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In Recent years,<\/span> Netflix<\/a> and Apple TV+<\/a> have been duking it out to have the most prestigious film offerings, but some of the best movies are on Amazon Prime Video. The streamer was one of the first to go around picking up film festival darlings and other lovable favorites, and those movies are all still there in the library, so if they flew under your radar the first time, now is the perfect time to catch up.<\/p>\n Our picks for the best movies on Amazon Prime are below. All the films in our guide are included in your Prime subscription\u2014no renting here. Once you\u2019ve watched your fill, check out our lists for the best shows on Netflix<\/a> and best movies on Disney+<\/a> if you\u2019re looking for something else to watch. We also have a guide to the best shows on Amazon<\/a>, if that\u2019s what you\u2019re in the mood for.<\/p>\n If you buy something using links in our stories, we may earn a commission. This helps support our journalism.<\/em> Learn more<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/blockquote>\n Is it a Christmas movie, or just a movie set at Christmas? That argument has haunted Die Hard<\/em> pretty much since its release, but ask yourself this: Have the holidays really<\/em> begun until Hans Gruber has fallen off Nakatomi Plaza? Debate in the comments, but this action classic remains endlessly entertaining no matter when you watch it. It\u2019s easy to see why Bruce Willis\u2019 turn as reluctant but quippy hero John McClane became his cinematic breakthrough role, single-handedly liberating an entire skyscraper from Alan Rickman\u2019s ruthless terrorist Gruber, but there\u2019s plenty of heart alongside the thrilling set pieces and incredible stunt work. Wherever you stand on the genre question, Die Hard<\/em> continues to impress, decades on.<\/p>\n With Wicked: For Good<\/em> in cinemas, it’s the perfect time to revisit the first act of the secret history of the witches of Oz. The film\u2014based on the stage musical, in turn based on Gregory Maguire’s novel\u2014follows green-skinned outsider Elphaba (Cynthia Erivo) and perfectly popular pink princess Glinda (Ariana Grande) during their college years, long before society forces them into the roles of the Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good during the events of The Wizard of Oz<\/em>. It might appear frivolous and fluffy, but it’s also a powerful exploration of how society can be warped by propaganda and authoritarianism\u2014it just happens to be backed up by an absolute belter of a soundtrack.<\/p>\n Jingle bells, Batman smells, Robin \u2026 takes over protecting Gotham City solo on a cold Christmas Eve, when the Caped Crusader is away on Justice League business. Focusing on the Damian Wayne incarnation of Robin\u2014here taking on the mantle of \u201cLittle Batman\u201d\u2014Merry Little Batman<\/em> finds Damian taking on the likes of the Penguin, Bane, and Mr. Freeze, desperate to prove he’s ready to join the family business permanently by saving Christmas from the Joker’s evil plans. Proof Batman stories don’t always have to be grim sojourns into Bruce Wayne’s tortured psyche, this festive animated treat is a delight, crammed with loving details for fans of the comics while serving as a fantastic entry point for newcomers. Art director Guillaume Fesquet’s unique approach, based on the style of Ronald Searle<\/a>, offers one of the most distinctive takes on the Dynamic Duo in their eight decades of existence, too.<\/p>\n More than a century after F. W. Murnau brought vampires to the silent screen with Nosferatu: A Symphony of Horrors<\/em>\u2014liberally and infamously \u201cinspired\u201d by Bram Stoker\u2019s Dracula<\/em><\/a>\u2014Robert Eggers<\/a> reimagines cinema\u2019s first blood-sucker. The story will be familiar to anyone acquainted with Murnau\u2019s or Stoker\u2019s works: Ambitious young estate agent Thomas Hutter (Nicholas Hoult) is sent to Transylvania to finalize a property deal with the enigmatic Count Orlok (Bill Skarsg\u00e5rd), who becomes obsessed with Hutter\u2019s new bride, Ellen (Lily-Rose Depp). But Eggers presents the trail of blood, plague, and terror that follows in a morbidly fascinating new light. Every frame is gorgeously shot, and Skarsg\u00e5rd brings the rapacious Orlok to demonic un-life with an utterly heart-stopping performance.<\/p>\n The debut outing of Benoit Blanc (Daniel Craig) finds the master detective investigating the suspicious death of famed crime novelist Harlan Thrombey (Christopher Plummer). It’s a case complicated by the deceased\u2019s expansive, dysfunctional family, all of whom appear to have a motive for killing their supposedly beloved patriarch. Boasting a murderers’ row of acting talent, including Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Toni Collette, LaKeith Stanfield, and Ana de Armas as Thrombey\u2019s attentive nurse Marta\u2014director Rian Johnson\u2019s Knives Out<\/em> remains a masterful modern updating of the classic whodunit, packed full of meta twists that almost single-handedly reenergized the genre.