Just because a movie was released prior to the last few years does n’t think it ’s not deserving seeing . Even a flick considered long in the tooth can still be consider one of the best flick out there . When you think about it , there are not many current or so - called mod movies that either are n’t remaking of older movies like “ West Side Story " ( 2021 ) or “ Nightmare Alley ” ( 2021 ) , or are so closely related in story , mode , and execution that it can be consider an homage to a movie that came before like “ The Shape of Water ” ( 2017 ) with shadower of “ The Creature From the Black Lagoon ” ( 1954 ) and the “ John Wick ” dealership ( 2014 - 20919 ) with its modernistic twirl on film noir . Whether you ’re a fan ofclassic gangster movies , contraband - and - white holiday movie , or goodtimeless romances , there is a classic motion-picture show out there for you .
So , sometime movies deserve some beloved . But , with the universe filled with tons of quondam movies worth watch , how do you opt ? To facilitate , here ’s a listing of the best honest-to-god movies on Amazon .
1. Casablanca
Nothing in the existence is perfect and that truism certainly applies to movies . But , if there is one picture show that comes pretty darned nigh to being perfect , it is “ Casablanca . ” It is one of those moving picture that has never been officially make over which is a testament to how irreproducible or how awful a movie is . Casablanca is the epitome of the former .
Casablanca is set during the tumultuous and unsure time of World War II , December 1941 , just before the U.S. was thrust into the world battle . In the most basic rendition of the moving picture , it is about a military personnel and charwoman in love and the determination to be made because of lovemaking . dewy-eyed enough as the premise is , it take rock - solid performances to make it effectual and unforgettable . Casablanca gives us Humphrey Bogart as Rick Blaine the enigmatic yet conversant bar possessor , who discovers that his older flame played by Ingrid Bergman ( Ilsa Lund ) is in town with her husband bet by Paul Henreid ( Victor Lazlo ) . Lund and Lazlo are do-or-die to get out of the country so that Lazlo , who is wanted by the nazi , can carry on his electrical resistance employment . Rick is the only one who can help . Their performances , backed up by an as impressive company of supporting actors like Sidney Greenstreet , Clade Raines , Peter Lorre , and Dooley Wilson thread a wonderful tapestry of characters , emotions , and intrigue , with a turn of the unexpected , strong enough to make a world war somehow fade into the background .
“ Casablanca ” is one of those movies that just works . You would be severely - pressed to find fault in the playing , direction , and style of the moving-picture show . Not only is “ Casablanca ” one of the best picture show of all clock time , but it is also one of the best old movies available on Amazon .
2. Tombstone
You ca n’t go wrong with a good buddy movie . Two pals , typically different from each other , hold fast in friendship study on whatever adventure they observe themselves in . tote up in a historical context of use to that mix of comradeship and you may have something particular . 1993 ’s “ Tombstone ” is one of the best old picture show , but it is also , above all , a buddy moving picture .
“ Tombstone ” is primarily about Wyatt Earp ( Kurt Russell ) who decides , with his brothers to leave the ruckus wild west animation behind and fall down in Tombstone , Arizona . The Earps and their family are n’t depend for trouble , but it inevitably finds them in the material body of a evil gang get it on as the Cowboys . The centerpiece of the movie is its depiction of the gunfight at the O.K. Corral , but that momentous event fleet to the setting overshadowed by the relationship between Earp and Doc Holliday ( Val Kilmer ) . Thanks to standout acting by Russell and Kilmer , “ Tombstone ” is a buddy movie with some grit and heart . The support cast includes some strong performances from Sam Elliot , Bill Paxton , Michael Biehn , and Powers Booth . But the heart of “ Tombstone ” is the relationship between Wyatt and Doc . Their inescapable bond paper through good times and bad instills a life to the old west beyond the fury and severeness and “ Tombstone ” is all the better for it .
“ Tombstone ” has its share of gunslinging and movie western stereotype , but none of those set pieces distract from the buddy moving-picture show that construct it much more than just a western sandwich . Whether considered a classic western or buddy moving picture , “ Tombstone ” is one of the best previous flick on Amazon .
3. The Godfather
Movies depicting criminal offence are middling much a dime bag a dozen , they ’re everywhere . But , every once in a while comes a movie that pass its underpinning and show something much more meaningful . “ The Godfather ” was n’t the first gangster movie , nor was it the last . What makes it special is its depiction not only of the brutality of organized crime , but also the personality behind it .
