Top 3 Disney Plus '90s action movies for February 2022

In T3's Disney Plus review I said that the service was "the go-to streaming service for families", but now thanks to the entire Star catalogue also being available to watch on the service, Disney+ has loads of great adult content, too.

And, one of Disney Plus' strongest adult selections is in terms of 1990s action movies. There's some absolute cheesy action-thriller gems available, with veteran gun-wielders like Nicholas Cage, John Travolta and Christian Slater ready to rumble.

The 1980s definitely had some great action movies, but the 1990s is often forgotten about as a decade where action flicks definitely still ruled Hollywood, and if you're looking for inspiration for what to watch on your Friday or Saturday nights in February, then Disney+ definitely has you covered.

Here's my top 3 Disney Plus '90s action movie picks.

Face/Off

Oh my, where to start with this classic John Woo action movie! Well, the copious amounts of gun fights, with traditional Woo slow-mo at every opportunity is a good place, as too the idea that good guy John Travolta can have his face, literally, stolen by bad guy Nicholas Cage so that he can masquerade as him.

Yes, it's a completely preposterous flick with cheesy dialogue and the crudest of character development and exploration, but that's not why you watch this flick – you watch it for the super stylised action sequences and one of the most useless SWAT teams in the history of cinema.

Travolta and Cage fully commit to the roles, too, and take it very seriously, which just adds to the film's brilliance as everything else that happens is ludicrous. It's a tasty violent cocktail that is a must watch for action junkies.

Con Air

Another classic 90's action movie that somehow manages to squeeze a ludicrously talented cast of serious actors into a plot that is pure baloney. Hero Nicholas Cage is coming out of prison, sent to for killing a man while protecting his pregnant wife, but before he can be set free he needs to transported across North America on a plane.

Naturally this plane, which is designed to carry inmates across country, just happens to be also transporting a collection of super criminals from a supermax prison, who of course have other plans and proceed to take over the plane. Naturally, violence and action in spades follows, with Cage having to navigate the group of psychos and somehow survive to get back to his wife and now grown up daughter.

Yes, super silly but when you've Cage along with John Malkovich, John Cusack, Steve Buscemi and Ving Rhames on board, the acting is good and its easy to check your brain in at the door and let the bountiful action wash over you.

Broken Arrow

Broken Arrow wanders so close to B-movie it's quite scary at times, with a plot that involves baddie John Travolta stealing a stealth bomber jet armed with nuclear bombs in order to blackmail the U.S. government, never really progressing above that in terms of scope.

But in terms of action, with John Woo at the helm as director, you're spoilt, with copious amounts of hand-to-hand combat, chases and gun fights constantly lighting a fire under proceedings, with good guy Christian slater tasked with tracking down and taking down John and recovering the nukes.

None other than movie music maestro Hans Zimmer composes the musical score, too, and it's really good, elevating the action.

Bonus movie: The Rock

Imagine if James Bond got caught by the U.S. Government and was imprisoned for decades, only to then be set free so Bond could aid the U.S. Government to reclaim the former island prison of Alcatraz from a gone rogue Brigadier General (who is going to launch nerve gas rockets) and, as payment, win his freedom.

That's basically The Rock, but it is also so much more than that, as they actually get Sean Connery to be that imprisoned British secret service agent, and the rogue general is played by Ed Harris, who is massively on form. Nicholas Cage also stars as the nerve gas specialist sent into Alcatraz with Connery to disarm rockets, and brings his usual tense bag to proceedings.

This is directed by Michael Bay and probably remains his most Bay-ish feature film, with explosions and action literally around every corner. The action sequences in this film are superb and very memorable, and there's even some decent exploration of the characters and their motives, too. Probably one of the best action-thrillers of all time.