Amazon Prime Video is chock-full of great movies but it’s a nightmare trying to find them. Unlike Netflix which offers strong curated playlists, Prime Video does a poor job of highlighting all the amazing movies on its service. Don’t fret though, we’ve scoured the depths of Prime’s film catalogue to deliver our list of the best movies on Amazon Prime right now.

We’ll be updating this list every month as movies come and go on Prime, so be sure to check back for new, great additions!

Best Free Movies on Amazon Prime

The Royal Tenenbaums (2001)

The Royal Tenenbaums  •  Trailer

Wes Anderson has directed some great movies over the years, but many consider his 2001 film The Royal Tenenbaums his greatest work to date. Tenenbaums follows the story of an upper-class family and three child prodigies who grow up to become characteristic versions of themselves.

Ben Stiller, Gwyneth Paltrow and Luke Wilson play the adult versions of the prodigies and are supported by great performances from Anjelica Huston, Gene Hackman, Owen Wilson and Danny Glover.

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Critic Review Highlight

For a Wes Anderson movie, The Royal Tenenbaums is just as colorful as you might expect, but lurking behind the color is a fraught subtlety that’s rarely explored in his pictures.

Prime Action Movies

Mission: Impossible - Fallout (2018)

Mission: Impossible - Fallout  •  Trailer

The Mission: Impossible films are everything big-budget cinema should be; fast-paced, well-made and invigorating to watch. After over twenty years in the role of Ethan Hunt, Tom Cruise has shown no signs of slowing down.

In addition, Henry Cavill (and his infamous mustache) does a great job of supporting the action with a great performance.

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Critic Review Highlight

Mission: Impossible - Fallout may very well be the best film in the world famous spy series.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

Once Upon a Time in the West (1968)

Once Upon a Time in the West  •  Trailer

There aren’t many movies that have had more of an impact on today’s filmmakers than Sergio Leone’s spaghetti western classic Once Upon a Time in the West.

Although Once Upon a Time in the West is perhaps most well-known today for its musical score by the late great Ennio Morricone, it’s cinematography has undoubtedly inspired generations of filmmakers.

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Critic Review Highlight

Once Upon a Time in the West helped proliferate many of the tropes that we associate with Westerns to this day.

Prime Jarmusch Movies

Paterson (2016)

Trailer  •  Paterson

Jim Jarmusch directs this off-beat drama about a man named Paterson who drives a bus in a town called Paterson. Few movies in recent memory recreate small-town America with as intricate of details as Paterson does.

Paterson is further supported by great lead performances from Adam Driver and Golshifteh Farahani.

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Critic Review Highlight

Paterson is a captivating film about society, poetry and the human spirit; and it’s a film that came across at the right time.

Emotionally Charged Gangster Movie

Ash is Purest White (2018)

                Ash is Purest White  •  Trailer

Ash is Purest White is a remarkably “modern” gangster movie from the mind of Jia Zhangke. Both Zhao Tao and Liao Fan give excellent performances in the roles of two combative lovers.

Perhaps the most noteworthy aspect of Ash is Purest White is its breathtaking cinematography, composed by Eric Gautier.

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Critic Review Highlight

Ash is Purest White may leave you speechless after the credits roll.

Date Night on Prime

Roman Holiday (1953)

Roman Holiday  •  Trailer

It takes a heart of stone to not get swept away in the stirring romanticism of Roman Holiday. Hollywood legends Gregory Peck and Audrey Hepburn star in this classic romantic-comedy that follows the relationship of a princess and the newspaperman who’s desperate to get the inside scoop from her.

The chemistry between Peck and Hepburn is tangible, even when viewed nearly 70 years after its release.

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Critic Review Highlight

Roman Holiday is the perfect date movie for cinema lovers.

Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

Ernest and Celestine (2012)

Ernest and Celestine  •  Trailer

Ernest and Celestine is a tender animated movie about a bear and a mouse who can’t be friends due to societal demands. The visuals of Ernest and Celestine are absolutely beautiful -- featuring pastel-like watercolor drawings.

