31 Best Movies On Tubi [December 2023]

We have an assumption, generally speaking, that anything "free" must have a catch. It must be of worse quality, we tell ourselves. It must have some cut corners or loose ends, surely. Not so with Tubi, the streaming service that is, get this, completely free.

Sure, there is a "catch" of sorts. The streaming platform is ad-supported, which means that you'll get a brief advertisement every now and then. A small price to pay, we say, considering the incredible depth of their library. Tubi offers titles from a wide range of studios including Paramount, MGM, and Lionsgate, among others. And as the list below will testify, the quantity of their materials does not sacrifice quality. You're truly spoiled for choice as far as Tubi is concerned, from cult classics and preternaturally excellent directorial debuts to top-shelf international offerings.

We culled through the streaming service's offerings and picked out the best of the best. So get out your pen and paper (or Letterboxd watchlist tab ... whatever floats your boat), and read on for our look at the best films currently streaming on Tubi.

Updated on December 5, 2023: Tubi is constantly updating its selection with new, excellent titles that will keep your watchlist well-staked. So please note that this article is updated monthly to reflect changes to Tubi's streaming availability.

When it comes to stagey, one-room dramas, you just can't beat "12 Angry Men." A group of male jurors (because apparently women couldn't be trusted to sit on a jury) are tasked with deliberating over a high-profile murder case in which a teenage boy is accused of killing his father. Everyone is pretty much convinced that he's guilty, and the jurors are prepared to vote quickly — after all, they've got stuff to do. But one juror, played by a never-better Henry Fonda, insists that they owe it to the boy and the criminal justice system itself to at least talk about the case for a little while. As they turn over each piece of evidence, doubt over the boy's guilt grows, exposing the weighty role that our own prejudices and preconceived notions can play in crucial decision-making.

• Starring: Henry Fonda, Jack Klugman, Lee J. Cobb
• Director: Sidney Lumet
• Year: 1957
• Runtime: 96 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%

Based on the terrifying real-life story of Lope de Aguirre — a conquistador mad with power, ego, and the conviction that he alone would discover the mythical gold-plated kingdom of El Dorado — "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" is a marvelous entry in the hallowed subgenre of colonialists digging their own graves while nature looks on, unconcerned. Filmed on location in the Amazon, Werner Herzog shoots Aguirre's expedition like a documentary, blurring the line between reality and fiction. A pillar of New German Cinema and a testament to the talent and volatility of lead actor Klaus Kinski, "Aguirre, the Wrath of God" is a descent into what else but madness itself.

• Starring: Klaus Kinski, Ruy Guerra, Helena Rojo
• Director: Werner Herzog
• Year: 1972
• Runtime: 93 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

It's Christmastime on campus. The eggnog is flowing freely, the carolers are crooning, and there's a spluttering maniac hiding in a sorority house killing students off one by one. Wait, what was that last part? A chilling seasonal classic and arguably the first true North American slasher (eat your heart out, "Halloween"), Bob Clark's giallo-inspired genre film is as visually stunning as it is liable to send a shiver straight up your spine. Palpably wicked and vehemently feminist, "Black Christmas" is whip smart, genuinely terrifying, and a masterfully controlled exercise in tone and terror.

• Starring: Olivia Hussey, Margot Kidder, Keir Dullea
• Director: Bob Clark
• Year: 1974
• Runtime: 97 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 71%

After a tragic roadside accident results in the death of his wife and daughter, classical composer John Russell resolves to side-step his grief with a change of scenery. Moving into an enormous, lonely, and definitely not haunted house ought to do the trick right? Sure enough, the mysterious and violence-tinged history of the house begins to haunt the composer, driving him to dig in places no one thought to dig. A supernatural thriller par excellence and the crown jewel of the 20th-century Canadian horror boom, "The Changeling" is the haunted house film to end all haunted house films, anchored by a mournful and deeply moving lead performance by the great George C. Scott.

