The 50 Best Movies on HBO and Max Right Now (June 2023)

Director James Cameron spent a lot of time and money making Avatar: The Way of Water, so you better watch it or his feelings will get hurt. The big-budget box office smash is now streaming on Max, formerly HBO Max, and therefore automatically gets a spot on our list of the best movies to watch on Max. But if you'd rather have a dose of reality, check out Reality, an excellent film rooted in real-world paranoia that takes place mostly in one location and runs less than 90 minutes. In other words, it's everything Avatar isn't.

A note about how this list was made: In the interest of keeping it relevant, we're emphasizing movies recently added to HBO/Max and new releases, but we've also made sure to add other movies we think you'll want to know about. We'll be updating it regularly.

Last updated June 22; newer additions are at the top

Avatar: The Way of Water

For fans of: Being wet, sequels that skip the numbers, unobtanium

Year: 2022
Director: James Cameron
Stars: Sam Worthington, Zoe Saldana, Sigourney Weaver, Stephen Lang
Genre: Drama, Sci-Fi
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 67

James Cameron's long-awaited sequel to one of the most successful (box office-wise) movies of all time delivered another titanic success (box office-wise). You were supposed to see this sci-fi fantasy movie in the theaters, but now you can watch it picture-in-picture on your phone while you scroll Reddit. —Tim Surette [Trailer]    

Reality

For fans of: Whistleblowers, Sydney Sweeney, terrifying displays of power

Year: 2023
Director: Tina Satter
Stars: Sydney Sweeney, Josh Hamilton, John Way, Marchánt Davis, Benny Elledge
Genre: Drama
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 84

Sydney Sweeney plays former NSA translator and whistleblower Reality Winner, who leaked an intelligence report about Russian interference in the 2016 election. The film is an adaptation of Tina Satter's acclaimed play, which takes place on the day of Winner's arrest and pulls all of its dialogue from a transcript of her FBI interrogation. —Allison Picurro [Trailer]    

Bama Rush

For fans of: The mysteries of the Greek system, unnerving conformity

Year: 2023
Director: Rachel Fleit
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: n/a

I'll never fully understand the allure of the Greek system at our institutions of higher learning, and this documentary film from filmmaker Rachel Fleit only confirms the toxic environment of fraternities and sororities. But Bama Rush, inspired by the explosion of interest in Rush Week at the University of Alabama thanks to going viral on TikTok in 2021, follows four young women as they go after their social dream of joining the college's exclusive sororities and explain why it's so important to them. It's not always a convincing argument, but it's always fascinating as it looks at social status, social media, and the absurd pressures young women face today. —Tim Surette [Trailer]    

Moonage Daydream

For fans of: Glam!

Year: 2022
Director: Brett Morgen
Stars: David Bowie
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 83

This documentary film from Brett Morgen (The Kid Stays in the Picture) is described as a "cinematic odyssey" that looks at the life of glam rock icon David Bowie, which, given the subject, is a perfect fit. A flurry of images, animations, and impressionism, Moonage Daydrem rises to the top of films about Bowie. —Tim Surette [Trailer]    

All the Beauty and the Bloodshed

For fans of: Political documentaries, fighting authoritarian regimes

Year: 2022
Director: Laura Poitras
Stars: Nan Goldin
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 90

A nominee for Best Documentary at the 2023 Oscars, this affecting film allows the legendary artist and activist Nan Goldin to tell her story. Through a series of intimate interviews and carefully constructed slideshows, she revisits the death of her sister, the years she spent in New York City LGBTQ subcultures, and explains how she eventually made it her mission to hold the Sackler family accountable for the opioid crisis. It's not just one of the best documentaries of 2022; it's one of the best films of last year, period. —Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Navalny

For fans of: Political documentaries, fighting authoritarian regimes

Year: 2022
Director: Daniel Roher
Stars: Alexei Navalny
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 82

Vladimir Putin's greatest threat is Alexei Navalny, one of the few politicians and activists in Russia to publicly oppose the Russian government. As a man rallying others against Putin's totalitarian regime, he's been blacklisted by the state-controlled media and arrested by sham courts, but that's the easy part of what is considered the most dangerous job in the world. In 2020, Navalny was poisoned by a lab-created nerve agent and nearly died. He and his supporters pointed fingers at the Kremlin, who denied any participation. This award-winning documentary (including Best Documentary at the 2023 Academy Awards), which was released before Putin's invasion of Ukraine, looks at Navalny and the poisoning, and the challenges of fighting Putin. -Tim Surette [Trailer]     

Empire of Light

For fans of: Cinema!

