Giant monsters have always been cool, or, at the very least, things that people have wanted to see on the big screen. One of the earliest monster movies of this sort is now a century old (The Lost World, released in 1925), and the first undeniable classic giant monster movie, King Kong (1933), also isn’t too far off from celebrating its 100th birthday.
Of course, the 1990s was a bit more recent, as a decade, but still far back enough that movies from it can feel nostalgic. That goes for monster movies, the same as any genre, with the following being the ones from that decade that hold up the best. Also, admittedly, not all of these movies feature monsters giant enough for the films to be considered kaiju movies, but a good chunk of them are (the ones with dinosaurs and large spiders, though? Maybe not quite kaiju flicks).
10
‘Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II’ (1993)
Directed by Takao Okawara
It’s inevitable that Godzilla is going to show up a few times on a ranking like this; just let it happen. It’s all good. He belongs here. After all, the 1990s was when the Heisei era of the series was in full swing, having started in 1984 but hitting its stride come the early 1990s, when there was one Godzilla movie released per year, starting in 1991, and ending in 1995.
So, right in the middle of that run was 1993’s Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II, which, as the title suggests, has Godzilla facing off against a new take on his iconic mechanical nemesis. Mechagodzilla is one of the most reliable antagonists in the Godzilla series, enough so that even if Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II isn’t quite as good as Mechagodzilla’s 1974 debut film, it’s still quite a lot of fun.

Godzilla vs. Mechagodzilla II
- Release Date
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December 11, 1993
- Runtime
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105 Minutes
- Director
-
Takao Okawara, Kazuki Ômori
- Writers
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Wataru Mimura, Yutaka Izubuchi, Shinji Nishikawa
9
‘Arachnophobia’ (1990)
Directed by Frank Marshall
Since the movie is named after the fear of spiders, you can be pretty certain that anyone with the titular fear should steer clear of Arachnophobia. In the film, there’s a town that gets put in immense danger when various deadly spiders break free and run rampant, and though they’re not gigantic by monster movie standards, they’re still pretty big by everyday standards, and they make up for their “lack” of size with their deadliness.
Oh, and the quantity of them, too. Arachnophobia has so many spiders and the film goes to great lengths to have them generally look very convincing, going so far as to film tons of actual Avondale spiders in various scenes. If you don’t have arachnophobia, then some of the comedy in Arachnophobia might well balance out the horror stuff, but those who do genuinely fear spiders? Again, just avoid this one outright.

Arachnophobia
- Release Date
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July 20, 1990
- Runtime
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109 minutes
- Writers
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Don Jakoby, Al Williams, Wesley Strick
8
‘Rebirth of Mothra III’ (1998)
Directed by Okihiro Yoneda
As far as iconic movie monsters go, Mothra is royalty, and her history goes back almost as far as Godzilla’s. She’s often a “supporting character,” so to speak, in the Godzilla series, but has also had a handful of solo movies over the years; ones that didn’t feature Godzilla. Of those four, to date, it feels like Rebirth of Mothra III is the best, or at least the most enjoyable.
It concluded what was known as the Rebirth of Mothra trilogy, and improved considerably upon the two earlier movies in said trilogy. In Rebirth of Mothra III, Mothra takes on a younger version of King Ghidorah, and generally gets up to more wild things than she did in the other solo movies of hers. It’s a bit silly, but it’s also admirably non-stop and, thereby, inevitably very entertaining.

Rebirth of Mothra III
- Release Date
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December 12, 1998
- Runtime
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99 minutes
- Director
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Okihiro Yoneda
- Writers
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Masumi Suetanii
7
‘Orochi, the Eight-Headed Dragon’ (1994)
Directed by Takao Okawara
Orochi, the Eight-Headed Dragon is the most underrated and overlooked monster movie in this ranking. Indeed, at the time of writing, it has less than 1000 views on Letterboxd, which makes it pretty obscure, at least by that site’s standards. It’s a Japanese monster movie, but differs from most produced in the country, given its focus is on monsters within a fantastical context rather than more of a sci-fi one.
In Orochi, the Eight-Headed Dragon, a prince and a priestess have to join forces to undertake a dangerous journey which, yes, does at one point involve an eight-headed dragon.
The plot here is simple stuff, with a prince and a priestess having to join forces to undertake a dangerous journey which, yes, does at one point involve an eight-headed dragon. You can understand putting said eight-headed dragon front and center when it comes to the title and poster, because seeing an eight-headed dragon sounds awesome, and Orochi, the Eight-Headed Dragon does indeed make the monster (alongside some other fantastical sights and creatures) look pretty great.
6
‘Tremors’ (1990)
Directed by Ron Underwood
Perhaps definable as a B-movie, and also easy to label as a cult classic, Tremors is a good bit of fun, feeling of its time, but in a way that’s charming rather than dated in some kind of bad way. And the premise, in typical monster movie style, is pretty straightforward, given it centers on a small town that becomes threatened by gigantic underground creatures.
There are some broad but endearing individuals who live in said town, and Tremors has them inevitably banding together to fight back against a common (and, again, underground) threat. It’s got a good deal of suspense, plenty of humor, and quite a lot of action/excitement packed into a briskly-paced film that doesn’t exceed 90 minutes by much, with that runtime also ensuring Tremors doesn’t run the risk of overstaying its welcome.

