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Decider Lists
Free two-day shipping is nice, sure, but have you seen all the movies your Amazon Prime subscription gives you access to? As if all the original content produced by Amazon Studios was not enough, the streamer also boasts one of the most impressive and varied catalogs of other movies available for your viewing pleasure. (For starters, they actually have more than a handful of titles made before the year 2000.) You can both brush up on some classics from Hollywood’s studio era or watch a recent under-the-radar indie sensation. They have plenty of recent crowd-pleasing hits with familiar names as well as a plentiful supply of foreign films should you be looking to do some cinematic tourism.
Rather than waste time scouring that extensive catalog for your next watch, let Decider guide you toward the service’s top offerings. Whether it’s catching up with an old favorite or discovering a new one, we’ve found and updated the 50 Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now (updated for July 2024). Whatever movie-watching mood you’re in, Amazon Prime almost certainly has a title for it.
RELATED: NEW ON AMAZON PRIME: July 2024
‘Air’ (2023)
DIRECTOR: Ben Affleck
STARS: Matt Damon, Viola Davis, Ben Affleck
RATING: R
A movie that makes heroes out of middle-aged marketing guys? Heck yes! Air turns corporate strategy into high-stakes drama as Nike makes its improbable bid to win over Michael Jordan. The conclusion is foregone, but the lead-up to it is still riveting – in large part because the creative powers of Ben Affleck and Matt Damon also have an eye toward what it means at large for talent to profit off their own likeness.
'The Vast of Night' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Andrew Patterson
STARS: Sierra McCormack, Jake Horowitz, Gail Cronauer
RATING: PG-13
Get in on the ground floor with director Andrew Patterson before he goes supernova. His debut feature The Vast of Night is an enticing sci-fi tale about a young switchboard operator and a disc jockey uncovering what might be an extraterrestrial transmission in the ’50s. This scrappy start shows an impressive mastery of both form and mood – just imagine what he can do with a big budget.
‘Milk’ (2008)
DIRECTOR: Gus Van Sant
STARS: Sean Penn, Josh Brolin, James Franco
RATING: R
Biopics about inspiring political leaders are a dime a dozen these days, but one that continues to shine amongst a wealth of mediocrity is Gus Van Sant’s Milk. The work of America’s first openly gay official Harvey Milk, resurrected on screen to Oscar-winning effect by Sean Penn, is singular and transformative, sure. But the film never loses sight of the fact that Milk’s success was not achieved alone in a vacuum; he achieved what he did because he engaged and inspired a community. If Harvey Milk meets the qualifications for a “great man”-style biopic, it’s only because he worked alongside a coterie of activists devoted to using the levers of government for good.
‘Blow Out’ (1981)
DIRECTOR: Brian De Palma
STARS: John Travolta, Nancy Allen, John Lithgow
RATING: R
You won’t believe your ears in Brian De Palma’s masterful thriller Blow Out. This gripping journey takes us into the dark heart of American politics as experienced by John Travolta’s sound engineer after he inadvertently records an assassination. Once you hit the film’s staggering conclusion, you’ll never see fireworks and a giant American flag the same way ever again.
‘Paths of Glory’ (1957)
DIRECTOR: Stanley Kubrick
STARS: Kirk Douglas, Adolphe Menjou
RATING: Not Rated
This might not be Stanley Kubrick’s most inventive or subversive work, but darn if it isn’t his most emotionally affecting. About as close to an anti-war movie as can be made, Paths of Glory follows the fallout of a cowardly general looking to cover his own mistakes by scapegoating three of his own soldiers. As Kirk Douglas’ Colonel Dax fights a system rigged to protect the powerful from the consequences of their own actions, his rage against injustice translates on a visceral level.
‘Heathers’ (1988)
DIRECTOR: Michael Lehmann
STARS: Winona Ryder, Christian Slater
RATING: R
If you think ‘80s high school movies were nothing other than the optimistic comedies of John Hughes, look no further than Heathers. This high-concept satires skewers the conformity of cliques by imagining the popular girls as literally all named Heather. Winona Ryder’s Veronica is good enough to be among the Heathers but also smart enough to realize the group’s inanity. Once that pent-up anger crosses paths with Christian Slater’s volatile J.D., their school will have no idea what hit them.