Year: 2022
Director: Sam Mendes
Stars: Olivia Colman, Micheal Ward, Colin Firth, Toby Jones
Genre: Drama, Romance
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 54

Empire of Light is yet another addition to 2022's most popular film genre: movies about the power of movies. (Nope, The Fabelmans, and Babylon are a few more examples of that trend.) Set in the '80s, Sam Mendes' Oscar-nominated film stars Olivia Colman as a cinema worker struggling with her mental health as she strikes up a fledgling romance with her new coworker (Micheal Ward). The real star of the show is the great Roger Deakins' cinematography, though. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]    

All That Breathes

For fans of: Heartwarming stories, birds

Year: 2022
Director: Shaunak Sen
Genre: Documentary
Rating: n/a
Metacritic score: 87

A nominee for Best Documentary Feature at this year's Academy Awards, All That Breathes is a touching film about two brothers in New Delhi who run a bird hospital. When black kites, a bird of prey essential to the city's ecosystem, start falling out of the polluted skies, the siblings make it their mission to rescue and treat them. The Oscars were right about this one: It's easily one of the best documentaries of the year. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

This Place Rules

For fans of: Gawking, guerilla media, extreme politics

Year: 2022
Director: Andrew Callaghan
Genre: Documentary
Rating: TV-MA
Metacritic score: n/a

Viral YouTube guerilla journalist Andrew Callaghan continues his deep, embedded dive into far-right and far-left politics in this documentary film examining the genesis of the January 6 Capitol riots. Callaghan gets access to some big names (Alex Jones, Proud Boys bigwig Henry Tarrio), but it's his time spent with some of the regular out-there true believers — like the elementary schooler who was taught that some people in the government are reptilian humanoids — that really stands out. Unlike other web journalists of his ilk, Callaghan isn't trying to be the star, he's just trying to show perspective. And what he shows us is shocking, hilarious, frightening, and depressing. -Tim Surette [Trailer]    

The Menu

For fans of: Eating the rich

Year: 2022
Director: Mark Mylod
Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Anya Taylor-Joy, Nicholas Hoult, Hong Chau, John Leguizamo, Judith Light
Genre: Thriller, Horror, Comedy
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 71

Succession director Mark Mylod makes his feature directorial debut with this darkly comedic thriller that satirizes foodie culture. Set during one fateful night at a remote, ultra-exclusive restaurant run by a celebrity chef (Ralph Fiennes), his high-end diners begin to realize that the menu he's planned for them has some sinister secrets baked into it. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

The Banshees of Inisherin

For fans of: Miniature ponies, friend divorces

Year: 2022
Director: Martin McDonagh
Stars: Colin Farrell, Brendan Gleeson, Kerry Condon, Barry Keoghan
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 87

One of the best films of 2022, The Banshees of Inisherin takes place on a gloomy Irish island that begins to fall apart when two guys who live there — played by Colin Farrell and Brendan Gleeson — stop being friends. It's not a mutual break-up: Farrell's Pádraic is a simple man whose main sources of joy are hanging out with his miniature pony and drinking beer in the afternoons with Gleeson's Colm. But Colm comes to the decision that he's running out of time to waste in life and doesn't want to spend it with someone he deems a lost cause. Pádraic is baffled and devastated, and the film escalates to gory heights when Colm makes it clear what he's willing to do in order to get Pádraic to leave him alone. It's a tragic and darkly funny look at the way relationships and perspectives change as people age, set against the backdrop of the Irish Civil War. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Amsterdam

For fans of: U.S. history, famous people

Year: 2022
Director: David O. Russell
Stars: Christian Bale, John David Washington, Margot Robbie, Taylor Swift, Robert De Niro, Anya Taylor-Joy, Chris Rock, Michael Shannon, Mike Myers, Rami Malek, Timothy Olyphant, Zoe Saldana
Genre: Drama, History, Comedy
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 48

Christian Bale, John David Washington, and Margot Robbie star in David O. Russell's historical film set in the 1930s about three friends who become suspects in a murder and, in the process, unwittingly get involved in a bizarre political conspiracy. It's one of those movies where everything's moving fast, absolutely every character is played by someone super famous (Taylor Swift herself is in it), and the tone vacillates between screwball comedy and sincere period piece. It received middling reviews and lost a lot of money upon its theatrical release, but now you can watch and make up your mind for yourself. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

More recommendations:

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• What to Watch on HBO, Netflix, Hulu, and More in January 2023

Don't Worry Darling

For fans of: The Stepford Wives, Harry Styles

Year: 2022
Director: Olivia Wilde
Stars: Florence Pugh, Harry Styles, Chris Pine, Olivia Wilde, Gemma Chan
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Horror, Crime
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 48

Florence Pugh and Harry Styles star in this thriller about a young couple living in a classic, idealized 1950s suburban community. The wives stay home while the husbands disappear to work on a mysterious project, and it's not until Alice (Pugh) starts asking questions that she realizes there's something much darker going on under the surface. Look, the reality is that Don't Worry Darling is slightly less entertaining than the circus of its press tour, but superb performances from Pugh and Chris Pine are not to be missed. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Barbarian

