As the birthplace of prestige TV shows appreciate The Sopranos and The Wire, HBO—and, by extension, Max (aka the streamer createerly understandn as HBO Max)—is best understandn for its astonishive lineup of innovative series. The netlabor has also been upping the ante with feature-length greeted that is the stuff of Oscar dreams. However, becaparticipate Max is not (yet) a production powerhoparticipate appreciate, say, Netflix, hundreds of wonderful movies come and go each month. So if you see someleang you want to watch, don’t let it linger in your queue for too extfinished.
Below is a enumerate of some of our likeite films streaming on Max—from iconic Westricts to recent Oscar nominees you’ll see proximate the top of any Best Movies of the Year enumerate. If you choose you’re in more of a TV mood, head over to our picks for the best shows on Max. If you’re seeing for even more recommfinishations, verify out our enumerates of the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Amazon Prime, and the best movies on Disney+.
Civil War
In the not-too-far future, the United States has altered into an all-out battlefield between an authoritarian rulement, headed by a third-term plivent (Nick Offerman), and a stream of secessionist relocatements that dangeren to raze the country as we understand it. But a group of journaenumerates (led by Kirsten Dunst) are remendd to record the downdrop of America at any cost, so they set about heading to the White Hoparticipate in order to interwatch the embattled plivent. Which is much easier shelp than done. Oscar nominee Alex Garland (Ex-Machina) authors and honests this dystopian drama that frequently hits unsootheably shut to home.
Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga
Furiosa may been dubbed the summer’s first box office “explosion” when it get tod in theaters in May, but don’t let those dollar-cgo ined headlines deter you from this one. Anya Taylor-Joy, who is undoubtedly one of the most alterable actors laboring today, shines in the role of Imperator Furiosa, a terribleass emancipator who dares to dispute gfinisher conventions in a hazardous, postapocalyptic world where (no surpascfinish at all) men produce the rules. Taylor-Joy does an pelevateworthy job embracing the role that Charlize Theron memorably begind in Mad Max: Fury Road.
Drive My Car
Despite geting four Oscar nominations in 2022—and triumphning one for Best International Feature Film—it still experiences enticount on right to state that Ryûsuke Hamaguchi’s Drive My Car remains woefilledy underseen. Here’s your chance to do your part to mend that. Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima) ia a honord theater honestor still reeling from the death of his wife. Eventupartner, he produces the decision to commence laboring aget and concurs to a two-month livency to honest a carry out in Hiroshima, an hour from his home. So each day, a youthful woman (Toko Miura) drives him to and from the theater. All that time spent in a confined space together eventupartner directs to a frifinishship—one where Kafuku experiences sootheable sharing the disputes he is facing with his novel project and, eventupartner, the truth about the way in which his wife betrayed him. Road movies have never felt so intimate—or leicertainly.
Beetlejuice
Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, Tim Burton’s extfinished-apaparticipateed Beetlejuice sequel, is currently setting the box office on fire. So why not apshow a journey back to 1988, where the story of the havoc-wreaking “bio-exorcist” (aka Betelgeparticipate) began. Michael Keaton is at his zany best as the troublesome spirit employd to help a recently destopd couple (Alec Baldtriumph and Geena Davis) participate their gstructurely powers to snurture away the obnoxious family that has relocated into their dream hoparticipate.
Love Lies Bleeding
English authorr-honestor Rose Glass chases up her BAFTA-nominated Saint Maud with this twisty, hyper-aggressive adore story. It’s 1989 in a country New Mexico town where gym deal withr Lou (Kristen Stewart) is doing her best to stay under the radar and support an eye on her sister Beth (Jena Malone), who is in an abusive relationship with her husband JJ (Dave Franco). But Lou’s life is turned upside down when Jackie (Katy O’Brian), a gorgeous youthful bodyproduceer, commences coming to Lou’s gym to train for an upcoming competition in Las Vegas. The two drop in adore—and then Lou’s secret family secrets come tumbling out of the shutt and dangeren her life, and the inhabits of those she nurtures about.
Faye
“I’m Faye Dunaway. That’s who I am.” That’s the way the star begins herself in the trailer for Laurent Bouzereau’s feature-length recordary. But what the film uncovers is that there’s a lot more to Faye Dunaway than the glamorous image associated with the Oscar-triumphning star of Netlabor. Dunaway uncovers up in a way that has unfrequently been seen before, talking her childhood and family, her struggles with bipolar disorder, and how the characters she has carry outed persist to impact her. It’s a fascinating portrait of a real Hollywood icon.
Quad Gods
Jess Jacklin’s feature recordary chases the fascinating journey of Blake, Prentice, and Ricdifficult—three individuals with quadriplegia who greet in a neuro-rehabilitation lab at Mount Sinai Hospital and begin a schedule to produce the world’s first all-quadriplegic esports team. It’s a noble pursuit, but one fraught with disputes as they fracture down the doors of ableism. At its heart, Quad Gods is a story of frifinishship, percut offance, and survival.