'Sylvie's Love' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Eugene Ashe
STARS: Tessa Thompson, Nnamdi Asomugha, Eva Longoria
RATING: PG-13
Eugene Ashe takes us back to the ’50s with his gorgeous romance Sylvie’s Love – not only in setting but also in sensibility. This is a film that sincerely believes in love at first sight as well as connections that can persevere against all odds, which is exactly what must come to pass for there to be any chance for jazz saxophonist Robert (Asomugha) and aspiring TV producer Sylvie (Thompson). There’s enough old-fashioned sincerity and charm in every sumptuously colored frame to make you swoon.
‘Skyfall’ (2012)
DIRECTOR: Sam Mendes
STARS: Daniel Craig, Judi Dench, Javier Bardem
RATING: PG-13
In the cultural imagination, James Bond is a figure of youth and vitality disarming nefarious villains and bagging beautiful women. What Skyfall presupposes is … maybe he isn’t. Daniel Craig’s third outing as 007 provides fascinating insight into a character and a legacy by portraying him as a fading, aging figure. Director Sam Mendes crafts something remarkable here, a high water mark in the espionage series that comments on the franchise while also delivering everything fans could want.
'It's a Wonderful Life' (1946)
DIRECTOR: Frank Capra
STARS: James Stewart, Donna Reed, Lionel Barrymore
RATING: PG
It need not be Christmas to enjoy Frank Capra’s classic! While the snowy setting certainly gives It’s a Wonderful Life a fun seasonal glow, its message of the power of an individual life to ripple through a community resonates every week of the year. Though some might use the director’s name as an insult to deride maudlin movies – “Capra corn” – this is evidence that sincere emotion can inspire and charm if executed with indisputable earnestness.
'What the Constitution Means to Me' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Marielle Heller
STARS: Heidi Schreck, Mike Iveson, Rosdely Ciprian
RATING: Not Rated
The best of Broadway is available in your living room! Marielle Heller’s rendering of Heidi Schreck’s informative, passionate one-woman show democratizes the play for a global audience to see. And better yet, the camera brings us even closer to the star than possible when sitting in the audience – making the impact of Schreck’s scorching monologue about how the lives of the women in her family interact with the Constitution land with an even more personal impact.
Watch What the Constitution Means to Me on Amazon Prime Video
‘The Red Shoes’ (1948)
DIRECTORS: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
STARS: Moira Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring
RATING: Not Rated
Fan of Black Swan? You owe it to yourself to watch its spiritual antecedent, Powell and Pressburger’s The Red Shoes. This dancing drama charts the internal struggle inside a ballerina torn between her artistic and personal desires. The Technicolor bravura of the performances dates the film squarely in the classical era, but the thematic content still resonates in a contemporary context.
‘The General’ (1926)
DIRECTORS: Buster Keaton, Clyde Bruckman
STARS: Buster Keaton, Marion Mack
RATING: Not Rated
Tom Cruise’s stunt work has nothing on Buster Keaton, cinema’s original daredevil showman. His silent-era comic caper The General reminds us that there’s no more expressive instrument than the human body. If you can bracket the unsavory plot element that Keaton’s wannabe heroic soldier is on the side of the Confederacy, you’ll find his endearing and epic journey to impress the girl of his dreams a wild ride worth taking.
'Selah and the Spades' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Tayarisha Poe
STARS: Lovie Simone, Jharrel Jerome, Jesse Williams
RATING: R
The world of prep school intrigue gets a stylish upgrade by way of Tayarisha Poe. Unlike the normal precocious protagonists of the genre, Lovie Simone’s Selah is not itching to leave her high school halls. She relishes the power she holds over the social factions too much to relinquish it easily, so she takes great pride in grooming her successor. Selah and the Spades may give heightened, almost Shakespearean, stakes to the action, but Poe resists the urge to turn her characters into easy stereotypes.
'The Report' (2019)
DIRECTOR: Scott Z. Burns
STARS: Adam Driver, Annette Bening, Jon Hamm
RATING: R
Need any more proof Adam Driver has the range? It’s hard to think of a role more diametrically opposed to Kylo Ren than his modest, unassuming Congressional staffer Daniel Jones in The Report. He’s tasked with getting to the bottom of the CIA’s torture program, an arduous assignment that mostly means he’s left to sort through mountains of documents. The fact that Driver can make this long process both compelling to watch and morally urgent speaks volumes to his talents as an actor.
