beatty, Charlie Korsmo, Glenne Headly, Madonna
Action / Crime / Comedy / Thriller / Gangster / Family / Comic
USA
English
2260
36
Barbara Kopple, Cathy Caplan, Thomas Haneke, Lawrence Silk
Jesse Jackson, Ray Rogers
Documentary / Biography
USA / UK
English
2306
37
Claire Denis
Isaach De Bankolé, Alex Descas, Jean-Claude Brialy, Solveig Dommartin
Drama / Crime
France / West Germany
French
2364
38
Eric Rochant
Yvan Attal, Kristin Scott Thomas, Marc Berman, Charlotte Gainsbourg
Drama / Comedy
France
French
2364
38
Barry Levinson
Elizabeth Perkins, Aidan Quinn, Kevin Pollak, Armin Mueller-Stahl
Drama / Period Film
USA
English
2372
39
Yves Robert
Philippe Caubère, Nathalie Roussel, Didier Pain
Comedy / Drama / Biography
France
French
2386
40
Ken Loach
Robert Carlyle, Emer McCourt, Richard Belgrave, Jim R. Coleman
Comedy / Drama
UK
English
2398
41
Pavel Lungin
Pyotr Mamonov, Pyotr Zajchenko, Vladimir Kashpur
Drama
Soviet Union / France
Russian
2408
42
Mike Nichols
Meryl Streep, Shirley MacLaine, Dennis Quaid, Gene Hackman, Richard Dreyfuss
Comedy / Drama
USA
English
2415
43
Carlos Saura
Carmen Maura, Andrés Pajares, Gabino Diego, Maurizio De Razza
Drama / War
Spain / Italy
Spanish
2419
44
John McTiernan
Sean Connery, Alec Baldwin, Scott Glenn, Sam Neill, James Earl Jones
Action / Adventure / Thriller
USA
English
2450
45
David Lynch
Nicolas Cage, Laura Dern, Willem Dafoe, J.E. Freeman
Crime / Drama / Romance / Thriller / Comedy
USA
English
2492
46
Gianni Amelio
Gian Maria Volonté, Ennio Fantastichini, Renato Carpentieri
Drama / Crime
Italy
Italian
2559
47
Bernardo Bertolucci
Debra Winger, John Malkovich, Campbell Scott, Jill Bennett, Timothy Spall
Drama / Adventure / Romance
UK / Italy
English
2576
48
Franco Zeffirelli
Mel Gibson, Glenn Close, Alan Bates, Paul Scofield, Ian Holm
Drama
USA / UK / France
English
2581
49
Chris Columbus
Macaulay Culkin, Joe Pesci, Daniel Stern, John Heard
Family / Comedy
USA
English
2584
50
Mike Figgis
Richard Gere, Andy Garcia, Nancy Travis, Laurie Metcalf
Crime / Thriller / Drama
USA
English
2608
51
Akira Kurosawa, Ishirô Honda
Akira Terao, Mitsuko Baisho, Toshie Negishi, Mieko Harada
Fantasy / Drama / Adventure
Japan / USA
Japanese
2611
52
James Foley
Jason Patric, Rachel Ward, Bruce Dern, George Dickerson
Crime / Drama / Mystery / Post-Noir / Thriller
USA
English
2611
52
Robert Zemeckis
Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Lea Thompson, Crispin Glover, Thomas F. Wilson
Action / Adventure / Comedy / Sci-Fi / Western / Romance
USA
English
2611
52
Philip Kaufman
Fred Ward, Uma Thurman, Maria de Medeiros, Richard E. Grant, Kevin Spacey
Biography / Drama / Romance
USA
English
2639
53
Larry Cohen
Eric Roberts, James Earl Jones, Megan Gallagher, Red Buttons, Janine Turner
Horror / Thriller
USA
English
2639
53
Diane Kurys
Nathalie Baye, Richard Berry, Zabou, Jean-Pierre Bacri, Vincent Lindon
Drama / Comedy
France
French
2665
54
Peter Bogdanovich
Jeff Bridges, Cybill Shepherd, Timothy Bottoms, Annie Potts
Drama
USA
English
2694
55
Jirí Menzel
Rudolf Hrusínský, Vlastimil Brodský
Comedy / Drama / Romance
Czechoslovakia
Czech
2695
56
Rob Reiner
James Caan, Kathy Bates, Richard Farnsworth, Frances Sternhagen, Lauren Bacall
Drama / Thriller / Horror
USA
English
2697
57
Joe Dante
Zach Galligan, Phoebe Cates, John Glover, Robert Prosky, Robert Picardo
Comedy / Horror / Fantasy / Sci-Fi
USA
English
2723
58
Jean-Luc Godard
Alain Delon, Domiziana Giordano, Roland Amstutz
Drama / Experimental / Fantasy / Romance
Switzerland / France
French
2745
59
Pedro Almodóvar
Victoria Abril, Antonio Banderas, Loles León
Drama / Crime / Romance / Comedy
Spain
Spanish
2761
60
Reginald Hudlin
Christopher Reid, Robin Harris, Christopher Martin, Martin Lawrence, Tisha Campbell
Comedy / Music / Romance
USA
English
2768
61
Renny Harlin
Bruce Willis, Bonnie Bedelia, William Atherton, William Sadler
Action / Adventure / Thriller
USA
English
2768
61
Eric Rohmer