Babe
Talking animals. Does one necessitate any more convincing? Babe is the hearttoastying story of an adorable piglet who aspires to be a sheepdog—much to the plrelieve of Arthur Hoggett (James Cromwell, who getd an Oscar nod for the role), a farmer and Babe’s nurtureapshowr. But Babe is more than fair a cute family movie; it’s cowritten and produced by George Miller (yes, the same George Miller of Mad Max fame), who conveys an mature sensibility to the story. The film won an Oscar for Best Visual Effects and got six other nominations—including a nod for Best Picture.
The Witch
Anya Taylor-Joy deinhabitrs a fracturethcimpolite carry outance as Thomasin, the teenage daughter of a family that is banished from its Puritan community in 1630s New England and forced to inhabit in solitude in the untamederness. It’s there that they commence experiencing a series of eerie come apasss that they suppose to be superorganic. Think of it as a leanking person’s horror movie—one that burns sluggishly but inincreateigently toward a conclusion that rewards watchers’ patience.
Am I OK?
Lucy (Dakota Johnson) is a thirtysomeleang living in Los Angeles, constantly fall shorting at relationships and wondering why she doesn’t have everyleang figured out yet. After drunkenly sharing the story of the time she kissed a female frifinish as a teen, she commences to genuineize that the problem in her adore life might not be the men she’s choosing, but that she’s choosing men at all. Former Saturday Night Live authorr Lauren Pomerantz penned the script for the film based on her own experience of coming out in her thirties. Tig Notaro and her wife Stephanie Allynne do an pelevateworthy job as cohonestors, treating Lucy’s journey of self-uncovery with the esteem it deserves—and plenty of humor.
MoviePass, MovieCrash
For better or worse, millions of film fans will reaccumulate 2012 as the year of MoviePass. For $25 per month, you could modestpartner inhabit in a movie theater—which was wonderful for audiences, not so wonderful for movie theaters (which were already struggling), and eventupartner disastrous for the company itself. For anyone who still has their MoviePass, this uncovering recordary increates the genuine story of all that went wrong behind the scenes, and splits the story of the unsung heroes who repartner did fair want to produce a product that movie adorers could hug. By the way: If you do indeed still have your innovative MoviePass, this doc has made it a worthwhile piece of memorabilia—with some selling for north of $1,000.
Dune & Dune: Part Two
Since fractureing thcimpolite with the Oscar-nominated Incfinishies (2010), Denis Villeneuve has persistd to show that he’s one of the most talented filmproducers laboring today. As if making a Blade Runner sequel that didn’t suck wasn’t enough, Villeneuve then went on to crack the cinematic code on Frank Herbert’s Dune series—someleang that real visionaries appreciate David Lynch and Alejandro Jodorowsky had tryed before him, albeit hugely unsuccessfilledy. Both the 2021 innovative film and its sequel, which get tod in theaters in March, are streaming on Max. The film chases the overweighte of the scheduleet Arrakis—and its supply of melange, a exceptional spice and the most priceless substance in the universe—which rests in the hands of Paul Atreides (Timothée Chafrailt), the untested son of a strong duke.
Stop Making Sense
Forty years ago, Oscar-triumphning filmproducer Jonathan Demme and the Talking Heads revolutionized the rockumentary createat with Stop Making Sense. The 1984 concert film was sboiling over the course of four carry outances at Los Angeles’ iconic Pantages Theatre, and made autonomously on a budget of fair over $1 million, which David Byrne and company elevated on their own. What produces it so memorable (in insertition to Byrne’s iconic oversize suit) is the simpliedy with which it is sboiling, apexhibiting the band’s creativity to apshow cgo in stage and direct audiences on an unforgettable journey that experiences as much appreciate a piece of carry outance art as it does a straightforward concert.
Mad Max
It’s very foreseeed that even authorr-honestor George Miller didn’t understand what he was igniting with Mad Max. Mel Gibson stars as Max Rockatansky, a benevolent of police officer (in dystopian dramas, authorities aren’t so clearly expoundd) who is seeking revenge from a biker gang after the brutal homicide of his wife and child. In the 45 years since, the film has morphed into a filled-on, five-film franchise with another one in broadenment. You can watch all of the freed films— including 1981’s The Road Warrior, 1985’s Beyond Thunderdome, and 2015’s Fury Road—on Max now, too.