‘Nanny’ (2022)
DIRECTOR: Nikyatu Jusu
STARS: Anna Diop, Michelle Monaghan, Sinqua Walls
RATING: R
There have been countless “social thrillers” to pop up in the wake of Get Out’s success – most of which are garbage. Not so for Nikyatu Jusu’s Sundance-winning Nanny, a film that lambasts the contemporary realities of an undocumented African caregiver watching over the young daughter of a wealthy Manhattan family. Jusu really takes the film to the next level by connecting the struggles of Aisha (Anna Diop) to stories of mythological resonance. It’s horror by virtue of what it covers as well as how Jusu covers it.
‘Selma’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: Ava DuVernay
STARS: David Oyelowo, Carmen Ejogo, Tom Wilkinson
RATING: PG-13
No access to MLK’s speeches, no problem for director Ava DuVernay. Selma is the cure for the contemporary biopic, framing a pivotal moment in the civil rights movement as the result of something more complex than just the cult of personality. It was more than just Dr. King, portrayed in all his heroism and humanity by David Oyelowo, who made it happen. It was a collective, urgent effort mobilized to prompt action from a Johnson administration content to drag its heels on voting rights until the issue proved more politically expedient.
‘The Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ (2008)
DIRECTOR: David Fincher
STARS: Brad Pitt, Cate Blanchett, Taraji P. Henson
RATING: PG-13
Though it’s widely regarded as the “one for them” David Fincher had to make for Paramount to get financing for Zodiac, his work on The Curious Case of Benjamin Button is far from workmanlike studio hackery. This is an emotionally and visually heart-stopping journey backward through life with Brad Pitt’s titular character who is fated to age in reverse. All the technical wizardry in which Fincher excels all works in service of a story that shows a different way to live and live. It’s a commitment to watch nearly three hours, but an epic story deserves a canvas this grand.
Watch The Curious Case of Benjamin Button on Amazon Prime Video
'Cold War' (2018)
DIRECTOR: Pawel Pawlikowski
STARS: Joanna Kulig, Tomasz Kot, Borys Szyc
RATING: R
Know that feeling of watching a performer for the first time and sensing you’ll follow their career forever? That’s the thought that passed through my head seeing Joanna Kulig in Cold War, a tale of star-crossed lovers trying to navigate love, art, and politics in Communist-controlled Poland. Even in black and white, Kulig’s star burns incandescently as Zula, an entrancing and gifted jazz singer with self-destructive tendencies.
'Landline' (2017)
DIRECTOR: Gillian Robespierre
STARS: Jenny Slate, Edie Falco, John Turturro, Abby Quinn
RATING: R
Ready for a ’90s period piece? Like it or not, Gillian Robespierre is taking you there in Landline to reflect on some formative years when her understanding of love was forged by dealing with the realities of divorce and infidelity. This dramedy strikes a tricky balance between somberness and silliness, something it navigates nimbly thanks to deeply felt performances by the movie’s entire central family.
'Annette' (2021)
DIRECTOR: Leos Carax
STARS: Adam Driver, Marion Cotillard, Simon Helberg
RATING: R
Leos Carax has long been somewhat of an enfant terrible in French cinema, and his biggest effort to date does not back down from the unabashed weirdness that defines his work. This tribute – or perhaps parody? – of the rock opera feature the ironic tunes of cult band Sparks, the prickly brashness of Adam Driver as a self-destructive artist, and a titular baby wonder that simply must be seen to be believed. You may love Annette, or you may hate it. What’s unlikely, though, is that you feel indifferent watching this truly singular piece of cinematic art.
'His Girl Friday' (1940)
DIRECTOR: Howard Hawks
STARS: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy
RATING: Not Rated
With all due respect to today’s stars, they really don’t make romantic leads like they used to. The chemistry between Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell practically jumps off the screen in His Girl Friday, one of the most beloved screwball comedies of the Hollywood studio era. It’s a madcap blast as Grant’s newspaper editor Walter tries to lure back his lost love/former star reporter, Russell’s Hildy, by giving her one final assignment he knows she can’t resist … and might struggle to escape.
'One Night in Miami…' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Regina King
STARS: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Leslie Odom Jr., Eli Goree, Aldis Hodge
RATING: R
“Muhammad Ali, Malcolm X, Jim Brown and Sam Cooke walk into a hotel room…” might sound like the setup to a bad joke. But in the hands of Regina King, it’s the starting point for a fascinating debate over how to wield Black cultural power in a world that was finally beginning to accept it. One Night in Miami… nimbly balances an exploration of both who these men were and what they meant.
