100 Best Movies on HBO and MAX (September 2024)
See the best movies streaming on MAX, featuring everything from Warner Bros, HBO, DC, Studio Ghibli and more!
(Photo by Courtesy Everett Collection / BEETLEJUICE)
100 Best Movies on HBO and MAX (September 2024)
If you’re looking for the top movies available to stream on MAX this month, we’ve got you covered with this curated list from strictly Certified Fresh movies.
Explore these films of MAX acclaim, including DC superhero blockbusters (The Dark Knight), the Harry Potter series, The Lord of the Rings trilogy, and Beetlejuice. In addition, check out the movies of long-associated WB directors, like Stanley Kubrick and Christopher Nolan. Read on for the 100 best MAX movies this month!
Newly added: Beetlejuice (1988), The Shining, Marcel the Shell With Shoes On, The Martian, Disobedience, the Harry Potter series, The World’s Greatest Dad, and more.
#1
Adjusted Score: 112322%
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,... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#2
Adjusted Score: 103980%
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... [More]
Directed By: Isao Takahata
#3
Adjusted Score: 113640%
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... [More]
#4
Adjusted Score: 105170%
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... [More]
Directed By: Isao Takahata
#5
Adjusted Score: 106725%
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... [More]
Directed By: Yasujirô Ozu
#6
Adjusted Score: 107763%
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 (Aleksandr... [More]
Directed By: Sergei M. Eisenstein
#7
Adjusted Score: 104206%
Critics Consensus: Ingmar Bergman conveys the sweep of childhood with a fastidious attention to detail and sumptuous insight into human frailty in Fanny & Alexander, a masterwork that crystalizes many of the directors' preoccupations into a familial epic.
Synopsis: As children in the loving Ekdahl family, Fanny (Pernilla Allwin) and Alexander (Bertil Guve) enjoy a happy life with their... [More]
Directed By: Ingmar Bergman
#8
Adjusted Score: 103970%
Critics Consensus: Stalker is a complex, oblique parable that draws unforgettable images and philosophical musings from its sci-fi/thriller setting.
Synopsis: In an unnamed country at an unspecified time, there is a fiercely protected post-apocalyptic wasteland known as The Zone. An... [More]
Directed By: Andrei Tarkovsky
#9
Adjusted Score: 125114%
Critics Consensus: An urgent, brilliantly layered look at timely social themes, Parasite finds writer-director Bong Joon Ho in near-total command of his craft.
Synopsis: Greed and class discrimination threaten the newly formed symbiotic relationship between the wealthy Park family and the destitute Kim clan.... [More]
Directed By: Bong Joon Ho
#10
Adjusted Score: 121511%
Critics Consensus: Lady Bird delivers fresh insights about the turmoil of adolescence -- and reveals writer-director Greta Gerwig as a fully formed filmmaking talent.
Synopsis: A teenager (Saoirse Ronan) navigates a loving but turbulent relationship with her strong-willed mother (Laurie Metcalf) over the course of... [More]
Directed By: Greta Gerwig
#11
Adjusted Score: 120513%
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... [More]
Directed By: Michael Curtiz
#12
Adjusted Score: 111233%
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... [More]
Directed By: Gillo Pontecorvo
#13
Adjusted Score: 103156%
Critics Consensus: A poetic tribute to tenacity, All That Breathes uses two brothers' tireless efforts to make a broader point about finding triumph within tragedy.
Synopsis: In one of the world's most populated cities, cows, rats, monkeys, frogs, and hogs jostle cheek-by-jowl with people. Here, two... [More]
Starring:
Directed By: Shaunak Sen
#14
Adjusted Score: 107226%
Critics Consensus: A seminal French New Wave film that offers an honest, sympathetic, and wholly heartbreaking observation of adolescence without trite nostalgia.
Synopsis: For young Parisian boy Antoine Doinel (Jean-Pierre Léaud), life is one difficult situation after another. Surrounded by inconsiderate adults, including... [More]
Directed By: François Truffaut
#15
Adjusted Score: 110073%
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... [More]
Directed By: Vittorio De Sica
#16
Adjusted Score: 107640%
Critics Consensus: Poignant, profound, and utterly heartwarming, Marcel the Shell with Shoes On is animated entertainment with real heart.
