25 Best 70s Movies to Stream Tonight

The 1970s shook Hollywood to its core. Young directors received unprecedented freedom, blockbusters were born, and independent risk-takers flourished. Whether you want raw social commentary, clever comedy, or genre-defining sci-fi, the seventies deliver. Below are 25 must-see films, grouped by vibe and paired with current streaming homes so you can queue them up tonight.

Streaming note: Availability shifts often. We list services where each title is most commonly found (US region) as of this month. Check your platform’s search bar for local options.

Crime & Thriller Essentials

1. The Godfather (1972) – Paramount+
   Francis Ford Coppola’s mafia epic set the decade in motion. Marlon Brando mumbles, Al Pacino transforms, and every shot drips with tension.
   
   
2. Taxi Driver (1976) – Netflix
   Robert De Niro roams neon New York as Travis Bickle, an insomniac cabbie sliding into vigilantism. Martin Scorsese crafts an urban nightmare that still jolts.
   
   
3. Dog Day Afternoon (1975) – HBO Max
   A botched bank robbery turns into a live-television circus. Pacino’s frantic energy and a true-story script make this both suspenseful and darkly funny.
   
   
4. The French Connection (1971) – Hulu
   Gene Hackman speeds through Brooklyn traffic in a white-knuckle chase scene that redefined action editing. Gritty and relentless, the film nabbed five Oscars.
   
   
5. Chinatown (1974) – Prime Video
   Jack Nicholson’s private eye matches wits with a corrupt Los Angeles water baron. Noir atmosphere, snappy dialogue, and an ending that still stings.
   

Sci-Fi & Fantasy Game-Changers

6. Star Wars (1977) – Disney+
   A farm boy, a rogue pilot, and a princess kicked off the blockbuster era. Practical models and John Williams’s score remain magical.
   
   
7. Alien (1979) – Hulu
   Ridley Scott combines haunted-house chills with space opera. Sigourney Weaver emerges as a new kind of hero, and the Xenomorph still fuels nightmares.
   
   
8. Close Encounters of the Third Kind (1977) – Netflix
   Steven Spielberg’s awe-filled take on alien contact features dazzling model work and that five-tone musical phrase everyone can hum.
   
   
9. Mad Max (1979) – HBO Max
   Low-budget chaos from Australia paved the way for dystopian car-chase cinema. Mel Gibson’s brooding cop rides rough roads to revenge.
   
   
10. The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976) – Criterion Channel
    David Bowie plays an alien sucked into human vices on his quest for water. Trippy visuals and Bowie’s ethereal presence create true cult status.

Horror Masterpieces

11. Halloween (1978) – Shudder
    John Carpenter used a simple mask, a sparse score, and suburban streets to unleash slasher icon Michael Myers. Still terrifying in its restraint.
    
    
12. The Exorcist (1973) – HBO Max
    Head-spinning shocks meet slow-burn dread. Linda Blair’s possession drew lines around theaters as audiences fainted and fled.
    
    
13. Dawn of the Dead (1978) – Peacock
    Shopping-mall zombies deliver gore and social satire. George A. Romero turned consumer culture into literal mindless consumption.
    
    
14. Jaws (1975) – Prime Video
    Beach vacations never felt the same after Spielberg’s suspense master class. The mechanical shark rarely worked, so the terror stayed mostly unseen, making it worse.
    
    
15. Suspiria (1977) – Tubi
    Italian stylist Dario Argento paints a ballet school in neon blood and stained-glass nightmares. Pure color, sound, and wicked fairy-tale dread.

Comedy That Still Hits

16. Monty Python and the Holy Grail (1975) – Netflix
    Coconut horses, killer rabbits, and the Knights Who Say “Ni.” British absurdism at peak form and endlessly quotable.
    
    
17. Animal House (1978) – Peacock
    Toga parties, food fights, and John Belushi chugging whiskey straight. College comedies still copy its chaos.
    
    
18. Blazing Saddles (1974) – HBO Max
    Mel Brooks blew up Western clichés with raunchy jokes, jazz hands, and a mess of fourth-wall breaks.
    
    
19. Annie Hall (1977) – Hulu
    Neurotic romance gets deconstructed with cartoon frames, subtitles for inner thoughts, and a lobsters-in-the-kitchen scene that defined modern rom-coms.
    
    
20. Young Frankenstein (1974) – Disney+
    Brooks again, this time shooting black and white to parody Universal horror. Gene Wilder yelling “It’s alive” never gets old.

Drama & Coming-of-Age Classics

21. Rocky (1976) – HBO Max
    Sylvester Stallone’s underdog script and raw performance earned Oscars and a statue on Philly’s steps. The training montage became template.
    
    
22. One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest (1975) – Netflix
    Nicholson tilts against Nurse Ratched in an asylum where laughter is rebellion. Five major Oscars, still gut-punch powerful.
    
    
23. Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) – Prime Video
    A divorce story that broke taboos, pairing Dustin Hoffman with Meryl Streep in early peak form.
    
    
24. Saturday Night Fever (1977) – Paramount+
    John Travolta struts under disco lights, but the film also confronts immigrant struggles and dead-end jobs. The Bee Gees soundtrack keeps dance floors spinning.
    
    
25. American Graffiti (1973) – Peacock
    George Lucas’s nostalgic cruise of one 1962 night captured car culture, radio DJs, and youth drifting toward adulthood.

Quick Streaming Checklist

(Check region availability before pressing play)