It’s too easy to spend an entire evening scrolling through streaming services like Prime Video picking a movie to watch. By the time you pick a movie, you could have watched one. Or two. Maybe even three. We’re here to solve that problem with the 25 best Amazon Prime movies that are available right now. From recent critical darlings like La La Land and Licorice Pizza to modern classics like Fight Club and Minority Report, here is our list of the best movies on Amazon Prime Video (some remain paid options), so you can have a good time on your next movie night and actually watch a movie:
Last updated on June 25, 2024.
1. The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Year: 2001
Cast: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Ian McKellen, Sean Bean, Viggo Mortensen, Cate Blanchett
Genre: Fantasy
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 178 minutes
Director: Peter Jackson
Trailer: Watch here
The introductory film in Peter Jackson’s award-winning Lord of the Rings trilogy is a classic with ground-breaking special effects, affecting performances, and unbelievable set pieces, costumes, and unfathomable scale. The cast and their sparkling chemistry turns the otherwise quite dark hunt for The One Ring into comfort viewing.
2. Top Gun: Maverick
Year: 2022
Cast: Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, Miles Teller
Genre: Action/Drama
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 130 minutes
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Trailer: Watch here
Tom Cruise (as our own Brian Grubb wrote) pulled out the most ridiculous and needless stops to get you to watch this movie, so if you still haven’t already, get on it, pretty please. Otherwise, Tom is going to leap off a train that’s roaring off a skyscraper that’s perched atop a mountain or something. It’s all too much, and you must save Tom by enjoying this nostalgic trip into the realm of fighter jets and beach volleyball. Not only is there Maverick but also the return of the Iceman and a hefty dose of Jon Hamm. Ride into that danger zone, man.
3. Licorice Pizza
Year: 2021
Cast: Alana Haim, Cooper Hoffman, Sean Penn, Bradley Cooper
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 133 minutes
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
Trailer: Watch here
Writer/director Paul Thomas Anderson is obsessed with two things: Hollywood and the 1970s. Licorice Pizza combines those inside a coming-of-age story featuring performances from first-time leads Alana Haim and Cooper Hoffman (the son of the late Phillip Seymour Hoffman, a frequent Anderson collaborator). The film is not Anderson’s strongest to date, but it is, perhaps his most personal film to date. Like a typical Anderson film, the narrative feels epic with many acts and many characters, some of who only appear for a scene or two. The best part of the film is Bradley Cooper’s truly wild performance as film producer Jon Peters.
4. The Silence of the Lambs
Year: 1991
Cast: Jodie Foster, Anthony Hopkins
Genre: Horror
Rating: R
Runtime: 118 minutes
Director: Jonathan Demme
Trailer: Watch here
Jonathan Demme’s The Silence of the Lambs is not only one of the best horror movies ever made, but one of the best movies ever made full stop. The disturbing psychological thriller gets its energy from its rousing lead performances from Jodie Foster and Anthony Hopkins. Their chemistry on screen is a palpable force that helped earn the film – and the genre – deserved recognition at the Oscars, where it swept the five major categories: best actor, best actress, best-adapted screenplay, best director, and best picture. To this day, it is the only horror film to win best picture.
5. La La Land
Year: 2016
Cast: Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling, John Legend
Genre: Drama, Musical
Rating: R
Runtime: 128 minutes
Director: Damien Chazelle
Trailer: Watch here
While its legacy might be it was a fake Academy Award winner, Damien Chazelle’s romantic but painful musical La La Land shows how ambition and success can unite people, and also how it can divide and change them in an idyllic, colorful version of Los Angeles (the titular La La Land, of course). Although the year’s best picture Oscar actually went to Moonlight, Emma Stone won the Oscar for best actress for her charming performance as aspiring actress Mia.
6. Borat Subsequent Moviefilm
Year: 2020
Cast: Sacha Baron Cohen, Maria Bakalova, Rudy Giuliani
Genre: Comedy
Rating: R
Runtime: 95 minutes
Director: Jason Woliner
Trailer: Watch here
This sequel landed like a jackhammer, precisely at the moment that the American public would enjoy it most. The film even managed to be an October surprise in its own way while giving Rudy Giuliani one of the most unflattering cameo appearances in all of cinematic history. Sacha Baron Cohen’s brainchild did it again, overall, while introducing the world to Maria Bakalova’s talent, and together, they pulled off mischievous feats more daring than the original film.
