Best Netflix movies: the 40 best films worth watching in June 2024

Searching for the best Netflix movies to stream today? You're in luck. TechRadar's entertainment experts have put in the hard yards to compile a list of the 40 best movies to watch on Netflix, including a number of the streamer's original offerings and plenty of licensed ones. The world's best streaming service has a seemingly immeasurable number of films to choose from these days, so we're sure you'll be glad of our help.

If you want even more recommendations, you should read our new Netflix movies guide. It's packed with numerous new movies that have made their way onto the streamer over the past month, including some films that haven't found a home here. Bookmark that page for another time, though, and read on to get the lowdown on the best Netflix films available to you.

Best action movies on Netflix

Extraction 1 and 2

Age rating: R
Runtime: 118 minutes (Extraction 1); 123 minutes (Extraction 2)
Main cast: Chris Hemsworth and Golshifteh Farahani
Director: Sam Hargrave
RT score: 67% (Extraction 1); 79% (Extraction 2)

Looking for an unrelenting thrill ride that's stuffed with some of the best action sequences we've seen in a long time? Netflix Original film series Extraction is the one for you.

Marvel star Chris Hemsworth stars as Tyler Rake, a black ops merc-for-hire with a complex backstory. In each movie, Rake is hired to rescue someone (or numerous individuals) from a seemingly impossible situation. Once he's acquired the package, he tries to lead them to safety as numerous thugs, gang members, and other characters attempt to kill Rake and those he's liberated.

Extraction 1 was a pretty good watch and its sequel is, in our opinion, even better thanks to its 21-minute-long, heart-pounding, intricately assembled, and dangerous one-shot sequence. Read our Extraction 2 review to learn more.

Watch Extraction 1's YouTube trailer.

Kill Bill

Age rating: R
Runtime: 110 minutes
Main cast: Uma Thurman, Lucy Liu, Vivica A. Fox, Michael Madsen, David Carradine, and Daryl Hannah
Director: Quentin Tarantino
RT score: 85%

Regularly voted as one of the best Quentin Tarantino movies (if not the best), Kill Bill is a masterclass in ultraviolent action and auteur filmmaking. Thurman plays The Bride, who wakes from a four-year-long coma after her jilted ex-lover (Carradine) tries to murder her. Fueled by revenge, The Bride embarks on a vengance-laced quest to enact retribution, spilling anyone's blood who stands in her way.

An adrenaline-fueled, blood-splattered ride with top-tier stunts and fascinating filming angles, Kill Bill is must-see for all Netflix subscribers. Well, if you can stomach incredibly violent films.

Watch Kill Bill Volume 1's YouTube trailer.

Best animated movies on Netflix

Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood

Age rating: PG-13
Runtime: 98 minutes
Main cast: Jack Black, Bill Wise, Lee Eddy, Milo Coy, Zachary Levi, and Glen Powell Director: Richard Linklater
RT score: 91%

If you’re keen to mix up your movie-watching diet, films don't come much more unconventional than Netflix’s Apollo 10 1/2: A Space Age Childhood. Boyhood director Richard Linklater returns to filmmaking duties with this animated feature, which tells the story of the 1969 moon landing from multiple perspectives. 

The movie shares the visual style of Linklater’s previous animation, 2006's A Scanner Darkly, and features the voice talents of The Super Mario Bros. Movie's Jack Black, Shazam! Fury of the Gods' Zachary Levi, and Top Gun: Maverick star Glen Powell. Despite its needlessly lengthy title, Apollo 10 1/2 is a genuinely unique take on one of history’s most iconic moments, and serves as yet more proof of Netflix's willingness to invest in boundary-pushing storytelling. 

Watch Apollo 10 1/2's YouTube trailer.

Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 121 minutes
Main cast: Gregory Mann, Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Tilda Swinton, Cate Blanchett, and Finn Holfhard
Directors: Guillermo del Toro and Mark Gustafson
RT score: 96%

Who says Netflix has lost its taste for originality? With Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, the streamer breathes new life into Carlo Collodi's beloved 1883 fairytale about a wooden puppet who longs to become a real boy. 

Shot entirely using stop-motion (in a manner akin to Netflix series The House), del Toro’s darker adaptation is set in 1930s Italy during Mussolini’s fascist regime and features a star-studded voice cast that includes Ewan McGregor, David Bradley, Tilda Swinton, Christoph Waltz and Cate Blanchett. Indisputably one of the best Netflix movies in years.

Watch Guillermo del Toro's Pinocchio's YouTube trailer.

The Mitchells vs The Machines

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 114 minutes
Main cast: Abbi Jacobson, Danny McBride, Maya Rudolph, Michael Rianda, and Olivia Colman
Director: Michael Rianda
RT score: 97%

The Mitchells vs the Machines stars Mitchell (Abbi Jacobson), an aspiring filmmaker who's about to head to college – until her dad, conscious that they've been drifting apart, cancels her plane ticket and insists on a family road trip. Halfway through this fraught journey, an AI takes revenge on its billionaire creator and the world is suddenly under duress from smart robots. 