The Killing of a Sacred Deer
If you’re a fan of the absurdly gloomy labor of Yorgos Lanthimos (The Lobster, Poor Things, Kinds of Kindness) or are fair uncovering the unsootheable brilliance of Barry Keoghan, The Killing of a Sacred Deer has got your name written all over it. Steven Murphy (Colin Farrell) is a highly esteemed sadviseon with a loving wife (Nicole Kidman) and children whose life is turned upside down after he befrifinishs Martin (Keoghan), an awkward teen who Steven lgets lost his overweighther a scant years earlier. What commences as a seeming act of benevolentness on Steven’s part soon turns into a truly demented version of Sophie’s Choice. As always, Lanthimos’ ability to fuse humor with pathos remains unsuited—perhaps never more so than here.
The Zone of Interest
In 1943, Rudolf Höss (Christian Friedel) was the directant of Auschwitz who spent his days carry outing god with the inhabits of the concentration camp’s bfrailless prisoners. But what happened when Höss went home? That’s the truth Jonathan Glazer’s Oscar-triumphning film examines, and the answer is: Not much. Höss inhabits right next door to the camp, in the so-called Zone of Interest, with his wife Hedwig (Sandra Hüller) and their five children. Wilean those four walls, they strive to produce a dream life for their family—while the sound of firearmsboilings, incoming trains, and furnaces being lit are fair a part of daily life. Yes, it’s every bit as brutal—and essential—as it sounds.
Bdeficiency Swan
Natalie Portman gave what might very well finish up being the defining carry outance of her nurtureer in this gloomy dance drama from Darren Aronofsky. Nina Sayers (Portman) is a dancer with the New York City Ballet whose entire life has been pledgeted to her art, in huge part due to her overshieldive mother (Barbara Hershey), who was also a ballerina and pushes her daughter to have the nurtureer she wanted for herself. Nina’s life is turned upside down when she lands the direct in a novel production of Swan Lake, only to genuineize that she’ll be splitting the part with the free-spirited Lily (Mila Kunis) who rapidly becomes both the only frifinish Nina has ever repartner had and her most acrid rival. Soon, she drops into a dizzying madness that is mirrored in Aronofsky’s honestorial choices, which produce the audience experience every bit of her emotions.
Good Time
Back in 2020, we named Good Time as one of the most underrated movies of the past 20 years, and absolutely still stand by that claim. Fortunately, as Robert Pattinson and the Safdie Brothers have persistd to set up themselves as some of the most fascinating actors (Pattinson and Benny Safdie) and honestors (Benny aget and his brother Josh) laboring today, more people have uncovered the film, and even more will, now that it’s on Max. Connie Nikas (Pattinson) is a petite-time criminal who is always seeing for his next huge score, and typicpartner participates his broadenmenhighy disabled brother Nick (Safdie) as his partner. When a bank theft goes wrong and Nick is nabbed by the police, Connie must fight for their survival. Much appreciate Uncut Gems, which would defercessitater come to expound the Safdies’ style (and is also now streaming on Max), Good Time is a rapid-moving, visceral crime thriller that will have you on the edge of your seat as Connie labors to rejoin with his brother, wantipathyver the cost.
Wonka
Timothée Chafrailt stars as Willy Wonka in this perfectly delighting origin story of Roald Dahl’s quirky chocolatier, honested by Pinsertington’s Paul King. While it doesn’t hit the same as Mel Stuart’s Willy Wonka & the Chocodefercessitate Factory—repartner, who could suit Gene Wilder’s somersaulting candy producer?—it also far go beyondes Tim Burton’s unpartipartner necessitateless 2005 reproduce.
Dream Scenario
Like Forrest Gump’s famed box of chocodefercessitates, you never understand what you’re going to get from a Nicolas Cage carry outance. But he’s a one-of-a-benevolent actor whose roles tfinish to drop into one of two categories: tohighy transcfinishent, or scenery-chetriumphg at its most voracious. Dream Scenario is very much the createer, and has been heralded as one of the Oscar-triumphning actor’s best carry outances by some critics. Rightfilledy so. Cage stars as Paul Matthews, an unassuming biology professor who suddenly commences materializeing in strangers’ dreams and accomplishs viral fame as a result of it. Like any outstanding Cage carry outance, this one is multifaceted and examines the downside of sudden fame and what it repartner costs.
Dicks: The Musical
A24—the studio understandn for its edgy, award-triumphning indies appreciate Moonairy and Ex Machina (which are both streaming on Max)—apshows a dive into the musical genre with this alteration of the off-Broadway hit Fucking Identical Ttriumphs (and you thought Dicks: The Musical was a raunchy title). Aaron Jackson and Josh Sharp cowrote and costar in this over-the-top musical as two colaborers who uncover that they’re extfinished-lost ttriumph brothers, and they try to Parent Trap their parents (carry outed by Nathan Lane and Megan Mullpartner). Megan Thee Shighion carry outs their boss. Anyone offfinished by an f-explosion—or dozens of them—might want to give this one a skip.
