It's not always easy to choose what to watch for your summer movie nights, especially when there are so many options among the best streaming services. I tend to look out for movies being removed to make the deciding process much smoother, and Netflix is due to remove five titles in July 2024 – all with over 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.
These five best Netflix movies include two sports dramas, a popular family animated feature, a crime thriller, and a '70s entry from George Lucas. And luckily, you have a whole month to catch them before the movies get axed as part of everything leaving Netflix in July 2024, which gives you plenty of time to start ticking them off one by one.
Just as Netflix gears up to remove these movies, it's also adding a wave of new titles to make up for the ones you're losing. We've put all of them in one place, and you can read our list of everything new on Netflix in July 2024 to see what it has in store for you this month.
American Graffiti (1973)
RT Score: 95%
Age rating: PG
Length: 110 minutes
Director: George Lucas
Leaving on: July 31
The oldest entry in our roundup comes from Star Wars director George Lucas, whose '70s coming-of-age story has aged to become a classic. This 1960s-set story follows a group of teenage friends on their last night before going off to college. Told through a collection of vignettes in the backdrop of cruising and rock n' roll, the movie has a cast of familiar names from Harrison Ford, Richard Dreyfuss, Cindy Williams, and Paul Le Mat in their breakout roles.
King Richard (2021)
RT Score: 90%
Age rating: PG-13
Length: 146 minutes
Director: Reinaldo Marcus Green
Leaving on: July 31
King Richard scored big not only on Rotten Tomatoes, but it scored the Best Actor Oscar for Will Smith at the 2022 Oscars. Smith is Richard Williams, father of legendary athletes Serena and Venus Williams, and has a plan to make them the most famous tennis players in the world. Set in Compton, California, he coaches his daughters tirelessly at their local run-down tennis courts determined to make it out of the town. You follow the young sports stars in their youth as their careers blossom thanks to diligent parents and a supportive family unit, watching them reach the sporting legend status you know them for today.
Moneyball (2011)
RT Score: 94%
Age rating: PG-13
Length: 133 minutes
Director: Bennett Miller
Leaving on: July 31
We've previously talked about Moneyball in our other streaming movie roundups, but this time our mention of Miller's sports drama comes with the bitter news that it's leaving Netflix in July 2024. Inspired by true events and based on the book by Michael Lewis, Brad Pitt stars as Oakland A's manager Billy Beane. With a tight budget, Beane seeks to reinvent his team and claim victory over the more notorious baseball clubs. Alongside Ivy League graduate Peter (Jonah Hill), the two recruit budget players with little potential and train them the old-school way to get them up to par with professional and richer baseball clubs.
Traffic (2000)
RT Score: 93%
Age rating: R
Length: 147 minutes
Director: Steven Soderbergh
Leaving on: July 31
Thrilling crime dramas with a recognizable ensemble cast seem to do well with Rotten Tomatoes, and Traffic is one example. Soderbergh's thriller set in the menacing world of drug trafficking follows the perspectives of different people that are all connected to one story. From users and politicians to enforcers and traffickers, each story is laid out, exposing the threatening environment as well as the characters' personal stories despite never encountering each other over the course of the movie.
Shrek (2001)
RT Score (audience): 90%
Age rating: PG
Length: 89 minutes
Director: Andrew Adamson
Leaving on: July 31
It's sad that everyone's favorite ogre and donkey duo is set to leave Netflix, but you still have a few weeks to catch them before July 31. Almost 25-years after it's release, Shrek has remained a popular family movie go-to and gained an animated cult classic status of its own. Shrek (Mike Myers) is a an ogre who is outcasted from the rest of the kingdom, living alone on a secluded swamp. His peaceful home life is soon invaded by other fairy tale characters when they're banished by leader Lord Farquaad (John Lithgow). Determined to get his swamp back, Shrek makes a deal with Farquaad and agrees to rescue Princess Fiona (Cameron Diaz) so that Farquaad can wed her, and Shrek can get his home back. But things begin to change when Fiona's dark secret is exposed.