A lot of Spider-Verse's visual touches cross over into this film, with 2D annotations and drawings on the already-pretty 3D visuals. Most of all, it's nice to see Netflix backing a family movie that's not just full of talking dogs and other hackneyed nonsense so often seen in CG kids' fare. 

Watch The Mitchells vs the Machines' YouTube trailer.

Nimona

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 102 minutes
Main cast: Chloe Grace Moretz, Riz Ahmed, Eugene Lee Yang, and Frances Conroy Directors: Nick Bruno and Troy Quane
RT score: 92%

Based on ND Stevenson's 2015 graphic novel of the same name, Nimona is a delightfully fun, action-packed, funny, and heartfelt flick that's also unapologetically queer. Star Wars alumnus Riz Ahmed voices Ballister Blackheart, a futuristic knight who's framed for a crime he didn't commit. The only witness who can save him from a lengthy jail term is Nimona (The Peipheral's Chloe Grace Moretz), a shapeshifter who Blackheart is sworn to seek out and destroy. Cue a wild buddy cop-style adventure that teaches kids to have an open mind about people who are different to them in more ways than one.

Nimona has been lauded for its LGBTQ+ representation, subversive storytelling, and gorgeous visuals among many other positives. A truly worth entry in our best Netflix movies guide.

Watch Nimona's YouTube trailer.

Paddington

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 95 minutes
Main cast: Ben Whishaw, Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Madeleine Harris, and Samuel Joslin
Director: Paul King
RT score: 97%

We're just going to say it: Paddington is one of the best family movies of all time. Don't argue with us. At first glance, everyone's favorite, marmalade sandwich-eating Peruvian bear didn't seem like he'd be the star of a truly terrific family-friendly film. As it turns out, though, Paddington (voiced with a deftness, warmth, and stacks of humor by Ben Whishaw) is a bonafide movie star – and his first CGI-cum-live-action movie proves it.

You'll laugh yourself silly at its slapstick moments, you'll cry at its heart-wrenching (and heart-warming!) scenes, and shout "I didn't know they were in it!" at every big-name actor who appears. In short: go and watch it immediately.

Watch Paddington's YouTube trailer.

The Sea Beast

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 119 minutes
Main cast: Karl Urban, Zaris Angel-Hator, Jared Harris, and Dan Stevens
Director: Chris Williams
RT score: 94%

The Sea Beast proved Disney doesn’t have a monopoly on layered, child-friendly storytelling upon its arrival in July 2022. Directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Chris Williams (Moana, Big Hero Six), the movie follows Jacob Holland (voiced by The Boys’ Karl Urban), a celebrated sea monster hunter whose life is upended when a young girl, Maisie Brumble (newcomer Zaris-Angel Hator), stows away on his ship. 

Charming, action-packed, and beautifully-rendered, The Sea Beast was praised by audiences and critics alike upon release, and serves as further proof that Netflix should think twice about scaling back its animation department. If it still is, that is. 

Watch The Sea Beast's YouTube trailer.

Shrek

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 89 minutes
Main cast: Mike Myers, Eddie Murphy, Cameron Diaz, and John Lithgow
Directors: Andrew Adamson and Vicky Jenson
RT score: 88%

This universally popular animated movie is must-see for film fans of all ages. With its witty, subversive take on fairy tales, stellar performances from its voice cast, CG animation that holds up over 20 years later, iconic licensed soundtrack, and plenty of adult-based humor to go alongside its child-friendly comedy, Shrek is an undisputed classic

For anyone who hasn’t seen it (and why wouldn’t you have?), Shrek stars Myers as the titular ogre, who finds his swamp overrun by fairy tale creatures after the nefarious Lord Farquaad (Lithgow) kicks them out of their homes. Alongside annoying new best friend Donkey (Murphy), Shrek makes a pact with Farquaad to rescue Princess Fiona (Diaz) to get his swamp (and peace and quiet) back. As you’d expect, things suddenly spiral out of control in predictably hilarious fashion. An easy film to include on our best Netflix movies list.

Watch Shrek's YouTube trailer.

The Super Mario Bros. Movie

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 92 minutes
Main cast: Chris Pratt, Anya-Taylor Joy, Jack Black, Charlie Day, Seth Rogen, and Keegan-Michael Key
Directors: Aaron Horvath and Michael Jelenic
RT score: 59%

2023’s second-highest grossing movie, The Super Mario Bros. Movie’s success was fueled by nostalgia for Nintendo’s legendary video game series and its money-spinning ticket sales, rather than its overall quality. But there’s more to the animated movie’s unprecedented box office performance than that. In our view, it’s funnier than some suggest, it's wonderful to look at, is packed with Easter eggs and other Mario references, and it gave us one of last year’s best earworms with Bowser’s humor-laced ‘Peaches’ love ballad.

