The best movies on Netflix Australia: great films you can watch right now

Need some kid-friendly entertainment that will make the whole family happy? We've selected some of the best family movies that Netflix Australia has to offer. Each one of these films is guaranteed to leave you feeling warm and fuzzy. 

How to Train Your Dragon

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Credit: DreamWorks Animation

Credit: DreamWorks Animation

One of the best animated films of the last decade, How to Train Your Dragon surprised everyone with its tale of a young Viking boy who defies his village's dragon hunting ways to become the very first dragon rider. When Hiccup (Jay Baruchel) stumbles upon an injured Night Fury, the rarest and most-feared dragon in existence, he manages to befriend the creature (which he adorably names 'Toothless'), eventually teaching his family a valuable lesson in the process. Packed with incredible action and adventure, How to Train Your Dragon is a classic that can be enjoyed by both young and old. 

IMDB Rating: 81%, Rotten Tomatoes: 98%

The Iron Giant

The Iron Giant

Credit: Warner Bros.

Criminally overlooked by audiences upon initial release, The Iron Giant is an animated film that has steadily grown in appreciation over the years, to the point where many traditional animation purists now consider it an undisputed classic. The feature-length debut of director Brad Bird (The Incredibles, Ratatouille, Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol), and Set during the 1950s at the height of the 'Red Scare' period of America's history, The Iron Giant tells the story of a lonely boy named Hogarth (Eli Marienthal) who makes a new best friend in an enormous amnesiac robot (Vin Diesel). The robot eventually realises that he was actually built as a weapon, and before long, the authorities find out about him and set out on a quest to destroy the gentle giant. Now the boy and his metallic friend have to protect each other at all costs. A touching film in the tradition of E.T. the Extra-terrestrial, The Iron Giant deserves to be considered as not just a terrific animated film, but as one the greatest films of the '90s, period. 

IMDB Rating: 8.0, Rotten Tomatoes: 96%

Back to the Future

Back to the Future

Credit: Universal / Sony Pictures

A time-travelling classic from director Robert Zemeckis (Forrest Gump) and producer Steven Spielberg (Raiders of the Lost Ark), Back to the Future sees 1980s teenager Marty McFly (Michael J. Fox) race back to the 1950s to ensure that his parents meet during high school and fall in love – he better succeed, because if he fails, he'll be wiped from existence in his current timeline! To do this, he'll need help from Doc Brown (Christopher Lloyd) – an eccentric scientist who's built a working time machine in the form of a DeLorean sports car. A fantastic fish-out-of-water tale that leans heavily on 1950s nostalgia, great performances and terrific visual effects, Back to the Future can be considered a high-watermark from everyone involved.

IMDB Rating: 8.5, Rotten Tomatoes: 96%

Stephen Lambrechts
Senior Journalist, Phones and Entertainment

Stephen primarily covers phones and entertainment for TechRadar's Australian team, and has written professionally across the categories of tech, film, television and gaming in both print and online for over a decade. He's obsessed with smartphones, televisions, consoles and gaming PCs, and has a deep-seated desire to consume all forms of media at the highest quality possible. 


He's also likely to talk a person’s ear off at the mere mention of Android, cats, retro sneaker releases, travelling and physical media, such as vinyl and boutique Blu-ray releases. Right now, he's most excited about QD-OLED technology, The Batman and Hellblade 2: Senua's Saga.