The 8 Biggest Movies of 1996, and Whether They Were Any Good

1996 was the year aliens, cows and Tom Cruise ran the box office. Here's what the top grosses earned next to what they actually deserved.

The year's biggest hit is up last, and its score will start arguments.

1. 8
   Sleepers (1996)7.1

   Audiences overrate this one. Big names, one heavy-handed script.

   It beats 88% of movies with audiences but only 40% with critics. Metacritic 49. De Niro and Hoffman can't fully rescue a story this grim and this sure of itself.
2. 7
   Scream (1996)7.6

   Best movie on this list, and the cheapest by miles.

   Reported budget of $14 to 15M, $173M worldwide. Wes Craven made a slasher that knows the rules, and it holds up. Guru's Take 8.2, the highest here.
3. 6
   Space Jam (1996)5.1

   Nostalgia is doing all the heavy lifting here.

   A 5.1 movie.guru score, below the 5.5 median, and 46% on Rotten Tomatoes. Still pulled $230.6M worldwide. Michael Jordan is a great athlete and a very patient scene partner for cartoons.
4. 5
   Jerry Maguire (1996)8.1

   The best-reviewed hit of 1996 is a sports agent rom-com.

   8.1 movie.guru score, the only Great on this list. 86% on Rotten Tomatoes, $273.7M worldwide. The mission statement stuff is corny, but Cuba Gooding Jr. drags every scene home.
5. 4
   The Rock (1996)7.6

   Peak Michael Bay, back when explosions came with a plot.

   Connery and Cage on Alcatraz, $335.1M worldwide, CinemaScore A. Critics gave it a 58 on Metacritic while it beats 87% of movies with audiences. The crowd was right.
6. 3
   Mission: Impossible (1996)5.9

   Nobody followed the plot, and nobody cared.

   5.9 movie.guru score and a B+ CinemaScore, the lowest CinemaScore listed here. Still grossed $457.7M worldwide on an $80M reported budget. Tom Cruise hanging from a wire covers a lot of confusion.
7. 2
   Twister (1996)5.9

   A theme park ride pretending to be a movie.

   $494.6M worldwide, but a 5.9 movie.guru score. Helen Hunt and Bill Paxton commit hard. The real star is the sound mix, and the dialogue is mostly people yelling about wind.
8. 1
   Independence Day (1996)7.1

   Cheesy, loud, and it absolutely earned the top spot.

   $817.4M worldwide on a $75M reported budget, and Twister's $494.6M wasn't close. Only 59 on Metacritic, but a 7.1 movie.guru score and a CinemaScore A. Will Smith and Jeff Goldblum carry the cheese.

$817.40 says someone in the comments quotes the Bill Pullman speech word for word.

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Current mood: ready to fight about it