The 16 Best Movies Of 2016 (That You Can Stream At Home)

Drawing many comparisons to the work of Terrence Malick (particularly The Tree of Life), Beyonce’s “visual album” Lemonade premiered on HBO in April. Much of the film was spent taking Jay-Z to the proverbial woodshed, and the rest was yet another testament to the world conquering powers of King Bey.

Where to stream 'Lemonade'

“The indie drama starring Mark Duplass and Sarah Paulson will break your heart, put all the pieces together, and then smash it yet again … It’s worth every sweet moment.”—Lea Palmieri

Where to stream 'Blue Jay'

In this gorgeously animated film, a young boy named Kubo must locate a magical suit of armor worn by his late father in order to defeat a vengeful spirit from the past. Critics loved this film, which is currently 97% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes.

Where to stream 'Kubo And The Two Strings'

“After writing all those Lethal Weapon movies, Shane Black has compiled quite the fascinating feature-film career as a director, with films like Kiss Kiss Bang Bang and Iron Man 3. With The Nice Guys, he once again proves that he can do buddy comedy with the best of them, as he puts Russell Crowe and Ryan Gosling together as two loser private eyes who team up to solve the disappearance of a young woman. That setup won’t be breaking any ground, but Black and his cast make up for a lot in the execution. Gosling is especially delightful, pulling off a couple physical bits that will have you giggling long after that scene has passed.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'The Nice Guys'

“Other People was written by Saturday Night Live head writer Chris Kelly and it’s loosely based on his own experiences. The film follows a young gay man named David (Jesse Plemons) who must move back home to help his mother (played by Shannon) battle cancer. Even as he’s dealing with the trauma of his mother’s illness and impending death, David personally runs into problems with his conservative family’s values.”—Meghan O’Keefe

Where to stream 'Other People'

“Mike Birbiglia’s second film is about a group of pals in a comedy troupe; it will hit a very sensitive nerd for anyone who knows what the letters UCB mean. The movie earnestly depicts what happens when the group becomes divided after some achieve the success they’ve all dreamed of, and each person must grapple with where they currently are, and where they want to be in their lives. It’s funny and touching and oh so awkward at times because we’ve all been there in our own ways. You don’t have to be a comedy performer to understand the feelings this group of friends finds themselves tangled in.

Don’t Think Twice is the perfect movie to put on when you want to crawl under a blanket. It will make you cringe, make you giggle, and give you the same warmness inside your body that you feel on the outside, because you know, that blanket.”—Lea Palmieri

Where to stream 'Don't Think Twice'

“The beauty of a movie like Deadpool is that while it definitely is still the kind of big, smashy superhero adventure that all the Marvel movies are, its also just as much a deconstruction of those big, smashy superhero adventures. This makes it play even better on a small screen.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'Deadpool'

“Looking for something uplifting? John Carney’s latest musical romance Sing Street is an uplifting tale set in 1980s Dublin. After Conor gets transferred to a new school, he finds himself in the thrall of the beguiling Raphina. He starts a New Wave band to impress her and discovers himself (and a way out) through song.”—Meghan O’Keefe

Where to stream 'Sing Street'

“Thanksgiving is traditionally the time of the year when families come together from great distances, which (unfortunately) means that it’s also traditionally a time when families air their grievances against one another. Krisha, the first feature from writer/director Trey Edward Shults, centers around the Thanksgiving return of the title character, a sixtysomething ex-hippie, to the familial fold after a decades-long period of estrangement. It’s one of the best-reviewed films of 2016 —currently 97% Fresh on Rotten Tomatoes— and another instance where Amazon’s exclusive partnership with the indie film distributor A24 is paying major dividends for film lovers.”—Mark Graham

Where to stream 'Krisha'

“Weiner is a fascinating documentary about a man who could have easily rose to power, but decided to succumb to his own self-destructive behavior. It’s a contemplation about the intersection of media and politics, and an examination of a fascinating marriage gone downhill. It’s a total must-watch.”—Meghan O’Keefe

