For a long time, Amazon Prime was Netflix’s ugly stepsister when it came to original content. But with that Bezos money, that stepsister turned a tad into Bezos Cinderella (better than Amazon’s Cinderella movie, sorry Camilla Cabello), equipped with a solid amount of original movie content, especially for you international fans.
Below you’ll find the top 10 Prime made movies on the streaming service, consistently updated for new watches/releases.
Plus, Amazon’s growing resume means a growing list of Honorable Mentions:
A swoon worthy romance set in 1960’s Harlem. Tessa Thompson and Nnamdi Asomugha are sensational playing a couple young adults growing up and juggling careers and love; the movie feels like a gentle dream you never want to wake up from.
This movie takes its great hook – a heavy metal drummer losing his hearing – and puts a stellar movie around it. Riz Ahmed is mesmerizing playing a guy already on shaky emotional ground who’s dealt this tough blow. The sound design really immerses you Ahmed’s head as we hear what he hears and can immediately understand what he is feeling. The ending is also pitch perfect, pun intended.
There’s no singing in this French movie. Instead, we get something deeper and richer, taking the story to Victor Hugo’s French roots. In a day, we see the lives of the poor and disenfranchised, as well as the police “protecting and serving” them. It’s a morally complicated, rewarding story that has parallels all over the planet, amplifying Lady Ly’s message.
Santiago Mitre’s story about Argentina’s Trial of the Juntas is many things. It’s a sneaky funny biopic about the eclectic group of kids and random bureaucrats in charge of prosecuting the previous military government for war crimes. It’s also a rousing courtroom drama, giving catharsis to a nation desperate to rise up and claim their democracy in this new Argentina.
British period pieces carry a layer of horrifying elitism and condescension that filmmakers usually try to suppress or awaken their characters from. Whit Stillman has no such intention. Using the full acid pen of Jane Austen, Stillman concocts a British satire of manners where all of these people say the cruel thoughts in their head. But because it’s in a polite way, you’re horrified, amused, then more horrified with each new attack on the downtrodden or good natured folk in the name of manners.
This doc is a love letter to science. Tracking the Spirit and Opportunity robotic missions to Mars, the movie showcases what happens when the best and brightest, and a little luck, can lead to spectacular things. And most importantly, it can inspire generations to want to learn about how the world works and how to make it better for everyone.
What is a hero? Ashgar Farhadi’s near masterpiece explores the meaning of that word through a modern parable. The story is a cautionary reminder of how celebrity culture, fame, and power can depart as quickly as they arrive, and like all Farhadi stories, all actions have long, layered consequences on yourself and the people you love.
Though Bong Joon Ho has taken all of the praise from Korea recently, Park Chan Wook is no slouch himself. Consider this tale, which Bong probably wishes he got his hand on first. Using a British story to tell a tale about Japanese occupation of Korea, Park Chan Wook weaves a sexy, scary, sometimes funny thriller out of its timid past into the shocking present, with each sexy onion layer by sexy onion layer at a time.
There’s no way describe Pawel Pawlikowski’s film other than it’s pure art. The story is about a couple who meet and fall in love in Poland, but at the worst possible time: during post WWII Iron Curtain time, forcing one of the pair to flee. Pawlikowski’s film breathes in music, sees in luscious black and white, and hears the cries of those long forgotten who got through terrifying times with the power of love, sometimes waiting years to reconnect.
Akin to the Three Colors Trilogy or Dekalog, Steve McQueen gives us a view of the life of the West Indian African community in London from the 1960s to 1980s. My personal ranking of the five films is 1. Red, White and Blue 2. Mangrove 3. Education 4. Lovers Rock 5. Alex Wheatle But even Alex Wheatle would be in the upper echelon of films in any movie year. That’s all thanks to McQueen, who’s continuing to prove that he’s one of the most talented filmmakers of his generation, using amazing camerawork, storytelling, casting, and important themes to paint a picture of a community in a way rarely seen in movies today.