“ The Godfather ” tell the chronicle of an Italian - American crime family line led by Don Vito Corleone ( Marlon Brando ) . The movie does a phenomenal balancing act not only depict the diabolic , fierce side of organized offense but also the family line moral force that both condition and is define by the criminal underworld . What is amazing about this motion-picture show is that the statute title character is n’t the star , it ’s his Word Michael ( Al Pacino ) who is reluctant to join the family business organization but find the duty of the household can not be ignored . The story being tell is expertly present by impactful acting that take life to the characters in such a way that they earn fellow feeling , whether deserved or not . As much a criminal offense flick , “ The Godfather ” can also be considered a period piece thanks to the attention to point of the era . But , unlike the usual period musical composition , it is the story that dominates if not actually limit the period .
“ The Godfather ” celebrates its fiftieth anniversary this year , but it sure does n’t show its age . It was one of the best movies back in 1972 and it is definitely one of the advantageously old movies available on Amazon today .
4. Rosemary’s Baby
I ’m a sucker for a good horror picture show , but not being into slasher or serial killer movies , the choices are moderately lacking . A repugnance picture show does n’t needfully have to have over - the - top particular effects or blood spatter all over the lieu to be scary and good . 1968 ’s Rosemary ’s Baby is a will that a moving picture can be cool without the distinctive horror moving-picture show adornment .
What ’s more terrific than throw an idea that evilness is afoot , but not knowing from where , how , or what its intents are ? That palpable sense of impending doom is what we have in “ Rosemary ’s Baby . ” Mia Farrow plays a waifish and almost distressingly naif Rosemary who moves into a young flat with her hubby . She ’s desperate to have a child as she navigates a new life surrounded by a ostensibly helpful and goodhearted band of building neighbors . One of the neighbors is play by Ruth Gordon who makes the ‘ dainty little former madam ’ figure of speech something sinister . The elementary premise is made all the more disturbing as we easily discover with Rosemary , but are unable to serve her as she becomes more and more enveloped in an wickedness that cover in the vestige and is slowly but expectedly let on . It ’s that first moment that brings the horror and it ’s no less impactful with a surprise / not a surprise stop .
Thanks to typic performances by Farrow and Gordon , “ Rosemary ’s Baby ” does n’t necessitate the typical repugnance flick trappings to be chill and frightening . The brat here is the credibility of the characters and the place . As a horror movie or just a movie unto itself , “ Rosemary ’s Baby ” is one of the well old movies on Amazon not to be escape .
5. Monty Python and the Holy Grail
Where would we be without clowning ? The macrocosm would certainly be quite droll if not for moments that make us express mirth . But to be good , a comedy ca n’t just be dizzy for the interest of it , it has to lay out humor that is both placeable and original . You will be hard - press to regain a movie that does funniness quite as well as 1975 ’s “ Monty Python and the Holy Grail . ”
“ Holy Grail ” is a comic word picture of the legend of King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table as they brave peril after hazard in lookup of the holy grail . Its gritty and colorful characters , mostly play by the Monty Python troupe transportation us back to a fabled , yet plague - ride period of British history . But , “ Holy Grail ” does n’t take itself and its British roots too earnestly , here , the comedy is the thing . The humor here is the star like an expert wind around and supporting a game that , while incessant , in the end , does n’t experience all that important . Being wonderfully entertain by the like of the Black Knight , the atmosphere dynamics of swallows , a socialist fulmination , and a savage bunny , keep you attuned to the account , laughing all the way . The risible genius that is “ Holy Grail ” is timeless as its humor has aged quite well and seems as clean now as when it was first released .
Being one of the most repeatable movies of all meter is proof enough that “ Monty Python and the Holy Grail ” is something extra . One of the best old movies on Amazon ? utterly ! But it ’s also one of the best comedies ever .
6. Raging Bull
pic about sport seldom attain the mark when it get to well filmmaking . Many times , too much focus on the fun itself and not those dedicated to it , make for a celluloid story with little nitty-gritty . “ Raging Bull ” goes in a different direction in the genre , it cast most of the focus on the athlete make it one of the best film you’re able to see .
