30 Underrated '90s Movies That Everyone Needs to See

Before Miss Congeniality, there was this dark comedy, which follows a group of beauty pageant contestants — played by Denise Richards, Kirsten Dunst, and Brittany Murphy — and their hypercompetitive stage moms, who will do pretty much anything for the crown . . . and we mean anything.

Before Natasha Lyonne went to prison on Orange Is the New Black and died repeatedly in Russian Doll, she starred as high school cheerleader Megan Bloomfield, whose parents send her to a conversion therapy camp to "cure her lesbianism." RuPaul has a role, and hilarity ensues.

Heather Matarazzo is a shy, unpopular middle school student who's constantly teased both in class and at home in this coming-of-age black comedy.

Whoopi Goldberg plays the witty housekeeper to businessman Ray Liotta and his 7-year-old daughter Molly, played by Tina Majorino — after the death of his wife, Molly refuses to speak but slowly gets her spirit back thanks to Corrina.

Oh, and there's a whole "will they or won't they?" thing that happens between Goldberg and Liotta's characters, which is a big deal considering that it's set in 1959.

Robin Tunney, Fairuza Balk, Rachel True, and Neve Campbell play four high school students who also dabble in witchcraft. This is the movie that launched a thousand "light as a feather, stiff as a board" levitation attempts at sleepovers.

After her elderly babysitter dies suddenly of a heart attack, Sue Ellen Crandell (played expertly by Christina Applegate in her first movie role) has to give up her fantasy of hanging on the beach with her friends all Summer and scams her way into a job at an LA fashion company so she can make money and take care of her younger siblings.

Have you ever heard a co-worker say, "I'm right on top of that, Rose"? This is where that comes from.

There's no elderly babysitter death in this one, but if you have read (or just heard of) the Baby-Sitters Club books, you should definitely check out the movie version starring '90s favorites Rachael Leigh Cook and Larisa Oleynik.

Mark Wahlberg has never been more terrifying than he is in this thriller, which at the time was marketed as "Fatal Attraction for teens" — WTF? Wahlberg stars as a disturbed bad boy who strikes up a romance with Reese Witherspoon, a fairly good girl with a slight rebellious streak. While the two do fall in love, let's just say things . . . take a turn. There's also a sex scene on a roller coaster that will stay with you for the rest of your life.

Another classic stalker movie, this one stars Alicia Silverstone as a 14-year-old girl who develops a very unhealthy obsession with a newspaper reporter (played by Cary Elwes) who is living in her family's guest house. When he ignores her advances (because, you know, she's 14), she does whatever she can to sabotage his life — and end it.

There's no doubt that this movie was inspired by the '80s cult classic Heathers and absolutely set the scene for Mean Girls. Rose McGowan stars as the ultimate queen bee and leader of the "Flawless Four." Also in the clique are Rebecca Gayheart, Julie Benz, and Charlotte Ayanna (though Ayanna isn't in the film for long, since they accidentally kill her by jamming a jawbreaker in her mouth). In order to cover up their crime, they recruit school outcast and witness to the murder Fern Mayo (Judy Greer) to join the clique.

In one of his early movie roles, Leonardo DiCaprio plays a high school basketball star who takes a couple of wrong turns and ends up hooked on heroin. There are also some great shirtless scenes from Mark Wahlberg, who plays Leo's best friend.

Leonardo DiCaprio had a small role in this dramatic thriller, which stars Drew Barrymore as a poor (OK, and trashy) teenager who befriends private school student and all-around good girl Sara Gilbert. Things get pretty real pretty fast.

Martha Plimpton stars as a woman aiming to throw the best New Year's Eve party ever, and the movie follows the star-studded cast — Gaby Hoffmann, Christina Ricci, Kate Hudson, and Ben and Casey Affleck — throughout different scenarios as they try to make it to the bash before the clock strikes 12.

Based on a novel by the same name, this drama has an incredible cast — we're talking Winona Ryder, Anne Bancroft, Ellen Burstyn, Alfre Woodard, Maya Angelou, and Samantha Mathis — and follows Ryder's character, Finn, as she works on finishing her thesis and trying to decide whether or not she is in love with her fiancé (Dermot Mulroney).

