The 13 best classic films on Hulu

Sure, Hulu’s got a great catalogue of current and recent TV hits, not to mention a pretty impressive originals lineup of its own. But sometimes, you’re in the mood for something more classic — a feature film that’s stood the test of time, say. 

That’s where we come in to help. We’ve scoured Hulu to find the best old films from a range of genres, from action-packed Westerns to goofy comedies to swooning romances. Below is our list of the 13 best classic films on Hulu, listed in order of release. 

1. The Furies (1950)

Hulu boasts a surprisingly decent selection of classic Westerns from over the decades, as you’ll see on this very list. One to seek out is Anthony Mann’s The Furies, a Criterion-approved psychodrama starring Barbara Stanwyck as a strong-willed heiress to a sprawling New Mexico cattle ranch and Walter Huston, in his final role, as her equally strong-willed father. The two lock horns over her choice of a husband and his choice of a wife (yes, Freud would have a field day), and ultimately break entirely over a fatal decision regarding management of the ranch itself. If you like sprawling Western vistas, shadowy film noir style, and epic Shakespearean family drama, The Furies is one to put on your to-watch list.

How to watch: The Furies is streaming on Hulu.

2. Johnny Guitar (1954)

Though Nicholas Ray’s Johnny Guitar takes its name from the handsome gunslinger (Sterling Hayden) who arrives in town at the start of the movie, this is really the story of his former lover, saloon owner Vienna (Joan Crawford). Having aroused the animosity of a powerful pack of locals led by her bitter rival (Mercedes McCambridge), Vienna is targeted over her (wrongfully) suspected association with a recent killing, lack of evidence be damned. Brimming with heated emotion, rendered in bold Technicolor style, and anchored by a ferocious leading performance from Crawford, Johnny Guitar is a unique Western whose queer undertones and political messaging still feel fresh, even more than half a century later.

How to watch: Johnny Guitar is streaming on Hulu.

3. The Bellboy (1960)

The Bellboy opens with a (fictitious) studio exec laughing hysterically after explaining that the film you’re about to see has no story and no plot, and is just “real silly” — and, well, the film itself turns out to be exactly as promised. Comic legend Jerry Lewis stars in his own directorial debut as a comically inept bellboy at the Fontainebleau Hotel in Miami, whom we follow through a series of mostly disconnected gags, each of which last just long enough to elicit a giggle. And if you’re still in the mood for more goofiness once you’ve breezed through The Bellboy‘s 72 minutes, Lewis’s The Patsy and Cinderfella are on Hulu, too. 

How to watch: The Bellboy is streaming on Hulu.

4. The Pawnbroker (1964)

Directed by Sidney Lumet, The Panwbroker is considered to be one of the first American films to grapple with the Holocaust from a survivor’s perspective — and the picture it paints is utterly devastating. The survivor in question is Sol Nazerman (Rod Steiger), a former professor who’s managed to start a new life running a pawn shop in Harlem, but who remains so profoundly traumatized and embittered by his experiences that he has all but shut himself off from human connection. As the 25th anniversary of his wife’s death approaches, and painful memories intrude on his thoughts, Nazerman is pushed to another breaking point. Needless to say, The Pawnbroker is a harrowing watch — but it’s also a powerful, thought-provoking one. 

How to watch: The Pawnbroker is streaming on Hulu.

5. Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969) 

There’s a reason Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid has a reputation as a stone-cold classic: It’s really that good. The story, which centers around two outlaws on the run after a train heist gone bad, provides plenty of thrills, but what really the film special is the chemistry between its two leads, Paul Newman as the charismatic Butch Cassidy and Robert Redford as the sardonic Sundance Kid. Bolstered by witty dialogue from screenwriter William Goldman, their friendship set the gold standard for countless buddy films to come — and remains irresistibly endearing to this day. 

How to watch: Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid is streaming on Hulu.

6. Young Frankenstein (1974)

Young Frankenstein has the audacity to imagine a world where a descendant of Victor Frankenstein, the mad scientist who created the famous monster, forsakes his family name. “It’s ‘Fronkensteen,” young Frederick repeatedly insists.

That gag, and so many others, give this absolute classic from Mel Brooks so much of its propulsive energy. Like all the best comedies, Young Frankenstein‘s humor is timeless. Carried by two incredible stars in Gene Wilder and Peter Boyle, and also featuring legends like Teri Garr, Cloris Leachman, and Marty Feldman, this chaotic send-up of an all-time classic movie monster tale delivers again and again. Make the time to watch it. — Adam Rosenberg, Senior Entertainment Reporter 

How to watch: Young Frankenstein is streaming on Hulu.

7. Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter (1974)

The vampire of Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is a rather peculiar sort, one that ravages the English countryside draining victims not of their blood, but their youth. Then again, the vampire hunter, Captain Kronos (Horst Janson) is a pretty interesting character, too — a swashbuckling former soldier who’s seen enough in his travels to know that all sorts of vampires lurk out there. Made during the last gasps of the golden age of Hammer horror, Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter was originally intended as the start of a new film series. While those plans were not to be, this first and only installment stands as a Gothic horror tale worth enjoying in its own right. 

