The 17 Iconic Movies Celebrated Their 25th Anniversaries in 2021

POPSUGAR said It's definitely a niche movie — what musical isn't? — but, come on: it's Madonna!

POPSUGAR said It might not be the kind of film you watch over and over again, but it has endured thanks to the fact that pretty much everyone watched it in high school English class at some point!

POPSUGAR said While it's very much a typical awards-bait drama of the '90s, it's still worth a watch today!

POPSUGAR said This 1996 remake of the Jerry Lewis comedy allows Eddie Murphy to play no fewer than seven characters, including his two "alter egos" for the main character. Is it a little slapstick-y and silly? Sure — but it's a classic for a reason.

POPSUGAR said Remember the era when Gwyneth Paltrow was the queen of dreamy, warm-hued historical films? Long before Anya Taylor-Joy took on the role of Jane Austen's messiest heroine, Paltrow starred in this romantic period drama as the meddling, proud Emma Woodhouse.

POPSUGAR said Although it doesn't feel groundbreaking looking at it in 2021, when it first debuted, it earned serious praise for depicting a gay couple and their family with more nuance than stereotype.

POPSUGAR said It isn't exactly an Oscar-winning hit, and it's clearly a product of its times (especially where production values are concerned), but it's become a cult classic with themes that have held up in surprisingly strong and interesting ways.

POPSUGAR said Disney live-action remakes are all the rage now, but Glenn Close did it 20 years before it was cool! Her creepy-cool version of Cruella DeVil intrigued and terrified a generation in this live-action version of the classic cartoon, proving that, in some cases, it really was possible to translate some of the best elements of animation to a live-action film.

POPSUGAR said Disney's darkest animated feature has a lot going for it, especially the downright stunning animation of Paris and the Notre-Dame cathedral. It's also one of the most sophisticated and stunning scores in any Disney movie, with classics like "Out There," "God Help the Outcasts," the haunting theme "The Bells of Notre Dame," and the downright terrifying "Hellfire."

POPSUGAR said Does the plot really matter? Not really — it's an icon based on its premise and characters alone. It's even celebrating its 25th anniversary in a perfect way: a sequel starring today's biggest basketball stars, set for a 2021 release.

POPSUGAR said Be honest: what teen of the '90s and '00s didn't swoon a little bit over the wild, over-the-top Baz Luhrmann adaptation of Romeo and Juliet? It's got young Claire Danes and a pre-Titanic Leonardo DiCaprio as its leads, a bizarre but magical anachronistic aesthetic, and all the emotions and tragedy that stuffier adaptations might not have tapped into quite as powerfully.

POPSUGAR said There have been plenty of horror franchises that have hit the big screen over the last few decades, but Scream remains one of the most memorable. It's hard to believe it's been 25 years since Ghostface first started making creepy phone calls.

POPSUGAR said The weird, dark comedy proved to be a risk that paid off and inspired a new subgenre of similar movies — not to mention a TV show spinoff beginning in 2014!

POPSUGAR said What '90s kid didn't feel just a little bit seen by Matilda, that delightful dark comedy about a book-loving girl with telekinetic powers? For every kid who was a bit "weird," for every kid who tried to explain their hobbies to adults, for every kid whose life was changed by a great teacher, Matilda was (and still is) a champion.

POPSUGAR said It's hard to think of a movie that's more emblematic of the late-'90s mood than Independence Day: a rah-rah action epic about international cooperation to combat a big-budget alien invasion, with a huge cast of recognizable stars.

POPSUGAR said Americans got their answer to James Bond when the Mission: Impossible series launched in 1996 as a sleek, action-packed spy caper. Not only did the Tom Cruise-led movie launch a franchise that's still going strong 25 years later, but its influence expanded to pretty much become a template for a whole genre of look-alike movies going forward.

POPSUGAR said There are few movies quite as quotable as Jerry Maguire, which also managed to make Tom Cruise into a viable romantic lead, not just "action hero guy."