As the Netflix library shifts, favorite acquisitions in various genres come and go. The Netflix Originals have increasingly carved out the streaming service's identity, but there are still plenty of other great movies to choose from.
Netflix excels in providing a rich repertoire of drama movies. Both true and imagined stories fill the annals of the streaming platform, and subscribers will definitely want to watch or rewatch what is currently available. These ten films are a good place to start.
About Time (2013)
About Time (2013) is a gripping time travel movie with a balance of lighthearted and grave moments. The film is set in motion by a New Year's Eve party. Tim (Domhnall Gleeson) learns from his father that he has inherited time travel abilities. He uses them to go back in time and give a girl named Charlotte (Margot Robbie) a kiss at midnight.
Tim soon falls in love with Mary (Rachel McAdams) and uses his gift to change certain events in their relationship. When Tim's father dies, he must learn to say goodbye to the past and live fully in the present.
Silver Linings Playbook (2012)
Silver Linings Playbook (2012) finds Pat Solatano (Bradley Cooper) living with his parents (Jacki Weaver and Robert De Nero) after staying in a mental institution due to the loss of his job and separation from his wife. As Pat tries to get his life back on track, he meets a woman named Tiffany (Jennifer Lawrence).
If Pat agrees to enter a dance competition with Tiffany, she will help him reunite with his wife. Of course, Tiffany's relationship with Pat complicates his plan to go back to his wife.
Charlie St. Cloud (2010)
In Charlie St. Cloud (2010), Charlie (played by Zac Efron) is a senior in high school when he and his younger brother, Sam (Charlie Tahan), are in a car accident. Charlie survives the crash, but Sam doesn't. Charlie is miraculously able to play catch with Sam before sunset every day, but he eventually has to make a difficult choice about the past and the future.
Loving (2016)
Loving (2016) is a biographical film about Mildred and Richard Loving, an interracial couple who married in 1958. They lived in a more integrated town in Virginia but were still ultimately arrested and forced out. The Lovings, portrayed by Joel Edgerton and Ruth Negga, took President Kennedy's advice to bring their case to the American Civil Liberties Union, and the Lovings' Supreme Court case brought down Virginia's laws against interracial marriage.
Her (2013)
Her (2013) is a sci-fi romance drama in which a personal letter writer named Theodore (Joaquin Phoenix) falls in love with Artificial Intelligence. In the slightly futuristic film, Theodore's computer operating system has an attractive female voice (Scarlett Johansson) and names herself Sam. Late-90s and early-2000s Disney Channel movies like Smart House and Pixel Perfect arguably helped predict the AI dilemma of Her.
The Iron Lady (2012)
Meryl Streep portrays former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in The Iron Lady (2012). In the film, Thatcher looks back on her influential life, including becoming the first female prime minister of the United Kingdom and holding the title for eleven years in a row. The award-winning movie is a great choice for history buffs who may not have viewed it yet.
The Perks Of Being A Wallflower (2012)
Emma Watson, Ezra Miller, and Logan Lerman play the main characters of the 1990s-era story. Lerman's Charlie Kelmeckis is clinically depressed and has spent time in a mental institution. His new friends attempt to bring Charlie to a lighter place, but Charlie struggles when Sam and Patrick must eventually go off to college.
The Notebook (2004)
When people think of novels by Nicholas Sparks, The Notebook is often one of the first that comes to mind. The film version from 2004 starring Rachel McAdams and Ryan Gosling quickly became a favorite among its viewers. McAdams is a wealthy girl named Allie Hamilton, and Gosling is a mill worker named Noah Calhoun.
Set in South Carolina around World War II, Noah and Allie must lose each other before they find each other again. The narrative mechanism of the work is particularly moving.
A Walk To (2002)
Before The Notebook, A Walk to told another Nicholas Sparks tale of young love and loss. Landon Carter (Shane West) is a misguided teenager who fails to think through his decisions. It turns out that the preacher's daughter changes his whole life. Jamie Sullivan (Mandy Moore) is made fun of for her religiosity, but she has a pure heart that only wants to help others. Landon walks with Jamie through her final days before she dies of leukemia.
For Colored Girls (2010)
Directed by Tyler Perry, For Colored Girls (2010) captures African-American women living their lives in New York. The women are connected by their various hardships, and the cast centers Phylicia Rashad, Kimberly Elise, Janet Jackson, Anika Noni Rose, Whoopi Goldberg, Loretta Devine, Thandie Newton, Tessa Thompson, Macy Gray, and Kerry Washington as its ladies of many hues (for example, Janet Jackson is the "Lady in Red"). The film was adapted from Ntozake Shange's 1975 choreopoem.