7. The Wolf of Wall Street
Year: 2013
Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Jonah Hill, Margot Robbie
Genre: Comedy, Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 180 minutes
Director: Martin Scorsese
Trailer: Watch here
The best thing about The Wolf of Wall Street? It doesn’t give a sh*t. Martin Scorsese’s hilarious adaptation of Jordan Belfort’s life and career as a wealthy stock-market manipulator brought out another side of his directing style and another unexpected side of Leonardo DiCaprio. With the help of effortlessly funny co-stars Jonah Hill and Margot Robbie, DiCaprio finally lets loose and allows himself to be funny. Fortunately, he is just as good at it as he is at drama, if not better.
8. Coming 2 America
Year: 2021
Cast: Eddie Murphy, Arsenio Hall, Shari Headley
Genre: Comedy
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 110 minutes
Director: Craig Brewer
Trailer: Watch here
The streaming realm gifted us with this long-awaited followup to the 1988 comedy hit. Eddie Murphy and Arsenio Hall are obviously the crowning jewels of the returning cast with Murphy’s Prince Akeem heading back to New York for familial matters. Leslie Jones portrays the mother of his (illegitimate) biological child, and Tracey Morgan is here to crank the comedy factor even higher. Meanwhile, Wesley Snipes is on a quest to rule Zamunda by overthrowing Akeem, so there are lots of balls in the air, and damn, they’re all too funny.
9. M3GAN
Year(s): 2023
Starring: Allison Williams, Violet McGraw
Genre: Horror
Rating: TV-MA
Runtime: 102 minutes
Trailer: Watch here
Why is this one ranked so high on a list that includes some high-brow Oscar fare? It’s all relative, and this movie knows where to shoot and excels in that realm, but we really shouldn’t be too surprised. Never bet against James Wan when a homicidal doll is involved, and the same goes for any horror movie starring Allison Williams, who takes on the title role in this movie. This AI-fueled nightmare brought down the house in January 2023 with a sequel already on the way, and between Wan and Jason Blumhouse, one can expect further upgrades to the programming. Much like M3GAN, horror movies will never die, given how producers know how to keep budgets low and returns relatively high, and we need to watch characters make dumb moves (like unleash AI upon the world) to distract us from the real-life horrors that persist in this world. Whew!
10. No Country For Old Men
Year: 2007
Cast: Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, Josh Brolin
Genre: Crime, Mystery thriller
Rating: R
Runtime: 122 minutes
Director: Ethan Coen, Joel Coen
Trailer: Watch here
Anton Chigurh (Javier Bardem) and his haunting haircut are an unstoppable force in pursuit of Llewellyn Moss (Josh Brolin), who really shouldn’t have thought he could get away with that money from a drug deal gone bad. “The getting place” is a bad place, as it turns out, and this film led by directors Joel Coen an Ethen Coen follows the slow dance of death as Chigurh closes in on his target with an utterly exhausted Texas lawman (Tommy Lee Jones) too many steps behind the chase. “Call it, Friendo” still chills now as much as it did when the Coen Brothers’ adaptation of the Cormac McCarthy novels hit cinemas in 2007.
11. The Whale
Year: 2023
Cast: Brendan Fraser, Sadie Sink, Hong Chau, Samantha Morton
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 117 minutes
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Trailer: Watch here
Brendan Fraser makes an Oscar-nominated turn to play an estranged, morbidly obese, gay father in this A24 film from Darren Aronofsky. That’s heady stuff, but it’s also nice to see Fraser really stretch himself as an actor, proving that he’s much more than the 1990s boxes where he previously resided. By all accounts, Fraser is well overdue for this type of breakout, and he’s also on tap for Martin Scorsese’s upcoming Killers Of The Flower Moon, so he won’t be going anywhere again anytime soon.
12. Nope
Year(s): 2022
Starring: Kiki Palmer, Daniel Kaluuya, Steven Yeun
Genre: Horror
Rating: TV-MA
Runtime: 131 minutes
Trailer: Watch here
Jordan Peele once again delivered a crowd-pleaser with added nuance to the sci-fi horror audience. The Academy didn’t bite on this selection for the Oscars, and perhaps that’s because Peele takes swings at Hollywood, but this project will stand the test of time. Peele is a true auteur, and most importantly, he’s a lover of genre. That comes through, both in Get Out and Nope, and we can’t wait to see his next directing turn.
