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100 Best Movies on HBO Max (January 2022)
HBO comes out swinging in the increasingly crowded streaming arena, with HBO Max offering the masses arguably the deepest, most far-reaching library of titles among platform competitors. That’s why we’ve combed through the entire archive and pulled out movies with the highest Tomatometer scores, creating the 100 Best Movies on HBO Max to Watch Right Now!
Our selection process for this list was simple: Certified Fresh movies only, meaning each entry’s Tomatometer score was at least 75% after hitting a review count threshold. For contemporary mainstream movies, that minimum is 80 reviews, while it takes 40 reviews for limited releases and older films for consideration. With that, take the plunge into the 100 Best Movies on HBO Max!
Update: Jurassic Park, City of God, The Conversation, Dave, Dog Day Afternoon, Election, Midnight Run, Reversal of Fortune, When We Were Kings, Who’s Afraid of Virginia Woolf? added.
93%
Critics Consensus: Louis Malle's hypnotic debut is a noir with genuine soul, infusing its tale of best laid plans gone awry with wistful performances, swooning cinematography, and a sultry soundtrack.
Synopsis: Restless femme fatale Florence Carala (Jeanne Moreau) recruits her lover, Julien Tavernier (Maurice Ronet), to murder her wealthy husband, Simon (Jean Wall), in his office... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jeanne Moreau, Maurice Ronet, Jean Wall, Georges Poujouly
Directed By: Louis Malle
94%
Critics Consensus: More than straight monster-movie fare, Gojira offers potent, sobering postwar commentary.
Synopsis: A fire-breathing behemoth terrorizes Japan after an atomic bomb awakens it from its centuries-old sleep.
Starring: Takashi Shimura, Momoko Kochi, Akira Takarada, Akihiko Hirata
Directed By: Ishirô Honda
93%
Critics Consensus: With its epic story and breathtaking visuals, Princess Mononoke is a landmark in the world of animation.
Synopsis: A prince becomes involved in the struggle between a forest princess and the encroachment of mechanization.
Starring: Claire Danes, Billy Bob Thornton, Gillian Anderson, Billy Crudup
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
93%
Critics Consensus: A fine example of writer-director-star Christopher Guest's gift for improv comedy, Best in Show boasts an appealingly quirky premise and a brilliantly talented cast.
Synopsis: The tension is palpable, the excitement is mounting and the heady scent of competition is in the air as hundreds of eager contestants from across... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Michael Hitchcock, Parker Posey, Eugene Levy, Catherine O'Hara
Directed By: Christopher Guest
94%
Critics Consensus: Visually breathtaking and emotionally powerful, The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King is a moving and satisfying conclusion to a great trilogy.
Synopsis: The culmination of nearly 10 years' work and conclusion to Peter Jackson's epic trilogy based on the timeless J.R.R. Tolkien classic, "The Lord of the... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen
Directed By: Peter Jackson
93%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, earnest, and buoyed by Gal Gadot's charismatic performance, Wonder Woman succeeds in spectacular fashion.
Synopsis: Before she is Wonder Woman, she is Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior. Raised on a sheltered island paradise, Diana... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Gal Gadot, Chris Pine, Connie Nielsen, Robin Wright
Directed By: Patty Jenkins
93%
Critics Consensus: Narratively bold and visually striking, The Seventh Seal brought Ingmar Bergman to the world stage -- and remains every bit as compelling today.
Synopsis: When disillusioned Swedish knight Antonius Block returns home from the Crusades to find his country in the grips of the Black Death, he challenges Death... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Max von Sydow, Gunnar Björnstrand, Nils Poppe, Bibi Andersson
Directed By: Ingmar Bergman
94%
Critics Consensus: Powerfully effective, this anti-fascist political thriller stands out as both high-conscience melodrama and high-tempo action movie.
Synopsis: Repression is the rule of the day in this film that skewers Greek governance of the 1960s. Z (Yves Montand), a leftist rabble-rouser, is killed... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Yves Montand, Irene Papas, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Jacques Perrin
Directed By: Costa-Gavras
96%
Critics Consensus: A cinematic gift for Springsteen fans, Western Stars serves as a worthy companion piece to the album of the same name.
Synopsis: Backed by a band and a full orchestra, Bruce Springsteen performs all 13 songs from his new album "Western Stars," touching on themes of love,... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Patti Scialfa, Bruce Springsteen
Directed By: Thom Zimny, Bruce Springsteen
94%
Critics Consensus: L'Avventura marks a bewitchingly ambiguous milestone in Antonioni's career -- and European cinema in general.
Synopsis: In Michelangelo Antonioni's classic of Italian cinema, two lovely young women, Claudia (Monica Vitti) and Anna (Léa Massari), join the latter's lover, Sandro (Gabriele Ferzetti),... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Monica Vitti, Gabriele Ferzetti, Lea Massari, Dominique Blanchar
Directed By: Michelangelo Antonioni
94%
Critics Consensus: Led by an outstanding Peter Fonda performance, Ulee's Gold movingly depicts a family in crisis -- and a patriarch willing to sacrifice for the good of others.
Synopsis: Widowed beekeeper and Vietnam veteran Ulysses "Ulee" Jackson (Peter Fonda) raises his granddaughters because his son, Jimmy (Tom Wood), is in prison. When Jimmy finds... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Peter Fonda, Patricia Richardson, Jessica Biel, J. Kenneth Campbell
Directed By: Victor Nunez
95%
Critics Consensus: Enlivened by the antagonistic chemistry between Robert De Niro and Charles Grodin, Midnight Run is an uncommonly entertaining odd couple comedy.