Although Ernest and Celestine was originally released in French, the English dub is the only version available on Prime. Don’t worry though, it features some great voice performances from Forest Whitaker, Mackenzie Foy, and Lauren Bacall in one of her last roles.

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Critic Review Highlight

Ernest and Celestine is a delight for all ages and one of the best animated movies of all-time.

Movies About Movies

Sunset Boulevard (1950)

Sunset Boulevard  •  Trailer

“I’m ready for my close-up.” Billy Wilder’s timeless classic Sunset Boulevard is a moving story of life on and off the titular Sunset strip.

Gloria Swanson gives an all-time great performance in the picture as Norma Desmond, a relic star of the Silent era of Hollywood.

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Critic Review Highlight

Sunset Boulevard is a brilliant examination of celebrity obsession and the fading fanfare of the limelight.

Don’t Dance With the Devil

The Wailing (2016)

The Wailing  •  Trailer

The Wailing received a lot of critical acclaim when it came out in 2016 -- and for good reason, the film is tense, thrilling, and tough to watch. Few horror films in recent years have stuck with me quite like The Wailing.

 Na Hong-jin directs the film, which follows the events of a small village ravaged by a mysterious infection that causes people to kill their families.

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Critic Review Highlight

South Korean cinema continues to produce some of the best thrillers in the world, evident by The Wailing.

Horror Runs in the Family

Hereditary (2018)

Hereditary  •  Trailer

Ari Aster’s directorial debut Hereditary marked the debut of an exciting new voice in American cinema. The film is not perfect; in many ways, it’s far from it. But if you’re willing to suspend disbelief and roll with the genre tropes, you’ll find a good amount to like in Hereditary.

Hereditary quickly became A24’s highest grossing film upon release and has garnered a cult-following with horror fans.

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Critic Review Highlight

Critics mostly lauded Aster’s debut film Hereditary for its dark subject matter and strong performances.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977)

Close Encounters of the Third Kind  •  Trailer

Steven Spielberg has directed more than a few Sci-Fi classics over the years, but for my money’s worth, I’d say that Close Encounters of the Third Kind is the best of them all (save for Jurassic Park).

Few movies before or since have inspired such a boundless spirit of pursuit for the stars like Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

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Critic Review Highlight

Close Encounters of the Third Kind is a fun yet profound look at what alien first-contact could be.

Hitchcock’s Prelude to War

The Lady Vanishes (1938)

The Lady Vanishes  •  Trailer

The Lady Vanishes is one of Alfred Hitchcock’s most underrated films. Over the years, it’s mostly been lost to his more famous films, but those looking for a classic hidden gem will likely find a lot to love.

Margaret Lockwood stars in the film as a young woman who gets caught in the crossfire of international espionage. Looking back, it’s amazing how prescient the subject matter of the film was.

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Critic Review Highlight

All aboard the train to mystery, The Lady Vanishes features thrilling action and comedy in spades.

Meta-Biopic Movies on Amazon Prime

Honey Boy (2019)

Honey Boy  •  Trailer

Few American celebrities are as polarizing in the limelight as Shia LaBeouf. At just 14 years old, LaBeouf accrued national fame for starring in the Disney Channel original series Even Stevens. In the near two decades since, LaBeouf has starred in blockbuster hits like Transformers but has also struggled mightily with alcohol abuse and arrests.

One such arrest led to court-ordered rehab, where LaBeouf wrote the autobiographical script for Honey Boy, an unflinchingly intimate story of familial turmoil, love and the effect of stardom.

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Critic Review Highlight

Honey Boy is an absolute winner of a film. Let’s hope that this is just the first of many screenplays written by Shia LaBeouf.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

Inception (2010)

Inception  •  Trailer

It’s been ten years since the release of Inception, and we’re still talking about its unforgettable ending to this day. If you want to read more about Christopher Nolan’s iconic cliffhanger, check out our article on the Inception ending explained.

Christopher Nolan is famous for making movies that play with our brains, but Inception gave new meaning to the term “cerebral cinema.”

