The 13 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now

Hit Man (2024)

This sexy caper is one of the year’s biggest surprise hits, loosely based on the true story of a mild-mannered psychology professor who’s recruited by the police to catch folks who want to hire a hit man. Glen Powell is hilarious, using his psych background to alter his appearance and persona to suit each would-be criminal — until he meets a sultry young woman (Adria Arjona) whom he manages to persuade to back down from her felonious intentions. Or does he? The final third delivers more twists than a pretzel factory. And director Richard Linklater brings his quirky sensibility to this savvy blend of film noir, buddy cop comedy and screwball romance.

Watch it: Hit Man

Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter (2023)

This fascinating documentary explores the complicated life of the famed Chicago chef Charlie Trotter, who helped revolutionize fine dining in the 2000s and died suddenly from a stroke at age 54 in 2013. Trotter’s talent and drive were undeniable, but he also earned a reputation as a kitchen tyrant who once admitted “basically, I hate people.” (It’s no wonder that he was slapped with multiple lawsuits by former staffers.) This film delves into that fine line between genius and schmuck, and the cost of pursuing perfection at all times.

Watch it: Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter

Molly’s Game (2017)

Jessica Chastain is sensational in this underrated, fact-based thriller about a well-educated young woman and former Olympic-class skier who shifted into running a series of high-stakes poker games that drew the attention of the FBI. Aaron Sorkin, 63, who picked up an Oscar nod for his screenplay, also made his directing debut on the film, which features his signature rat-a-tat dialog and a starry supporting cast that includes Kevin Costner, 60, Idris Elba, 51, Jeremy Strong and Michael Cera.

Watch it: Molly’s Game

Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975)

After nearly a half century, British comedy troupe’s first full film is not dead yet! The irreverent update of the King Arthur legend is overstuffed with elevated silliness, from killer rabbits to knights who say “Ni!” to swordsmen who won’t quit even after all their limbs have been chopped off.

Watch it: Monty Python and the Holy Grail

My Octopus Teacher (2020)

A man forges an unlikely bond with a wild octopus living in an underwater kelp forest off the coast of South Africa in this Oscar-winning documentary, which is unlike any nature film you’ve seen before. Sure, it’s beautiful to look at. And you learn plenty about cephalopods and their ability to survive even after attacks by pygmy sharks. But Craig Foster also draws lessons from his sea buddy that apply to his relationships on land, proof of just how much we humans can learn from the natural world.

Watch it: My Octopus Teacher

Red (2010)

Retirement has never been quite as fun, or as explosive, as it is for former CIA agents who are drawn back into game for mysterious reasons. It helps that stars Bruce Willis, 60, Morgan Freeman, 87, Helen Mirren, 79, and John Malkovich, 70, all seem to be having a blast firing high-caliber weapons and posing as action stars decades younger. And there’s just enough goofiness to the shoot-‘em-ups to keep the whole thing from plunging into tired pastiche.

Watch it: Red

Rustin (2023)

Bayard Rustin, one of the most overlooked figures in the U.S. civil rights movement, gets the spotlight in a biopic from award-winning director George C. Wolfe and executive producers Barack and Michelle Obama, 63 and 60. Colman Domingo (Fear the Walking Dead) earned an Oscar nod for his performance as Rustin, who took the lead organizing the historic 1963 March on Washington where Martin Luther King Jr. delivered his “I Have a Dream” speech — but who also faced blowback within the Black community as an openly gay man.

Watch it: Rustin

Wicked Little Letters (2023)

Olivia Colman, 50, stars in this hilarious mystery-comedy loosely based on the true story of a curious crime wave in a seaside town in 1920s England. A prim old maid (Colman) living with her upright church-going parents reports receiving a series of anonymous, foul-mouthed poison-pen letters and accuses a young Irish single mom (Jessie Buckley) with a local rep for blunt speaking. The film is a hoot, unfolding like a Masterpiece production that just happens to turn on a lot of NSFW curse words.

Watch it: Wicked Little Letters

The Wonderful World of Henry Sugar (2023)

Has there ever been a better cinematic matchup than director Wes Anderson, 55, and Roald Dahl? Anderson, famed for his fussy, storybook production design, takes his typical stylized approach to a series of grownup-ish short stories by the creator of Willy Wonka, Matilda, and James (of giant-peach fame). The title yarn, which won an Oscar this year for live-action short, stars Benedict Cumberbatch as a wealthy eccentric who goes to preposterous lengths to study a yoga’s clairvoyant powers, just so he can cheat at blackjack. The film, which includes three other Dahl adaptations, unfolds like a series of illustrated books read aloud in the family den.

Watch it: The Wonderful World of Henry Sugar