Synopsis: Marcel is an adorable one-inch-tall shell who ekes out a colorful existence with his grandmother Connie and their pet lint,... [More]
Directed By: Dean Fleischer-Camp
#17
Adjusted Score: 122313%
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 (Judy Garland) and her dog, Toto, are whisked away in their house to... [More]
Directed By: Victor Fleming
#18
Adjusted Score: 110521%
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... [More]
Directed By: Richard Lester
#19
Adjusted Score: 102101%
Critics Consensus: Whose Streets? takes a close-up look at the civil unrest that erupted after a shocking act of violence in Ferguson, Missouri - and the decades of simmering tension leading up to it.
Synopsis: An account of the Ferguson uprising as told by the people who lived it. The filmmakers look at how the... [More]
Starring:
Directed By: Sabaah Folayan
#20
Adjusted Score: 106688%
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... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#21
Adjusted Score: 107653%
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... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#22
Adjusted Score: 111988%
Critics Consensus: Soulfully exploring thought-provoking themes through a beautifully animated lens, The Boy and the Heron is another Miyazaki masterpiece.
Synopsis: From the legendary Studio Ghibli and Academy Award®-winning director Hayao Miyazaki (Spirited Away) comes a new critically-acclaimed fantasy adventure. After... [More]
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
#23
Adjusted Score: 107720%
Critics Consensus: Drive My Car's imposing runtime holds a rich, patiently engrossing drama that reckons with self-acceptance and regret.
Synopsis: Two years after his wife's unexpected death, Yusuke Kafuku (Hidetoshi Nishijima), a renowned stage actor and director, receives an offer... [More]
Directed By: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
#24
Adjusted Score: 103013%
Critics Consensus: It follows a predictable narrative arc, but Good Will Hunting adds enough quirks to the journey -- and is loaded with enough powerful performances -- that it remains an entertaining, emotionally rich drama.
Synopsis: Will Hunting (Matt Damon) has a genius-level IQ but chooses to work as a janitor at MIT. When he solves... [More]
Directed By: Gus Van Sant
#25
Adjusted Score: 104804%
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... [More]
Directed By: Jacques Demy
#26
Adjusted Score: 102778%
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... [More]
Directed By: Robert Altman
#27
Adjusted Score: 105829%
Critics Consensus: It requires some viewing commitment, but this beautifully assembled showcase for Douglas Fairbanks' acting offers some splendid treats for classic film fans.
Synopsis: A thief sneaks into a royal palace, where he sees and falls instantly in love with a beautiful princess. Pretending... [More]
Directed By: Raoul Walsh
#28
Adjusted Score: 104456%
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... [More]
Directed By: Federico Fellini
#29
Adjusted Score: 104590%
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,... [More]
Directed By: Georges Franju
#30
Adjusted Score: 114444%
Critics Consensus: An electrifying dramatization of historical events, Judas and the Black Messiah is a forceful condemnation of racial injustice -- and a major triumph for its director and stars.
Synopsis: FBI informant William O'Neal infiltrates the Illinois Black Panther Party and is tasked with keeping tabs on their charismatic leader,... [More]
Directed By: Shaka King
#31
Adjusted Score: 109739%
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 (Daniel Radcliffe), Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) prepare... [More]
Directed By: David Yates
#32
Adjusted Score: 113762%
Critics Consensus: The Florida Project offers a colorfully empathetic look at an underrepresented part of the population that proves absorbing even as it raises sobering questions about modern America.
Synopsis: Set in the shadow of the most magical place on Earth, 6-year-old Moonee and her two best friends forge their... [More]
Directed By: Sean Baker
#33
Adjusted Score: 104302%
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 (Daveigh Chase) moves with her parents to a new home in the Japanese countryside. After taking a wrong... [More]
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
#34
Adjusted Score: 103249%
Critics Consensus: A feudal adventure told from an eccentric perspective, The Hidden Fortress is among Akira Kurosawa's most purely enjoyable epics.
Synopsis: Japanese peasants Matashichi (Kamatari Fujiwara) and Tahei (Minoru Chiaki) try and fail to make a profit from a tribal war.... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#35
Adjusted Score: 102502%
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... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#36
Adjusted Score: 101151%
Critics Consensus: As effortlessly engaging as it is widely influential, Yojimbo represents Kurosawa at the peak of his powers -- and lays the groundwork for the modern American western.