Synopsis: When Eddie Moscone (Joe Pantoliano) hires tight-lipped bounty hunter Jack Walsh (Robert De Niro) to locate a mob accountant named "The Duke" (Charles Grodin) and... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Robert De Niro, Charles Grodin, Yaphet Kotto, John Ashton
Directed By: Martin Brest
94%
Critics Consensus: My Neighbor Totoro is a heartwarming, sentimental masterpiece that captures the simple grace of childhood.
Synopsis: This acclaimed animated tale by director Hayao Miyazaki follows schoolgirl Satsuke and her younger sister, Mei, as they settle into an old country house with... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Elle Fanning, Dakota Fanning, Tim Daly, Lea Salonga
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
87%
Critics Consensus: Superman: The Movie deftly blends humor and gravitas, taking advantage of the perfectly cast Christopher Reeve to craft a loving, nostalgic tribute to an American pop culture icon.
Synopsis: Just before the destruction of the planet Krypton, scientist Jor-El (Marlon Brando) sends his infant son Kal-El on a spaceship to Earth. Raised by kindly... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Marlon Brando, Margot Kidder
Directed By: Richard Donner
92%
Critics Consensus: Jack Nicholson and Louise Fletcher are worthy adversaries in One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest, with Miloš Forman's more grounded and morally ambiguous approach to Ken Kesey's surrealistic novel yielding a film of outsized power.
Synopsis: When Randle Patrick McMurphy gets transferred for evaluation from a prison farm to a mental institution, he assumes it will be a less restrictive environment.... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jack Nicholson, Louise Fletcher, Brad Dourif, William Redfield
Directed By: Milos Forman
94%
Critics Consensus: Affectionate without sacrificing honesty, Behind the Candelabra couples award-worthy performances from Michael Douglas and Matt Damon with some typically sharp direction from Steven Soderbergh.
Synopsis: World-famous pianist Liberace (Michael Douglas) takes much-younger Scott Thorson (Matt Damon) as a lover, but the relationship deteriorates when Liberace takes other bedmates and Thorson... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Michael Douglas, Matt Damon, Dan Aykroyd, Scott Bakula
Directed By: Steven Soderbergh
94%
Critics Consensus: Only the most hardened soul won't be moved by this heartwarming doc.
Synopsis: At the end of each Antarctic summer, the emperor penguins of the South Pole journey to their traditional breeding grounds in a fascinating mating ritual... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Morgan Freeman
Directed By: Luc Jacquet
94%
Critics Consensus: Exhilarating both stylistically and for its entertaining, moving portrayal of an everyman, American Splendor is a portrait of a true underground original.
Synopsis: Underground comic book writer Harvey Pekar, portrayed by Paul Giamatti but also appearing as himself, is the subject of this inventive biopic. Much of the... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Paul Giamatti, Harvey Pekar, Shari Springer Berman, Earl Billings
Directed By: Shari Springer Berman, Robert Pulcini
94%
Critics Consensus: With death-defying action sequences and epic historic sweep, Hero offers everything a martial arts fan could ask for.
Synopsis: In this visually arresting martial arts epic set in ancient China, an unnamed fighter (Jet Li) is being honored for defeating three of the king's... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jet Li, Tony Leung Chiu Wai, Maggie Cheung, Donnie Yen
Directed By: Yimou Zhang
95%
Critics Consensus: Anchored by another tremendous performance in a career full of them, All Is Lost offers a moving, eminently worthwhile testament to Robert Redford's ability to hold the screen.
Synopsis: During a solo voyage in the Indian Ocean, a veteran mariner (Robert Redford) awakes to find his vessel taking on water after a collision with... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Robert Redford
Directed By: J.C. Chandor
94%
Critics Consensus: Dark, complex, and unforgettable, The Dark Knight succeeds not just as an entertaining comic book film, but as a richly thrilling crime saga.
Synopsis: With the help of allies, Lt. Jim Gordon and DA Harvey Dent, Batman is able to keep a tight lid on crime in Gotham City.... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Christian Bale, Heath Ledger, Aaron Eckhart, Michael Caine
Directed By: Christopher Nolan
96%
Critics Consensus: A '60s time capsule stuffed with ideas about politics, pop culture, and the battle of the sexes, Masculine-Feminine is one of Godard's classic black-and-white films.
Synopsis: Paul (Jean-Pierre Léaud), a young idealist trying to figure out what he wants to do with his life, takes a job interviewing people for a... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Chantal Goya, Jean-Pierre Léaud, Marlène Jobert, Michel Debord
Directed By: Jean-Luc Godard
96%
Critics Consensus: A career high point for Akira Kurosawa -- and one of the best film adaptations of a Shakespeare play.
Synopsis: Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu (Toshirô Mifune) and Miki (Minoru Chiaki) are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Isuzu Yamada, Takashi Shimura, Minoru Chiaki
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
95%
Critics Consensus: The radiantly filmed Belle de Jour entrances even as it resists easy interpretations.
Synopsis: Beautiful young housewife Séverine Serizy (Catherine Deneuve) cannot reconcile her masochistic fantasies with her everyday life alongside dutiful husband Pierre (Jean Sorel). When her lovestruck... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Jean Sorel, Michel Piccoli, Macha Méril
Directed By: Luis Buñuel
95%
Critics Consensus: Ivan Reitman's refreshingly earnest political comedy benefits from an understated, charming script and a breezy performance by Kevin Kline.