For fans of: Haunted houses, twists, the Justin Longaissance

Year: 2022
Director: Zach Cregger
Stars: Georgina Campbell, Bill Skarsgård, Justin Long, Matthew Patrick Davis
Genre: Thriller, Horror
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 78

Barbarian did something clever by releasing something of a bait and switch trailer, which makes itself out to be a standard story about a woman (Georgina Campbell) spending the night in the same house as a crazy man (Bill Skarsgård, one of the best at playing crazy men) who lures her down into a creepy basement after they get double-booked at the same Airbnb. And that is what it's about at first, sort of, before quickly revealing that it's about something else entirely, which I won't spoil here. It might stealthily be one of the best horror movies of the year. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

38 at the Garden 

For fans of: The NBA, remembering Linsanity

Year: 2022
Director: Frank Chi
Genre: Documentary
Rating: n/a
Metacritic score: n/a

Taiwanese American Harvard-educated hooper Jeremy Lin went from warming the end of the New York Knicks' bench to global superstardom in a matter of days when he was finally given a chance to play regular minutes in the NBA in early 2012. It's one of the greatest sports stories ever, and the subject of this short — 38 minutes — documentary that interviews Lin, former NBA players, and famous talking heads about his impact on the sport, culture, and the Asian American community. I could have watched another hour of this and would have loved to have seen more details and footage from his glory season, but sadly, the documentary ends as quickly as Linsanity did. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Elvis 

For fans of: The King, the excessive cinematic stylings of Baz Luhrmann

Year: 2022
Director: Baz Luhrmann
Stars: Austin Butler, Tom Hanks, Olivia DeJonge
Genre: Drama, Musical
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 64

Whether you count yourself as a fan of his or not, culture is unquestionably better when Baz Luhrmann gets to go wild and make a big-budget spectacle. His latest is the Elvis Presley biopic Elvis, a disorienting '50s-themed carnival ride condensed into a two-and-a-half-hour movie. Here, a star is born in Austin Butler, who gives what just might be the best film performance of the year as Presley, and it's made even more confounding by the fact that a gonzo Tom Hanks gives what is easily the worst film performance of the year, and definitely of his career, as Presley's mustache-twirling cartoon villain of a manager Tom Parker. But how am I supposed to criticize or care when Luhrmann, in all of his galaxy-brained ingenuity, decided to score a scene with a mash-up of "Viva Las Vegas" and Britney Spears' "Toxic"? What's going on in Elvis is bigger than all of us. You might as well give yourself over to it. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Belfast

For fans of: Northern Ireland, Jamie Dornan's singing voice

Year: 2021
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Stars: Caitriona Balfe, Jamie Dornan, Jude Hill, Ciarán Hinds, Judi Dench
Genre: Drama
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 75

Kenneth Branagh won (ahem, stole from Paul Thomas Anderson for Licorice Pizza) the Best Original Screenplay Oscar for his well-liked coming-of-age drama set in Northern Ireland, about a young boy growing up during The Troubles in the late '60s. It's charming and sweet and not difficult to understand why so many people took to it last year. Jamie Dornan and Outlander's Caitríona Balfe star, but supporting performances from Ciarán Hinds and Judi Dench elevate the whole thing. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

We Met in Virtual Reality

For fans of: The power of the internet

Year: 2022
Director: Joe Hunting
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 77

This documentary about online communities on the virtual reality platform VRChat — and filmed exclusively within VRChat — starts off wild, with dozens of people and their bizarre avatars having a blast goofing off. But as the film focuses on individual stories — a couple who fell in love, an ASL teacher, and more — the real poignancy of these virtual spaces shines through for an extremely touching film about belonging, the future of social norms, and how technology shapes us. This one hits hard, and it's wonderful. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

The Bob's Burgers Movie

For fans of: Bob's Burgers

Year: 2022
Director: Bernard Derriman and Loren Bouchard
Stars: H. John Benjamin, John Roberts, Kristen Schaal, Eugene Mirman, Dan Mintz, Zach Galifianakis, Kevin Kline
Genre: Adventure, Comedy, Animation, Musical
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 75

In many ways, The Bob's Burgers Movie is just one particularly long episode of Bob's Burgers, but who cares? Bob's Burgers is consistently good after 12 (and counting) seasons, so spending some more time with the Belchers isn't exactly a chore. It has a plot — the family is trying to save the restaurant from the latest threat of financial ruin, this time in the form of a sinkhole that opens up in front of the building — but it's mostly a showcase for this creative team's talent for great musical scenes. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Last Night in Soho

For fans of: When people say "I wish I'd been alive in the '60s"

Year: 2021
Director: Edgar Wright
Stars: Anya Taylor-Joy, Matt Smith, Thomasin Mackenzie, Jessie Mei Li, Diana Rigg
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller, Horror
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 65

