40 Favorite Films of 1996
by Blue_Leaf | created - 06 Aug 2014 | updated - 06 Jan 2022 | Public- Instant Watch Options
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1. Basquiat (1996)
R | 107 min | Biography, Drama
The brief life of Jean Michel Basquiat, a world renowned New York street artist struggling with fame, drugs and his identity.
Director: Julian Schnabel | Stars: Jeffrey Wright, Michael Wincott, Benicio Del Toro, Claire Forlani
Votes: 22,020 | Gross: $2.96M
2. Bastard Out of Carolina (1996)
R | 98 min | Drama
A mother and daughter find their lives adversely affected when a new man enters the picture. Will their family ever be what they expect?
Director: Anjelica Huston | Stars: Jennifer Jason Leigh, Ron Eldard, Glenne Headly, Lyle Lovett
Votes: 4,804
3. Beyond Silence (1996)
PG-13 | 109 min | Drama, Music
Since the earliest days in her childhood Lara has had a difficult but important task. Both her parents are deaf-mute and Lara has to translate from sign-language to the spoken word and vice... See full summary »
Director: Caroline Link | Stars: Sylvie Testud, Tatjana Trieb, Howie Seago, Emmanuelle Laborit
Votes: 4,585 | Gross: $0.17M
4. Big Night (1996)
R | 109 min | Drama, Romance
New Jersey, 1950s. Two brothers run an Italian restaurant. Business is not going well as a rival Italian restaurant is out-competing them. In a final effort to save the restaurant, the brothers plan to put on an evening of incredible food.
Directors: Campbell Scott, Stanley Tucci | Stars: Tony Shalhoub, Stanley Tucci, Marc Anthony, Larry Block
Votes: 22,798 | Gross: $11.88M
Top 1000
5. Bottle Rocket (1996)
R | 91 min | Comedy, Crime, Drama
Three friends plan to pull off a simple robbery and go on the run.
Director: Wes Anderson | Stars: Luke Wilson, Owen Wilson, Ned Dowd, Shea Fowler
Votes: 83,454 | Gross: $0.56M
6. Bound (1996)
R | 109 min | Crime, Thriller
Tough ex-con Corky and her lover Violet concoct a scheme to steal millions of stashed mob money and pin the blame on Violet's crooked boyfriend Caesar.
Directors: Lana Wachowski, Lilly Wachowski | Stars: Jennifer Tilly, Gina Gershon, Joe Pantoliano, John P. Ryan
Votes: 60,678 | Gross: $3.80M
Top 1000
7. Breaking the Waves (1996)
R | 159 min | Drama
Oilman Jan is paralyzed in an accident. His wife, who prayed for his return, feels guilty; even more, when Jan urges her to have sex with another.
Director: Lars von Trier | Stars: Emily Watson, Stellan Skarsgård, Katrin Cartlidge, Jean-Marc Barr
Votes: 71,517 | Gross: $4.04M
Top 1000
8. The Cable Guy (1996)
PG-13 | 96 min | Comedy, Drama, Thriller
A designer makes a grievious mistake when he rejects the friendship of a borderline cable guy.
Director: Ben Stiller | Stars: Jim Carrey, Matthew Broderick, Leslie Mann, Jack Black
Votes: 177,930 | Gross: $60.24M
9. Carried Away (1996)
R | 109 min | Drama, Romance
Joseph Svenden is a middle-aged school-teacher who lives on a farm with his dying mother. In his simple life there are no excitements, even in long-time relationship with a widow. However, ... See full summary »
Director: Bruno Barreto | Stars: Dennis Hopper, Amy Irving, Amy Locane, Julie Harris
Votes: 1,701 | Gross: $0.29M
10. Crash (1996)
NC-17 | 100 min | Drama
After getting into a serious car accident, a TV director discovers an underground sub-culture of scarred, omnisexual car-crash victims who use car accidents and the raw sexual energy they produce to try to rejuvenate his sex life with his wife.
Director: David Cronenberg | Stars: James Spader, Holly Hunter, Elias Koteas, Deborah Kara Unger
Votes: 66,285 | Gross: $2.04M
Top 1000
11. The Crucible (1996)
PG-13 | 124 min | Drama, History
A Salem resident attempts to frame her ex-lover's wife for being a witch in the middle of the 1692 witchcraft trials.
