This article is updated frequently as titles leave and enter Max. *New additions are indicated with an asterisk.
HBO Max is now Max. Once upon a time, the streaming service was where you could stream blockbusters like Dune (Part One) and The Matrix Resurrections on the same day they landed in theaters, but that era long gone. These days, Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max is best understood as the streaming service with a dense catalog of classic films, pulling from generations of the Warner Bros. catalog, as well as hosting Criterion, TCM, and Studio Ghibli (at least for as long as the merged Warner Bros. Discovery holds onto its licensing deals).
But you’re not here to celebrate the size of Max’s library. You want help navigating it. The streaming giant’s deep, wide bench makes it perhaps the hardest service to pare down to 30 great films, but somehow we found a way. Our aim is to pull from a cross-section of what the service offers, including recent additions (this month look for Dune: Part Two and The Florida Project), enduring classics (Night of the Living Dead and Singin’ in the Rain), award winners (Spirited Away), under-the-radar gems (Funny Games), general Vulture favorites (Dune: Part Two), and even films that offer an offbeat story but can’t-miss performances from its stars (The Lighthouse).
You’ll find our selections organized into five genre categories — drama, action, horror, comedy, and family-friendly — and each week we cycle our recommendations, whether in response to changes in the Max library or just to keep things fresh. Just because a movie no longer appears on this list doesn’t mean it’s been removed from Max. We just want to give some other films a moment in the spotlight, starting with this week’s critic’s pick below. If there’s an under-appreciated movie on the service that you think we should consider for inclusion, please let us know at streamliner@vulture.com.
This Week’s Critic’s Pick
*Chinatown
Year: 1974
Runtime: 2h 11m
Director: Roman Polanski
Forget it Jake, it’s Chinatown. One of the best movies of the ‘70s, this Best Picture nominee (and Best Screenplay winner) tells the story of Jake Gittes, played unforgettably by Jack Nicholson, as he investigates an adulterer and finds something much more insidious under the surface of Los Angeles. It’s a must-see, as important as almost any film from its era.
Drama
*Bonnie and Clyde
Year: 1967
Runtime: 1h 51m
Director: Arthur Penn
One of the most essential American films, this drama really reshaped the way violence could be portrayed on screen. Warren Beatty and Faye Dunaway star as the legendary Clyde Barrow and Bonnie Parker, a pair of outlaws and lovers who went on a crime spree during the Great Depression. Widely considered one of the first films of “New Hollywood,” Penn’s work helped usher in an era of ambitious filmmaking for adult audiences.
*Brokeback Mountain
Year: 2005
Runtime: 2h 15m
Director: Ang Lee
Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal star in this romantic drama, one of the best films of the ‘00s. Adapted from the short story by Annie Proulx, Ang Lee’s film is tender and heartbreaking, the story of unaccepted love between two men in the American West. It features some of the career-best work from Ledger, Gyllenhaal, Anne Hathaway, and Michelle Williams.
Casablanca
Year: 1942
Runtime: 1h 42m
Director: Michael Curtiz
One of the most popular films of all time, Casablanca is now over eight decades old, but it’s still being watched somewhere every single day. Why has the story of Rick and Ilsa sustained as generations of other movies have come and gone? There’s something timeless in this tale of an ex-pat (Humphrey Bogart) who is asked to help the love of his life (Ingrid Bergman) escape the city of Casablanca during World War II. This is the first movie that so many people think of when they hear the phrase “classic cinema” for a reason.
Clèo From 5 to 7
Year: 1962
Runtime: 1h 29m
Director: Agnès Varda
The Queen of the French New Wave has a strong presence on Max because of her deep catalog in the streamer’s Criterion section, and you owe it to yourself to learn more about one of the most vital and important filmmakers of all time. This is probably her most popular film, the tale of a French singer who is awaiting test results that could confirm she has cancer. It’s a deeply powerful and philosophical character study, and the perfect gateway to discovering an essential filmmaker.
