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Edition · 1993
The Year in Film · 1993

Best of 1993

The films that defined 1993 — ranked by IMDb score.


These films defined 1993 — the year's highest-rated releases, ranked by IMDb score. Some are awards bait, some are popcorn fare, some quietly snuck in under the radar. All earned their place on the list.

  1. 01.
    Ramayana : The Legend of Prince Rama

    Ramayana : The Legend of Prince Rama

    1993·Dir. Ram Mohan·135 min·9.1

    In Ayodhya, the royal palace of Kosala Kingdom in Ancient India, four princes were born to three queens, each of whom grew to great stature. Banished for 14 years due to court intrigue, Prince Rama retreated to the forest with his beautiful wife Sita. When Rama vanquishes the demons of the forest, he invites the wrath of the demon king Ravana, who kidnaps Sita. Based on the Indian epic the Ramayana.

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  2. 02.
    Schindler's List

    Schindler's List

    1993·Dir. Steven Spielberg·195 min·9.0

    The true story of how businessman Oskar Schindler saved over a thousand Jewish lives from the Nazis while they worked as slaves in his factory during World War II.

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  3. 03.
    Manichitrathazhu

    Manichitrathazhu

    1993·Dir. Fazil·169 min·8.7

    A young couple, Ganga and Nakulan, arrives at the ancestral home called Madampalli of the latter. Hailing from a family that follows tradition and superstitions, Nakulan's uncle Thampi objects to the couple's idea of moving into the allegedly haunted mansion, which Nakulan ignores. The couple moves in anyway following which seemingly supernatural events begin to happen.

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  4. 04.
    Devasuram

    Devasuram

    1993·Dir. I V Sasi·160 min·8.7

    Neelakanthan squanders away the inheritance left by his father. However, his life turns upside down when his mother reveals a terrible secret on her deathbed that changes the course of his life.

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  5. 05.
    The Wrong Trousers

    The Wrong Trousers

    1993·Dir. Nick Park·30 min·8.3

    Wallace rents out Gromit's former bedroom to a penguin, who takes up an interest in the techno trousers created by Wallace. However, Gromit later learns that the penguin is a wanted criminal.

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  6. 06.
    Jurassic Park

    Jurassic Park

    1993·Dir. Steven Spielberg·127 min·8.2

    A wealthy entrepreneur secretly creates a theme park featuring living dinosaurs drawn from prehistoric DNA. Before opening day, he invites a team of experts and his two eager grandchildren to experience the park and help calm anxious investors. However, the park is anything but amusing as the security systems go off-line and the dinosaurs escape.

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  7. 07.
    Farewell My Concubine

    Farewell My Concubine

    1993·Dir. Chen Kaige·171 min·8.1

    In an epic tale of theater, gender, love and class, two Beijing opera actors navigate political turmoil as their friendship evolves over decades.

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  8. 08.
    In the Name of the Father

    In the Name of the Father

    1993·Dir. Jim Sheridan·133 min·8.1

    A small-time Belfast thief, Gerry Conlon, is wrongly convicted of an IRA bombing in London, along with his father and friends, and spends 15 years in prison fighting to prove his innocence.

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  9. 09.
    Groundhog Day

    Groundhog Day

    1993·Dir. Harold Ramis·101 min·8.0

    A cynical TV weatherman, along with his idealistic producer and his sardonic cameraman, is sent to report on Groundhog Day in the small town of Punxsutawney, where he finds himself repeating the same day over and over.

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  10. 10.
    Carlito's Way

    Carlito's Way

    1993·Dir. Brian De Palma·144 min·7.9

    Free after years in prison, Carlito Brigante intends to give up his criminal ways, but it's not long before the ex-con is sucked back into the New York City underworld.

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  11. 11.
    The Nightmare Before Christmas

    The Nightmare Before Christmas

    1993·Dir. Henry Selick·76 min·7.9

    Tired of scaring humans every October 31 with the same old bag of tricks, Jack Skellington, the spindly king of Halloween Town, kidnaps Santa Claus and plans to deliver shrunken heads and other ghoulish gifts to children on Christmas morning. But as Christmas approaches, Jack's rag-doll girlfriend, Sally, tries to foil his misguided plans.

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  12. 12.
    True Romance

    True Romance

    1993·Dir. Tony Scott·121 min·7.9

    Clarence marries hooker Alabama, steals cocaine from her pimp, and tries to sell it in Hollywood, while the owners of the coke try to reclaim it.

