6 ‘old but gold’ movies to stream on Netflix and Prime Video this July

Omoleye Omoruyi
Titanic - The 7 best movies on Netflix, Prime Video to stream this July

July is almost done, so we are almost late, but better late than never to give you a list of the best movies to stream this July as we begin the second half of the year.

Last month, we did a list of the most anticipated movies for the second half of the year, but this time we are focusing on the ones you can stream and be glad you did. We’ve cherry-picked the very best of what’s new to Netflix and Prime Video this month.

Our list of the best movies to hit streaming includes James Cameron’s romantic disaster film “Titanic” starring Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet, Hirokazu Kore-eda’s Palme d’Or-winning drama “Shoplifters”, the Coen brothers’ neo-western crime thriller “No Country for Old Men”, and several other amazing films.

Let’s go!

Netflix

Titanic

In terms of popularity, “Titanic” may not have a rival. It is a December 19, 1997, American epic romance and disaster film directed, written, produced, and co-edited by James Cameron, and based on accounts of the sinking of RMS Titanic in 1912.

“Titanic” features Leonardo DiCaprio (Jack Dawson) and Kate Winslet (Rose DeWitt Bukater), two characters of different social classes who fall in love during the ship’s maiden voyage. The film also features Billy Zane (Caledon Hockley), Kathy Bates, Frances Fisher (Ruth DeWitt Bukater), Gloria Stuart, Bernard Hill, Jonathan Hyde, Victor Garber and Bill Paxton (Brock Lovett).

Titanic - The 7 best movies on Netflix, Prime Video to stream this July

Including revenue from the 2012, 2017 and 2023 reissues, “Titanic” earned $674.3 million in North America and $1.583 billion in other countries, for a worldwide total of $2.257 billion. It became the highest-grossing film worldwide in 1998, beating “Jurassic Park” (1993).

The film maintained that for twelve years, until “Avatar” (2009), also written and directed by Cameron, surpassed it in 2010. 

On the weekend of April 13–15, 2012—a century after the original vessel’s foundering, “Titanic” became the second film to cross the $2 billion threshold during its 3D re-release.

On Box Office Mojo, “Titanic” is listed fourth on Top Lifetime Grosses.

Why you should watch: “Titanic” undoubtedly had a massive cultural impact, launching several careers, and igniting interest in the real-life Titanic story. The visual effects and scale of the movie are argued to be much greater than anything that had ever been seen before the film’s release. There is also the love story between Jack and Rose, which is one of the most well-known romances in cinematic history.

Also, streaming on Netflix is much better than watching pirated versions, knowing that “Titanic” is not showing in any cinema.

Pride & Prejudice

Pride & Prejudice is a September 16, 2005, romantic drama film directed by Joe Wright, and based on Jane Austen’s 1813 novel of the same name.

The film features five sisters from an English family of landed gentry as they deal with issues of marriage, morality and misconceptions. Keira Knightley stars in the lead role of Elizabeth Bennet, while Matthew Macfadyen plays her romantic interest, Mr Darcy.

Pride and Prejudice - The 7 best movies on Netflix, Prime Video to stream this July

“Pride & Prejudice” was released in fifty-nine countries between September 2005 and May 2006 by United International Pictures. With a worldwide gross of $121,147,947, it was the 41st highest-grossing film of 2005 internationally.

Why you should watch: The film’s themes emphasise realism, romanticism and family. “Pride and Prejudice” is a story not only of romance but of different people in society coming together despite their differences. It’s about family and loyalty, as well as finding happiness without having to depend on money.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

“Terminator 2: Judgment Day” is a July 3, 1991, American science fiction action film directed by James Cameron, who co-wrote the script with William Wisher.

Starring Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Robert Patrick, and Edward Furlong, it is the sequel to “The Terminator” (1984) and is the second installment in the Terminator franchise.

Terminator 2: Judgment Day

“Terminator 2” earned $519–520.9 million, making it the highest-grossing film of 1991 worldwide, and the third-highest-grossing film of its time.

Why you should watch: The film is seen as a major influence on visual effects in films, helping usher in the transition from practical effects to reliance on CGI. Its greatest technical achievement is the shape-shifting T1000 character who pursues John Connor and makes it necessary for the Terminator to act as protector.

Spider-Man 2 [and Prime]

“Spider-Man 2” is a June 25, 2004, American superhero film based on the Marvel Comics character of the same name. Directed by Sam Raimi and written by Alvin Sargent from a story conceived by Alfred Gough, Miles Millar, and Michael Chabon, the film was produced by Columbia Pictures in association with Marvel Enterprises and Laura Ziskin Productions, and distributed by Sony Pictures Releasing.

It is the second installment in Raimi’s Spider-Man trilogy and the sequel to Spider-Man (2002).

The film stars Tobey Maguire as Peter Parker/Spider-Man, alongside Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Alfred Molina, Rosemary Harris, and Donna Murphy.

Spider Man 2

Set two years after the events of Spider-Man, the film finds Peter Parker struggling to stop scientist, Dr. Otto Octavius, from recreating the dangerous experiment that killed his wife and left him neurologically fused to mechanical tentacles, while also dealing with an existential crisis between his dual identities that appears to be stripping him of his powers.

Why you should watch: “Spider-Man 2” is full of action, has plenty of adventure, and is full of award-winning special effects. The film also has refreshingly down-to-earth and realistic dramatic conflicts.

Clear and Present Danger

“Clear and Present Danger” is a political thriller novel, written by Tom Clancy and published on August 17, 1989.

A sequel to “The Cardinal of the Kremlin” (1988), main character Jack Ryan [Harrison Ford] becomes acting Deputy Director of Intelligence in the Central Intelligence Agency, and discovers that he is being kept in the dark by his colleagues who are conducting a covert war against a drug cartel based in Colombia.

Clear and Present Danger

A film adaptation, featuring Harrison Ford reprising his role as Ryan, was released on August 3, 1994.

Why you should watch: “Clear and Present Danger” talks about the abuse of political and military power, and addresses the dangers of a government bureaucracy where no one can be held accountable for actions implied to be illegal by a democratic society.

Prime Video

No Country for Old Men

“No Country for Old Men” is a November 9, 2007, American neo-Western crime thriller film written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, based on Cormac McCarthy’s 2005 novel of the same name.

Starring Tommy Lee Jones, Javier Bardem, and Josh Brolin, the film is set in the desert landscape of 1980 West Texas. The film revisits the themes of fate, conscience and circumstance and follows three main characters: Llewelyn Moss (Brolin), a Vietnam War veteran and welder who stumbles upon a large sum of money in the desert; Anton Chigurh (Bardem), a hitman who is sent to recover the money; and Ed Tom Bell (Jones), a sheriff investigating the crime.

No Country for Old Men

The film also stars Kelly Macdonald as Moss’s wife Carla Jean, and Woody Harrelson as a bounty hunter seeking Moss and the return of the $2 million.

Why you should watch: Like the book, the film deals with themes such as fate versus self-determination, morality and the changing world between the Old West and modern society. 

Which movies did we miss?


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