Dune: Parts One & Two
Year: 2021, 2024
Runtime: 2h 36m, 2h 46m
Director: Denis Villeneuve
You can now watch the entire Dune saga to date on Max, the exclusive home to the highest grossing film of 2024 so far. The second half of Villeneuve’s saga fulfills the promise of the first, turning the set-up of the 2021 film into a full-blooded action tale of a new messiah. Timothee Chalamet and Zendaya lead an all-star cast in a film that understands both scope and character. It may not play quite as well at home as it did in theaters, but it still rocks.
In the Mood for Love
Year: 2000
Runtime: 1h 39m
Director: Wong Kar-wai
One of the best films ever made, Wong Kar-wai’s 2000 drama is the story of a man (Tony Leung) and a woman (Maggie Cheung) who form a delicate relationship of glances and brief touches but can never fulfill their obvious passion for one another. Set in 1962 Hong Kong, it is a gorgeous film, filled with color and music that tell the story as much as dialogue or action. Filled with longing, cultural imposition, and regret, In the Mood for Love captivates every time you see it. It’s like entering a dream.
The Lighthouse
Year: 2019
Runtime: 1h 50m
Director: Robert Eggers
Is this the best COVID lockdown movie? Sure, it came out the year before, but a lot of people watched it on streaming while they were going crazy with people with whom they were stuck. Robert Pattinson and Willem Dafoe are fearless in Robert Eggers’ black-and-white nightmare about two New England lighthouse keepers who learn that nothing is scarier than being trapped with someone unbearable. It’s a twisted gem.
*Minari
Year: 2021
Runtime: 1h 56m
Director: Lee Isaac Chung
What a delicate and beautiful movie this is. Steven Yeun and Han Ye-ri star as a pair of South Korean immigrants who move to the heartland of America with their son (Alan Kim) and her mother (Youn Yuh-jung, who won the Oscar) in the 1980s. Semi-autobiographical, this is the kind of character-driven storytelling that we seem to be getting increasingly less from the movie machine.
Parasite
Year: 2019
Runtime: 2h 12m
Director: Bong Joon-ho
Remember not that long ago before the world changed, and we could all rally around a South Korean film becoming the first foreign flick ever to win the Oscar for Best Picture? It really was a crazy time. Thanks to Hulu’s relationship with distributor Neon, the streamer was the only place you’ll find Bong Joon-ho’s hysterical and thrilling study of class conflict for a long time, but the beloved thriller has now dropped on Max too.
Sugar
Year: 2008
Runtime: 1h 55m
Directors: Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck
Long before they got sucked up by the Marvel machine, Anna Boden & Ryan Fleck made one of the best baseball movies ever made. Algenis Perez Soto stars as the title character, aka Miguel Santos, a Dominican pitcher fighting his way into Major League Baseball. How much of themselves do athletes give when they dedicate themselves to sports greatness? This is a smart movie, one of the best about any sport, not just baseball.
Uncut Gems
Year: 2019
Runtime: 2h 16m
Directors: The Safdies
Adam Sandler earned the best reviews of his career for this tense drama/thriller about a New York jeweler who has a little bit of a gambling problem. As he spirals the drain of life, he tries to sell a rare gem and make money on a Celtics playoff game. Vibrant and anxiety-inducing, it’s one of the best movies of the 2010s, a movie that now seems ahead of its time given the increasing gambling addiction in this country.
The Zone of Interest
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 45m
Director: Jonathan Glazer
The Oscar winner for Best Foreign Language Film is exclusively available on Max. Based on the novel of the same name by Martin Amis, it’s the story of Auschwitz commandant Rudolf Hoss and his family, who live just outside the concentration camp. As they live and profit off horror, the sights and sounds of the Holocaust give the film a terrifying, unsettling foundation, reminding us how often true evil can be right next door.
