Catch these must-watch movies on Max before they leave at the end of July

Chef (2014)
(Image credit: Max)

A slew of movies, including 50 First Dates, Casino Royale and The Fault in Our Stars, are set to leave Max's catalog this month, which means you don't have long to catch some real gems before they are booted off the platform.  

As Echo and The Bunnymen once sang, "nothing ever lasts forever". And while they clearly weren't singing about shows and movies on the best streaming services – they were probably singing about raincoats or something – the sentiment applies to this month's movements on Max. 

That means you don't have long to catch up with some of our favorites before they're no longer available as part of your Max subscription. And while there probably isn't possible to watch all of the soon-to-be-ex Max movies, we'd recommend making time for this fine foursome.

1. Chef 

Hungry for more after The Bear season 2? This drama might scratch that culinary itch. It features Scarlett Johansson, Robert Downey Jr, Dustin Hoffman and Oliver Platt in the tale of a chef (Jon Favreau) who quits his restaurant job and buys a food truck to try and rediscover the enthusiasm he's long since lost – along with the family he's become estranged from. It's a lovely thing, a feel-good comedy that's a real feast for the eyes. 

This is due to be removed from Max on July 27. 

2. Children of a Lesser God 

This love story didn't just win hearts over, but awards as well. Marlee Matlin won a prestigious Oscar for Best Actress in a Leading Role and the movie was also nominated for Best Picture, Best Actor in a Leading Role, Best Actress in a Supporting Role and Best Writing as well as a BAFTA for best screenplay. The boundary-breaking film is a tender romance between Matlin and William Hurt, who plays a new instructor at a New England school for the d/Deaf who falls for one of the staff.

This is due to be removed from Max on July 31. 

3. Locke

Tom Hardy delivers a career-best performance as an extremely stressed construction manager whose evening is about to get really, really bad. On the face of it it shouldn't work. The film is almost entirely focused on a single character that drives and answers (or doesn't answer) a series of phone calls, which is hardly the most exciting-sounding premise. But it's absolutely gripping, as the different threads of Locke's problems start to entwine in horrible ways. And if you imagine him doing it in his Batman Bane voice you can watch it a second time as a comedy.

This is due to be removed from Max on July 31. 

4. Drop Dead Gorgeous 

This comedy proved to be divisive – the people who hate it really hate it – but this mighty double-act of Denise Richards and Kirsten Dunst had us in stitches. With a cast including Ellen Barkin and Kirstie Alley as two very different moms it focuses on a small-town Minnesotan beauty pageant that becomes incredibly, ridiculously and life-threateningly competitive. It doesn't always hit the target, but when it does it's absolutely hilarious and some of the sight gags in particular had us howling.

This is due to be removed from Max on July 31. 

Carrie Marshall
Contributor

Writer, broadcaster, musician and kitchen gadget obsessive Carrie Marshall has been writing about tech since 1998, contributing sage advice and odd opinions to all kinds of magazines and websites as well as writing more than a dozen books. Her memoir, Carrie Kills A Man, is on sale now and her next book, about pop music, is out in 2025. She is the singer in Glaswegian rock band Unquiet Mind.

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