The 30 Best Movies on Paramount+ Right Now
Arrival.
Photo: Paramount/Courtesy Everett Collection
This post will be updated frequently as movies enter and leave the service. *New titles are indicated with an asterisk.
In 2021, CBS All Access rebranded with the name Paramount+, reflecting the history of the legendary film and TV company with that nifty little mathematical sign that all the streaming companies seem to love these days. The name Paramount brings a deep catalogue of feature films, and the streaming service also includes titles from the Miramax and MGM libraries. They have also added a more robust original selection than at launch to complement the serviceâs classics like Gladiator, the Mission: Impossible series and Grease.
For now, Paramount+ canât compare to the depth of a catalogue like Maxâs or the award-winning original works at other streamers, but it has a solid library with at least 30 films you should see.
Year: 2016
Runtime: 1h 56m
Director: Denis Villeneuve
The French-Canadian director guided Amy Adams to one of her best performances in this sharp sci-fi film about an alien invasion that says more about the people on Earth than the interstellar visitors. Based on a short story called âStory of Your Lifeâ by Ted Chiang, Arrival asks how we would communicate with an alien species, led by a linguist played by Adams. A time-twisting narrative made this a smash hit, along with Villeneuveâs undeniable craftsmanship.
Year: 2000
Runtime: 2h 3m
Director: Cameron Crowe
Cameron Crowe wrote and directed this masterpiece about a young man (Patrick Fugit) who ends up on tour with a rock band known as Stillwater. With incredible supporting performances from Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup, Frances McDormand, and Philip Seymour Hoffman, this is one of the richest and most timeless films of its era, a rare movie that gets better every time you see it.
Year: 1984
Runtime: 1h 45m
Director: Martin Brest
Itâs hard to explain to people too young to experience it how big a star Eddie Murphy was in 1984 when his Axel Foley ruled the world. Murphyâs wit and charm were put to perfect use in Beverly Hills Cop that produced two inferior sequels, and both happen to also be on Paramount Plus.
Year: 1974
Runtime: 2h 10m
Director: Roman Polanski
Forget it Jake, itâs Chinatown. One of the best movies of the â70s, this Best Picture nominee (and Best Screenplay winner) tells the story of Jake Gittes, played unforgettably by Jack Nicholson, as he investigates an adulterer and finds something much more insidious under the surface of Los Angeles. Itâs a must-see, as important as almost any film from its era.
Year: 2004
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: Michael Mann
Tom Cruise gives one of his most fascinating performances as Vincent, the passenger to Jamie Foxxâs L.A. cab driver on a very fateful night. It turns out that Vincent is hitman and he needs Foxxâs character to drive him on a killing spree in this tense, gorgeously-shot thriller from the masterful craftsman Michael Mann.
Year: 1997
Runtime: 2h 18m
Director: John Woo
There are rumors that a remake of this John Woo classic is on the horizon, so you owe it to yourself to go back and see the very high standard that project will have to meet. Face/Off is one of the best action movies of the â90s, a wonderfully staged blockbuster by one of the genreâs best filmmakers. And John Travolta and Nicolas Cage were near the peaks of their screen charismas as an FBI agent and terrorist who end up, well, switching faces. Itâs a blast.
Year: 2020
Runtime: 1h 38m
Director: Jiayan âJennyâ Shi
Jiayan Shi directed and produced this heartbreaking documentary about the disappearance and death of Yingying Zhang in 2017. Shi has unique access to the story in that she knew Yingying, and so her film has an incredible you-are-there quality as Shi captures the investigation and grief that would emerge from this horrific crime. Paramount+ deserves credit for bringing smaller projects like this to their subscribers, ones that other major streamers might ignore.
Year: 2000
Runtime: 2h 34m
Director: Ridley Scott
One of the most popular films of its era, this action epic stars Russell Crowe as the legendary Maximus, a warrior whose family is murdered by the vicious Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix). Forced into slavery, Maximus has to rise the gladiator arenas to get his vengeance. The film made a fortune on its way to winning the Oscar for Best Picture.
Year: 1972
Runtime: 2h 55m
Director: Francis Ford Coppola
Maybe youâve heard of it? In all seriousness, thereâs a very cool opportunity right now to watch the entire Godfather trilogy on Paramount+, including the superior recent cut of the third film. You could then slide from some of the best filmmaking of all time into the streaming serviceâs original series The Offer, about the making of Coppolaâs masterpiece.