• Starring: George C. Scott, Trish Van Devere, Melvyn Douglas
• Director: Peter Medak
• Year: 1980
• Runtime: 106 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%

You'd be forgiven for thinking that "Charade" is an Alfred Hitchcock movie — it has all the hallmarks of his best thrillers. Audrey Hepburn stars as Regina Lampert, who returns to her Parisian flat after a skiing vacation to discover her home ransacked and her husband missing. It quickly becomes clear that he was murdered, and his killers are still at large. With her life in danger, she teams up with the mysterious Peter Joshua (Cary Grant), who promises to keep her safe but has some secrets of his own. Hepburn and Grant have incredible chemistry with one another, and the film's combination of stylish visuals and constant twists makes it irresistible.

• Starring: Cary Grant, Audrey Hepburn, Walter Matthau
• Director: Stanley Donen
• Year: 1963
• Runtime: 115 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

Josef Stalin looms larger than life in this film's depiction of Soviet Russia — so much so that when he dies unceremoniously in his bed one evening, his sycophantic advisors struggle to determine how to move forward. How should they run the country? How should they plan their fallen leader's funeral? A blistering satire about the inherent absurdity of cultivating a circle of yes men, "The Death of Stalin" is a tremendously funny romp through the days following Stalin's death, as everyone in his orbit subtly and not-so-subtly jockeys for position.

• Starring: Steve Buscemi, Simon Russell Beale, Jason Isaacs
• Director: Armando Iannucci
• Year: 2017
• Runtime: 107 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

"Memory is a selection of images, some elusive, others imprinted indelibly on the brain. The summer I killed my father, I was 10 years old." Whatever you think about "Eve's Bayou," surely this is one of the most interesting opening lines in all of film, the kind of thing that every screenwriter wishes they had been the one to pen. 

"Eve's Bayou" stars Jurnee Smollett as a young girl coming of age during the 1960s as part of a prominent Creole family in Louisiana. But as her understanding of the world around her — and particularly the inner workings of her family unit — becomes more nuanced, she begins to realize that her parents are not quite as perfect and respectable as they appear. "Eve's Bayou" is a delightfully atmospheric Southern gothic with standout performances from its young star and Samuel L. Jackson as her father.

• Starring: Samuel L. Jackson, Jurnee Smollett, Meagan Good
• Director: Kasi Lemmons
• Year: 1997
• Runtime: 109 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 83%

In order to fund his dream of building an opera house in the middle of the jungle, ambitious Brian Sweeney "Fitzcarraldo" Fitzgerald must first make his fortune in the rubber business. Putting the cart before the horse — or rather, the massive steamship before the rubber fortune — Fitzcarraldo sets out to haul a massive boat over a small mountain. But this is a tale of hubris, exploitation, and foiled best-laid plans. "Fitzcarraldo" marks another fruitful (and positively chaotic) creative union between director Werner Herzog and actor Klaus Kinski.  

• Starring: Klaus Kinski, Claudia Cardinale, José Lewgoy
• Director: Werner Herzog
• Year: 1982
• Runtime: 157 minutes
• Rating: PG
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 77%

One of the most exciting "supernatural child" films of the modern era, "Freaks" centers around Chloe, a young girl who lives with her father in a creepy old mansion and is forbidden to interact with the outside world. But kids are curious, and her seemingly innocent attempts to explore what lies beyond her front door come at a terrible price. In many ways, "Freaks" feels like the origin story for a superhero (or potentially a supervillain) without all the baggage of an established canon. Chloe's potential is limitless, even if she exists in a world that is purposefully trying to snuff out any spark of supernatural ability.

• Starring: Emile Hirsch, Bruce Dern, Lexy Kolker
• Director: Adam Stein, Zach Lipovsky
• Year: 2018
• Runtime: 105 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%

The American Civil War is in full swing, and to his annoyance, railroad engineer Johnny Gray cannot enlist. Running the railroads is too important, apparently. Then, when his beloved locomotive (containing his equally beloved fiancée) is stolen by the enemy, Johnny is given a chance to prove himself as a big wartime hero. A daring effort by stuntman extraordinaire Buster Keaton, "The General" has thrills, romance, and plenty of train-based shenanigans. Don't let its age scare you off — even at nearly a century old "The General" still has plenty of steam.