Synopsis: A nameless ronin, or samurai with no master (Toshirô Mifune), enters a small village in feudal Japan where two rival... [More]
Directed By: Akira Kurosawa
#37
Adjusted Score: 108890%
Critics Consensus: Sweet, soulful, and smart, Spike Jonze's Her uses its just-barely-sci-fi scenario to impart wryly funny wisdom about the state of modern human relationships.
Synopsis: A sensitive and soulful man earns a living by writing personal letters for other people. Left heartbroken after his marriage... [More]
Directed By: Spike Jonze
#38
Adjusted Score: 102496%
Critics Consensus: All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is a bone-deep look at a photographer's fight against addiction and the institution responsible for her pain through her gritty lens.
Synopsis: Directed by Academy Award®-winning filmmaker Laura Poitras, All the Beauty and the Bloodshed is an epic, emotional and interconnected story... [More]
Directed By: Laura Poitras
#39
Adjusted Score: 105839%
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 (Paul Meurisse), becomes... [More]
Directed By: Henri-Georges Clouzot
#40
Adjusted Score: 104507%
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... [More]
Directed By: Jean-Luc Godard
#41
Adjusted Score: 100791%
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... [More]
Directed By: Wim Wenders
#42
Adjusted Score: 103697%
Critics Consensus: One of the best underdog romance movies ever, with an ending that will light up any heart.
Synopsis: A hapless but resilient tramp (Charlie Chaplin) falls in love with a blind flower girl (Virginia Cherrill) on the tough... [More]
Directed By: Charlie Chaplin
#43
Adjusted Score: 101888%
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... [More]
Directed By: Luis Buñuel
#44
Adjusted Score: 114400%
Critics Consensus: War for the Planet of the Apes combines breathtaking special effects and a powerful, poignant narrative to conclude this rebooted trilogy on a powerful -- and truly blockbuster -- note.
Synopsis: Caesar (Andy Serkis) and his apes are forced into a deadly conflict with an army of humans led by a... [More]
Directed By: Matt Reeves
#45
Adjusted Score: 108581%
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 (Gary Oldman) and DA Harvey Dent (Aaron Eckhart), Batman (Christian Bale) has... [More]
Directed By: Christopher Nolan
#46
Adjusted Score: 112224%
Critics Consensus: Lust and violence collide to powerfully pulpy effect in Love Lies Bleeding, a well-acted addition to writer-director Rose Glass' growing body of exceptional work.
Synopsis: From Director Rose Glass comes an electric new love story; reclusive gym manager Lou falls hard for Jackie, an ambitious... [More]
Directed By: Rose Glass
#47
Adjusted Score: 103815%
Critics Consensus: Passionate and powerfully acted, Fruitvale Station serves as a celebration of life, a condemnation of death, and a triumph for star Michael B. Jordan.
Synopsis: Though he once spent time in San Quentin, 22-year-old black man Oscar Grant (Michael B. Jordan) is now trying hard... [More]
Directed By: Ryan Coogler
#48
Adjusted Score: 100436%
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... [More]
#49
Adjusted Score: 99827%
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... [More]
#50
Adjusted Score: 109160%
Critics Consensus: While Alien was a marvel of slow-building, atmospheric tension, Aliens packs a much more visceral punch, and features a typically strong performance from Sigourney Weaver.
Synopsis: After floating in space for 57 years, Lt. Ripley's (Sigourney Weaver) shuttle is found by a deep space salvage team.... [More]
Directed By: James Cameron
#51
Adjusted Score: 104388%
Critics Consensus: Brutally violent and shockingly funny in equal measure, Blood Simple offers early evidence of the Coen brothers' twisted sensibilities and filmmaking ingenuity.
Synopsis: "Blood Simple" was the first feature film from Joel and Ethan Coen. This is the newly restored and re-edited director's... [More]
Directed By: Joel Coen
#52
Adjusted Score: 98433%
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... [More]
Directed By: Steven Soderbergh
#53
Adjusted Score: 98540%
Critics Consensus: A quiet yet deeply moving kind of Western, Paris, Texas captures a place and people like never before (or after).