Sure, its narrative is oft-times generic, its runtime is a little on the light side, and Chris Pratt’s Italian accent needed more refining. As a kid-friendly film that hits all the right notes where Nintendo’s passionate fanbase is concerned, though, this is one Mario movie we’ll enjoy for years to come. Read our review of The Super Mario Bros. Movie to learn more. 

Watch The Super Mario Bros. Movie's YouTube trailer.

Best comedy movies on Netflix

Hustle

Age rating: 15
Runtime: 118 minutes
Main cast: Adam Sandler, Juancho Hernangomez, Queen Latifah, and Robert Duvall Director: Jeremiah Zagar
RT score: 93%

If you were a fan of 2019's Uncut Gems, listen up: Hustle, a surprisingly entertaining basketball drama, delivers more Adam Sandler-sized surprises. After discovering a once-in-a-lifetime player with a rocky past abroad, Stanley Sugerman (Sandler), a down-on-his-luck Philadelphia 76ers scout, takes it upon himself to bring the young phenom to the States without his team's approval. Against the odds, the pair must work to prove that they both deserve to make it big in the NBA. 

That synopsis might sound like standard sports drama fare, but Hustle earned unexpectedly glowing reviews ahead of its muted release. Trust us: this is no Jack and Jill.

Watch Hustle's YouTube trailer.

Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 92 minutes
Main cast: John Cleese, Graham Chapman, Terry Jones, Terry Gilliam, Eric Idle, and Michael Palin
Directors: Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam
RT score: 96%

Monty Python and the Holy Grail did more for the satire and parody subgenres than many other comedies have done in the last 50 years. A witty and biting take on the legend of King Arthur, Monty Python and the Holy Grail stars the titular and legendary British comedy outfit as King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable, who embark on a hilarity-infested quest to seek the Holy Grail.

If you're a fan of Monty Python, you'll likely have seen this one countless times over. First-time viewers, though, will cackle and guffaw their way through the film's rivetingly silly scenarios. The Black Knight scene, Knights of the Roundtable dance number, deadly Rabbit of Caerbannog sequence, and Knights Who Say "Ni!" moment are just four instantaneously classic moments waiting to be viewed. Just don't blame us if you end up endlessly quoting this flick long after the credits have rolled.

(NB: Monty Python's Life of Brian and Monty Python's Flying Circus are also available to stream).

Watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail's YouTube trailer.

Best crime movies on Netflix

The Gentlemen

Age rating: R
Runtime: 113 minutes
Main cast: Matthew McConaughey, Charlie Hunnam, Colin Farrell, Michelle Dockery, Jeremy Strong, Henry Golding, Lyne Renne, and Hugh Grant
Director: Guy Ritchie
RT score: 75%

The Gentlemen is quintessentially Guy Ritchie – and that's a great thing. The British director's foul-mouthed crime caper follows an American marijuana kingpin's (McConaughey) efforts to sell off his narcotics empire in darkly comedic and action-packed ways.

With an talented all-star cast, Ritchie’s signature, well, Ritchie-isms, and as many fun-filled scenarios as you can muster in your brain, The Gentlemen is a suave but not-so-sophisticated spin on British gentlemanly conduct. A TV sequel arrived on Netflix in March and was as equally a fun romp as its movie namesake.

Watch The Gentlemen's YouTube trailer.

The Irishman

Age rating: R
Runtime: 209 minutes
Main cast: Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Al Pacino, and Anna Paquin
Director: Martin Scorsese
RT score: 95%

This threateningly long Scorsese pic attracted attention for the extensive effects work used to de-age its old stars, and it's a creative decision that's sometimes distracting. But there's no denying the appeal of seeing Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, and Al Pacino in the same movie together for likely the last time, and this life-spanning, mostly rewarding crime epic is a suitable tribute to their collective talents. 

The Irishman follows Frank Sheeran (De Niro) as he recounts his long association with the Bufalino crime family and infamous union leader Jimmy Hoffa (Pacino). It's a languid film – and not a patch on Goodfellas – but absolutely among the best Netflix movies the streaming service has financed to date. Find out where we ranked it in our best Martin Scorsese movies piece.

Watch The Irishman's YouTube trailer.

Best drama movies on Netflix

The Hand of God

Age rating: R
Runtime: 130 minutes
Main cast: Filippo Scotti, Tony Servillo, Teresa Sapoangelo, and Marlon Joubert Director: Paolo Sorrentino
RT score: 83%

The Hand of God marks the movie-making return of beloved Italian director Paolo Sorrentino, and tells the semi-autobiographical tale of a young man (Filippo Scotti, standing in for a teenage Sorrentino) grappling with the pressures of growing up in 1980s Naples. 

