The 20 Best Amazon Original Films, Ranked
In 2015, Amazon Studios—the film and TV production company owned by Amazon—co-produced its first movie: the Spike Lee musical dramedy Chi-Raq. Since then, the e-commerce giant has poured billions of dollars into its original content, including feature-length films, TV programs, documentaries, and more. In fact, last year alone, Amazon invested $13 billion into its video and music content offerings, up from $11 billion in the previous year.
As it stands today, Amazon has produced more than 100 original films, ranging from horror movies to comedies to biographies and beyond. The company also has several more movies slated for release this summer, including Anything’s Possible and Samaritan. Its movies have won Academy Awards, BAFTA Awards, Critics’ Choice Awards, Golden Globes, and more, with Amazon being the first streaming service to produce a Best Picture nominee at the Oscars.
If you’re thinking about diving into Amazon’s deep catalog of original films, you’ve come to the right place. Below, Metacritic has created a list of the company’s top movies, which includes both Amazon Studios-distributed theatrical releases as well as Prime Video exclusives.
On the list, you’ll find everything from family dramas to historical pieces to plays. You’ll also notice several appearances from acclaimed filmmaker Steve McQueen, whose Small Axe anthology takes up four slots on the list. We've chosen to include them here because critics evaluated the individual installments as their own films (even though Small Axe competed in the limited series category at the Emmys).
Here, Metacritic lists the 20 best-reviewed Amazon original films, ranked by Metascore. Documentaries and films with fewer than 7 reviews from professional critics are excluded.
All photos courtesy Amazon Studios
Released in 2018, Cold War showcases the love story and often-tumultuous relationship of singer Zula Lichoń (Joanna Kulig) and musical director Wiktor Warski (Tomasz Kot) in post-World War II Poland. Despite the many differences between them, the pair always seem to find their way back to each other—even through scandal, trauma, and turmoil. The Polish-language film, which was directed by Pawel Pawlikowski, received Academy Award nominations for Best Director, Best Foreign Language Film, and Best Cinematography. It also racked up four nominations at the BAFTA Awards, including Best Direction and Best Original Screenplay.
“Cold War seduces its viewer, in its brief running time. You might find, in the quiet of its poignant ending, that it has left its mark on your heart.” —Moira Macdonald, The Seattle Times
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