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  13. 13.
    Bound by Honor

    Bound by Honor

    1993·Dir. Taylor Hackford·190 min·7.9

    Based on the true life experiences of poet Jimmy Santiago Baca, the film focuses on half-brothers Paco and Cruz, and their bi-racial cousin Miklo. It opens in 1972, as the three are members of an East L.A. gang known as the "Vatos Locos", and the story focuses on how a violent crime and the influence of narcotics alter their lives. Miklo is incarcerated and sent to San Quentin, where he makes a "home" for himself. Cruz becomes an exceptional artist, but a heroin addiction overcomes him with tragic results. Paco becomes a cop and an enemy to his "carnal", Miklo.

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  14. 14.
    Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

    Batman: Mask of the Phantasm

    1993·Dir. Bruce Timm·76 min·7.8

    Andrea Beaumont leaves her father to return to Gotham, rekindling an old romance with Bruce Wayne. At the same time, a mysterious figure begins to hunt down Gotham's criminals, wrongly implicating Batman in the murders. Now on the run from the law, Batman must find and stop the culprit, while also navigating his relationship with Andrea.

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  15. 15.
    Ninja Scroll

    Ninja Scroll

    1993·Dir. Yoshiaki Kawajiri·94 min·7.8

    Jubei is a masterless ninja who travels the land alone, lending his services to those with gold—or a worthy cause. His fearsome abilities have served him well, but a plot to overthrow the government threatens to end his wandering ways—and possibly his life.

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  16. 16.
    Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks

    Dragon Ball Z: The History of Trunks

    1993·Dir. Yoshihiro Ueda·48 min·7.8

    It has been thirteen years since the Androids began their killing rampage and Son Gohan is the only person fighting back. He takes Bulma's son Trunks as a student and even gives his own life to save Trunks's. Now Trunks must figure out a way to change this apocalyptic future

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  17. 17.
    The Fugitive

    The Fugitive

    1993·Dir. Andrew Davis·131 min·7.8

    Wrongfully convicted of murdering his wife and sentenced to death, Richard Kimble escapes from the law in an attempt to find the real killer and clear his name.

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  18. 18.
    And the Band Played On

    And the Band Played On

    1993·Dir. Roger Spottiswoode·140 min·7.8

    The story of the discovery of the AIDS epidemic and the political infighting of the scientific community hampering the early fight with it.

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  19. 19.
    Three Colors: Blue

    Three Colors: Blue

    1993·Dir. Krzysztof Kieślowski·98 min·7.8

    The wife of a famous composer survives a car accident that kills her husband and daughter. Now alone, she shakes off her old identity and explores her newfound freedom but finds that she is unbreakably bound to other humans, including her husband’s mistress, whose existence she never suspected.

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  20. 20.
    A Bronx Tale

    A Bronx Tale

    1993·Dir. Robert De Niro·121 min·7.8

    Set in the Bronx during the tumultuous 1960s, an adolescent boy is torn between his honest, working-class father and a violent yet charismatic crime boss. Complicating matters is the youngster's growing attraction - forbidden in his neighborhood - for a beautiful black girl.

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  21. 21.
    Tombstone

    Tombstone

    1993·Dir. George P. Cosmatos·130 min·7.8

    Legendary marshal Wyatt Earp, now a weary gunfighter, joins his brothers Morgan and Virgil to pursue their collective fortune in the thriving mining town of Tombstone. But Earp is forced to don a badge again and get help from his notorious pal Doc Holliday when a gang of renegade brigands and rustlers begins terrorizing the town.

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  22. 22.
    The Sandlot

    The Sandlot

    1993·Dir. David Mickey Evans·101 min·7.8

    During a summer of friendship and adventure, one boy becomes a part of the gang, nine boys become a team and their leader becomes a legend by confronting the terrifying mystery beyond the right field wall.

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  23. 23.
    The Remains of the Day

    The Remains of the Day

    1993·Dir. James Ivory·134 min·7.8

    A rule-bound head butler's world of manners and decorum in the household he maintains is tested by the arrival of a housekeeper who falls in love with him in post-WWI Britain. The possibility of romance and his master's cultivation of ties with the Nazi cause challenge his carefully maintained veneer of servitude.

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  24. 24.
    The Joy Luck Club

    The Joy Luck Club

    1993·Dir. Wayne Wang·139 min·7.7

    Through a series of flashbacks, four Chinese women born in America and their respective mothers born in feudal China explore their pasts.

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  25. 25.
    Philadelphia

    Philadelphia

    1993·Dir. Jonathan Demme·126 min·7.7

    Two competing lawyers join forces to sue a prestigious law firm for AIDS discrimination. As their unlikely friendship develops, their courage overcomes the prejudice and corruption of their powerful adversaries.

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  26. 26.
    What's Eating Gilbert Grape

    What's Eating Gilbert Grape

    1993·Dir. Lasse Hallström·118 min·7.7

    Gilbert Grape is a small-town young man with a lot of responsibility. Chief among his concerns are his mother, who is so overweight that she can't leave the house, and his mentally impaired younger brother, Arnie, who has a knack for finding trouble. Settled into a job at a grocery store and an ongoing affair with local woman Betty Carver, Gilbert finally has his life shaken up by the free-spirited Becky.

