I wanted to take a new approach for this column in 2023. There’s just way too much out there, and even last year I was still dropping way too many suggestions. This year, it’s all about curation. I’m still focusing on the most popular streaming services for now, but being a lot more choosy in my recommendations. All of these movies I’ve owned on physical media and/or greatly enjoyed but haven’t bought yet. It’s nearly 100 titles right now, but it is the first of the year, so that number will likely dwindle in the coming months.
FILMS
Top Pick
The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974) – HBO Max 1/1
Ignore Tony Scott’s bombastic remake and enjoy the original: a cynical look at grimy ’70s New York with stellar, lived-in performances and one of the best endings of all time.
Other Recommendations
50/50 – Prime Video 1/1
Ali – Prime Video 1/1
Apollo 13 – Peacock 1/1
Arachnophobia – Paramount+ 1/1
Atlantic City – Paramount+ 1/1
The Aviator – Netflix 1/1
Black Dynamite – Prime Video 1/1
Bound – Paramount+ 1/1
The Brady Bunch Movie – Prime Video 1/1 and Paramount+ 1/9
The Breakfast Club – Hulu 1/1
Brokeback Mountain – Netflix 1/1
Bull Durham – Paramount+ 1/1
The Cabin in the Woods – HBO Max 1/1
Captain Phillips – HBO Max 1/1
Closer – Netflix 1/1
Cold Pursuit – HBO Max 1/1
The Crying Game – HBO Max 1/1
The Devil’s Backbone – Prime Video 1/1
Election – Prime Video 1/1
Fast Times at Ridgemont High – Peacock 1/1
Forrest Gump – Netflix 1/1
Glory – Paramount+ 1/1
The Godfather Trilogy – Peacock 1/1
Grease – Netflix and Paramount+ 1/1
Harold and Maude – Prime Video 1/1
Heat (1995) – Hulu 1/1
Hereditary – HBO Max 1/1
I Am Not Your Negro – Prime Video 1/1
If Beale Street Could Talk – Prime Video 1/1
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade – Prime Video 1/1
Jerry Maguire – Netflix 1/1
John Wick series – HBO Max 1/1
Juliet, Naked – Prime Video 1/1 and Paramount+ 1/9
King Kong (2005) – Netflix 1/1
The King of Comedy – Hulu 1/1
Lawrence of Arabia – HBO Max 1/1
A League of Their Own – Hulu 1/1
The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance – Paramount+ 1/1 and Prime Video 1/15
The Master – HBO Max 1/1
Minority Report – Netflix 1/1
Mission: Impossible – Prime Video and Paramount+ 1/1
Mission: Impossible III – Prime Video 1/1
Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol – Prime Video 1/1
The Mummy (1999) – Hulu 1/1
The Naked Gun – Paramount+ 1/1
O Brother, Where Art Thou? – Prime Video 1/1
The Other Guys – Peacock 1/1
Paper Moon – Paramount+ 1/1
Piranha (2010) – HBO Max 1/1
Predestination – Hulu 1/1
The Prestige – Hulu 1/1
Prometheus – Hulu 1/1
Raiders of the Lost Ark – Prime Video 1/1
Reservoir Dogs – Netflix 1/1
Road to Perdition – Netflix 1/1
Rocky – Netflix 1/1 and Paramount+ 1/15
Roman Holiday – Paramount+ 1/1
Rosemary’s Baby – Prime Video 1/1
Schindler’s List – Peacock 1/1
Scott Pilgrim vs. the World – Netflix 1/1
Silence (2016) – Paramount+ 1/1
Snatch – Hulu 1/1
Sorry to Bother You – Prime Video 1/1
Step Brothers – Peacock 1/1
Support the Girls – HBO Max 1/1
Take Shelter – Hulu 1/1
Tangerine – Prime Video 1/1
Taxi Driver – Paramount+ 1/1
The Thin Red Line – Paramount+ 1/1
The Triplets of Belleville – Hulu 1/1
When We Were Kings – HBO Max 1/1
Witness – Prime Video 1/1
Zero Dark Thirty – HBO Max 1/1
Zombieland – Hulu 1/1
Clerks – Paramount+ 1/3
Cold Mountain – Paramount+ 1/3
12 Angry Men (1957) – Paramount+ 1/9
Devil in a Blue Dress – Paramount+ 1/9
Night of the Living Dead (1968) – Paramount+ 1/9
The Apartment – Paramount+ 1/15
Carrie (1976) – Paramount+ 1/15
Casino Royale (2006) – Paramount+ 1/15
The Defiant Ones – Paramount+ 1/15
Father of the Bride (1991) – Paramount+ 1/15
A Fish Called Wanda – Paramount+ 1/15
The Manchurian Candidate (1962) – Paramount+ 1/15
Midnight Cowboy – Paramount+ 1/15
Platoon – Paramount+ 1/15
Red River – Paramount+ 1/15
RoboCop (1987) – Paramount+ 1/15
The Silence of the Lambs – Paramount+ 1/15
Skyfall – Paramount+ 1/15
That’s Entertainment – Paramount+ 1/15
The Thomas Crown Affair (1999) – Paramount+ 1/15
Unforgiven – Paramount+ 1/15
Killing Them Softly – Prime Video 1/31