‘A Hero’ (2021)
DIRECTOR: Asghar Farhadi
STARS: Amir Jadidi, Mohsen Tanabandeh, Fereshteh Sadr Erfai
RATING: PG-13
No one crafts a moral drama quite like Asghar Farhadi. The Iranian master filmmaker won’t just have his works examined among other great artists of the screen – his scripts will be dissected like Shakespeare or Chekhov. A Hero provides an excellent look at Farhadi’s craft in microcosm. Start with a situation that is placid yet unstable, drop in one seemingly small action, and watch the status quo of that world unravel in front of our eyes. Here, it’s imprisoned debtor Rahim appearing to commit a highly moral action that bolsters his case for release … but Farhadi quickly and thrillingly shows how nothing is ever as open-and-shut as it appears.
'Sound of Metal' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Darius Marder
STARS: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci
RATING: R
What is gained when a sense is lost? Riz Ahmed’s high-flying metal drummer Ruben finds out as he loses almost all hearing and must contemplate the new limitations and possibilities that come from his condition. Powered by Ahmed’s vulnerable and humanistic performance, Sound of Metal forms a moving tribute to how disability can open up the world rather than shutting it down. (Winner of the 2021 Academy Awards for Best Editing and Best Sound.)
‘Thief’ (1981)
DIRECTOR: Michael Mann
STARS: James Caan, Tuesday Weld, Robert Prosky
RATING: R
Still mourning James Caan’s passing? Check out his role in Michael Mann’s Thief if you haven’t already. This sleek, stylish heist thriller features Caan as a soulful safe-cracker trying to leave behind a life of crime after one big bust. Mann really charged out of the gate with this movie, and it still sings four decades later. If nothing else, vibe along with the electronic score of Tangerine Dream (which would be on my year-end Spotify Wrapped chart easily were it available on the service).
‘In a Lonely Place’ (1950)
DIRECTOR: Nicholas Ray
STARS: Humphrey Bogart, Gloria Grahame, Frank Lovejoy
RATING: Not Rated
If you’ve already checked off the classic Humphrey Bogart films like Casablanca and The Maltese Falcon, it’s time to start digging into the deeper cuts that really show off his tremendous range as an actor. Though best known as a stoic wisecracker, Bogie gets to show off a more wistful and longing side of his persona in the noir drama In a Lonely Place. Director Nicholas Ray finds an empathy for his characters, a troubled screenwriter and his smitten female neighbor, that’s uncommon for films in the genre.
'The Handmaiden' (2016)
DIRECTOR: Park Chan-wook
STARS: Tae Ri Kim, Kim Min-hee
RATING: Not Rated
Get over the one-inch barrier, as Bong Joon-ho memorably dubbed subtitles, and throw yourself into the wacky world of Park Chan-wook’s The Handmaiden. This tantalizing triptych plays thrice through the story of Korean handmaiden Sook-hee (Tae Ri Kim) as she attempts to swindle her Japanese employer Lady Hideko (Kim Min-hee). But the con is far more complicated and complex than initially meets the eye – perhaps because you’ll be distracted by the stunning costumes, set design and camerawork to realize all the sneaky maneuvers happening. It’s a funny, erotic and thrilling ride worth strapping in for.
‘Transit’ (2019)
DIRECTOR: Christian Petzold
STARS: Franz Rogowski, Paula Beer
RATING: Not Rated
Everything about the dialogue and scenario in Christian Petzold’s Transit indicates the story occurs in World War II-era Marseille. Everything about the visuals, though, suggest a story taking place in the present day. Petzold wants us to sit in that dissonance and, instead, find the resonance of how an age-old story could convincingly repeat itself in the current climate. If someone wanted to remake Casablanca today, it’d look a whole lot like this film’s tale of languishing lovers looking to flee their surroundings but not necessarily one another.
'Paterson' (2016)
DIRECTOR: Jim Jarmusch
STARS: Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani, William Jackson Harper
RATING: R
Want to wrap yourself in a warm blanket of a movie? Look no further than Paterson, starring Adam Driver as a modest New Jersey bus driver with a passion for writing poetry. There’s no artificial conflict, no cliched struggling artist tropes — just a thoughtful and earnest look at how people can carve out space for artistic fulfillment in the midst of mundanity.