Synopsis: Shifty White House chief of staff Bob Alexander hatches a scheme to use a double for the president at a public photo opportunity. Small business... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Frank Langella, Ben Kingsley
Directed By: Ivan Reitman
92%
Critics Consensus: Mean Streets is a powerful tale of urban sin and guilt that marks Scorsese's arrival as an important cinematic voice and features electrifying performances from Harvey Keitel and Robert De Niro.
Synopsis: A slice of street life in Little Italy among lower echelon Mafiosos, unbalanced punks, and petty criminals. A small-time hood gets in over his head... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Robert De Niro, Harvey Keitel, Richard Romanus, Amy Robinson
Directed By: Martin Scorsese
96%
Critics Consensus: Led by a volcanic performance from Elizabeth Taylor, Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf? is a scathing adaptation of the Edward Albee play that serves as a brilliant calling card for debuting director Mike Nichols.
Synopsis: History professor George (Richard Burton) and his boozy wife, Martha (Elizabeth Taylor), return late one Saturday night from a cocktail party at the home of... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Elizabeth Taylor, Richard Burton, George Segal, Sandy Dennis
Directed By: Mike Nichols
96%
Critics Consensus: With its magical optical effects and enchanting performances, Jean Cocteau's Beauty and the Beast remains the most surreal -- and soulful -- of the fairy tale's film adaptations.
Synopsis: The story of a gentlehearted beast in love with a simple and beautiful girl. She is drawn to the repellent but strangely fascinating Beast, who... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jean Marais, Josette Day, Mila Parély, Nane Germon
Directed By: Jean Cocteau
95%
Critics Consensus: Thoroughly disquieting but impossible to ignore, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief is a searing investigative work from a master documentarian.
Synopsis: Filmmaker Alex Gibney interviews former members of the Church of Scientology and reveals abuses and strange practices within the controversial organization.
Starring: Alex Gibney, Marina Zenovich, Sherry Stringfield, Paul Haggis
Directed By: Alex Gibney
95%
Critics Consensus: A crowd-pleasing tribute to the magic of silent cinema, The Artist is a clever, joyous film with delightful performances and visual style to spare.
Synopsis: In the 1920s, actor George Valentin (Jean Dujardin) is a bona fide matinée idol with many adoring fans. While working on his latest film, George... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jean Dujardin, Bérénice Bejo, John Goodman, James Cromwell
Directed By: Michel Hazanavicius
94%
Critics Consensus: Visually lush, refreshingly free of family-friendly clatter, and anchored with soulful depth, The Secret World of Arrietty lives up to Studio Ghibli's reputation.
Synopsis: Arrietty, a tiny teenager, lives with her parents in the recesses of a suburban home, unbeknown to the homeowner and housekeeper. Like others of her... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Bridgit Mendler, Amy Poehler, David Henrie, Will Arnett
Directed By: Hiromasa Yonebayashi, Gary Rydstrom
95%
Critics Consensus: The Two Towers balances spectacular action with emotional storytelling, leaving audiences both wholly satisfied and eager for the final chapter.
Synopsis: The sequel to the Golden Globe-nominated and AFI Award-winning "The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring," "The Two Towers" follows the continuing... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Elijah Wood, Ian McKellen, Liv Tyler, Viggo Mortensen
Directed By: Peter Jackson
94%
Critics Consensus: Framed by great work from director Sidney Lumet and fueled by a gripping performance from Al Pacino, Dog Day Afternoon offers a finely detailed snapshot of people in crisis with tension-soaked drama shaded in black humor.
Synopsis: When inexperienced criminal Sonny Wortzik (Al Pacino) leads a bank robbery in Brooklyn, things quickly go wrong, and a hostage situation develops. As Sonny and... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Al Pacino, John Cazale, Charles Durning, Chris Sarandon
Directed By: Sidney Lumet
96%
Critics Consensus: This re-imagining of Shakespeare's Crookback King relocates the story in 1930 and features an indelible star turn for Ian McKellen as the monstrous and magnetic King Richard.
Synopsis: A murderous lust for the British throne sees Richard III (Ian McKellen) descend into madness. Though the setting is transposed to the 1930s, England is... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Ian McKellen, Annette Bening, Jim Broadbent, Robert Downey Jr.
Directed By: Richard Loncraine
97%
Critics Consensus: Mr. Smith Goes to Washington -- and returns with an uplifting ode to idealism that distills the strengths of its director and leading man.
Synopsis: When the idealistic young Jefferson Smith (James Stewart) winds up appointed to the United States Senate, he gains the mentorship of Senator Joseph Paine (Claude... View Full Synopsis
Starring: James Stewart, Jean Arthur, Claude Rains, Edward Arnold
Directed By: Frank Capra
94%
Critics Consensus: Wild Strawberries were never so bittersweet as Ingmar Bergman's beautifully written and filmed look at one man's nostalgic journey into the past.
Synopsis: Crotchety retired doctor Isak Borg (Victor Sjöström) travels from Stockholm to Lund, Sweden, with his pregnant and unhappy daughter-in-law, Marianne (Ingrid Thulin), in order to... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Victor Sjöström, Ingrid Thulin, Bibi Andersson, Gunnar Björnstrand
Directed By: Ingmar Bergman
96%
Critics Consensus: A complex and timely satire with as much darkness as slapstick, Ernst Lubitsch's To Be or Not To Be delicately balances humor and ethics.
Synopsis: Acting couple Joseph (Jack Benny) and Maria Tura (Carole Lombard) are managing a theatrical troupe when the Nazis invade Poland. Maria is having an affair... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Carole Lombard, Jack Benny, Robert Stack, Felix Bressart
Directed By: Ernst Lubitsch
95%
Critics Consensus: Cruel, dark, but undeniably effective, Diabolique is a suspense thriller as effective as Hitchcock's best work and with a brilliant twist ending.
