Finding a good movie to watch on Amazon Prime Video can be difficult to say the least. While Amazon’s robust library of titles is available to every Amazon Prime subscriber, they don’t exactly make it easy to find what you’re looking for. That’s where we come in. Below, we’ve assembled a growing list of the best movies on Amazon Prime right now. Our carefully curated selection runs the gamut from crowd-pleasing blockbusters to Oscar-winning dramas to delightful rom-coms and beyond. There’s a little something for everyone, so stop the endless scrolling and simply choose one of these great movies to watch.
Check out our list of the best movies on Amazon Prime video below. The list will be updated weekly with new titles.
Shrek and Shrek 2
OK yes the “Shrek” memes are everywhere, but those first two movies are genuinely good. The 2001 original served as something of an “anti-Pixar” movie with its crude jokes and adult humor, and while the CG animation leaves something to be desired, this funny twist on the traditional fairy tale holds up thanks to its terrific voice cast. “Shrek 2” is even better – a more refined, more ambitious story in which Mike Myers and Cameron Diaz’s ogre couple must win over the hearts of Fiona’s parents, all while an evil fairy godmother (Julie Andrews) plots their downfall. Good songs!
A Simple Favor
Few films are as surprising moment to moment as “A Simple Favor.” Truly, at any given turn, anything could happen in this candy-coated thriller/dark comedy. Anna Kendrick plays a vlogging single mother who suddenly finds the opportunity to step into the spotlight when her friend, a PR director for a fashion company (played by Blake Lively) goes missing. Henry Golding and Andrew Rannells co-star in this Hitchcock-inspired delight that you might be shocked to find hails from “Bridesmaids” and “Spy” filmmaker Paul Feig.
Never Been Kissed
OK yes, there are some questionable decisions made in the 1999 rom-com “Never Been Kissed” concerning teachers dating students, but it remains an ultimately winning charmer. Drew Barrymore plays an insecure Chicago Sun-Times copy editor who is sent undercover at a high school for a story. While there, she gets to live out an alternate high school life – one in which she’s popular and well-liked. Complications ensue when she falls for an English teacher (played by Michael Vartan), and the feelings are mutual. Ick but also sweet? I don’t know, this is a weird one, but it works! – Adam Chitwood
Almost Famous
One of the best films ever made about music, Cameron Crowe’s “Almost Famous” is a timeless classic. Inspired by Crowe’s earlier career as a music journalist, the film follows a teen named William (played by Patrick Fugit) who scores an assignment from Rolling Stone to write a story on an up-and-coming band named Stillwater. Embedded with the band on the road, William learns about life, love and friendship – although through Crowe’s unabashedly earnest prism, it never comes off as trite or rote. Crowe won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay, and Kate Hudson was rightfully nominated for Best Supporting Actress. The impeccable ensemble also includes Frances McDormand, Billy Crudup, Jason Lee, Fairuza Balk, Anna Paquin and Philip Seymour Hoffman. – Adam Chitwood
Inside Man
Spike Lee’s 2006 thriller “Inside Man” is one of the director’s best and most entertaining films. The story opens in the aftermath of a bank heist, with those taken hostage giving their interviews to police about what happened. The film then flashes back to portray the events as they unfold, with Denzel Washington playing the detective trying to talk down the robber and kidnapper (played by Clive Owen) who seems to be harboring some kind of secret. Mind games ensue, and this one keeps you guessing all the way up through the end. – Adam Chitwood
The Talented Mr. Ripley
One of Matt Damon’s best performances and one of the best films of the 1990s, “The Talented Mr. Ripley” is a chilling dramatic thriller that gets under your skin in the best way. Set in the 1950s, Damon plays a young man named Tom Ripley who is mistaken for somebody else and tasked with persuading a rich young man (played by Jude Law) to return to the United States from Italy. Once Ripley gets to Italy, however, he becomes infatuated with Law’s character and the life he’s living (complete with kind girlfriend Gwyneth Paltrow), and grows increasingly close to the couple in uncomfortable ways. Anthony Minghella directs this beautifully haunting story of identity, jealousy and self-loathing that takes a number of shocking twists and turns. Oh, and Philip Seymour Hoffman delivers a phenomenal supporting performance. – Adam Chitwood
Mission: Impossible 1-4