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Critic Review Highlight

All in all, Christopher Nolan’s Inception is a mentally stimulating movie about the journey into the subconscious.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

First Reformed (2017)

First Reformed  •  Trailer

Paul Schrader made cinema history in 1976 with his highly influential screenplay for Taxi Driver; a timely, nihilistic story of a decaying society. At just thirty years old, critics argued that Schrader’s Taxi Driver script was sure to be his magnum opus.

But in 2017, Schrader eclipsed his own high standard of Taxi Driver with the wildly reverent First Reformed; an audacious, beautiful film that challenges the very core of the human spirit.

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Critic Review Highlight

Despite the massive influence of both scripts, neither Taxi Driver nor First Reformed won the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay.

Superhero Team-Up on Prime

The Avengers (2012)

The Avengers  •  Trailer

At the time of its release, The Avengers was the biggest movie in the world. This was before Star Wars came back, and long before “the greatest superhero team-up film” Avengers: Infinity War was released.

The Avengers screenplay laid the groundwork for bringing together the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and it will forever be regarded as one of the most important commercial films ever made.

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Critic Review Highlight

Avengers assemble: your favorite Marvel superheroes are now available to view on Prime.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

The Peanut Butter Falcon (2019)

The Peanut Butter Falcon  •  Trailer

2019 was a great year for Shia LaBeouf’s career. He received widespread acclaim for writing/starring in Honey Boy as well as for his performance in The Peanut Butter Falcon.

The Peanut Butter Falcon is an atypical road-trip movie about two young men, one petty thief and one aspiring wrestler with Down’s Syndrome, who help each other get to where they need to go.

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Critic Review Highlight

The Peanut Butter Falcon features natural chemistry from its three stars: Shia LaBeouf, Zack Gottsagen and Dakota Johnson.

21st Century Murder Mystery

Knives Out (2019)

Knives Out  •  Trailer

No doubt one of the best movies of 2019, Knives Out proved that writer/director Rian Johnson may be better suited to make films outside of the Star Wars universe.

Knives Out features a rock-star ensemble cast, including Ana de Armas, Chris Evans, Jane Lynch, Michael Shannon, and of course, Daniel Craig. A spiritual successor to Knives Out has officially been revealed, and Craig is slated to return in the starring role

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Critic Review Highlight

Johnson does his best Agatha Christie impression with Knives Out, swapping out the famous fictional detective Hercule Poirot for Benoit Blanc.

Gentrification in the Bay

The Last Black Man in San Francisco

The Last Black Man in San Francisco  •  Trailer

The Last Black Man in San Francisco is a product of a successful crowdfunding campaign, started by director Joe Talbot and writer/actor Jimmie Fails. In 2017, Plan B Entertainment bought into the hype and further funded the project.

The Last Black Man in San Francisco received rave reviews from critics upon release for its timely story and great performances.

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Critic Review Highlight

Making a tale of the times is never an easy task -- but The Last Black Man in San Francisco does a tremendous job at it.

Don’t Go Breaking My Heart

Rocketman (2019)

Rocketman  •  Trailer

Taron Egerton gives a knockout performance portraying Elton John in Rocketman -- a film that explores the highs and lows of Sir Elton’s tenure in the limelight.

The production design in Rocketman is incredible. Elton John is well known for his colorful costumes on and off the stage. The wardrobing department for the film did a great job of recreating some of his most iconic outfits.

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Critic Review Highlight

Part biopic, part musical, but undoubtedly all Elton -- Rocketman certainly shoots for the stars.

A Shyamalan Twist

The Village (2004)

The Village  •  Trailer

M. Night Shyamalan is a filmmaker whose works, perhaps unfairly, have come to be expected to always have a major twist. We’ve seen twists used effectively in some of his movies, like The Sixth Sense and Unbreakable, and not so effectively, like in The Happening – but perhaps no other of his features hinge so sharply on its twist than The Village.

The Village features a “love it or hate it” twist that has been making audiences either applaud or roll their eyes for more than 15 years.

