Every month, as Netflix retires films and series that have entertained viewers for months or even years, the streaming service makes room for exciting new content. While April saw the last of several great films – for instance, Edgar Wright’s graphic-novel-based action comedy “Scott Pilgrim vs. the World” – May has welcomed such treasures as Ridley Scott’s crime biography “American Gangster” and Reginald Hudlin’s “Marshall,” starring the late Chadwick Boseman as Thurgood Marshall, the first African-American justice of the Supreme Court. (Here’s a list of the best films by Black directors.)
And that’s just the start of what’s available. To determine the best movies to stream on Netflix this month, 24/7 Tempo developed an index using average ratings on IMDb, an online movie database owned by Amazon, and a combination of audience scores and Tomatometer scores on Rotten Tomatoes, an online movie and TV review aggregator, as of early May 2023, weighting all ratings equally. We considered only movies with at least 5,000 audience votes on either IMDb or Rotten Tomatoes, and ruled out documentaries. Data on streaming availability, also current as of early May, comes from the streaming guide Reelgood. Directorial credits are from IMDb.
Among the best films Netflix currently has on offer are comedies including the 1978 classic fraternity film “National Lampoon’s Animal House,” the 2016 neo-noir buddy action comedy “The Nice Guys,” and the 2019 biographical comedy “Dolemite is My Name,” which stars Eddie Murphy as real-life stand-up comedian and blaxploitation film star Rudy Ray Moore.
Popular dramas on the list include the 1995 crime film “Heat,” the coming-of-age drama “Call Me By Your Name,” and Noah Baumbach’s moving divorce film “Marriage Story.” Several sports films are featured, including the original “Rocky” and the football drama “Friday Night Lights” – inspiration for the award-winning TV series of the same name and an entry on our list of the greatest football movies ever made.)
50. Always Be My Maybe (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 6.8/10 (50,782 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (2,029 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (99 reviews)
> Directed by: Nahnatchka Khan
49. Phantom Thread (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.5/10 (120,047 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 71% (7,984 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (355 reviews)
> Directed by: Paul Thomas Anderson
48. American Hustle (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (482,276 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (176,085 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 92% (294 reviews)
> Directed by: David O. Russell
47. Marshall (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (24,868 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (8,710 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 81% (149 reviews)
> Directed by: Reginald Hudlin
46. Copenhagen (2014)
> IMDb user rating: 7.1/10 (12,929 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (1,093 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 88% (16 reviews)
> Directed by: Mark Raso
45. Friday Night Lights (2004)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (64,155 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (185,883 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (173 reviews)
> Directed by: Peter Berg
44. The Ballad of Buster Scruggs (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (133,130 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 77% (3,708 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (234 reviews)
> Directed by: Joel & Ethan Coen
43. Mirai (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.0/10 (14,186 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (945 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (84 reviews)
> Directed by: Mamoru Hosoda
42. Carol (2015)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (122,012 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 74% (29,764 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 94% (313 reviews)
> Directed by: Todd Haynes
41. Okja (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (112,707 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (10,697 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (239 reviews)
> Directed by: Bong Joon Ho
40. The Hangover (2009)
> IMDb user rating: 7.7/10 (742,607 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (943,368 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 78% (241 reviews)
> Directed by: Todd Phillips
39. Darkest Hour (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.4/10 (205,576 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 82% (14,148 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 84% (318 reviews)
> Directed by: Joe Wright
38. Blue Jay (2016)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (16,105 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 77% (2,427 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (32 reviews)
> Directed by: Alex Lehmann
37. The White Tiger (2021)
> IMDb user rating: 7.1/10 (54,128 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (1,016 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (170 reviews)
> Directed by: Ramin Bahrani
36. The Night Comes for Us (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.0/10 (23,843 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 82% (984 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (33 reviews)
> Directed by: Timo Tjahjanto
35. A Monster Calls (2016)
> IMDb user rating: 7.5/10 (84,573 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (25,354 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (267 reviews)
> Directed by: J.A. Bayona
34. A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 6.8/10 (12,504 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 80% (358 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (78 reviews)
> Directed by: Richard Phelan & Will Becher
33. Private Life (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (18,066 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 78% (1,065 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 93% (106 reviews)
> Directed by: Tamara Jenkins
32. The Nice Guys (2016)
> IMDb user rating: 7.4/10 (299,978 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 79% (56,468 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (320 reviews)
> Directed by: Shane Black
31. El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 7.3/10 (205,157 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (5,048 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (129 reviews)
> Directed by: Vince Gilligan
30. Rocky (1976)
> IMDb user rating: 8.1/10 (539,768 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 69% (33,403,994 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 93% (67 reviews)
