The 10 best Netflix original films of 2019

From dramas to rom-coms to docs and back again, Netflix gave 2019 everything it had. 

Over the past year, the streaming service-turned-content colossus churned out dozens of films — including the latest Martin Scorsese film, a dazzling Beyoncé concert documentary, the cinematic return of the Breaking Bad universe, and a horror movie featuring Jake Gyllenhaal and a gaggle of evil paintings. So, what was the best of the best Netflix in 2019?

Check out our top 10 favorite films from the last year of streaming, as well as an honorable mention for the David Harbour short we’re still processing. 

It’s tough work turning one of the greatest internet jokes of all time into a genuinely moving documentary — and yet, Chris Smith and Netflix pulled it off. 

Examining the events of the infamous 2017 Fyre Festival, FYRE offers well-measured insight into the societal norms that allow con-artists like Billy McFarland to scam innocent consumers. It’s a relentlessly entertaining, occasionally nauseating look at the way comparison culture fuels our behavior, pinpointing where we’re failing ourselves and each other. Plus, there was blow job guy. There will always be blow job guy. -Alison Foreman, Entertainment Reporter

Image: Ben Rothstein/netflix

It took six years for Breaking Bad fans to finally get an answer to the question we’ve been pondering ever since Jesse Pinkman made his mad dash to freedom: What next? El Camino lays out the aftermath with meticulous style, balancing callbacks to the original series (including Robert Forster as Ed the vacuum cleaner salesman, in one of his last-ever roles) with forays into heretofore unexplored corners of the Albuquerque underworld. And, in the end, it gives Jesse Pinkman (played by the still-exceptional Aaron Paul) one of the rarest gifts the Breaking Bad universe has to offer: a measure of mercy. –Angie Han, Deputy Entertainment Editor

Compared to last year, 2019 Netflix was a little low on rom-coms. Luckily, Always Be My Maybe more than made up for that. 

Directed by television goddess Nahnatchka Khan, the quirky love story of Sasha (Ali Wong) and Marcus (Randall Park), childhood friends reconnecting as adults, is as uproariously funny as it is touching and sweet. Offering much-needed Asian-American representation on-screen and the best Keanu Reeves cameo ever written, this delightful tale offered us reprieve from the summer heat and streaming slump. -A.F.

Homecoming is a documentary film that is mainly footage from Beyoncé’s two-night headlining gig at Coachella in 2018 (which was dubbed Beychella for her outstanding performance). On its face, the documentary is a reiteration of Beyoncé’s unparalleled talent uniquely set on a backdrop of the celebratory culture of sporting events and gatherings on the campuses of historically black colleges and universities. 

Homecoming is also especially personal because it serves as a closer look into Beyoncé’s mindset as she nervously anticipated her return to the stage while living in a postpartum body that felt foreign to her. The entire film is triumphantly affecting and genuinely awesome. 

The choreography, vocals, remixes of Beyoncés repertoire, costume changes, and special guest stars make Homecoming, which is over two hours long, totally worth the viewing journey. -Tricia Crimmins, Entertainment Fellow

Image: Claudette Barius/Netflix

From the brilliant mind behind Nightcrawler, Velvet Buzzsaw is among the more underrated projects of the year. In this satirical thriller, a group of Los Angeles-based artists and critics fall prey to the whims of [insert dramatic pause] evil, semi-sentient paintings and sculptures. (No, really. Think Jumanji, but with fine art.) 

Full of whip-smart one-liners, striking visuals, and performances by Jake Gyllenhaal, Toni Collette, John Malkovich, and Rene Russo, Velvet Buzzsaw is a maddening, exuberant journey into a nightmarish world unlike any other. -A.F.

Image: Peter Andrews/netflix

Directed by Steven Soderbergh, High Flying Bird applies some of that Ocean’s Eleven heist magic to the tale of an ambitious sports agent, Ray (André Holland), plotting to end a pro basketball lockout that’s keeping him and his star client (Melvin Gregg) from their work. But Ray has more on his mind than just his next paycheck, and so does the script by Tarell Alvin McCraney. As our hero makes his moves, the “game on top of a game” — the system that keeps (mostly white) owners profiting off the bodies, labor, and social capital of (mostly black) players — gradually comes into focus, and with it the realization that it may just be time to tear it all down. -A.H.

Winner of the Cannes Grand Prix and Senegal’s official Academy Award entry, Mati Diop’s Atlantics offers an intoxicating look at love, loss, injustice, and fear. A startling combination of genre and mood, the strange story of Ada (Mama Sané) and Souleiman (Ibrahima Traoré) begins as a grounded drama but soon morphs into one of the best ghost stories in recent memory. Heartbreaking and exquisite, you’ll feel Atlantics with every soulful beat and unexpected twist. -A.F.

The Irishman tackles the real-life story of the mafia activity surrounding International Brotherhood of Teamsters union president Jimmy Hoffa, specifically looking at the life of Frank “The Irishman” Sheeran in the 1950s, ‘60s, and ‘70s. It’s a long and sometimes convoluted tale stretching well past three hours, but the movie manages to demand attention the entire time as the stakes continue to raise and new twists keep popping up. The Irishman has that classic Scorsese mob movie feel with a fantastic cast, and if you have a free three-and-a-half hours you need to kill, it’ll fit perfectly in there. -Kellen Beck, Entertainment Reporter

Image: François Duhamel/NETFLIX

Chronicling the true story of late comedian Rudy Ray Moore — also known as Dolemite — this Eddie Murphy vehicle is worth every minute of viewing. Dolemite Is My Name is at once a poignant look at the life of an underdog and an unbelievably good time. With supporting performances by Da’Vine Joy Randolph, Wesley Snipes, Craig Robinson, and more, this biopic offers more beat-for-beat joy than many fictional comedies. Sensational, aspirational, and electric, you’ll love it. -A.F.

Writer/director Noah Baumbach’s Divorce Film is many things: a strong drama about family; a sad tale of love lost; maybe even a tentatively hopeful piece about next chapters. Mostly, though, it’s just a damn great movie with two best-of-the-year performances in Adam Driver and Scarlett Johansson as a couple going through an acrimonious split. The two — plus a stellar supporting cast that includes Laura Dern, Alan Alda, and Ray Liotta — make you feel every emotional beat in the 137 minutes; every scream, sob and painful glance dives straight to your heart. 

It’s not easy viewing, but it’s a genuinely moving experience that will have you thinking about the nature of love long after you wipe your eyes and leave the theater. Read Mashable’s review here. -Erin Strecker, Entertainment Editor

Image: Allyson Riggs/Netflix

Perhaps the most bizarre and baffling thing to come out of 2019, Frankenstein’s Monster’s Monster, Frankenstein is a 32-minute “movie” starring David Harbour as David Harbour III who is unraveling the life of his fictional father, David Harbour Jr., a terrible actor. It is such a surreal, confusing, and hilarious piece of art that I personally watched it four times since it came out. Every beat is fantastic and awkward and funny, just don’t come into this thinking you’ll leave with all your questions answered. -K.B.