Synopsis: A disheveled man who wanders out of the desert, Travis Henderson (Harry Dean Stanton) seems to have no idea who... [More]
Directed By: Wim Wenders
#54
Adjusted Score: 99766%
Critics Consensus: Francois Truffaut's arguable masterpiece in a filmography full of masterpieces ready to be argued for, Jules and Jim is an eternal ode to boundless love.
Synopsis: In the carefree days before World War I, introverted Austrian author Jules (Oskar Werner) strikes up a friendship with the... [More]
Directed By: François Truffaut
#55
Adjusted Score: 100981%
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... [More]
Directed By: Ingmar Bergman
#56
Adjusted Score: 120025%
Critics Consensus: Thrilling, earnest, and buoyed by Gal Gadot's charismatic performance, Wonder Woman succeeds in spectacular fashion.
Synopsis: Before she was Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior.... [More]
Directed By: Patty Jenkins
#57
Adjusted Score: 115916%
Critics Consensus: Led by an outstanding Michelle Yeoh, Everything Everywhere All at Once lives up to its title with an expertly calibrated assault on the senses.
Synopsis: Directed by Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert, collectively known as Daniels, the film is a hilarious and big-hearted sci-fi action... [More]
#58
Adjusted Score: 100735%
Critics Consensus: A good-hearted film about a difficult topic, 50/50 maneuvers between jokes and drama with surprising finesse.
Synopsis: Adam Lerner (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) has always tried to take good care of his health, so it comes as a cruel... [More]
Directed By: Jonathan Levine
#59
Adjusted Score: 101093%
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.... [More]
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
#60
Adjusted Score: 102514%
Critics Consensus: Solaris is a haunting, meditative film that uses sci-fi to raise complex questions about humanity and existence.
Synopsis: A psychologist is sent to a space station orbiting a planet called Solaris to investigate the death of a doctor... [More]
Directed By: Andrei Tarkovsky
#61
Adjusted Score: 101696%
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... [More]
Directed By: Louis Malle
#62
Adjusted Score: 100569%
Critics Consensus: Marked by GW Pabst's innovative, atmospheric direction and a surprisingly modern storyline, Pandora's Box ultimately owes its power to Louise Brooks' monumental, iconic performance.
Synopsis: In this acclaimed German silent film, Lulu (Louise Brooks) is a young woman so beautiful and alluring that few can... [More]
Directed By: Georg Wilhelm Pabst
#63
Adjusted Score: 123767%
Critics Consensus: Visually thrilling and narratively epic, Dune: Part Two continues Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of the beloved sci-fi series in spectacular form.
Synopsis: "Dune: Part Two" will explore the mythic journey of Paul Atreides as he unites with Chani and the Fremen while... [More]
Directed By: Denis Villeneuve
#64
Adjusted Score: 100842%
Critics Consensus: Full of eye-popping special effects, and featuring a pitch-perfect cast, The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring brings J.R.R. Tolkien's classic to vivid life.
Synopsis: The future of civilization rests in the fate of the One Ring, which has been lost for centuries. Powerful forces... [More]
Directed By: Peter Jackson
#65
Adjusted Score: 108721%
Critics Consensus: Arguably Martin Scorsese's and Robert De Niro's finest film, Raging Bull is often painful to watch, but it's a searing, powerful work about an unsympathetic hero.
Synopsis: The story of a middleweight boxer as he rises through ranks to earn his first shot at the middleweight crown.... [More]
Directed By: Martin Scorsese
#66
Adjusted Score: 101289%
Critics Consensus: Endlessly witty, visually rapturous, and sweetly romantic, Shakespeare in Love is a delightful romantic comedy that succeeds on nearly every level.
Synopsis: "Shakespeare in Love" is a romantic comedy for the 1990s set in the 1590s. It imaginatively unfolds the witty, sexy... [More]
Directed By: John Madden
#67
Adjusted Score: 102144%
Critics Consensus: Hugh Grant ably snatches up the bouquet of leading man status with Four Weddings and a Funeral, a sparkling romantic comedy given real charm by its chummy ensemble and Richard Curtis' sharp-witted screenplay.
