The 10 best indie movies of the 1990s

Ah, the 1990s. What a fun time for music, (terrible) clothes, and film. The internet was just emerging, and cell phones were derided as tools used only by the pretentious or the money-hungry.

Grunge music, punk rock, rap and all things anti-corporate ruled popular culture. Nirvana graced the cover of Rolling Stone, but Kurt Cobain wore a t shirt on the cover that said, “Corporate magazines still suck.”

Everybody was trying to out-cool each other by eschewing mainstream culture and values, including corporate culture (see Office Space).

Yes, there were blockbusters like Titanic and Jurassic Park, but the 1990s also saw a thriving independent cinema scene.

With acerbic humor, gritty camera work and experimental storylines, indie movies became the voice of Generation X. So, what were the cream of the crop? While Magnolia and Reservoir Dogs are great films, this list digs a little deeper through the grunge to look at a few hidden gems.

Reality Bites – 1994

Starring Winona Ryder, Ben Stiller, and Ethan Hawke, Reality Bites may not be a classic film, but it perfectly encapsulates 1990s youthful struggles, and is beloved by women who were young, dumb, and full of “cool girl” vibes in the 1990s. Ryder plays a dissatisfied TV production intern who aspires to be a serious documentary filmmaker caught between straight-laced Ben Stiller and unreliable cool guy Ethan Hawke. Janeane Garofalo and and Steve Zahn play her friends also navigating life after college, looking for love and careers in Houston, Texas.

Party Girl – 1995

Indie film queen supreme Parker Posey is a charming but bratty Manhattan party girl in this coming of age romantic comedy. After her librarian grandma bails the irresponsible partier out of jail, Posey’s character, Mary, decides to repay the loan by working at the same library where her grandmother works. She quickly discovers a love for both the Dewey Decimal System and an immigrant food cart operator. After almost failing at securing both new loves, Mary redeems herself and leaves her old, careless party ways behind.

Kids – 1995

This dark drama follows a group of hedonistic preteens and teens around New York City as they smoke weed, drink, skateboard, and hook up. Some critics have characterized this movie as “Lord of the Flies with skateboards.” The boys in the film, particularly the lead character Telly, show an almost sociopathic lack of concern for the girls they coerce into having rough, unprotected sex. They even beat a man unconscious with their skateboards after an argument. This coming of age tale shows how kids raised in a big city without proper parental and community guidance can go down a dark path of destruction.

Pump Up The Volume – 1990

Christian Slater plays a sexy nerd who DJs his own pirate radio station in this teen drama about disenfranchised youth. Samantha Mathis plays his fan-turned-girlfriend, as Slater’s character, Mark, whips up the listening students at his high school into a frenzy. Mild chaos ensues as the teens protest their poor treatment at their high school by rebelling, lead by Mark’s sardonic, too-cool-for-school radio musings. The soundtrack treats viewers to odd alternative musical gems like, “Hello, Dad … I’m in Jail” by Was (Not Was).

Dazed and Confused – 1993

This stoner classic has a movie poster advising audiences to “See it with a bud.” Dazed and Confused follows a group of junior high and high school students on their various adventures on their last day of school before summer vacation. Taking place in 1976, we see girls needing their friends to zip them up into too-tight jeans and boys sporting overgrown, floppy hairstyles. Matthew McConaughey plays a student who failed a few grades and is older than the other students. He utters the iconic (but slimy) line: “That’s what I love about these high school girls, man. I get older, they stay the same age.”

Go – 1999

Go is a brilliant raver comedy told over and over again from the different points of view of the main characters. Starring Sarah Polley, Katie Holmes, and the ridiculously handsome and charming Taye Diggs, the movie also introduces us to a perfectly hilarious young Melissa McCarthy. Taking place over 24 hours in L.A. and Las Vegas, their adventures include a botched drug deal, a pair of gay soap opera actors caught up in an MLM scheme, a mishap at a strip club, and a young man forgotten in a garbage heap after a rave. The soundtrack features great danceable tracks by 1990s darlings Air and No Doubt.

High Fidelity – 1999

John Cusack plays a DJ and indie record store owner (alongside a very enthusiastic and funny Jack Black) in this romatic dramedy based on the international best-selling novel of the same name by Nick Hornby. Joan Cusack, Lisa Bonet, and Catherine Zeta-Jones add wit and grace to the story in which John Cusack’s character struggles to hold onto his youthful ideals while evading maturity by mistreating his girlfriend and clinging to his self-image as a cool music nerd. Jack Black famously berates a customer seeking a mainstream single for his daughter by asking, “Do you even know your daughter? There’s no way she likes that song. Oh! Oh! Oh! Is she in a coma?”

Singles – 1992

You may be noticing a pattern with some 1990s movies (Pump Up The Volume, Empire Records, High Fidelity and Singles, to name just a few) that follow characters who are obsessed with alternative music. Such were the 1990s, when everyone wanted to stay a cool teenager forever and never settle down, duuuuude. Matt Dillon, Bridget Jones and even some grunge music stars (including members of Pearl Jam) navigate romance and growing up in this silly romantic comedy.

Slacker – 1991

Slacker is a film that begins with a definition: “Slacker: n. A person who evades duties and responsibilities.” This unusual film shows snippets of peoples’ lives in Austin, Texas who refuse to join society on the career treadmill and instead spend their days talking about Scooby Doo, enjoying live music, and trying to make money in unique ways, like claiming to be selling a jar filled with celebrity pap smears. Viewers go on an entertaining journey with overeducated misfits and general oddballs.

Office Space – 1999

Mike Judge created King of the Hill, Beavis and Butthead, and the greatest film ever made about resenting your job, Office Space. Starring Ron Livingston and Jennifer Aniston, this comedy tells the story of company employees who hate their jobs and make a plan to fight back against their greedy boss. The most famous scene in this movie shows the office workers taking out their frustrations of enduring years of petty indignities for a pay check on a half-broken printer that get fully broken after they stomp on it.

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