This post is updated regularly as movies leave and enter Netflix. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.
With hundreds of films from around the world on the streaming giant that changed the game, how does one even know what to watch when they fire up their Netflix? Start here! We’ve gone through the many films available on the platform and pared down the selection to 30 must-see titles, including acclaimed dramas, action films, comedies, horror flicks, and even stuff for the whole family, with Netflix Originals peppered in throughout, alongside its licensed films. No algorithm nonsense here: Our picks represent the personal favorites of seasoned movie critics, and they’re updated every week and month to include or remove films that join or depart from the streaming service. This list represents the best of Netflix’s movie offerings, and it starts with a new rotating critic’s pick of the week.
This Week’s Critic’s Pick
*Aftersun
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 41m
Director: Charlotte Wells
What a beautiful movie this is, one of the best of the 2020s so far and it’s nowhere else for streaming subscribers. Paul Mescal earned an Oscar nomination for his work as the father of an 11-year-old girl, played by the wonderful Frankie Corio. Aftersun is actually a memory piece, a drama about that moment in life when you realize your parents are human too. It’s gorgeous.
Drama
Dark Waters
Year: 2019
Runtime: 2h 7m
Director: Todd Haynes
Dark Waters will make you angry. Mark Ruffalo stars in this true story from director Todd Haynes, known for more formally ambitious stuff but able to nail the old-fashioned outrage needed for this one. Based on a New York Times article, the movie details an investigation into the DuPont corporation’s poisoning of a small town with chemicals in the drinking water. Ruffalo is great, and so are Anne Hathaway, Tim Robbins, and especially the great Bill Camp.
Glengarry Glen Ross
Year: 1992
Runtime: 1h 40m
Director: James Foley
For a long time, it felt like David Mamet’s Pulitzer Prize-winning 1984 masterpiece was unfilmable, but Foley, working with the playwright as screenwriter, figured it out, assembling one of the best ensembles of the ‘90s to do so. Alec Baldwin notoriously steals his one scene, but the entire cast here is a stunner, especially Al Pacino (who was Oscar-nominated), Alan Arkin, and Jack Lemmon.
La La Land
Year: 2016
Runtime: 2h 7m
Director: Damien Chazelle
Has history relegated this hit movie to the “film that lost Best Picture to Moonlight?” Hopefully not because La La Land is still a wonderful musical, a story of intertwining souls in Los Angeles as they balance love and their impossible dreams. Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone do their best film work to date in this film that’s even better than you remember.
May December
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 57m
Director: Todd Haynes
Julianne Moore and Natalie Portman star in the latest from Carol and Far from Heaven director Todd Haynes, a stunning character study of an actress who discovers that some people are impossible to figure out. Portman plays a star who tries to get under the skin of Moore’s character, a woman who raped a child when she was a teacher, and later married that young man. Charles Melton is phenomenal as the now-grown victim, stuck in perpetual adolescence.
Moneyball
Year: 2011
Runtime: 2h 13m
Director: Bennett Miller
One of the best baseball movies ever made was adapted from the 2003 book by Michael Lewis, which recounts the management of the 2002 season of the Oakland Athletics, and how they changed the way the game is run by bringing analytics into the mix. Brad Pitt gives one of his best performances as general manager Billy Beane, a man who knew he would have to find a new way to evaluate talent if the A’s were going to compete. This is a rich, smart, riveting movie that’s extra-interesting given what the Oakland franchise is going through in 2024.
The Nest
Year: 2020
Runtime: 1h 47m
Director: Sean Durkin
A victim of the pandemic, this was one of the best films of 2020. Carrie Coon and Jude Law star as a married couple with two kids who move from New York City to London in the 1980s and watch as the divides in their union start to widen. A great character study amplified by Durkin’s sharp visual language, this is a fantastic domestic drama, and the best movie on this list that you probably haven’t seen.
The Power of the Dog
Year: 2021
Runtime: 2h 6m
Director: Jane Campion
The film that finally won an Oscar for Jane Campion for directing is one of the most acclaimed in the history of the streaming giant. Campion helmed this adaptation of the novel of the same name by Thomas Savage, the story of a vicious landowner (Benedict Cumberbatch) who torments the new wife (Kirsten Dunst) of his brother (Jesse Plemons). A drama that plays like a thriller, this gorgeously rendered period piece unpacks themes of toxic masculinity and manipulation in a way that makes it impossible to turn away.
Traffic
Year: 2000
Runtime: 2h 27m
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Steven Soderbergh and Benicio del Toro won Oscars for an epic examination of the illegal drug trade at the turn of the century. One of the incredible craftsman’s best films, Traffic tackles no less than the entire structure of drugs in North America, intertwining stories of users, politicians, traffickers, and lawmen. Some of the movie feels a little dated, but the sheer force of the filmmaking will always be timeless.