As well as referring to the infamous goal scored by Argentine footballer (and Napoli legend) Diego Maradona at the 1986 World Cup, the film's title alludes to a tragic and life-affirming event that forces its protagonist to grow up quicker than he'd otherwise like. To say more risks spoiling The Hand of God's most tender moments, though the movie's beautiful locations, hypnotic camerawork, and larger-than-life characters ensure it ranks among Sorrentino's best work.

Watch The Hand of God's YouTube trailer.

Ma Rainey's Black Bottom

Age rating: R
Runtime: 94 minutes
Main cast: Viola Davis, Chadwick Boseman, Glynn Turman, and Colman Domingo
Director: George C. Wolfe
RT score: 97%

Based on the play by August Wilson – and despite the gorgeous period set dressing and costume design, it definitely feels very stage-y – Ma Rainey's Black Bottom is a fantastic watch. Viola Davis stars as legendary 'Mother of Blues' Ma Rainey, with the film focusing on one fraught recording session with Ma and her band, and the tension between the musician and her white producers and management. 

The late Chadwick Boseman (Black Panther) stars as Levee, an innovative trumpet player who struggles to find his place in the music scene, amid bandmates who don't always take him seriously. It's a sad but insightful movie that explores how culture is worth protecting and valuing, in a world where it's easily taken and monetized, and the film truly comes to life in its amazing musical sequences.

Watch Ma Rainey's Black Bottom's YouTube trailer.

Phantom Thread

Age rating: R
Runtime: 130 minutes
Main cast: Daniel Day Lewis, Vicky Krieps, Lesley Manville, and Camilla Rutherford
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
RT score: 91%

Shortly after Licorice Pizza – director Paul Thomas Anderson's most recent flick – hit 2023's awards circuit, Netflix added his previous film Phantom Thread to its library. This one tells the story of a dressmaker (Daniel Day-Lewis) in 1950s London who falls for a young waitress (Vicky Krieps). 

That might sound like a potentially boring narrative, but Phantom Thread is actually masterfully-shot. It's also a poignant exploration of what it means to be an artist, combining Oscar-winning costume design with a stunning soundtrack (from Radiohead and frequent Anderson collaborator Johnny Greenwood) to rank among its director's finest work. One of the best Netflix movies, this certainly is.

Watch Phantom Thread's YouTube trailer.

Roma

Age rating: R
Runtime: 134 minutes
Main cast: Yalitza Aparicio, Marina de Tavira, Marco Graf, Fernando Grediaga, and Daniela Demesa
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
RT score: 96%

An astonishing ode to motherhood in all forms, Roma is the most personal film to date from visionary director Alfonso Cuarón (Children of Men, Gravity).

On paper, it's is not the easiest sell – a subtitled black and white film about a live-in housekeeper spoken almost entirely in Spanish and the indigenous Mixtec language. But Cuarón's 2018 critical hit is nonetheless riveting from a cinematic standpoint. More a series of vignettes than a traditional three-act story, it examines the life of a Mexico City family in the early 1970s during a time of great social upheaval.

Watch Roma's YouTube trailer.

Society of the Snow

Age rating: R
Runtime: 145 minutes
Main cast: Enzo Vogrincic, Augustin Padella, Esteban Bigliardi, and Simon Hempe Director: J.A. Bayona
RT score: 90%

J.A. Bayona’s latest flick – based on real-life events – is a harrowing portrayal of human endurance and how our primal survival instincts assume dominance over our humanity. 

Society of the Snow tells the tragic story of the 1972 Andes Air Disaster, which saw a Uruguayan rugby team crash-land in the freezing South American mountain range en route to a Chile-based tournament. Trapped in one of the most inhospitable places on Earth, the 16 survivors are forced to take extreme measures in order to stay alive. A heart-breaking and grim tale of human morality, but one that equally shines an earnest, powerful light on surviving against all odds.

Watch Society of the Snow's YouTube trailer.

The Wonder

Age rating: R
Runtime: 109 minutes
Main cast: Florence Pugh, Tom Burke, Niamh Algar, and Elaine Cassidy
Director: Sebastien Lelio
RT score: 89%

Florence Pugh (Black Widow, A Good Person) proved her generational talent yet again in Netflix's unsettling drama-cum-horror The Wonder. Set in the Irish Midlands in 1862, the movie stars Pugh as an English nurse called to observe a young girl (Kíla Lord Cassidy) who remains miraculously alive and well despite not having eaten for four months.

As period dramas go, The Wonder is an absorbing and fantastic flick that confirms Pugh's ability to embody every role she plays.

Watch The Wonder's YouTube trailer.