Synopsis: Lovable Englishman Charles (Hugh Grant) and his group of friends seem to be unlucky in love. When Charles meets a... [More]
Directed By: Mike Newell
#68
Adjusted Score: 107739%
Critics Consensus: One of the most influential of all sci-fi films -- and one of the most controversial -- Stanley Kubrick's 2001 is a delicate, poetic meditation on the ingenuity -- and folly -- of mankind.
Synopsis: An imposing black structure provides a connection between the past and the future in this enigmatic adaptation of a short... [More]
Directed By: Stanley Kubrick
#69
Adjusted Score: 96140%
Critics Consensus: When Marnie Was There is still blessed with enough visual and narrative beauty to recommend, even if it isn't quite as magical as Studio Ghibli's greatest works.
Synopsis: A tomboy (Hailee Steinfeld) explores a long-abandoned villa and meets a mysterious blonde girl only she can see.... [More]
Directed By: Hiromasa Yonebayashi
#70
Adjusted Score: 98087%
Critics Consensus: Cleo from 5 to 7 represents a beautifully filmed highlight of the French New Wave that encapsulates the appeal of the era while departing from its narrative conventions.
Synopsis: Selfish pop singer Cléo (Corinne Marchand) has two hours to wait until the results of her biopsy come back. After... [More]
Directed By: Agnès Varda
#71
Adjusted Score: 98784%
Critics Consensus: Charlie Chaplin demonstrates that his comedic voice is undiminished by dialogue in this rousing satire of tyranny, which may be more distinguished by its uplifting humanism than its gags.
Synopsis: After dedicated service in the Great War, a Jewish barber (Charles Chaplin) spends years in an army hospital recovering from... [More]
Directed By: Charlie Chaplin
#72
Adjusted Score: 97039%
Critics Consensus: Visually mesmerizing, Picnic at Hanging Rock is moody, unsettling, and enigmatic -- a masterpiece of Australian cinema and a major early triumph for director Peter Weir.
Synopsis: In the early 1900s, Miranda (Anne Lambert) attends a girls boarding school in Australia. One Valentine's Day, the school's typically... [More]
Directed By: Peter Weir
#73
Adjusted Score: 110232%
Critics Consensus: Smart, thrilling, and surprisingly funny, The Martian offers a faithful adaptation of the bestselling book that brings out the best in leading man Matt Damon and director Ridley Scott.
Synopsis: When astronauts blast off from the planet Mars, they leave behind Mark Watney (Matt Damon), presumed dead after a fierce... [More]
Directed By: Ridley Scott
#74
Adjusted Score: 109538%
Critics Consensus: Uncut Gems reaffirms the Safdies as masters of anxiety-inducing cinema -- and proves Adam Sandler remains a formidable dramatic actor when given the right material.
Synopsis: A charismatic jeweler makes a high-stakes bet that could lead to the windfall of a lifetime. In a precarious high-wire... [More]
#75
Adjusted Score: 104191%
Critics Consensus: Come to Dream Scenario for career-highlight work from Nicolas Cage -- and leave mulling over everything it has to say about pop culture's fickle whims.
Synopsis: Hapless family man Paul Matthews (Nicolas Cage) finds his life turned upside down when millions of strangers suddenly start seeing... [More]
Directed By: Kristoffer Borgli
#76
Adjusted Score: 97858%
Critics Consensus: While not Miyazaki's best film, Ponyo is a visually stunning fairy tale that's a sweetly poetic treat for children of all ages.
Synopsis: During a forbidden excursion to see the surface world, a goldfish princess encounters a human boy named Sosuke, who gives... [More]
Directed By: Hayao Miyazaki
#77
Adjusted Score: 120508%
Critics Consensus: With appealing leads, deft direction, and an affecting love story, A Star Is Born is a remake done right -- and a reminder that some stories can be just as effective in the retelling.
Synopsis: Seasoned musician Jackson Maine discovers -- and falls in love with -- struggling artist Ally. She has just about given... [More]
Directed By: Bradley Cooper
#78
Adjusted Score: 111631%
Critics Consensus: Led by strong work from Margot Robbie and Alison Janney, I, Tonya finds the humor in its real-life story without losing sight of its more tragic -- and emotionally resonant -- elements.
