Best Movies of 1996

These are the 48 best-rated movies released in 1996, led by A Tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan, Trainspotting and Primal Fear. Ranked by audience score, with cast, trailers and legal places to watch on every page.

1. A Tribute to Stevie Ray Vaughan (1996)

★ 10.0/10

One by One, the musicians climb on stage and take their places: B.B. king, Eric Clapton, Buddy guy, Robert Cray, Bonnie Raitt, Jimmie Vaughan, Dr, john and Art Neville. Vaughan, standing at center stage, launches into…
2. Trainspotting (1996)

★ 8.0/10

Heroin addict Mark Renton stumbles through bad ideas and sobriety attempts with his unreliable friends --Sick Boy, Begbie, Spud and Tommy. He also has an underage girlfriend, Diane, along for the ride. After cleaning…
3. Primal Fear (1996)

★ 7.7/10

An arrogant, high-powered attorney takes on the case of a poor altar boy found running away from the scene of the grisly murder of the bishop who has taken him in. The case gets a lot more complex when the accused…
4. Sleepers (1996)

★ 7.6/10

Two gangsters seek revenge on the state jail worker who during their stay at a youth prison sexually abused them. A sensational court hearing takes place to charge him for the crimes.
5. Sling Blade (1996)

★ 7.5/10

Karl Childers, a mentally disabled man, has been in the custody of the state mental hospital since the age of 12 for killing his mother and her lover. Although thoroughly institutionalized, he is deemed fit to be…
6. A Time to Kill (1996)

★ 7.4/10

A young lawyer defends a black man accused of murdering two white men who raped his 10-year-old daughter, sparking a rebirth of the KKK.
7. Shine (1996)

★ 7.4/10

Pianist David Helfgott, driven by his father and teachers, has a breakdown. Years later he returns to the piano, to popular if not critical acclaim.
8. The Substance of Fire (1996)

★ 7.3/10

Isaac Geldhart is a Holocaust survivor who, overcome by grief at the recent death of his wife, seems determined to run his publishing firm into the ground by printing books that have no hope of financial success. His…
9. Star Trek: First Contact (1996)

★ 7.3/10

The Borg, a relentless race of cyborgs, are on a direct course for Earth. Violating orders to stay away from the battle, Captain Picard and the crew of the newly-commissioned USS Enterprise E pursue the Borg back in…
10. Kid Cop (1996)

★ 7.3/10

Eleven year old Peter Hansen is determined to follow his Dad's career example by becoming a one-boy neighborhood police force. When a local burglary is committed, Peter follows clues overlooked by the police and ends…
11. Matilda (1996)

★ 7.2/10

Matilda Wormwood is an exquisite and intelligent little girl. Unfortunately, her parents, Harry and Zinnia misunderstand her because they think she is so different. As time passes, she finally starts school and has a…
12. Bound (1996)

★ 7.2/10

Corky, a tough female ex-convict working on an apartment renovation in a Chicago building, meets a couple living next door, Caesar, a paranoid mobster, and Violet, his seductive girlfriend, who is immediately attracted…
13. The English Patient (1996)

★ 7.2/10

In the 1930s, Count Almásy is a Hungarian map maker employed by the Royal Geographical Society to chart the vast expanses of the Sahara Desert along with several other prominent explorers. As World War II unfolds…
14. Foreign Land (1996)

★ 7.2/10

During a time of political upheaval in Brazil, two strangers meet by coincidence in a foreign land and end up caught in the middle of a gem smuggling ring.
15. The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996)

★ 7.1/10

Isolated bell-ringer Quasimodo wishes to leave Notre Dame tower against the wishes of Judge Claude Frollo, his stern guardian and Paris' strait-laced Minister of Justice. His first venture to the outside world finds…
16. The Rock (1996)

★ 7.1/10

When vengeful General Francis X. Hummel seizes control of Alcatraz Island and threatens to launch missiles loaded with deadly chemical weapons into San Francisco, only a young FBI chemical weapons expert and notorious…
17. From Dusk Till Dawn (1996)

★ 7.0/10

After kidnapping a father and his two kids, the Gecko brothers head south to a seedy Mexican bar to hide out in safety, unaware of its notorious vampire clientele.
18. Don't Be a Menace to South Central While Drinking Your Juice in the Hood (1996)

★ 7.0/10

When Ashtray moves to South Central L.A. to live with his father (who appears to be the same age he is) and grandmother (who likes to talk tough and smoke reefer), he falls in with his gang-banging cousin Loc Dog, who…
19. Mission: Impossible (1996)

★ 7.0/10

When Ethan Hunt, the leader of a crack espionage team whose perilous operation has gone awry with no explanation, discovers that a mole has penetrated the CIA, he's surprised to learn that he's the prime suspect. To…
20. Lone Star (1996)

★ 7.0/10

When the skeleton of his murdered predecessor is found, Sheriff Sam Deeds unearths many other long-buried secrets in his Texas border town.
21. The Birdcage (1996)

★ 7.0/10

A gay cabaret owner and his drag queen partner agree to put up a false heterosexual front so that their son can introduce them to his fiancée's conservative parents.
22. Independence Day (1996)

★ 6.9/10

Strange phenomena surface around the globe. The skies ignite. Terror races through the world's major cities. As these extraordinary events unfold, it becomes increasingly clear that a force of incredible magnitude has…
23. Michael Collins (1996)

★ 6.9/10

Michael Collins plays a crucial role in the establishment of the Irish Free State in the 1920s, but becomes vilified by those hoping to create a completely independent Irish republic.
24. The Substitute (1996)

★ 6.9/10

When an inner-city Miami schoolteacher gets her knee broken after standing up to the school's gang leader, her mercenary combat specialist boyfriend goes undercover as a substitute teacher to take down the punk. Soon…
25. The Paper Brigade (1996)

