August is here and has brought a flood of great movies on one of the best streaming services: Prime Video.
Last month, the service featured hits like Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One, and this month is no different. In August, Prime Video has recent thrillers like 10 Cloverfield Lane, classics like Cinema Paradiso, and much, much more.
Below, we’ve listed all of Prime Video’s best new movies this month, which have been rated highly on review website Rotten Tomatoes. That’s no absolute guarantee that you’ll love any of these films—everyone has slightly different tastes, after all—but a high critic rating is usually at least a solid indicator of quality. Here are seven of Prime Video’s best new movies to stream this month.
Don’t see anything you want to stream? Check out our full list of everything new on Prime Video and Freevee in August to find what’s right for you.
“10 Cloverfield Lane” (2016)
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“10 Cloverfield Lane” is the second film in the “Cloverfield” series and serves as clearly Stay away from Matt Reeves’ 2008 found-footage monster movie.
In this thrilling sci-fi film, Michelle (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) wakes up chained in a bunker after being knocked unconscious in a car crash. Howard (John Goodman), the bunker’s owner, releases her and tells her that there has been an alien attack and the outside world is poisoned. She remains trapped in the bunker with him and a younger man named Emmett (John Gallagher Jr.). But is Howard telling the truth about what’s going on out there? Or is it all just a lie hiding evil intentions?
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 90%
Stream on Prime Video from 24 August
“American Graffiti” (1973)
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Before George Lucas introduced the world to Star Wars, he brought us American Graffiti, a coming-of-age hit set in the 1960s that introduces us to a group of high school graduates who immerse themselves in the rock ‘n’ roll scene.
About to leave their small Californian town behind, best friends Curt Henderson (Richard Dreyfuss) and Steve Bolander (Ron Howard) and their friends take one last trek through the streets before heading off to college. Light on plot but full of nostalgia, this is a classic flick with a killer soundtrack that will still resonate whether you lived through the original era or not.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 95%
Stream on Prime Video Now
“Cinema Paradise” (1988)
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Giuseppe Tornatore’s “Cinema Paradiso” is certainly one of the best films to Movies.
In this fascinating Italian film, told largely in flashbacks, director Salvatore Di Vita recalls his successful youth: As a young boy, he spent practically every free minute at the Cinema Paradiso, fell in love with the big screen and eventually became friends with projectionist Alfredo.
Like all of us, Salvatore grows up but can never quite escape his passion for filmmaking… and his ageing friend urges him to leave town and pursue his dream. It’s a life-affirming, poignant and heartwarming coming-of-age story; you’ll smile, you’ll cry, and if you’re anything like me, you’ll appreciate the magic of cinema even more.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
Stream on Prime Video Now
“In the Body of the Enemy” (1997)
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John Woo’s “Face/Off” is a gripping cat-and-mouse film that sounds completely unbelievable on paper. The film stars John Travolta and Nicolas Cage as FBI special agent Sean Archer and terrorist Castor Troy, respectively.
After a tragedy, the two engage in a long-running feud that culminates in Archer knocking Troy down and then seeking medical attention. Transplanting Troy’s face on his own. He did this to try to foil a plot… but when Troy wakes up, he forces the same doctor to place Archer’s face on his body and sets about ruining the agent’s life.
What follows is a great ride, with both stars giving top performances, each playing a character… who is playing a character. It’s cheeky, over the top and absolutely thrilling.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 93%
Stream on Prime Video Now
“Loopers” (2012)
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This time travel hit from 2012 is a successful mix of clever science fiction and fast-paced action. “Looper” takes us to the year 2074, to a world in which time travel was invented but banned and quickly taken up by the mafia.
When criminal organizations want to get rid of someone, they send their victims back in time, where a “looper” (aka a hitman) is hired to take them out. Joe (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) is a respected looper and has big plans for retirement. However, he knows that if he lives long enough, he will eventually be forced to eliminate all evidence by killing his future self. And the incredible drama really begins when our hitman realizes that that day may have come when he suddenly finds himself sitting across from Old Joe (Bruce Willis).
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 93%
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“Paddington” (2015)
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Can’t wait to see everyone’s favourite marmalade-loving bear make his big screen comeback in Paddington in Peru? Well, Paddington Bear’s first adventure has just been released on Prime Video and is absolutely worth a look.
This first family adventure film follows the eponymous young bear (voice: Ben Whishaw) from Darkest Peru to London, England, where he hopes to find a home to move into. On the way to Paddington Station, he crosses paths with the Brown family (Hugh Bonneville, Sally Hawkins, Madeleine Harris and Samuel Joslin) and does his best to fit into their busy lives… all while battling vengeful taxidermist Millicent Clyde (Nicole Kidman).
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Stream on Prime Video from 15 August
“Pulp Fiction” (1994)
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Quentin Tarantino’s follow-up to “Reservoir Dogs” from 1994 is Despite it a breathtaking experience and still one of the director’s best films. And now that it’s out on Prime Video, it’s the perfect time to watch it again.
An intoxicating blend of black comedy and crime, this absolute classic intertwines the lives of two hitmen (Samuel L. Jackson and John Travolta), a mob boss (Ving Rhames) and his wife (Uma Thurman), and an ageing prizefighter (Bruce Willis). It’s an invigorating, brutal, and undeniably entertaining film – and one that never gets old.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 92%
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“Sense and Sensibility” (1996)
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Based on the classic novel of the same name by Jane Austen, “Sense and Sensibility” is a drama set in the English countryside. It centers on two sisters, Elinor (Emma Thompson) and Marianne (Kate Winslet), who fall on hard times after the death of their father and the Dashwood family and must marry into a wealthy family. Marianne is torn between two men (Greg Wise and Alan Rickman), while Elinor’s potential suitor Edward (Hugh Grant) is entangled in a previous engagement. Naturally, drama soon ensues.
This 1995 film, directed by Ang Lee, is often cited as one of the best Austen adaptations of all time. This is largely thanks to Emma Thompson’s Oscar-winning screenplay, and the film was nominated for a further six Oscars, including Best Picture, shortly after its release. Whether you’re well-versed in Austen’s literary works or not, Sense and Sensibility is a surprisingly funny film that could never be accused of being just a stiff period piece.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 97%
Stream on Prime Video Now
“The Jackal” (1973)
I think that of all the films on this list, The Jackal is the one that is most likely to impress younger people who don’t know about it yet.
The Jackal (Edward Fox) is a hired assassin assigned to help a French paramilitary group with a mission they cannot complete: the assassination of President Charles de Gaulle (Adrien Cayla-Legrand). Unfortunately for the Jackal, he is not fast enough to avoid raising the alarm of a policeman (Michaël Lonsdale) who sets out to find him.
The Jackal is a gripping piece of cinema that combines strong direction from Fred Zinnemann with a tight screenplay from Kenneth Ross. Even at 2 hours and 21 minutes long, it is still a sparsely told film.
Rating at Rotten Tomatoes: 91%
Stream on Prime Video Now
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