The best movies on Channel 4 you can stream for free now

Channel 4 has a huge library of free films to stream, and whether you’re after a brilliant Stephen Graham drama or one of Pixar’s most underrated gems, there’s plenty worth your time.

The streaming war is still going strong. Netflix remains the biggest player, but there’s no shortage of films and TV shows across Prime Video, Disney Plus, and the rest. HBO Max only just launched last month, TOO.

That’s what makes Channel 4 so useful (Or 4oD, if you still refuse to call it anything else).

Its film library is completely free to stream, and these are the best movies to watch on Channel 4 right now.

Jessie Buckley is incredible in Wild Rose (Credit: Entertainment One)

Wild Rose

Genre: Drama Year: 2018 Cast: Jessie Buckley, Julie Walters, Sophie Okonedo, Craig Parkinson Director: Tom Harper Runtime: 1 hour 41 minutes

What it’s about: Upon release from prison, a Scottish mother-of-two chases her dreams of travelling to Nashville to become a country singer.

Why to watch: If you’re ever having a bad day, the sound of Jessie Buckley’s smooth, disarming, uplifting vocals in Wild Rose will set you right. This is a wonderfully poignant, life-affirming movie, full of country bangers and an all-time original song (especially if you’re from and around Glasgow).

Top Gun: Maverick will blow you away (Credit: Paramount Pictures)

Top Gun: Maverick

Genre: Action Year: 2022 Cast: Tom Cruise, Jennifer Connelly, Glen Powell, Miles Teller Director: Joseph Kosinski Runtime: 2 hour 11 minutes

What it’s about: More than 30 years after graduating from Top Gun, Maverick is enlisted to train the next generation of fighter pilots for a high-profile mission – and it forces him to confront his past.

Why to watch: Top Gun: Maverick isn’t just good: it’s a contender for the best sequel of all time (yes, as preposterous as it sounds, better than The Godfather Part II). It has everything: laughs, awe-inspiring aero-action, tears, and Lady Gaga. What more could you possibly want from a movie?

Soul will make you weep (Credit: Disney)

Soul

Genre: Animation, Fantasy Year: 2020 Cast: Jamie Foxx, Tina Fey, Graham Norton Director: Pete Docter, Kemp Powers Runtime: 1 hour 40 minutes

What it’s about: Joe, a music teacher with dreams of becoming a professional jazz pianist, falls down a manhole. He’s transported out of his body into another realm, where he desperately tries to find his way home.

Why to watch: A balm for the soul as much as it is a wrecking ball, this is the most unreputably devastating movie in Pixar’s entire filmography. It came and went quietly in the middle of the COVID pandemic, so you may have missed it. Be warned: as gorgeous and amusing as it is, it’s profoundly moving, and you’ll be a soggy-eyed mess by the end.

Jerry & Marge Go Large is based on a true story (Credit: Paramount)

Jerry & Marge Go Large

Genre: Drama, Comedy Year: 2022 Cast: Bryan Cranston, Annette Bening, Larry Wilmore, Rainn Wilson Director: David Frankel Runtime: 1 hour 36 minutes

What it’s about: Jerry and Marge Selbee, a retired couple, uncover a mathematical loophole in the state lottery. Together, they decide to exploit it and use the winnings for a greater good.

Why to watch: Jerry and Marge Go Large’s true story is enough to capture your attention; who among us hasn’t dreamed of winning the lottery? It’s not especially sophisticated (unlike their plot to beat the system), but it is a breezy, amusing, occasionally emotional watch about good people doing something for themselves. You’ll smile the whole way.

The Inbetweeners Movie is still hilarious (Credit: Entertainment Film)

The Inbetweeners Movie

Genre: Comedy Year: 2011 Cast: Simon Bird, Joe Thomas, James Buckley, Blake Harrison Director: Ben Palmer Runtime: 1 hour 37 minutes

What it’s about: Will, Simon, Jay, and Neil mark the end of their school days with a lads’ holiday in Malia. Despite many embarrassing mishaps, they manage to meet four young women.

Why to watch: It’s hard to overstate the impact of The Inbetweeners (and especially the movie) on British pop culture. It’s a relief that the film was watchable – but, better yet, it was just as good – crude, filthy, ridiculous and painfully well-observed – as the show. Somewhere, every night, someone does the dance.

Heat is an all-time classic (Credit: Warner Bros)

Heat

Genre: Crime, Thriller Year: 1995 Cast: Al Pacino, Robert De Niro, Val Kilmer Director: Michael Mann Runtime: 2 hours 50 minutes

What it’s about: Neil McCauley, the leader of a group of bank robbers who’ve never been caught, plans one last job that will allow him to retire. There’s just one problem: LAPD detective Vincent Hanna is determined to stop him.

Why to watch: Heat is the definitive cops-and-robbers epic; a slick, brutal, and soulful action movie that set the gold standard for cinematic gunplay. But there’s something deeper beneath the bullets: two men bound by obsession, chasing purpose in a world that only makes sense when they’re on opposite sides.

Four Lions is an outrageous comedy (Credit: Optimum Releasing)

Four Lions

Genre: Comedy Year: 2010 Cast: Riz Ahmed, Nigel Lindsay, Kayvan Novak Director: Chris Morris Runtime: 1 hour 41 minutes

What it’s about: A group of young, radicalised Muslim men are determined to be jihadists, so they train to become suicide bombers and begin planning a terrorist attack in London.

Why to watch: “Is he a martyr or a f*cking jalfrezi?” 15 years ago, Four Lions put the ‘ha’ in jihad. Through an unprecedented blend of guffaws, heartbreak and horror, the film is both an outrageous tonic and grounded warning. Comedy and tragedy, united in death.