The movie travels between all of the women's stories of love and loss as they work on making Finn's wedding quilt. You will laugh, you will cry, and you will probably end up watching it multiple times in a row.

This movie is so '90s, you guys: it's set in Seattle during the grunge phenomenon and stars Bridget Fonda and Matt Dillon (with long hair!) as two Gen-Xers just trying to make it work, you know? The Cameron Crowe-directed rom-com also has cameos from some of the era's best bands, like Pearl Jam, Soundgarden, and Alice in Chains. Obviously the soundtrack is great, too.

Hillary Wolf stars as a teenage girl in a very large, very dysfunctional family who — like most teenage girls — is so over everyone and decides to run away. The comedy follows her character Laura's giant extended family coming together to look for her.

The comedy, which stars '90s hip-hop duo Kid 'n Play, will not only make you LOL, but also inspire you to throw a huge house party of your own. It spawned two sequels that are actually pretty good.

Dominique Swain stars as a straight-A high school student who gets hooked on the Portland rock scene in this comedy-drama. She ends up falling for a musician (played by Sean Patrick Flanery) and escapes her boring home life by becoming a groupie.

This dark, disturbing drama is best watched as an adult — but it still might scar you. It centers around a day in the life of NYC teens as they drink, do drugs, and have lots of (unprotected) sex. Chloë Sevigny, Leo Fitzpatrick, and Rosario Dawson all star.

Reese Witherspoon stars as uptight high school junior Tracy Flick in this comedy-drama about school politics. Witherspoon earned a Golden Globe nomination for her role in the movie, which also stars Matthew Broderick.

Once you've finished The Craft, you can watch this lighter supernatural film starring Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman as sisters (and witches) who come together despite their differences to fight a family curse with — you guessed it — practical magic.

Whoopi Goldberg, Mary-Louise Parker, and Drew Barrymore star as three friends embarking on a cross-country road trip in an effort to deal with a bunch of horrible things like a breakup, an abusive boyfriend, and an HIV diagnosis.

Cher stars as the glamorous and eccentric single mother of two daughters, Charlotte (Winona Ryder) and Kate (Christina Ricci in her first movie role). It's set in 1960s Massachusetts and follows the family as they face challenges, new relationships, and, yes, swimming.

Diane Lane plays a lonely young housewife who misses her youth during the Summer of 1969, when both the moon landing and Woodstock are going on. She ends up attending the festival and meeting Walker (Viggo Mortensen), who she strikes up an affair with. Liev Schreiber stars as her unavailable husband and Anna Paquin as her teenage daughter, who is off having her own fun.

This Spike Lee film follows a black family living in 1970s Brooklyn and stars Alfre Woodard as a strict schoolteacher trying to navigate life with her jazz musician husband (Delroy Lindo) and their five kids. There are also tons of colorful neighborhood characters.

This is another movie that is highly entertaining despite the fact that it probably didn't need to be made. Katie Holmes and Barry Watson (who you may remember from 7th Heaven) star as high school students who are accused of cheating by their evil teacher, Mrs. Tingle (played by Helen Mirren). They end up going to her house to try to convince her not to expel them, and then one thing leads to another and they knock her unconscious and tie her to her own bed.

Also: amazing soundtrack!

Natasha Lyonne was one of the queens of '90s cult classics, you guys. In this comedy-drama, she plays Vivian, a 17-year-old struggling to accept her neurotic, nomadic family, who move from one cheap apartment to the next around Beverly Hills (so she and her brothers can attend nice schools). Marisa Tomei has a role as Vivian's older cousin, who she essentially has to keep an eye on because she's addicted to alcohol and pills.

John Cusack plays a professional assassin sent on a job in the Detroit suburb of Grosse Pointe, where his 10-year high school reunion party happens to be taking place. Minnie Driver stars as his high school sweetheart.

Set in 1964, Tom Hanks is the manager of a Pennsylvania band who score a hit single and grapple with their instant success. Liv Tyler, Charlize Theron, and Rita Wilson also have roles.

There is truly no reason this movie should exist, but that doesn't make it any less amazing. After all, it gave us Michael Jordan and Charles Barkley playing basketball with cartoon characters.