‘We Need to Talk About Kevin’ (2011)
DIRECTOR: Lynne Ramsay
STARS: Tilda Swinton, Ezra Miller, John C. Reilly
RATING: R
A decade out, Lynne Ramsay’s We Need to Talk About Kevin only grows in relevance. Our society continues to struggle in reckoning with the “mother of a monster” figure given the plague of disaffected young men committing acts of unspeakable violence. Ramsay never gets preachy or didactic in her exploration of the nature vs. nurture debate, instead letting her propulsive visuals pull us deep into the tortured psyche of Tilda Swinton’s Eva Khatchadourian. Don’t expect easy answers from the film, but Ramsay’s challenges and provocations will undoubtedly deepen your emotional understanding of this new cultural archetype.
'The Big Sick' (2017)
DIRECTOR: Michael Showalter
STARS: Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Ray Romano, Holly Hunter
RATING: R
If it weren’t based on a true story, the concept of The Big Sick might sound too ridiculous to believe. A couple in the throes of puppy love breaks up, and a guy decides to stay by that ex-girlfriend in the hospital as she falls into a coma from an unexplained illness? Not a usual stop on the way to “happily ever after,” but the unconventional love story of Kumail Nanjiani (playing himself) and Emily V. Gordon (played by Zoe Kazan) is all the stronger for leaning into the unconventional and unique. The alchemic mix of humor and heart is perfectly calibrated for an exuberant watching experience.
'Lovers Rock' / 'Small Axe' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Steve McQueen
STARS: Amarah-Jae St. Aubyn, Micheal Ward, Shaniqua Okwok
RATING: TV-MA
Is it a movie, or is it TV? Let’s just leave that Twitter debate aside for now and say one thing is certain: Steve McQueen’s Small Axe anthology, a collection of five feature-length films, is absolutely outstanding. If you only have time for one piece of his chronicle memorializing London’s West Indian community as it pushed back against discrimination, make it Lovers Rock. This slender volume documents an unheralded form of resistance: collective joy. Here, that bliss all takes place on the dance floor where Black Britons congregate defiantly in a space all of their own.
‘The Kids Are All Right’ (2010)
DIRECTOR: Lisa Cholodenko
STARS: Annette Bening, Julianne Moore, Mark Ruffalo
RATING: R
A family comedy with two moms was revolutionary when The Kids Are All Right was released in 2010; more than a decade later, the setup is nothing out of the ordinary. It’s a good thing filmmaker Lisa Cholodenko knew which way the wind was blowing in society because the movie is built to be more than a novelty. It’s a sweet, sensitive examination of the nature vs. nurture dichotomy through the experiences of a lesbian couple’s two children seeking out the sperm donor who made their existence possible. Through all the zany misadventures, it winds up making an earnest emotional case for the value of family and marriage.
‘Catherine Called Birdy’ (2022)
DIRECTOR: Lena Dunham
STARS: Bella Ramsey, Andrew Scott, Joe Alwyn
RATING: PG-13
Let’s hear it for a new classic teen comedy! Never mind the Middle Ages setting, Lena Dunham’s take on beloved young adult novel Catherine Called Birdy has plenty to offer today’s middle schoolers (not to mention those older). This irreverent, quippy coming-of-age story vividly depicts that unique life stage where you’ve started to outgrow childhood but don’t quite have the mindset to grasp adulthood. Through it all, Bella Ramsey’s Birdy provides a delightful spirit guide through the colorful ensemble surrounding her in Medieval England.
‘Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb’ (1964)
DIRECTOR: Stanley Kubrick
STARS: Peter Sellars, George C. Scott, Sterling Hayden
RATING: PG
Leave it to Stanley Kubrick with his macabre sensibilities to find the humor in mutually assured nuclear destruction. His Cold War-era satire of geopolitical posturing remains the definitive take on how masculine bravado thwarts any attempts at rational diplomacy. And beyond the laughs, Dr. Strangelove provides a chilling look at how attempting to avoid war can lead governments right into the arms of fascism.
Watch Dr. Strangelove or: How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb on Amazon Prime Video
‘Interstellar’ (2014)
DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan
STARS: Matthew McConaughey, Anne Hathaway, Jessica Chastain
RATING: PG-13
Christopher Nolan is not exactly well-known for his emotionalism, and some bristled at the sentimental streak running through his galactic drama Interstellar. Whether you think love can cut across dimensions or not, you can surely appreciate the methodical craftsmanship of this sci-fi story about a mission to the edges of space to save earth from extinction. Matthew McConaughey’s crying scene might have its own Know Your Meme page, but within the context of the movie, it works given the personal and global stakes underlining the moment.