Woman of the moment Anya Taylor-Joy stars in Edgar Wright's psychological thriller about an aspiring fashion designer (Thomasin Mackenzie) who finds herself mysteriously able to travel back to the 1960s, where she meets a singer (Taylor-Joy), who may or may not be in danger as the past and present begin to blend. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Father of the Bride

For fans of: The original Father of the Bride

Year: 2022
Director: Gary Alazraki
Stars: Andy Garcia, Gloria Estefan, Adria Arjona
Genre: Drama, Fantasy, Comedy, Romance
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 65

This is not the 1991 Steve Martin movie, but it does follow a similar plot. 2022's Father of the Bride focuses on a Cuban-American family, and centers on a father, played by Andy Garcia, who has to come to terms with the fact that his daughter is getting married. You know the formula, but to give credit where it's due, this new version adds just enough of its own cultural perspective to make it not seem like a carbon copy. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Card Counter

For fans of: Gambling, the darkness of the U.S. military, Oscar Isaac's glowering face

Year: 2021
Director: Paul Schrader
Stars: Oscar Isaac, Tye Sheridan, Tiffany Haddish, Willem Dafoe
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 77

Paul Schrader loves making movies about troubled men who let out their messed-up little thoughts in diaries. (He wrote Taxi Driver and wrote-directed First Reformed.) Oscar Isaac stars in Schrader's latest as a former serviceman (with a very dark past) whose quiet life of brooding, gambling, and journaling is complicated when he meets a kid (Tye Sheridan) seeking revenge on a mutual enemy. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Janes

For fans of: The power of women, timely issues

Year: 2022
Director: Emma Pildes and Tia Lessin
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 83

Emma Pildes and Tia Lessin's documentary follows a group of women in the pre-Roe v. Wade era who bravely built an underground network that helped provide access to safe abortions for people with unwanted pregnancies. It was an organization formed in direct opposition to state legislation that banned abortions, and the sobering relevance of that can't be overstated. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]     

George Carlin's American Dream

For fans of: Beloved comedians, looking at old comedy bits through a modern lens

Year: 2022
Director: Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio
Stars: George Carlin, Jerry Seinfeld, Jon Stewart, Chris Rock, Patton Oswalt, Stephen Colbert, Bill Burr
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 86

This documentary is kind of like a long version of one of those "George Carlin predicted this!" Facebook posts your uncle is always circulating, but in a good, well-crafted way. Judd Apatow and Michael Bonfiglio's film looks at the life of one of the most influential comedians of all time with the goal of re-examining his jokes for our current era. It's filled with famous talking heads from the world of comedy (Jerry Seinfeld, Chris Rock, Stephen Colbert, and more) who discuss their hero at length, and uses other funny people like Gillian Jacobs and Megan Stalter to read fan letters and diary entries. Both parts clock in at an intimidating four hours, but it's an interesting spin on the traditional famous person documentary format. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

Old

For fans of: M. Night Shyamalan, old-age makeup, bad vacations

Year: 2021
Director: M. Night Shyamalan
Stars: Gael García Bernal, Vicky Krieps, Alex Wolff, Rufus Sewell, Eliza Scanlen, Thomasin McKenzie
Genre: Drama, Mystery, Thriller
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 55

You can say many things about M. Night Shyamalan, but no one could ever make the claim that he doesn't fully commit to his ideas. Shyamalan's latest is Old, a horror-adjacent thriller about a vacationing family who discover that the mysteriously secluded beach they're visiting is somehow causing them to age rapidly. With no way off the beach, everyone is powerless to it: The parents, played by Gael García Bernal and Vicky Krieps, are suddenly elderly; the kids (Alex Wolff and Thomasin McKenzie) become teenagers become adults, and I won't spoil too much, but let's just say there's an evil corporation involved. There's also a supporting character named Mid-Sized Sedan. Old is the kind of gonzo, balls-to-the-wall movie we rarely get anymore, with every new occurrence more confoundingly entertaining than the last. I genuinely wish I could see Old for the first time again, and if you can suspend your disbelief a bit, you'll have as great of a time watching it as I did. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Matrix film series

For fans of: Questioning reality, incredible/hilarious action set pieces, learning about the origins of redpilling

Year: 1999, 2003, 2004, 2021
Director: Lana Wachowski and Lilly Wachowski
Stars: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Ann Moss, Laurence Fishburne
Genre: Sci-Fi
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 73, 62, 47, 63

Ever heard of it? All the way back in 1999, the Wachowskis gave us The Matrix, a movie about reality being different than the reality we all think we're living in, and now all these years later, Reddit users have turned "redpilling" into a whole men's rights activism thing. How the world has changed! Despite all that, these movies still rule (even an OK Matrix movie is still a ton of fun to watch), with excellently choreographed fight scenes, and all of them are devoid of all the annoying quippy humor every action movie made today has. The polarizing fourth film, The Matrix Resurrections, is very, very different from the first three, but its strangeness and the fact that it exists at all make it a must-watch. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Batman