Comedy
Barbie
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 55m
Director: Greta Gerwig
One of the biggest films of 2023 has already landed on Max in the form or Greta Gerwig’s daring blockbuster, a comedy that works both as a reminder of the power imagination and the fight for equality. Anyone who thinks this movie is anti-male isn’t paying any attention. The theme of the movie is that no one — not even Barbie or Ken — should be defined by traditional roles. We should all be free to play however we want. It’s a wonderful film that will truly stand the test of time.
Fargo
Year: 1996
Runtime: 1h 38m
Director: Joel Coen, Ethan Coen
Joel and Ethan Coen’s masterpiece is only one of the best films ever made, a story of violence and redemption in the great American North. The Coens won Best Original Screenplay and Frances McDormand took her first Oscar home for playing the unforgettable Marge Gunderson, a Minnesotan cop who gets entangled in a car salesman’s deeply inept foray into the criminal world.
*Lady Bird
Year: 2017
Runtime: 1h 34m
Director: Greta Gerwig
The Barbie director’s Best Picture nominee is one of the most personal and striking coming-of-age films in years. Saoirse Ronan stars as the titular character, a young Californian who longs for someplace cooler than her own hometown. It’s a heartfelt and very smart film, buoyed by great performances throughout, including Ronan, Tracy Letts, Timothee Chalamet, Lucas Hedges, Beanie Feldstein, and Laurie Metcalf, who was robbed of that Oscar.
Legally Blonde
Year: 2001
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: Robert Luketic
Long before she won an Oscar or worked magic with The Morning Show, Reese Witherspoon turned a ditzy blonde into a comedy star in this 2001 romantic comedy from director Robert Luketic. It could be stretching it to call this silly fluff “great” but what elevates the saga of Elle Woods from sorority queen to legal eagle is the total charm and commitment of Witherspoon herself. It’s one of her most likable and memorable performances.
Singin’ in the Rain
Year: 1952
Runtime: 1h 43m
Director: Stanley Done
Movies don’t get more delightful than this beloved classic about backstage drama on the advent of the talkie. Gene Kelly, Debbie Reynolds, and Donald O’Connor are as charming as charming can be, and Singin’ in the Rain contains some of the best choreography of its era, and not just in the titular number. It’s joyous from front to back. Honestly, you have to be kind of a jerk not to like this movie.
Zola
Year: 2020
Runtime: 1h 26m
Director: Janicza Bravo
The best movie based on a Twitter thread. Aziah “Zola” King started a story on Twitter back in the days when it was still fun and good in 2015, recounting a tale too crazy not to be true. Taylour Paige, Riley Keough, and a stunningly great Colman Domingo star in the film version of that tale, the journey of a stripper and her friend to Tampa, where things go wrong in wild and unpredictable ways.
Action
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon
Year: 2000
Runtime: 2h 1m
Director: Ang Lee
One of the most successful foreign language films of all time, Ang Lee’s 2000 wuxia epic was so popular that it landed an Oscar nomination for Best Picture, along with nine other nominations (winning four). It’s a gorgeous epic based on the Chinese novel by Wang Dulu that stars the legendary Chow Yun-fat, Michelle Yeoh, Zhang Ziyi, and Chang Chen. It hasn’t aged a day in the over-two decades since its release.
The Lord of the Rings: The Fellowship of the Ring
Year: 2001
Runtime: 2h 58m
Director: Peter Jackson
The Oscar-winning franchise by Peter Jackson bounces around the streaming services with alarming regularity, now finding its way to Max for an indeterminate amount of time. Watch the entire saga of Frodo Baggins, Samwise Gange, and the rest of the Fellowship while you can.
Mad Max: Fury Road
Year: 2015
Runtime: 2h 1m
Director: George Miller
Have you seen the Furiosa trailer?! It’s insane and easily one of the most anticipated films of 2024. Go back to its predecessor, one of the best action movies ever made. This sequel rocked the world when it was released in 2015 on its way to winning multiple Oscars and really setting a new bar for practical action effects. George Miller went into the desert and returned with one of the most ambitious, insane, downright impossible action epics ever made.