‘The Host’ (2006)
DIRECTOR: Bong Joon-ho
STARS: Song Kang-ho, Byun Hee-bong, Hae-il Park
RATING: R
If an average creature feature simply won’t do for you, fire up The Host from Bong Joon-ho (Oscar-winning director of Parasite). This South Korean horror flick follows the mayhem caused by a mutant squid monster created by chemicals dumped by an American military base. Director Bong’s everyman played by Song Kang-ho must rescue his daughter from the clutches of the monster, and the journey is so riveting that you’ll completely forget about the one-inch barrier otherwise known as subtitles.
‘The Holdovers’ (2023)
DIRECTOR: Alexander Payne
STARS: Paul Giamatti, DaVine Joy Randolph, Dominic Sessa
RATING: R
No matter the temperature on the thermostat, Alexander Payne’s icily-set but emotionally warm dramedy hits. The Holdovers creates a tender found family out of three loners stuck at a boarding school over the Christmas holiday – an embittered teacher, a grieving cook, a frustrated student. It’s the kind of film that can break your heart so it can then repair it to feel all the greater.
‘Fast Times at Ridgemont High’ (1982)
DIRECTOR: Amy Heckerling
STARS: Sean Penn, Jennifer Jason Leigh, Judge Reinhold
RATING: R
Many high school films from the ‘80s don’t hold up quite as well as you might think, though one that doesn’t feel hopelessly outdated is Fast Times at Ridgemont High. Writer Cameron Crowe went “undercover” in a real high school to find both the humor and drama motivating the lives of actual teens, a care for the texture of their daily and emotional lives that really does shine through in the film itself. It’s got comedy, yes, but it’s also got a lot of compassion for the tough circumstances the characters find themselves in – something that plays quite well in a contemporary viewing environment.
'You Were Never Really Here' (2018)
DIRECTOR: Lynne Ramsay
STARS: Joaquin Phoenix, Alessandro Nivola, Ekaterina Samsonov
RATING: R
Lynne Ramsay’s You Were Never Really Here plays out almost like the response to an unspoken prompt: how much can you strip away from a revenge movie and still have it satisfy as an action flick? Her minimalistic response is a chillingly sparse look at how a tortured soul busts up a ring of sex traffickers and nearly loses himself in the process. This role is the brooding ball of anger that should have won Joaquin Phoenix his Oscar.
‘Some Like It Hot’ (1959)
DIRECTOR: Billy Wilder
STARS: Marilyn Monroe, Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon
RATING: Not Rated
Don’t let the black & white fool you into thinking Some Like It Hot is mired in mothballs. The movie named by the American Film Institute as the country’s greatest comedy still retains all its laughter-generating capacity more than 60 years after its release. From its wild concept of two musicians disguising themselves as women in an all-girl group to escape Chicago gangster to its emphatic final line, Billy Wilder’s classic is still a laugh riot from start to finish.
‘The Terminator’ (1984)
DIRECTOR: James Cameron
STARS: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn
RATING: R
No number of ill-advised spinoffs or sequels (what are we on, the sixth now?) can diminish the spectacular achievement that is the first Terminator. Before the chronology got too scrambled and ret-conned, there was simply Linda Hamilton’s Sarah Connor caught in between two men from the future. Kyle Reese (Michael Biehn) wants to protect Sarah’s unconceived son to rescue the fate of humanity, while a sentient cyborg (Arnold Schwarzenegger) will stop at nothing to hunt her down. This is the blockbuster at its best, combining high-octane action thrills with ingenious storytelling.
'High Noon’ (1952)
DIRECTOR: Fred Zinnemann
STARS: Gary Cooper, Grace Kelly, Thomas Mitchell
RATING: PG
It should surprise no one that High Noon is a perennial favorite of American presidents from Eisenhower to Obama. This Western classic is the ultimate tribute to what it means to fulfill one’s duty as a public servant. Gary Cooper’s sheriff Will Kane learns a tough lesson about holding power: sometimes doing what’s right means you must stand alone.