Director: Nicholas Hytner | Stars: Daniel Day-Lewis, Winona Ryder, Paul Scofield, Joan Allen
Votes: 40,147 | Gross: $7.34M
12. Emma (1996)
PG | 120 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
While matchmaking for friends and neighbours, a young 19th Century Englishwoman nearly misses her own chance at love.
Director: Douglas McGrath | Stars: Gwyneth Paltrow, James Cosmo, Greta Scacchi, Alan Cumming
Votes: 41,586 | Gross: $22.20M
13. Fargo (1996)
R | 98 min | Crime, Thriller
Minnesota car salesman Jerry Lundegaard's inept crime falls apart due to his and his henchmen's bungling and the persistent police work of the quite pregnant Marge Gunderson.
Directors: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen | Stars: William H. Macy, Frances McDormand, Steve Buscemi, Peter Stormare
Votes: 725,831 | Gross: $24.61M
Top 1000
14. Fetishes (1996)
Not Rated | 84 min | Documentary
Masochism, rubber, corporal punishment, wrestling, and infantilism are all examined into detail as a documentary crew visits a bondage house and its mistresses in upstate New York.
Director: Nick Broomfield | Stars: Mistress Beatrice, Nick Broomfield, Mistress Catherine, Mistress Delilah
Votes: 850
15. Fly Away Home (1996)
PG | 107 min | Adventure, Drama, Family
A father and daughter decide to attempt to lead a flock of orphaned Canada Geese south by air.
Director: Carroll Ballard | Stars: Jeff Daniels, Anna Paquin, Dana Delany, Terry Kinney
Votes: 27,098 | Gross: $24.51M
16. Freeway (1996)
R | 102 min | Crime, Drama, Thriller
A twisted take on "Little Red Riding Hood", with a teenage juvenile delinquent on the run from a social worker travelling to her grandmother's house and being hounded by a charming, but sadistic, serial killer and pedophile.
Director: Matthew Bright | Stars: Reese Witherspoon, Kiefer Sutherland, Bokeem Woodbine, Paul Perri
Votes: 31,709 | Gross: $0.30M
17. Get on the Bus (1996)
R | 120 min | Adventure, Drama, History
A disparate group of African-American men travel by bus to Washington, DC for the Million Man March.
Director: Spike Lee | Stars: Ossie Davis, Charles S. Dutton, Andre Braugher, Richard Belzer
Votes: 6,036 | Gross: $5.73M
18. Gray's Anatomy (1996)
Not Rated | 80 min | Comedy, Drama
After doctors inform him that an eye affliction will require risky surgery, monologist Spalding Gray recounts his various pursuits for alternative medicine to avoid the doctor's scalpel.
Director: Steven Soderbergh | Stars: Spalding Gray, Mike McLaughlin, Melissa Robertson, Alvin Henry
Votes: 2,525
19. Hard Eight (1996)
R | 101 min | Crime, Drama
Professional gambler Sydney teaches John the tricks of the trade. John does well until he falls for cocktail waitress Clementine.
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson | Stars: Philip Baker Hall, John C. Reilly, Gwyneth Paltrow, Samuel L. Jackson
Votes: 54,845 | Gross: $0.22M
Top 1000
20. I Shot Andy Warhol (1996)
R | 103 min | Biography, Drama
The story of Valerie Solanas, a '60s radical who preached misandry in her "Scum" manifesto. She wrote a screenplay for a film that she wanted Andy Warhol to produce, but after he repeatedly ignored her, she shot him.
Director: Mary Harron | Stars: Lili Taylor, Jared Harris, Martha Plimpton, Lothaire Bluteau
Votes: 7,111 | Gross: $1.81M
21. James and the Giant Peach (1996)
PG | 79 min | Animation, Adventure, Family
An orphan who lives with his two cruel aunts befriends anthropomorphic bugs who live inside a giant peach, and they embark on a journey to New York City.
Director: Henry Selick | Stars: Paul Terry, Joanna Lumley, Pete Postlethwaite, Simon Callow
Votes: 73,957 | Gross: $28.93M
22. Jude (1996)
R | 123 min | Drama, Romance
In late 1800s England, Jude plans to go to the city and attend university but marries early and becomes a stonemason. When his wife leaves, he moves to the city, where he befriends his liberal cousin Sue.