• Starring: Buster Keaton, Marion Mack, Glen Cavender
• Director: Clyde Bruckman and Buster Keaton
• Year: 1926
• Runtime: 79 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92%

Two irony-poisoned teens named Enid and Rebecca find themselves in a post-graduation malaise once the summer hits. Now that high school is over, they have to figure out what kind of people they want to be — but in truth, they don't seem to want to be much of anything. Self-discovery is hard ... and they have lonely middle-aged men to mess with in the meantime. Based on Daniel Clowes' comic series of the same name, "Ghost World" pokes fun at late-20th century cynicism while offering a poignant portrait of the inevitable rifts that form in young adult friendships.

• Starring: Thora Birch, Scarlett Johansson, Steve Buscemi
• Director: Terry Zwigoff
• Year: 2001
• Runtime: 112 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%

No, Marlon Brando is not a particularly good singer. Yes, he talk-sings his way through "Luck Be a Lady." Yes, he has the role that by all rights really should have gone to Frank Sinatra. But does that make "Guys and Dolls" any less of a classic movie musical? It does not. Brando and Sinatra star as a pair of degenerate gamblers: Sky Masterson and Nathan Detroit, respectively. These two will bet on anything. So it should come as no surprise that Nathan bets Sky that he can't take a lady of Nathan's choosing on a date to Havana. Of course Sky agrees. Then Nathan picks the primmest, most self-righteous dame in New York — Sergeant Sarah Brown of the Save a Soul Mission. You can probably see where this is going.

• Starring: Marlon Brando, Frank Sinatra, Jean Simmons
• Director: Joseph L. Mankiewicz
• Year: 1955
• Runtime: 150 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91%

Newspaper editor Walter and ace reporter Hildy are no longer married, but that little technicality isn't going to stop him from doing everything in his power to keep her on the payroll. While Hildy gets sucked into a thrilling assignment about a convicted cop killer, Walter pulls out all the stops to thwart his ex's impending marriage. Does Walter value Hildy more as an employee or as the love of his life? Will Hildy continue her career or will she settle down for a quiet life of domestic bliss? A screwball comedy with wit and heart to spare, "His Girl Friday" is a fast-talking delight.

• Starring: Cary Grant, Rosalind Russell, Ralph Bellamy
• Director: Howard Hawks
• Year: 1940
• Runtime: 92 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 99%

Most film fans are aware of Alfred Hitchcock's massive contributions to the thriller genre from the 1950s and 1960s, but they might be surprised to learn exactly how far back his career as a director stretched. "The Lodger," a silent film released in 1927, was Hitchcock's third, but the first that saw him utilize his now-familiar cinematography of suspense. In a London plagued by a serial killer targeting young blonde women, an unassuming lodger falls under suspicion for the heinous crimes — but is he actually the murderer, or just a convenient scapegoat? With the fog drifting through nearly every shot, "The Lodger" is a uniquely atmospheric thriller that established Hitchcock as one of the best in the business.

• Starring: Ivor Novello, June Tripp, Malcolm Keen
• Director: Alfred Hitchcock
• Year: 1927
• Runtime: 90 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

For all those of you out there who have ever had a family member pseudo-innocently ask you when you're going to settle down and get married, this one's for you. Ernest Borgnine stars as Marty, a shy, mild-mannered butcher who has been struggling to meet a woman in the face of pressures from his overbearing mother. One night, he hits it off with Clara, a schoolteacher who is equally unlucky with love, and the two wallflowers are aglow with the joy of someone actually showing interest in them. A sweet, low-key romance, "Marty" is thoroughly of its time while still feeling strikingly relatable to modern audiences.