“ Raging Bull ” is a bio - pic about middleweight pugilist Jake LaMotta ( Robert DeNiro ) depicting his path to self - end . In this motion picture , we get a perspective of the brutality , wrath , and raw vim of boxing both inwardly and out of the ring . focus on LaMotta and adding in elements of fear , jealousy , and hatred , we get a view of boxing no other movie of the era tried to harness . Outside the hoop , we have the brutish and completely unlikable Jake who is no less brutal to his married woman Vicki ( Cathy Moriarty ) , and his buddy / manager Joey ( Joe Pesci ) as his opponents inside the closed chain . “ Raging Bull ” excels in not sugar - coating or glorifying boxing , instead it literally takes the boxing glove by essentially being a graphic symbol study about one especial boxer . The Oscar - winning and unforgettable functioning by DeNiro position bare all that is LaMotta and by filename extension , all that is box .
Because of the character focal point , “ Raging Bull ” will leave you wondering does boxing make the man or does the man make fisticuffs . Being one of the best old movies on Amazon , the solution might be that they are one and the same .
7. 2001: A Space Odyssey
When a motion picture leaves you with a “ what the @$&% ! was that about ” feeling , it was either a disaster in filmmaking or something incomprehensibly brilliant . Stanley Kubrick ’s 1968 “ 2001 : A Space Odyssey ” is one of those brain - scratch up pic and that makes it quite maybe one of the best flick ever made .
out distance is all about exploration and uncovering and that is what “ 2001 ” does , it examines humanity ’s theatrical role and place in the population . The movie starts with the dawn of man and a wide-eyed , unimposing monolith . There ’s no account provide , it is just there . As fourth dimension , and the movie progress , we are faced again with that monolith and the questions stay . A mission , aboard an aptly describe ship , Discovery , is dispatched on a mystifying mission , ostensibly touch on to the monolith . During that deputation , the ship ’s computer organisation , the HAL 9000 begins expose worrying conduct . What develops is a conflict between man and machine , but instead of a subplot , it serves as a preserve narration on man .
It ’s the simplicity of “ 2001 ” that makes it impactful as a flick . Space is not presented as a deafening , laser - blasting dramatic art full of spaceships and foreign lifeforms . “ 2001 ” is as quiet as space itself with the exception of a classic soundtrack that only accentuate the finish of the movie , for you to conceive . For what it give and what it does n’t , “ 2001 : A Space Odyssey ” is one of the well old movies available on Amazon .
8. Jaws
With creature features , you expect the menace to take front and center and be the independent character . If it does n’t , there ’s really no full point in calling it a monster moving-picture show , right ? 1975 ’s “ Jaws ” proves that a giant does n’t have to have top billing and the motion-picture show can still be one of the good to watch .
Set in the New England town of Amity Island , “ Jaws ” start off terrifyingly with a skinny dipper being mysteriously pour down , presumably by a shark . The quietude leading up to the attack lends to the dark mood of the movie and add to the tenseness of ‘ what lies beneath . ” Wrangling back and forth about what to do set the effective confused tone of the movie leading to what ends up being a gentleman’s gentleman vs nature unmasking . The battle is highlighted by three unconvincing compatriot , each with a different access to need on the man - eater , the dutiful , yet water - diffident police force boss Brody ( Roy Scheider ) , the likable , yet bratty scientist Hooper ( Richard Dreyfuss ) , and the grizzled and funny focused shark hunter Quint ( Robert Shaw ) . The star of the show does n’t really show up until at least an minute into the moving-picture show , yet from start to terrific reveal , to intense conclusion , “ Jaws ” is all about that shark . The mystery and nervous speculation are cool even without seeing the shark which gain it all the more terrific when the terror does show its teeth .
From get-go to finish , “ Jaws ” will have you at the edge of your tooshie . Even though you know what the movie is about , the like an expert crafted suspense with spot - on acting and interestingly flawed characters make “ Jaws ” one of the best quondam movies available on Amazon .
9. Rashomon
The flashback is a tried and unfeigned , if not at times over - used celluloid proficiency . When you call for to move the level along or reveal more inside information about a theatrical role , seem to the past . However , few movies have used the flashback as the intact Southern Cross of their story or else of supporting it like the 1950 ’s “ Rashomon . ”
Co - drop a line for the screen and directed by the legendary Akira Kurasawa , “ Rashomon ” tells the story of the murder of a samurai and the rape of his wife through differing accounts via flashbacks . The paint is that the accounts all evidence a different narration . “ Rashomon ” eschew the average of being presented with a mystery and begin to the Sojourner Truth and alternatively compile a soliloquy of doubt and misperception . There are four flashbacks in “ Rashomon ” and each presents a plausible account of what materialize . The reliability of the flashback is enhanced by tremendously emotional and credible acting , specially from Toshiro Mifune , and engrossing visuals that transport you to the tantrum of the criminal offence with striking realism . While wondering what is the truth and what is not , Kurosawa engages you in self-contemplation of human nature and the perceptions of right field and wrong .