Best fantasy movies on Netflix

Everything Everywhere All At Once

Age rating: R
Runtime: 132 minutes
Main cast: Michelle Yeoh, Ke Huy Quan, Jamie Lee Curtis, and Stephanie Hsu
Directors: Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert
RT score: 94%

This absurdist multi-genre flick, which garnered universal acclaim and a seemingly infinite number of trophies on the 2023 awards circuit, though, is one of the best we've ever seen. Everything Everywhere All at Once (EEAAO) stars Yeoh (The Witcher: Blood Origin, The Brothers Sun) as Evelyn Wang, a Chinese-American immigrant who learns that she must connect with alternate reality versions of herself in order to stop a supremely powerful being from destroying the multiverse. Quan (Loki season 2, The Goonies) plays Evelyn's husband Waymond and Hsu (Joy Ride) is Evelyn's daughter Joy.

An epic assault on the senses with tons of heart, spectacular visuals, and an mind-boggling appreciation for philosophical themes like existentialism, nihilism, generational trauma, and racial identity, EEAAO is a masterful film that's everything you want from a multiverse movie.

Watch Everything Everywhere All At Once's YouTube trailer.

Okja

Age rating: R
Runtime: 121 minutes
Main cast: Ahn Seo-hyun, Tilda Swinton, Jake Gyllenhaal, and Giancarlo Espostio Director: Bong Joon-ho
RT score: 86%

If you've enjoyed Bong Joon Ho's Oscar Best Picture winner Parasite, you might want to check out his previous movie, Okja, which is still one of the best Netflix movies on the platform.

It tells the bizarre tale of a young girl Mija and her best pal, an enormous creature called Okja, whose friendship comes under threat when a nasty CEO (Tilda Swinton) has evil plans for the titular animal. It's a refreshing movie with a nice angle of animal activism – a very different proposition to Parasite, for sure, but one that also demonstrates the director's ability to blend genres. 

Watch Okja's YouTube trailer.

Best history movies on Netflix

The King

Age rating: R
Runtime: 140 minutes
Main cast: Timothee Chalamet, Robert Pattinson, Joel Edgerton, and Sean Harris Director: David Michod
RT score: 71%

The King stars Timothée Chalamet as Henry V, a young man forced to navigate the worlds of politics, war and treachery after unexpectedly becoming king of England in the 15th century. 

This one contains all the fanfare you'd expect from a modern medieval movie, and boasts an excellent cast including Robert Pattinson, Joel Edgerton and Sean Harris. For a reported budget of just $20 million (although you wouldn't know it), director David Michôd managed to produce one of the most engaging and visually stunning historical dramas around. Stick it on your watch list.

Watch The King's YouTube trailer.

The Woman King

Age rating: PG-13
Runtime: 135 minutes
Main cast: Viola Davis, Lashana Lynch, Thuso Mbedu, Sheila Atim, and John Boyega
Director: Gina Prince-Bythewood
RT score: 94%

Set in the 1820s, this Viola Davis-fronted historical epic tells the tale of General Nanisca (Davis) and the wider Adojie tribe, the all-female warrior unit that protected the West African kingdom of Dahomey across a 200-year period.

Starring a number of other terrific Black actors including Lashana Lynch, John Boyega, Thuso Mbedu, and Sheila Stim, The Woman King is a weighty, crowd-pleasing spectacle that many have likened to Braveheart in its action, tonality, and themes surrounding defiance in the face of invading forces. A splashy popcorn flick, sure, but one filled with substance, as well as deeper societal and historical subject matter.

Watch The Woman King's YouTube trailer.

Best horror movies on Netflix

The Conjuring 2

Age rating: R
Runtime: 133 minutes
Main cast: Patrick Wilson, Vera Farmiga, Maddison Wolfe, Frances O’Connor, and Lauren Esposito
Directors: James Wan
RT score: 80%

The Conjuring 2 sees Patrick Wilson and Vera Farmiga return as paranormal investigators Ed and Lorraine Warren to investigate the Enfield poltergeist case. As you can expect, weird and scary things are afoot, and it's up to the couple to get to the bottom of the supernatural goings-on.

Our reviewer of The Conjuring 2 called it “terrifying” and “a rare occurrence of a sequel outshining its predecessor”. With the horror flick being well received upon initial release, it helped to further cement Wan's (Aquaman) place as one of the rising directing stars of the horror genre, too, with the filmmaker going on to direct other horror movie classics over the past decade. The Conjuring and The Conjuring: The Devil Made Me Do It are also on Netflix.

Watch The Conjuring 2's YouTube trailer.