★ 6.9/10

A 14 year old boy named Gunther moves to a small town with his parents and little brother. He meets up with a group of overly charitable paper boys who want him to sub for their friend while he's out of town. Gunther…
26. Looking for Richard (1996)

★ 6.8/10

Al Pacino's deeply-felt rumination on Shakespeare's significance and relevance to the modern world through interviews and an in-depth analysis of "Richard III."
27. Space Jam (1996)

★ 6.8/10

With their freedom on the line, the Looney Tunes seek the help of NBA superstar Michael Jordan to win a basketball game against a team of moronic aliens.
28. Romeo + Juliet (1996)

★ 6.8/10

In director Baz Luhrmann's contemporary take on William Shakespeare's classic tragedy, the Montagues and Capulets have moved their ongoing feud to the sweltering suburb of Verona Beach, where Romeo and Juliet fall in…
29. The Craft (1996)

★ 6.8/10

A Catholic school newcomer falls in with a clique of teen witches who wield their powers against all who dare to cross them -- be they teachers, rivals or meddlesome parents.
30. The Ghost and the Darkness (1996)

★ 6.8/10

Sir Robert Beaumont is behind schedule on a railroad in Africa. Enlisting noted engineer John Henry Patterson to right the ship, Beaumont expects results. Everything seems great until the crew discovers the mutilated…
31. Stealing Beauty (1996)

★ 6.7/10

Lucy Harmon, an American teenager is arriving in the lush Tuscan countryside to be sculpted by a family friend who lives in a beautiful villa. Lucy visited there four years earlier and exchanged a kiss with an Italian…
32. Happy Gilmore (1996)

★ 6.7/10

Failed hockey player-turned-golf whiz Happy Gilmore — whose unconventional approach and antics on the green courts the ire of rival Shooter McGavin — is determined to win a PGA tournament so he can save his granny's…
33. Picnic (1996)

★ 6.7/10

Believing that the world will end that very day, three mental patients Coco, Tsumuji, and Satoru set out upon a journey. Walking upon the tops of the walls of the city, they seek to find a picnic spot with the best…
34. Sonic the Hedgehog: The Movie (1996)

★ 6.6/10

Sonic's arch nemesis Dr. Robotnik has been banished from the Land of Darkness by an evil Metal Robotnik. The devious doctor tells Sonic that the Robot Generator has been sabotaged and will blow Planet Freedom to…
35. The Long Kiss Goodnight (1996)

★ 6.6/10

Samantha Caine is a small-town schoolteacher and mom with no memory of her life before washing up on a beach eight years ago. After a car accident and a violent home invasion trigger flashes of her past, she discovers…
36. Police Story 4: First Strike (1996)

★ 6.5/10

Hong Kong cop Chan Ka-Kui returns, working with Interpol to track down and arrest an illegal weapons dealer. Chan later realizes that things are not as simple as they appear and soon finds himself to be a pawn of an…
37. Courage Under Fire (1996)

★ 6.5/10

A US Army officer, who made a "friendly fire" mistake that was covered up, has been reassigned to a desk job. He is tasked to investigate a female chopper commander's worthiness to be awarded the Medal of Honor. At…
38. Phenomenon (1996)

★ 6.5/10

An ordinary man sees a bright light descend from the sky, and discovers he now has super-intelligence and telekinesis.
39. Fear (1996)

★ 6.5/10

Nicole Walker always dreamed of being swept away by someone special — someone strong, sexy and sensitive who would care for her more than anything else in the world. David is all that and more: a modern-day knight who…
40. DragonHeart (1996)

★ 6.5/10

In an ancient time when majestic fire-breathers soared through the skies, a knight named Bowen comes face to face and heart to heart with the last dragon on Earth, Draco. Taking up arms to suppress a tyrant king, Bowen…
41. Ebola Syndrome (1996)

★ 6.4/10

A violent fugitive on the run from the law makes his way from Hong Kong to South Africa, where he discovers that he's immune to the Ebola virus, and later returns home to spread the deadly disease.
42. Crash (1996)

★ 6.4/10

After getting into a serious car accident, a TV director discovers an underground sub-culture of scarred, omnisexual car-crash victims, and he begins to use car accidents and the raw sexual energy they produce to try…
43. White Squall (1996)

★ 6.3/10

In 1960, a hardy group of prep school students boards an old-fashioned sailing ship. With Capt. Christopher Sheldon at the helm, the oceangoing voyage is intended to teach the boys fortitude and discipline. But the…
44. Tremors 2: Aftershocks (1996)

★ 6.3/10

Earl Bassett's celebrity after defeating the Graboid attack against the town of Perfection has proved short-lived, until he's recruited by a Mexican oil company whose workers have found more than they bargained for…
45. Executive Decision (1996)

★ 6.3/10

Terrorists hijack a 747 inbound to Washington D.C., demanding the release of their imprisoned leader. Intelligence expert David Grant (Kurt Russell) suspects another reason and he is soon the reluctant member of a…
46. Fall into Darkness (1996)

★ 6.3/10

Teenager Ann resents the arrival of Sharon and the fact that her brother Jerry has a crush on the newcomer. When Jerry dies in an accident, Ann blames Sharon and frames her for another death.
47. Eye for an Eye (1996)

★ 6.2/10

It's fire and brimstone time as grieving mother Karen McCann takes justice into her own hands when a kangaroo court in Los Angeles fails to convict Robert Doob, the monster who raped and murdered her 17-year-old…
48. The Quest (1996)

★ 6.2/10

Ghang-gheng, the ancient winner-take-all competition in which the deadliest fighters from around the world employ the most spectacular feats of martial arts skills ever displayed in order to win the prized Golden…