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  27. 27.
    Flirting Scholar

    Flirting Scholar

    1993·Dir. Lee Lik-Chi·102 min·7.6

    A scholar in search of true love. Disguising himself as a houseboy, he indentures himself to a rich family in order to pursue the ravishing servant girl who has stolen his heart.

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  28. 28.
    The Wedding Banquet

    The Wedding Banquet

    1993·Dir. Ang Lee·108 min·7.6

    A Taiwanese-American man is happily settled in New York with his American boyfriend. He plans a marriage of convenience to a Chinese woman in order to keep his parents off his back and to get the woman a green card. Chaos follows when his parents arrive in New York for the wedding.

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  29. 29.
    Darr

    Darr

    1993·Dir. Yash Chopra·179 min·7.6

    A woman is caught between one man's love and another man's obsession. She fears one and fears for the other. One stands for love and the other for life. Who will she choose?

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  30. 30.
    Naked

    Naked

    1993·Dir. Mike Leigh·131 min·7.6

    An unemployed Brit vents his rage on unsuspecting strangers as he embarks on a nocturnal London odyssey.

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  31. 31.
    Baazigar

    Baazigar

    1993·Dir. Abbas Alibhai Burmawalla·181 min·7.6

    A young man with a vendetta against a business tycoon seduces and kills his eldest daughter and then proceeds to his younger daughter but she begins to suspect her new lover's ulterior motive.

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  32. 32.
    Short Cuts

    Short Cuts

    1993·Dir. Robert Altman·188 min·7.6

    Many loosely connected characters cross paths in this film, based on the stories of Raymond Carver. Waitress Doreen Piggot accidentally runs into a boy with her car. Soon after walking away, the child lapses into a coma. While at the hospital, the boy's grandfather tells his son, Howard, about his past affairs. Meanwhile, a baker starts harassing the family when they fail to pick up the boy's birthday cake.

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  33. 33.
    Dazed and Confused

    Dazed and Confused

    1993·Dir. Richard Linklater·102 min·7.6

    The adventures of a group of Texas teens on their last day of school in 1976, centering on student Randall Floyd, who moves easily among stoners, jocks and geeks. Floyd is a star athlete, but he also likes smoking weed, which presents a conundrum when his football coach demands he sign a "no drugs" pledge.

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  34. 34.
    Gettysburg

    Gettysburg

    1993·Dir. Ronald F. Maxwell·254 min·7.6

    In the summer of 1863, General Robert E. Lee leads the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia into Gettysburg, Pennsylvania with the goal of marching through to Washington, D.C. The Union Army of the Potomac, under the command of General George G. Meade, forms a defensive position to confront the rebel forces in what will prove to be the decisive battle of the American Civil War.

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  35. 35.
    Menace II Society

    Menace II Society

    1993·Dir. Allen Hughes·97 min·7.5

    A young street hustler attempts to escape the rigors and temptations of the ghetto in a quest for a better life.

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  36. 36.
    Iron Monkey

    Iron Monkey

    1993·Dir. Yuen Woo-Ping·90 min·7.5

    In this Hong Kong variation of Robin Hood, corrupt officials of a Chinese village are robbed by a masked bandit known as "Iron Monkey", named after a benevolent deity. When all else fails, the Governor forces a traveling physician into finding the bandit.

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  37. 37.
    A Perfect World

    A Perfect World

    1993·Dir. Clint Eastwood·138 min·7.5

    A kidnapped boy strikes up a friendship with his captor: an escaped convict on the run from the law, headed by an honorable U.S. Marshal.

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  38. 38.
    Stalingrad

    Stalingrad

    1993·Dir. Joseph Vilsmaier·134 min·7.5

    A German Platoon is explored through the brutal fighting of the Battle of Stalingrad. After half of their number is wiped out and they're placed under the command of a sadistic captain, the platoon lieutenant leads his men to desert. The platoon members attempt escape from the city, now surrounded by the Soviet Army.

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  39. 39.
    Falling Down

    Falling Down

    1993·Dir. Joel Schumacher·113 min·7.5

    An ordinary man frustrated with the various flaws he sees in society begins to psychotically and violently lash out against them.

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  40. 40.
    The Piano

    The Piano

    1993·Dir. Jane Campion·120 min·7.5

    When an arranged marriage brings Ada and her spirited daughter to the wilderness of nineteenth-century New Zealand, she finds herself locked in a battle of wills with both her controlling husband and a rugged frontiersman to whom she develops a forbidden attraction.

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— End of Chapter —