Top-tier films shouldn't cost the earth. Freely has you sorted whatever the mood, from proper giggles and nail-biting thrillers to family hits and reimagined classics. The best bit? Every single one is completely free!
Stuck for choice? We’ve done the heavy lifting by hand-picking the very best movies streaming right now. Sit back and enjoy.
The Eyes of Tammy Faye (2021)
Stream on Channel 4
The Eyes of Tammy Faye opens the glittering curtains on a world where faith, fame and fundraising blur into one bright broadcast. Jessica Chastain disappears into the mascara and vulnerability of Tammy Faye Bakker, while Andrew Garfield plays Jim with a salesman’s smile that never quite settles.
The film tracks the rise and wobble of a religious media empire, lingering on Tammy Faye’s hunger to be loved as much as believed. Cherry Jones adds bite as Tammy’s sharp-edged mother, and Vincent D’Onofrio looms warmly and warily as Jerry Falwell, a reminder of the power games humming behind the hymns. It watches its characters closely, letting the performance do the preaching and the cracks speak for themselves.
You'll love this if you like character-led biopics or behind-the-scenes dramas such as Foxcatcher or Spotlight.
The Terminator (1984)
Stream on ITVX
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 🍅90%
Hasta la later, humanity! The Terminator terminates the small talk and gets straight to the chase, sending a leather-clad killing machine back in time to make sure the future never happens. Arnold Schwarzenegger turns minimal dialogue into maximum menace as the T-800, while Linda Hamilton is all grit and nerves as Sarah Connor, an ordinary waitress with a very bad week ahead!
James Cameron directs like he is daring the film to keep up, mixing scrappy sci-fi ideas with the pulse of a slasher and the pace of a street-level thriller. Michael Biehn brings bruised urgency as Kyle Reese, the soldier who knows exactly how this ends if he fails, and the film never lets you forget that the clock is ticking and the metal does not sleep.
A must-see if you like sci-fi action with a mean streak or classics like RoboCop and Predator.
Trolls World Tour (2020)
Stream now on BBC iPlayer
Ready to get trolled in the best possible way? Trolls World Tour cranks the volume up and dives back into a universe where every emotion has a beat and every argument becomes a power ballad. Anna Kendrick returns as relentlessly optimistic Poppy, with Justin Timberlake as Branch, still cautious, still catchy and still slightly allergic to chaos.
This time the Trolls discover their world is split into musical tribes, each convinced their genre should rule them all. That sparks a globe-trotting sing-off packed with neon visuals, pop bangers and a surprising amount of affection for rock, funk and everything in between. Rachel Bloom has great fun as Queen Barb, a villain who treats domination like a stadium tour, while the film keeps its jokes coming fast enough to keep grown-ups entertained too.
One for the watchlist if you like animated adventures with big tunes, or family films in the vein of Sing or Paddington.
Prometheus (2012)
Stream now on 5
Curiosity does not just kill the cat in Prometheus, it signs a billion-dollar contract and heads into deep space. Ridley Scott steers this ambitious sci-fi prequel into the shadowy corners of the Alien universe, where big questions about creation come with an alarming lack of safety briefings. Noomi Rapace leads the expedition as Dr Elizabeth Shaw, driven by faith, science and the refusal to turn back once things get strange.
Michael Fassbender is the film’s icy centre as David, an android who watches humans with unsettling interest, while Charlize Theron brings clipped authority as corporate overseer Meredith Vickers. The film trades jump-scare simplicity for cosmic dread and philosophical poking, letting awe and unease grow side by side until the answers feel just as dangerous as the monsters.
Watch this if you like sci-fi that leans into mystery and menace or films like Sunshine and Annihilation.
Dancing at Lughnasa (1998)
Stream on Channel 4
Memory has a habit of putting the kettle on and letting the past wander back in, and Dancing at Lughnasa settles into that rhythm straight away. Set in 1930s rural Ireland, the film looks back on one summer with the five Mundy sisters, where music crackles on the radio and long-suppressed feelings find their feet. Meryl Streep leads the household as the quietly yearning Kate, with Kathy Burke and Sophie Thompson bringing warmth, humour and friction as sisters who love each other even when they drive each other mad.
Based on Brian Friel’s play, the story unfolds through moments rather than plot, finding drama in small gestures and half-spoken regrets. Michael Gambon adds an offbeat presence as the wayward Uncle Jack, while the film keeps circling the joy of those stolen dances and the ache that comes when the music stops. It is less about what happens next and more about what lingers.