Wild Things
Year: 1998
Runtime: 1h 48m
Director: John McNaughton
A classic of the B-movie sleazy thriller era, this is actually a deeply underrated movie, a flick that works from old-fashioned noir and even Greek tragedy to tell the tale of two teenagers (Neve Campbell, Denise Richard) who get caught up in a scheme with a slimy teacher played perfectly by Matt Dillon. It’s remembered most for its sex factor, but this is a clever flick, a movie that plays with class and privilege in fascinating ways.
Action
1917
Year: 2019
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: Sam Mendes
This Oscar winner doesn’t land on streaming services very often, so take this chance while you can. Sam Mendes directs a visceral recounting of a personal story told to him by his grandfather about his time in World War I, allowing the harrowing journey of a British soldier (George MacKay) to unfold in one unforgettable, unbroken shot.
Baby Driver
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 53m
Director: Edgar Wright
It’s a little harder to watch this movie now given the allegations against some of its cast members, but it’s still a remarkably well-made piece of action filmmaking, the kinetically unforgettable story of a getaway driver who knows all the best tunes. Ansel Elgort, Jamie Foxx, and Lily James may be the stars of this movie, but it’s Wright’s showmanship that really steals the spotlight.
*Back to the Future
Year: 1985
Runtime: 1h 56m
Director: Robert Zemeckis
Robert Zemeckis directed all three movies in one of the most beloved trilogies of all time. The story of a teen who goes back in time turned Michael J. Fox into a household name and still serves as the template for how to do this kind of family/sci-fi adventure. The two sequels may not be as good but they’re better than you remember. And all three are on Netflix.
Everything Everywhere All at Once
Year: 2022
Runtime: 2h 19m
Directors: The Daniels
After a brief stint on Amazon Prime, this is the first Netflix drop for the 2023 Best Picture winner, a movie that defies categorization as it tells a story of alternate realities and butt plugs. A film that debuted at SXSW, this daring piece of work built an audience through 2022 until it won multiple Oscars, including Best Picture and Director. It’s like nothing else. Anywhere.
Godzilla Minus One
Year: 2023
Runtime: 2h 5m
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
Netflix stunned people when they stealthily dropped this worldwide hit on their service, making a movie that wasn’t even on VOD finally available at home. The winner of the Oscar for Best Visual Effects, Godzilla Minus One is a masterful blend of action and social commentary, considered by many to be among the best in this generations-spanning franchise.
The Killer
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: David Fincher
Michael Fassbender gives his best performance in years as an icy hired assassin who struggles to hold things together when a job goes horribly wrong. It’s a movie about a self-proclaimed perfectionist who is constantly defying his own voiceover, a great film that’s alternately hysterical and thrilling. One of the best of 2023.
The Matrix
Year: 1999
Runtime: 2h 16m
Director: The Wachowskis
Neo and the gang returned to HBO Max in late 2021 with The Matrix Resurrections, and the response was predictably divisive. You know what’s not divisive? The fact that the first movie still absolutely rules. The story of an average guy who learns that nothing is what it seems has influenced so much pop culture in the over-two decades since this movie was released. You can see Neo everywhere. (And you can watch the entire original trilogy on Netflix now.)
Miami Vice
Year: 2006
Runtime: 2h 12m
Director: Michael Mann
Just over 20 years after the premiere of the hit series that introduced the world to Crockett and Tubbs, Michael Mann returned to Florida for this stylized adaptation starring Colin Farrell and Jamie Foxx. Divisive on its release because it’s not exactly a traditional blockbuster, Miami Vice has developed a loyal following over the years for its gorgeous cinematography and intoxicating style.
Oldboy
Year: 2003
Runtime: 2h
Director: Park Chan-wook
It’s hard to explain to people how this movie moved through the film-loving world before Film Twitter was a thing. Recently restored for its 20th anniversary, Oldboy has now been dropped on Netflix again, and it’s lost none of its searing power. It’s the tale of a man who is kidnapped, and its genius is that it’s not a whodunit as much as a whydunit, forcing viewers and protagonists to wonder about a truly grisly motive until the final unforgettable act.
Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse
Year: 2023
Runtime: 2h 20m
Director: Joaquim Dos Santos, Kemp Powers, Justin K. Thompson
What a gift to Netflix subscribers for this to already be on the service, mere weeks after playing in theaters and landing on Blu-ray. This is how you do a big-budget blockbuster sequel, developing the themes of the first movie and setting up the stake for what now appears will be one of the best trilogies in superhero history. Packed with so much detail and creativity, it’s a film Netflix subscribers will want to watch over and over again. Do so while you still can.
