It’s almost the weekend, and that means you should book in another Gizmodo movie night. This week, pull on your driving gloves, top up on 100-octane racing fuel, and crank over that small-block V8 — these are the best driving and car chase movies and TV streaming online right now.
We’ve re-jigged our existing Netflix Movie Night series, and brought in Australia’s other popular subscription video on demand services — Stan and Presto — to give you a broader selection of movies and TV shows to enjoy. On all three services, you can watch from your tablet or smartphone, on your PC or laptop, through your Smart TV, or through a media streaming dongle like the Google Chromecast, although specifics can vary.
Stan costs a flat $10 per month, Netflix can cost from $9 to $15 per month, and Presto is $10 to $15 depending which package you choose.
Not what you’re after? Check out some other Gizmodo Movie Night suggestions:
15 Mars, Moon And Space Movies And TV Shows That Are Out Of This World
15 Of The Best Monster, Alien And Creature Features Streaming Right Now
15 Date Night Movies And TV Series That Actually Aren’t Terrible
Notable exceptions from this list are The Italian Job, Days of Thunder, and all the Fast and Furious franchise, which are genuinely fun car movies — even if the newer ones are a little detached from reality. By the way, if you like car films, you should track down The Hire — it’s a series of eight short fictional films made by BMW and starring Clive Owen, showcasing a whole range of different mid-’00s BMWs sliding around doing crazy things.
Stan
Drive
Drive is a great — and understated — car movie. Ryan Gosling is the Driver, a wheelman working odd jobs for the Hollywood movie industry, spinning a wrench in his spare time, and also running from the police in a life of crime. Drive isn’t all about cars like a Gone In 60 Seconds or a Need For Speed, but it’s a good movie outside of the car chases and spinning tyres, too — which is rare in this genre. Watch it now on Stan.
Stan: Ryan Gosling stars as a Los Angeles wheelman for hire, stunt driving for movie productions by day and steering getaway vehicles for armed heists by night. Though a loner by nature, Driver can’t help falling in love with his beautiful neighbour Irene.
The Spy Who Loved Me
The Spy Who Loved Me has one of the best car chase scenes of all time in it. A brand-new-for-1977 Lotus Esprit supercar — loaded, in true Bond fashion, with missiles and bulletproofing — chased by a helicopter and cars, evades capture in just about the best way possible; perennial action hero and super-spy James Bond drives into the ocean, flips a switch, and continues on his way as the Esprit transforms into a submarine. Watch it now on Stan.
Stan: When British and Russian nuclear subs start to mysteriously vanish, Agent 007 is assigned to team up with Russia’s beautiful top spy to thwart archvillain Karl Stromberg’s plans for destroying the world with nuclear bombs.
Death Proof
Death Proof is part of the Tarantino Grindhouse double feature, sharing the silver screen with Planet Terror. It’s an obvious homage to the car and sexploitation film era of the ’70s, with big crashes, voluptuous women and fast cars, and it absolutely delivers on all three of those promises. A psychopathic movie stunt driver stalks young women and then coerces them into his “death-proof” stunt car. Watch it now on Stan.
Stan: For DJ, Jungle Julia, dusk offers an opportunity to unwind with two of her friends. Tracking their moves is Stuntman Mike, a rebel who leers from behind the wheel of his car. As the girls settle into their beers, Mike’s weapon revs just feet away.
Life On Mars
Life On Mars is a left-field choice for a TV show about cars, but bear with me. Sure, the two-series show’s stars are ostensibly DCI Sam Tyler and DCI Gene Hunt, but in every episode and scene that it’s in, the spotlight is stolen by the Mark 3 Ford Cortina. If you like old cars, and the occasional cops-versus-robbers car chase, then this show should be on your list to watch. The ’70s-themed music is predictably awesome. Watch it now on Stan.
Stan: John Simm stars as the Manchester detective who, after a car crash, wakes up in 1973.
Ronin
Ronin has one of the best car chase scenes in any movie that I’ve watched. Throughout the streets of Nice and Paris, a plot to steal a briefcase by a loose coalition of former soldiers, spies and intelligence agents goes awry. There’s a convoy attack, a high-speed highway chase, and a getaway through narrow city streets; the cars in this movie are late-’90s cool, including the hulking Audi S8 and massive Mercedes 450SEL 6.9. Watch it now on Stan.
Stan: An international team of former intelligence agents is hired to carry out a dangerous mission in this post-Cold War action adventure directed by veteran filmmaker John Frankenheimer. When the caper goes awry, each member reveals his true self.
Netflix
Need For Speed
Need For Speed may seem like a cynical cash-grab on the back of a long-running video game franchise, but I promise you, it’s not — it’s a bunch of different races rooted in a lot more reality than the Fast and Furious franchise. The cars — whether they’re tuner imports, old-school or new-school American muscle, or million-dollar European hypercars — are beautiful and beautifully shot, and they make Need For Speed a genuinely enjoyable movie for gearheads. Watch it now on Netflix.
Netflix: Fresh out of the jail, a street racer puts the pedal to the metal in a wild cross-country event to take down the man who framed him for manslaughter.