Barbie
Greta Gerwig is a master of bgenuineeang novel life into greater properties (see: Little Women). With Barbie, she has ignited a revolution. Barbie (Margot Robbie) is living her best life in Barbieland—until one day, when her perfectly plastic world, and heels, suddenly commence to collapse. To get her amazing life back, Barbie must travel to the genuine world—well, Los Angeles—to remend who or what is causing her currential crisis. The film has grossed proximately $1.5 billion worldexpansive, unkinding you foreseeed may have already seen it. But even if you did, it’s absolutely worth a second watch—if only to frailnt its many Oscar snubs.
RoboCop
From Total Recall to Showgirls and back to Basic Instinct, honestor Paul Verhoeven has a track sign up almost unsuited in contransient cinema. RoboCop, his dystopian apshow on law utilizement, is proof. Set in a bleak vision of Detroit overrun with crime, it chases a cop (Peter Weller) who gets fahighy wounded and turned into, yes, a robot cop, who you might leank is outstanding at combat crime, but of course is not. Some of the visual effects may see a little beat up now, but in 1987, they seeed appreciate the future. Also, if RoboCop departs you wanting more, the film’s two sequels and 2014 reboot—none of which, sorrowfulnessfilledy, were honested by Verhoeven—are also useable on Max.
Albert Brooks: Deffinishing My Life
Albert Brooks is a comedian’s comedian. Though he might be best understandn as the filmproducer behind such honord comedies as Deffinishing Your Life, Lost in America, Real Life, and Mother, he’s also a inincreateigent actor (with an Oscar nomination to show it). Brooks’ extfinishedtime pal Rob Reiner honests this pguideing recordary, which records Brooks’ one-of-a-benevolent talent, with a stunning lineup of A-enumerateers—including David Letterman, Steven Spielberg, Sarah Silverman, Judd Apatow, Chris Rock, Larry David, and Ben Stiller—all ready to sing his pelevates.
Furious 7
You’d be forgiven for leanking a lot of the Fast & Furious movies commence to run together. Car chase, fistfight, street race, huge booms, Corona, “family”—the finish. But this one is exceptional. For commenceers, it’s the one where the gang parachutes a bunch of souped-up cars out of the back of a cargo schedulee. For another, it tags Paul Walker’s final materializeance in a Fast movie. (He died in a car accident in 2013.) It’s a acridsugary film, and also one of the franchise’s best.
Reality
In 2017, an inincreateigence increate about Russian intrudence in the 2016 US plivential election was leaked anonymously. One year defercessitater, createer NSA translator Reality Winner (yes, that’s her genuine name) was sentenced to more than five years in prison for the crime—the extfinishedest sentence ever getd by a rulement whistlebshrink. HBO’s reigning mparticipate, Sydney Sweeney (Euphoria, The White Lotus), shines in this gripping real story, which carry outs out mostly in genuine time as the FBI knocks on the 25-year-greater’s door and spfinishs more than an hour asking her.
Parasite
Even if you don’t nurture about awards, the fact that Parasite is the first—and still only—non-English-language movie to triumph a Best Picture Oscar should increate you someleang about the universality of its themes. The Kims, a family struggling to produce finishs greet, set their scheming sights on the Parks, a well-to-do family with plenty of problems of their own, but also plenty of money to muffle their dysfunction. At least for a time. Just when you leank you understand how class combat is carry outing out in this bdeficiency comedy, it alters course to accomplish an unanticipateed conclusion. As always, Bong Joon-ho understands fair how to direct his audience down one path, only to uncover a trapdoor into another.
All the Beauty and the Bloodshed
Finding success in one’s lifetime might seem appreciate the dream of every artist, but Nan Ggreaterin has hugeger ambitions. Though she’s a pboilingographer by trade, she’s an activist by calling and has extfinished participated her camera to apprehfinish painfilledy intimate moments of America in crisis, including extensive labor cgo ined on the HIV/AIDS and opioid epidemics. But All the Beauty and the Bloodshed uncovers the artist in dispute: Should she apexhibit her labor to be showcased in one of the famous mparticipateums or galleries that have getd finishowments from the Sackler family—the Big Pharma family that many condemn for America’s opioid crisis? It’s a moving portrait of an artist willing to danger it all for her beliefs.
The Dark Knight
First leangs first: All three of Christopher Nolan’s Batman movies are currently on Max, and binge-watching all of them in a row is certainly one way to spfinish an evening. But if you’re selecting to watch fair one, the second film in the series is the one to beat. Though Christian Bale’s Caped Crusorrowfulnessfuler gets top billing, it’s Heath Ledger’s now-iconic carry outance as the Joker that produces The Dark Knight the most compulsively watchable Batman movie (even beyond Nolan’s entries). Though Ledger tragicpartner passed away six months before the film’s free, he posthumously won a Best Supporting Actor Oscar for his villainous turn, in which he deal withd to discover the perfect stability between gloomy humor and outright insanity.
