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The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Video Right Now The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Video Right Now
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As Netflix pours more of its resources into original content, Amazon Prime Video is picking up the slack, adding new movies for its subscribers each month. Its catalog has grown so impressive, in fact, that it’s a bit overwhelming — and at the same time, movies that are included with a Prime subscription regularly change status, becoming available only for rental or purchase. It’s a lot to sift through, so we’ve plucked out 100 of the absolute best movies included with a Prime subscription right now, to be updated as new information is made available.As Netflix pours more of its resources into original content, Amazon Prime Video is picking up the slack, adding new movies for its subscribers each month. Its catalog has grown so impressive, in fact, that it’s a bit overwhelming — and at the same time, movies that are included with a Prime subscription regularly change status, becoming available only for rental or purchase. It’s a lot to sift through, so we’ve plucked out 100 of the absolute best movies included with a Prime subscription right now, to be updated as new information is made available.
Here are our lists of the best TV shows and movies on Netflix, and the best of both on Hulu and Disney+.Here are our lists of the best TV shows and movies on Netflix, and the best of both on Hulu and Disney+.
This “passionate, wise and deeply felt” drama from the writer and director Pedro Almodóvar won the Oscar for best foreign-language film, and understandably so — it’s one of his finest and funniest films, a love letter to the stage and those who inhabit it. Telling a story with enough buried secrets and stunning turns to recall Douglas Sirk and Tennessee Williams, Almodóvar follows Manuela, an actress-turned-nurse (Cecilia Roth), as the loss of her son leads her on a heart-wrenching (and occasionally gut-busting) journey into her colorful past. Penélope Cruz co-stars.Watch it on Amazon Oscar winner Bong Joon Ho (“Parasite”) gleefully picks up where “Godzilla” left off with this delightfully subversive riff on urban monster-movie conventions: His mutant sea creature is created by the carelessness of the local government and the American military. Bong also takes a keen interest in the human dynamics at play, and how the dysfunctional family at the story’s center comes together for a common cause.Watch it on Amazon
Oliver Stone graduated from a respected screenwriter to a top-flight filmmaker with this harrowing Vietnam War drama. He based the film on his own experiences in Vietnam, with Charlie Sheen as his avatar, a clean-cut kid from a privileged background whose eyes are opened to the horrors of combat. Willem Dafoe and Tom Berenger singe the screen as his sergeants, one free-spirited and open, the other hard-edged and cruel. Our critic called it a “vivid, terse, exceptionally moving” film.Watch it on Amazon
In this free-wheeling, high-spirited Western from the director George Roy Hill, Paul Newman and Robert Redford have charisma and chemistry to burn as the title characters, a pair of grinning outlaws always on the lookout for the next score and the next thrill. But the film achieves its immortality thanks to William Goldman’s wily and witty screenplay, which both sends up and embraces the conventions of the Western as well as supplies the stars with uproariously funny, fast-talking dialogue. (For a buddy comedy with a more contemporary setting, try “The Odd Couple.”)Watch it on Amazon
This wryly funny drama from Mike Nichols, adapted from the novel by Charles Webb, has become such an entrenched piece of popular culture that it is easy to miss that it is also great entertainment. Using Dustin Hoffman as his marvelously dry-witted vessel, Nichols dramatizes youthful ennui with a skill rarely seen in American cinema. Our critic called it “funny, outrageous, and touching.” (Nichols’ later “Carnal Knowledge” is also on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
Bill Murray stars as the title character, a Jacques Cousteau-style oceanographer and documentarian, in this frisky yet bittersweet comic drama from director Wes Anderson. Working for the first time with Noah Baumbach (“Frances Ha”) as his co-writer, Anderson indulges in an absurdist streak that meshes nicely with the familial discord and dry wit of his previous pictures. He also marshals one of his most impressive casts to date, which includes Cate Blanchett, Jeff Goldblum, Anjelica Huston and Owen Wilson, who is both touching and goofy as Zissou’s estranged son. (Stay in a melancholy mood with “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” also streaming on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
This “passionate, wise and deeply felt” drama from the writer and director Pedro Almodóvar won the Oscar for best foreign-language film, and understandably so — it’s one of his finest and funniest films, a love letter to the stage and those who inhabit it. Telling a story with enough buried secrets and stunning turns to recall Douglas Sirk and Tennessee Williams, Almodóvar follows Manuela, an actress-turned-nurse (Cecilia Roth), as the loss of her son leads her on a heart-wrenching (and occasionally gut-busting) journey into her colorful past. Penélope Cruz co-stars. (For more on Spain, try “The Devil’s Backbone.”)Watch it on Amazon
Bob Dylan evolved his music, approach, and appearance throughout his career, so the director Todd Haynes (“Carol,” “Far From Heaven”) took perhaps the only sensible approach to his life: casting six different actors to encapsulate the singer’s contradictory personas and enact the conflicts in his music. “I’m Not There” doesn’t always make logical or narrative sense, but it has an emotional resonance and lyricism too often absent from musical biopics. The result is a boldly experimental journey through the mythology of a legend, an “incandescent rebus of a movie,” per our critic A.O. Scott.Watch it on AmazonBob Dylan evolved his music, approach, and appearance throughout his career, so the director Todd Haynes (“Carol,” “Far From Heaven”) took perhaps the only sensible approach to his life: casting six different actors to encapsulate the singer’s contradictory personas and enact the conflicts in his music. “I’m Not There” doesn’t always make logical or narrative sense, but it has an emotional resonance and lyricism too often absent from musical biopics. The result is a boldly experimental journey through the mythology of a legend, an “incandescent rebus of a movie,” per our critic A.O. Scott.Watch it on Amazon
Robert Rodriguez’s “El Mariachi” was one of the indie sensations of the early 1990s, a film that attracted as much attention for being filmed on a bare-bones budget than for what was onscreen. So for his follow-up, Rodriguez focused on style, continuing the narrative of his debut film but with the extra bells and whistles provided by movie stars and professional effects. Antonio Banderas smolders as a drifter with a deadly shot, Salma Hayek scorches as the woman who helps him (and, of course, falls for him), and Steve Buscemi, Cheech Marin and Danny Trejo make brief but memorable appearances.Watch it on Amazon Robert Rodriguez’s “El Mariachi” was one of the indie sensations of the early 1990s, a film that attracted as much attention for being filmed on a bare-bones budget than for what was onscreen. So for his follow-up, Rodriguez focused on style, continuing the narrative of his debut film but with the extra bells and whistles provided by movie stars and professional effects. Antonio Banderas smolders as a drifter with a deadly shot, Salma Hayek scorches as the woman who helps him (and, of course, falls for him), and Steve Buscemi, Cheech Marin and Danny Trejo make brief but memorable appearances. (Buscemi also stars in, and directs, the wonderful “Trees Lounge.”)