*Spider-Man 2
Year: 2004
Runtime: 2h 7m
Director: Sam Raimi
Most superhero movies on streaming services are the exclusive property now of Disney+ given their ownership of the MCU, but Sony superhero films are allowed to escape the clutches every now and then and find their way to other streaming services. Right now, all three films from Sam Raimi are on Netflix. The second film is easily still the best, but they’re all worth a rewatch (yes, even the third one).
Comedy
Hit Man
Year: 2024
Runtime: 1h 55m
Director: Richard Linklater
Future superstar Glen Powell co-wrote and stars in this comedic gem that reminds one that movies can still be made for adults. With echoes of noir and the kind of sexy romantic dramedies that don’t get made much anymore, this is the story of an undercover cop named Gary (Powell) who talks a desperate young woman (Adria Arjona) out of having her husband murdered, setting in motion an unpredictable, funny, riveting series of events. This is one of the best films of 2024.
Knocked Up
Year: 2007
Runtime: 2h 9m
Director: Judd Apatow
The movie’s gender politics seem shakier than when it came out, but Judd Apatow’s biggest hit still works because of the intelligence of its screenplay and commitment of its cast, especially Seth Rogen and Katherine Heigl. The story of a man forced to grow up when his one-night stand gets pregnant errs a bit too much on the side of the male view, but one can’t deny the pure laughs-per-minute ratio. It’s fun to contrast this with the more recent Long Shot to see how much Rogen has changed (and how much he really hasn’t).
Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Year: 1975
Runtime: 1h 29m
Director: Terry Gilliam and Terry Jones
During a hiatus between the third and fourth seasons of Monty Python’s Family Circus, the gang of mega-talented comedians decided to make movie history. Inspired by the King Arthur legend, Holy Grail is a timeless comedy, the rare kind of film that will still be making people laugh hundreds of years from now. And while the Monty Python boys were already famous, this film took them to another level, cementing their place in movie history.
Pineapple Express
Year: 2008
Runtime: 1h 52m
Director: David Gordon Green
Seth Rogen gives one of his best performances as Dale Denton, an average guy who just wants to get high. He visits his dealer (played perfectly by James Franco) on the wrong night as the pair cross paths with hitmen and a police officer on the wrong side of the law. This is an incredibly funny movie, and you don’t need to be high to love it.
Horror
The Babadook
Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 33m
Director: Jennifer Kent
One of the best horror films of the 2010s has not been widely available for streaming subscribers so take the chance to watch it again while it’s on Netflix. Jennifer Kent’s directorial debut centers on a mother (Essie Davis) who struggles to raise her problem child alone after the death of her husband. Oh, and there’s also a real monster in the boy’s room.
Gerald’s Game
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 43m
Director: Mike Flanagan
Before he helmed The Haunting of Hill House, Mike Flanagan co-wrote and directed one of the best Netflix Original horror films in this adaptation of Stephen King’s 1992 novel of the same name. Carla Gugino is phenomenal as a woman who gets handcuffed to her bed by her toxic husband…and then he has a heart attack. As she tries to figure out how she will survive, she accesses the trauma of her past.
For Kids & Family
Shrek
Year: 2001
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: Andrew Adamson, Vicky Jenson
It’s hard to believe that it’s almost been a quarter-century since the flatulent green ogre in the swamp changed family filmmaking. Think that’s an exaggeration? The referential, pop-culture playground of modern animation really starts with this massive hit, a movie that spawned three sequels and spin-offs. It’s held up well, largely thanks to a playful script and great voice work from Mike Myers and Eddie Murphy.
Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 56m
Director: Guillermo del Toro, Mark Gustafson
The Oscar-winning director took his visionary skills to stop-motion animation with this instant classic, a retelling of the beloved fairy tale about the wooden boy who longed to be real. With spectacular voice work, this version reimagines Pinocchio during the period before World War II, allowing del Toro to explore his themes of innocence and violence again. It’s a deeply personal, beautiful film.
Wendell & Wild
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 46m
Director: Henry Selick
The director of A Nightmare Before Christmas and Coraline finally returned this year with this clever and twisted tale co-written by Oscar winner Jordan Peele. The comedian also co-stars as one of the title characters, the literal demons for a girl who blames herself for the death of her parents. Selick is a master of stop-motion animation and this project allows him to stretch his visual prowess in new, gross ways. It’s a new Halloween classic (that can be watched any time, of course!)
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