HBO Max has just as many certified Hollywood classics on its platform as it does underrated gems. Indeed, its film library contains genre home runs from the likes of Alex Garland and the late, great Rob Reiner, as well as a recent, acclaimed effort from one of the world’s most revered cinematic auteurs. Three films, in particular, are streaming on HBO Max that could not be any more different from each other and yet they all have an equal chance of blowing you away.
With that in mind, here are the three best movies you can stream on HBO Max this weekend.
“One Battle After Another” (2025)
It did not take long for “One Battle After Another” to emerge as the most acclaimed film of 2025. Almost immediately after its release in late September, the film was being hailed as a unique achievement and one of the greatest triumphs of writer-director Paul Thomas Anderson’s already storied Hollywood career. A $180 million blockbuster brimming with explicit political themes and some of the most audacious filmmaking of Anderson’s career, “One Battle After Another” somehow over-delivers on all of its promises.
Inspired by Thomas Pynchon’s “Vineland,” this contemporary epic about a former revolutionary father (Leonardo DiCaprio) and his young daughter (Chase Infiniti) who are forced to go on the run from a vindictive U.S. colonel (Sean Penn) from the former’s past never runs out of ways to thrill and shock you. There are not many movies like “One Battle After Another,” and there was certainly nothing else like it released in 2025.
“When Harry Met Sally…” (1989)
If there was any solace to be found in the tragic deaths of director Rob Reiner and his wife Michele in late 2025, it was in the collective outpouring of love for Reiner’s work that suddenly came flooding in from all corners of Hollywood and the internet. Searching for some kind of comfort, many — including this writer — instinctively revisited Reiner’s 1989 classic “When Harry Met Sally…” only to discover that, yes, the seminal, oft-imitated rom-com is still just as magical as ever.
An endlessly quotable, uproariously funny gem, “When Harry Met Sally…” did not just set the template for the modern-day Hollywood romantic comedy — it perfected it. Here is a film overflowing with heart, charm and humanity. Many have tried to follow in its footsteps over the years and few, if any, have come close to matching it. Such is the power of Reiner’s filmmaking, and such is the power of “When Harry Met Sally…”
“Ex Machina” (2015)
Rounding out this week’s picks is “Ex Machina,” writer-director Alex Garland’s 2015 sci-fi masterpiece about an everyday programmer (Domhnall Gleeson) who is invited by his CEO boss (Oscar Isaac) to interview and test the intelligence of the latter’s fully sentient female humanoid robot (Alicia Vikander). Cold, cutting and methodically, almost painfully paced, “Ex Machina” expertly keeps both the viewer and its protagonist — Gleeson’s Caleb — constantly on their heels.
Garland’s screenplay repeatedly pits the film’s three leads against each other in formal, philosophically rich debates about free will, intent and humanity and, thus, forces you to wonder not only who to trust but also how much of what is happening in each scene is real or manufactured. Ultimately, its many deceptions pave the way for an ending that is as thrilling as it is horrifying, triumphant as it is sickening. As far as the canon of great sci-fi movies goes, “Ex Machina” felt like an instant addition to its library when it was released. Over 10 years later, that reaction just seems all the more justified.
