With so many streaming services, it can be hard to keep on top of them all. However, there are some free platforms out there that shouldn’t be discounted.
While Tubi doesn’t have the prestige of Max or the expansive library such as Netflix, there are many hidden gems viewers can find when trying to find something to watch. The service has an impressive library of its own, including a surprising number of classics.
Goodfellas
Martin Scorsese’s 1990 time capsule of organized crime is not only debated as one of the director’s best films but also recognized as one of the best cinematic experiences. His trademark camera zooms, iconic dialogue, and killer soundtrack all amount to a cinematic classic.
Based on the nonfiction book, Wiseguy: Life In a Mafia Family, which chronicled real-life figure Henry Hill’s dramatic experience in the Italian mob, Goodfellas is a masterful feat. Ray Liotta was all but undiscovered at the time Scorsese cast him as the lead character and went on to enjoy a successful career thanks to the popularity of the film. Also starring Robert DiNero, Joe Pesci, and Lorraine Bracco, the film should be a welcome addition to any best movie list.
A Streetcar Named Desire
The adaptation of the dark Tennessee Williams play hammers home all the themes the playwright was known for. Starring Marlon Brando and Vivien Leigh in the Oscar-nominated feature, A Streetcar Named Desire stands the test of time as one of the best films ever made. Blanche DuBois (Leigh) is a proper Southern woman who depends on etiquette to keep herself mentally centered. But her husband’s suicide and her inappropriate relationship with one of her students leave her mentally fractured.
After moving in with her sister Stella (Kim Hunter) and her brutish husband Stanley (Brando), Blanche goes down a tragic path, and there is no going back. Too sensitive for a cruel world, Blanche is slowly and meticulously destroyed by Stanley, who represents everything wrong with society. The film received such heights of critical acclaim that it catapulted Brando into stardom and cemented him as one of the most appreciated actors of his time.
Black Hawk Down
Director Ridley Scott demonstrated his deft filmmaking ability in the 2001 war film, Black Hawk Down. It is far more subtle than Alien or Gladiator but continues to be one of the filmmaker’s best. Based on the non-fiction book by Mark Bowden, the film depicts the events of the 1993 incident when an American military helicopter was downed during the civil war in Somalia.
Stacked with an immense cast including Josh Hartnett, Eric Bana, Ewan McGregor, Orlando Bloom, and Sam Shepard — among many, many others — the film is a harrowing depiction of the story. The tragic events of the film tell an anti-war story beyond reproach that should be remembered in Scott’s career of increasingly substantial films.
Donnie Darko
A cult classic of the highest order, Donnie Darko is almost impossible to describe, which only adds to its status in pop culture. Starring Jake Gyllenhaal before he became the megastar he is today, the film merits several thousand rewatches. Not only because viewers get a different experience every time they watch it, but credit also goes to its passionately crafted moving plot.
Donnie (Gyllenhaal) may seem like an average high school student, but when a plane engine falls from the sky into his bedroom, he starts seeing a humanoid rabbit named Frank telling him that the world will end. Donnie explores concepts of time travel while embarking on a relationship with Gretchen (Jena Malone), the only person who seems to understand him. Literary references pepper the film, as well as conversations about mental health. A film full of room for different interpretations, Donnie Darko is utterly unlike anything else put into film.
Battle Royale
Pitting children against each other in a fight to the death isn’t the most unheard of, but the Japanese film tackles a specific social commentary with the concept. Battle Royale takes place in a world that is not too different from ours.
Following a recession, the government attempts to stop juvenile criminal behavior. To do this, they select one class to fight to death on a remote island. The film focuses on many students’ perspectives and how this reality mentally affects them. The ultraviolence depicted initially put off critics but the film has since earned its place as one of the most celebrated films of its time.
Suspiria (1977)
Dario Argento is considered a masterful artist in horror for a reason. Even to modern audiences, the 1977 film still holds up as a terrifying feat. Suspiria follows Suzy (Jessica Harper), who has just transferred to a prestigious dance academy abroad.
Almost immediately, she finds herself amid strange occurrences that soon lead her to realize the existence of witchcraft. Argento’s visuals are hypnotizing, and the subject material is fascinating. So accomplished is the film that the modern remake could not hold a candle to it.
Robocop
Don’t let the campy title fool you as Robocop is an extremely political film. Director Paul Verhoeven is known for his social commentaries, and the 1987 film is one of his best. Set in the not-too-distant future of Detroit, crime has become so rampant that authorities have decided to create a robotic solution.
After Detroit officer Alex Murphy (Peter Weller) dies in action, his body is utilized and transformed into the titular cyborg tasked with bringing down criminals. None of his family or friends know what has become of him, and this is made all the worse when Alex’s human memories resurface in Robocop’s cyborg brain. Decades before the Defund the Police movement became a rallying cry, Verhoeven already questioned law enforcement’s capacity for violence.
2001: A Space Odyssey
You only need to watch the opening scene of Barbie to understand how culturally relevant Stanely Kubrick’s sci-fi feature remains. Half a century after the audience first saw the huge monolith accompanied by the notes of “Thus Spoke Zarathustra,” Greta Gerwig parodied the moment in the first scene of her film. 2001: A Space Odyssey opens with a monkey beating bones with a club. This moment should absolutely not be taken at face value as it neatly puts forward the concept that as soon as humans gain sentience, they have an affinity for violence.
This theme continues in the expansive film about evolution. After discovering space travel, a spaceship finds the origins of the monolith, which leads them to the supercomputer HAL and devastating consequences. The film is not a light undertaking by any stretch of the imagination, but a must-watch in Kubirck’s filmography.
Ghost In the Shell
Not to be confused with the cursed 2017 adaptation, the original Ghost In The Shell confronts many philosophical questions when it was released in 1995. Based on the manga by Masamune Shirow, the film follows a cybernetic police woman in futuristic Japan. Technology has advanced so much that human beings can be augmented or even replaced by fully robotic parts. This allows their spirit to remain as it can be put into any kind of body.
After Motoko Kusanagi makes use of this technology, she tries to stop a hacker known as The Puppet Master, who questions the meaning of human consciousness. A rich text full of thought-provoking themes, Ghost In the Shell is high on the list of most significant sci-fi features.
Training Day
A definitive performance by Denzel Washington and Ethan Hawke, Training Day is the kind of film that doesn’t come around too often. As the title suggests, it takes place during a single day when a rookie Narcotics detective, Jake (Hawke), gets more than he bargained for.
Washington is larger than life with the dirty cop, Alonzo, on the take. He pushes Jake into dangerous situations that should darken his perspective, but the latter insists on keeping to his ideals and morals until the bitter end. Washington won an Academy Award for the part of Alonzo, one of his most memorable roles. And that alone should be reason enough to take advantage of the film’s presence on Tubi.