• Starring: Ernest Borgnine, Betsy Blair, Joe Mantell
• Director: Delbert Mann
• Year: 1955
• Runtime: 90 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

Set in the far-flung future, this masterwork of science fiction weaves an epic tale of love, robots, and class warfare. Golden boy Freder Fredersen is surprised to learn that an underground society of working class citizens labors underground to fulfill their more privileged brethren's utopian dreams. Curiosity piqued, Freder investigates further, and stumbles across a revolution in the making and a prophecy foretelling a mediator who will lead the disenfranchised to a better future. Still stunning all these decades later, "Metropolis" is a must-watch for any self-respecting cinephile. While its lengthy runtime might be intimidating to some, Fritz Lang's monumental artistic achievement continues to thrill and captivate.

• Starring: Brigitte Helm, Alfred Abel, Gustav Fröhlich
• Director: Fritz Lang
• Year: 1927
• Runtime: 153 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 97%

Released in the middle of the 1980s, when the teen flick was king, "Night of the Comet" is basically John Hughes meets "Return of the Living Dead." A pair of teenage sisters are caught unawares when they become survivors of an apocalypse caused by a comet crossing through the Earth's orbit. Most of the world's population turns into either a pile of ash, or the walking dead. But Regina and Samantha soon realize that they not only need to fear zombies, but also their fellow survivors, who may or may not be acting in good faith. A classic '80s horror comedy, "Night of the Comet" has a well-deserved cult following.

• Starring: Catherine Mary Stewart, Kelli Maroney, Robert Beltran
• Director: Thom Eberhardt
• Year: 1984
• Runtime: 93 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 79%

Here's the slow-shambling survival horror that started it all. For reasons unknown, the dead have started clawing their way out of their graves. A group of survivors, some in better mental states than others, congregate in an abandoned farmhouse. Soon enough, the undead are swaying in the front yard, pawing at the boarded-up windows, and gnawing on anyone unlucky enough to fail to find a farmhouse of their own. A film you can't help but put yourself in (how would you react?), "Night of the Living Dead" is an incredible directorial debut and an essential piece of the cinematic puzzle. Featuring one of the most gut-punch endings of all time, "Night of the Living Dead" has lost none of its power, even in an age where zombies have learned how to break into a full sprint.

• Starring: Duane Jones, Judith O'Dea, Karl Hardman
• Director: George A. Romero
• Year: 1968
• Runtime: 95 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

A World War II-set romantic drama from the master of suspense himself, "Notorious" follows T.R. Devlin, a ruthlessly charming U.S. suit charged with bringing Nazi war criminals to justice. After recruiting Alicia, the Yankee-born daughter of a convicted Nazi, the pair begin to fall in love. Their blossoming romance becomes increasingly complicated when Alicia is tasked with wooing a suspected Nazi hiding in Brazil. As the "love triangle" tightens and the stakes get higher and higher, the pair must compromise their feelings to stay under cover. Pitch black and deeply erotic, Cary Grant and Ingrid Bergman deliver luminous performances dripping with deception and nuance.

• Starring: Cary Grant, Ingrid Bergman, Claude Rains
• Director: Alfred Hitchcock
• Year: 1946
• Runtime: 101 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

After a bank robbery goes sideways, seasoned criminal Dad Longworth chooses to sacrifice his young partner Rio to the law. Five agonizing years later, Rio escapes from jail with a singular, revenge-filled purpose: find and kill his treacherous mentor. However, when Rio finally tracks Dad down, he's shocked to find his former friend has changed his criminal ways and is the elected sheriff of Monterey. He even has a family. Melancholic and deeply agnostic about the hard line between the good guys and the black hats, "One-Eyed Jacks" is an essential and criminally underseen entry in the revisionist Western canon. While the reputation of "One-Eyed Jacks" is mostly as a curio — it's the only film that Marlon Brando ever directed — this atmosphere-rich portrait of revenge and redemption is a must-watch.