The head-spinning complications of contemporary family life generate both laughs and pathos in this bittersweet comedy-drama from the director Lisa Cholodenko,. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore are a couple who, at the request of their children, seek out the sperm donor (Mark Ruffalo). Complications ensue, many of them comic, but never cheaply so; Cholodenko creates real emotional stakes and consequences. A.O. Scott praised its originality, “the thrilling, vertiginous sense of never having seen anything quite like it before.”Watch it on Amazon Watch it on Amazon
Two young men in Park Slope, Brooklyn, weather their parents’ nasty divorce in this ruthlessly intelligent and evenhanded coming-of-age story from the writer and director Noah Baumbach, who drew upon his own teenage memories and put himself, not altogether complimentarily, into the character of the 16-year-old Walt (a spot-on Jesse Eisenberg). Laura Linney is passive-aggressive perfection as his mother, while Jeff Daniels, as the father, masterfully captures a specific type of sneeringly dissatisfied intellectual. The film is “both sharply comical and piercingly sad,” A.O. Scott wrote; Baumbach dissects this family’s woes and drama with knowing precision.Watch it on Amazon
The head-spinning complications of contemporary family life generate both laughs and pathos in this bittersweet comedy-drama from the director Lisa Cholodenko,. Annette Bening and Julianne Moore are a couple who, at the request of their children, seek out the sperm donor (Mark Ruffalo). Complications ensue, many of them comic, but never cheaply so; Cholodenko creates real emotional stakes and consequences. A.O. Scott praised its originality, “the thrilling, vertiginous sense of never having seen anything quite like it before.” (“Little Man Tate” and “Mother and Child” are similarly thoughtful looks at the complications of parenthood.)Watch it on Amazon
Shot with smartphones and a cast of mostly first-time actors, this “fast, raucously funny comedy about love and other misadventures” from the director Sean Baker (“The Florida Project”) is a vibrant and heartfelt story of life on the fringe. The plot concerns two transgender sex workers (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor) and their various fortunes and misfortunes over a 24-hour period in Los Angeles. Played differently, the material could have been sensationalistic, but it isn’t; Baker is, above all, a humanist, and he loves his characters no matter what kind of trouble they’re causing.Watch it on AmazonShot with smartphones and a cast of mostly first-time actors, this “fast, raucously funny comedy about love and other misadventures” from the director Sean Baker (“The Florida Project”) is a vibrant and heartfelt story of life on the fringe. The plot concerns two transgender sex workers (Kitana Kiki Rodriguez and Mya Taylor) and their various fortunes and misfortunes over a 24-hour period in Los Angeles. Played differently, the material could have been sensationalistic, but it isn’t; Baker is, above all, a humanist, and he loves his characters no matter what kind of trouble they’re causing.Watch it on Amazon
The director Baz Luhrmann made his American breakthrough — and helped solidify Leonardo DiCaprio’s status as a teen heartthrob — with this wild, hyperkinetic update and reimagining of Shakespeare’s classic. The star-crossed lovers are here brought to life by DiCaprio and Claire Danes, who capture the pangs of longing and desire that bring this pair together, consequences be damned; Harold Perrineau, Pete Postlethwaite, and John Leguizamo add fire and passion to the supporting cast. Our critic deemed it “a witty and sometimes successful experiment.” (Leos Carax’s “Annette” is a romance told in a similarly extravagant style.)Watch it on Amazon Deemed by our critic as “Mel Brooks’s funniest, most cohesive comedy,” this 1974 gem finds the master of broad satire taking on the Universal horror pictures of the 1930s. Co-writer Gene Wilder is sublimely manic as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein — pronounced “Fronk-en-steen,” he insists — grandson of the famed corpse re-animator Victor, who returns to his grandfather’s estate and laboratory to claim his inheritance and finds himself drawn into the family business. Brooks and Wilder’s Oscar-nominated script is a hit parade of comedy classics, from the candlestick bit to “Puttin’ on the Ritz” to the monster’s dinner with a blind hermit (an unlisted Gene Hackman). But most surprising is its narrative discipline (relative to the rest of the Brooks filmography). (For more wild comedy, add “Raising Arizona” and “The Bad News Bears” to your watchlist.)Watch it on Amazon
Deemed by our critic as “Mel Brooks’s funniest, most cohesive comedy,” this 1974 gem finds the master of broad satire taking on the Universal horror pictures of the 1930s. Co-writer Gene Wilder is sublimely manic as Dr. Frederick Frankenstein — pronounced “Fronk-en-steen,” he insists — grandson of the famed corpse re-animator Victor, who returns to his grandfather’s estate and laboratory to claim his inheritance and finds himself drawn into the family business. Brooks and Wilder’s Oscar-nominated script is a hit parade of comedy classics, from the candlestick bit to “Puttin’ on the Ritz” to the monster’s dinner with a blind hermit (an unlisted Gene Hackman). But most surprising is its narrative discipline (relative to the rest of the Brooks filmography).Watch it on Amazon Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church are both heartbreaking and gut-busting as a pair of middle-aged pals facing down the messes they’ve made of their lives in this prickly road movie from the director Alexander Payne. Church is a down-on-his-luck actor who’s about to get married; Giamatti is his best friend, a failed writer and wine aficionado, who takes him on a weeklong trip to wine country, where they discover good wine, enjoyable companionship (in the form of Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh) and uncomfortable truths. Manohla Dargis deemed it “a small masterpiece.” (Indie fans should also stream “Passion Fish” on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
The writer and director Cameron Crowe based this 2000 drama on his own teenage years, when he was landing bylines at major music publications before he could drive a car. Crowe elegantly conveys the seductive power of that backstage life, with all its sex and drugs and (most importantly) camaraderie. “It’s the kind of picture,” A.O. Scott wrote, “that invites you to go back and savor your favorite moments like choice album cuts.” Patrick Fugit is charming as the naïve Crowe stand-in, while Frances McDormand, Philip Seymour Hoffman and Kate Hudson shine in supporting roles. (Fans of this whip-smart coming-of-age movie may also enjoy “Ghost World” and “Fast Times at Ridgemont High.”)Watch it on Amazon
When Julia Roberts headlined this romantic comedy, it was framed as a comeback vehicle, implying that she had wandered too far with appearances in darker fare like “Mary Reilly” and “Michael Collins.” But this was no lightweight rom-com; the director P.J. Hogan (“Muriel’s Wedding”) and the screenwriter Ronald Bass (“Rain Man”) allow Roberts to tinker with her audience’s expectations. And Cameron Diaz is brilliantly used as the target of her ire — a character so warm and sunny, we can’t help but wonder whose side we’re really on. (For more rom-com, try “Sleepless in Seattle” and “(500) Days of Summer.”)Watch it on Amazon
Paul Giamatti and Thomas Haden Church are both heartbreaking and gut-busting as a pair of middle-aged pals facing down the messes they’ve made of their lives in this prickly road movie from the director Alexander Payne. Church is a down-on-his-luck actor who’s about to get married; Giamatti is his best friend, a failed writer and wine aficionado, who takes him on a weeklong trip to wine country, where they discover good wine, enjoyable companionship (in the form of Virginia Madsen and Sandra Oh) and uncomfortable truths. Manohla Dargis deemed it “a small masterpiece.”Watch it on Amazon
One of the greatest of all “gritty Gotham” movies — our critic called it “a movie that really catches the mood of New York and New Yorkers” — this darkly funny, white-knuckle thriller from the director Joseph Sargent concerns four armed men who take a subway car hostage, demanding a million dollar ransom for the lives of the passengers aboard. Robert Shaw is coolly ruthless as the leader of the gang while Walter Matthau is at his hangdog best as the cynical transit cop hot on their trail. (For more ’70s action, try “Across 110th Street” and “The Parallax View.”)Watch it on Amazon