Year: 1981
Runtime: 1h 55m
Director: Steven Spielberg
The first four films in the franchise featuring one of the worldâs most famous action heroes is finally back on Prime Video (jump over to Disney for the fifth if you must). Of course, the first film, Raiders of the Lost Ark, remains the best of the bunch but thereâs some value and fun in Temple of Doom and The Last Crusade too (and even parts of Crystal Skull. Yeah, we said it.)
Year: 2014
Runtime: 2h 49m
Director: Christopher Nolan
No one else makes movies like Christopher Nolan, a man who took his superhero success and used it to get gigantic budgets to bring his wildest dreams to the big screen. Who else could make this sprawling, emotional, complicated film about an astronaut (Matthew McConaughey) searching for a new home for humanity? Itâs divisive among some Nolan fans for its deep emotions, but those who love it really love it.
Year: 1999
Runtime: 1h 26m
Director: Brad Bird
Before The Incredibles, Brad Bird made a different kind of superhero movie, a masterpiece that pays homage to Americana and entertainment from generations before while also remaining somehow timeless. The story of a boy who finds a literal giant robot in the woods has only gained popularity and power in the two decades since it was released.
Year: 2002
Runtime: 1h 25m
Director: Jeff Tremaine
Jackass Forever helped 2022 start with a bang. Now you can go back and watch the whole series exclusively on Paramount+ right now! (Even the âalternateâ ones like Jackass 3.5). Go back to the heyday of Johnny Knoxville, Steve-O, and the rest of the dangerous idiots. These movies are often derided as being dumb but theyâre a glorious, infectious kind of dumb that wants nothing more than to make you laugh.
Year: 1996
Runtime: 2h 18m
Director: Cameron Crowe
One of Cameron Croweâs best films became something of a punchline with its heavily quoted lines (âShow me the money,â âYou had me at hello,â everything that cute kid says) but itâs actually a character-driven romantic comedy that has held up incredibly well in the quarter-century since its release. Tom Cruise plays the title character, a sports agent who is pushed into starting his own agency while he falls in love with a single mother, played by Renee Zellweger. Itâs sweet, smart, and funny.
Year: 2022
Runtime: 1h 52m
Director: Aaron Nee, Adam Nee
With echoes of beloved rom-coms like African Queen and Romancing the Stone, this film truly felt like an anomaly in 2022, and yet it turned into a pretty big hit at the theater. Itâs already on streaming services, and itâs a great choice if youâre looking for some escapism tonight. Travel to the middle of nowhere with a romance novel writer (Sandra Bullock) and the cover model (Channing Tatum) who tries to save the day.
Year: 2007
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: Tony Gilroy
George Clooney does phenomenal work as the title character in Tony Gilroyâs feature debut. Heâs a lawyer who has spent his career defending big business, but he finds himself in a moral quandary over a toxic cover-up. Nominated for seven Oscars, including Best Picture, it won Best Supporting Actress for the legendary Tilda Swinton. (Note: This one is especially poignant with the recent loss of Tom Wilkinson.)
Year: 2002
Runtime: 2h 25m
Director: Steven Spielberg
One of Steven Spielbergâs best modern movies is this adaptation of a Philip K. Dick story about a future in which crime can be predicted before it happens. Tom Cruise stars as a man who is convicted of a crime he has no intent of committing in a fantastic vision of a future in which the systems designed to stop crime have been corrupted. Itâs timely and probably always will be.
Year: 2023
Runtime: 1h 45m
Director: Celine Song
A current Best Picture and Best Original Screenplay nominee, this phenomenal film isnât on any of the other streamers. It stars the excellent Greta Lee and Teo Yoo as a couple who were close as children but reunite years later after she immigrated to the United States. Itâs as much a story of what people leave behind when they change their entire lives as it is a traditional story of unrequited love. Itâs beautiful and unforgettable.
Year: 2018
Runtime: 1h 30m
Director: John Krasinski
Who could have possibly guessed that Jim from The Office would be behind one of the most successful horror films of the â10s? Youâve probably already seen this story of a world in which silence is the only way to survive, but itâs worth another look to marvel at its tight, taut filmmaking and a stellar performance from Emily Blunt. Plus, Paramount+ recently added the sequel, so: double feature time!
Year: 1996
Runtime: 1h 51m
Director: Wes Craven
The Ghostface killer came back in January 2022 with the release of Scream, the fifth film in this franchise and the first since the death of Wes Craven, and the fun continued with another sequel in 2023 (although the troubles around the production of the seventh film have been, well, notable). Paramount+ is the best place for a marathon with the original trilogy and the fifth and sixth films (but, bizarrely, not Scream 4.) The first movie is still a flat-out genre masterpiece.