Synopsis: In this classic of French suspense, the cruel and abusive headmaster of a boarding school, Michel Delassalle, becomes the target of a murder plot hatched... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Simone Signoret, Véra Clouzot, Paul Meurisse, Charles Vanel
Directed By: Henri-Georges Clouzot
94%
Critics Consensus: This tense, paranoid thriller presents Francis Ford Coppola at his finest -- and makes some remarkably advanced arguments about technology's role in society that still resonate today.
Synopsis: Surveillance expert Harry Caul (Gene Hackman) is hired by a mysterious client's brusque aide (Harrison Ford) to tail a young couple, Mark (Frederic Forrest) and... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Gene Hackman, John Cazale, Frederic Forrest, Allen Garfield
Directed By: Francis Ford Coppola
96%
Critics Consensus: Exhilarating and intense, this high-impact chase thriller is a model of taut and efficient formula filmmaking, and it features Harrison Ford at his frantic best.
Synopsis: Wrongfully accused of murdering his wife, Richard Kimble escapes from the law in an attempt to find her killer and clear his name. Pursuing him... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Harrison Ford, Tommy Lee Jones, Sela Ward, Julianne Moore
Directed By: Andrew Davis
96%
Critics Consensus: With Revanche, Götz Spielmann has crafted a debut as surprising as it is suspenseful.
Synopsis: In a desperate attempt to improve life for his prostitute girlfriend, Tamara (Irina Potapenko), ex-con Alex (Johannes Krisch) returns to a life of crime and... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Johannes Krisch, Andreas Lust, Irina Potapenko, Ursula Strauss
Directed By: Götz Spielmann
93%
Critics Consensus: Hard-hitting and stylish, GoodFellas is a gangster classic -- and arguably the high point of Martin Scorsese's career.
Synopsis: Henry Hill, a poor Irish-Italian growing up in the 1950s New York City, rises through the ranks of his neighborhood's organized crime branch; he ends... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Robert De Niro, Ray Liotta, Joe Pesci, Lorraine Bracco
Directed By: Martin Scorsese
96%
Critics Consensus: Birds of Passage traces the familiar arc of the drug crime thriller from a different direction that's as visually absorbing as it is hard-hitting.
Synopsis: The origins of the Colombian drug trade, as seen through the eyes of an indigenous Wayuu family that becomes involved in the booming business of... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Carmina Martínez, Natalia Reyes, José Acosta, Jhon Narváez
Directed By: Cristina Gallego, Ciro Guerra
96%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, powerfully acted, and visually dazzling, Deathly Hallows Part II brings the Harry Potter franchise to a satisfying -- and suitably magical -- conclusion.
Synopsis: A clash between good and evil awaits as young Harry, Ron and Hermione prepare for a final battle against Lord Voldemort. Harry has grown into... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, Ralph Fiennes
Directed By: David Yates
97%
Critics Consensus: Raw and rich in decade-spanning detail, Jane Fonda in Five Acts paints a living portrait of one popular culture's most compelling figures.
Synopsis: A look at the life, work, activism and controversies of actress and fitness tycoon Jane Fonda.
Starring: Jane Fonda, Tom Hayden, Robert Redford, Lily Tomlin
Directed By: Susan Lacy
98%
Critics Consensus: A film that requires and rewards patience in equal measure, Pather Panchali finds director Satyajit Ray delivering a classic with his debut.
Synopsis: Impoverished priest Harihar Ray, dreaming of a better life for himself and his family, leaves his rural Bengal village in search of work. Alone, his... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Kanu Bannerjee, Karuna Bannerjee, Subir Bannerjee, Runki Banerjee
Directed By: Satyajit Ray
98%
Critics Consensus: The Red Shoes is one of the best-looking movies ever, and blends multiple moods and styles with balletic grace.
Synopsis: In this classic drama, Vicky Page (Moira Shearer) is an aspiring ballerina torn between her dedication to dance and her desire to love. While her... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Moira Shearer, Anton Walbrook, Marius Goring, Robert Helpmann
Directed By: Michael Powell, Emeric Pressburger
95%
Critics Consensus: Breathless rewrote the rules of cinema -- and more than 50 years after its arrival, Jean-Luc Godard's paradigm-shifting classic remains every bit as vital.
Synopsis: Petty thug Michel (Jean-Paul Belmondo) considers himself a suave bad guy in the manner of Humphrey Bogart, but panics and impulsively kills a policeman while... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jean-Paul Belmondo, Jean Seberg, Daniel Boulanger, Jean-Pierre Melville
Directed By: Jean-Luc Godard
97%
Critics Consensus: Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck makes a persuasive case for its subject without resorting to hagiography -- and includes plenty of rare and unreleased footage for fans.
Synopsis: Filmmaker Brett Morgen uses material from the Cobains' personal archives in an in-depth examination of the Nirvana frontman's childhood, music career and untimely death.
Starring: Aaron Burckhard, Don Cobain, Jenny Cobain, Kim Cobain
Directed By: Brett Morgen
97%
Critics Consensus: A suspenseful, gripping documentary that features an engaging cross section of American children.
Synopsis: Eight youthful competitors, sponsored by their hometown newspapers, travel with their families to Washington, D.C., to compete in the 1999 Scripps National Spelling Bee. Now... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Paige Kimble, Jonathan Knisely, Balu Natarajan, Julianne Ruth
Directed By: Jeffrey Blitz
97%
Critics Consensus: In a striking debut, Moreno carries the movie and puts a human face on the drug trade.
Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Colombian Maria (Catalina Sandino Moreno) is desperate: pregnant and with a large family to care for, she's forced to leave a demanding job after... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Catalina Sandino Moreno, Yenny Paola Vega, Guilied Lopez, Jhon Álex Toro
Directed By: Joshua Marston
97%
Critics Consensus: A haunting depiction of a disintegrating family, and a powerful argument on the elusiveness of truth.
Synopsis: The Friedmans seem at first to be a typical family - until one Thanksgiving while they are gathered at home preparing for a quiet holiday... View Full Synopsis
Starring: David Friedman, Jesse Friedman, Elaine Friedman
Directed By: Andrew Jarecki
96%
Critics Consensus: Spirited Away is a dazzling, enchanting, and gorgeously drawn fairy tale that will leave viewers a little more curious and fascinated by the world around them.
Synopsis: 10-year-old Chihiro moves with her parents to a new home in the Japanese countryside. After taking a wrong turn down a wooded path, Chihiro and... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Daveigh Chase, Suzanne Pleshette, Jason Marsden, Susan Egan
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
98%
Critics Consensus: A slapstick skewering of industrialized America, Modern Times is as politically incisive as it is laugh-out-loud hilarious.
Synopsis: This comedic masterpiece finds the iconic Little Tramp (Charlie Chaplin) employed at a state-of-the-art factory where the inescapable machinery completely overwhelms him, and where various... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Charlie Chaplin, Paulette Goddard, Henry Bergman, Tiny Sandford
Directed By: Charlie Chaplin
100%
Critics Consensus: An engrossing documentary that's as much about a time and a place as it is about a fight.
Synopsis: On October 30, 1974, perhaps the most famous heavyweight championship boxing match of all time took place in Kinshasa, Zaire: the "Rumble in the Jungle"... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Muhammad Ali, George Foreman, Don King, B.B. King
Directed By: Leon Gast
98%
Critics Consensus: No doubt most will come to My Left Foot for Daniel Day-Lewis' performance, but the movie's refusal to go downbeat will keep it in viewer minds afterwards.
Synopsis: No one expects much from Christy Brown (Daniel Day-Lewis), a boy with cerebral palsy born into a working-class Irish family. Though Christy is a spastic... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Daniel Day-Lewis, Ray McAnally, Brenda Fricker, Ruth McCabe
Directed By: Jim Sheridan
98%
Critics Consensus: A Star is Born is a movie of grand scope and intimate moments, featuring Judy Garland's possibly greatest performance.
Synopsis: Hollywood actor Norman Maine (James Mason) is a celebrity whose star is on the wane, but when he meets aspiring actress Esther Blodgett (Judy Garland),... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Judy Garland, James Mason, Jack Carson, Charles Bickford
Directed By: George Cukor
98%
Critics Consensus: Ikiru is a well-acted and deeply moving humanist tale about a man facing his own mortality, one of legendary director Akira Kurosawa's most intimate films.
Synopsis: Mr. Watanabe suddenly finds that he has terminal cancer. He vows to make his final days meaningful. His attempts to communicate his anguish to his... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Takashi Shimura, Miki Odagiri, Kyôko Seki
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
98%
Critics Consensus: The Young Girls of Rochefort pays colorful homage to classic Hollywood musicals while earning its own emotionally affecting place of honor in the genre.
Synopsis: Delphine (Catherine Deneuve) and Solange (Françoise Dorléac) are twin sisters who each want to find romance and leave their small seaside town of Rochefort, France.... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Françoise Dorléac, Jacques Perrin, Danielle Darrieux
Directed By: Jacques Demy
98%
Critics Consensus: One of Alfred Hitchcock's last British films, this glamorous thriller provides an early glimpse of the director at his most stylishly entertaining.
Synopsis: On a train headed for England a group of travelers is delayed by an avalanche. Holed up in a hotel in a fictional European country,... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Margaret Lockwood, Michael Redgrave, Dame May Whitty, Paul Lukas
Directed By: Alfred Hitchcock
96%
Critics Consensus: Three Colors: Blue contains some of director/co-writer Krzysztof Kieslowski's most visually arresting, emotionally resonant work -- and boasts an outstanding performance from Juliette Binoche in the bargain.
Synopsis: Julie (Juliette Binoche) is haunted by her grief after living through a tragic auto wreck that claimed the life of her composer husband and young... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Juliette Binoche, Benoît Régent, Florence Pernel, Charlotte Véry
Directed By: Krzysztof Kieslowski
97%
Critics Consensus: Inventive, thought-provoking, and funny, 8 1/2 represents the arguable peak of Federico Fellini's many towering feats of cinema.
Synopsis: Troubled Italian filmmaker Guido Anselmi (Marcello Mastroianni) struggles with creative stasis as he attempts to get a new movie off the ground. Overwhelmed by his... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Marcello Mastroianni, Claudia Cardinale, Anouk Aimée, Sandra Milo
Directed By: Federico Fellini
97%
Critics Consensus: A horrific tale of guilt and obsession, Eyes Without a Face is just as chilling and poetic today as it was when it was first released.
Synopsis: Dr. Génessier (Pierre Brasseur) is riddled with guilt after an accident that he caused disfigures the face of his daughter, the once beautiful Christiane (Edith... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Pierre Brasseur, Alida Valli, Edith Scob, Juliette Mayniel
Directed By: Georges Franju
98%
Critics Consensus: One of legendary director Akira Kurosawa's most acclaimed films, Rashomon features an innovative narrative structure, brilliant acting, and a thoughtful exploration of reality versus perception.
