While there are so many great movies streaming on Netflix, HBO Max, and Disney+, all of those cost an arm and a leg these days, with platforms upping the price. But where do you watch great movies streaming for free?
You’d be shocked at how many options exist out on the internet, all with minimal ad interruption. Here are a couple of dozen great dramas, action flicks, horror films, family-friendly adventures, and more. And best of all, you don’t have to spend a thing on any of these.
Intense Dramas
Are you looking for a night of intense drama? Well, the following titles will give you that and more, without breaking the bank.
Collateral (2004)
The Director: Michael Mann
The Cast: Tom Cruise, Jamie Foxx, Mark Ruffalo
What It’s About: A Los Angeles cabbie finds himself in the middle of a life-or-death situation after picking up a mysterious hitman.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: One of Michael Mann’s best movies, Collateral is a tense, intense, and no-nonsense thriller that’ll leave you on the edge of your seat throughout. Tom Cruise has never been more devilish.
Heat (1995)
The Director: Michael Mann
The Cast: Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Val Kilmer
What It’s About: A prolific bankrobber with a certain set of skills and personal code faces his biggest obstacle yet when a tenacious detective gets on his case in the lead-up to a big score that could change his life.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Few movies have had an impact on cinema, and pop culture in general, more than Heat. Michael Mann’s crime epic, which is known for bringing Pacino and De Niro together, is just one of those movies you have to see.
The Apprentice (2024)
The Director: Ali Abbasi
The Cast: Sebastian Stan, Jeremy Strong, Maria Bakalova
What It’s About: Years before becoming a real estate magnate and pop culture icon, Donald Trump falls under the wing of Roy Cohn, a cutthroat attorney who ends up changing the impressionable man’s worldview.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: With outstanding performances from Sebastian Stan and Jeremy Strong, The Apprentice is a fascinating, albeit difficult, movie to enjoy. Still, though, it’s worth seeking out.
Chinatown (1974)
The Director: Roman Polanski
The Cast: Jack Nicholson, Faye Dunaway, John Hillerman
What It’s About: After being hired to investigate a woman’s husband, a private eye soon becomes wrapped up in a city-wide conspiracy that could end up being the death of him, or at least his ruin.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Often considered one of the best examples of film noir, as well as a must-see Los Angeles movie, Chinatown is one of those rare perfect cinematic experiences.
Over-The-Top Action Movies
Sometimes, nothing is better than watching an absurd and over-the-top action movie. Here are some of the best examples!
Raw Deal (1986)
The Director: John Irvin
The Cast: Arnold Schwarzenegger, Kathryn Harrold, Darren McGavin
What It’s About: Years after being kicked out of the FBI, a former agent goes undercover to get to the bottom of a series of murders involving agents and the mafia.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Though not talked about nearly as much as other Arnold Schwarzenegger movies like The Terminator, Predator, and Commando, this 1985 action flick is simply superb. Shootouts, betrayals, more shootouts; it has it all.
Toy Soldiers (1991)
The Director: Daniel Petrie Jr.
The Cast: Sean Astin, Wil Wheaton, Lou Gossett Jr.
Based On: Toy Soldiers by William P. Kennedy
What It’s About: When a prestigious boarding school becomes the center of an international hostage crisis, it’s up to a group of wise-cracking and rebellious students to save the day.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Toy Soldiers may have gotten lost in the shuffle of a busy 1991 (T2 and Point Break both came out that year), but this movie is just so much fun. With elements of Die Hard and Home Alone combined with killer performances from Sean Astin and Wil Wheaton, there’s so much to love here.
Bloodsport (1988)
The Director: Newt Arnold
The Cast: Jean-Claude Van Damme, Donald Gibb, Leah Ayres
What It’s About: A highly-trained United States Army captain travels to Hong Kong – not for combat, but instead to take part in a dangerous underground martial arts tournament.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Though there is a decent enough story at the heart of Bloodsport, everyone comes to this gem of an ‘80s action movie for Jean-Claude Van Damme looking like a complete badass. We’re here for the fights.
Hard Boiled (1992)
The Director: John Woo
The Cast: Chow Yun Fat, Tony Leung, Teresa Mo
What It’s About: After his partner is gunned down in Hong Kong, Inspector "Tequila" Yuen Ho-yan (Chow Yun Fat) goes on a one-man mission to find and take out the gun smugglers with blood on their hands.
Why It’s One of the Best Movies Streaming: One of the most decorated collaborations between John Woo and Chow Yun Fat, Hard Boiled is a bullet-ridden, blood-soaked, and action-packed crime flick like no other.
Fun Comedies
Are you ready to laugh so hard your sides are going to hurt?
When Harry Met Sally (1989)
The Director: Rob Reiner
The Cast: Billy Crystal, Meg Ryan, Carrie Fisher
What It’s About: Years after a car ride from hell brought them to New York, two people try to figure out if a man and a woman can be friends and nothing more (or less).
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Written by Nora Ephron and directed by Rob Reiner, both of whom are sadly no longer with us, When Harry Met Sally is peak comedy in every shape and form. This movie, which is full of one unforgettable scene after another, just never gets old.
Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)
The Director: Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones
The Cast: Graham Chapman, John Cleese, Terry Gilliam
What It’s About: King Arthur and his knights set off on an epic adventure to find the mythical Holy Grail. However, the Black Knight, a man-eating rabbit, and other obstacles stand in their way.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: If you’ve never watched a Monty Python movie or show, you’re in for a wild, nonsensical, and utterly hilarious journey. If you are familiar, you know what to expect.