<\/p>\n Sure, nowadays Michael Jordan is a bona fide sports god, and Nike Air Jordans are still arguably the<\/em> cool sneaker\u2014but that wasn\u2019t the case back in 1984. Jordan was a rookie, and Nike was about to close down its basketball shoe division. Enter Sonny Vaccaro (Matt Damon), a talent scout for the footwear maker who\u2019s spotted a rising star in North Carolina who could turn everything around\u2014he just needs to convince everyone else that Jordan is worth betting the company on. We all know how that panned out, so thankfully Air<\/em> is more than a two-hour advert for gym shoes. Damon, Jason Bateman, Chris Tucker, and director Ben Affleck<\/a> all deliver strong performances\u2014only to be utterly eclipsed by Viola Davis in a magnetic and powerful, if somewhat under-utilized, turn as matriarch Deloris Jordan\u2014while Alex Convery\u2019s script keeps the drama on the people and personalities involved, rather than the boardroom. In an age of franchises and endless blockbusters, Air<\/em> is the sort of character-focused film that rarely gets made anymore, and is all the more enjoyable for it.<\/p>\n Grumpy British prime minister Sam Clarke (Idris Elba) and action-movie star turned US President Will Derringer (John Cena) can’t stand each other\u2014so teaming up to survive after Air Force One is shot down over the Belarusian wilderness is going to put a real strain on the Special Relationship. Luckily for viewers, though, it also makes for one of the most hilarious and brilliantly choreographed action comedies in years. Priyanka Chopra Jonas is astounding as hard-nosed senior MI6 agent Noel Bisset, out to protect the combative world leaders from each other as much as a mounting terrorist threat, but it’s the spiky chemistry between the leads that really carries the film. Cena is so perfectly obnoxious throughout that you can’t help but feel Elba might actually hate him. A throwback of an action flick in the best way.<\/p>\n When London police detective Billings (Sean Bean) hits a brick wall infiltrating criminal organizations, he turns to the only people he can trust: struggling improv actors. This ludicrous concept is played for maximum laughs by Bryce Dallas Howard as Kat, a comedian desperate for her big break, and Orlando Bloom as the intractably method-acting Marlon. But it’s Ted Lasso<\/em>‘s Nick Mohammed who steals every scene as meek and awkward Hugh\u2014an IT nerd who can’t act but \u201cyes, ands \u2026 \u201d every increasingly farcical scenario the trio find themselves in. A bizarre blend of slapstick and Guy Ritchie-esque grit, Deep Cover<\/em> fully commits.<\/p>\n One of the absolute wildest films you’ve probably never seen, 1984’s The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai<\/em> is \u2026 almost impossible to describe. Centered on Peter Weller’s Dr. Buckaroo Banzai\u2014a super-genius physicist, skilled neurosurgeon, high-flying test pilot, and beloved rock star\u2014the film follows his battle with the evil Dr. Emilio Lizardo (John Lithgow) over the advanced “oscillation overthruster” that allows travel between dimensions. It’s so much stranger than that though. Expect alien invaders, identical twins of long-lost lovers, Orville Welles, and mid-1980s nuclear war paranoia, and that’s just scratching the surface. The highest of high concept sci-fi flicks, it absolutely bombed on release (despite a phenomenal cast including Jeff Goldblum and Christopher Lloyd) but has since more than earned its standing as a cult favorite. Even Weller himself can’t explain the film<\/a>, but it is undeniably an experience<\/em>.<\/p>\n Arriving on Prime Video with divine timing<\/a>, this parable of the election of a new pope makes for powerful viewing. When the pope passes, Cardinal Thomas Lawrence (Ralph Fiennes) starts the process of hosting the papal conclave to choose his successor\u2014but given that the supreme pontiff is one of the most powerful positions on Earth, the election makes for anything but dry Catholic procedure. As the choice narrows to four candidates, and no one is allowed in or out until a new pope is elected, tension mounts while power plays, blackmail, and long-buried secrets rock the Holy See. Based on the novel by Robert Harris and directed by Edward Berger (2022’s All Quiet on the Western Front<\/em>), Conclave<\/em> is a meticulously researched and exquisitely shot drama, driven by magnetic performances from a cast including Stanley Tucci, John Lithgow, and Isabella Rossellini.<\/p>\n\n
Die Hard<\/em><\/h2>\n
Wicked<\/em><\/h2>\n
Merry Little Batman<\/em><\/h2>\n
Nosferatu<\/em><\/h2>\n
Knives Out<\/em><\/h2>\n
Air<\/em><\/h2>\n
Heads of State<\/em><\/h2>\n
Deep Cover<\/em><\/h2>\n
The Adventures of Buckaroo Banzai Across the 8th Dimension<\/em><\/h2>\n
Conclave<\/em><\/h2>\n
Evangelion 3.0+1.0: Thrice Upon a Time<\/em><\/h2>\n