Year: 2024
Runtime: 2h 7m
Director: Parker Finn
Itâs very rare for a sequel to be better than the original, but thatâs the case here as writer/director Parker Finn builds on the ideas of the first Smile in a manner thatâs ambitious and accomplished. Naomi Scott gives one of the best performances of the year as a pop star who becomes attached to the smile demon, sending her down a terrifying rollercoaster to one of the most memorable horror movie endings in years. Finn has said heâs working on a third film, but the bar is now remarkably high.
Year: 2007
Runtime: 2h 38m
Director: Paul Thomas Anderson
One of the best films of the â00s, Paul Thomas Andersonâs adaptation of Upton Sinclairâs Oil! won Daniel Day-Lewis his second Oscar as the unforgettable Daniel Plainview. As detailed and epic as great fiction, Andersonâs movie is one of the most acclaimed of its era, a film in which itâs hard to find a single flaw. Even if you think youâve seen it enough, watch it again. Youâll find a new reason to admire it.
Year: 1997
Runtime: 3h 14m
Director: James Cameron
More than just a blockbuster, this Best Picture winner was a legitimate cultural phenomenon, staying at the top of the box office charts for months. There was a point when it felt like not only had everyone seen the story of Jack (Leonardo DiCaprio) and Rose (Kate Winslet), but most people had seen it twice. History has kind of reduced this epic to its quotable scenes and earworm theme song, but itâs a better movie than you remember, a great example of James Cameronâs truly robust filmmaking style.
Year: 2022
Runtime: 2h 10m
Director: Joseph Kosinski
Itâs the movie that saved movies last year! The truth is that Paramount wanted to drop this long-awaited sequel on a streamer during the pandemic, but Tom Cruise knew it was the kind of thing that should be appreciated in a theater. He bet on himself and the result is arguably the biggest hit of his career, a movie that made a fortune and seems primed to win Oscars in a couple months.
Year: 1996
Runtime: 1h 34m
Director: Danny Boyle
Danny Boyle really broke through with his second film, this beloved adaptation of Irvine Welshâs novel about addiction. Ewan McGregor plays Mark Renton, the most charismatic member of a group of friends who became instantly iconic, including Spud (Ewan Bremner), Sick Boy (Jonny Lee Miller), Tommy (Kevin McKidd), and the sociopathic Begbie (Robert Carlyle). Propelled by one of the best soundtracks of the â90s, this movie has more energy than nearly anything else on Paramount+.
Year: 1998
Runtime: 1h 42m
Director: Peter Weir
Peter Weir directed Jim Carrey to one of the best performances of his career in this dramedy that now seems far ahead of its time in the way it foretold people living lives online. Carrey plays Truman Burbank, a man who has grown up on a TV show but has no idea that his entire life has been watched by millions. Ed Harris and Laura Linney are also just phenomenal in this modern classic.
Year: 1987
Runtime: 1h 59m
Director: Brian De Palma
Brian De Palma directed one of the best movies of his notable career in this action epic that won Sean Connery an overdue Oscar. Connery co-stars with Kevin Costner as Elliot Ness and Robert De Niro as Al Capone in this story of how Ness took down one of the most famous criminals of all time. Tense and riveting, itâs a great action movie thatâs anchored by phenomenal performances and De Palmaâs unique eye.
Year: 2000
Runtime: 1h 36m
Director: Sofia Coppola
Sofia Coppola made her directorial debut with this adaptation of Jeffrey Eugenidesâs beloved novel about a group of sisters who captivated the entire neighborhood in which they lived. Kirsten Dunst anchors a dreamy, captivating movie about the myth of perfection that exists in the world of picket fences in middle America. Itâs got a great Air soundtrack too.
Year: 2013
Runtime: 3h
Director: Martin Scorsese
Leonardo DiCaprio should have won the Oscar for his amazing performance as Jordan Belfort, the financial criminal that rocked Wall Street and shocked audiences in one of Scorseseâs best late films. Arguments over whether or not this film glorifies a âbad guyâ have become prominentâand could only really be made by people who havenât actually watched it. Most of all, itâs a shockingly robust film, filmed with more energy in a few minutes than most flicks have in their entire runtime.
Year: 2007
Runtime: 2h 37m
Director: David Fincher
David Fincherâs masterpiece is more about the impact of crime than crime itself. The fact that he made a sprawling epic about an unsolved murder is daring enough, but whatâs most remarkable is how much this movie becomes less and less about figuring out the identity of the Zodiac Killer and more about the impact of obsession. Itâs one of the best films of the â00s.
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