• Starring: Marlon Brando, Karl Malden, Katy Jurado
• Director: Marlon Brando
• Year: 1961
• Runtime: 141 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 61%

A shocking and unnerving solo venture from British director Michael Powell (one half of a prolific duo alongside Emeric Pressburger), "Peeping Tom" follows Mark, a photographer, a loner, and a compulsive killer. Indeed, Mark's mild-mannered exterior masks a deep-seated darkness. He's an artist, you see — a documentarian making a film on the nature of fear that's made up of filmed recordings of his murders. When he befriends Helen, his neighbor, there's a glimmer of hope that Mark may be able to get his head on straight and form a real human connection. As the tension between his dark desires and his insatiable loneliness come into conflict, Mark's careful balancing act begins to crack. Meticulously crafted and endearingly acted, "Peeping Tom" will raise the bristles on the back of your neck and then some.

• Starring: Carl Boehm, Moira Shearer, Anna Massey
• Director: Michael Powell
• Year: 1960
• Runtime: 101 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 96%

It should come as no surprise to anyone that the son of Meg Ryan would be a perfect fit for a rom-com. Jack Quaid stars alongside Maya Erskine as a pair of friends who, staring down a long wedding season, agree to be each other's dates at the endless nuptials they're obligated to attend. But, predictably, the weddings have a habit of putting these two attractive, charming people into romantic situations, and it isn't long before they start catching feelings for one another. Quaid and Erskine have a completely natural chemistry together, making "Plus One" an adorable date movie that deserves more attention than it gets.

• Starring: Maya Erskine, Jack Quaid, Ed Begley Jr.
• Director: Jeff Chan, Andrew Rhymer
• Year: 2019
• Runtime: 99 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%

A film tailor-made for 1990s adrenaline junkies, "Point Break" combines the extreme activities of surfing and committing felonies. Keanu Reeves plays Johnny Utah, a U.S. government agent who goes undercover with a band of criminals who have been robbing banks throughout Southern California, using the masks of dead presidents to hide their identities. Utah discovers Bodhi — the leader of the gang — to be a much more compelling and charismatic figure than he was expecting, creating unforeseen complications when his loyalties are tested. Directed by future Oscar winner Kathryn Bigelow, "Point Break" is a wild ride that delivers on both action and unexpected pathos.

• Starring: Patrick Swayze, Keanu Reeves, Lori Petty
• Director: Kathryn Bigelow
• Year: 1991
• Runtime: 122 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 70%

A campy take on the classic "Frankenstein" story, "Re-Animator" gave new life to the horror comedy. Herbert West (Jeffrey Combs) is a strange young scientist obsessed with the idea of re-animating dead tissue, beginning with small animals but eventually graduating to human cadavers. The only problem? When these corpses are brought back to life, they have a wild, zombie energy, and they can't seem to stop murdering people. "Re-Animator" is a classic example of what you can do with a small budget and a little bit of creativity, building an immensely imaginative horror film that has earned itself a devoted cult following.

• Starring: Jeffrey Combs, Bruce Abbott, Barbara Crampton
• Director: Stuart Gordon
• Year: 1985
• Runtime: 86 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

A unique cinematic experience that must be seen to be believed, "Samsara" is a 70 mm world tour through 25 countries, five continents, and five years. From elaborate dances to natural wonders, "Samsara" is a testament to the magic of our world in all its beauty, danger, and curiosity. A non-traditional film that feels a heck of a lot more like a meditative exercise than a documentary, "Samsara" is a feature-length reminder that the world around us really is a fantastic place.

• Director: Ron Fricke
• Year: 2011
• Runtime: 102 minutes
• Rating: PG-13
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 76%

While Walt Disney Studios floundered during the 1980s, Don Bluth reigned supreme in the world of Western feature animation. While we're certainly "The Land Before Time" fans around these parts, "The Secret of NIMH" is neck in neck for Bluth's masterwork. It's a visually stunning, imaginative, and shockingly intense film that's one of those movies that probably shouldn't actually be rated G. The film tells of a widowed field mouse who must relocate her family in order to get out of the way of an incoming farmer's plow. When the move proves too much for her sickly youngest son, she must seek out the rats of NIMH, who may hold the key to saving her family.