Where to stream 'Weiner'

“Hands-down the best time I had watching a movie in 2016 has been the Coen Brothers’ Hail Caesar!, a loving yet ludicrous vision of the old Hollywood studio system, populated by simpletons and schemers, and presided over by a man whose love for the moviemaking biz is so pure he’d do anything to preserve it. While the Coens do their usual great job drawing A-list talent to their sandbox — kudos to Channing Tatum, Ralph Fiennes, and Frances McDormand for their wonderful performances — there is no question that the show was entirely stolen by the performance of one Alden Ehrenreich, who played wide-eyed actor Hobie Doyle so perfectly that he ended up landing the role of young Han Solo in the process.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'Hail Caesar!'

“Director Robert Eggers’ chilling tale of one family’s unraveling presents a larger understanding of our ancestry as intruders (it was the witch’s land first, after all) and paranoid killers: of natives, of women, of those who stand out as other. [The movie’s characters] feared the sinful invading their farm, stealing their infant son, and cursing their only sustainable farmland, but what they failed to realize is their purity was stained from the start, no matter how much they prayed. Though it uses a familiar storybook archetype as its titular gateway, The Witch is really a narrative about Americans becoming what we promised we never would: evil.”—Olivia Armstrong

Where to stream 'The Witch'

“Richard Linklater’s Everybody Wants Some is probably the shaggiest, least vital movie he’s made in quite some time. It’s also maybe the most purely enjoyable thing he’s made since … School of Rock? Sold as a ‘spiritual sequel’ to Linklater’s 1993 film Dazed and Confused, it follows a team of college baseball players over the course of move-in weekend, making for some nice symmetry with the last-day-of-school teens in Dazed. There are definitely more reasons to watch than simply to ogle a baseball team full of hot college-aged guys in stretchy baseball pants and cutoff shirts who then occasionally go out to disco and country bars at night. It’s a relaxed movie full of amiable bullshittery and charming bits of ‘mance, both of the ‘ro’ and ‘bro’ variety. But also … you can ogle a baseball team full of hot college-aged guys in stretchy baseball pants and cutoff shirts! This is a win-win for all involved.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'Everybody Wants Some!!'

“Director Ava DuVernay has become, in a very short time, one of our most indispensable filmmakers. She’s given us quiet-yet-powerful indie romance in Middle of Nowhere and told the story of Martin Luther King as a series of taut political maneuverings in Selma. Now, she’s taking the reins on 13th, a documentary about a subject no less pressing and immense as the issue of mass incarceration, essentially the criminalization of African Americans in the United States. Picking up from the abolition of slavery (via the titular 13th amendment) through the Jim Crow South, the Nixon and Reagan administrations, the War on Drugs, the Southern Strategy, Willie Horton, George Zimmerman, ‘super-predators,’ and the prison-industrial complex, all with one purpose: putting as many black people into American prisons as possible. 13th is fearless in its tracking the many tendrils of this insidious issue and the devastating real-life consequences that it’s all added up to for the black community.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream '13th'

“A perfectly calibrated suspense tale that might be the scariest the Hollywood Hills have seemed since the Manson Family. Director Karyn Kusama tips the balance towards dread early on and never lets up as a reunion of friends after a couple years goes from dinner party to cult wariness to … whatever comes next. The way the movie moves the vibe from the bougie nightmare scenario of ‘uh oh, my friends came back from South America vegan and now they want to convert me’ to the actual nightmare scenario of ‘I don’t trust what’s in this wine’ is handled with a sublime touch. And it’s still the best ending of any movie I’ve seen in a year.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'The Invitation'

“A truly unique comedy and sneaky smart social commentary, The Lobster is scratching an itch that no other movie is approaching this year. Colin Farrell plays a single man who must find a mate in 30 days or else be turned into an animal, as has become the law in the horrible near future.”—Joe Reid

Where to stream 'The Lobster'