Tremors
- Release Date
-
January 19, 1990
- Runtime
-
96 minutes
5
‘Gamera 2: Attack of Legion’ (1996)
Directed by Shusuke Kaneko
For a bit of a history of Gamera, perhaps a little simplified, his first movies came out in the 1960s, and they did, for a while, kind of feel like Godzilla knock-offs. Some of them were funny because of how silly they were, but then others just felt dreadfully cheap; lazy in comparison to the lower-budgeted Godzilla movies which, besides All Monsters Attack, often felt low-budget in charming/endearing ways.
But then in the 1990s, Gamera was made a hell of a lot cooler, with the Heisei era of Gamera flicks being great, and potentially even better than some of the Godzilla movies coming out around the same time. 1995’s Gamera: Guardian of the Universe got things off to a strong start, but then the second film in the trilogy, Gamera 2: Attack of Legion, helped make Gamera even more of a cinematic force to be reckoned with. And yet, the best was still to come…
4
‘Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah’ (1991)
Directed by Kazuki Ōmori
While not every Godzilla movie can be called gonzo, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah certainly can. It’s a movie that might sound like typical stuff for the Godzilla series, especially because King Ghidorah is such an iconic and continually recurring villain, but most Godzilla films—Ghidorah-filled or otherwise—don’t go so far as to include time travel as a vital element of their narratives.
Though it jumps back and then forward again in time, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah never stops moving forward as far as pacing is concerned. It’s constantly ridiculous, over-the-top, and exceptionally entertaining. Those who prefer the darker or more contemplative Godzilla films (think the original from 1954) might not click with this one quite as much, but if you want a good mindless, playful, and oftentimes goofy monster flick, Godzilla vs. King Ghidorah satisfies.
3
‘Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris’ (1999)
Directed by Shusuke Kaneko
More than just a great Gamera movie, Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris is up there among the best giant monster movies of the past few decades. It concludes the aforementioned Heisei trilogy on an undeniable high, with the plot here concerning having to deal with an old threat while displaying increasingly erratic behavior, throwing into question the idea of whether he is still worthy of being called humanity’s protector.
Gamera 3: Revenge of Iris gets pretty dark and emotionally intense at times, especially in its surprisingly good non-monster-focused scenes, but it’s never overly depressing. It remembers to include plenty of spectacle and action, and largely does for Gamera, as a character, what a certain 1995 film did for Godzilla, as a legendary character. Speaking of that Godzilla movie that came out in 1995…
2
‘Godzilla vs. Destoroyah’ (1995)
Directed by Takao Okawara
While Godzilla vs. Destoroyah was the final Godzilla film of the Heisei era, it wasn’t technically the final Godzilla film of the 1990s, given that the Millennium era began in the final year of the decade, with the release of Godzilla 2000: Millennium. Still, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah can be called the greatest Godzilla film of the 1990s, and, if you discount the original 1954 film, there’s an argument to be made that it’s the best Godzilla film of the 20th century.
Speaking of the original Godzilla movie, Godzilla vs. Destoroyah has a plot that concerns the aftermath of that film pretty directly, with Destoroyah being a foe who’s evolved thanks to the effects of the 1954 film’s Oxygen Destroyer: the weapon that originally killed Godzilla. It’s a dark film and one that definitely feels like a final statement for one era of Godzilla movies and, if it had been the final Godzilla movie overall, it also would’ve felt like a fitting way to conclude the entire series/franchise.
1
‘Jurassic Park’ (1993)
Directed by Steven Spielberg
So long as you’re okay with counting dinosaurs as monsters, then yes: Jurassic Park is obviously the best monster movie of the 1990s, and that’s as easy to claim as Jaws being the best shark movie of all time. Steven Spielberg will always be known for more than just those two movies, sure, but his talents as a filmmaker have basically ensured no one will ever make a better dinosaur or shark movie.
And that’s okay. Jurassic Park is perfect, and every human being either has to learn to accept—or has already accepted—the idea that perfection cannot be improved upon. Jurassic Park has everything, from groundbreaking special effects to memorable dialogue to great characters to immense imagination to pitch-perfect pacing, and it’s a joy to watch and rewatch over and over again, being one of those wonderful (and rare) movies that never really gets old.