Despite the new content available on streaming services, sometimes you want to fall back on the old, familiar things that formed the foundations of your sense of cinematic taste. Or perhaps you've been told for years to watch some classic films for years now and never got around to it. For all your desires for classic cinema and television, every streaming service has material out there to satisfy your tastes.
Regardless of which streaming service you have, there's something out there for you to enjoy, often accompanied by several other films alongside the rest. For those of you eager for content, here are some things worth watching.
Netflix
Netflix has increasingly focused on original content, but there are several classic films available on the platform. June 2020 will be adding classic films including E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial, Starship Troopers, The Silence of the Lambs, V for Vendetta, West Side Story, and Zodiac. However, many other films have been on the platform for years you might have missed.
Among these are several Steven Spielberg films, including Schindler's List and Raiders of the Lost Ark, but there's also a general mix of old classics like Taxi Driver, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, The Matrix, and The Good, The Bad, and the Ugly. There are also modern classics like The Social Network, Moonlight, Roma, Inception, The Witch, and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse. With new films being added all the time, Netflix remains one of the biggest streaming services out there for a good reason.
Hulu
Hulu's main appeal is its collection of television shows, among which there are several classics. Vintage series like The Twilight Zone, I Love Lucy, The Brady Bunch, and Taxi are all available for streaming on the service. More modern classics like Seinfeld, Cheers and The Golden Girls are also available, as well as more modern shows like Lost. Of course, the first five series of Star Trek are also available on Hulu for those interested, as well as anime classics like Sailor Moon and Cowboy Bebop.
However, if you want to watch a movie, Hulu has you covered, too. Films like Goodfellas, Good Will Hunting, Heathers, Cabin in the Woods, Blazing Saddles, The Dark Knight, Grave of the Fireflies and Akira are all available on the service, as well as recent films that you might've missed upon initial release, such as the masterpieces Sorry to Bother You, Booksmart, Portrait of a Lady on Fire, Annihilation, and The Nightingale. One of the most impressive additions, however, is Parasite director Bong Joon-ho's entire filmography, save for Snowpiercer, which is on Netflix.
Amazon Prime
Amazon Prime has a multitude of classic films available for streaming on the service, many of which are entirely overlooked. You have classic films like Lawrence of Arabia, It's a Wonderful Life, To Catch a Thief, Moonstruck, Cape Fear, Roman Holiday, Blue Velvet, Jaws, The Graduate, The Godfather, Some Like it Hot, Night of the Hunter, and several works by Alfred Hitchcock. You also have more recent hits like Oldboy, Lady Bird, The Artist, The Farewell, Fighting With My Family, The Titanic, Get Out, Hereditary, Midsommar, The Lighthouse, Eighth Grade, and The Disaster Artist.
However, there are a lot of more obscure films, from overlooked modern films like Bone Tomahawk, The Game, and Annihilation to older less-remembered masterpieces like Diabolique, The Treasure of the Sierra Madre, Carnival of Souls, Don't Look Now, Blood Simple and His Girl Friday.
HBO Max
Though new, HBO Max boasts an incredible body of films for any enthusiastic film buff to be excited about. Of course, the entire library of DC Films is available on the platform, as well as the Studio Ghibli, The Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter, and Godzilla collection. The service includes classic films from the Warner Archive, such as Battleship Potemkin, Modern Times, The Great Dictator, King Kong, 8 1/2, The Wizard of Oz, Casablanca and Citizen Kane.
However, it also sports a lot of newer favorites, like Apocalypse Now, Alien, Die Hard, A Nightmare on Elm Street, Once Upon a Time in the West, Amelie, The Iron Giant and The Wild Bunch. There are also criminally underrated films like The Fountain, Ikiru, M, Wings of Desire, Lone Wolf and Cub and the memetic but rarely seen Scanners. The Warner Library is filled with classics that will only expand as Warner Bros. gains the streaming rights back to multiple other films in its library.
Disney+
Disney+ has Disney's entire catalog to work with. That means they have the Marvel collection, the Star Wars collection, the Muppet collection, as well as tons of classic Disney and Pixar films. Want to watch Snow White and the Seven Dwarves, Fantasia, or Cinderella? Disney+ is essentially the only place to watch them. However, tons of other films outside the animated classics are featured on the platform, including Miracle on 34th Street, 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea, Journey to the Center of the Earth, Tron, Three Men and a Baby, Escape to Witch Mountain, Swiss Family Robinson, Flight of the Navigator, Splash, Old Yeller, Mary Poppins and The Sound of Music.
They also have modern classics you might not have seen in years, like The Fantastic Mr. Fox, Sister Act, Ten Things I Hate About You, Eight Below, The Parent Trap, Homeward Bound: The Incredible Journey, The Santa Clause, Cool Runnings, and Holes. Very recently, the platform added The Princess Bride, one of the most quotable films ever made. With the entire Fox and Disney library at its fingers, Disney+ offers a lot of content.
Peacock
Peacock is the most nebulous and least well-known of the biggest streaming services, having arrived fairly recently. The NBC streaming service hosts several classic television shows, like Battlestar Galactica, Cheers, 30 Rock, Everybody Loves Raymond, House, Fraiser, Will and Grace, and the sprawling Law and Order franchise. Oh, and The Office.
On top of that, it offers several classic films, including Shrek, Casino, Dallas Buyers Club, Back to the Future, Brokeback Mountain, Field of Dreams, and Do the Right Thing. It also has The Fast and Furious, Despicable Me, and Jason Bourne franchises. While its offering of shows might appear limited on the onset, this number should only prove to rise as the streaming service, which started with a soft landing, spreads its wings and takes flight.