15 Truly Delightful Classic Movies That Are Perfect For Anyone Who Wants A Distraction From... You Know

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Not to mention, when these movies were made, the idea of being able to watch any flick you want on-demand was something that only the super-duper wealthy could possibly access. Just thinking about all the movies that are now only a click or two away makes me feel like I have a million bucks.

No, not Slenderman, The Thin Man. This movie (and its sequels) is such a perfect concept that I'm genuinely shocked that we don't already have a Rian Johnson-directed reboot starring Ryan Gosling and Emily Blunt. While we wait for Hollywood to get it together and give the people what we want, at least we have the original. Nick (William Powell) and Nora (Myrna Loy) are a high-society couple with a very cute dog who love throwing back cocktails and solving mysteries. It's a little bit silly, a little bit suspenseful, and so much fun.

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive. 

The Marx Brothers are pure comedy anarchy, and I was so torn when it came time to pick just one of their movies for this list. Ultimately, I went with this one because my family had it on VHS growing up, and it made me laugh just as hard at 8 years old as it does today at 39. While this movie technically has a plot, it's really all about the brothers Marx doing what they do best with the opera as a backdrop. Rest assured, it's worth tuning in for Groucho's zingers alone.

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive.

This Depression-era screwball comedy has Carole Lombard as a frivolous, wealthy young lady who brings "forgotten man" William Powell home to her deeply unhinged family as part of a scavenger hunt. She hires him on as her butler, and while she falls for him, he manages to teach these rich weirdos some pretty satisfying lessons. 

You can stream it for free on YouTube. 

Greta Garbo's Ninotchka is an uptight communist from the USSR who falls in love with a charming Count (Melvyn Douglas) and the pleasures of capitalism during a diplomatic visit to Paris. Garbo is probably most remembered for her more serious roles and for her very specific line read of "I want to be alone," but she's genuinely so hilarious in this picture. By the way, one of the screenwriters is Billy Wilder (of Some Like It Hot and Sunset Boulevard fame), so you know the dialogue is gonna sizzle. 

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive. 

This is one of THE greatest romantic comedies of all time, and it features some of my favorite old Hollywood stars. Jimmy Stewart plays a tabloid reporter who drops in on Philadelphia socialite Katherine Hepburn. She's a haughty divorcée who's getting ready for a lavish second wedding, but her first husband, Cary Grant, has other ideas. This movie has everything: not one but two love triangles, Katherine Hepburn's elegant wardrobe, a witty script, and a perfect score on Rotten Tomatoes. Truly, just thinking about this movie lowers my blood pressure. 

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive.

If you like mess, you'll love My Favorite Wife. Cary Grant plays a man who has gotten remarried after his first wife (Irene Dunn) gets lost at sea and is presumed to be dead. But there's trouble in paradise on his honeymoon when wife number one suddenly reappears — and he meets the handsome man (Randolph Scott) who was her only companion while stranded on a desert island for the last few years. 

This movie is currently streaming on Max for subscribers.

My mom is a true Barbara Stanwyck stan; my love for her is merely inherited. What makes her so great? She has this incredibly real, strong presence on the screen, and she plays a lot of interesting, independent women (we love that). In this screwball take on the story of "Snow White," she's a nightclub singer who helps a handful of dorky encyclopedia writers (one of whom is played by Gary Cooper) update their section on slang, and she teaches them how to have a good time in the process. 

You can stream it for free on Peacock.

If you love You've Got Mail, this musical is one of the movies in that movie's DNA (along with the also wonderful The Shop Around The Corner). Judy Garland stars as a music store employee in 1900s Chicago who falls head over heels for a pen pal — who just so happens to be someone who really pisses her off in her day-to-day life. When I think about this movie, I always come back to the song "I Don't Care," which Garland belts out with such delightful abandon and arm-flailing silliness that I can't not sing along. 

You can rent this movie on Apple TV or Prime. 

This movie is single-handedly responsible for my belief that the right haircut can change your life. Young Sabrina (Audrey Hepburn) is a chauffeur's daughter with a painfully hopeless crush on one of her dad's clients (William Holden). After a suicide attempt, she goes to cooking school in Paris and comes back with a new outlook on life and a very chic pixie cut. She's extremely fabulous, and she quickly catches her old crush's attention — and his brother's. Love triangle alert!

You can stream it for free on Pluto TV.

Though it was made well before the invention of generative AI, this romantic comedy feels really resonant with life in 2025. Katherine Hepburn plays a sharp-as-a-chef's-knife research librarian who butts heads with Spencer Tracy, the computer expert who's been assigned with automating her department. Just wait til you see what the computers in this movie look like! Oh, and it's technically a Christmas movie, but I think it's one of the rare ones that holds up all year round. 

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive. 

I happen to adore this musical, but I know it's not everyone's cup of tea. If you hate talk-singing, feel free to skip this one (my partner would rather get three root canals than sit through this flick, so I get it). Based on a novel by Colette, young Gigi (Leslie Caron) is a courtesan-in-training in 1900s Paris who falls in love with her family friend, playboy Gaston (Louis Jordan). This movie definitely doesn't hold up to 2025 standards (Maurice Chevalier singing about "Thank Heaven For Little Girls" stands out as a "what exactly are we doing here" moment), but I still really love it. 

You can stream it for free on Tubi.

Kim Novack plays the coolest movie witch ever (aside from Fairuza Balk in The Craft, naturally) in this kooky little gem. Novack falls for her Greenwich Village neighbor (and Vertigo costar), Jimmy Stewart, but she's not so happy when she finds out about his non-witch fiancée. Magic and shenanigans ensue. Special shout out to her beautiful supermodel cat Pyewacket and the underground witch's nightclub, The Zodiac, where I personally long to hang out.

You can stream it for free on the Internet Archive. 

In what is perhaps one of the most unserious movies ever made, Doris Day stars as an interior decorator who shares a party line with womanizer Rock Hudson. (In case you don't know, people used to have to share a phone number with literal random strangers, and the phone company called it a "party line" instead of a "nightmare." Marketing!) Day fumes when she picks up the phone to hear Hudson sweet-talking woman after woman, but when they meet in real life, sparks fly. If you love 2003's Down With Love, you need to put Pillow Talk on your watchlist, stat!

You can rent this movie on Apple TV and Prime. 

The Music Man was a huge part of my childhood, and it was often on in the background on holidays and at family gatherings. The songs are so good, especially "Til There Was You," and fans of The Simpsons should note that this movie partly inspired Conan O'Brien when he wrote the classic monorail episode. In this musical, a traveling salesman (Robert Preston) scams a small Iowa town, but he doesn't count on falling for Marian, the librarian (Shirley Jones). This movie also stars a very young Ron Howard and his cute red hair. 

You can rent this movie on Apple TV and Prime. 

This comedy-thriller has the vibes of an Alfred Hitchcock movie, minus the deep and unsettling dread. The movie starts with Audrey Hepburn on a skiing trip in the French Alps where she meets Cary Grant (yes, they have a WILD age gap in this movie, but I personally have chosen to look past it). When her husband is suddenly murdered, she finds herself being pursued by some shady guys from his past, and it turns out that nothing is as it seems. One of my favorite scenes involves a game of "pass the orange without using your hands" that takes place in a Paris nightclub. Ooh-la-la, indeed.

You can stream it for free on Tubi.