Our critic deemed Stanley Kramer’s adaptation of Jerome Lawrence and Robert E. Lee’s stage play (based on the Scopes “monkey trial”) to be “triumphant,” its climax “one of the most brilliant and engrossing displays of acting ever witnessed on the screen.” The actors in question are Fredric March and Spencer Tracy, in career-best form as, respectively, the Bible-pounding orator and the agnostic defense attorney on opposite theological and philosophical sides of the evolution debate. Kramer cranks up the carnival atmosphere, to great effect, and pulls a rare (and entertaining) nonmusical supporting turn from Gene Kelly as an H.L. Mencken-esque newspaper reporter.Watch it on Amazon
Six years after Akira Kurosawa’s “Seven Samurai,” John Sturges produced and directed this remake, relocating Kurosawa’s epic from feudal Japan to the American West. But the bones of the story remain the same: a village is terrorized by outside forces, and hires a small band of outlaws to help them fight back. Sturges’s marvelous ensemble cast includes some of the toughest guys in the movies — including Steve McQueen, Charles Bronson, James Coburn, Robert Vaughn and Eli Wallach — along with Yul Brynner, elegant yet credible, as the leader of the guns-for-hire. Elmer Bernstein contributes the iconic score. (Classic movie lovers won’t want to miss “Roman Holiday” and “The Quiet Man,” also streaming on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
Julie Delpy, who stars in Richard Linklater’s “Before” trilogy, created a chatty-couple series of her own with her 2007 treat “2 Days in Paris” and this delightful sequel. In “New York,” she crafts an opposites-attract story for Marion, a brash, neurotic Frenchwoman and Mingus, her Brooklynite boyfriend (well played by a slightly restrained Chris Rock). We then watch as their precariously balanced relationship implodes under the stress of a visit from Marion’s family. It’s both a romantic comedy and a comedy of manners; the relationship bends until it nearly breaks. Our critic praised its “great charm” and “considerable insight.”Watch it on AmazonJulie Delpy, who stars in Richard Linklater’s “Before” trilogy, created a chatty-couple series of her own with her 2007 treat “2 Days in Paris” and this delightful sequel. In “New York,” she crafts an opposites-attract story for Marion, a brash, neurotic Frenchwoman and Mingus, her Brooklynite boyfriend (well played by a slightly restrained Chris Rock). We then watch as their precariously balanced relationship implodes under the stress of a visit from Marion’s family. It’s both a romantic comedy and a comedy of manners; the relationship bends until it nearly breaks. Our critic praised its “great charm” and “considerable insight.”Watch it on Amazon
This 2009 adaptation of the memoir by Lynn Barber was the breakthrough film for Carey Mulligan, who stars as a whip-smart but socially awkward teenage girl who becomes the object of the affections of a much older man (played, with a delicate mixture of warmth and sleaze, by Peter Sarsgaard). The intelligent screenplay by the novelist Nick Hornby and sensitive direction by Lone Scherfig are nuanced enough to acknowledge the thrill offered by such a relationship en route to the inevitable heartbreaks and disappointments. The supporting cast, including Alfred Molina, Emma Thompson, Olivia Williams, Rosamund Pike and Dominic Cooper, is first-rate. (Stay in a melancholy mood with “The Last Black Man in San Francisco,” also streaming on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise joined forces for this gripping adaptation of the Philip K. Dick short story, envisioning a future in which police officers stop crimes before they happen. Then the chief of the unit (Cruise) is accused of a “pre-crime” himself. The premise is clever, mixing action-infused, post-“Matrix” sci-fi with a classic Hitchcockian “wrong man” conflict. The film also poses thoughtful questions about surveillance and profiling that have grown only more relevant since its release in 2002; our critic deemed it “magnificently creepy, a calculated bad dream that stays with you.”Watch it on Amazon
Tom Hanks won his first Academy Award — and kick-started a second career as a dramatic actor — with this “forceful, impassioned and moving” film from the acclaimed director Jonathan Demme. It was among the first major motion pictures to address the AIDS crisis, and it does so cautiously, wrapping its story in the familiar and comfortable conventions of a courtroom drama. Hanks is astonishing in the leading role, deploying warmth and good humor to humanize a struggle much of America had ignored, and Denzel Washington is brilliant as the bigoted peer whose journey to tolerance and understanding mirrored much of the audience’s. (For more Oscar-winning drama, check out “Guess Who’s Coming to Dinner.”)Watch it on Amazon
In “The Black Stallion,” the producer Francis Ford Coppola and the director Carroll Ballard (“Fly Away Home”), expertly fuse the simplicity of Walter Farley’s 1941 children’s novel with the craftsmanship and sensitivity of its cinematic era. (Melissa Mathison, one of the film’s screenwriters, went on to write “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial.”) Younger viewers will thrill to the story of a young, shipwrecked boy and the wild Arabian horse who becomes his best friend; older viewers will find themselves awe-struck by the gorgeous cinematography and the heart-tugging (and Oscar-nominated) supporting turn by Mickey Rooney.Watch it on Amazon
The original 1956 “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” (also on Prime), in which alien invaders implant themselves in humans and take their form, was widely seen as an allegory for the Red Scare. This “dazzling remake,” as our critic described it, found a home in health-obsessed San Francisco. The stakes are lower, but the remake has a self-aware sense of humor and a decent proportion of gross-outs and jump-scares, as well as an ending that’s just as creepy as it is in the original.Watch it on Amazon
You can see the DNA of “Mad Men” — not to mention pretty much every other sophisticated romantic comedy of the modern era — in this uproariously funny and deeply melancholic movie from the director Billy Wilder. Jack Lemmon is pitch-perfect as an office drone whose bachelor apartment becomes the go-to hideaway for his corporate superiors, and Shirley MacLaine sparkles as the elevator operator who catches his fancy, and who has a secret or two of her own. Our critic called it “a gleeful, tender and even sentimental film.” (Lemmon also shines in “The Odd Couple” and Wilder’s “The Fortune Cookie.”)Watch it on Amazon
Steven Spielberg and Tom Cruise joined forces for this gripping adaptation of the Philip K. Dick short story, envisioning a future in which police officers stop crimes before they happen. Then the chief of the unit (Cruise) is accused of a “pre-crime” himself. The premise is clever, mixing action-infused, post-“Matrix” sci-fi with a classic Hitchcockian “wrong man” conflict. The film also poses thoughtful questions about surveillance and profiling that have grown only more relevant since its release in 2002; our critic deemed it “magnificently creepy, a calculated bad dream that stays with you.” (For more offbeat sci-fi, check out “High Life”; if you like your sci-fi with a dose of action, try James Cameron’s “The Abyss.”)Watch it on Amazon
This “breezy, busy” comedy-drama from the writer Nora Ephron is an adaptation of two books, one by Julie Powell, a blogger who attempted to work her way through all the recipes in Julia Child’s influential “Mastering the Art of French Cooking,” and the other a memoir that Child wrote with Alex Prud’homme, which details the development of those recipes. The juxtaposition is ingenious, giving the viewer two funny — and mouthwatering — movies for the price of one, and the performances (particularly by Meryl Streep as Child, Amy Adams as Powell and Stanley Tucci as Child’s devoted husband, Paul) are first-rate.Watch it on Amazon