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Critic Review Highlight

If for nothing else, watch The Village to see some solid performance from Bryce Dallas Howard, Adrien Brody and Joaquin Phoenix.

‘How Long Have We Been on this Rock?’

The Lighthouse (2019)

The Lighthouse  •  Trailer

Director Robert Eggers made a name for himself with his 2015 film The Witch. His second feature, The Lighthouse, proved that he wasn’t just a one-hit wonder. Much can be said about Eggers’ decision to shoot the film in a square 19:16 aspect ratio, but what he does put in the frame is often brilliant.

Robert Pattinson and Willem DaFoe star in the film and both give excellent performances. The Lighthouse is a movie that demands repeat viewings and close attention to detail.

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Critic Review Highlight

Aye, went mad, he did. Raving about sirens, merfolk, bad omens and the like. In the end, weren’t no more sense left in him than a hen’s tooth.” Make sure to listen closely to Pattinson and DaFoe to get the most out of the excellent dialogue in The Lighthouse.

Amazon Prime Brings Classics

Charade (1963)

Charade  •  Trailer

I absolutely love Charade. It’s so unabashedly a riff on Hitchcock thrillers, that it’s hard to think that Hitchcock didn’t make the film himself. Charade is carried by Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn who command the screen with their infectious chemistry.

Charade is suspenseful, witty and endearing; three things that add up to make it a true masterpiece of the thriller genre.

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Critic Review Highlight

Charade is a brilliant film, elevated by a script so sharp it could cut a diamond in two.

Zombie Movie With New Life

Train to Busan (2016)

Train to Busan  •  Trailer

Zombie movies have become a largely tired sub-genre due to a lack of innovation and a heavy reliance on cliches. But in 2016, Yeon Sang-ho breathed new life into the sub-genre with Train to Busan -- one of the best zombie movies of the 21st century.

If you’re looking for a visceral action film that will also make your skin crawl, Train to Busan is a perfect fit.

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Critic Review Highlight

A sequel to Train to Busan, titled Peninsula, is scheduled to release in 2020.

Concert Classic on Prime

Stop Making Sense (1984)

                Stop Making Sense  •  Trailer

Jonathan Demme’s Stop Making Sense is a documentary feature that showcases the legendary Talking Heads concert of the same name.

The film is filled with frenetic energy from start to finish. Few “concert films” feel as realistic as Demme’s classic Stop Making Sense.

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Critic Review Highlight

Talking Heads fans shouldn’t miss this rock-doc masterpiece while it’s on Prime.

In the Shadow of War

Last Flag Flying (2017)

Last Flag Flying  •  Trailer

Is there any filmmaker in the world who’s slept on more than Richard Linklater? It’s not hyperbole to say that he’s made four or five of the best films of the past 30 years.

But even after all his success, Linklater’s name is rarely mentioned in the same breath of Tarantino, Nolan, or Paul Thomas Anderson. Last Flag Flying is one of Linklater’s most recent features and stars Steve Carrell, Laurence Fishburne, and Bryan Cranston as three marines united due to tragedy.

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Critic Review Highlight

Last Flag Flying makes great use of its top-tier trio of Carrell, Fishburne, and Cranston.

True Stories on Prime

The Report (2019)

The Report  •  Trailer

They say that history is written by the victor, but in this case, history was redacted by those in power. The Report is a film that aims to expose CIA corruption to the masses, but unfortunately was lost in the 2019 Oscar season shuffle.

Adam Driver commands the screen in the role of former FBI investigator Daniel Jones, while Annette Bening gives a masterful performance portraying U.S. Senator Dianne Feinstein.

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Critic Review Highlight

To this day, the full Senate Intelligence Committee report on CIA torture remains classified.

“Be First, Be Smarter or Cheat”

Margin Call (2011)

Margin Call  •  Trailer

After the housing market collapsed in 2008, mostly everybody was asking the same question: what the hell happened? Margin Call shows us that it wasn’t just the laymen who were caught off guard by the financial crisis – but some of the supposed “smartest’ market-makers were too.

