The 8 Biggest Movies of 1999, and Whether They Were Any Good

1999 was stacked. Eight movies, counted down by worldwide gross, checked against their movie.guru scores. Money and quality did not always shake hands.

The number one grosser is also the worst movie on this list. Fight me.

1. 8
   The Green Mile (1999)7.7

   Audiences adore it way more than critics ever will.

   IMDb 8.6 from 1.59 million votes and a CinemaScore A, but Metacritic 61. movie.guru score 7.7. Guru's Take 7.4, because the sentiment gets applied with a paint roller.
2. 7
   Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged Me (1999)5.2

   A sequel built entirely out of reruns. Some still land.

   $206 million domestic on a reported $33M budget. movie.guru score 5.2, under the 5.5 median. Guru's Take 6.1, mostly for Mike Myers playing half the cast.
3. 6
   American Beauty (1999)8.5

   The critics' darling that aged worst on this list.

   movie.guru score 8.5, the highest here, RT 87%. Guru's Take 6.1, the widest gap of all eight. The plastic bag scene now plays like a parody of itself.
4. 5
   Notting Hill (1999)6.9

   The most honest movie here. It knows exactly what it is.

   $364 million worldwide on a reported $42M budget. movie.guru score 6.9, Guru's Take 7.1. A bookshop, spilled orange juice, and Hugh Grant stammering like it's an Olympic event.
5. 4
   The Mummy (1999)5.3

   Critics got this one wrong. It's a perfect Saturday movie.

   Metacritic 49, movie.guru score 5.3. Guru's Take 7.0. The crowd voted with $417.6 million worldwide, and Brendan Fraser yelling at sand is a legit art form.
6. 3
   The Matrix (1999)8.1

   The only movie here that actually changed how movies look.

   $473.3 million worldwide on a reported $63M budget, 2.29 million IMDb votes. Guru's Take 9.1, top of this list. The weakness: the lobby scene ages better than the dialogue.
7. 2
   The Sixth Sense (1999)7.9

   A $40M ghost story nearly beat the Jedi. Nearly.

   $672.8 million worldwide, $293.5 million domestic, on a reported $40M budget. Guru's Take 8.0. The slow burn earns it, even if Bruce Willis whispers like the theater is a library.
8. 1
   Star Wars: Episode I – The Phantom Menace (1999)5.0

   Biggest movie of 1999. Also the worst one here.

   $1.05 billion worldwide, movie.guru score 5.0, last of these eight. Guru's Take 4.9. The podrace rules. Opening a space fantasy on trade taxation does not.

$236.41 says someone in the comments defends the trade dispute plot with a completely straight face.

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Current mood: ready to fight about it