Director: Michael Winterbottom | Stars: Christopher Eccleston, Kate Winslet, Liam Cunningham, Rachel Griffiths
Votes: 11,114 | Gross: $0.41M
23. Kolya (1996)
PG-13 | 111 min | Comedy, Drama, Music
A confirmed bachelor is in for the surprise of his life when a get-rich-quick scheme backfires and leaves him with a pint-sized new roommate.
Director: Jan Sverák | Stars: Zdenek Sverák, Andrey Khalimon, Libuse Safránková, Ondrej Vetchý
Votes: 16,212 | Gross: $5.73M
24. The Line King: The Al Hirschfeld Story (1996)
Not Rated | 86 min | Documentary, Biography
The childhood, adolescence, and incredible adult years of Al Hirshfeld, celebrated creator of thousands of line drawings of famous people - many in the entertainment industry - over a span of more than sixty years.
Director: Susan Warms Dryfoos | Stars: Julie Andrews, Lauren Bacall, Carol Channing, Cy Coleman
Votes: 436
25. Lone Star (1996)
R | 135 min | Drama, Mystery, Western
When the skeleton of his murdered predecessor is found, Sheriff Sam Deeds unearths many other long-buried secrets in his Texas border town.
Director: John Sayles | Stars: Chris Cooper, Elizabeth Peña, Stephen Mendillo, Stephen J. Lang
Votes: 32,292 | Gross: $13.27M
26. Manny & Lo (1996)
R | 88 min | Comedy, Drama
A pregnant teen and her younger sister run away from foster homes and kidnap a woman whom they believe can help with the pregnancy.
Director: Lisa Krueger | Stars: Scarlett Johansson, Aleksa Palladino, Mary Kay Place, Dean Silvers
Votes: 2,204 | Gross: $0.50M
27. Mother (II) (1996)
PG-13 | 104 min | Comedy, Drama
A neurotic, twice-divorced sci-fi writer moves back in with his mother to solve his personal problems.
Director: Albert Brooks | Stars: Albert Brooks, Debbie Reynolds, Paul Collins, Laura Weekes
Votes: 6,787 | Gross: $19.12M
Top 1000
28. Paradise Lost: The Child Murders at Robin Hood Hills (1996)
Not Rated | 150 min | Documentary, Crime
A horrific triple child murder leads to an indictment and trial of three nonconformist boys based on questionable evidence.
Directors: Joe Berlinger, Bruce Sinofsky | Stars: Tony Brooks, Diana Davis, Terry Wood, Dick Clay
Votes: 18,119
29. The People vs. Larry Flynt (1996)
R | 130 min | Biography, Drama
The story of controversial pornography publisher Larry Flynt, and how he became a defender of free speech.
Director: Milos Forman | Stars: Woody Harrelson, Courtney Love, Edward Norton, Brett Harrelson
Votes: 100,660 | Gross: $20.19M
30. The Pillow Book (1995)
Not Rated | 126 min | Drama
A woman with a body-writing fetish seeks to find a combined lover and calligrapher.
Director: Peter Greenaway | Stars: Vivian Wu, Ewan McGregor, Yoshi Oida, Ken Ogata
Votes: 13,635 | Gross: $2.29M
31. Prime Suspect 5: Errors of Judgement (1996)
100 min | Crime, Mystery, Romance
Superintendent Tennison (Dame Helen Mirren) investigates a seemingly straightforward drug murder that she believes is linked to a smugly smooth crime boss.
Stars: Helen Mirren, John Brobbey, Julia Lane, David O'Hara
Votes: 3,011
32. The Promise (1996)
Not Rated | 90 min | Drama
Roger uses his son Igor to ruthlessly traffic and exploit undocumented immigrants. When one of the immigrants is killed, Igor is guilt-ridden and wants to care for the dead man's family against his father's orders.
Directors: Jean-Pierre Dardenne, Luc Dardenne | Stars: Jérémie Renier, Olivier Gourmet, Assita Ouedraogo, Jean-Michel Balthazar
Votes: 8,534 | Gross: $0.45M
Top 1000
33. Ridicule (1996)
R | 102 min | Comedy, Drama, History
To get royal backing on a needed drainage project, a poor French lord must learn to play the delicate games of wit at court at Versailles.
