15 Best 90s Action Movies

By Vlad Zakh · February 24, 2025

United States Action intense

Die Hard with a Vengeance and Speed show the decade’s peak formula of one impossible situation and ninety tense minutes, while The Matrix closed the era by rewriting action choreography. Mission: Impossible’s vault heist justifies the franchise, Air Force One has Harrison Ford’s president fighting hijackers, and Bad Boys is buddy-cop chemistry at its loosest. Total Recall, GoldenEye, The Rock, Con Air, True Lies, Point Break, Heat and Face/Off round out the list.

Mission: Impossible (1996)

01

Mission: Impossible (1996)

IMDb ★ 7.2 RT 65% Metacritic 59

A framed agent has to clear his name while exposing the real mole inside his own team.

Directed by Brian De Palma · 1h 51m · Rated PG-13

3 wins & 17 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: HBO Max Amazon Channel, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel, HBO Max · Rent: JustWatch TV, Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Air Force One (1997)

02

Air Force One (1997)

TMDB ★ 6.5

Terrorists hijack the president's plane and he has to fight back to protect his family.

Directed by Wolfgang Petersen · 2h 04m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: BBC America, Sony Pictures Core Amazon Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Bad Boys (1995)

03

Bad Boys (1995)

IMDb ★ 6.8 RT 46% Metacritic 41

Two mismatched Miami detectives race to recover stolen drugs before internal affairs catches on.

Directed by Michael Bay · 1h 59m · Rated R

1 win & 3 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: YouTube TV · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Total Recall (1990)

04

Total Recall (1990)

IMDb ★ 7.5 RT 80% Metacritic 60

A man's implanted vacation memory unravels into a real, planet-spanning conspiracy.

Directed by Paul Verhoeven · 1h 53m · Rated R

Nominated for 2 Oscars7 wins & 16 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, Paramount+ Roku Premium Channel · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Goldeneye (1995)

05

Goldeneye (1995)

TMDB ★ 7.2

James Bond confronts a former agent turned rogue after the fall of the Soviet Union.

Directed by Martin Campbell · 2h 10m · Rated PG-13

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, Amazon Prime Video with Ads · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand, Plex · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Rock (1996)

06

The Rock (1996)

IMDb ★ 7.4 RT 76% Metacritic 58

A chemist and an ex-convict storm Alcatraz to stop a rogue general's chemical weapon threat.

Directed by Michael Bay · 2h 17m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 Oscar9 wins & 10 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Peacock Premium, YouTube TV, Peacock Premium Plus · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Con Air (1997)

07

Con Air (1997)

TMDB ★ 6.7

A paroled army veteran is trapped aboard a prisoner transport plane hijacked by dangerous convicts.

Directed by Simon West · 1h 56m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: YouTube TV, TNT, TBS, tru TV · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

True Lies (1994)

08

True Lies (1994)

TMDB ★ 7.2

James Cameron's spy-comedy hybrid, bigger and funnier than it needed to be.

Directed by James Cameron · 2h 21m · Rated R

Where to watch

Stream: Hulu, AMC · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Point Break (1991)

09

Point Break (1991)

IMDb ★ 7.3 RT 68% Metacritic 60

An FBI agent goes undercover among surfers who moonlight as masked bank robbers.

Directed by Kathryn Bigelow · 2h 02m · Rated R

1 win & 2 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, fuboTV, Peacock Premium, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+, YouTube TV · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Heat (1995)

10

Heat (1995)

IMDb ★ 8.3 RT 84% Metacritic 76

An elite crew of thieves and the relentless detective pursuing them are drawn towards an inevitable, tragic collision.

Directed by Michael Mann · 2h 50m · Rated R

15 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: YouTube TV · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Face/Off (1997)

11

Face/Off (1997)

IMDb ★ 7.3 RT 93% Metacritic 82

An FBI agent and a terrorist literally swap faces to infiltrate each other's lives.

Directed by John Woo · 2h 19m · Rated R

Nominated for 1 Oscar11 wins & 23 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Philo, AMC Plus Apple TV channel, AMC+ Amazon Channel, AMC+ Roku Premium Channel, AMC+, BBC America · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

12

Die Hard with a Vengeance (1995)

IMDb ★ 7.6 RT 60% Metacritic 58

A bomber forces John McClane through an escalating citywide scavenger hunt.

Directed by John McTiernan · 2h 08m · Rated R

2 wins & 3 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Hulu, YouTube TV · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Speed (1994)

13

Speed (1994)

IMDb ★ 7.3 RT 95% Metacritic 78

A bomb rigged to a city bus will explode if it drops below fifty miles per hour.

Directed by Jan de Bont · 1h 56m · Rated R

Won 2 Oscars21 wins & 20 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Netflix, YouTube TV, FXNow, Netflix Standard with Ads · Rent or buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

14

Terminator 2: Judgment Day (1991)

IMDb ★ 8.6 RT 90% Metacritic 75

A reprogrammed Terminator now protects the boy an earlier model was sent to kill.

Directed by James Cameron · 2h 17m · Rated R

Won 4 Oscars39 wins & 33 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: Amazon Prime Video, fuboTV, Paramount Plus Premium, Paramount Plus Essential, Paramount+ Amazon Channel, YouTube TV · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Plex · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

The Matrix (1999)

15

The Matrix (1999)

IMDb ★ 8.7 RT 83% Metacritic 73

A hacker discovers reality is a simulation built to keep humanity docile.

Directed by Lana Wachowski & Lilly Wachowski · 2h 16m · Rated R

Won 4 Oscars42 wins & 52 nominations

Where to watch

Stream: YouTube TV, VIX · Rent: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home, Spectrum On Demand · Buy: Amazon Video, Apple TV Store, Google Play Movies, YouTube, Fandango At Home

▶ Trailer Letterboxd

Streaming availability data from JustWatch, via TMDB. Availability changes often, so check the service before you plan a movie night.

Vlad Zakh

Founder, Movieix

Founder of Movieix. He started the site because most recommendation pages felt like noise. Here, lists are sorted by who's in the film, where it's from and what mood you're in tonight.