The 17 best movies to watch on Amazon Prime Video

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Borat Subsequent movie film

Amazon Prime Video

Almost 15 years after Kazakh journalist and television star Borat first graced our big screens, he’s again playing tricks on unsuspecting Americans and delivering an incredibly concise cultural commentary. In Borat 2 or Borat Subsequent Moviefilm: Handing an Amazing Bribe to the American Regime to Support the Once Glorious Nation of Kazakhstan, Borat travels to the United States to offer his daughter Tutar (played by a revealing Maria Bakalova) to Vice President Mike Pence during the Presidential elections 2020 – and the COVID-19 pandemic. Prepare to be shocked by the doubled political incorrectness before succumbing to the outrageous laugh.

Selah and the spades

Amazon

If you’re interested in the genre of dark things that happen in boarding schools, then you should sign up for Selah and the Spades. A senior leads a faction called Spades that sells drugs to other students. But Selah is close to graduation and needs to find the right candidate to carry on her legacy. Beautifully shot and guided by Tayarisha Poe’s unique lens, this is a taste of even bigger things to come.

Amazon

The Big Sick introduced the world to Kumail Nanjiani, who co-wrote the film based on his real-life romance with partner Emily V. Gordon. After the couple hit a few promising dates, Emily inexplicably falls ill and is forced into an induced coma. While Kumail meets her worried parents in the hospital, his own Pakistani family keeps arranging appointments for him with other women. Not only is The Big Sick ripe for cultural comedy setups, it’s also a down-to-earth and heartfelt story from an interracial couple.

Amazon Studios

A psychological thriller with a pre-joker Joaquin Phoenix? Yes, more people have to watch that you were never really here. Lynne Ramsay’s masterly portrayal of a story about a killer hired to rescue a politician’s daughter from a human trafficking network is blatant, brutal and compassionate in a nutshell and only lasts 90 minutes. With Phoenix as a brilliant, dedicated actor, You Were Never Really Here is more than your average thriller.

Amazon

A fun comedy, yes, but Brittany Runs a Marathon hits near home too, focusing on the things we are all obsessed with: food, body image, and exercise. Brittany, played by the effortlessly relatable Jillian Bell, receives strong advice from her doctor to lose weight and shorten the harsh lifestyle. She starts running and takes all the tough steps towards the life changing finish line. Watch it from your couch, then get inspired to jog outside.

Amazon Studios

Luca Guadagnino’s horror picture, framed by a bleak Kunsthaus window, is not for everyone, but there is a twisted treat for those who walk down the rabbit hole of the renowned Berlin dance school. Tilda Swinton is the majestic head teacher mentoring young genius Dakota Johnson. Be warned: the flexible dancers bring new contortions to the body horror. It’s a long movie, over two and a half hours, but if you’re into disturbing imagery and a touch of witchcraft, there are a few stunning scenes you might want to stick with.

Amazon Studios

Based on the life of British adventurer Percy Fawcett, The Lost City of Z transports you to the Amazon rainforest in search of an ancient lost city. If this setup isn’t alluring enough for adventure, movie stars Charlie Hunnam, Robert Pattinson, and Tom Holland … all wear mustaches. The Lost City of Z, a beautiful, grandiose film put together with great care, may move slower than you think, but that only adds to its intriguing psychological layers.

Amazon Studios

Prepare for the first big, prestigious Amazon movie to hit you in the chest. A broken man who has suffered terrible losses becomes the custodian of his teenage nephew. Lee Chandler’s story will hit you in quick succession, as will the immense performances of Michelle Williams. Another achievement by Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea, is full-bodied, memorable storytelling.

Amazon Studios

Even if you’ve heard good things about The Handmaiden, nothing can prepare you for the insane twists and turns of this exquisite South Korean film. Classified as erotic The psychological thriller The Handmaiden contains explicit scenes that you probably shouldn’t watch with parents. It all starts with a con man who woos a Japanese heiress to put her in an institution after they marry. But his pickpocket partner, who pretends to be her maid, deviates from the plan. If you got into South Korean movies thanks to Parasite, this is a must-see.

Amazon Studios

In typical Jim Jarmusch style, this low-key indie limits the finer details of normal life with a keen sense of humor. For over a week, Paterson follows a bus driver and poet named Paterson, who listens to passengers talk, walks his dog, and drinks beer at his local bar. Adam Driver alone makes it all endlessly observable. Riddled with the idiosyncratic characters who live in a New Jersey city, Paterson offers a shrewd view of life by examining personal setbacks and the new paths that have wound around them.

Amazon Studios

Late Night, written by and with Mindy Kaling, follows an acclaimed presenter on a news show whose ratings are declining. She hires an Indian-American writer to stir up the room of her white-male writer. Late Night is a lively comedy with a touch of The Devil Wears Prada that never preaches and at the same time argues to turn Emma Thompson into a real talk show host. That alone should be a good reason to see it.

Amazon Studios

Pawel Pawlikowski’s historical drama is set for lovers of different origins and temperaments in a devastated Poland after the Second World War. Zula is an ambitious young singer who feigns a peasant identity, while Wiktor is a jazz musician who auditions for a government-funded folk music ensemble. The policy is handled gracefully and the black and white images are precise and beautiful. For an 88-minute treatment of a luscious, passionate, almost impossible love story, the Cold War is just the thing.

Amazon Studios

The Vast of Night is a quirky indie science fiction film from debut director Andrew Patterson who plays cleverly with narrative. Long, far-reaching recordings take us after two young radio operators investigating an audio frequency that they believe may be traced back to aliens. The distinctive 1950s New Mexico backdrop and characters delivering monologues with the soft intonations of those on the radio create an eerie atmosphere with satisfactory gain.

Amazon Studios

Shia LaBeouf wrote the script for this autobiographical film about a child actor and his relationship with his father. We follow Otis, who is traumatized after days on the set in the company of his father, a former rodeo clown. LaBeouf actually plays the character inspired by his father, which gives Honey Boy even more psychological layers. This is a fascinating cinematic therapy from a unique perspective.

Amazon Studios

I’m Not Your Negro is a documentary narrated by Samuel L. Jackson and inspired by a collection of notes and letters written by American writer and activist James Baldwin in the mid-1970s. The subject of this memoir? His close friends, the revolutionary civil rights activists Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr. and Medgar Evers. I am not your negro who studies the history of racism in the US and uses Baldwin’s observations to illuminate the painful struggle for civil rights.

Amazon Studios

One Child Nation gives you an insightful look into China’s one child policy, which lasted from 1979 to 2015. Directors Nanfu Wang and Jialing Zhang were born during this period and are studying the aftermath of what has become a normal aspect of the life of Chinese people for them. One Child Nation looks at the uncomfortable side of “population war” through the experiences of a wide variety of people and is a powerful example of this period in Chinese history.

Amazon Studios

The Coen Brothers meet Wes Anderson in this black comedy thriller piloted by two brilliant young female lead characters. Set in a snowy fishing village in Maine, Blow the Man Down follows sisters, played by Morgan Saylor and Sophie Lowe, who try to hide a man’s body after he attacks one of them and she struggles. While on their caper of crime, they unearth the dark secrets of the city matriarchs and turn them into a noir puzzle. It’s as wonderful as it sounds.

New film calendar for 2020 and 2021 after coronavirus delays

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