Best Movies to Watch on a Plane

WWhat’s a perfect movie to watch on a flight? A few key features come to mind: something bright and easy to see on a small screen, fast and fun enough to make you forget how uncomfortable that cramped chair is. Today, it is easier than ever to choose from the infinite options for viewing material; In addition to movies available on airlines, most streaming services include the option to download content in advance for offline viewing on phones, computers or tablets.

Here are 15 of the best movies to watch on a plane — most of them lighthearted and fun to pass the time in that don’t rely on a big screen to be worth watching.

Hitman

It’s not even technically summer yet, but this romantic crime comedy (inspired by a true story) is sure to end up in my favorite movies of the year. Glen Powell stars as Gary Johnson, a college professor who pretends to be a hitman to arrest clients while working as an undercover cop – and ends up falling in love with Madison (Adria Arjona), a woman who hires him to kill her husband. In fact, almost any of Richard Linklater’s films would make a great airplane movie, right from Dazed and confused for the Before trilogy for Everybody wants some; They all share Linklater’s signature blend of warmth and naturalistic humor, as present as ever in Hitman.

Little Miss Sunshine

Still one of the best products from the Sundance Film Festival advertising campaign, Little Miss Sunshine is a smartly calibrated crowd-pleaser: a family road trip movie where no one fully overcomes their problems, but everyone makes some progress in learning about themselves. It’s funny, sweet and, at times, touching – and its all-star ensemble features actors like Greg Kinnear, Toni Collette, Paul Dano, Abigail Breslin and Alan Arkin doing some of the best work of their careers.

JFK

If you’re looking for a slightly longer and more immersive viewing experience, check out JFKOliver Stone’s 1991 political thriller about the investigation into the assassination of the 35th president. JFK famously (and controversially) refused to stick to the established facts of the assassination, advancing several prominent conspiracy theories. But historical record aside, it works wonderfully as a dense, kinetic thriller.

Kiss Kiss Bang Bang

Eight years before taking the reins of the third and arguably best Iron Man film, Shane Black directed this criminally underrated neo-noir black comedy, starring Robert Downey Jr. in the performance that would catch Jon Favreau’s attention for his most famous (and lucrative) role. Kiss Kiss Bang Bang succeeds thanks to its very funny and clever meta-script, but it also features charming supporting performances from Michelle Monaghan, Corbin Bernsen and especially Val Kilmer – who, with Downey, forms one of my favorite cop-friend duos of all time.

Smart Book

Some viewers dismissed Olivia Wilde’s directorial debut as Gen-Z Very bad fraud, and of course there are many similarities, including the structure of a long day of partying (not to mention the casting of Beanie Feldstein, Jonah Hill’s sister). But Smart Book is a totally solid teen comedy in its own right, anchored in the chaotic best-friend dynamics between Feldstein and Kaitlyn Dever’s characters.

Love and Basketball

Gina Prince-Bythewood has directed several successful films since her early years, with Beyond the lights and the historical action-adventure film The Woman King as particular highlights. But his best film is probably still his first: Love and Basketball, a romantic drama about two neighbors (Sanaa Lathan and Omar Epps) pursuing basketball careers in Los Angeles. Prince-Bythewood’s original goal was to make “a Black When Harry Met Sally,” It is Love and Basketball likewise, it has endured as a classic, interweaving a tender love story and a riveting basketball story to powerful effect.

Bend like Beckham

Another sports movie, but this one is much happier. Gurinder Chadha Bend like Beckham is another solid comedy-drama, a pleasant, easy watch with a welcome thread of social commentary. Parminder Nagra and Keira Knightley star as Jess and Jules, two young women from Hounslow, London, who pursue careers in professional football while resisting their parents’ prejudices and expectations.

Burn After Reading

This 2008 black comedy from the Coen brothers may not reach the heights of their best work – as Fargo or Where the weak have no place– but it also doesn’t necessarily aim for greatness. Burn After Reading it follows the Coens’ formula of escalating, increasingly absurd and tragic misunderstandings, but it’s still a very funny and dark (and visually brilliant, set mostly in Washington, D.C. during the day) screwball comedy. If you’re still not convinced, choose Brad Pitt as personal trainer Himbo Chad, probably the funniest performance in the megastar’s filmography.

North by Northwest

Feeling dangerous and wanting to see Cary Grant chased by a plane while you are in an airplane? Check out this elegant 1959 paranoid thriller, one of the most popular films of Alfred Hitchcock’s late period. Unlike some of the director’s darker, noirish films, North by Northwest is easily readable at any time of day and on any screen, an action film that would influence the genre for decades to come.

Notting Hill

Before Hugh Grant began to lean into his evil side in his early years, playing narcissistic scoundrels in films like Bridget Jones Diary It is About a boythe ’90s (and screenwriter Richard Curtis) had already established him as one of the romantic comedy machine’s most charming leads. Four weddings and a funeral It’s a classic, but I prefer the 1999 one Notting Hill, a very funny film about the relationship between an anxious and passionate bookseller and an American actress. Julia Roberts’s refreshingly calm performance pairs perfectly with Grant’s signature restless neuroticism.

My Neighbor Totoro

Interested in something lively? My Neighbor Totoro is among one of the coziest films ever made, which makes it an ideal watch for a flight. Of course, there is an element of melancholy in the film; Satsuki and Mei’s mother (played by the Fanning sisters in the acclaimed 2005 English dub) is in the hospital with a serious illness, needing the simple comfort of the famous titular wood spirit. Watching it on a flight, you’ll be moved but not emotionally destroyed – and with the lush greens of the film’s rural setting, you’ll still benefit from Hayao Miyazaki’s gorgeous visuals, even on a smaller screen.

Some like it hot

If it were made today, the premise of this 1959 comedy – two musicians disguise themselves as women to hide from the mafia after witnessing a crime – might raise eyebrows. But Billy Wilder’s masterpiece (one of six or seven, really) is rarely the most obvious joke. In fact, many credit the film’s depiction of cross-dressed men (along with murder, gambling, and overt sexuality) with helping weaken the Hays Code once and for all. The film has aged beautifully, especially thanks to Wilder’s warm direction and a trio of funny, endearing performances from Tony Curtis, Jack Lemmon, and Marilyn Monroe.

My Dinner with André

This one certainly doesn’t require a big screen to enjoy. That’s because Louis Malle’s 1981 comedy-drama My Dinner with André is, more than most other films, dominated by dialogue: André Gregory and Wallace Shawn star as fictional versions of themselves, sharing a long philosophical conversation over dinner. The conflict, if any, comes from the contrast in the perspectives of the two men; Andre’s stories of spiritual awakening sometimes run up against “Wally’s” rational, scientific way of moving through the world. But it’s mostly about watching two intelligent men have a genuinely interesting conversation.

The Fugitive

The kind of action thriller we saw a lot of in the 90s, but less often these days. The Fugitive is an ideal vehicle for Harrison Ford, who plays Dr. Richard Kimble, a vascular surgeon accused of his wife’s murder. Kimble tries to prove his innocence and find the real killer, pursued by Deputy US Marshal Sam Gerard (Tommy Lee Jones, who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actor). It’s exactly as fun as it sounds.

Uninformed

Amy Heckerling’s modern adaptation of Jane Austen’s novel Emma left a huge mark on popular culture in 1995, from its fashion trends to its many quotable lines (“As if!” among them). And it’s still hilarious today, with the iconic Cher Horowitz (Alicia Silverstone) serving as the perfectly delusional but lovable protagonist with possibly the best movie narration ever. Even in 2024, there are few movie-watching experiences more purely joyful than Uninformed.