How to watch: Captain Kronos: Vampire Hunter is streaming on Hulu.

8. Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan (1982)

Choosing a “best” Star Trek is always a fraught issue, but if there’s any safe pick to be made then The Wrath of Khan is it. Featuring the original series cast in their second big screen outing, Khan throws back to a Season 1 episode that first aired in 1967. That episode introduced Ricardo Montalbán as Khan Noonien Singh, a villainous figure from the fictional Eugenics Wars of Trek’s late ’90s.

In the episode, we learn how Khan and his gang of genetically engineered superhumans escaped an Earth that wanted them dead, plunging themselves into cryogenic stasis. The Enterprise crew wakes them up and not-so-nice shenanigans ensue soon after. The episode ends on an ambiguous note, with Captain Kirk leaving Khan and his crew to scrape out a new existence on an uncolonized and inhospitable world.

The Wrath of Khan picks up 15 years later, with Khan and his crew finding a way to escape after enduring years of painful hardship. The ancient Earthman still has a bone to pick with Captain Kirk and his friends at Starfleet, and he’ll stop at nothing to have the final word. The Wrath of Khan is Star Trek firing on all cylinders, and while its “best” status within the series is debatable, it’s still worth sitting down to watch. — A.R. 

How to watch: Star Trek II: The Wrath of Khan is streaming on Hulu.

9. Footloose (1984)

Be honest: Just reading the title of this entry has you humming along to Kenny Loggins already, doesn’t it? With a soundtrack that still slaps, even in 2021, and dance numbers that might tempt you to get moving yourself, Footloose tells an uplifting tale of teenage rebellion in the face of small-minded repression. Kevin Bacon stars as Ren, a Chicago kid who’s recently moved to a rural town where dancing is outlawed. Can he bring the joy of dancing back to Bomont? Will he get the girl? Might he engage in at least one angry-dance solo along the way? You know the answers to all those questions already, and you also know you’ll have a blast watching them unfold. (And if you’re not ready for the good times to end when this movie does, the 2011 Footloose remake is on Hulu as well.)

How to watch: Footloose is streaming on Hulu.

10. The Color Purple (1985)

Based on Alice Walker’s Pulitzer and National Book Award-winning novel, The Color Purple is a seminal film that launched the film careers of Whoopi Goldberg and Oprah Winfrey. The main character Celie’s journey from multiple abusive households to a woman fully cognizant of her power and sexuality has become synonymous with the deeply human slow path to self-love. While The Color Purple softens the edges of Walker’s original plot, its strong script brought out Academy Award-nominated performances from three of its cast members and a total of 11 nominations for the production as a whole. The Color Purple famously lost all of its categories, making it one of the most Oscar-losing films of all time and sparking debate on the racial biases present in the Academy to this day. — Alexis Nedd, Senior Entertainment Reporter 

How to watch: The Color Purple is streaming on Hulu.

11. The Princess Bride (1987)

Based on the fantasy novel by William Goldman (yes, the same William Goldman from the Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid entry), The Princess Bride spins a fairy tale that’s equal parts sweetly sincere and cheekily self-aware. Cary Elwes and Robin Wright star as the dashing Westley and the beautiful Buttercup, a pair of star-crossed lovers who — alongside allies like the gentle giant Fezzik (André the Giant) and the vengeful fencing master Inigo Motoya (Mandy Patinkin) — must prevail over countless sword fights, Rodents of Unusual Size, an evil count, and even death itself on their way to happily ever after. 

How to watch: The Princess Bride is streaming on Hulu.

12. Die Hard (1988) 

Die Hard may be a Christmas movie, as a certain subset of its fans are all too eager to point out each December, but its appeal endures year-round. Bruce Willis lends an everyman charm to John McClane, a New York City cop caught in the crosshairs of a terrorist plot during one extremely stressful office holiday party. But it’s Alan Rickman who very nearly steals the show as the slick, scornful villain Hans Gruber. Though John McTiernan’s action classic has inspired several sequels and countless knockoffs in the years since, few have matched or surpassed the 1988 original for sheer, simple fun. 

How to watch: Die Hard is streaming on Hulu.

13. Heathers (1989)

The ’80s teen comedy gets a pitch-perfect pitch-black twist in Heathers. Winona Ryder stars as the popular but disaffected Veronica, whose life takes a turn when she falls for bad boy J.D. (Christian Slater). And when we say bad, we mean bad: He’s literally a murderer, and gets Veronica involved in a killing spree against classmates who’ve tried to humiliate her. Heathers‘ portrayal of the high school experience is so bitingly funny, so sharply observed, that it’s never lost its power to draw blood, and probably never will.  

How to watch: Heathers is streaming on Hulu.