Quite simply one of the best and most consistently good franchises around, you can stream the first four “Mission: Impossible” movies for free on Prime Video right now (and “Rogue Nation” and “Fallout” with a Paramount+ free trial). Each film has its own unique flavor — “M:I 1” is very much a Brian De Palma thriller; “M:I 2” is an over-the-top John Woo actioner; “M:I 3” reveals what Tom Cruise’s Ethan Hunt is like as a human being (and lover); and “M:I 4” is a global epic. Thrills, spills and chills abound, and while “Mission: Impossible 2” is the only underwhelming entry in the series, Cruise’s commitment to the bit (and the stunts) makes this thing supremely satisfying as a whole. – Adam Chitwood
A.I. Artificial Intelligence
If it’s been awhile since you saw Steven Spielberg’s “A.I. Artificial Intelligence,” it’s well worth giving another shot – especially in the wake of the revelations within his deeply personal 2022 drama “The Fabelmans”. Originally conceived by Stanley Kubrick, Spielberg revived the project after Kubrick’s death and wrote and directed this tale of a young boy A.I. who is programmed to love and then abandoned by his adopted family. One part fairy tale and one part nightmare, this is one of Spielberg’s darkest films, with the director maintaining a heartbreaking emotional core throughout the young boy’s journey. Fair warning: If you’re a parent, have tissues at the ready. – Adam Chitwood
Tangerine
Before “The Florida Project” or “Red Rocket,” filmmaker Sean Baker burst onto the scene with his 2015 comedy “Tangerine” – shot entirely on an iPhone. Kitana Kiki Rodriguez stars as a trans sex worker living in Los Angeles who finds out that her boyfriend and pimp has been cheating on her. While it looks like an indie and tackles some heavy material at times, the film has the tone and pacing of a raucous comedy, and is all the better for it. – Adam Chitwood
The Indiana Jones Franchise
With “Indiana Jones 5” on tap for release this summer, there’s never been a better time to binge-watch the entire “Indy” franchise so far. “Raiders of the Lost Ark” is one of the best films ever made; “Temple of Doom” is an underrated gem that also happens to be one of the darkest films of Steven Spielberg’s career; and “Last Crusade” is a rip-roaring delight. “Crystal Skull,” well, we won’t blame you if you skip that one. – Adam Chitwood
Superbad
“Superbad” was pivotal to the comedy boom of the 2000s, and still largely holds up thanks to a terrific pair of performances from Jonah Hill and Michael Cera and an emotional undercurrent that grounds this raunchy coming-of-age tale. Hill and Cera play high school seniors looking to score some booze for a cool kids party, all the while struggling through the tension that Cera’s character is planning to go to a different (and more prestigious) college than Hill’s, threatening their lifelong bond. Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg wrote the screenplay based on their own friendship, and Emma Stone co-stars alongside Bill Hader, Christopher Mintz-Plasse and Rogen himself. – Adam Chitwood
La La Land
Damien Chazelle’s Oscar-winning (but not Best Picture-winning) “La La Land” is at once a joyful Hollywood musical and a somber story of what we sacrifice to make our dreams come true. Ryan Gosling is an aspiring jazz musician and Emma Stone is an aspiring actress, both just trying to make it big in Los Angeles. Their paths cross, stars align, and a head-over-heels romance ensues. But Chazelle manages to combine the fantastical with the grounded, allowing us to feel deeply for what these individuals are going through (and root for them hard). And the songs are fantastic to boot. – Adam Chitwood
Bram Stoker’s Dracula
Legendary “Godfather” filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola reimagines one of horror’s greatest tales in “Bram Stoker’s Dracula;” a sumptuous visual feast of a film that embraces and expands Stoker’s lore with visual splendor and erotically amped-up Gothic romance. Gary Oldman stars as the iconic blood-sucker, convincingly seductive or grotesque as the moment calls for it in his violent, tragic pursuit of Mina (Winona Ryder) — here endowed with a lyrical, melancholic love story of reincarnated soul mates. Stunning to look at, technically astounding and overflowing with A-list talent. – Haleigh Foutch
The Lord of the Rings Trilogy
Peter Jackson’s stunning “Lord of the Rings” trilogy is pretty much a home run. Beginning with 2001’s “The Fellowship of the Ring” and culminating in 2003’s 11-time Oscar-winner “The Return of the King,” J.R.R. Tolkien’s celebrated and beloved fantasy saga received on of the all-time great cinematic adaptations, which have aged with the grace and enduring entertainment value of a true classic. And if you’ve seen the “Lord of the Rings” movies one too many times, Amazon also has their newly debuted mega-budget series epic “Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power,” which unfolds the saga of Middle Earth thousands of years before the events of “Lord of the Rings.” – Haleigh Foutch
