You do not need a subscription to watch some of the best films ever made. The ten movies below are in the public domain in the United States, which means they can be watched and shared legally, and copies are commonly offered free by archives and video sites. Each title has a card linking to its page on Every Movie Plug.
1. Night of the Living Dead (1968)
George A. Romero's horror classic is public domain because its copyright notice was accidentally removed during a title change.
Horror · 1968
Night of the Living Dead
Survivors trapped in an old Pennsylvania farmhouse by flesh-eating ghouls.
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2. Nosferatu (1922)
The silent vampire film about Count Orlok, whose copyright has expired.
Horror · 1922
Nosferatu
Count Orlok summons a happily married real estate agent to his castle.
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3. Metropolis (1927)
Fritz Lang's sci-fi epic about a city divided between rich and poor. Films published before 1929 have passed into the public domain in the U.S.
Sci-Fi · 1927
Metropolis
A futuristic city sharply divided between the rich and the poor.
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4. A Trip to the Moon (1902)
Georges Méliès's short about explorers fired to the Moon from a giant cannon.
Sci-Fi · 1902
A Trip to the Moon
A professor and five colleagues reach the Moon by firing a rocket from a giant cannon.
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5. The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari (1920)
The German Expressionist horror landmark.
Horror · 1920
The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari
A young man recalls terrifying events that he and his fiancée recently endured.
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6. Charade (1963)
The Cary Grant and Audrey Hepburn thriller, in the public domain in the U.S. because it was released without a copyright notice, per the Internet Archive.
Thriller · 1963
Charade
After a skiing trip in the French Alps, Regina Lampert returns to Paris to learn her husband has been killed.
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7. His Girl Friday (1940)
The screwball newspaper comedy, whose copyright was not renewed in 1968.
Comedy · 1940
His Girl Friday
A newspaper publisher schemes to win back his star reporter, who is also his estranged wife.
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8. Plan 9 from Outer Space (1957)
Ed Wood's cult sci-fi film, whose copyright was not renewed.
Sci-Fi · 1957
Plan 9 from Outer Space
Space soldiers use an electric device to resurrect the dead in California.
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9. The General (1926)
Buster Keaton's Civil War locomotive chase, a pre-1929 film.
Comedy · 1926
The General
Union spies steal Johnny Gray's prized locomotive with his girlfriend aboard.
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10. The Kid (1921)
Charlie Chaplin's silent comedy about a tramp raising an abandoned boy.
Comedy · 1921
The Kid
A tramp raises a boy who was abandoned by his mother as a newborn.
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Public domain status depends on the country and on the specific edition. Restored or re-edited versions of older films can still be protected, so watch a version that is offered free by its host. Reasons for each film's status are drawn from Movies Found Online and the Internet Archive.