13. The Fighter
Year: 2010
Cast: Mark Wahlberg, Christian Bale, Amy Adams, Melissa Leo
Genre: Drama, Biopic
Rating: R
Runtime: 116 minutes
Director: David O. Russell
Trailer: Watch here
David O. Russell’s film about professional boxers and half-brothers Micky Ward and Dicky Eklund follows all the typical beats of a sports drama and a biopic. Despite its predictability, formulaic structure can be great. In this case, it gives us the committed performances (some of the decade’s best) room to shine from Melissa Leo’s Oscar-winning performance, Christian Bale’s Oscar-winning performance, and Amy Adams non-Oscar winning or nominated performance (a casual reminder that Amy Adams is long overdue for an Oscar ).
14. Saltburn
Year: 2023
Cast: Barry Keough, Rosamund Pike, Jacob Elordi, Rosamund Pike, Alison Oliver, Archie Madekwe, Richard E. Grant
Genre: Gothic, psychological dramedy
Rating: R
Runtime: 144 minutes
Director: Emerald Fennell
Trailer: Watch here
In case you haven’t been forewarned, you probably shouldn’t watch this one with the fam. Barry Keoghan’s character really goes to town in multiple scenes that will cause you to nervously laugh at best, and at worst? We don’t want to spoil the fun here, but it sure would be something if Keoghan earned another Oscar nod for this performance. Rosamund Pike is likewise lofty in this satire of the posh British class, and Jacob Elordi likewise earns more accolades here, but do not sleep on Archie Madekwe, ever.
15. Air
Year: 2023
Cast: Matt Damon, Jason Bateman, Ben Affleck
Genre: Drama, Sport
Rating: R
Runtime: 111 minutes
Director: Ben Affleck
Trailer: Watch here
Ben Affleck directs this film and also appears as Nike co-founder Phil Knight. He is joined by Matt Damon and Jason Bateman, as Nike execs Sonny Vaccaro and Rob Strasser, respectively. Their mission: to sign Michael Jordan to a shoe deal that will be lucrative for all involved. We never do get to see Jordan, but Viola Davis portrays his mother, and it’s always a joy to see lifelong BFFs (but non-compatible roommates) Affleck and Damon onscreen together again. Additionally, this film’s cast includes Chris Messina, Marlon Wayans, Chris Tucker, Gustaf Skarsgård, and Matthew Maher.
16. One Night In Miami
Year: 2020
Cast: Kingsley Ben-Adir, Eli Goree, Aldis, Hodge
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 114 minutes
Director: Regina King
Trailer: Watch here
Regina King’s directorial debut stays true to its title by sticking to one 1964 night in which four icons — Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali), Malcolm X, Jim Brown, and Sam Cooke –(fictionally) come together for a rousing conversation. That’s a mild way to put things, but ultimately, the group dissect their contributions within the ongoing civil rights movement. To say that this is not a calm conversation would be an understatement, and King manages to weave a stunning tapestry within the walls of one room.
17. Sound of Metal
Year: 2020
Cast: Riz Ahmed, Olivia Cooke, Paul Raci
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 120 minutes
Director: Darius Marder
Trailer: Watch here
Riz Ahmed earned himself an Oscar nomination for best actor for his performance as a recovering addict and heavy-metal drummer Ruben who hopes to make it in the music scene but discovers that he is losing his hearing, which changes his life and his plans to pursue a career doing what he loves. House of the Dragon’s Olivia Cooke, who plays Ahmed’s girlfriend and bandmate Lou, also delivers an impressive performance in Darius Marder’s directorial debut.
18. The Tender Bar
Year: 2021
Cast: Ben Affleck, Lily Rabe, Ty Sheridan
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 104 minutes
Director: George Clooney
Trailer: Watch here
This sentimental coming-of-age film from director George Clooney tells the story of American journalist J.R. Moehringer’s life growing up on Long Island, where he spent a significant portion of his time at a bar, which is his only escape from his complex life at home. It is based on Moehringer’s 2005 memoir of the same name.
19. The Tomorrow War
Year: 2021
Cast: Chris Pratt, J.K. Simmons, Yvonne Strahovski
Genre: Action/Drama
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 138 minutes
Director: Chris McKay
Trailer: Watch here
A former summer blockbuster movie lands in your living room at no extra cost to Amazon Prime subscribers, so how lucky are you feeling right about now? The film stars Chris Pratt (alongside J.K. Simmons, Yvonne Strahovski, Betty Gilpin, Sam Richardson, and more) in a world where time travelers from 2051 arrive to warn mankind that a global war against an alien species is coming. The only way possible for this to turn out well for humans is if soldiers and civilians join the future fight by time traveling, and this film comes from the mind of director Chris McKay (The Lego Batman Movie), so we’re in good hands all around. Go get your microwave popcorn and enjoy the explosive action goodness.