The Hunger Games
If you’re in the mood to relive Jennifer Lawrence’s rise to superstardom, there’s perhaps no better way to do it than revisiting the “Hunger Games” saga, which made Lawrence a household name through the best-selling tale of Katniss Everdeen and her fight against the regime of totalitarian dystopia. All four films are currently streaming on Amazon and well worth a revisit (or a first-watch if you missed the initial craze), not just for Lawrence’s star-making performance, but for author Suzanne Collins’ gripping world-building and enduring characters, which are brought to life by some of the best in the biz, from Effie’s unforgettable looks to an ensemble that includes Woody Harrelson, Julianne Moore and the late, great Philip Seymour Hoffman. – Haleigh Foutch
I Want You Back
A clever rom-com with a heck of a charming duo, Amazon’s “I Want You Back” stars Charlie Day and Jenny Slate as two strangers who bond after being dumped by their respective partners at the same time. Determined to get them back, they conspire together to sabotage their ex’s new relationships, building a complicated web of friendships, feelings and — of course — accidentally falling for each other. Day and Slate make for a fantastic pair of lovable wrecks at their worst, sparking believable chemistry while delivering the laughs. – Haleigh Foutch
Face/Off
Hong Kong action legend John Woo delivered one of his best American studio films with the 1997 favorite “Face/Off.” Starring John Travolta as family man FBI agent Sean Archer and Nicolas Cage as his criminal, identity-thieving arch-enemy Castor Troy, who takes over Archer’s life with the help of a plastic surgeon and a revolutionary face-swapping procedure. It’s a completely bonkers blast of a film, with two old-school movie star performances from Travolta and Cage, both of whom fully embrace Woo’s wild over-the-top vision of a cat-and-mouse crime thriller that never stops escalating the action. – Haleigh Foutch
Kingdom of Heaven (Director’s Cut)
If you’ve never seen the director’s cut of Ridley Scott’s 2005 historical epic “Kingdom of Heaven,” make this one a priority. The film is Scott’s chronicle of the Crusades through the eyes of a French blacksmith played by Orlando Bloom, but the director’s cut of the film – which is nearly an hour longer – paints a more complete picture of the conflict and the characters involved, particularly Edward Norton’s masked King Baldwin. This is one of Scott’s best films, hands down. – Adam Chitwood
The Cabin in the Woods
If you’re looking for a movie that upends the horror genre while still delivering thrills, “Cabin in the Woods” is just for you. This 2011 film is directed by Drew Goddard, who co-wrote the screenplay with Joss Whedon about a group of young people (including a pre-Thor Chris Hemsworth and Jesse Williams) who go to a remote cabin in the woods. All is not what it appears to be, however, as they’re hounded by haunted delights that seem like tropes straight out of a bad horror movie. That’s the point of this meta story, which takes a number of twists and turns before arriving at its bold, unforgettable ending. – Adam Chitwood
The Northman
How does a violent, Viking epic from the visionary director behind “The Witch” and “The Lighthouse” sound? The answer is “very cool,” and that’s exactly what you get with “The Northman.” The 2022 film stars Alexander Skarsgard as a Viking warrior prince seeking to avenge the murder of his father (played by Ethan Hawke). The film follows his quest with breathtaking vistas and a killer cast that includes Nicole Kidman, Anya Taylor-Joy, Willem Dafoe and Bjork (yes, that Bjork). – Adam Chitwood
Edward Scissorhands
Nothing bridges the gap between summer and fall quite like “Edward Scissorhands.” Director Tim Burton’s 1990 film stars Johnny Depp as the unfinished creation of a reclusive old inventor, with scissors for hands and a yet-to-be-completed brain. When he’s discovered in the mansion by the suburbanites down below, he becomes enmeshed in modern culture but finds it difficult to fit in. This is a classic outsider story told like a fairy tale, with a twinge of darkness and hint of magic throughout. Winona Ryder, Dianne Wiest and Anthony Michael Hall co-star. – Adam Chitwood
Jennifer’s Body
If underrated and/or misunderstood gems are more your speed, check out “Jennifer’s Body.” This darkly comic 2009 film hails from Oscar-winning “Juno” writer Diablo Cody and “The Invitation” director Karyn Kusama, and tells the story of a popular high school girl who is abducted and ritualistically sacrificed which turns her into a demonic force that feeds on young teenaged boys. While marketed as a teen horror film, “Jennifer’s Body” is actually a smart take on the male gaze and sexuality through the lens of two talented female filmmakers. Megan Fox, Amanda Seyfried, and J.K. Simmons star. – Adam Chitwood