Twenty-four years before Margin Call, Oliver Stone released Wall Street – a film in which Michael Douglas’s character Gordan Gekko told us “greed is good.” But for greed to be good, somebody has to lose – in the case of Margin Call, it was the majority of the world’s population.

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Critic Review Highlight

Renowned filmmaker J.C. Chandor directed an accomplished cast including Zachary Quinto, Kevin Spacey, Demi Moore and Jeremy Irons in his directorial debut Margin Call.

Fraternal Fight Night

Warrior (2011)

Warrior  •  Trailer

Warrior was largely overshadowed by another fighting movie released around the same time, David O. Russell’s The Fighter. Both films are great, but the latter definitely stole a lot of the former’s thunder.

Tom Hardy and Joel Edgerton star across one another in Warrior as two brothers competing at a mixed martial arts tournament.

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Critic Review Highlight

Nick Nolte received considerable praise for his performance in the role of the two fighter’s alcoholic father.

Amazon Movies Literally

The Lost City of Z (2016)

The Lost City of Z  •  Trailer

The Lost City of Z is a greatly enjoyable film for anyone who loves a good adventure. Charlie Hunnam stars in the picture as British explorer Percy Fawcett, a determined spirit who sacrifices nearly anything at the cost of finding the famed lost city of Z.

The cast is rounded out with great supporting performances from Tom Holland and Robert Pattinson as well.

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Critic Review Highlight

In many ways, Indiana Jones is the fictional successor to the story of The Lost City of Z.

CGI Render of a Classic

The Adventures of Tintin (2011)

                The Adventures of Tintin  •  Trailer

The Adventures of Tintin marked a massive collaboration between some of modern cinema’s brightest minds, including Steven Spielberg (director), Peter Jackson (producer), Steven Moffat (writer), Edgar Wright (writer), and Joe Cornish (writer).

Despite all of the talent associated with it, The Adventures of Tintin never quite came together perfectly. That’s not to say it was bad by any means, it just didn’t live up to the lofty expectations.

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Critic Review Highlight

The Adventures of Tintin represented a major step forward for motion capture technology in feature films.

Best Comedies on Amazon Prime

Logan Lucky (2017)

Logan Lucky  •  Trailer

Logan Lucky is director Steven Soderbergh’s best film since his 2001 masterpiece Ocean’s Eleven. It makes sense why the film works so well too, many of the themes of the Ocean’s franchise are expanded upon here in a new setting.

Aside from a strange last scene, Logan Lucky is a thrilling ride of robbery at the race-track.

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Critic Review Highlight

Channing Tatum gives a career performance in the role of down on his luck construction worker Jimmy Logan in Logan Lucky.

Critical Darlings on Prime

The Farewell (2018)

The Farewell  •  Trailer

The Farewell is largely based on a true story from the life of writer/director Lulu Wang, in which her family hides their grandmother’s medical illness from her.

Awkwafina is terrific starring in the film as Billi, a character who serves as a conduit for Wang’s experiences. 

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Critic Review Highlight

The Farewell is an emotionally touching film about love, family, and connections that span generations.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

The Ides of March (2011)

The Ides of March  •  Trailer

Any movie with Ryan Gosling, George Clooney, Paul Giamatti and Philip Serymour Hoffman is bound to be good – so it shouldn’t come as a surprise that the group’s 2011 film The Ides of March is, in fact, quite good.

The Ides of March primarily follows Gosling’s character as he attempts to navigate a morally corrupt battleground ahead of a massively important Presidential primary.

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Critic Review Highlight

The Ides of March is yet another visceral display of the muddied water that is U.S. politics.

Beach Boys on Amazon

Love and Mercy (2015)

Love and Mercy  •  Trailer

Love and Mercy is a nuanced portrait of the life of Beach Boys’ mastermind Brian Wilson. Paul Dano and John Cusack portray Wilson in the film in a dual-role; and both actors do an excellent job.

Many people know The Beach Boys as the symbol for 1960’s surf-rock, but few know what was going on behind the scenes during the group’s meteoric rise. 

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Critic Review Highlight

Love and Mercy shows the making-of and the fallout of one of the greatest albums ever made: Pet Sounds.