Synopsis: Brimming with action while incisively examining the nature of truth, "Rashomon" is perhaps the finest film ever to investigate the philosophy of justice. Through an... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Machiko Kyō, Takashi Shimura, Masayuki Mori
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
95%
Critics Consensus: Beyond ravishing, Wings of Desire is Wim Wenders' is aching and heartbreaking exploration of how love makes us human.
Synopsis: Two angels, Damiel (Bruno Ganz) and Cassiel (Otto Sander), glide through the streets of Berlin, observing the bustling population, providing invisible rays of hope to... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Bruno Ganz, Solveig Dommartin, Otto Sander, Curt Bois
Directed By: Wim Wenders
98%
Critics Consensus: The Passion of Joan of Arc is must-see cinema for Renée Maria Falconetti's incredible performance alone -- and an all-time classic for innumerable other reasons.
Synopsis: Spiritual rapture and institutional hypocrisy come to stark, vivid life in one of the most transcendent masterpieces of the silent era. Chronicling the trial of... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Maria Falconetti, Eugene Silvain, André Berley, Maurice Schultz
Directed By: Carl Theodor Dreyer
98%
Critics Consensus: One of the most critically acclaimed documentaries of all time, Hoop Dreams is a rich, complex, heartbreaking, and ultimately deeply rewarding film that uses high school hoops as a jumping-off point to explore issues of race, class, and education in modern America.
Synopsis: Every school day, African-American teenagers William Gates and Arthur Agee travel 90 minutes each way from inner-city Chicago to St. Joseph High School in Westchester,... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Steve James, William Gates, Arthur Agee, Sheila Agee
Directed By: Steve James
97%
Critics Consensus: A feverish rendition of a heart-rending story, A Streetcar Named Desire gives Tennessee Williams' stage play explosive power on the screen thanks to Elia Kazan's searing direction and a sterling ensemble at the peak of their craft.
Synopsis: Based on the play by Tennessee Williams, this renowned drama follows troubled former schoolteacher Blanche DuBois (Vivien Leigh) as she leaves small-town Mississippi and moves... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Marlon Brando, Vivien Leigh, Kim Hunter, Karl Malden
Directed By: Elia Kazan
99%
Critics Consensus: An Italian neorealism exemplar, Bicycle Thieves thrives on its non-flashy performances and searing emotion.
Synopsis: Unemployed Antonio Ricci (Lamberto Maggiorani) is elated when he finally finds work hanging posters around war-torn Rome. His wife, Maria (Lianella Carell), sells the family's... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Lamberto Maggiorani, Lianella Carell, Enzo Staiola, Elena Altieri
Directed By: Vittorio De Sica
98%
Critics Consensus: Stanley Kubrick's brilliant Cold War satire remains as funny and razor-sharp today as it was in 1964.
Synopsis: A film about what could happen if the wrong person pushed the wrong button -- and it played the situation for laughs. U.S. Air Force... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Peter Sellers, George C. Scott, Keenan Wynn, Slim Pickens
Directed By: Stanley Kubrick
97%
Critics Consensus: King Kong explores the soul of a monster -- making audiences scream and cry throughout the film -- in large part due to Kong's breakthrough special effects.
Synopsis: Actress Ann Darrow (Fay Wray) and director Carl Denham (Robert Armstrong) travel to the Indian Ocean to do location shoots for Denham's new jungle picture.... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Fay Wray, Bruce Cabot, Robert Armstrong, Frank Reicher
Directed By: Merian C. Cooper, Ernest B. Schoedsack
97%
Critics Consensus: Bitingly cynical without succumbing to bitterness, The Player is one of the all-time great Hollywood satires -- and an ensemble-driven highlight of the Altman oeuvre.
Synopsis: Certain that the anonymous threats he's been receiving are the work of David Kahane (Vincent D'Onofrio), producer Griffin Mill (Tim Robbins) tries to fix things... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Tim Robbins, Greta Scacchi, Fred Ward, Whoopi Goldberg
Directed By: Robert Altman
98%
Critics Consensus: A triumphant coda to a beloved series, Deadwood: The Movie will satisfy fans longing for a little f---ing closure.
Synopsis: Saloon owner Al Swearengen clashes with Sheriff Seth Bullock as the residents of Deadwood celebrate South Dakota's statehood in 1889.
Starring: Ian McShane, Timothy Olyphant, Molly Parker, Paula Malcomson
Directed By: Daniel Minahan
98%
Critics Consensus: A Hard Day's Night, despite its age, is still a delight to watch and has proven itself to be a rock-and-roll movie classic.
Synopsis: The Beatles in their feature film debut, one of the greatest rock-and-roll comedy adventures ever. The film has a fully restored negative and digitally restored... View Full Synopsis
Starring: The Beatles, Wilfrid Brambell, Norman Rossington, John Junkin
Directed By: Richard Lester
97%
Critics Consensus: Helmed in elegant and exhilarating style by Spike Lee, David Byrne's American Utopia is a concert film that doubles as a joyously cathartic celebration.
Synopsis: Singer David Byrne and a group of international musicians perform songs from the hit Broadway musical "American Utopia."
Starring: David Byrne
Directed By: Spike Lee
98%
Critics Consensus: An absolute masterpiece whose groundbreaking visuals and deft storytelling are still every bit as resonant, The Wizard of Oz is a must-see film for young and old.