Years before Netflix’s series adaptation of “The Queen’s Gambit” prompted a nationwide chess craze, the writer and director Steven Zaillian proved that the game could indeed be a thrilling and emotional spectator sport. He also tells the “absorbing story” of a prodigy: Joshua Waitzkin, who moves with ease from matches in Washington Square Park to national tournaments as his parents (Joe Mantegna and Joan Allen) try to keep his little feet on the ground. Based on the memoir by Waitzkin’s father, this powerful drama provides the surprises of an underdog sports movie, but it also tackles universal questions about parenting a talented child. (“Paper Moon,” another story of a precocious child, is also on Prime.)Watch it on AmazonYears before Netflix’s series adaptation of “The Queen’s Gambit” prompted a nationwide chess craze, the writer and director Steven Zaillian proved that the game could indeed be a thrilling and emotional spectator sport. He also tells the “absorbing story” of a prodigy: Joshua Waitzkin, who moves with ease from matches in Washington Square Park to national tournaments as his parents (Joe Mantegna and Joan Allen) try to keep his little feet on the ground. Based on the memoir by Waitzkin’s father, this powerful drama provides the surprises of an underdog sports movie, but it also tackles universal questions about parenting a talented child. (“Paper Moon,” another story of a precocious child, is also on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
This acclaimed romance from the director Stephen Frears (“Dangerous Liaisons,” “The Grifters”), with a screenplay by Hanif Kureishi, plays as both a tender relationship tale and a piercing commentary on Thatcher-era London. The tensions in that period between the city’s residents provide both the conflict and warmth that fuel this story of a young British Pakistani man (Gordon Warnecke) who takes over his uncle’s launderette with the help of his friend and eventual lover (a young Daniel Day-Lewis). There’s a wonderful offhandedness about the central relationship — these protagonists are drawn together not by labels, but by mutual attraction and affection — resulting in what our critic called “a fascinating, eccentric, very personal movie.” (For more indie drama, try “Inside Llewyn Davis” and “Hard Eight.”) This unapologetically dark comedy changed the high-school movie forever, from the heartfelt and ultimately sunny chronicles of John Hughes to something with a bit more bite. Winona Ryder is tart and charming as Veronica, a popular teen who has come to hate the clique she runs with. Then she meets J.D. (Christian Slater), a Jack Nicholson clone who suggests bumping off their less tolerable classmates. Nearly 30 years on, the sheer riskiness and take-no-prisoners attitude of this delightfully demented picture still shocks; our critic called it “as snappy and assured as it is mean-spirited.” (If you like this confrontational dark comedy, try “Fight Club.”)Watch it on Amazon
Watch it on Amazon This classic Western from the director Fred Zinnemann is best remembered for its innovative construction, in which a small-town marshal’s looming standoff with a revenge-seeking outlaw is dramatized in real time. The film was widely read as an allegory for the film industry blacklists of the era — the screenwriter Carl Foreman was deemed an “uncooperative witness” by the House Un-American Activities Committee. But “High Noon” also cleared an important path for the future of the Western, replacing the usual genre high jinks with thoughtful explorations of masculinity and violence; our critic called it “a Western of rare achievement.” (Western fans should also stream John Wayne in “The Quiet Man.”)Watch it on Amazon
Nicolas Cage won — and earned — the Academy Award for best actor for his wrenching portrayal of a failed screenwriter who goes to Sin City to drink himself to death. Elisabeth Shue was nominated for an Oscar for her turn as a prostitute who falls into something like love with him, and it speaks to the richness of their performances and the texture of Mike Figgis’s direction that such a melodramatic narrative, populated by well-worn stock characters, has such emotional immediacy. Our critic called the movie “passionate and furiously alive.” (For more heart-wrenching drama, stream “Hotel Rwanda” and “Closer” on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon Winner of three Academy Awards — for best actress (Patricia Neal), best supporting actor (Melvyn Douglas) and for its black-and-white cinematography (by James Wong Howe) — this wide-screen tale of the contemporary West seems, in its opening scenes, like yet another story of a wild cowboy who cannot be tamed. But as played by Paul Newman (himself an Oscar nominee), Hud Bannon isn’t a hero; he’s a brutish, irresponsible lout, and “Hud” refuses to romanticize him. Instead, the director, Martin Ritt, sees Hud for what he is: a dinosaur who is just beginning to realize he’s on his way to extinction. (For more Oscar-winning acting, stream “On Golden Pond.”)Watch it on Amazon
Robert De Niro won his second Academy Award for his fiercely physical and psychologically punishing performance in this searing adaptation of the autobiography of the middleweight champion Jake LaMotta. It’s a relentlessly downbeat piece of work, but the force of De Niro’s performance and the energy of Martin Scorsese’s direction are hard to overstate, or to forget. Our critic called it Scorsese’s “most ambitious film as well as his finest.” (For more Oscar-winning acting, add “Patton” and “The Last King of Scotland” to your watchlist.)Watch it on Amazon
The director Elia Kazan (“A Streetcar Named Desire”) and the star Marlon Brando teamed up for this hard-hitting drama of corruption and betrayal among the longshoreman working the docks of Hoboken, N.J. Brando won his first Academy Award for his tortured and sensitive turn as Terry Malloy, a dockworker torn between doing the smart thing and doing the right thing; Eva Marie Saint also won an Oscar for her work as the woman who could love him. Our critic called it “moviemaking of a rare and high order.” (For more ’50s drama, add “The Man with the Golden Arm” to your watch list.)Watch in on Amazon
This unapologetically dark comedy changed the high-school movie forever, from the heartfelt and ultimately sunny chronicles of John Hughes to something with a bit more bite. Winona Ryder is tart and charming as Veronica, a popular teen who has come to hate the clique she runs with. Then she meets J.D. (Christian Slater), a Jack Nicholson clone who suggests bumping off their less tolerable classmates. Nearly 30 years on, the sheer riskiness and take-no-prisoners attitude of this delightfully demented picture still shocks; our critic called it “as snappy and assured as it is mean-spirited.”Watch it on Amazon
This classic Western from the director Fred Zinnemann is best remembered for its innovative construction, in which a small-town marshal’s looming standoff with a revenge-seeking outlaw is dramatized in real time. The film was widely read as an allegory for the film industry blacklists of the era — the screenwriter Carl Foreman was deemed an “uncooperative witness” by the House Un-American Activities Committee. But “High Noon” also cleared an important path for the future of the Western, replacing the usual genre high jinks with thoughtful explorations of masculinity and violence; our critic called it “a Western of rare achievement.”Watch it on Amazon
Winner of three Academy Awards — for best actress (Patricia Neal), best supporting actor (Melvyn Douglas) and for its black-and-white cinematography (by James Wong Howe) — this wide-screen tale of the contemporary West seems, in its opening scenes, like yet another story of a wild cowboy who cannot be tamed. But as played by Paul Newman (himself an Oscar nominee), Hud Bannon isn’t a hero; he’s a brutish, irresponsible lout, and “Hud” refuses to romanticize him. Instead, the director, Martin Ritt, sees Hud for what he is: a dinosaur who is just beginning to realize he’s on his way to extinction. (Newman is also excellent in Sydney Pollack’s “Absence of Malice.”)Watch it on Amazon