Indie Darling Debut

Resolution (2013)

                Resolution  •  Trailer

Justin Benson and Aaron Moorhead have emerged as one of the most exciting filmmaking duos in American cinema. Their feature debut Resolution is a tense horror film that is as mind-bending as it is thought-provoking.

Benson and Moorhead’s 2017 film The Endless is a spiritual successor to Resolution.

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Critic Review Highlight

Although the film isn’t outwardly “sci-fi,” if you like science fiction, you’ll probably like Resolution.

Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot  •  Trailer

Joaquin Phoenix stars in Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot as the late cartoonist John Callahan, who was paralyzed after a car accident at the age of 21. The film was written and directed by Gus Van Sant in 2018.

Jonah Hill, Jack Black, and Rooney Mara all give excellent performances in supporting roles. 

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Critic Review Highlight

Don’t Worry, He Won’t Get Far on Foot strikes a strong chord that fans of Callahan’s cartoonist should surely appreciate.

Amazon Movies Get Dark

You Were Never Really Here (2016)

You Were Never Really Here  •  Trailer

Joaquin Phoenix gives a tour de force performance in the awfully violent carnage-film You Were Never Really Here.

For what You Were Never Really Here lacks in narrative clarity, it makes up for in visual style, which ultimately amounts to a film that leaves a deafening imprint in the landscape of experimental filmmaking.

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Critic Review Highlight

You Were Never Really Here doesn’t hold anything back in its brisk runtime of 90 minutes.

Hitchock’s Cat-Burglar

To Catch a Thief (1955)

To Catch a Thief  •  Trailer

To Catch a Thief makes great use of Cary Grant and Grace Kelly’s natural chemistry. The film follows the pair as they engage in a metaphorical game of cat and mouse across the French Riviera.

If you’re looking for one of Alfred Hitchcock’s darker works, To Catch a Thief isn’t it. This is a mostly breezy rom-com with elements of thriller mixed in.

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Critic Review Highlight

It may not be as taut as some of his other works, but To Catch a Thief is certainly one of Alfred Hitchock’s best movies.

Orson Welles on Amazon Prime

The Stranger (1946)

The Stranger  •  Trailer

The Stranger was one of Orson Welles’ last works before he was exiled from Hollywood and moved to Europe. As with most Orson Welles pictures, his fingerprints are over the production; he served as director, lead actor and co-writer of The Stranger.

There aren’t many movies of the World-War II era that stand up to the test of time as well as The Stranger.

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Critic Review Highlight

The Stranger is one of Welles’ best early-works, and was one of his only majorly successful films at the box office.

Coen Brothers on Amazon Prime

Inside Llewyn Davis (2013)

Inside Llewyn Davis  •  Trailer

The Coen Brothers’ intimate period-drama Inside Llewyn Davis is a stirring recreation of the American folk music industry. Oscar Issac stars in the film as the titular character, who doesn’t quite fit in with the “changing times.”

Perhaps the best part of Inside Llewyn Davis is its soundtrack, which was largely inspired by the work of folk revivalist Dave Van Ronk.

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Critic Review Highlight

For fans of the Coen Brothers or American folk music, Inside Llewyn Davis is a must-watch.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

Megamind (2010)

Megamind  •  Trailer

What’s the deal with Megamind? It received good-not-great reviews upon release, but it’s developed somewhat of a cult following since then. I think one reason why so many people love Megamind is because there’s something about it that comes across as unexpected.

In many ways, Megamind stands in stark contrast to other superhero movies of this era – it’s less interested in idolizing heroes as it is condemning villains.

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Critic Review Highlight

Megamind features an absolutely insane voice cast, including Will Ferrell, Tina Fey, Brad Pitt, Jonah Hill, Ben Stiller and more.

Pattinson on Prime

High Life (2019)

High Life  •  Trailer

The Robert Pattinson renaissance is in full swing, evident by his starring roles in films like Good Time, The Lighthouse, and yes, High Life. If you’re expecting High Life to be anything like Pattinson’s early works, you’re in for a rude surprise.

