Prime Video: The 16 Absolute Best Movies to Watch

Barry Keoghan and Jacob Elordi star in Emerald Fennell’s much-talked-about black comedy thriller, which follows an outcast Oxford University student invited to a luxurious estate by another student. Expect obsession, deception and an infamous bathtub scene you may want to scrub out of your brain.

This Prime Video spy thriller didn’t impress every critic but it wasn’t totally panned, either. The movie introduces two former lovers and co-workers at the CIA’s Vienna station — played by Chris Pine and Thandiwe Newton — who’ve reunited under not-so-sweet circumstances. A CIA mole could have played a role in a plane hijacking, and the agency sends Pine to question Newton. The twisty, flashback-heavy flick is engaging enough to fall back on if you need an evening escape.

At the start of this comedy-thriller, we learn that college seniors and best friends Kunle and Sean plan to become the first Black men to complete a “legendary tour,” a feat that involves fraternity party-hopping on an epic scale. But when the students find a young white woman passed out on the floor in their home, the night spirals into something else entirely. The film, which mixes comedy and social commentary, is at times tense and harrowing. A significant part is the bond between Kunle and Sean, played by an excellent RJ Cyler and Donald Elise Watkins.

A trio of improv actors manage to infiltrate the London criminal underworld in Deep Cover — a new Prime Video entry that’s as entertaining as it sounds. Bryce Dallas Howard, Orlando Bloom and Nick Mohammed (Ted Lasso assistant coach Nate) star as the comics in the middle of the action, and there are multiple alums from HBO’s Game of Thrones shows (Sean Bean, Paddy Considine and Sonoya Mizuno).

This medieval film stars Bella Ramsey — who you may know as Lyanna Mormont from Game of Thrones or Ellie from The Last of Us — as the adventurous Lady Catherine, aka Birdy. Unlike those HBO dramas, this comedy sees the cunning teen come up with ways to circumvent the many wealthy suitors her father, portrayed by Ripley’s Andrew Scott, wants her to marry. Directed by Lena Dunham and based on Karen Cushman’s 1994 children’s novel of the same name, Catherine Called Birdy is witty and entertaining.

The Burial is an engrossing legal drama starring two Oscar-winning actors — two reasons to work it into this week’s streaming plans. Tommy Lee Jones’ funeral home owner teams with Jamie Foxx’s lawyer in the underdog tale inspired by actual events.

This crowd-pleasing sports drama is one of Prime’s better-known originals and worth a watch. Ben Affleck directs the Air Jordan sneaker origin story, which stars Matt Damon, Jason Bateman, Viola Davis and others. The tale’s ending is no surprise, but themes of working hard and taking big risks make the journey compelling. 

Who can resist a mouthwatering slice of cake? In this touching Prime Video dramedy, a pair of best friends perfect the recipe for meeting new people: bringing delicious desserts to bars. The two 20-somethings must navigate sugary success and a life-changing diagnosis in the friendship-focused story.

This captivating biopic stars Michael Peña as José Hernández, a former NASA astronaut. The film focuses on Hernández’s decades-long journey to space — achieved with the support of his family — and is based on his autobiography, Reaching for the Stars: The Inspiring Story of a Migrant Farmworker Turned Astronaut.

When 12 young Thai soccer players and their coach became trapped in a flooded cave in 2018, it brought about an extraordinary global effort to save them. This dramatization of the rescue attempt, directed by Ron Howard (A Beautiful Mind, How the Grinch Stole Christmas), depicts the extreme lengths divers and volunteers went to to bring the boys to safety. The star-studded cast includes Joel Edgerton, Viggo Mortensen and Colin Farrell.

This must-watch music documentary shows Celine Dion’s battle with the rare neurological disorder, stiff-person syndrome. The film touches on the pop diva’s extraordinary, decades-long career with footage of her performing hits like The Power of Love and My Heart Will Go On and provides a raw look at her health struggles.

A documentary about Frida Kahlo that focuses on her own words, Prime Video’s Frida could deepen your appreciation for the iconic Mexican painter. Through narration by Fernanda Echevarría del Rivero and lyrical animation, the film offers insights from Kahlo’s illustrated diary, letters, essays and print interviews. The filmmakers had access to research materials unseen by the general public.

Do you love Lucy? How about insightful, nostalgic documentaries? If so, you’ll need to engage with this Amy Poehler-directed examination into the lives of Lucille Ball and Desi Arnaz. The feel-good doc draws on home movies and audio provided by Ball and Arnaz’s daughter, Lucie Arnaz, and charts everything that led up to the pair’s iconic run in the ’50s sitcom I Love Lucy. When you’ve wrapped up, a fictional film about the stars, Being the Ricardos is also on Prime Video.

The Idea of You broke a record for streaming movies with its trailer, and the buzzy romantic drama is a hit with critics, too. Based on the book by Robinne Lee, the movie stars Nicholas Galitzine as a boy band singer and Anne Hathaway as the mom of a fan. The two start a relationship after unexpectedly meeting at Coachella, leading to swoon-worthy moments, although their different lives (and ages) complicate things. Hathaway, predictably, makes for a charming lead.

“For as long as I can remember,” Rudy, the protagonist of Música, explains in the film, “everyday, regular sounds, I turn into rhythm.” A semi-autobiographical flick from Vine and YouTube star Rudy Mancuso, Música follows a young man with synesthesia at a romantic crossroads. The 90-minute coming-of-age story is vibrant and heartwarming.

With an enemies-to-lovers plot and sizzling chemistry, this adaptation of Casey McQuiston’s 2019 novel is a must-see for rom-com fanatics. The film follows the son of a US President and a British prince who are rivals, but after they have to convince the public otherwise, it opens the door for romance. If you need another reason to get swept up in the love story, a sequel that includes the original movie’s stars — Taylor Zakhar Perez and Nicholas Galitzine — is in development.