Synopsis: In 1991, talented figure skater Tonya Harding becomes the first American woman to complete a triple axel during a competition.... [More]
Directed By: Craig Gillespie
#79
Adjusted Score: 104196%
Critics Consensus: The rare trilogy capper that really works, How to Train Your Dragon: The Hidden World brings its saga to a visually dazzling and emotionally affecting conclusion.
Synopsis: When the sudden appearance of a female Light Fury coincides with the darkest threat their village has ever faced, Hiccup... [More]
Directed By: Dean DeBlois
#80
Adjusted Score: 98914%
Critics Consensus: Under the assured direction of Alfonso Cuaron, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban triumphantly strikes a delicate balance between technical wizardry and complex storytelling.
Synopsis: Harry Potter's (Daniel Radcliffe) third year at Hogwarts starts off badly when he learns deranged killer Sirius Black (Gary Oldman)... [More]
Directed By: Alfonso Cuarón
#81
Adjusted Score: 98718%
Critics Consensus: The feel-good Amelie is a lively, fanciful charmer, showcasing Audrey Tautou as its delightful heroine.
Synopsis: "Amélie" is a fanciful comedy about a young woman who discretely orchestrates the lives of the people around her, creating... [More]
Directed By: Jean-Pierre Jeunet
#82
Adjusted Score: 104486%
Critics Consensus: Gone with the Wind's epic grandeur and romantic allure encapsulate an era of Hollywood filmmaking -- but that can't excuse a blinkered perspective that stands on the wrong side of history.
Synopsis: Winner of eight Academy Awards® (plus two special achievement Oscars) Celebrate the 85th Anniversary of one of the most celebrated... [More]
Directed By: Victor Fleming
#83
Adjusted Score: 117059%
Critics Consensus: Barbie is a visually dazzling comedy whose meta humor is smartly complemented by subversive storytelling.
Synopsis: To live in Barbie Land is to be a perfect being in a perfect place. Unless you have a full-on... [More]
Directed By: Greta Gerwig
#84
Adjusted Score: 97847%
Critics Consensus: The main characters are maturing, and the filmmakers are likewise improving on their craft; vibrant special effects and assured performances add up to what is the most complex yet of the Harry Potter films.
Synopsis: The fourth movie in the Harry Potter franchise sees Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) returning for his fourth year at Hogwarts School... [More]
Directed By: Mike Newell
#85
Adjusted Score: 92275%
Critics Consensus: World's Greatest Dad is a risky, deadpan, dark comedy that effectively explores the nature of posthumous cults of celebrity.
Synopsis: When the son of high school English teacher Lance Clayton (Robin Williams) accidentally kills himself, Clayton writes a fake suicide... [More]
Directed By: Bobcat Goldthwait
#86
Adjusted Score: 94499%
Critics Consensus: M Night Shayamalan's The Sixth Sense is a twisty ghost story with all the style of a classical Hollywood picture, but all the chills of a modern horror flick.
Synopsis: Young Cole Sear (Haley Joel Osment) is haunted by a dark secret: he is visited by ghosts. Cole is frightened... [More]
Directed By: M. Night Shyamalan
#87
Adjusted Score: 98508%
Critics Consensus: Bracingly intense, passionate, and wildly melodramatic, Black Swan glides on Darren Aronofsky's bold direction -- and a bravura performance from Natalie Portman.
Synopsis: Nina (Natalie Portman) is a ballerina whose passion for the dance rules every facet of her life. When the company's... [More]
Directed By: Darren Aronofsky
#88
Adjusted Score: 100964%
Critics Consensus: With Cailee Spaeny's performance in the title role leading the way, Priscilla sees Sofia Coppola taking a tender yet clear-eyed look at the often toxic blend created by mixing first love and fame.
Synopsis: When teenage Priscilla Beaulieu meets Elvis Presley at a party, the man who is already a meteoric rock-and-roll superstar becomes... [More]
Directed By: Sofia Coppola
#89
Adjusted Score: 95561%
Critics Consensus: Dark, thrilling, and occasionally quite funny, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince is also visually stunning and emotionally satisfying.