High Life is an intimate sci-fi story with a brilliant plot. Sadly, the film never quite finds its footing. But still, due to some brilliant cinematography and a great performance from Pattinson, High Life is worth checking out.

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Critic Review Highlight

Renowned French filmmaker Claire Denis directs High Life with an assured hand.

Gripping Dramas on Amazon

Manchester by the Sea (2017)

Manchester by the Sea  •  Trailer

It’s no wonder why Casey Affleck won the Oscar for Best Actor for Manchester by the Sea it’s an engrossing, nuanced, and impactful performance. It's a tragedy that doesn't overstay its welcome or overstep its bounds.

Affleck isn’t the only stellar actor that holds up Manchester by the Sea though. The film is also supported by great performances from Lucas Hedges and Michelle Williams.

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Critic Review Highlight

Manchester by the Sea is a focused story of a man and his nephew who are united by tragedy.

B&W Will Never Die

Cold War (2018)

Cold War  •  Trailer

Paweł Pawlikowski's post-World-War II epic Cold War is a stunning picture about two lovers entangled in a changing society. Both Joanna Kulig and Tomasz Kot deliver excellent leading performances.

Cold War uses black and white cinematography to immersive effect, which creates a strong tone and visual style.

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Critic Review Highlight

Cold War is as visually stunning as it is thought-provoking and haunting.

Mesoamerican Epic on Prime

Apocalypto (2006)

Apocalypto  •  Trailer

Mel Gibson’s Mayan-era epic has benefitted from some great critical analysis in the fourteen years since release. Many historians and anthropologists have cited the film as one of the most accurate depictions of Mayan culture in cinema history.

If you’re looking to journey back into the past, all the way to 16th century Mesoamerica, Apocalypto may be the movie for you.

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Critic Review Highlight

Apocalypto is a visceral adventure film that’s told entirely in the Yucatec Maya Language.

Familiar, Formulaic, but Fun

Creed II (2018)

                Creed II  •  Trailer

Although it isn’t quite as good its 2015 franchise reboot Creed, Creed II is sure to scratch that “Rocky” itch for fans of the series. Michael B. Jordan does a good job in the lead role of Adonis Creed, the son of series favorite Apollo Creed.

Forty-two years after the release of the original Rocky, Sylvester Stallone returned to co-write the screenplay and act in Creed II.

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Critic Review Highlight

Creed II is a fun fight movie, just Don’t expect it to stray too far from the “Rocky” formula.

The Best Movies on Amazon Prime Right Now

The Holiday (2006)

The Holiday  •  Trailer

The Holiday is the perfect movie to watch whether you want to get swept away in a classic romantic comedy or learn more about writing in the form. Kate Winslet, Cameron Diaz, Jude Law and Jack Black star in the film and their performances really give the story an authentic feel.

It may be too reliant on genre cliches, but The Holiday still packs a good deal of emotional resonance.

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Critic Review Highlight

The Holiday makes great use of its dual-protagonist, dual-setting structure.

Amazon Prime Originals

The Big Sick (2017)

The Big Sick  •  Trailer

It takes a heart of stone not to love The Big Sick. The script for the film was written by Kumail Nanjiani and Emily Gordon and is based on the true story of the couple’s journey from a casual relationship to the throws of love.

The entire principal cast: Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Ray Romano and Holly Hunter are phenomenal in the films as well.

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Critic Review Highlight

In the face of tragedy, Nanjiani and Gordon deliver a story of absolute resilience that unites people across cultures.

Classic Movies on Amazon Prime

The African Queen (1952)

The African Queen  •  Trailer

Hollywood legend Humphrey Bogart won the Academy Award for Best Lead Actor in The African Queen opposite fellow Academy Award winning actor Katherine Hepburn.

The African Queen isn’t about a queen from Africa but rather named after the name of the boat that the two main characters use to travel downstream to escape the threat of war.

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Critic Review Highlight

The African Queen is one of director John Huston’s greatest works from the Hollywood Golden Age.

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