When it comes to movies on Amazon Prime Video, you often have your pick of the litter. From new titles to classic library favorites, there are tons of options on the streaming service. But movies come and go from Amazon. One week, a film might be available to stream with your base Amazon Prime or standalone Amazon Prime Video subscription, and the next, it’s only available to rent or buy, or with an add-on channel.
We keep up to date with what’s on Amazon Prime all the time. If you’re looking for a last chance movie to watch, these five movies leaving Prime Video in August should be on your radar. They’re quality movies ranging from two intense historical films and a neo-noir crime thriller to two hilariously silly comedies.
The Courier (2021)
Benedict Cumberbatch stars in this historical spy film as Greville Wynne, the real-life British businessman who was recruited by the Secret Intelligence Service in the ’60s. His job? To serve as a conduit for messages with Oleg Penkovsky (Merab Ninidze), a high-ranking Soviet official and Russian spy source. Wynne disguises his true intentions by pretending to be exploring business opportunities. While he’s reluctant to participate at first, the idea of being part of a plan that could prevent nuclear war puts pressure and great importance on his role.
The Courier was met was positive reviews, with many critics praising the film for turning what could have otherwise been a boring story into one filled with drama and intensity. M.N. Miller of Ready Steady Cut describes The Courier as having “everything you want in a Cold War spy thriller,” noting that it’s “solidly paced and strikes a nice balance of suspense and moving human drama.”
Stream The Courier on Amazon Prime Video.
Witness (1985)
Earning eight Academy Award nominations and winning two, including one for Best Original Screenplay, Witness offers up the best of Harrison Ford. The neo-noir crime thriller follows Detective Sergeant John Book (Ford) and his partner Sergeant Elton Carter (Brent Jennings) as they investigate the case of a young boy named Samuel who witnesses the murder of an undercover police officer. As the sole witness to this crime, Samuel (Lukas Haas) is now in deep trouble, especially when he points to an image of a revered lieutenant as being the perpetrator.
With corrupt cops, drug dealers, and a terrified boy from an Amish community, Witness follows Book’s journey to try to do the right thing. While he needs to take down criminals, even ones who are supposed to be on his side, he also has to protect a boy who was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time. Putting it succinctly, Film Frenzy’s Matt Brunson says Witness is “an exceptionally fine film.”
Stream Witness on Amazon Prime Video.
John Dies at the End (2012)
This comedy horror movie was not a favorite of critics, but it has since been dubbed a cult classic by revered publications like Variety and Wired. The story begins when David Wong (Chase Williamson), a slacker, meets with reporter Arnie Blondestone (The Holdovers star Paul Giamatti) to discuss the supernatural events that occurred in his small city the year prior. Involving time travel to other dimensions, special powers, strange creatures, and bizarre deaths, John Dies at the End is pure, silly fun.
Critics were polarized on this movie. Ironically, the very aspects that made some critics despise the movie are the same ones that led others to appreciate John Dies at the End for what its unique charm. Starburst’s Andrew Pollard advises to “jump in, leave your sense of logic at the door, sit back and enjoy the trip.”
Stream John Dies at the End on Amazon Prime Video.
Waiting… (2005)
If you simply can’t get enough of Ryan Reynolds even after Deadpool & Wolverine, check out Waiting…, an independent comedy he starred in almost 20 years ago about Monty (Reynolds), a waiter in a franchise restaurant who doesn’t take his job seriously, nor does anyone else on the team. He and his co-workers get up to plenty of shenanigans at the aptly named chain restaurant Shenaniganz. Justin Long is the protagonist as Dean, Monty’s co-worker who starts to feel dejected when he learns that an old schoolmate just graduated from college and secured a high-paying job.
A fun, raunchy comedy about finding yourself, the cast also includes Anna Faris, David Koechner, and Luis Guzmán. Waiting… is absolute silly crudeness, a sub-genre that rarely sits well with critics. But most importantly, audiences loved the film for its ridiculous and juvenile humor, and the wonderful performances from the cast. If you’re into other similar movies like Superbad and American Pie, and if you love Reynolds, Waiting… is a fun one to watch to finish off your summer.
Stream Waiting… on Amazon Prime Video.
High Ground (2020)
This Australian movie is based on real-life historical event that took place in a north territory of Australia after World War I. While High Ground tells the stories in a fictionalized style, the movie has been praised for the attention and respect it pays to Aboriginal culture. The plot centers around Travis (The Mentalist’s Simon Baker), a former sniper now working as a police officer who fails to stop a massacre of a group of Yolngu people. To make matters worse, the police force buries the truth. When Travis returns 12 years later to work alongside Gutjuk (Jacob Junior Nayinggul), the only survivor of that mass killing, what really happened is discovered. Travis becomes the hunted rather than the hunter.
High Ground is a thought-provoking tale about a white man living with guilt and a young man from the Yolngu Aboriginal peoples trying to reconcile his dedication to his people and his reliance on this white man who saved his life. David Stratton of The Australian lauds the movie’s “ravishing cinematography” and the “powerful story of white privilege and aboriginal dispossession.”
Stream High Ground on Amazon Prime Video.