20. The Big Sick
Year: 2017
Cast: Kumail Nanjiani, Zoe Kazan, Holly Hunter
Genre: Dramedy
Rating: R
Runtime: 120 minutes
Director: Michael Showalter
Trailer: Watch here
Real-life couple Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon received an Oscar nod for this romantic comedy which is a true story based on their own relationship. In the film, an interracial couple (a Pakistani comic and an American grad student) must tackle cultural discomfort that he fears from his traditional Muslim family. The Emily character falls into a coma, which leads familial relationships to deepen in an unexpectedly rewarding manner.
21. Late Night
Year: 2019
Cast: Emma Thompson, Mindy Kaling, John Lithgow
Genre: Dramedy
Rating: R
Runtime: 102 minutes
Director: Nisha Ganatra
Trailer: Watch here
Think of this as a precursor of sorts to HBO’s Hacks, which shares this show’s central hook — a writer is tasked with saving a former powerhouse’s career. This story takes place inside of the late-night talk show realm, and the dynamic of Emma Thompson and Mindy Kaling will stand in TV history among the best. In a world where these shows are dominated by white males, it’s quite something to see these two ladies come together with punchlines aplenty and a determination to stay on top.
22. Manchester By The Sea
Year: 2016
Cast: Casey Affleck, Michelle Williams, Kyle Chandler
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 137 minutes
Director: Kenneth Lonergan
Trailer: Watch here
Casey Affleck makes a dramatic and acclaimed return (which was both hailed and controversial at the time) to the spotlight in his role as a reluctant guardian, Lee, to his late brother’s son. Michelle Williams is scene-stopping as always as his estranged love, and this is a film that not only takes on the transformative nature of grief but also the power of reckoning with the past after Lee goes home.
23. Roadhouse
Year: 2024
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Conor McGregor, Jessica Williams, J.D. Pardo, Lukas Gage
Genre: Action
Rating: R
Runtime: 114 minutes
Director: Doug Liman
Trailer: Watch here
This controversial remake might come and go on streaming, but for the moment, curiosity is ruling the roost with streaming clicks. That’s due in large part to Jake Gyllenhaal paying tribute to Swayze while also determining to be more ripped than anyone ever thought possible. This update does not shy away from violence — and to be fair, that’s not really possible in this story — but does play it safer than the original movie elsewhere. And therein lies the difficulty in translating a 1980s story for a 2024 audience while still presenting as a guilty pleasure that packs in action while taking down bad dudes.
24. The Northman
Year: 2022
Cast: Alexander Skarsgård, Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy, Claes Bang, Willem Dafoe, Ethan Hawke
Genre: Action
Rating: R
Runtime: 136 minutes
Director: Robert Eggers
Trailer: Watch here
Like every Robert Eggers film, The Northman is even weirder than it looks. The film follows the Viking Amleth who devotes his life to seeking revenge on the man who murdered his father King Aurvandil (Ethan Hawke) and, seemingly, took his mother. Amleth gets his revenge, but slowly and very violently. And yes, the rumors are true: there is a naked volcano fight scene in this. And also a magically unhinged performance from Nicole Kidman.
TIE: 25. Alice, Darling
Year: 2023
Cast: Anna Kendrick, Wunmi Mosaku, Kaniehtiio Horn, Charlie Carrick
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Runtime: 89 minutes
Director: Mary Nighy
Trailer: Watch here
This movie, clearly, was never intended as the easiest watch, but it will hit home for anyone who’s endured a psychologically and mentally abusive relationship and hasn’t felt represented onscreen. Anna Kendrick has been quite upfront about how this film helped her work through the fallout of her own abusive relationship, and she portrays a woman in denial of the insidious nature of her own cycle of abuse. And Wunmi Mosaku and Kaniehtiio Horn play the concerned friends who stage a necessary intervention.
TIE: 25. Sylvie’s Love
Year: 2020
Cast: Tessa Thompson, Nnamdi Asomugha, Eva Longoria
Genre: Drama/romance
Rating: PG-13
Runtime: 114 minutes
Director: Eugene Ashe
Trailer: Watch here
Tessa Thompson stepped away from the blockbusters for a music-focused love story (co-starring the late Lance Reddick) that traverses time, space, and, well, you get the drift. It’s much less a typical romance tale than one that is a product of morphing backdrops in American culture as this one uses New York City as its setting. Some things never change, but fortunately, some things do change.