Synopsis: When a tornado rips through Kansas, Dorothy and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to the magical land of Oz. They follow... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Judy Garland, Frank Morgan, Ray Bolger, Bert Lahr
Directed By: Victor Fleming
97%
Critics Consensus: Jacques Demy elevates the basic drama of everyday life into a soaring opera full of bittersweet passion and playful charm, featuring a timeless performance from Catherine Deneuve.
Synopsis: Geneviève (Catherine Deneuve), a beautiful young Frenchwoman who works at a small-town boutique selling umbrellas, falls for dashing mechanic Guy (Nino Castelnuovo). Their brief romance... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Catherine Deneuve, Nino Castelnuovo, Anne Vernon, Marc Michel
Directed By: Jacques Demy
99%
Critics Consensus: The Tale handles its extraordinarily challenging subject matter with sensitivity, grace, and the power of some standout performances led by a remarkable Laura Dern.
Synopsis: Jennifer has it all, with a loving boyfriend and a great career as a journalist and professor. But when her mother discovers a story -... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Laura Dern, Elizabeth Debicki, Laura Allen, Jason Ritter
Directed By: Jennifer Fox
99%
Critics Consensus: A documentary-like depiction of a nation's real-life efforts to expel a colonizing force, The Battle of Algiers puts viewers on the front lines with gripping realism.
Synopsis: Paratrooper commander Colonel Mathieu (Jean Martin), a former French Resistance fighter during World War II, is sent to 1950s Algeria to reinforce efforts to squelch... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Jean Martin, Yacef Saadi, Brahim Haggiag, Tommaso Neri
Directed By: Gillo Pontecorvo
99%
Critics Consensus: Orson Welles's epic tale of a publishing tycoon's rise and fall is entertaining, poignant, and inventive in its storytelling, earning its reputation as a landmark achievement in film.
Synopsis: When a reporter is assigned to decipher newspaper magnate Charles Foster Kane's (Orson Welles) dying words, his investigation gradually reveals the fascinating portrait of a... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Orson Welles, Joseph Cotten, Ruth Warrick, Everett Sloane
Directed By: Orson Welles
99%
Critics Consensus: An undisputed masterpiece and perhaps Hollywood's quintessential statement on love and romance, Casablanca has only improved with age, boasting career-defining performances from Humphrey Bogart and Ingrid Bergman.
Synopsis: Rick Blaine (Humphrey Bogart), who owns a nightclub in Casablanca, discovers his old flame Ilsa (Ingrid Bergman) is in town with her husband, Victor Laszlo... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Ingrid Bergman, Paul Henreid, Claude Rains
Directed By: Michael Curtiz
100%
Critics Consensus: Marvelously directed by Sebastian Lelio and beautifully led by a powerful performance from Paulina Garcia, Gloria takes an honest, sweetly poignant look at a type of character that's all too often neglected in Hollywood.
Synopsis: An aging divorcee (Paulina García) embarks on an intense affair with a man (Sergio Hernández) she picked up at a disco.
Starring: Paulina García, Sergio Hernández, Diego Fontecilla, Coca Guazzini
Directed By: Sebastián Lelio
99%
Critics Consensus: Powerfully acted and directed, Never Rarely Sometimes Always reaffirms writer-director Eliza Hittman as a filmmaker of uncommon sensitivity and grace.
Synopsis: Faced with an unintended pregnancy and a lack of local support, Autumn and her cousin, Skylar, travel across state lines to New York City on... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Ryan Eggold, Théodore Pellerin, Sharon Van Etten, Sidney Flanigan
Directed By: Eliza Hittman
98%
Critics Consensus: Perhaps Kenneth Branagh's most fully realized Shakespeare adaptation, Henry V is an energetic, passionate, and wonderfully acted film.
Synopsis: In this gritty screen adaptation of Shakespeare's play about the heroic and ruthless king, Henry V of England (Kenneth Branagh) determines to lay claim to... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Kenneth Branagh, Derek Jacobi, Brian Blessed, Ian Holm
Directed By: Kenneth Branagh
100%
Critics Consensus: Open City fills in the familiar contours of its storyline with three-dimensional characters and a narrative depth that add up to a towering -- and still powerfully resonant -- cinematic achievement.
Synopsis: Rome, 1944. Giorgio Manfredi, one of the leaders of the Resistance is tracked down by the Nazis. He goes to his friend Francesco's, and asks... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Aldo Fabrizi, Anna Magnani, Marcello Pagliero, Maria Michi
Directed By: Roberto Rossellini
100%
Critics Consensus: An existential suspense classic, The Wages of Fear blends nonstop suspense with biting satire; its influence is still being felt on today's thrillers.
Synopsis: In the South American jungle, supplies of nitroglycerine are needed at a remote oil field. The oil company pays four men to deliver the supplies... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Yves Montand, Charles Vanel, Peter van Eyck, Véra Clouzot
Directed By: Henri-Georges Clouzot
100%
Critics Consensus: Typifying the best that the Western genre has to offer, Stagecoach is a rip-roaring adventure given dramatic heft by John Ford's dynamic direction and John Wayne's mesmerizing star turn.
Synopsis: John Ford's landmark Western revolves around an assorted group of colorful passengers aboard the Overland stagecoach bound for Lordsburg, New Mexico, in the 1880s. An... View Full Synopsis
Starring: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Andy Devine, John Carradine
Directed By: John Ford
100%
Critics Consensus: Tokyo Story is a Yasujiro Ozu masterpiece whose rewarding complexity has lost none of its power more than half a century on.