> Directed by: John G. Avildsen
29. Roma (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.7/10 (148,393 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 72% (5,701 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (400 reviews)
> Directed by: Alfonso Cuarón
28. The Half of It (2020)
> IMDb user rating: 6.9/10 (32,458 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (969 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 97% (101 reviews)
> Directed by: Alice Wu
27. American Gangster (2007)
> IMDb user rating: 7.8/10 (430,167 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (831,085 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 81% (216 reviews)
> Directed by: Ridley Scott
26. Paddleton (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (12,659 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (568 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (44 reviews)
> Directed by: Alex Lehmann
25. Inside Man (2006)
> IMDb user rating: 7.6/10 (354,136 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (351,658 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 86% (208 reviews)
> Directed by: Spike Lee
24. The Raid 2 (2014)
> IMDb user rating: 8.0/10 (118,592 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (24,310 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 82% (175 reviews)
> Directed by: Gareth Evans
23. Prisoners (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 8.1/10 (637,815 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 87% (108,697 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 81% (253 reviews)
> Directed by: Denis Villeneuve
22. To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before (2018)
> IMDb user rating: 7.1/10 (96,804 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (4,835 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (70 reviews)
> Directed by: Susan Johnson
21. Zombieland (2009)
> IMDb user rating: 7.6/10 (541,908 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 86% (643,581 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (257 reviews)
> Directed by: Ruben Fleischer
20. La La Land (2016)
> IMDb user rating: 8.0/10 (537,558 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 81% (71,726 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (464 reviews)
> Directed by: Damien Chazelle
19. National Lampoon’s Animal House (1978)
> IMDb user rating: 7.5/10 (116,311 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 89% (185,688 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (52 reviews)
> Directed by: John Landis
18. Mudbound (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.4/10 (46,035 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 84% (5,906 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 97% (200 reviews)
> Directed by: Dee Rees
17. I Lost My Body (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 7.6/10 (29,388 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 83% (633 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (83 reviews)
> Directed by: Jérémy Clapin
16. Philomena (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 7.6/10 (101,025 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 89% (52,457 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 91% (200 reviews)
> Directed by: Stephen Frears
15. Léon: The Professional (1994)
> IMDb user rating: 8.5/10 (1,081,769 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 95% (274,510 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 74% (65 reviews)
> Directed by: Luc Besson
14. The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)
> IMDb user rating: 7.7/10 (179,508 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 90% (2,455 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (331 reviews)
> Directed by: Aaron Sorkin
13. Marriage Story (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 7.9/10 (272,813 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 85% (184 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 94% (391 reviews)
> Directed by: Noah Baumbach
12. Dolemite Is My Name (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 7.2/10 (61,771 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 91% (113 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 97% (232 reviews)
> Directed by: Craig Brewer
11. Rush (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 8.1/10 (482,996 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 88% (79,330 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 89% (235 reviews)
> Directed by: Ron Howard
10. Call Me by Your Name (2017)
> IMDb user rating: 7.9/10 (236,339 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 86% (16,258 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 94% (363 reviews)
> Directed by: Luca Guadagnino
9. Captain Phillips (2013)
> IMDb user rating: 7.8/10 (465,186 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 89% (152,646 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 93% (279 reviews)
> Directed by: Paul Greengrass
8. Heat (1995)
> IMDb user rating: 8.2/10 (606,225 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 94% (222,169 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 87% (84 reviews)
> Directed by: Michael Mann
7. Dangal (2016)
> IMDb user rating: 8.3/10 (193,082 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 94% (2,333 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 88% (17 reviews)
> Directed by: Nitesh Tiwari
6. Inception (2010)
> IMDb user rating: 8.8/10 (2,171,143 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 91% (571,783 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 87% (361 reviews)
> Directed by: Christopher Nolan
5. Reservoir Dogs (1992)
> IMDb user rating: 8.3/10 (958,136 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 94% (446,711 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 92% (71 reviews)
> Directed by: Quentin Tarantino
4. The Departed (2006)
> IMDb user rating: 8.5/10 (1,241,061 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 94% (738,191 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 90% (283 reviews)
> Directed by: Martin Scorsese
3. How to Train Your Dragon (2010)
> IMDb user rating: 8.1/10 (693,881 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 91% (312,983 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 99% (212 reviews)
> Directed by: Chris Sanders & Dean DeBlois
2. Klaus (2019)
> IMDb user rating: 8.2/10 (119,752 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 96% (2,481 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 94% (70 reviews)
> Directed by: Sergio Pablos
1. Psycho (1960)
> IMDb user rating: 8.5/10 (630,728 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes audience score: 95% (240,418 votes)
> Rotten Tomatoes Tomatometer score: 96% (104 reviews)
> Directed by: Alfred Hitchcock