Steven Soderbergh followed up the career revival of “Out of Sight” with another fusion of art-house experimentation and genre storytelling. He combines fractured timelines, stream-of-consciousness editing and even clips from an earlier, unrelated film to tell the tale of a revenge-seeking ex-con (Terence Stamp, in a career-best performance). In doing so, Soderbergh turns what could’ve been a “Death Wish” remake into a thoughtful, mournful, elegiac meditation — on family, on forgiveness, on the past in general and the ’60s in particular. (Soderbergh’s “Traffic” is also streaming on Prime.)Watch it on AmazonSteven Soderbergh followed up the career revival of “Out of Sight” with another fusion of art-house experimentation and genre storytelling. He combines fractured timelines, stream-of-consciousness editing and even clips from an earlier, unrelated film to tell the tale of a revenge-seeking ex-con (Terence Stamp, in a career-best performance). In doing so, Soderbergh turns what could’ve been a “Death Wish” remake into a thoughtful, mournful, elegiac meditation — on family, on forgiveness, on the past in general and the ’60s in particular. (Soderbergh’s “Traffic” is also streaming on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
The director Billy Wilder followed up the triumph of “Sunset Boulevard” with this similarly “sordid and cynical drama,” starring Kirk Douglas as a ruthless and amoral newspaper man who turns a minor story of a man trapped in a collapse into a nationwide media circus, all to bolster his own profile. “Ace in the Hole” was a critical and commercial failure at the time of its release, a reception that now seems an indication that Wilder was ahead of his time; the picture’s unflinching portrait of mass media (and of humanity in general) seems much more in tune with our contemporary mood. (For a more contemporary look at journalistic ethics, add “The Insider” to your watchlist.)Watch it on Amazon The director Billy Wilder followed up the triumph of “Sunset Boulevard” with this similarly “sordid and cynical drama,” starring Kirk Douglas as a ruthless and amoral newspaper man who turns a minor story of a man trapped in a collapse into a nationwide media circus, all to bolster his own profile. “Ace in the Hole” was a critical and commercial failure at the time of its release, a reception that now seems an indication that Wilder was ahead of his time; the picture’s unflinching portrait of mass media (and of humanity in general) seems much more in tune with our contemporary mood. (For more ’50s drama, add “The Man with the Golden Arm” to your watch list.)Watch it on Amazon
The “one night” of the title of Regina King’s feature directorial debut is Feb. 25, 1964 — the night Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) took down Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship. But the fight footage is brief, because King isn’t making a boxing movie; she’s making a film about Black identity, filled with conversations that are still being had, and questions that are still being asked. The four participants — Ali (Eli Goree), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.), and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) — are giants in their fields and are friends celebrating a victory. It’s a moving, powerful film, confrontational and thought-provoking. A.O. Scott called it “one of the most exciting movies I’ve seen in quite some time.”Watch it on AmazonThe “one night” of the title of Regina King’s feature directorial debut is Feb. 25, 1964 — the night Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) took down Sonny Liston for the world heavyweight championship. But the fight footage is brief, because King isn’t making a boxing movie; she’s making a film about Black identity, filled with conversations that are still being had, and questions that are still being asked. The four participants — Ali (Eli Goree), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.), and Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) — are giants in their fields and are friends celebrating a victory. It’s a moving, powerful film, confrontational and thought-provoking. A.O. Scott called it “one of the most exciting movies I’ve seen in quite some time.”Watch it on Amazon
Riz Ahmed is devastatingly good as Ruben, a hard rock drummer whose entire life — his music, his relationship, his self-image — is upended by a sudden case of extreme hearing loss, in this wrenching drama from the writer and director Darius Marder. A former addict in danger of relapse, Ruben enters a school for the deaf, where he must confront not only his new condition, but the jitteriness that predates it. His sense of solitude, even with others, quickly transforms to self-consciousness, then self-doubt, then self-destruction, and “Sound of Metal” is ultimately less about finding a silver bullet cure than finding the stillness within oneself. Marder works in a quiet, observational style, skillfully avoiding every cliché he approaches, taking turns both satisfying and moving. Our critic praised the film’s “distinctive style.”Watch it on AmazonRiz Ahmed is devastatingly good as Ruben, a hard rock drummer whose entire life — his music, his relationship, his self-image — is upended by a sudden case of extreme hearing loss, in this wrenching drama from the writer and director Darius Marder. A former addict in danger of relapse, Ruben enters a school for the deaf, where he must confront not only his new condition, but the jitteriness that predates it. His sense of solitude, even with others, quickly transforms to self-consciousness, then self-doubt, then self-destruction, and “Sound of Metal” is ultimately less about finding a silver bullet cure than finding the stillness within oneself. Marder works in a quiet, observational style, skillfully avoiding every cliché he approaches, taking turns both satisfying and moving. Our critic praised the film’s “distinctive style.”Watch it on Amazon
Three years after reinventing the crime movie with “Bonnie and Clyde,” the director Arthur Penn worked similar magic on the Western, adapting Thomas Berger’s novel about a very old man (Dustin Hoffman) who tells the tale of his exploits in the Old West, where he was raised by Native Americans. The film’s attitudes toward Indigenous people were boldly progressive at the time of its release, in 1970, coming as it did during a period when most westerns still teemed with racist images of “merciless Indian savages,” in the words of the Declaration of Independence. Our critic called it a “tough testament to the contrariness of the American experience.”Watch on Amazon Three years after reinventing the crime movie with “Bonnie and Clyde,” the director Arthur Penn worked similar magic on the Western, adapting Thomas Berger’s novel about a very old man (Dustin Hoffman) who tells the tale of his exploits in the Old West, where he was raised by Native Americans. The film’s attitudes toward Indigenous people were boldly progressive at the time of its release, in 1970, coming as it did during a period when most westerns still teemed with racist images of “merciless Indian savages,” in the words of the Declaration of Independence. Our critic called it a “tough testament to the contrariness of the American experience.” (For more ’70s drama, try “The King of Marvin Gardens” on Prime.)Watch on Amazon
Orson Welles attempted to repair his flailing film career (and his marriage to Rita Hayworth, whom he cast as a femme fatale) in this moody and visually striking film noir. Welles portrays a crewman hired to sail Hayworth and her husband’s yacht, and finds himself drawn into a wicked web of deception, sex and murder. As was often the case with his later works, “Shanghai” suffered from extensive studio interference and reshoots. But even in its expurgated form, this is an expert potboiler, and its oft-imitated house-of-mirrors climax is as gripping as ever. Our critic called it “at once fluid and discordant,” and “filled with virtuoso set pieces.” (For more classic noir, stream “The Killing” and “The Naked Kiss,” for a contemporary riff, try “Heist.”) Orson Welles attempted to repair his flailing film career (and his marriage to Rita Hayworth, whom he cast as a femme fatale) in this moody and visually striking film noir. Welles portrays a crewman hired to sail Hayworth and her husband’s yacht, and finds himself drawn into a wicked web of deception, sex and murder. As was often the case with his later works, “Shanghai” suffered from extensive studio interference and reshoots. But even in its expurgated form, this is an expert potboiler, and its oft-imitated house-of-mirrors climax is as gripping as ever. Our critic called it “at once fluid and discordant,” and “filled with virtuoso set pieces.” (For more classic noir, stream “The Naked Kiss.”)