For fans of: Bad detective work, riddles, Nirvana

Year: 2022
Director: Matt Reeves
Stars: Robert Pattinson, Zoë Kravitz, Paul Dano, Jeffrey Wright, Colin Farrell, John Turturro, Andy Serkis
Genre: Action, Sci-Fi, Drama, Mystery, Crime
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 72

There seem to be two general reactions to The Batman: Either you think it's the greatest Batman movie of all time, or you're totally ambivalent about it. But you'll never know until you watch it! Here, Robert Pattinson dons the big black cape and a whole Hot Topic's worth of black eye makeup to play Bruce Wayne's alter ego. The film follows Batman's hunt for a killer with the peculiar quirk of leaving a trail of cryptic riddles in his wake, uncovering dark secrets about Gotham's history of corruption along the way. Doing an incredible approximation of a New Yawk accent and wearing about 200 layers of prosthetics that rendered him wholly unrecognizable, Colin Farrell steals this movie with his performance as The Penguin, and we'll soon get to see how he holds his own now that HBO Max went ahead and gave him his own spin-off series. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Tony Hawk: Until the Wheels Fall Off

For fans of: Tony Hawk's Twitter account, skateboarding

Year: 2022
Director: Sam Jones
Stars: Tony Hawk
Genre: Biography, Sport, Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 74

Tony Hawk, the godfather of skateboarding and getting misrecognized in public, gets a documentary detailing the ups, downs, frontside grinds, and McTwists of his life. The film is at its best when it's examining Hawk's irrepressible drive to figure out a trick — his attempts at landing a 900 give Until the Wheels Fall Off its meaning and heart — and the cost of that drive in his personal life, but the basic recounts of his achievements as a young pro, which take up a good chunk of the first half, are mostly filler. The more interesting stuff happens when friends, family, and former enemies all explain why Tony is a skategod. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Death on the Nile

For fans of: Big boats, old-fashioned mystery and adventure, all-star casts, having enough champagne to fill the Nile

Year: 2022
Director: Kenneth Branagh
Stars: Kenneth Branagh, Gal Gadot, Armie Hammer, Annette Bening, Jennifer Saunders, Rose Leslie
Genre: Mystery, Adventure
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 52

Cruises aren't a good idea right now, but you can still get the feelings of big-boat adventures — large terraces overlooking the water, grand ballrooms, floating reverie, MURDER — with Death on the Nile, Kenneth Branaugh's adaptation of Agatha Christie's famous 1937 novel. The mystery film is a whodunnit with a who's who cast, which includes Gal Gadot, Annette Bening, Armie Hammer, and Branaugh (who does double duty as director). It's an imperfect film, no doubt, but it has an old-fashioned sensibility to it that makes it a great escape from life's doldrums. -Tim Surette [Trailer]       

King Richard

For fans of: Triumphant sports stories, Venus and Serena

Year: 2021
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green
Stars: Will Smith, Aunjanue Ellis, Saniyya Sidney, Demi Singleton, Jon Bernthal, Tony Goldwyn
Genre: Biography, Drama, Sport
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 76

Will Smith won a Best Actor Oscar in this biopic of Richard Williams, father of tennis icons Venus and Serena Williams. He portrays Richard with careful intensity in his dedication to shaping his young daughters' commitment to the sport, doing everything in his power and going to audacious lengths to help push them forward. King Richard goes beyond the confines of a typical movie like this with its dedication to crafting some spectacular tennis scenes, as well as scene-stealing supporting performances from Saniyya Sidney as Venus; Aunjanue Ellis as the sisters' mother, Brandy Price; and Jon Bernthal as Venus' coach. Plus, Beyoncé wrote a power ballad for it. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Dune: Part One

For fans of: Sand, cinematography, remakes worth a darn

Year: 2021
Director: Denis Villenueve
Stars: Timothée Chalamet, Zendaya, Rebecca Ferguson, Oscar Isaac
Genre: Drama, Science-Fiction
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 74

Denis Villenueve's new take on Frank Herbert's science-fiction novel (and David Lynch's "classic" 1984 version) is a stunning film, despite all the browns. The hard sci-fi story follows Paul Atreides (Timothée Chalamet), a young royal, as his family is thrust into battle for a planet that is the only source for the most valuable substance in the universe, spice. But you are just watching for the giants worms, right? Dune is back on HBO Max for good after a simultaneous release in theaters and on HBO Max and a 90-day break from HBO Max to boost those box office numbers. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Drive My Car

For fans of: Oscar films, tenderness, slow burns

Year: 2021
Director: Ryûsuke Hamaguchi
Stars: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Toko Miura
Genre: Drama
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 91

