The best films on ITVX you can stream for free right now

ITVX has a huge library of amazing movies – and, the best part is, you don’t need to pay anything to watch them.

The launch of HBO Max has served as a sobering reminder of just how many streaming platforms there are.

Netflix is still the biggest and most popular, but Prime Video, Disney Plus, Paramount Plus, and Apple TV (to mention a few) all have their merits – and their own direct debits.

That’s where ITVX comes in. If you’re looking for a film to watch, and you don’t mind a few ads, you can watch all of these completely free. It helps that they’re brilliant, too.

Before Roger Moore… there was George Lazenby (Credit: United Artists)

Meet the Parents / Meet the Fockers

Genre: Comedy Year: 2000, 2004 Cast: Ben Stiller, Robert De Niro, Blythe Danner, Teri Polo Director: Jay Roach Runtime: 1 hour 48 minutes, 1 hour 55 minutes

What it’s about: Greg Focker – yes, that’s his name – wants to marry his girlfriend, Pam. He wants to meet her parents before he proposes – however, over the course of one chaotic weekend, his father-in-law-to-be puts him through hell.

Why to watch: Meet the Parents strikes the perfect balance between cringe, relatability, and pure star power (this was before Robert De Niro took a check for just about anything). It has some of the funniest scenes in any comedy from the 2000s – and then its sequel, the filthier, more preposterous Meet the Fockers, still manages to be a laugh riot.

Looks like we have a case of stick-it-to-the-man-eosis (Credit: Paramount Pictures)

School of Rock

Genre: Comedy, Family Year: 2003 Cast: Jack Black, Joan Cusack, Mike White, Sarah Silverman Director: Richard Linklater Runtime: 1 hour 49 minutes

What it’s about: Dewey Finn, a wannabe rockstar, needs a job after he was kicked out of his band. So, he poses as a substitute teacher at a prestigious school… and decides to teach his class the joys of rock and roll.

Why to watch: The Before trilogy may be Richard Linklater’s magnum opus, but School of Rock is (rightfully) his most pop-culturally beloved film, and truly one of the greatest family films of the 21st century. Jack Black has never been better; perhaps never has there been a role more suited to one actor. If you don’t like it, you probably need to assess your taste.

The Suicide Squad could be James Gunn’s best movie (Credit: Warner Bros)

The Suicide Squad

Genre: Action Year: 2021 Cast: Margot Robbie, Idris Elba, John Cena, Viola Davis Director: James Gunn Runtime: 2 hours 12 minutes

What it’s about: Amanda Waller assembles Task Force X, a group of incarcerated villains, for a mission on a South American island. They’re tasked with destroying a secret, sinister laboratory (and not killing each other, of course).

Why to watch: James Gunn is a comic book movie visionary (if you disagree, talk to the wall with posters of Guardians of the Galaxy and Superman). The Suicide Squad – an audacious, macabre reboot of a notorious flop – could be the director in his purest, yet most commercial form. It’s hilarious, gleefully irreverent, and eye-poppingly gruesome – plus, it introduced the world to John Cena’s Peacemaker. What a gift.

Rainbow Road even appears in the film! (Credit: Universal Pictures)

The Super Mario Bros Movie

Genre: Family, Animation Year: 2023 Cast: Chris Pratt, Anya Taylor-Joy, Charlie Day, Jack Black Director: Aaron Horvath, Michael Jelenic Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes

What it’s about: Mario and Luigi, two brothers from Brooklyn, get sucked into a mysterious pipe and emerge into a magical new world – and, alongside Princess Peach, they may become its saviours.

Why to watch: Is The Super Mario Bros Movie… good? It depends on your perspective. Does it have gorgeous animation? Yes. Is it littered with meaningless needle-drops instead of utilising the franchise’s music? Also yes. Does it feel like a parade of Easter eggs rather than a genuine adaptation with a strong, cinematic story? Yes. But, if you played the games, you’ll probably have a great time. Plus, it’s free to watch before The Super Mario Galaxy Movie.

Temple of Doom is the best film in the series (Credit: Paramount Pictures)

Indiana Jones movies (1 – 4)

Genre: Action, Fantasy Year: 1981 – 2008 Cast: Harrison Ford, Sean Connery, John Rhys Davies, Marion Ravenwood Director: Runtime: 8 hours 2 minutes

What it’s about: By day, Indiana Jones is an archeology professor. Elsewhere, he’s a whip-cracking, globetrotting hero who faces off against the Nazis, cults, and… other things, and these are his legendary adventures.

Why to watch: We could talk about how the Indiana Jones movies are a timeless ode to the adventure serials of the ’60s. We could also argue the merits of Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, a vastly over-derided fourthquel that looks better than most films today. However, the reason this franchise works is because it almost always gets the fundamentals right: great action, even better stories, strong supporting casts, and the steely, charming Harrison Ford at their centre.

Catch Me If You Can is one of the best films on ITVX (Credit: DreamWorks)

Catch Me If You Can

Genre: Biography, Crime Year: 2002 Cast: Leonardo DiCaprio, Tom Hanks, Christopher Walken Director: Steven Spielberg Runtime: 2 hours 21 minutes

What it’s about: Frank Abagnale Jr pulls off audacious cons for a living, posing as a pilot, doctor, and lawyer and cashing cheques worth millions of dollars while evading the FBI.

Why to watch: One of Steven Spielberg’s gentlest and most affectionate movies, Catch Me If You Can is a breezy, jazzy, yet exhilarating caper that proved to be the perfect vehicle for the post-Titanic era of Leonardo DiCaprio’s career. It’s impossible not to enjoy it, in our eyes.