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When Jonathan Demme’s performance film of the Talking Heads opened in 1984, our critic wrote, “’Stop Making Sense’ owes very little to the rock filmmaking formulas of the past. It may well help inspire those of the future.” She couldn’t have been more right. Demme was rewriting the rules with this innovative hybrid of documentary and concert movie, taking his cues from the group’s kinetic energy and cross-pollination of styles. The filmmaker creates an immersive experience that captures both the thrill of being in that crowd, and the high of playing for them. (If you like your movies loaded with music, try the beloved biopic “La Bamba.”)Watch it on Amazon When Jonathan Demme’s performance film of the Talking Heads opened in 1984, our critic wrote, “’Stop Making Sense’ owes very little to the rock filmmaking formulas of the past. It may well help inspire those of the future.” She couldn’t have been more right. Demme was rewriting the rules with this innovative hybrid of documentary and concert movie, taking his cues from the group’s kinetic energy and cross-pollination of styles. The filmmaker creates an immersive experience that captures both the thrill of being in that crowd, and the high of playing for them. (If you like your movies loaded with music, try the beloved biopic “La Bamba” or the classic musical “Fiddler on the Roof.”)Watch it on Amazon
Spike Lee adapts and updates Aristophanes’ “Lysistrata” to the streets of contemporary Chicago in this wildly funny, vividly theatrical mash-up of gangland drama, musical comedy and surrealist fantasy. Teyonah Parris shines as the determined young woman who leads a sex strike to stop the city’s violence, while Samuel L. Jackson struts and rhymes as “Dolmedes,” the picture’s one-man Greek chorus. His Dolemite-style interludes push the premise to its bawdy extremes, but Lee isn’t just playing for laughs. He’s swinging for the fences, and the result, according to Manohla Dargis, “entertains, engages and, at times, enrages.” (Lee’s earlier “School Daze” and “The Original Kings of Comedy” are also on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon Spike Lee adapts and updates Aristophanes’ “Lysistrata” to the streets of contemporary Chicago in this wildly funny, vividly theatrical mash-up of gangland drama, musical comedy and surrealist fantasy. Teyonah Parris shines as the determined young woman who leads a sex strike to stop the city’s violence, while Samuel L. Jackson struts and rhymes as “Dolmedes,” the picture’s one-man Greek chorus. His Dolemite-style interludes push the premise to its bawdy extremes, but Lee isn’t just playing for laughs. He’s swinging for the fences, and the result, according to Manohla Dargis, “entertains, engages and, at times, enrages.” (Lee’s “The Original Kings of Comedy” is also on Prime.)Watch it on Amazon
This “meticulously acted” serio-comic drama was the feature filmmaking debut of Joey Soloway (credited as Jill Soloway), the creator of “Transparent” and “I Love Dick.” Kathryn Hahn is astonishing in the leading role, clearly conveying her dissatisfied housewife’s longings and nerves but keeping her intentions enigmatic, and Juno Temple is electrifying as a young woman who’s learned how to use her sexuality as a weapon without fully considering the carnage left in its wake. Their byplay is vibrant, and it gets messy in fascinating ways; this is a sly, smart sex comedy that plumbs unexpected depths of sadness and despair.Watch it on AmazonThis “meticulously acted” serio-comic drama was the feature filmmaking debut of Joey Soloway (credited as Jill Soloway), the creator of “Transparent” and “I Love Dick.” Kathryn Hahn is astonishing in the leading role, clearly conveying her dissatisfied housewife’s longings and nerves but keeping her intentions enigmatic, and Juno Temple is electrifying as a young woman who’s learned how to use her sexuality as a weapon without fully considering the carnage left in its wake. Their byplay is vibrant, and it gets messy in fascinating ways; this is a sly, smart sex comedy that plumbs unexpected depths of sadness and despair.Watch it on Amazon
The great British writer/director Joanna Hogg tells a story of youthful exuberance, romantic recklessness, and unchecked addiction in early ’80s London. Her heroine is Julie (Honor Swinton Byrne, flawless), an idealistic film student who finds herself pulled, time and again, into the orbit of Anthony (Tom Burke), whose roguish charm covers a considerable number of concerning flaws. Tilda Swinton (Byrne’s real-life mother) co-stars as Julie’s concerned mum. Hogg’s film is quiet yet revelatory, trusting its audience with these characters’ secrets — and trusting us enough to fill in their blanks. A.O. Scott raves, “This is one of the saddest movies you can imagine, and it’s an absolute joy to watch.” (Swinton is also first-rate in the oddball vampire hangout movie “Only Lovers Left Alive.”)Watch it on Amazon The great British writer/director Joanna Hogg tells a story of youthful exuberance, romantic recklessness, and unchecked addiction in early ’80s London. Her heroine is Julie (Honor Swinton Byrne, flawless), an idealistic film student who finds herself pulled, time and again, into the orbit of Anthony (Tom Burke), whose roguish charm covers a considerable number of concerning flaws. Tilda Swinton (Byrne’s real-life mother) co-stars as Julie’s concerned mum. Hogg’s film is quiet yet revelatory, trusting its audience with these characters’ secrets — and trusting us enough to fill in their blanks. A.O. Scott raves, “This is one of the saddest movies you can imagine, and it’s an absolute joy to watch.” (For more indie drama, try “Inside Llewyn Davis” and “Hard Eight.”)Watch it on Amazon
The director Frank Capra and the actor Jimmy Stewart took a marvelously simple premise — a suicidal man is given the opportunity to see what his world would have been like without him — and turned it into a holiday perennial. But “It’s a Wonderful Life” is too rich and complex to brand with a label as simple as “Christmas movie”; it is ultimately a story about overcoming darkness and finding light around you, a tricky transition achieved primarily through the peerless work of Stewart as a good man with big dreams who can’t walk away from the place where he’s needed most. Our critic said it was a “quaint and engaging modern parable.” (Classic movie lovers can also stream “A Place in the Sun” on Prime.) The director Frank Capra and the actor Jimmy Stewart took a marvelously simple premise — a suicidal man is given the opportunity to see what his world would have been like without him — and turned it into a holiday perennial. But “It’s a Wonderful Life” is too rich and complex to brand with a label as simple as “Christmas movie”; it is ultimately a story about overcoming darkness and finding light around you, a tricky transition achieved primarily through the peerless work of Stewart as a good man with big dreams who can’t walk away from the place where he’s needed most. Our critic said it was a “quaint and engaging modern parable.” (Classic movie lovers can also stream “A Place in the Sun” and “Hamlet” on Prime.)