Director: Patrice Leconte | Stars: Charles Berling, Jean Rochefort, Fanny Ardant, Judith Godrèche
Votes: 8,178 | Gross: $2.50M
Top 1000
34. Secrets & Lies (1996)
R | 136 min | Comedy, Drama
Following the death of her adoptive parents, a successful young black optometrist establishes contact with her biological mother -- a lonely white factory worker living in poverty in East London.
Director: Mike Leigh | Stars: Timothy Spall, Brenda Blethyn, Phyllis Logan, Claire Rushbrook
Votes: 47,134 | Gross: $13.42M
35. Sling Blade (1996)
R | 135 min | Drama
Karl Childers, a simple man hospitalized since his childhood murder of his mother and her lover, is released to start a new life in a small town.
Director: Billy Bob Thornton | Stars: Billy Bob Thornton, Dwight Yoakam, J.T. Walsh, John Ritter
Votes: 98,738 | Gross: $24.48M
36. The Spitfire Grill (1996)
PG-13 | 117 min | Drama
Oscar-winner Ellen Burstyn (The Exorcist) headlines this critically praised drama about a young woman, just out of prison, who finds spiritual redemption working at a cafe in Maine.
Director: Lee David Zlotoff | Stars: Alison Elliott, Ellen Burstyn, Marcia Gay Harden, Will Patton
Votes: 7,208 | Gross: $12.64M
37. A Summer's Tale (1996)
G | 113 min | Comedy, Drama, Romance
As a reserved young graduate vacations in a seaside town, he hopes his girlfriend will join him. But he ends up bonding with a local young woman whose female friend is also smitten with him.
Director: Éric Rohmer | Stars: Melvil Poupaud, Amanda Langlet, Gwenaëlle Simon, Aurelia Nolin
Votes: 9,956 | Gross: $0.20M
38. Swingers (1996)
R | 96 min | Comedy, Drama
A wannabe actor has a hard time moving on from a break-up, but he is lucky to have supportive friends.
Director: Doug Liman | Stars: Vince Vaughn, Heather Graham, Jon Favreau, Ron Livingston
Votes: 88,077 | Gross: $4.51M
39. Trainspotting (1996)
R | 93 min | Drama
Renton, deeply immersed in the Edinburgh drug scene, tries to clean up and get out despite the allure of drugs and the influence of friends.
Director: Danny Boyle | Stars: Ewan McGregor, Ewen Bremner, Jonny Lee Miller, Kevin McKidd
Votes: 725,004 | Gross: $16.50M
Top 1000
40. Trees Lounge (1996)
R | 95 min | Comedy, Drama
Tommy is an unemployed mechanic who spends most of his time in a bar (Trees Lounge) in a small blue collar town. He seems to always be thinking, "If only X then I could stop drinking".
Director: Steve Buscemi | Stars: Steve Buscemi, Carol Kane, Mark Boone Junior, Bronson Dudley
Votes: 17,575 | Gross: $0.70M
41. Waiting for Guffman (1996)
R | 84 min | Comedy
An aspiring director and the marginally talented amateur cast of a hokey small-town Missouri musical production go overboard when they learn that someone from Broadway will be in attendance.
Director: Christopher Guest | Stars: Christopher Guest, Fred Willard, Catherine O'Hara, Parker Posey
Votes: 30,734 | Gross: $2.92M
Top 1000
42. When We Were Kings (1996)
PG | 88 min | Documentary, Sport
Boxing documentary on the 1974 world heavyweight championship bout between defending champion, George Foreman, and the underdog challenger, Muhammad Ali.
Director: Leon Gast | Stars: Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Don King, James Brown
Votes: 19,125 | Gross: $2.79M
Top 1000
43. The Whole Wide World (1996)
PG | 111 min | Biography, Drama, Romance
In 1933 Texas, a schoolteacher and aspiring writer meets a pulp fiction writer, and a relationship soon develops between the two, but it is doomed by his slavishly devotion to his ailing mother and insistence on his freedom.
Director: Dan Ireland | Stars: Vincent D'Onofrio, Renée Zellweger, Ann Wedgeworth, Harve Presnell
Votes: 4,019 | Gross: $0.14M
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