Anne Teyssèdre, Hugues Quester, Florence Darel, Eloïse Bennett
Comedy / Romance / Drama
France
French
2776
62
Tom Stoppard
Gary Oldman, Tim Roth, Richard Dreyfuss, Livio Badurina
Comedy / Drama
UK / USA
English
2778
63
Peter Weir
Gérard Depardieu, Andie MacDowell, Bebe Neuwirth
Comedy / Romance / Drama
Australia / France / USA
English
2780
64
Sydney Pollack
Robert Redford, Lena Olin, Alan Arkin, Tomas Milian, Daniel Davis, Tony Plana
Drama / Romance
USA
English
2784
65
Idrissa Ouedraogo
Rasmane Ouedraogo, Ina Cissé, Roukietou Barry
Drama
Switzerland / UK / France / Burkina Faso / Germany
Mòoré
2794
66
Robert Dornhelm
Felix Mitterer, Viktoria Schubert, August Schmolzer
Drama
Austria / France / Romania
German
2797
67
Sergei Parajanov
Sofiko Chiaureli, Yuri Mgoyan
Documentary / Biography
Soviet Union
Georgian
2797
67
Katherine Gilday
Rebecca Jenkins, Marion Woodman, Susan Griffin, Chris Alt
Documentary
Canada
English
2797
67
Harun Farocki
Documentary / History
West Germany
German
2797
67
Manoel de Oliveira
Luis Miguel Cintra, Diogo Doria, Miguel Guilherme, Luis Lucas
Drama / History
Portugal / Spain / France
Portuguese
2797
67
Robert Frank
Mika Moses, Peter Orlovsky, Kevin O'Connor, Taylor Mead
Experimental / Documentary
France
English
2797
67
Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood, Jeff Fahey, Charlotte Cornwell, Norman Lumsden
Adventure / Drama / Action
USA
English
2805
68
Ken Loach
Frances McDormand, Brian Cox, Brad Dourif, Mai Zetterling
Drama / Thriller
UK
English
2806
69
Bertrand Tavernier
Dirk Bogarde, Jane Birkin, Odette Laure, Emmanuelle Bataille, Charlotte Kady
Drama
France
French
2806
69
Andrew Bergman
Marlon Brando, Matthew Broderick, Bruno Kirby, Penelope Ann Miller, Frank Whaley
Comedy / Crime / Gangster / Romance
USA
English
2806
69
John Patrick Shanley
Tom Hanks, Meg Ryan, Lloyd Bridges, Robert Stack, Abe Vigoda, Dan Hedaya
Comedy / Romance / Drama / Fantasy / Cult
USA
English
2806
69
Peter Medak
Billie Whitelaw, Tom Bell, Gary Kemp, Martin Kemp, Susan Fleetwood
Biography / Crime / Drama / Thriller / Gangster
UK
English
2806
69
Ellen Weissbrod
Quincy Jones, Frank Sinatra, Miles Davis, Ray Charles, Herbie Hancock
Documentary / Music / Biography
USA
English
2806
69
Richard Pearce
Sissy Spacek, Whoopi Goldberg, Dwight Schultz, Ving Rhames, Dylan Baker
Drama / History
USA
English
2806
69
Norman René
Campbell Scott, Patrick Cassidy, John Dossett, Mary-Louise Parker
Drama / Romance
USA
English
2806
69
Alan J. Pakula
Harrison Ford, Brian Dennehy, Raul Julia, Bonnie Bedelia, Paul Winfield
Crime / Drama / Thriller / Mystery
USA
English
2806
69
John Erman
Bette Midler, John Goodman, Trini Alvarado, Stephen Collins, Marsha Mason
Drama
USA
English
2806
69
Jack Nicholson
Jack Nicholson, Harvey Keitel, Meg Tilly, Madeleine Stowe, Eli Wallach
Crime / Drama / Mystery / Post-Noir / Detective
USA
English
2806
69
Luis Mandoki
Susan Sarandon, James Spader, Jason Alexander, Kathy Bates, Eileen Brennan
Drama / Romance
USA
English
2812
70
Darrell Wasyk
Martin Neufeld, Pascale Montpetit, Ingrid Veninger, Bruce Beaton
Drama
Canada
English
2812
70
Aribam Syam Sharma
Kiranmala, Kangabam, Tomba, Manbi, D. Hiren, Baby Molly, Baby Premita, Tara
Drama
India
Manipuri
2812
70
Mark Lamberti
Leonard Maltin, Moe Howard, Larry Fine, Curly Howard, Shemp Howard
Comedy / Documentary
USA
English
2812
70
Bill Plympton
Ruth Maleczech, Valeria Vasilevski, Maureen McElheron, Chris Hoffman
Animation / Comedy / Short
USA
English
2812
70
Howard Franklin, Bill Murray
Bill Murray, Dale Grand, Bob Elliott, Geena Davis, Randy Quaid
Comedy / Crime / Caper
USA
English
2822
71
Sam Raimi
Liam Neeson, Frances McDormand, Colin Friels, Larry Drake, Nelson Mashita
Action / Crime / Sci-Fi / Thriller
USA
English
2857
73
Allan Moyle
Christian Slater, Samantha Mathis, Ellen Greene, Scott Paulin, Cheryl Pollak
Drama / Comedy
Canada / USA
English
2865
74
Ann Hui
Maggie Cheung, Tan Lang Jachi Tian, Waise Lee, Zi Xiong Li
Drama
Hong Kong / Taiwan
Cantonese