Synopsis: The elderly Shukishi (Chishu Ryu) and his wife, Tomi (Chieko Higashiyama), take the long journey from their small seaside village to visit their adult children... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Chishu Ryu, Chieko Higashiyama, Setsuko Hara, Haruko Sugimura
Directed By: Yasujirô Ozu
100%
Critics Consensus: A technical masterpiece, Battleship Potemkin is Soviet cinema at its finest, and its montage editing techniques remain influential to this day.
Synopsis: When they are fed rancid meat, the sailors on the Potemkin revolt against their harsh conditions. Led by Vakulinchuk, the sailors kill the officers of... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Aleksandr Antonov, Vladimir Barskiy, Grigoriy Aleksandrov, Mikhail Gomorov
Directed By: Sergei M. Eisenstein
98%
Critics Consensus: A delightful blend of slapstick humor, poignant emotion, and social commentary, The Gold Rush encapsulates Chaplin's strengths as a writer, director, and star.
Synopsis: In this classic silent comedy, the Little Tramp (Charles Chaplin) heads north to join in the Klondike gold rush. Trapped in a small cabin by... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Charlie Chaplin, Mack Swain, Tom Murray, Georgia Hale
Directed By: Charlie Chaplin
100%
Critics Consensus: A complex, stirring, and beautifully realized portrait of interconnected lives, Red is the captivating conclusion to a remarkable trilogy.
Synopsis: Part-time model Valentine (Irène Jacob) meets a retired judge (Jean-Louis Trintignant) who lives in her neighborhood after she runs over his dog. At first the... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Irène Jacob, Jean-Louis Trintignant, Jean-Pierre Lorit, Frédérique Feder
Directed By: Krzysztof Kieslowski
100%
Critics Consensus: Thanks to director Juzo Itami's offbeat humor and sharp satirical edge, Tampopo is a funny, sexy, affectionate celebration of food and its broad influence on Japanese culture.
Synopsis: Two Japanese milk-truck drivers (Tsutomu Yamazaki, Ken Watanabe) help a restaurant owner (Nobuko Miyamoto) learn how to cook great noodles.
Starring: Tsutomu Yamazaki, Nobuko Miyamoto, Ken Watanabe, Kôji Yakusho
Directed By: Juzo Itami
100%
Critics Consensus: Only Yesterday's long-delayed U.S. debut fills a frustrating gap for American Ghibli fans while offering further proof of the studio's incredibly consistent commitment to quality.
Synopsis: A put-upon 27-year-old Japanese office worker travels to the countryside and reminisces about her childhood in Tokyo and what life could have been.
Starring: Daisy Ridley, Dev Patel, Ashley Eckstein, Alison Fernandez
Directed By: Isao Takahata
99%
Critics Consensus: Suspenseful, labyrinthine, and brilliantly cast, The Maltese Falcon is one of the most influential noirs -- as well as a showcase for Humphrey Bogart at his finest.
Synopsis: In this noir classic, detective Sam Spade (Humphrey Bogart) gets more than he bargained for when he takes a case brought to him by a... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Humphrey Bogart, Mary Astor, Peter Lorre, Gladys George
Directed By: John Huston
100%
Critics Consensus: Bright Lights: Starring Carrie Fisher and Debbie Reynolds is a touching, bittersweet, and ultimately charming love story that serves as a poignantly effective tribute to the strangely complicated, uniquely resilient mother/daughter duo.
Synopsis: A portrait of Hollywood royalty Carrie Fisher and her mother, Debbie Reynolds.
Starring: Carrie Fisher, Debbie Reynolds
Directed By: Alexis Bloom, Fisher Stevens
100%
Critics Consensus: A landmark psychological thriller with arresting images, deep thoughts on modern society, and Peter Lorre in his finest performance.
Synopsis: In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert, a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt. Beckert's heinous... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Peter Lorre, Ellen Widmann, Inge Landgut, Otto Wernicke
Directed By: Fritz Lang
100%
Critics Consensus: Clever, incisive, and funny, Singin' in the Rain is a masterpiece of the classical Hollywood musical.
Synopsis: A spoof of the turmoil that afflicted the movie industry in the late 1920s when movies went from silent to sound. When two silent movie... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, Donald O'Connor, Jean Hagen
Directed By: Stanley Donen, Gene Kelly
100%
Critics Consensus: Offering a wonderfully witty script, spotless direction from George Cukor, and typically excellent lead performances, The Philadelphia Story is an unqualified classic.
Synopsis: This classic romantic comedy focuses on Tracy Lord (Katharine Hepburn), a Philadelphia socialite who has split from her husband, C.K. Dexter Haven (Cary Grant), due... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, James Stewart, Ruth Hussey
Directed By: George Cukor
100%
Critics Consensus: Arguably Akira Kurosawa's masterpiece, The Seven Samurai is an epic adventure classic with an engrossing story, memorable characters, and stunning action sequences that make it one of the most influential films ever made.
Synopsis: A samurai answers a village's request for protection after he falls on hard times. The town needs protection from bandits, so the samurai gathers six... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Toshiro Mifune, Takashi Shimura, Yoshio Inaba, Seiji Miyaguchi
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
100%
Critics Consensus: Boasting narrative depth, frank honesty, and exquisite visual beauty, The Tale of the Princess Kaguya is a modern animated treasure with timeless appeal.
Synopsis: A tiny nymph found inside a bamboo stalk grows into a beautiful and desirable young woman, who orders her suitors to prove their love by... View Full Synopsis
Starring: Chloë Grace Moretz, James Caan, Mary Steenburgen, Darren Criss
Directed By: Isao Takahata




