When it comes to some of the best, most classic movies around, Amazon Prime Video has a wide selection from which to choose. With an Amazon Prime Video subscription, you can watch all kinds of movies from decades past, as well as the present. With the ad-free version, you can eliminate ads, too. There’s a rotating selection, however, so movies come and go all the time. You’ll want to take advantage of the best movies when they’re available.
Among the many movies that have a limited life on the streaming service right now, there are six movies leaving Prime Video in May that you have to watch before they’re gone. They are from the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s and span various genres. Each one features A-list talent and has great rewatch value. See our picks and add them to your watch list this week before they’re gone.
The Crow (1994)
The Crow stars Brandon Lee, the son of iconic actor and martial artist Bruce Lee. Brandon Lee sadly passed away by accidental death on the set of this movie. He stars as Eric Draven, a rock musician who comes back from the dead to find and kill the gang members who murdered him and his fiancée. The story is based on the James O’Barr comic book series of the same name.
The movie was dedicated to Lee and his real-life fiancée, Eliza Hutton. While Lee had reportedly finished many of his scenes before he was tragically killed by a prop gun, The Crow was completed using a stunt double, script rewrites, and digital effects. Having developed a cult following over the last two decades, there’s a remake starring Bill Skarsgård (Boy Kills World) set for release this summer.
Stream The Crow on Amazon Prime Video.
Burn After Reading (2008)
Boasting an incredible cast that includes John Malkovich, Frances McDormand, Brad Pitt, George Clooney, Tilda Swinton, and J.K. Simmons, Burn After Reading is a black comedy about two gym employees who find the memoirs of a former CIA analyst named Osborne (Malkovich) and mistakenly believe them to be classified government documents. Rather than return them to the government, they try to profit from the findings, resulting in a hilarious series of events.
Burn After Reading was a moderate success at the box office, largely due to the draw of its stars. But the Coen Brothers movie also thrives thanks to the clever writing, ridiculously original story, and fabulous soundtrack. The movie is one of those A-list ensemble flicks that’s simply entertaining to watch.
Stream Burn After Reading on Amazon Prime Video.
A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)
The concepts in A.I. Artificial Intelligence might not seem so futuristic today. But 23 years ago, it was pie in the sky. Loosely based on the Brian Aldiss 1969 short story Supertoys Last All Summer Long and written and directed by Steven Spielberg, the film is set in the 22nd century, when an apocalyptic event has wiped out most of humanity. Robots have replaced humans, and David (Haley Joel Osment) is an experimental android programmed to replicate the one key factor they’re missing: emotions, particularly love.
David becomes attached to a loving couple, but the robot’s capacity for love gets it into hot water, particularly when its actions are misconstrued and fear starts to set in. If David is capable of love, that means it is also capable of hate. Raising important questions about the ethics and drawbacks behind the development of humanoid robots, A.I. Artificial Intelligence might have been ahead of its time when released, but today, the movie is more topical than ever.
Stream A.I. Artificial Intelligence on Amazon Prime Video.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
One of the most well-known martial arts action-adventure movies, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is a feast for the eyes for anyone who loves the genre. Directed by Ang Lee and based on the Chinese novel of the same name by Wang Dulu, the movie surprised when it became a massive international success, despite being in Chinese with subtitles. The film not only broke records for foreign-language movies, but also received 10 Academy Award nominations.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon is set in Qing dynasty China where swordsman Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-fat) and warrior Yu Shu Lien (Wicked star Michelle Yeoh) work together to retrieve a 400-year-old Green Destiny sword. With exciting battle scenes along with a heart-wrenching love story, Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon will take you on an intriguing journey every time you watch it.
Stream Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon on Amazon Prime Video.
Malcolm X (1992)
This Academy Award-nominated epic biographical drama about activist Malcolm X was co-written by Spike Lee and stars Denzel Washington in the titular role. The story in Malcolm X is largely based on the book The Autobiography of Malcolm X, which was written by Alex Haley in collaboration with Malcolm X prior to Malcolm’s death.
The movie dramatizes pivotal moments in the Muslim minister and human rights activist’s life, including his crimes, time spent in prison, conversion to Islam, marriage to Betty X, and assassination in 1965. With a talented supporting cast including Damsel‘s Angela Bassett as Betty Shabazz and Lee himself as Malcolm’s childhood friend Shorty, Malcolm X is a riveting presentation about the life of one of the most influential activists of our time.
Stream Malcolm X on Amazon Prime Video.
Field of Dreams (1989)
“If you build it, they will come.” If you have heard this phrase, maybe even used it yourself, it’s worth revisiting this movie from which a variation of it originates. One of Kevin Costner’s many iconic films from the late 1980s and early 1990s, Field of Dreams is a sports fantasy drama based on the W.P. Kinsella novel Shoeless Joe. Ray (Costner) is a farmer who fears he will never realize his dreams. When he hears a voice in his cornfield advising that “if you build it, he will come,” Ray thinks this might be a message to build a baseball field.
Ray’s desire to listen to the voice intensifies when he sees the ghost of “Shoeless” Joe Jackson. As the diamond is built, it becomes occupied by several deceased baseball legends and Ray finds himself going down a rabbit hole in search of truths based on his visions, dreams, and the voices he hears.
The plot of Field of Dreams admittedly sounds a bit kooky, but there is something heartwarming and satisfying about the story that makes you believe. It’s also a movie about the importance of closure. Field of Dreams, one of Costner’s most memorable movies, earned three Academy Award nominations.
Stream Field of Dreams on Amazon Prime Video.
