The best movies leaving Netflix, Hulu, Prime, and Max at the end of September

We’re almost there, friends. October is fast approaching.

We celebrate horror all year round here at Polygon, but Halloween is a special time of year and we’re excited to celebrate it with you. But first, some business: Some excellent movies are leaving streaming services at the end of September, and you should watch them before they disappear.

Want a wellness classic? Netflix has you. How about a heartbreaking comedy? Go to Prime. And Netflix, Max, and Hulu each have a modern classic for you…whether you’re looking for fast-paced medieval action or the unique voice of Wes Anderson.

Here are the best movies to watch before leaving streaming services at the end of September.

Editor’s Choice

Rocky

Year: 1976
Gender: Sports drama
Duration: 2h
Director: John G. Avildsen
Cast: Sylvester Stallone, Talia Shire, Carl Weathers
Exit Netflix: October 1st

Actually, I hadn’t looked Rocky until recently. With the release of Creed IIII felt inspired to finally go back and relive the origins of the series.

After I finally sat down and looked at it, I realized how much of my hesitation was an unforced error. Rocky is one of the greatest sports films I have ever seen, not for what it says about the sport of boxing itself, but for what it says about why the sport means something. thing for anyone. It is a love letter to an oppressed and disaffected working class who are too often neglected by their own society.

Rocky is much more than a “boxing film”. It’s a story about how the American dream itself is inextricably the sum of all the thwarted hopes, missed opportunities, precarious mistakes, and inevitable heartbreaks that precede it. It’s an unapologetically heartfelt story about the stubborn but unassailable persistence of hope in the face of adversity, of choosing to believe in yourself when no one else will, except those who are the closer to you in your darkest moments. It’s not just about boxing; it’s about the life-changing power of simply choosing to take a chance on this life. The question is: what photo are you going to take? —Toussaint Egan

Watch on Netflix

Miami Vice

Image: Universal Pictures Home Entertainment

Year: 2006
Gender: Crime thriller
Duration: 2h 12min
Director: Michael Mann
Cast: Jamie Foxx, Colin Farrell, Gong Li
Exit Netflix: October 1st

Michael Mann has directed a number of certified motion pictures during his long and illustrious career, such as his 1995 symphonic crime drama. Heat – one of my favorite films of all time. But no other film in his oeuvre is more typically “Mann-core” than Miami Vicethe feature film adaptation of the 1984 crime drama series produced by Mann starring Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas.

The plot couldn’t be further off topic. Here is the true heart of Miami ViceThe enduring appeal of: It’s simply unlike any other crime drama of its era. Mann’s experience with digital photography produces an eerie level of realism through his landscape of crushed brown and black textures and views of bleached white beaches. It’s a crime drama that exudes a sense of freshness entirely on its own terms, a grand experience that has garnered a cult following and reappraisal as one of the director’s best. In short, Miami Vice is an atmosphere. -YOU

Watch on Max

King Arthur: Legend of the Sword

Image: Warner Bros.

Year: 2017
Gender: Fantasy action-adventure
Duration: 2h 6min
Director: Guy Ritchie
Cast: Charlie Hunnam, Àstrid Bergès-Frisbey, Djimon Hounsou
Exit Max: September 30

A visually distinct Arthurian adaptation, Legend of the Sword is unlike any other, for better or for worse. After an opening siege that could also be described as “The Lord of the Rings: King Arthur”, giant war elephants and all, baby Arthur finds himself orphaned. Growing up on the streets, Arthur becomes the typical Guy Ritchie tough guy protagonist (medieval variation), but he is haunted by nightmares of his parents’ deaths. When he pulls Excalibur out of the stone…well, you know, it’s King Arthur.

With jarring, frenetic editing, an electrifying use of speed in climactic action scenes, and a heartbreaking score, the film has a palpable identity, but that also means that this adaptation certainly isn’t for everyone. The script is a mess, cobbled together from several previous unproduced attempts at an Arthur film, but the film is truly remarkable in the way it pushes the boundaries of digital cinema, including some of the best montage sequences in recent Hollywood memory. If you’re ready to have a silly time with an earth-shattering visual feast, give Legend of the Sword a stab. —Pete Volk

Watch on Hulu

Hotel Grand Budapest

Image: Photos from Fox Searchlight

Year: 2014
Gender: Wes Anderson
Duration: 1h 39min
Director: Wes Anderson
Cast: Ralph Fiennes, Tony Revolori, Saoirse Ronan
Quit Hulu: September 29

One of Wes Anderson’s most beautiful works, Hotel Grand Budapest is at once a touching coming-of-age story, a tumultuous ensemble comedy and a confrontation between a director and his very particular style.

The film is set in a luxury hotel in a fictional nation and follows the trials and tribulations of the attentive concierge (Ralph Fiennes), his lobbyist (Tony Revolori), and the hotel’s many guests and employees. Meanwhile, a fascist regime develops and expands around them.

With a large cast highlighted by Anderson regulars giving some of their best performances (including Willem Dafoe as a sinister hitman and Harvey Keitel as the leader of a prison gang), it is easy to appreciate Hotel Grand Budapest as one of the best examples of the director’s distinctive approach to filmmaking. But there’s a deeper thought here, for those who want to look for it: Anderson’s style often evokes a romanticization of the past, but the past really wasn’t romantic for everyone. Grand Budapest engages directly with this, introducing the horror of fascism directly into this nostalgic setting. —PV

Watch on Prime

The apartment

Image: United Artists

Year: 1960
Gender: Romantic drama
Duration: 2h 5min
Director: Billy Wilder
Cast: Jack Lemmon, Shirley MacLaine, Fred MacMurray
Exit Prime: September 30

The apartment is often considered one of the greatest films ever made. This reputation is well deserved.

Bud Baxter (Jack Lemmon) lets his company executives use his apartment for their extramarital affairs. He thinks it will help him advance in the large insurance company where he works. Even though he achieves material gains at work, the real result is that his superiors increasingly take advantage of him, leaving Bud unable to sleep in his own bed or access his own home. Things change quickly when Bud falls in love with an elevator operator in the building (Shirley MacLaine) and wants to regain control of his life.

This is a heartfelt and hilarious romantic comedy, and director Billy Wilder deftly balances the combination of corporate weariness and newfound love with the cast’s exceptional comedic abilities. The apartment is one of those films that everyone should see at least once. —PV