‘Rosemary’s Baby’ (1968)
DIRECTOR: Roman Polanski
STARS: Mia Farrow, John Cassavetes, Ruth Gordon
RATING: Not Rated
And you thought your neighbors were bad! Over fifty years later, Rosemary’s Baby is still an absolutely terrifying movie to behold as Mia Farrow’s guileless expectant mother gets the sense that there’s something nefarious growing inside of her. Director Roman Polanski amplifies her sense of impending doom with a visual sense of claustrophobia that makes us feel as trapped as she does. Consider the movie something of a cinematic contraception.
‘Sicario’ (2015)
DIRECTOR: Denis Villeneuve
STARS: Emily Blunt, Benicio del Toro, Josh Brolin
RATING: R
Denis Villeneuve has become a master of sci-fi worlds in his most recent directorial outings, but his best work may still be the grounded terrestrial tale along the U.S.-Mexico border in Sicario. This gripping thriller gets into the murky middle-ground where the drug trade meets law enforcement … where there is no division as clean as a dividing line. Our spiritual guide through this dangerous territory is Emily Blunt’s Kate Macer, an FBI agent trying to keep her moral compass straight. Watching Blunt’s minute facial expressions register the confusion and horror swirling around her is truly the essence of cinema.
'Time' (2020)
DIRECTOR: Garrett Bradley
STARS: Fox Rich, Rob Rich II
RATING: PG-13
Many documentaries can make us understand the cruel realities of the American prison system. But few manage to translate the way the institution can seep into every facet of a person’s life quite like Garrett Bradley does in Time, her documentary chronicle of Fox Rich’s decades-long crusade to be reunited with her incarcerated husband. The film smothers you in the purest form of love as it champions the virtues of fair justice and just mercy.
‘Young Adult’ (2011)
DIRECTOR: Jason Reitman
STARS: Charlize Theron, Patton Oswalt, Patrick Wilson
RATING: R
Picture a reverse My Best Friend’s Wedding where the leading lady is portrayed as villain, not heroine, and you might get some idea of what to expect from the pitiless Young Adult. This bitter anti-rom-com follows the misadventures of Charlize Theron’s Mavis Gary as she lets her attachment to a former high school flame drive her to try and homewreck his marriage. Movies don’t get much more acidic than this, and those willing to identify the worst parts of themselves in Mavis will find accompanying her resolute refusal to mature oddly moving. Owning up to our faults is the only way to unlock real growth, after all.
‘Memento’ (2001)
DIRECTOR: Christopher Nolan
STARS: Guy Pearce, Carrie-Ann Moss, Joe Pantoliano
RATING: R
“I have to believe that when my eyes are closed, the world’s still there,” says Memento protagonist Leonard Shelby. Although the quote feels like it could just as easily be attributable to Dom Cobb from Inception or Oppenheimer himself, just to name a few central figures from the work of Christopher Nolan. All the hallmarks of his work are here: the interlocking narratives, the manipulation of time, the fragile sense of self, the acute fear of setting off a chain reaction spelling doom for others. This film also has the heart and soul to back it up, too.
‘The Best Years of Our Lives’ (1946)
DIRECTOR: William Wyler
STARS: Frederic March, Myrna Loy, Dana Andrews
RATING: Not Rated
Director Steven Spielberg listed this as one of his all-time favorites … game recognize game. The Best Years of Our Lives is one of those movies you should carve out three hours of your life to feel your way through. This home-front drama about three soldiers returning home from World War II, each wounded physically or psychologically in their own way, is a remarkably empathetic tale about the enormous sacrifices made by servicemembers – including those who return home alive.
'Manchester by the Sea' (2016)
DIRECTOR: Kenneth Lonergan
STARS: Casey Affleck, Lucas Hedges, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler
RATING: R
Yes, it’s a bruising watch to see Casey Affleck’s Lee Chandler try to overcome the emotional baggage of his hometown and all his memories within it in Manchester by the Sea. But it’s a rewarding, uplifting one as well given that filmmaker Kenneth Lonergan paints an honest, human portrait of what it means to be there for the ones we love. This may very well be a perfect movie – I challenge anyone to name a single misjudged moment or a scene out of key. It’s less like watching a movie and more like paratrooping into a real scenario populated with authentic people.
Marshall Shaffer is a New York-based freelance film journalist. In addition to Decider, his work has also appeared on Slashfilm, Slant, Little White Lies and many other outlets. Some day soon, everyone will realize how right he is about Spring Breakers.