Synopsis: As Death Eaters wreak havoc in both Muggle and Wizard worlds, Hogwarts is no longer a safe haven for students.... [More]
Directed By: David Yates
#90
Adjusted Score: 95547%
Critics Consensus: Disobedience explores a variety of thought-provoking themes, bolstered by gripping work from leads Rachel Weisz, Rachel McAdams, and Alessandro Nivola.
Synopsis: New York photographer Ronit Krushka flies to London after learning about the death of her estranged father. Ronit is returning... [More]
Directed By: Sebastián Lelio
#91
Adjusted Score: 88122%
Critics Consensus: Mike Nichols wrangles agreeably amusing performances from Robin Williams and Nathan Lane in this fun, if not quite essential, remake of the French comedy La Cage aux Folles.
Synopsis: In this remake of the classic French farce "La Cage aux Folles," engaged couple Val Goldman (Dan Futterman) and Barbara... [More]
Directed By: Mike Nichols
#92
Adjusted Score: 91355%
Critics Consensus: Using its low-budget effects and mockumentary method to great result, Paranormal Activity turns a simple haunted house story into 90 minutes of relentless suspense.
Synopsis: Soon after moving into a suburban tract home, Katie (Katie Featherston) and Micah (Micah Sloat) become increasingly disturbed by what... [More]
Directed By: Oren Peli
#93
Adjusted Score: 93552%
Critics Consensus: Brilliantly bizarre and overflowing with ideas, Beetlejuice offers some of Michael Keaton's most deliciously manic work - and creepy, funny fun for the whole family.
Synopsis: After Barbara (Geena Davis) and Adam Maitland (Alec Baldwin) die in a car accident, they find themselves stuck haunting their... [More]
Directed By: Tim Burton
#94
Adjusted Score: 94555%
Critics Consensus: Though it deviates from Stephen King's novel, Stanley Kubrick's The Shining is a chilling, often baroque journey into madness -- exemplified by an unforgettable turn from Jack Nicholson.
Synopsis: Jack Torrance (Jack Nicholson) becomes winter caretaker at the isolated Overlook Hotel in Colorado, hoping to cure his writer's block.... [More]
Directed By: Stanley Kubrick
#95
Adjusted Score: 90257%
Critics Consensus: Though perhaps more enchanting for younger audiences, Chamber of Secrets is nevertheless both darker and livelier than its predecessor, expanding and improving upon the first film's universe.
Synopsis: The follow-up to "Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone" finds young wizard Harry Potter (Daniel Radcliffe) and his friends, Ron... [More]
Directed By: Chris Columbus
#96
Adjusted Score: 88389%
Critics Consensus: Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone adapts its source material faithfully while condensing the novel's overstuffed narrative into an involving -- and often downright exciting -- big-screen magical caper.
Synopsis: Adaptation of the first of J.K. Rowling's popular children's novels about Harry Potter, a boy who learns on his eleventh... [More]
Directed By: Chris Columbus
#97
Adjusted Score: 87123%
Critics Consensus: Horror icon Wes Craven's subversive deconstruction of the genre is sly, witty, and surprisingly effective as a slasher film itself, even if it's a little too cheeky for some.
Synopsis: The sleepy little town of Woodsboro just woke up screaming. There's a killer in their midst who's seen a few... [More]
Directed By: Wes Craven
#98
Adjusted Score: 83447%
Critics Consensus: Agonizingly funny, Tiny Furniture marks an observant study of a failure to launch and an auspicious debut for writer-director Lena Dunham.
Synopsis: After graduating from film school, Aura (Lena Dunham) returns to New York to live with her photographer mother, Siri (Laurie... [More]
Directed By: Lena Dunham
#99
Adjusted Score: 97683%
Critics Consensus: The Exorcist rides its supernatural theme to magical effect, with remarkable special effects and an eerie atmosphere, resulting in one of the scariest films of all time.
Synopsis: One of the most profitable horror movies ever made, this tale of an exorcism is based loosely on actual events.... [More]
Directed By: William Friedkin
#100
Adjusted Score: 83319%
Critics Consensus: Role Models is a frequently crude, always funny comedy with the cast providing solid work throughout.
Synopsis: After salesmen Danny (Paul Rudd) and Wheeler (Seann William Scott) trash a company truck, the court gives them a choice:... [More]
Directed By: David Wain
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