Adapted from a Haruki Murakami short story, Ryûsuke Hamaguchi's Oscar-nominated film follows an aging, widowed actor (Hidetoshi Nishijima) who takes a job directing a stage adaptation of Uncle Vanya. He strikes up a curious bond with the young woman (Toko Miura) tasked with chauffeuring him back and forth, and begins to process his grief for his wife through their conversations. Its runtime clocks in at three hours total, but every hauntingly beautiful minute is worth it. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

West Side Story

For fans of: Classic musicals, remakes, Spielberg

Year: 2021
Director: Steven Spielberg
Stars: Rachel Zegler, Ansel Elgort, Ariana DeBose, Rita Moreno, Mike Faist, David Alvarez
Genre: Drama, Musical
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 85

Steven Spielberg's West Side Story is the kind of movie that makes the case that some remakes are good, actually. If you're familiar with the Broadway musical, the 1961 film, or even just Romeo and Juliet, you already get the general idea: In 1957 New York, a young couple fall in deep, sweeping love at first sight, but their burgeoning romance fuels an all-out war between two rival gangs. Yes, Spielberg's film has "I Feel Pretty," "America," and all the iconic Sondheim-Bernstein songs, but it also miraculously breathes new life into a familiar story with poignant updates (it's kind of about gentrification now! The Sharks actually speak to each other in Spanish!) and great performances from Ariana DeBose, Mike Faist, and Rita Moreno, who starred in the original movie and plays a whole new character here. It's a true old school movie musical, the kind of big, exuberant thing that'll make you lean back in your chair and say, "Ah, cinema." -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

The French Dispatch

For fans of: Being twee as F, Hollywood's coolest actors

Year: 2021
Director: Wes Anderson
Stars: Adrien Brody, Tilda Swinton, Frances McDormand, Benicio Del Toro, Bill Murray, Owen Wilson, Timothée Chalamet
Genre: Drama, Comedy
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 74

It's not his best work, but Wes Anderson's die-hard fans won't care. The visual director's 2021 film follows the editor (Anderson staple Bill Murray) of an American newspaper in mid-20th century France and is divided into five vignettes in the form of stories written by his reporters. Each offers different looks and themes, and most importantly, a cast of major Hollywood talent. Owen Wilson, Benicio del Toro, Frances McDormand, Jeffrey Wright, Tilda Swinton, Timothée Chalamet, and more were probably knocking down Anderson's door to find out which sweaters they would be wearing in the film. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Kimi

For fans of: Hitchcock for today's age, staying inside, pandemic paranoia

Year: 2021
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Stars: Zoë Kravitz
Genre: Drama, Thriller
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 78

Zoë Kravitz plays an agoraphobe who works for a tech company with its own digital personal assistant. Her job is to listen to users' failed requests and improve the gadget's artificial intelligence, but when she thinks she hears a murder in one of the recordings, she inadvertently gets involved in the crime. It's a thriller in the vein of Rear Window, but better than it should be thanks to Kravitz and the eye of director Steven Soderbergh. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Free Guy

For fans of: Video games, Ryan Reynolds

Year: 2021
Director: Shawn Levy
Stars: Ryan Reynolds, Jodie Comer, Taika Waititi
Genre: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 62

This special effects-travaganza was one of the biggest box office hits of 2021 — a very weird year at the movies — and got unexpectedly positive reviews from critics who couldn't help but be charmed by Ryan Reynolds, one of Hollywood's most likable personas. Reynolds plays Guy, a non-player character in a video game who one day decides to take charge of his destiny and start doing what he feels like. This leads to him helping a gamer/computer programmer named Millie (Jodie Comer) try to take down an evil game company CEO (Taika Waititi) who stole code from her. It's a pleasant, undemanding watch that seems more like a straight-to-streaming movie than a theatrical blockbuster. -Liam Mathews [Trailer]

The King's Man

For fans of: Spy jinx, movies that don't require brain activity

Year: 2021
Director: Matthew Vaughn
Stars: Ralph Fiennes, Matthew Goode, Djimon Hounsou
Genre: Action, Adventure
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 44

After a promising start, The Kingsman films have gotten worse and worse, meaning that The King's Man, the third and most recent film in the franchise, is the worst. Yet audiences still gobble them up because the movies are only here to keep you occupied for a couple hours, and absolutely nothing more. This prequel gussies up the franchise by setting it around WWI as the Kingsman organization is formed after the death of Archduke Franz Ferdinand, and it delivers a decent brain vacation of action and mediocre screenwriting. At the very least, watch to see Charles Dance in a comical mustache. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Nobody

For fans of: Bob Odenkirk, regular guys as badass guys

Year: 2021
Director: Ilya Naishuller
Stars: Bob Odenkirk, Connie Nielsen, Christopher Lloyd
Genre: Action, Thriller
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 64

You know Bob Odenkirk from his role as the sniveling, conniving criminal lawyer Saul Goodman from Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul, so one thing you'd never expect him to be is an action hero. But in the John Wick-esque thriller Nobody, Odenkirk gets serious, going from mild-mannered family man to ass-kicking machine when his house is robbed. It's a fun movie loaded with violence that proves Odenkirk is a bonafide star who can do more than grovel or con his way out of a situation. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