Heartburn
Director Mike Nichols and writer Nora Ephron are a match made in heaven in the 1986 romantic comedy/drama “Heartburn,” which stars Meryl Streep as a version of Ephron as the story offers a semi-autobiographical version of the famous author/screenwriter’s challenging relationship with journalist Carl Bernstein. Jack Nicholson plays the Bernstein role in the film, as it charts his infidelity and its impact on the duo’s marriage and children. Streep is spectacular in this harshly realistic portrait of a marriage that’s infused with Ephron’s biting wit. – Adam Chitwood
The Silence of the Lambs
Still the only horror film to win Best Picture, “The Silence of the Lambs” is a classic for a reason. Director Jonathan Demme’s adaptation stars Jodie Foster as a young FBI trainee who is tasked with enlisting imprisoned serial killer/cannibal Hannibal Lecter (Anthony Hopkins) for help in tracking down a serial killer of women who goes by the name Buffalo Bill. Demme’s direction is the secret weapon here, preventing the film from becoming gross or exploitative and submerging the viewer into the point of view of Foster’s character. The film won Oscars for Best Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Adapted Screenplay. – Adam Chitwood
Skyfall
The highest-grossing James Bond movie of all time, 2012’s “Skyfall” officially set the franchise up to compete with the superhero movies that were dominating the box office. In many ways this is the ultimate James Bond film, as Daniel Craig’s character is put through the wringer with a battle against a figure from his (and M’s) past. Director Sam Mendes and cinematographer Roger Deakins bring a refined sophistication to the aesthetics, and the story doubles down on the emotional and raw nature of Craig’s 007. – Adam Chitwood
The Outfit
A contained spy thriller with a heck of a lead performance, “The Outfit” hails from Oscar-winning “The Imitation Game” writer Graham Moore who serves as writer and director on the story of an English tailor (played by Mark Rylance) who gets caught up in a mob war one night while working late in his shop on Saints Row. Zoey Deutch, Dylan O’Brien and Johnny Flynn co-star in the film which largely takes place in the same location, but is dripping with tension and packed with reveals. – Adam Chitwood
Licorice Pizza
Every new Paul Thomas Anderson movie is reason to celebrate, but his 2021 film “Licorice Pizza” is truly one from the heart. The coming-of-age dramedy takes place in 1973 in the San Fernando Valley and follows a cocksure 15-year-old actor (Cooper Hoffman) who strikes up a friendship with a girl in her 20s (Alana Haim). The film navigates their nebulous relationship as well as the anxieties felt by each as they stare down young adulthood, and it’s all wrapped up in PTA’s hilarious and heartbreaking chronicle of life as a kid in 1970s Los Angeles. Come for the time capsule, stay for Bradley Cooper’s hilariously unhinged performance as producer Jon Peters. – Adam Chitwood
No Time to Die
Daniel Craig’s final Bond film is at once epic and intimate. “No Time to Die” puts an emotional button on what’s been an emotional ride, as Craig finally infused 007 with a license to feel through his largely acclaimed series of films. In his final go-around, we begin with an extended prologue that puts a button (for now) on his relationship with Dr. Madeleine Swan (played by Lea Seydoux) following her debut in “Spectre.” But when a figure from Swan’s past resurfaces (played by Rami Malek), Bond gets swept back into a game of cat-and-mouse with the highest stakes he’s ever faced before. Swell supporting turns by Lashana Lynch and Ana de Armas as well as a refreshing visual palate from director Cary Joji Fukunaga ensure that with “No Time to Die,” Bond goes out on a high note. – Adam Chitwood
What If
If you can look past the forgettable title, “What If” is actually a wonderfully charming romantic comedy gem that flew entirely under the radar. Daniel Radcliffe stars as a medical school dropout who meets a young woman (played by Zoe Kazan) during his first night out in a year. At the end of the night, he finds out the woman is in a relationship, and the two subsequently become best friends as the story charts their close relationship and whether Radcliffe’s character will summon the courage to tell her how he really feels. While the premise feels familiar, the 2014 film is executed in a sweet, hilarious and charming manner (it was originally titled “The F Word”) and boasts a pair of supporting performances by then up-and-comers Adam Driver and Mackenzie Davis that are delightful. – Adam Chitwood
The Lost City of Z