You'll love this if you enjoy intimate period dramas or films like Howards End and The Remains of the Day.
Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice (2016)
Stream on ITVX
It is a real cape-off in Batman v Superman: Dawn of Justice, where two superheroes decide that saving the world can wait until they have sorted out their differences. Ben Affleck broods heavily as an older, angrier Batman, convinced that Henry Cavill’s Superman is less guardian angel and more ticking time bomb hovering over Metropolis.
Zack Snyder stages the showdown with operatic seriousness, stacking mythic imagery and thunderous action on top of a very human fear of unchecked power. Gal Gadot cuts through the gloom as Wonder Woman, arriving with the confidence of someone who knows she has just walked into the better film, while Jesse Eisenberg has sly fun as Lex Luthor, poking at gods like it is a parlour game. The result is less about who wins the fight and more about what happens when icons collide and the ground gives way beneath them.
Perfect if you enjoy darker superhero spectacles or films like Man of Steel and Justice League.
The Souvenir (2019)
Stream now on BBC iPlayer
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 🍅90%
The Souvenir opens quietly, almost shyly, inviting you into the life of a young film student who thinks she has everything under control until love complicates the shot. Honor Swinton Byrne plays Julie with an openness that feels caught mid-thought, while Tom Burke drifts in as Anthony, charming, slippery and impossible to pin down.
The film watches a relationship take shape in fragments, glances and awkward pauses, trusting the audience to lean in rather than spelling everything out. Tilda Swinton brings gentle authority as Julie’s mother, hovering at the edges with concern and warmth, and the whole thing unfolds like a memory you are not quite sure you are ready to revisit. It is less about grand drama and more about how quietly life can change course while you are busy paying attention to something else.
Watch this if you enjoy intimate coming-of-age films or arthouse dramas like Call Me by Your Name and Frances Ha.
If this scratches an itch, you can also stream the follow-up The Souvenir Part II on BBC iPlayer!
Polite Society (2023)
Stream on Channel 4
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 🍅91%
Time to kick tradition where it hurts. Polite Society throws a flying roundhouse at the polite expectations of family life, weddings and what a good young woman should put up with. Priya Kansara is a joy as Ria, a London teen who dreams of becoming a stuntwoman and refuses to accept that her sister’s engagement is anything other than a full-blown conspiracy.
Written and directed by Nida Manzoor, the film gleefully blends sibling devotion with bone-crunching fantasy, shifting from heartfelt comedy to sudden bursts of martial arts mayhem. Ritu Arya brings warmth and doubt as the older sister Lena, while Nimra Bucha steals scenes as a future mother-in-law who radiates menace through impeccable manners. It plays like a love letter to sisters who would absolutely start a fight for each other, preferably in slow motion!
This one's for you if you like genre-mashing comedies or films in the spirit of Bend It Like Beckham.
Goldfinger (1964)
Stream now on ITVX
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 🍅99%
Bond gets the Midas touch in Goldfinger, the film that cements 007 as pop culture’s most impeccably tailored spy! Sean Connery swaggers through the role at full confidence, tossing out one-liners, breaking rules and looking faintly amused by the idea of danger itself.
This time the threat comes plated in gold, with Gert Fröbe relishing every syllable as Auric Goldfinger, a villain whose plans are as bold as his name. Honor Blackman brings wit and steel as infamous Bond Girl Pussy Galore and Shirley Eaton delivers one of the most unforgettable images in Bond history by appearing, well, entirely covered in gold! It is all gadgets, glamour and audacious spectacle, the moment where the series realises just how big it can play.
Watch this if you're a fan of the Bond franchise and enjoy more 007 adventures for freeee on ITVX!
The Piano (1993)
Stream on BBC iPlayer
Rotten Tomatoes rating: 🍅90%
The Piano opens on a wind-lashed New Zealand shore, where silence speaks louder than words and a piano becomes both companion and battleground. Holly Hunter is remarkable as Ada, a mute woman whose inner life pours out through music, while Anna Paquin brings sharp intelligence and curiosity as her watchful daughter Flora.
Considered one of Jane Campion's finest creations, the film lets desire and defiance build slowly, trusting mood and gesture over explanation. Harvey Keitel lends warmth and earthiness as Baines, a neighbour drawn into Ada’s world, and Sam Neill plays her husband Stewart with a rigidity that quietly cracks under pressure. It is a story that listens closely, inviting you to lean in and feel what cannot be said.
For fans of emotionally rich period dramas or films like Portrait of a Lady on Fire and Bright Star.
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