Nightmare Alley

For fans of: The circus, sideshow freaks and cons, an A-list cast and A-list sets

Year: 2021
Director: Guillermo del Toro
Stars: Bradley Cooper, Cate Blanchett, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 70

Someone somewhere is still eating popcorn they bought while watching Nightmare Alley in the theaters on its mid-December premiere night and yet the movie is already on Hulu. That's not a knock on the quality of Nightmare Alley, the traveling circus film noir from Guillermo del Toro, it's more an indication of the speed of streaming. Bradley Cooper stars as a carnival worker in the 1930s and 1940s who learns to grift the rich and famous from other circus folk, and he's joined by a stellar cast that includes Cate Blanchett, Rooney Mara, Toni Collette, Willem Dafoe, Richard Jenkins, Ron Perlman, and David Straitharn. Under del Toro's eye, Nightmare Alley is a sight to behold, a time warp to the shady traveling sideshows and elegant art deco ballrooms of the era when everyone was working some sort of scheme. -Tim Surette [Trailer]

The Fallout

For fans of: High school, trauma bonding, indie film

Year: 2021
Director: Megan Park
Stars: Jenna Ortega, Maddie Ziegler
Genre: Drama
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 84

This indie follows two high school girls — played by Jenna Ortega and Maddie Ziegler — who strike up a bond after surviving a school shooting. The movie is more of an empathetic look at their responses to it than it is about the actual tragedy, which is a refreshing change of pace from movies like this, which typically try to turn their characters into inspiring symbols of resilience. The Fallout is more interested in exploring how these kids get through the day after witnessing something unthinkable. Shailene Woodley and Julie Bowen co-star. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

The Last Duel

For fans of: Matt 'n Ben, medieval times, seeing the same story told several different times

Year: 2021
Director: Ridley Scott
Stars: Matt Damon, Adam Driver, Jodie Comer, Ben Affleck
Genre: Drama, Action
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 67

You might've missed The Last Duel when it was released in theaters, but it's actually the better — and much more subtle — of Ridley Scott's two 2021 films (apologies to House of Gucci). Set in medieval France, it's based on the true story of the last trial by combat, which takes place when a knight, Jean de Carrouges (Matt Damon), challenges a squire, Jacques Le Gris (Adam Driver), to a duel after Jean's wife (Jodie Comer) accuses Jacques of raping her. The movie is divided into three parts, showing how each character interprets the events of the film differently. Damon and Ben Affleck co-wrote the film with Nicole Holofcener, and Affleck totally steals the movie in a supporting role as the flamboyant Count Pierre d'Alençon. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

The Eyes of Tammy Faye

For fans of: Uncanny prosthetics, biopics, Jesus

Year: 2021
Director: Michael Showalter
Stars: Jessica Chastain, Andrew Garfield, Cherry Jones, Vincent D'Onofrio
Genre: Drama, Biopic
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 55

Jessica Chastain lights up what could've otherwise been a by-the-books biopic of one of the most famous televangelists of all time, Tammy Faye Bakker. It follows the rise and fall of Tammy Faye and her husband, Jim (Andrew Garfield), through the '70s as they created an enormously popular religious broadcast network that was eventually destroyed by a host of scandals. As Bakker, Chastain wears some crazy prosthetics and some even crazier makeup, but she also finds the human being in there that made Bakker such a fascinating cultural figure. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

Listening to Kenny G

For fans of: Saxophone music, seeing divisive icons in a new light

Year: 2021
Director: Penny Lane
Stars: Kenny G
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 81

Maybe the words "Kenny" and "G" send chills down your spine, unearthing deep-seated trauma from that time you got stuck in an elevator. That notion isn't ignored in this fun documentary about the curly-locked saxophonist, which not only looks at the legend himself, but also his polarizing position among musicians and normal folk alike. Director Penny Lane uses Kenny G as a jumping-off point for questions about taste, making this more than just a typical music documentary. -Tim Surette [Trailer] 

DMX: Don't Try to Understand

For fans of: Intimate looks at the inner lives of celebrities

Year: 2021
Director: Christopher Frierson
Stars: DMX
Genre: Documentary
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 91

It's easy to be skeptical of documentaries about deceased celebrities, especially ones who were as beloved and influential as Earl "DMX" Simmons, but this one stands apart for the fact that the late rapper was actually involved. It follows a year in DMX's life, beginning in early 2019 as he rebuilds his life and career after serving a 12-month sentence in prison. The film contains interviews with DMX and gives a look into his private life, all while examining the impact he had on culture. There's no way to watch a film like this without mourning the artist at its center who died too soon, but it's a must-watch for anyone who wants to learn more about the person DMX was behind the music. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Suicide Squad