Intense Horrors
Yup, already horrified by all of these:
The Wicker Man (1973)
The Director: Robin Hardy
The Cast: Edward Woodward, Britt Ekland, Christopher Lee
Based On: Ritual by David Pinner
What It’s About: When the case of a missing girl brings a detective to a mysterious island filled with ritualistic pagans, he soon learns that he’s stumbled upon something far more sinister.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: The 2000s remake is pure comedy, but Robin Hardy’s The Wicker Man is one of the most terrifying horror movies of all time. It’s unsettling, unforgettable, and a wild ride.
Hereditary (2018)
The Director: Ari Aster
The Cast: Toni Collette, Alex Wolff, Milly Shapiro
What It’s About: A family attempts to come to terms with a sudden and shocking death, only to find themselves being further torn apart by grief and an evil presence.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Like the rest of Ari Aster’s movies, Hereditary is going to make you feel so uncomfortable. That said, it’s an incredibly emotional study of grief that shouldn’t be overlooked.
Night Of The Living Dead (1968)
The Director: George A. Romero
The Cast: Duane Jones, Judith O’Dea, Marilyn Eastman
What It's About: A group of strangers are forced to take refuge together in order to survive the sudden onslaught of flesh-eating, reanimated corpses, while also struggling to survive each other.
Why It's One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Romero basically defined the zombie genre as a whole, so this is the zombie movie to check out, but trust me, it’s really not that scary – at least in comparison to today’s zombies.
Fun For The Whole Family
Everyone could check out and have fun with these films:
Batman: Mask Of The Phantasm (1993)
The Director: Eric Radomski, Bruce Timm
The Cast: Kevin Conroy, Mark Hamill, Abe Vigoda
What It’s About: With a mysterious figure taking out Gotham’s biggest and baddest criminals, Batman is forced to get to the bottom of the Phantasm and their desires while also coming to terms with his own tragic story.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: If you are a fan of Batman: The Animated Series, a.k.a., the best Batman show ever, then Mask of the Phantasm is a must. Taking the dark tones and visuals of the classic cartoon, this big-screen animated film is rich in so many ways.
The Goonies (1985)
The Director: Richard Donner
The Cast: Sean Astin, Josh Brolin, Corey Feldman
What It’s About: A group of friends attempt to find a long-lost treasure (that may or may not even exist) in a last-ditch effort to save their Pacific Northwest town from a group of greedy developers.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: The Goonies, simply put, is one of the best adventure films of all time. It has an incredible story, an unforgettable cast, and some of the most recognizable moments (and quotes) of all time. Yeah, it’s time to watch this again.
The Burbs (1989)
The Director: Joe Dante
The Cast: Tom Hanks, Carrie Fisher, Bruce Dern
What It’s About: Home on a week-long vacation, a stressed-out, over-stimulated, and neurotic suburbanite becomes convinced his new neighbors are actually vampires. But are they?
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: The Burbs features one of Tom Hanks’ most ridiculous characters, some outrageous twists and turns, and a level of charm you don’t see too often these days. Plus, Ray Peterson’s freakout is the chef’s kiss.
Jumanji (1995)
The Director: Joe Johnson
The Cast: Robin Williams, Bonnie Hunt, Kirsten Dunst
Based On: Jumanji by Christ Van Allsburg
What It’s About: Decades after being trapped in a board game, the former heir to a shoe empire is brought back to his hometown and given the opportunity to finish what he started all those years ago.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Years before being turned into a Dwayne Johnson-led action franchise, Jumanji started out as a fun, quirky, and borderline terrifying adventure film about a mysterious board game bringing the jungle to the real world. It’s fun, exciting, and has so much heart.
Thrilling, Twisty, And Exciting Sci-Fi And Fantasy
In the mood for some old-fashioned escapism? Look no further than these sci-fi and fantasty stories.
Starship Troopers (1997)
The Director: Paul Verhoeven
The Cast: Casper Van Dien, Denise Richards, Neil Patrick Harris
What It’s About: When an extraterrestrial race of insects attacks Earth and kills millions in the process, young soldiers travel deep into space to get some old-fashioned revenge.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Very much a parody of fascist states and humanity’s desire to kill what it doesn’t understand, Starship Troopers has a lot to say about love, war, and morality. But yeah, this one is over-the-top in all the best ways.
Stargate (1994)
The Director: Roland Emmerich
The Cast: Kurt Russell, James Spader, Jaye Davidson
What It’s About: A professor and Army colonel team up to unlock a mysterious portal that transports them to an Alien planet closely resembling ancient Egypt.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: One of the most ambitious, daring, and action-packed ‘90s sci-fi movies, Stargate has so much going for it. With James Spader and Kurt Russell co-leading, outstanding visuals (especially for the time), and some wild action set pieces, there’s a lot to love.
Krull (1983)
The Director: Peter Yates
The Cast: Ken Marshall, Lysette Anthony, Freddie Jones
What It’s About: A brave warrior, along with a ragtag group of warriors, bandits, shape-shifters, and a scene-stealing cyclops, sets out to save his bride from an evil entity hellbent on controlling the universe.
Why It’s One Of The Best Free Movies Streaming: Krull doesn’t get talked about nearly enough, and that’s a shame. It has some wonderful effects for the early ‘80s, an engaging story, and early appearances by Liam Neeson and Robbie Coltrane.
With all these free movies, you’ll be busy for some time! After that, just think of all the other free movies you could check out.
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