The Fear Street movie trilogy

Age rating: R
Runtimes: 107 minutes (Fear Street 1); 110 minutes (Fear Street 2); 114 minutes (Fear Street 3)
Main cast: Kiana Madeira, Olivia Welch, Gillian Jacobs, Sadie Sink, Benjamin Flores Jr, Emily Rudd, and Ryan Simpkins
Director: Leigh Janiak
RT score: 84% (Fear Street 1); 87% (Fear Street 2); 88% (Fear Street 3)

Launched in July 2021 as part of a new Netflix horror movie binge watch experiment, the Fear Street movie trilogy looked to recapture the bold and innovative multi-film storytelling formula that other popular horror franchises had seemingly perfected.

And, in short, it did. Set across three flicks, the Fear Street series – itself based on R.L. Stine's books of the same name – told the story of a group of 90s-era teens as they attempt to break a curse that's loomed over their town for over 300 years. With lashings of the supernatural and witchcraft, R-rated slasher violence, an intriguing narrative, and more than a few notable faces – Stranger Things' Sadie Sink and Maya Hawke are among its cast – the Fear Street movies are well worth watching.

Watch Fear Street Part 1's YouTube trailer.

His House

Age rating: TV-14
Runtime: 93 minutes
Main cast: Wunmi Mosaku and Sope Dirisu
Director: Remi Weekes
RT score: 100%

This Weekes-directed movie stars Mosaku (Loki) and Dirisu (Gangs of London) as Rial and Bol, a refugee couple from South Sudan who struggle to adjust to their new life in the UK. The overriding issue? The duo believe there's an evil supernatural force haunting their council home and the surrounding area.

His House might not sound all that thrilling, but you'll want to give it a chance, trust us. Mosaku and Dirisu deliver powerhouse performances in this occasionally terrifying movie that, like Get Out, has plenty of important things to say about cultural and sociopolitical divides. There's a reason why it holds a perfect 100% RTcritical score  – it's because it's a darn good film.

Watch His House's YouTube trailer.

It Follows

Age rating: R
Runtime: 100 minutes
Main cast: Maika Monroe, Keir Gilchrist, Daniel Zovatto, Jake Weary, and Olivia Luccardi
Director: David Robert Mitchell
RT score: 95%

This Mitchell-directed film shouldn't be slept on – which, in some ways, is ironic, given the lengths its lead character Jay goes to in order to stay awake.

Why? Because, in It Follows, the titular character is pursued by a supernatural entity after it's passed onto her through a sexual encounter with her at-the-time boyfriend Hugh. The entity in question will constantly (albeit) slowly track the currently infected individual until it catches them, upon which time it'll kill them – and then work its way back up the chain to murder every other person who was infected.

It's a bit on the nose with its thematic exploration of sexually transmitted diseases, but It Follows is an otherwise terrifically terrifying and seriously underrated film that deserves more acclaim. A long overdue sequel is in the works, too, so best catch this one while you can.

Watch It Follows' YouTube trailer.

Best mystery movies on Netflix

Enola Holmes

Age rating: PG-13
Runtime: 124 minutes
Main cast: Millie Bobby Brown, Henry Cavill, Sam Claflin, and Helen Bonham Carter
Director: Harry Bradbeer
RT score: 91%

Stranger Things' Millie Bobby Brown started to expand her acting career with this period-set comedy-mystery flick that's both an adaptation of Nancy Springer's Enola Holmes Mysteries book series and a spin-off of the Sherlock Holmes legend.

Brown plays the titular character (and younger sister of Cavill's Sherlock), who travels to London to locate her missing mother. Unsurprisingly, she gets side-tracked, and finds herself teaming up with a runaway lord to get to the bottom of a particularly thrilling case that threatens the UK.

A breezy but fun-filled adventure flick, Enola Holmes bubbles away nicely with its more than entertaining narrative, which is ably led by Brown's effervescent Holmes. Its sequel is also available to stream on Netflix.

Watch Enola Holmes' YouTube trailer.

Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery

Age rating: PG-13
Runtime: 141 minutes
Main cast: Daniel Craig, Edward Norton, Janelle Monae, Kathryn Hahn, Dave Bautista, Kate Hudson, and Leslie Odom Jr
Director: Rian Johnson
RT score: 92%

Knives Out wowed fans and critics alike in 2019, so sequels were inevitable. 

The first of those – Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery – is another elaborate and highly entertaining whodunnit from director Rian Johnson. Buoyed by its excellent ensemble cast and a confidence carried over from its predecessor’s success, Glass Onion is even showier and bolder than Knives Out – though the film proved exceptionally divisive among fans of Benoit Blanc's debut outing upon release.

Watch Glass Onion's YouTube trailer.

Best sci-fi movies on Netflix

Godzilla Minus One

Age rating: PG-13
Runtime: 125 minutes
Main cast: Ryûnosuke Kamiki, Minami Hamabe, Munetaka Aoki, Hidetaka Yoshioka, and  Yuki Yamada
Director: Takashi Yamazaki
RT score: 98%

Few movies have recently spawned as many “where can I stream it?” questions as Godzilla Minus One. Finally, though, months after the unexpectedly successful film’s theatrical release, Netflix has not only secured its streaming rights, but it also surprisingly dropped the sci-fi horror epic on its platform in early June.