For fans of: Re-do movies, blood, antiheroes

Year: 2021
Director: James Gunn
Stars: Idris Elba, John Cena, Margot Robbie, Viola Davis, Joel Kinnaman
Genre: Action, Comedy, Sci-Fi
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 72

Not to be confused with 2016's Suicide Squad (there's no "the" in that one, get it?), James Gunn directs this irreverent superhero movie about a team of villains who are recruited by the government to go to a remote island and destroy an evil starfish. With a cast that includes Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Joel Kinnaman, and Viola Davis and over-the-top violence that fits the franchise, it's a big improvement from the first Suicide Squad movie. Once you're done watching it, you can check out HBO Max's spin-off series Peacemaker, which centers on Cena's character. -Tim Surette [Trailer] 

Spirited Away

For fans of: Gorgeous animation, enchanting stories

Year: 2002
Director: Hayao Miyazaki
Stars: Hidetoshi Nishijima, Toko Miura
Genre: Adventure, Fantasy, Animation
Rating: PG
Metacritic score: 96

One of the coolest things about HBO Max is that it's home to the Studio Ghibli collection, putting Hayao Miyazaki's greatest films in one place. Spirited Away is probably his most famous one, having won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. It came out in 2001, and all these years later, it remains a stunningly animated, wholly moving film, following a little girl named Chihiro whose parents are turned into pigs by a witch, forcing her to enter the witch's treacherous, mysterious world as she tries to find a way to free her parents. It's an absolutely magical experience, and the perfect gateway to Miyazaki's work. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

Zack Snyder's Justice League

For fans of: Acts of fan service, superhero team-ups, long movies made longer

Year: 2021
Director: Zack Snyder
Stars: Henry Cavill, Ben Affleck, Amy Adams, Gal Gadot, Jared Leto, Jason Momoa
Genre: Drama, Action
Rating: NR
Metacritic score: 54

What else is there to say about Zack Snyder's Justice League? Much like the original 2017 non-Snyder cut, this Justice League follows a team of superheroes, comprised of Batman (Ben Affleck), Superman (Henry Cavill), Wonder Woman (Gal Gadot), Aquaman (Jason Momoa), The Flash (Ezra Miller), and Cyborg (Ray Fisher), as they attempt to save the world from a powerful supervillain, but this version has new scenes and world-building elements that Joss Whedon's version did not. It's also much longer, clocking in at just over four hours. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]

Street Gang: How We Got to Sesame Street

For fans of: The wholesome art of kids' TV, Elmo and friends

Year: 2021
Director: Marilyn Agrelo
Genre: Documentary
Rating: PG
Metacritic score: 82

I can't think of a more wholesome time than watching a documentary about how Sesame Street came to be. Back in the '60s, a group of geniuses had the radical idea to make kids' programming educational, which of course ended up becoming one of the most successful and influential TV series of all time. It's fun to see people like Jim Henson and Frank Oz when they were young and totally uncertain about the gamble they were making on this show about friendly puppets. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

The Lord of the Rings trilogy

For fans of: Epic fantasies, friendship, dangerous jewelry

Year: 2001, 2002, 2003
Director: Peter Jackson
Stars: Elijah Wood, Sean Astin, Viggo Mortensen, Andy Serkis, Liv Tyler
Genre: Drama, Fantasy
Rating: PG-13
Metacritic score: 92, 87, 94

If HBO Max only had the extended editions of the Lord of the Rings trilogy I would still confidently call it the best streaming service out there. Luckily, it has a lot more stuff than that (clearly), but that doesn't make it any less exciting that LOTR fans can watch the full versions of Peter Jackson's sprawling, visually stunning adventure series whenever we want. Even if you haven't seen them, you're probably familiar with the general plot: Frodo (Elijah Wood), a hobbit, goes on a quest to destroy the extraordinarily powerful One Ring and the dark lord who made it. Each extended installment clocks in at well over three hours, but HBO Max also has the regular theatrical cuts (which, admittedly, are all about three hours) if you're more of a casual fan. There's no wrong way to watch LOTR. -Allison Picurro [Trailer] 

Malignant

For fans of: Movies that feel like fever dreams

Year: 2021
Director: James Wan
Stars: Annabelle Wallis, Maddie Hasson, George Young
Genre: Horror
Rating: R
Metacritic score: 51

HBO Max has a big selection of horror movies that includes things like The Shining and the Conjuring series, but I'm choosing to highlight James Wan's frankly batty Malignant to represent them all. It's an audacious, wholly original thrill ride about a woman (Annabelle Wallis) who keeps having visions of people being killed, only to realize the murders are actually happening in real life. I won't spoil anything, but when she eventually learns who the murderer is, it results in one of the wildest horror-action showcases you'll likely ever see. Malignant is a cult classic in the making, and it deserves our respect. -Allison Picurro [Trailer]