Bronson features one of Tom Hardy’s best performances (Credit: Vertigo)

Bronson

Genre: Drama Year: 2008 Cast: Tom Hardy, Matt King, James Lance Director: Nicolas Winding Refn Runtime: 1 hour 32 minutes

What it’s about: In 1974, Michael Peterson is sentenced to seven years in prison for armed robbery. In the violent decades that followed, he became known as Charles Bronson, the most dangerous prisoner in Britain.

Why to watch: The depths of A Clockwork Orange’s depravity will never be reached on-screen again. However, Bronson – directed by the maker of Drive – is close in spirit: an astonishing character study that doesn’t rationalise ‘evil’, with Hardy’s electrifying performance at its bare-knuckled centre.

You’ve never seen a Ryan Reynolds movie like Buried (Credit: Icon Film Distribution)

Buried

Genre: Thriller Year: 2010 Cast: Ryan Reynolds Director: Rodrigo Cortés Runtime: 1 hour 35 minutes

What it’s about: Paul Conroy, an American civilian working in Iraq, wakes up inside a wooden coffin that’s been buried underground. With little more than a lighter and a phone, he tries to figure out how to escape.

Why to watch: John Waters once advised people to see Buried with “someone you hate”. That’s an exquisitely apt recommendation: it’s a celluloid nightmare more visceral than anything you’ve (hopefully) experienced. Plus, it reveals Reynolds’ true dramatic talents underneath his smarmy persona.

Jack Reacher isn’t a faithful adaptation (Credit: Paramount Pictures)

Jack Reacher

Genre: Thriller, Action Year: 2012 Cast: Tom Cruise, Rosamund Pike, Werner Herzog Director: Christopher McQuarrie Runtime: 2 hours 10 minutes

What it’s about: Jack Reacher, a former military police investigator, is called upon to figure out the truth when an ex-army sniper is accused of committing a mass shooting.

Why to watch: Tom Cruise doesn’t look like Jack Reacher as he’s written by Lee Child. If you can let go of your preconceptions, this is one of his most underrated roles; harshly shrewd, clinical in combat, and against his usual movie-star type.

As a film, it’s a compelling conspiracy thriller with superb action sequences; it’s unsurprising that Cruise and Christopher McQuarrie have such a strong working relationship.

Kill Bill is one of the 21st century’s most iconic movies (Credit: Miramax)

Kill Bill (Vol 1 and 2)

Genre: Action, Thriller Year: 2003–2004 Cast: Uma Thurman, David Carradine, Lucy Liu Director: Quentin Tarantino Runtime: 4 hours 7 minutes (1 hour 51 minutes and 2 hours 18 minutes)

What it’s about: Years after a pregnant assassin – code-named The Bride – is slain by her troupe of contract killers, she emerges from a coma hellbent on revenge.

Why to watch: Kill Bill isn’t Quentin Tarantino’s greatest masterpiece (that honour goes to Inglourious Basterds). It is the movie he was born to make; a high-art, bloodily effervescent pastiche with some of the most unforgettable lines and images in the director’s canon. And, yes, we’re grouping them as one film – if you can, watch The Whole Bloody Affair.

La La Land is one of the great modern musicals (Credit: Lionsgate)

La La Land

Genre: Romance, Musical Year: 2016 Cast: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend Director: Damien Chazelle Runtime: 2 hours 8 minutes

What it’s about: Mia and Sebastian, two young artists chasing their dreams in Los Angeles, meet and quickly hit it off. But what matters more, success or love?

Why to watch: Cynics would have you believe La La Land is overrated. They’re wrong: it’s a near-immaculate, swooning, infectious love story that’s shamelessly in love with its technicolour, song-and-dance ancestors. It’ll make you cry, too. What a picture.

Law Abiding Citizen is one of the best films on ITVX (Credit: Lionsgate)

Law Abiding Citizen

Genre: Thriller Year: 2009 Cast: Gerard Butler, Jamie Foxx, Leslie Bibb Director: F. Gary Gray Runtime: 1 hour 49 minutes

What it’s about: Years after Clyde Shelton’s wife and daughter are violently murdered, he seeks vengeance not just against their killer, but the corrupt authorities who let him walk free.

Why to watch: A gruesome, post-Taken crowdpleaser, Law Abiding Citizen is trashy, B-movie carnage with Gerard Butler cut loose. You may not think about it much when it’s done, but you’ll feel like you love it in the moment.

Parasite was the first non-English movie to win Best Picture (Credit: CJ Entertainment)

Parasite

Genre: Drama, Thriller Year: 2019 Cast: Song Kang-ho, Lee Sun-kyun, Cho Yeo-jeong, Choi Woo-shik Director: Bong Joon-ho Runtime: 2 hours 12 minutes

What it’s about: The Kim family lives in a semi-basement flat in Seoul, struggling to make ends meet. When their eldest son starts tutoring a rich family’s daughter, they see an opportunity to infiltrate their lives, but their deception starts to unravel.

Why to watch: Once you overcome the one-inch-tall barrier of subtitles, you will be introduced to so many more amazing films. This was the first foreign-language movie to win Best Picture at the Oscars, and for good reason: it’s a masterpiece that’s immensely entertaining.

Predestination is a criminally underrated movie (Credit: Stage 6)

Predestination

Genre: Sci-fi, Thriller Year: 2014 Cast: Ethan Hawke, Sarah Snook, Noah Taylor Director: Michael Spierig, Peter Spierig Runtime: 1 hour 37 minutes

What it’s about: On his final mission, a time-travelling agent is tasked with going back to 1975 New York to prevent a terror attack.

Why to watch: Predestination is a bamboozling movie in the best possible way; enormously ambitious, dazzling, and expertly performed by Hawke and Snook. You’ll feel dizzy by the time the credits roll – and then you’ll want to watch it again.

Read more: The best movies you can watch for free on BBC iPlayer right now

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