A Tom Holland adventure movie of a very different sort, “The Lost City of Z” is based on the David Grann book of the same name and follows a British explorer in the early 1900s who is sent to Brazil to search for a supposed lost city in the Amazon. Charlie Hunnam plays the explorer Percy Fawcett, Robert Pattinson plays fellow explorer Henry Costin and Tom Holland plays Percy’s son Jack. As directed and written by James Gray, “The Lost City of Z” is an enthralling story about colonialism and the relationship between a father and a son. – Adam Chitwood
Lucy and Desi
If you’ve already seen Aaron Sorkin’s fictional account of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz in “Being the Ricardos,” check out the Amy Poehler-directed documentary “Lucy and Desi.” The film explores the partnership between the “I Love Lucy” stars, offering an insightful and candid look at the relationship between the two buoyed by interviews with Lucie Arnaz Luckinbill, Norman Lear, Desi Arnaz Jr, Carol Burnett and Bette Midler. – Adam Chitwood
Paper Moon
If you’re in the mood for a classic, 1973’s road trip comedy “Paper Moon” holds up tremendously well. Directed by Peter Bogdanovich, the film takes place during the Great Depression and stars real-life father and daughter Ryan and Tatum O’Neal as a con man and orphan who team up when the con man agrees to take the young girl from Gotham, Kansas to St. Joseph, Missouri. Heartwarming, hilarious and rich in character, “Paper Moon” is a classic for a reason. – Adam Chitwood
The Courier
“The Courier” is a great “dad movie,” and that’s pejorative. This Cold War thriller is based on a true story and stars Benedict Cumberbatch as Greville Wynne, a British businessman who was recruited by the Secret Intelligence Service to serve as a messenger between a Russian spy source and the British government in the 1960s. What begins as an exciting romp turns deadly serious, and Cumberbatch commands the screen in the lead role (flanked by Rachel Brosnahan as his wife and Jessie Buckley as his handler). This one’s taut, compelling and surprisingly emotional. – Adam Chitwood
Brittany Runs a Marathon
The 2019 comedy “Brittany Runs a Marathon” manages to be both hilarious and inspiring at the same time, as Jillian Bell stars as a twentysomething woman living in New York City named Brittany who decides to try and get her life together – and to start, she’s going to train to run the New York Marathon. But as Brittany gets deeper and deeper into running, making new friends along the way, she discovers that a change on the inside may be what’s most prudent to pointing her life in the right direction. Bell is fantastic in the lead role, and writer/director Paul Downs Colaizzo’s script is pleasantly surprising in where it takes Brittany’s story. – Adam Chitwood
Suspiria
After he made the Oscar-winning romance “Call Me by Your Name,” filmmaker Luca Guadagnino took on a horror classic with 2018’s “Suspiria.” Set in 1988 Berlin, the film stars Dakota Johnson as a young woman leaving her Mennonite family in Ohio to audition for and train as a dancer at an esteemed academy. But as her training continues, it becomes clear that perhaps this dance troupe has something more sinister, more witchy going on. The brilliance of Guadagnino’s take on the story is how it uses the supernatural horror to tell a real-life horror story about fascism, and the festering wound of evil. Tilda Swinton is mesmerizing pulling double duty here as the dance troupe’s leader and a male doctor curious about the goings-on at the school. – Adam Chitwood
The Report
If a real-life investigative thriller in the vein of “All the President’s Men” is more your speed, check out “The Report.” Released in 2019, the true-story drama stars Adam Driver as Daniel Jones, a staffer for Senator Dianne Feinstein (played by Annette Bening) who is tasked with investigating the CIA’s use of torture following the 9/11 attacks. Writer/director Scott Z. Burns crafts a film that is taught with tension, but also powerful in its pursuit of the truth. The ensemble includes Jon Hamm, Michael C. Hall, Corey Stoll, Ted Levine and Maura Tierney. – Adam Chitwood
Late Night
Screenwriter Mindy Kaling pulled from the world of late night television for her 2019 comedy “Late Night,” which stars Emma Thompson as a veteran late night TV personality who is in danger of being pushed out by the network, and enlists the help of a new (and inexperienced) writer (played by Kaling) to bring some diversity to her all-male writing staff. The comedy has shades of a mismatched buddy film, behind-the-scenes Hollywood tale and middle-aged drama, and it’s anchored by a terrific performance from Thompson as a woman struggling to keep up with the times. – Adam Chitwood
It’s a Wonderful Life