The Child in Time is every parent’s worst nightmare (Credit: BBC)

The Child in Time

Genre: Drama Year: 2017 Cast: Benedict Cumberbatch, Kelly Macdonald, Stephen Campbell Moore Director: Julian Farino Runtime: 1 hour 30 minutes

What it’s about: Stephen, a children’s author, has a happy family with a wife and a child. However, his world turns upside down when his three-year-old daughter goes missing.

Why to watch: The Child in Time is an endurance test, going to enormously affecting lengths to illustrate the stress and mental agony of every parents’ worst nightmare. It’s a difficult watch; deeply sad, strongly performed, and worth the pain.

Lady Chatterley’s Lover is star-studded (Credit: BBC)

Lady Chatterley’s Lover

Genre: Drama Year: 2015 Cast: Richard Madden, Holliday Grainger, James Norton, Jodie Comer Director: Jed Mercurio Runtime: 1 hour 29 minutes

What it’s about: After her husband is injured fighting in the First World War, a beautiful young aristocrat embarks on a forbidden affair with a servant

Why to watch: Yes, you read correctly: this is an adaptation of the famously smutty love story from the creator of Line of Duty, with some of the UK’s most recognisable acting talent. Strangely, it’s far more chaste than other versions of the story – but it’s still a loyal, effective telling with undeniable star power.

Beast is one of Jessie Buckley’s performances (Credit: Altitude)

Beast

Genre: Thriller Year: 2017 Cast: Jessie Buckley, Johnny Flynn, Geraldine James Director: Michael Pearce Runtime: 1 hour 46 minutes

What it’s about: Moll, a fragile young woman, falls for Pascal, an enigmatic local poacher who soon becomes the prime suspect in a string of murders across Jersey.

Why to watch: Long before her (well-deserved) Oscar win, Jessie Buckley showed her beguiling, engrossing capabilities in Beast, a drama that turns a twisted fairytale into an involving psychological thriller (and it’s inspired by a real-life case!).

The Simpsons Movie will still make you laugh (Credit: 20th Century Studios)

The Simpsons Movie

Genre: Animation, Comedy Year: 2007 Cast: Dan Castellaneta, Julie Kavner, Nancy Cartwright Director: David Silverman Runtime: 1 hour 27 minutes

What it’s about: When Homer pollutes the lake, his family escapes Springfield before it’s imprisoned under a huge dome. Wracked with guilt and Marge’s judgement, he sets out to save his home.

Why to watch: “The Simpsons is a faint shadow of itself now (yes, it’s still airing). However, it’s hard to imagine just how much of an ask it must have been for the creators to make a movie that lived up to fans’ hype in 2006.

Amazingly, they pulled it off, with the movie featuring essential scenes in the franchise’s canon, whether it’s Spider-Pig or Bart’s nude skateboard ride.”

You’ll be recommending Sexy Beast to everyone (Credit: Film4)

Sexy Beast

Genre: Thriller, Crime Year: 2000 Cast: Ray Winstone, Ben Kingsley, Ian McShane Director: Jonathan Glazer Runtime: 1 hour 28 minutes

What it’s about: Gal, a retired British criminal, is enjoying peace, quiet, and the scorching sun in Spain… until his psychotic ex-boss turns up to try to make him do one last job.

Why to watch: Ben Kingsley delivers an acting masterclass in Sexy Beast; the scene of him convincing Ray Winstone’s Gal to “do the job” is perhaps the greatest evocation of nervous laughter in any movie ever. It’s also a psychologically rich, individual entry in the genre.

Don’t spoil the twist… (Credit: Searchlight Pictures)

See How They Run

Genre: Comedy, Crime Year: 2022 Cast: Saoirse Ronan, Sam Rockwell, Adrien Brody, Ruth Wilson Director: Tom George Runtime: 1 hour 38 minutes

What it’s about: In 1950s London, plans for a movie adaptation of Agatha Christie’s The Mousetrap are halted by the murder of a crew member.

Why to watch: First of all, See How They Run doesn’t commit the greatest sin imaginable: giving away the ending of The Mousetrap. It may not live up to the twisty, satisfying work of Agatha Christie, but it’s an enjoyable caper in its own right with a great cast.

Boiling Point will put you off being a chef (Credit: Vertigo)

Boiling Point

Genre: Drama Year: 2021 Cast: Stephen Graham, Vinette Robinson, Ray Panthaki, Hannah Walters Director: Philip Barantini Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes

What it’s about: Andy Jones, a brilliant but troubled chef, tries to make it through a busy shift at his restaurant after a disastrous visit from a health and safety inspector.

Why to watch: Will you enjoy Boiling Point? Probably not: it’s a feature-length anxiety attack, engineered to give you the illusion of respite before tightening its grip. But, is it great? Absolutely; it even has one of Stephen Graham’s defining performances.

Don’t expect Happy Valley vibes (Credit: Amazon Studios)

Everybody’s Talking About Jamie

Genre: Musical Year: 2021 Cast: Max Harwood, Sarah Lancashire, Lauren Patel, Richard E. Grant Director: Jonathan Butterell Runtime: 1 hour 55 minutes

What it’s about: Jamie New, a gay 16-year-old from Sheffield, tries to overcome bullying and bigotry to pursue his dream of becoming a drag queen.

Why to watch: Everybody’s Talking About Jamie may be a little corny, and it isn’t especially deep. But it is fantastically uplifting, with catchy tunes and charming performances (Richard E. Grant is a standout), and any fan of the musical will be contented with this adaptation.

Read more: The best movies on BBC iPlayer you can stream now

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