35 Movies Worth Your Time on Prime Video
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Amazon's Prime Video is one of the more well-known streaming platforms out there. In terms of original content, it doesn't compete on the same level as Netflix or Hulu, due to both its smaller output and arguably limited marketing strategy. Some of Prime Video's major hits are The Boys, Rings of Power, and Invincible. Although the platform doesn't churn out as many winners as Netflix or other services, Prime Video can't be beat on one thing: it's back catalogue.
While other platforms have to make new content to fill their libraries, Prime Video has the unique trait of access to tons of television shows and movies that aren't native to the platform. If there's a movie that's recently been released, it's possible it's available to watch on Prime Video (potentially for an extra rental fee). If there's a television show from years ago you're hoping to binge again, it may be available on Prime Video. So if you're ever bored and/or desperate for something to watch, it may be that the perfect movie is waiting for you among Prime Video's library.
But it's no secret that Prime Video can sometimes be difficult to navigate. If you're looking for the best the platform has to offer, you may find yourself frustrated parsing through low-budget films you have no interest in. Below, we have the 35 of the best movies you can find streaming on Amazon's Prime Video.
Tár
Cate Blanchett stars as a controversial conductor in this Oscar-nominated film directed by Todd Field. The chief conductor for the Berlin Philharmonic, Lydia Tár exhibits selfish behavior as she develops an attraction to a new celloist in the orchestra, and must reckon with the strain it puts on her relationship with her assistant and her wife.
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No Country for Old Men
This 2007 film directed by the Coen Brothers has since become a cinematic classic. Based on the 2005 Cormac McCarthy novel of the same name, No Country for Old Men follows three men who are all involved in the search for a sum of money found in the desert. Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin all star.
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Pariah
This arguably underrated queer film follows 17-year-old Alike, who while undergoing a journey of self-acceptance, must grapple with her family's disdain for her sexuality, along with the feelings she has for a girl from her family's church.
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Selma
This historical drama follows the famous 1965 Selma to Montgomery voting rights Marches organized by James Bevel and lead by Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., among others. Ava DuVernay directed the film, which won Best Original Song at the Academy Awards.
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Jackie Brown
Pam Grier stars in this Quentin Tarantino film alongside Samuel L. Jackson, Michael Keaton, Robert De Niro, and others. The movie is based on Elmore Leonard's 1992 novel Rum Punch, and follows a flight attendant, who, after she's caught smuggling money into the United States, is recruited to work with the government to catch her accomplices.
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Dog Day Afternoon
One of Al Pacino's most well-known roles is Dog Day Afternoon, where he plays a bank robber who, after he's abandoned by his accomplice, decides to hold the bank hostage. The film, which is based on a Life magazine story about a real bank robbery, was nominated for six Academy Awards and won Best Original Screenplay.
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Rocky and Creed Franchise
In 2022, Amazon acquired MGM, giving them notable IPs such as James Bond and Rocky, meaning all the Rocky and Creed movies (the spin-off franchise starring Michael B. Jordan), are available in one place.
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The Shawshank Redemption
Based on a Stephen King novella, The Shawshank Redemption follows a man sent to prison for life for murdering his wife and her lover. Once he begins his sentence, he befriends another inmate, and becomes embroiled in a money laundering scheme.
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Legally Blonde
If you haven't seen this 2001 rom-com already, why haven't you? Reese Witherspoon stars as Elle Woods, a sorority girl who becomes determined to become a lawyer while staying true to herself. Since its initial release, the film has had sequels, spin-offs, and even a musical.
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Air
This biographical sports drama stars Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and others as Nike execs looking for the next basketball star to promote their new shoe. Who do they find? Michael Jordan.
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Hellraiser
Based on The Hellbound Heart by famed horror writer Clive Barker, Hellraiser follows a family who finds a puzzle box in their new home. But when it's unlocked, they realize it actually calls a group of aliens who find pleasure in pain... and want transform others to be like them.
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The Big Sick
Kumail Nanjiani stars in this somewhat autobiographical story of his relationship with his wife. The rom-com follows Kumail as an Uber driver and stand-up comedian, who begins an on and off relationship with a woman. As the two grow closer, he must deal with his familial expectations.
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Sound of Metal
Riz Ahmed stars in this Academy Award-winning film about a metal drummer who discovers he's losing his hearing. As he comes to accept this major change in his life, he must also grapple with the impact on his personal life.
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Men in Black
This comedic sci-fi movie follows Will Smith and Tommy Lee Jones as two secret agents of an organization which deals with the various extraterrestrial beings secretly living on Earth. The film spawned two sequels, as well as a spin-off film with Tessa Thompson and Chris Hemsworth.