A new Japanese entry in Godzilla’s packed back catalogue, Minus One returns to the iconic kaiju’s roots with a destruction-filled and trauma-inducing tale set in post-war Japan. In it, the island nation desperately wrestles with the titanic monster’s emergence from the deep and subsequently terrifying rampage across the Asian country.

Easily one of 2023’s best movies, Godzilla Minus One is a thematically rich, harrowing, and occasionally jaw-dropping spectacle. Read our Godzilla Minus One review to learn more about the first-ever Godzilla flick to win an Oscar. 

Watch Godzilla Minus One's YouTube trailer.

The Matrix

Age rating: R
Runtime: 136 minutes
Main cast: Keanu Reeves, Carrie-Anne Moss, Laurence Fishburne, and Hugo Weaving
Director: Lana and Lilly Wachowski (formally known as Larry and Andy Wachowski)
RT score: 83%

Held up as one of the best sci-fi movies of its generation, if not one of the sci-fi flicks ever made, The Matrix is a ground-breaking film that introduced plenty of wholly creative new ideas – the advent of bullet time, anyone? – to Hollywood circles.

Reeves plays Thomas Anderson, a lowly, miserably, and introverted computer programmer who is heralded as a messianic figure (named Neo and/or The One) who can help humanity win a brutal, years-long war against intelligent machines that have trapped the human race in a simulation to hide the fact that said machines feed off human energy sources in a dystopian future. Things get way more complicated from then on out. Still, it's an absolute masterpiece and set a seemingly impossible standard that its three sequels (and many other sci-fi films since) have failed to live up to.

Watch The Matrix's YouTube trailer.

They Cloned Tyrone

Age rating: R
Runtime: 119 minutes
Main cast: John Boyega, Jamie Foxx, and Teyonah Parris
Director: Juel Taylor
RT score: 95%

They Cloned Tyrone is an absolutely brilliant movie. To discuss its plot at length is to spoil its biggest surprises, but here's a brief synopsis to give you a flavor of what to expect: "A series of eerie events thrusts an unlikely trio (Jamie Foxx, John Boyega, and Teyonah Parris) onto the trail of a nefarious government conspiracy in this pulpy mystery caper." 

We thoroughly enjoyed what it has to offer on multiple levels and our exclusive chat with John Boyega is well worth reading for a peak behind the curtain on its production. Once you're watched it, be sure to read our ending explainer on They Cloned Tyrone for Boyega's thoughts on its surprising ending.

Watch They Cloned Tyrone's YouTube trailer.

Best superhero movies on Netflix

Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse

Age rating: PG
Runtime: 140 minutes
Main cast: Shameik Moore, Hailee Steinfeld, Oscar Isaac, Jake Johnson, Luna Lauren Velez, Bryan Tyree Henry, Issa Rae, Daniel Kaluuya, and Jason Schwartzman
Directors: Kemp Powers, Joaquin Dos Santos, and Justin K. Thompson
RT score: 95%

As a spectacularly assembled animated superhero film, there are few better than it in the genre space right now than Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse – both from animation and storytelling perspectives. Set 14 months after Into the Spider-Verse, viewers are reunited with Miles Morales, Gwen Stacey, and Peter B Parker as they embark on a new multiverse-spanning journey that, unlike its forebear, won't be such an easy one to navigate.

In our Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse review, we said it "fulfils its ambitious promise to deliver an amazing follow-up to its 2018 predecessor". Once you've watched it, read our Across the Spider-Verse ending explained article to see how it sets up its Beyond the Spider-Verse sequel. Then, see where it ranks in our best Spider-Man movies guide, or find out how to watch the Spider-Man movies in order.

Watch Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse's YouTube trailer.

Best thriller movies on Netflix

The Good Nurse

Age rating: R
Runtime: 123 minutes
Main cast: Jessica Chastain and Eddie Redmayne
Director: Tobias Lindholm
RT score: 74%

Netflix puts its penchant for true-crime storytelling to good use with The Good Nurse, which follows the murderous exploits of real-life serial killer Charlie Cullen (Eddie Redmayne). Jessica Chastain plays Cullen's co-worker, Amy Loughren, who would ultimately go on to expose the sadistic behaviour that led to the deaths of dozens of patients over a period of sixteen years. 

On the broad spectrum of Netflix movies, The Good Nurse is a lower-key affair than, say, Don't Look Up. However, its shocking story of gross criminal negligence is far more impactful than the big-budget drama of the streamer's recent blockbusters. Sure, it's far from an easy watch – but it'll stay with you long after its credits roll.

Watch The Good Nurse's YouTube trailer.