The first line in “ Rashomon ” , spoken by the woodcutter is “ I just do n’t understand ” and that in itself is the motivating of the movie . There is no result at the last but there is the revelation that we all are and can be the heroes or scoundrel of our own stories . The way that realization is presented makes “ Rashomon ” one of the best movies on Amazon .
10. High Noon
Seen any good Western lately ? I did n’t cogitate so . If there is ever a movie genre that has been driven into the ground it quite mayhap could be the western . But , when you do add up across a good western sandwich , it strike you like a blacksmith ’s ram out a horseshoe . “ High Noon ” from 1952 is the quintessential western sandwich that few others have measured up to .
“ High Noon ” is about kip down peace officer Will Kane ( Gary Cooper ) who reluctantly decides , out of duty to stay and face retaliation - seeking Frank Miller ( Ian MacDonald ) who has just been publish from prison house where Kane post him . Kane is dismayed the town he protect for years turn coward and will not help him . alternatively of relying on talkative western landscape to bolster the story among other obligatory western picture allegory , “ High Noon ” goes a different focussing . The focus here is on three elements , the agonized Kane , the caravan tracks that will bring the engagement to Kane , and ever - ticking clocks noting the time Kane has until the showdown . The tension and thwarting are evident in not only Kane but also in the town . Arguably shot in real - time , all three elements exude a real sensation of stress - fill up anticipation about a fear effect . This is not only a western , it ’s about a mankind of the west and his altruistic inscription to a job he is no longer obliged to do and to himself .
“ High Noon ” proves that a right western does n’t have to be all about gun fights , the open scope , and the perils of the old west . What made the honest-to-god Occident such an endearing subject for movie was the people and “ High Noon ” is exemplary in its depicting . A itemization of the easily old movies on Amazon would n’t be arrant without “ High Noon . ”
What makes a picture old ? Are n’t older movies also consider classics ? There is a world of dispute and similarities between onetime and classic movies . “ Old ” is to be distinguished from “ classic ” because an old movie can be considered a classic , but a classic picture show does n’t necessarily have to be sometime . There are comparatively “ untested ” film that are count classic like “ Get Out ” ( 2017 ) , “ No Country for Old Men ” ( 2007 ) , “ The Dark Knight ” ( 2008 ) , and the like because of ramble anywhere from being consider iconic , the nonpareil of its cinematic genre , groundbreaking , etc . To be considered the best , an old film should take on the same laudation . In improver , just because a movie is old , does n’t intend it ’s worth watching . “ Plan 9 From Outer Space ” ( 1959 ) is unquestionably an old movie , but its epic awfulness is the only reason it has been believe classic in the slack definitions of that term .
When it comes to defining what is an old motion-picture show , like anything , the definition depends on your perspective . Whether you consider old for a flick to be rigorously from the golden age of Hollywood ( late 20 ’s to the 60 ’s ) or anything that come out before a certain early time in your life , there is an “ aged ” flick that can be considered the good by critics and lover alike . For design of this list of unspoiled old movies on Amazon , an age of at least a quarter - century is the arbitrarily set guideline . 25 is a considerable historic period for a movie , particularly if it continue to be part of “ the best ” conversation . Generally around that milestone “ anniversary ” editions emerge and/or the pic is re - released in theatre to check the occasion , “ Titanic ” and “ humankind in Black ” are practiced instance . There are other , lesser day of remembrance immortalize for movies , but 25 evidence lasting power and that spend a penny reach that milestone all the more telling . Plus , other than a mortal , something that is 25 years old should be considered old .
So , with a mission to find the best honest-to-god film out of the mind - bogging huge natural selection on Amazon , where do you bulge out ? Is there a sealed musical genre to bewilder with , does the movie have to have a heavy - name actor in it , does it have to be black and bloodless ? So many interrogation . But , never fear . This list has been put together with no specific parameters regarding literary genre , roll , or otherwise . The independent and only standard ( other than geezerhood , I take that the lean contain movies that are much older than 25 , but the best is the best at any age ) is the movie has to be one of the best old motion picture on Amazon . Each movie is also useable to stream on Amazon Prime Video . All you have to do is have Zea mays everta at the quick and savour the show .