• Starring: Elizabeth Hartman, Derek Jacobi, Dom DeLuise
• Director: Don Bluth
• Year: 1982
• Runtime: 82 minutes
• Rating: G
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%

In the year 1880, a group of strangers climbs aboard a stagecoach headed from Arizona to New Mexico, with each passenger running from something. Their journey takes them through Native American territory, and their unwelcome presence triggers the ire of the local tribal leader. A heart-pumping chase sequence ensues. You know how "Mad Max: Fury Road" is one long chase? Well, John Ford was doing that nearly eight decades earlier. A metaphorical door kick both for the career of John Wayne, the Hollywood Western, and a new visceral vision of what cinema could do, "Stagecoach" may be old, but don't let its age fool you. This puppy's got some kick to it.

• Starring: John Wayne, Claire Trevor, Andy Devine
• Director: John Ford
• Year: 1939
• Runtime: 95 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%

As aspiring ballerina Suzy Bannion pulls up to her new prestigious dance academy, she catches glimpse of a student — fear written across her face — fleeing the school in the pouring rain. The strange occurrences begin to pile up, such as unexplained deaths and beastly visions. Soon, Suzy uncovers the truth — the academy used to be home to a coven of witches. And it appears that they never left. Arguably the crown jewel of the supernatural Italian horror subgenre, "Suspiria" is a Technicolor terror trip without parallel that is as terrifying as it is gorgeous.

• Starring: Jessica Harper, Stefania Casini, Joan Bennett
• Director: Dario Argento
• Year: 1977
• Runtime: 98 minutes
• Rating: R
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 93%

A rare blend of action and horror that delivers the thrills and chills in equal measure, "Train to Busan" combines two terrifying forces: a high speed locomotive and zombies. While inattentive father Seok Woo accompanies his daughter by train, martial law breaks out. There's a mysterious outbreak that's turning the infected into homicidal, flesh-hungry maniacs. You know ... exactly the kind of people you want to be trapped in a train with.

• Starring: Gong Yoo, Ma Dong-seok, Choi Woo-sik
• Director: Yeon Sang-ho
• Year: 2016
• Runtime: 117 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 94%

If you've ever thought to yourself, "Gosh, I'd love to watch the first (and only) Soviet-era horror film officially released in the USSR," have we got the film for you. Adapted from Nikolai Gogol's horror novella of the same name, "Viy" tells the story of a young and airheaded priest who bumbles his way into presiding over the corpse of a rumored witch for three consecutive nights. This seemingly easy task is foiled by the terrifying fact that the witch is dead-set on making the priest break his vigil. As tense as it is full of "Evil Dead"-style physical comedy, "Viy" is the most nightmarish film to also contain a scene where a witch surfs atop her own coffin. With its crisp runtime and striking visuals, "Viy" is much more than a historical footnote.

• Starring: Natalya Varley, Vadim Zakharchenko, G. Sochevko
• Director: Konstantin Yershov, Georgi Kropachyov
• Year: 1967
• Runtime: 78 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 88%

Obstinate barrister Sir Wilfrid Robarts is recovering from a serious health scare, and is ordered by his doctor to take a leave of absence from work in an effort to reduce stress. Naturally, the first thing he does upon returning to the office is take on a new client, Leonard Vole (Tyrone Power), who is charged with murdering an elderly woman in the hopes of inheriting her vast fortune. "Witness For the Prosecution" is a snappy courtroom drama, but it's also funnier than audiences might expect, with just as much witty dialogue as dramatic surprises on the witness stand. The film was nominated for six Academy Awards, including nods for best picture, best actor (Charles Laughton), best director, and best supporting actress (Elsa Lanchester, who plays Robarts' put-upon nurse, but was Laughton's real-life wife).

• Starring: Charles Laughton, Tyrone Power, Marlene Dietrich
• Director: Billy Wilder
• Year: 1957
• Runtime: 116 minutes
• Rating: NR
• Rotten Tomatoes Score: 100%