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Early in Garrett Bradley’s extraordinary documentary (a coproduction of The New York Times), someone asks Fox Rich about her husband, and she replies, “He’s, uh, out of town now.” Technically, it’s true; he’s in Angola prison, for a 1997 bank robbery, serving a 60-year sentence without the possibility of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. Fox Rich has spent years fighting for her husband’s release — and against mass incarceration — and Bradley interweaves her crusade with years of grainy home video footage, moving back and forth from past to present, contrasting the possibilities of those early videos and the acceptance, even resignation, of today. But Fox Rich never gives up hope, and this “substantive and stunning” film suggests that even in the grimmest of circumstances, that never-say-die spirit can pay dividends.Watch it on AmazonEarly in Garrett Bradley’s extraordinary documentary (a coproduction of The New York Times), someone asks Fox Rich about her husband, and she replies, “He’s, uh, out of town now.” Technically, it’s true; he’s in Angola prison, for a 1997 bank robbery, serving a 60-year sentence without the possibility of parole, probation or suspension of sentence. Fox Rich has spent years fighting for her husband’s release — and against mass incarceration — and Bradley interweaves her crusade with years of grainy home video footage, moving back and forth from past to present, contrasting the possibilities of those early videos and the acceptance, even resignation, of today. But Fox Rich never gives up hope, and this “substantive and stunning” film suggests that even in the grimmest of circumstances, that never-say-die spirit can pay dividends.Watch it on Amazon
Billi (Awkwafina), a Chinese immigrant who grew up to be a starving artist in New York City, returns to her homeland to help perpetrate a family hoax in this charming and beguiling comedy/drama from the writer-director Lulu Wang. The reason for the homecoming is her grandmother, known as Nai Nai (Zhao Shuzhen), who has only months to live, but doesn’t know it. The family hastily arranges a premature wedding as a chance to say goodbye, resulting in misunderstandings, realizations and reconciliations. A.O. Scott praised the film’s “loose, anecdotal structure” and “tone that balances candor and tact.”(Fans of character-driven indie fare should also check out “Raising Victor Vargas” and “Leave No Trace.”)Watch it on AmazonBilli (Awkwafina), a Chinese immigrant who grew up to be a starving artist in New York City, returns to her homeland to help perpetrate a family hoax in this charming and beguiling comedy/drama from the writer-director Lulu Wang. The reason for the homecoming is her grandmother, known as Nai Nai (Zhao Shuzhen), who has only months to live, but doesn’t know it. The family hastily arranges a premature wedding as a chance to say goodbye, resulting in misunderstandings, realizations and reconciliations. A.O. Scott praised the film’s “loose, anecdotal structure” and “tone that balances candor and tact.”(Fans of character-driven indie fare should also check out “Raising Victor Vargas” and “Leave No Trace.”)Watch it on Amazon
The South Korean master Park Chan-wook (“Oldboy”) takes the stylistic trappings of a period romance and gooses them with scorching eroticism and one of the most ingenious con-artist plots this side of “The Sting.” Working from the Sarah Waters novel “Fingersmith,” Park begins with the story of a young woman who, as part of a seemingly straightforward swindle, goes to work as a Japanese heiress’s handmaiden, occasionally pausing the plot to slyly reveal new information, reframing what we’ve seen and where we think he might go next. Manohla Dargis saw it as an “amusingly slippery entertainment.” (If you like your period movies with a light touch, you may also enjoy “Marie Antoinette.”)Watch it on Amazon The South Korean master Park Chan-wook (“Oldboy”) takes the stylistic trappings of a period romance and gooses them with scorching eroticism and one of the most ingenious con-artist plots this side of “The Sting.” Working from the Sarah Waters novel “Fingersmith,” Park begins with the story of a young woman who, as part of a seemingly straightforward swindle, goes to work as a Japanese heiress’s handmaiden, occasionally pausing the plot to slyly reveal new information, reframing what we’ve seen and where we think he might go next. Manohla Dargis saw it as an “amusingly slippery entertainment.” (If you like your period movies with a bit of fire, you may also enjoy “The Last of the Mohicans.”)Watch it on Amazon
Asghar Farhadi writes and directs this lucid and contemplative morality play, in which a married couple must grapple with the fallout of an assault on the wife in their home, particularly when the husband’s desire for vengeance surpasses her own. Farhadi’s brilliance at capturing the complexities of his native Iran’s culture is as astonishing as ever — particularly when coupled with insights into victimhood, justice, poverty and intimacy that know no borders. A.O. Scott praised the picture’s “rich and resonant ideas.” (Cinephiles may also enjoy “Cold War” and “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.”)Watch it on AmazonAsghar Farhadi writes and directs this lucid and contemplative morality play, in which a married couple must grapple with the fallout of an assault on the wife in their home, particularly when the husband’s desire for vengeance surpasses her own. Farhadi’s brilliance at capturing the complexities of his native Iran’s culture is as astonishing as ever — particularly when coupled with insights into victimhood, justice, poverty and intimacy that know no borders. A.O. Scott praised the picture’s “rich and resonant ideas.” (Cinephiles may also enjoy “Cold War” and “The Discreet Charm of the Bourgeoisie.”)Watch it on Amazon
Humphrey Bogart won his first and only Oscar for his role as the gin-soaked roughneck at the helm of the titular vessel; this was also his only on-screen pairing with his fellow icon Katharine Hepburn. Most of what happens is predictable, from the outcome of the dangerous mission to the eventual attraction of the opposites at the story’s center, but the actors and John Huston’s direction keep the viewer engaged and entertained. Our critic praised the picture’s “rollicking fun and gentle humor.” (Huston’s gut-wrenching “Fat City” is also streaming on Prime, as is Bogart’s “In a Lonely Place.”)Watch it on AmazonHumphrey Bogart won his first and only Oscar for his role as the gin-soaked roughneck at the helm of the titular vessel; this was also his only on-screen pairing with his fellow icon Katharine Hepburn. Most of what happens is predictable, from the outcome of the dangerous mission to the eventual attraction of the opposites at the story’s center, but the actors and John Huston’s direction keep the viewer engaged and entertained. Our critic praised the picture’s “rollicking fun and gentle humor.” (Huston’s gut-wrenching “Fat City” is also streaming on Prime, as is Bogart’s “In a Lonely Place.”)Watch it on Amazon