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Cool Hand Luke
Paul Newman stars in this 1967 prison drama about a World War II veteran who is sentenced to two years in a chain gang and disrupts the structure of the prison. Newman was nominated for Best Actor at the Academy Awards for his performance.
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Licorice Pizza
Paul Thomas Anderson directs Licorice Pizza, following a 15-year-old actor who falls for a 25-year-old photographer's assistant. The American Film Institute named the film one of the best of 2021.
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Boyz n the Hood
This coming-of-age drama follows a group of Black teen boys who despite the different paths their lives take, all become enmeshed in gang violence, to tragic ends.
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The Wolf of Wall Street
Based on a true story, The Wolf of Wall Street has a star-studded cast tell the story of Jordan Belfort, a stockbroker in New York who committed corruption and fraud, resulting in an intense downfall. Martin Scorsese directs the black comedy crime film.
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The Graduate (rent)
Dustin Hoffman stars in this 1967 rom-com about a recent college graduate who falls for an older women, and then her daughter. The film garnered seven nominations at the Academy Awards, and in the decades since its release has been declared a classic.
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The Truman Show
Jim Carrey stars as Truman Burbank, a man who believes he's living a normal life... but is actually living on a set populated by actors. Laura Linney, Ed Harris, Paul Giamatti and others star in this satirical film.
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Arrival
Amy Adams, Jeremy Renner, and Forest Whitaker star in this sci-fi drama based on a short story by Ted Chiang. Adams plays a linguist recruited by the US Army who must figure out a way to communicate with extraterrestrials who have landed on Earth.
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Sorry to Bother You
LaKeith Stanfield stars in this black comedy about a young Black telemarketer who dons a white accent to succeed at his job. But as he rises in the ranks, he becomes immersed in a corporate conspiracy.
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Silver Linings Playbook
Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence star in this rom-com drama about a divorced man who meets a widower who convinces him to join a dance competition with her. For her role in the film, Jennifer Lawrence became one of the youngest Best Actress winners in Oscar history.
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Heathers
This classic teen black comedy stars Winona Ryder and Christian Slater as two high school students who become enamored and decide to take revenge on the popular girls in school by murdering them all one by one and staging their deaths as suicides.
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Hot Fuzz
Simon Pegg stars in this Edgar Wright-directed comedy about two police officers who investigate a series of mysterious deaths. The film received critical acclaim upon release and is regarded as an action comedy classic.
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Top Gun
Tom Cruise stars in this action drama about naval aviators training at the US Navy's Fighter Weapons School. The film's popularity has only increased with time, so much so that the film had a sequel decades later.
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Top Gun: Maverick
Tom Cruise returns in 2022's Top Gun: Maverick, which features a new cast of characters under his tutelage. When Maverick returns to teach a new group of naval aviators, he grows close with each of them and revisits his past.
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True Grit
The 2010 version of True Grit was released to critical acclaim, and arguably surpassed the 1969 film adaptation starring John Wayne. Jeff Bridges stars as a U.S. Marshal who pairs up with a young girl (Hailee Steinfeld) to catch the man who murdered her father.
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Robocop
This Academy Award-winning film follows a police officer who is murdered by a gang of criminals, then revived by a corporation and turned into a cyborg. As he enforces the law, he learns of his former life and mourns his loss of humanity.
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Nanny
2022's Nanny is a psychological horror film about a young Senegalese immigrant who babysits for a wealthy Upper East Side couple. While she hopes to raise money to bring her son and cousins to the United States, she finds herself plagued by disturbing visions which threaten to undo her goal.
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3:10 To Yuma
Based on an Elmore Leonard short story, 3:10 to Yuma stars Christian Bale and Russell Crowe respectively as a poor rancher and the outlaw he decides to bring to justice.
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Brokeback Mountain
Jake Gyllenhaal and Heath Ledger star in this classic drama about two cowboys who have a brief romantic relationship, and then must go on with their lives. The film is based on a short story by Annie Proulx, and won Best Film and Best Supporting Actor, among other awards, at the Oscars.
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Saving Face (rent)
This rom-com drama follows an Asian American surgeon living in New York who becomes drawn to another woman at a party thrown by her family. The two become close, but must also grapple with their own personal lives.
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Thelma and Louise
Ridley Scott directs this iconic film starring Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis. It follows two friends who embark on a road trip, which goes awry and turns sinister.
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No Time to Die
The 25th film in the ongoing Bond franchise stars Daniel Craig in his final appearance as the famous MI6 agent. Having left active service, Bond is recruited by the CIA to find a kidnapped scientist, but ends up meeting a powerful adversary.
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