Robocop
Year: 1987
Runtime: 1h 43m
Director: Paul Verhoeven
People like to point at ‘80s movies and say they were ahead of their time, but this may be most true about Paul Verhoeven’s 1987 masterpiece, a film that foretold how technology would impact law enforcement in ways that took decades to come true. A brilliant action satire, this is the story of a Detroit cop who is murdered and revived as the title character, a superhuman cyborg enforcer. It’s even more riveting and relevant almost four decades later. Note: Both original era sequels and the 2010s reboot are also on Max.
Horror
Carrie
Year: 1976
Runtime: 1h 39m
Director: Brian De Palma
Long before Stephen King was an entire industry, he was the guy who wrote Carrie, a 1974 novel about a bullied teen girl who unleashes hell on her classmates. Every once in a while, there’s a perfect combination of source material and creatives, and that’s what happened when King, De Palma, and Sissy Spacek combined forces here. Horror movie history would be made. Note: The underrated Chloe Grace Moretz remake is also on Max.
Funny Games
Year: 1997
Runtime: 1h 50m
Director: Michel Haneke
Michael Haneke is one of the most daring filmmakers alive, willing to shock viewers to make a point. Perhaps his most divisive film remains this 1997 shocker about a family who are essentially held hostage in their vacation home in Austria. Over the course of the day, the criminals basically torture this family, and through fourth-wall breaks, Haneke interrogates why people would even want to watch something like this, illuminating what art can reveal about the dark side of humanity.
Night of the Living Dead
Year: 1968
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: George A. Romero
The movie that changed it all. It’s really hard to overstate the impact that George A. Romero’s classic black-and-white masterpiece had on not only the zombie genre, but DIY microbudget horror filmmaking. So many people have been chasing that game-changing impact of Night of the Living Dead in the half-century since it came out, but it’s the original that’s passed the test of time.
Scream
Year: 1996
Runtime: 1h 51m
Director: Wes Craven
The Ghostface killer came back in January 2022 with the release of Scream, the fifth film in this franchise and the first since the death of Wes Craven, and the fun continued with another sequel in 2023 (before the wheels came off in the pre-production of a seventh film). Even the makers of the new movies would suggest that fans go back and watch the original films to see how Sidney Prescott (Neve Campbell) got here. All four of the Craven films are available now on Max. The first movie is still a flat-out genre masterpiece.
Under the Skin
Year: 2014
Runtime: 1h 49m
Director: Jonathan Glazer
A trippy, sci-fi masterpiece, this flick stars Scarlett Johansson as an alien being exploring the world around her and, well, doing some terrifying things to the men she comes into contact with. Although that only scratches the surface of why this is a special movie, a terrifying tone piece that has more in common with Twin Peaks than Species. It’s unforgettable and brilliant, one of the best films of the ‘10s.
For Kids and Family
Spirited Away
Year: 2001
Runtime: 2h 4m
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Almost all of the Studio Ghibli films are on Max, the now exclusive home to them when it comes to streaming. The truth is that we could devote about 10 percent of this list to Hayao Miyazaki and his colleagues, but we’ll give up some that space and just point you here to the ranking of the entire output of the most important modern animation studio in the world. Start with Spirited Away, My Neighbor Totoro, and Castle in the Sky. You won’t stop.
The Wizard of Oz
Year: 1939
Runtime: 1h 41m
Director: Victor Fleming
Maybe you’ve heard of it? Seriously, what could possibly be written if you’re on the fence about The Wizard of Oz? Maybe you haven’t seen it since you were a little kid? Revisit the journey of Dorothy over the rainbow if that’s the case and appreciate this wonderful fantasy on a new level.
If you subscribe to a service through our links, Vulture may earn an affiliate commission.