The broad plot outlines — a traumatized vet, working as a killer-for-hire, gets in over his head in the criminal underworld — make this adaptation of Jonathan Ames’s novella sound like a million throwaway B-movies. But the director and screenwriter is Lynne Ramsay, and she’s not interested in making a conventional thriller; hers is more like a commentary on them, less interested in visceral action beats than their preparation and aftermath. She abstracts the violence, skipping the visual clichés and focusing on the details another filmmaker wouldn’t even see. Joaquin Phoenix is mesmerizing in the leading role (“there is something powerful in his agony,” A.O. Scott noted), internalizing his rage and pain until control is no longer an option. (For more mind-bending drama, queue up “Midsommar” or “The Man Who Fell to Earth.”)Watch it on Amazon The broad plot outlines — a traumatized vet, working as a killer-for-hire, gets in over his head in the criminal underworld — make this adaptation of Jonathan Ames’s novella sound like a million throwaway B-movies. But the director and screenwriter is Lynne Ramsay, and she’s not interested in making a conventional thriller; hers is more like a commentary on them, less interested in visceral action beats than their preparation and aftermath. She abstracts the violence, skipping the visual clichés and focusing on the details another filmmaker wouldn’t even see. Joaquin Phoenix is mesmerizing in the leading role (“there is something powerful in his agony,” A.O. Scott noted), internalizing his rage and pain until control is no longer an option. (For more mind-bending drama, queue up “Midsommar,” “Peeping Tom” or “The Man Who Fell to Earth.”)Watch it on Amazon
Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani based their first screenplay on their own, unconventional love story — a courtship that was paused, then oddly amplified by an unexpected illness and a medically induced coma. This isn’t typical rom-com fodder, but it’s written and played with such honesty and heart that it somehow lands. Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan (standing in for Gordon) generate easy, lived-in chemistry and a rooting interest in the relationship, while a second-act appearance by Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as her parents creates a prickly tension that gives way to hard-won affection. Our critic deemed it “a joyous, generous-hearted romantic comedy.” (If you like your comedies with a dash of heartfelt drama, we also recommend “Harold and Maude.”)Watch it on Amazon Emily V. Gordon and Kumail Nanjiani based their first screenplay on their own, unconventional love story — a courtship that was paused, then oddly amplified by an unexpected illness and a medically induced coma. This isn’t typical rom-com fodder, but it’s written and played with such honesty and heart that it somehow lands. Nanjiani and Zoe Kazan (standing in for Gordon) generate easy, lived-in chemistry and a rooting interest in the relationship, while a second-act appearance by Holly Hunter and Ray Romano as her parents creates a prickly tension that gives way to hard-won affection. Our critic deemed it “a joyous, generous-hearted romantic comedy.” (If you like your comedies with a dash of heartfelt drama, we also recommend “Harold and Maude” and “Soul Food.”)Watch it on Amazon
This sun-drenched romp reunited the director Alfred Hitchcock with one of his favorite leading men, Cary Grant, and with Grace Kelly, the ultimate “Hitchcock Blonde.” The sparks are nuclear-grade as the two fall in love, and they trade witticisms, jabs and flirtations with aplomb against the beautiful backdrop of the South of France. Our critic wrote, “the script and the actors keep things popping, in a fast, slick, sophisticated vein.” (Hitchcock admirers may also enjoy “Knives Out.”)This sun-drenched romp reunited the director Alfred Hitchcock with one of his favorite leading men, Cary Grant, and with Grace Kelly, the ultimate “Hitchcock Blonde.” The sparks are nuclear-grade as the two fall in love, and they trade witticisms, jabs and flirtations with aplomb against the beautiful backdrop of the South of France. Our critic wrote, “the script and the actors keep things popping, in a fast, slick, sophisticated vein.” (Hitchcock admirers may also enjoy “Knives Out.”)
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Directed by Howard Hawks, this 1940 film wasn’t the first cinematic adaptation of the popular play “The Front Page,” but it cooked up a twist the 1931 version hadn’t: What if Hildy Johnson, the superstar reporter whom the ruthless editor Walter Burns will keep on his staff at any cost, wasn’t his drinking buddy but his ex-wife? It’s a movie that talks fast and moves faster, and the passage of nearly 80 years hasn’t slowed it down a bit. Our critic called it “a bold-faced reprint of what was once — and still remains — the maddest newspaper comedy of our times.” (Grant also sparkles in “The Bishop’s Wife” and “Charade.”)Watch it on AmazonDirected by Howard Hawks, this 1940 film wasn’t the first cinematic adaptation of the popular play “The Front Page,” but it cooked up a twist the 1931 version hadn’t: What if Hildy Johnson, the superstar reporter whom the ruthless editor Walter Burns will keep on his staff at any cost, wasn’t his drinking buddy but his ex-wife? It’s a movie that talks fast and moves faster, and the passage of nearly 80 years hasn’t slowed it down a bit. Our critic called it “a bold-faced reprint of what was once — and still remains — the maddest newspaper comedy of our times.” (Grant also sparkles in “The Bishop’s Wife” and “Charade.”)Watch it on Amazon
Billy Wilder’s poison-penned love letter to Hollywood is often remembered more as a series of moments (particularly its closing line) than for its overwhelming whole: a sometimes tragic, sometimes comic, always riveting story about a faded silent movie queen (an unforgettable Gloria Swanson) and the opportunistic young man who tries to take advantage of her (a prickly William Holden). Our critic wrote that it “quickly casts a spell over an audience and holds it enthralled to a shattering climax.” (If you love classics, add “Funny Girl” to your watch list.)Watch it on Amazon Billy Wilder’s poison-penned love letter to Hollywood is often remembered more as a series of moments (particularly its closing line) than for its overwhelming whole: a sometimes tragic, sometimes comic, always riveting story about a faded silent movie queen (an unforgettable Gloria Swanson) and the opportunistic young man who tries to take advantage of her (a prickly William Holden). Our critic wrote that it “quickly casts a spell over an audience and holds it enthralled to a shattering climax.” (If you love classics, add “Funny Girl” and “Roman Holiday” to your watch list.)Watch it on Amazon