Leave The World Behind

Age rating: R
Runtime: 140 minutes
Main cast: Julia Roberts, Ethan Hawke, Mahershala Ali, My'hala, and Kevin Bacon
Director: Sam Esmail
RT score: 73%

One of the lowest-rated movies in this guide, Leave The World Behind enjoyed unprecedented success despite what fans and critics ultimately thought of it. Indeed, Leave The World Behind was Netflix's most-watched movie in 2023, which goes to show that RT ratings aren't the be all and end all when it comes to deciding what to watch.

Roberts and Hawke play married couple Amanda and Clay, who rent a luxurious home with their kids one weekend. However, their peaceful staycation is interrupted by G.H (Ali) and his daughter Ruth (My'hala) one night, who own said abode, bring news of an impending cyberattack that'll lead to a cataclysmic worldwide event. Cue a spine-chilling, mystery-thriller with an ending that you'll love or hate.

Watch Leave The World Behind's YouTube trailer.

Best war movies on Netflix

All Quiet on the Western Front

Age rating: R
Runtime: 148 minutes
Main cast: Felix Kammerer, Albrecht Schuch, Aaron Hilmer, and Moritz Klaus Director: Edward Berger
RT score: 90%

It’s been a good few years since Dunkirk and 1917 reminded audiences of the horrors of war, but Netflix assumed that responsibility with shocking but beautifully-made WWI epic, All Quiet on the Western Front. 

Based on Erich Maria Remarque’s landmark novel of the same name (which was first adapted into a feature film in 1930), this award-winning German-language movie tells the story of a young German soldier (Felix Kammerer) whose naive expectations of fighting for his country are shattered by war’s harrowing reality. As you'd expect, All Quiet on the Western Front is brutal, vivid and poignant – just don’t expect to reach its credits feeling particularly joyous.

Watch All Quiet on the Western Front's YouTube trailer.

Beasts of No Nation

Age rating: R
Runtime: 137 minutes
Main cast: Idris Elba, Abraham Atta, and Kurt Egyiawan
Director: Cary Fukunaga
RT score: 91%

We won't beat about the bush – Beasts of No Nation is a tough watch. No Time to Die's Cary Fukunaga directs this harrowing feature, which follows the journey of a young orphan (Abraham Attah) forced into becoming a child soldier by a fierce warlord (Idris Elba) during an unnamed African civil war. 

An adaptation of Uzodinma Iweala's novel of the same name, Beasts of No Nation is a masterfully-shot story documenting the human cost of conflict, and places the uncomfortable realities of war front and centre. This isn't one to watch with the kids, but sitting through its two-hour narrative is an enlightening, dare-we-say necessary movie experience.  

Watch Beasts of No Nation's YouTube trailer.

Best western movies on Netflix

The Harder They Fall

Age rating: R
Runtime: 139 minutes
Main cast: Idris Elba, Jonathan Majors, Zazie Beetz, Delroy Lindo, and LaKeith Stanfield
Director: Jeymes Samuel
RT score: 88% 

Jeymes Samuel's feature film directorial debut wasn't expected to be this good. But The Harder They Fall, which stars the likes of Idris Elba, Zazie Beetz, and Regina King, is a superb Western that deserves your attention.

Jonathan Majors, who was recently found guilty of domestic abuse and whose career is effectively over as a result, plays Nat Love, an outlaw who discover his mortal enemy Rufus Black (Elba) is being released from prison. Unsurprisingly, Love takes the law into his own hands and assembles his crack team of gunslingers to stop that from happening. A stylized, gun-toting action flick that's somewhat predictable in its makeup, The Harder They Fall will have you whooping and hollering at the screen regularly.

Watch The Harder They Fall's YouTube trailer.

The Power of the Dog

Age rating: R
Runtime: 128 minutes
Main cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kristen Dunst, Jesse Plemons, and Kodi Smit-McPhee
Director: Jane Campion
RT score: 94%

It’s safe to say that Jane Campion’s The Power of the Dog was the critical hit – and one of the best Netflix movies – of 2021. Widely praised for its slow-burning psychological drama, it follows the story of a menacing rancher (Benedict Cumberbatch) who doesn’t take kindly to the arrival of his brother’s new wife (Kirsten Dunst) and her son (Kodi Smit-McPhee).

Cumberbatch arguably gives a career-best performance as the volatile Phil Burbank here, which undoubtedly made interesting prep for Doctor Strange 2. It's a slow-burner, but The Power of the Dog is a masterful piece of filmmaking.

Watch The Power of the Dog's YouTube trailer.

For more Netflix coverage, read our best Netflix documentaries and best Netflix shows guides. Yet to subscribe to the streaming giant? Read our guide on how to sign up to Netflix, too. Or, you're fed up of the recent price hikes, see whether you should cancel Netflix instead.