If you’re looking to get into the holiday spirit, you can’t go wrong with Frank Capra’s 1946 classic “It’s a Wonderful Life.” The film stars James Stewart as George Bailey, a man extremely down on his luck who, after attempting to take his own life, is shown what life in his small town would look like had he never existed. While the film is ultimately uplifting, it’s far darker than many remember, and is a brilliant tale about life and the relationships we make (and take for granted) along the way. – Adam Chitwood
Cold War
If you’re into period dramas, the 2018 film “Cold War” is a must-see. Directed and co-written by Pawel Pawlikowski, the Polish-language drama takes place in Poland and France and begins in the 1940s before ending in the 1960s as it follows the relationship between a musical director and a young singer he discovers. Against the backdrop of their love affair, the war rages on. – Adam Chitwood
The Big Sick
A romantic comedy straight from the heart, the based-on-a-true-story “The Big Sick” is delightful and emotional all at once. Written by Kumail Nanjiani and Emily V. Gordon, the film is based on the origins of their relationship as Gordon slipped into a coma soon after they started dating, and Nanjiani was forced to confront his own fears and contend with Gordon’s parents all with the uncertainty of her condition looming large. Zoe Kazan portrays Gordon in the film with a hearty dose of moxie, and Nanjiani delivers a complex performance that clearly pulls from the depths of his personal life – not just his relationship with Kazan’s character, but his own relationship to his family. – Adam Chitwood
The Handmaiden
“Oldboy” filmmaker Park Chan-wook’s 2016 epic erotic drama “The Handmaiden” is absolutely one of his best films, and is a blast from start to finish. The psychological thriller plays out in three parts chock full of twists and turns, but begins as the story of a con man who conspires with a pickpocket to hatch a plan that would involve marrying a Japanese heiress and committing her to an asylum, thus stealing her wealth. But the film takes a number of turns as various romantic and sexual entanglements ensue. This one’s for adults only. – Adam Chitwood
Manchester by the Sea
“Manchester by the Sea” is a brilliant film, but fair warning it’s also a significant bummer. This 2016 film won Oscars for Best Actor and Best Original Screenplay and stars Casey Affleck as a janitor living in Massachusetts who is suddenly tasked with caring for his nephew following his brother’s abrupt death. The event triggers substantial trauma that Affleck’s character has yet to process, and what follows is a somber, sometimes darkly funny and ultimately touching meditation on grief and guilt. – Adam Chitwood
One Night in Miami
Regina King’s 2020 drama “One Night in Miami” is an excellent snapshot of a moment in time, and how four of the most famous African-Americans in history each approached the changing societal landscape of the 1960s. Set over the course of one night in 1964, the story follows four friends – Cassius Clay (Eli Goree), Malcolm X (Kingsley Ben-Adir), Jim Brown (Aldis Hodge) and Sam Cooke (Leslie Odom Jr.) – as a night of celebrating soon turns into a night of lively conversation about their roles and responsibilities to the African-American community. The film is cleverly drawn and tremendously compelling, and provides much food for thought as it connects the struggles of the 1960s to today. – Adam Chitwood
The Vast of Night
If you like hidden gems, 2020’s “The Vast of Night” is one of the most exciting indies of the last few years. Set in 1950s New Mexico, the story takes place over the course of one evening where a young switchboard operator and a radio DJ pick up a mysterious audio frequency that may or may not be inhuman in nature. This small-scale sci-fi mystery is light on effects but heavy on evocative filmmaking, intrigue and dimensional characters. It’s so good, a scene with a man talking about his experience with aliens over the radio will have you on the edge of your seat. – Adam Chitwood
2019’s “Sound of Metal” is an indie with a heart of gold – and an Oscar-winning one at that. The film stars Riz Ahmed as a metal drummer named Ruben who begins to lose his hearing. He leaves his bandmate to go to a facility for Deaf recovering addicts, where he begins to learn how to live his life differently but also struggles with his own demons. Ahmed gives a powerhouse performance, and the film’s sound design puts you right in Ruben’s headspace. – Adam Chitwood
Love and Friendship
If it’s a lovely costume dramedy you’re in the mood for, 2016’s “Love and Friendship” is an absolute delight. Based on the Jane Austen novel “Lady Susan,” the film is written and directed by Whit Stillman and stars Kate Beckinsale as a recently widowed woman who sets out to secure wealthy husbands for herself and her daughter. A comedy of errors ensues, with Beckinsale and Chloe Sevigny sharply leading an ensemble that also includes Stephen Fry, Tom Bennett and Xavier Samuel. – Adam Chitwood
