It’s almost the weekend, and that means you should book in another Gizmodo movie night. While Australian streaming services rarely have the latest movies, we are rich in classics. So here are 15 classics — real classics, a couple of decades old, that everyone should see.
We’ve re-jigged our existing Netflix Movie Night series, and brought in Australia’s other popular subscription video on demand services — Presto and Stan — 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.
Presto costs $10 to $15 a month depending which package you choose. Stan is a flat $10 per month, and Netflix can cost from $9 to $15 per month.
Not what you’re after? Check out some other Gizmodo Movie Night suggestions:
15 Animated Movies You Should Watch Again
15 Of The Most Mind-Bending Movies Streaming Right Now
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Presto
Taxi Driver
Presto: A gritty depiction of the ever deepening alienation of a Vietnam Veteran as he becomes a psychotic cab driver who obsessively cruises the mean streets of Manhattan.
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The Colour Of Money
Presto: Fast Eddie Felson forms a profitable, yet volatile partnership with Vince, a young pool hustler with a sexy, tough-talking girlfriend.
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Lawrence of Arabia
Presto: When T.E. Lawrence was attached to the British general staff in Arabia, he inspired the feuding Arabian chieftains to rebel against the Turks, leading to the birth of the Arabian kingdom.
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Dog Day Afternoon
Presto: True story about a bank robbery gone haywire one hot August day when two optimistic losers, the frantic master-mind Sonny, and his slow-witted buddy Sal, attempt to rob a Brooklyn bank.
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Dirty Harry
Presto: In the year 1971, San Francisco faces the terror of a maniac known as Scorpio who snipes at innocent victims and demands ransom through notes left at the scene of the crime.
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Stan
The Deer Hunter
Stan: One of the most widely acclaimed films of all time, this is Michael Cimino’s celebrated interpretation of the stresses and dangers – both physical and emotional – which confront a steel-workers when they are sent out to fight in the Vietnam war.
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For a Few Dollars More
Stan: Clint Eastwood is the “Man With No Name,” who teams up with equally lethal Lee Van Cleef in pursuit of a sadistic killer and his band of desperadoes in this non-stop action classic.
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The Taking Of Pelham One Two Three
Stan: Walter Matthau stars as a New York transit cop who must keep gunmen who’ve hijacked a subway car from killing hostages if their $1,000,000 ransom demand is not met within an hour.
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The Graduate
Stan: During a party given by his parents to celebrate his graduation, Benjamin Braddock is seduced by Mrs. Robinson. Benjamin is shy and inexperienced ; Mrs. Robinson is the wife of one of his father’s closest friends.
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Raging Bull
Stan: Raging Bull is a film biography of middleweight boxing champion Jake LaMotta, who was known during his brief reign as “the Bronx Bull.” LaMotta (played with extraordinary brilliance by Robert De Niro) had early lessons in life: to steal and to fight.
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Netflix
The Good, the Bad and the Ugly
Netflix: While the Civil War rages between the Union and the Confederacy, three men comb the American Southwest in search of $200,000 in stolen gold.
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Rain Man
Netflix: A fast-talking yuppie is forced to slow down when he meets the brother he never knew he had, an unusually gifted autistic savant named Raymond.
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E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial
Netflix: Steven Spielberg’s 1982 smash hit tells the heartwarming story of the special bond 10-year-old Elliot forges with an alien he names E.T.
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Ferris Bueller’s Day Off
Netflix: Ferris convinces his entire school he’s at death’s door, then hits the streets of Chicago with his girlfriend and best friend for a day of fun.
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Jaws
Netflix: When an insatiable great white shark terrorizes Amity Island, a police chief, an oceanographer and a grizzled shark hunter seek to destroy the beast.
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Disclosure: Stan is a 50/50 joint venture between Nine Entertainment and Fairfax Media. Allure Media, the company which publishes Gizmodo Australia, is also owned by Fairfax.