Best Movies to Watch on HBO Max in November 2025

Max’s November drop mixes stone-cold classics, family crowd-pleasers, festival favorites, and a few fresh 2025 arrivals, so there’s something to line up for every mood you’ll hit between post-Halloween chills and holiday lights. Below you’ll find thirty standouts with quick primers on what they’re about, who’s in them, and exactly when they hit your queue so you can plan your watchlist without scrolling for hours. Dates reflect Max’s November schedule.

‘Past Lives’ (2023)

Celine Song’s debut follows two kids who part ways in Seoul and reconnect years later in New York, where a reunion stirs questions about fate, identity, and the paths we don’t take. Greta Lee, Teo Yoo, and John Magaro anchor the quiet, time-spanning drama that became an awards-season standout. The story draws on ideas of inyeon, a Korean concept about ties formed across lifetimes. It streams on Max on November 2, 2025.

‘Dawn of the Planet of the Apes’ (2014)

Set a decade after a catastrophic flu, Caesar’s ape community negotiates a fragile peace with human survivors until mistrust and internal fractures tip both sides toward war. Andy Serkis leads performance-capture work that became a touchstone for the series, with Jason Clarke, Gary Oldman, and Keri Russell among the human ensemble. Director Matt Reeves balances large-scale set pieces with a story about leadership and loyalty. It streams on Max on November 2, 2025.

‘Kingdom of the Planet of the Apes’ (2024)

Generations after Caesar, a young chimp named Noa crosses a transformed world ruled by a warlord twisting the past for power, teaming with an orangutan mentor and a human ally. Director Wes Ball opens up new regions and cultures in the franchise with striking coastal and jungle settings. The chapter explores how myth can be bent to control a society, while rediscovered technology shifts the balance. It streams on Max on November 13, 2025.

‘The Town’ (2010)

Ben Affleck directs and stars as a Boston bank robber planning one last score while an FBI agent closes in and tensions in his crew erupt. Jeremy Renner, Rebecca Hall, and Jon Hamm round out a sharp ensemble, and an extended cut later deepened character threads and action beats. The story tracks a neighborhood’s criminal economy and the cost of trying to get out clean. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Out of the Past’ (1947)

Robert Mitchum’s small-town gas station owner is pulled back into a web of betrayal tied to Jane Greer’s enigmatic femme fatale and Kirk Douglas’s ruthless operator. Director Jacques Tourneur adapts Daniel Mainwaring’s novel into one of the defining film noirs, known for misty flashbacks and fatalistic narration. Its UK title was ‘Build My Gallows High,’ reflecting the story’s doomed trajectory. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Murder, My Sweet’ (1944)

Dick Powell reinvents himself as Philip Marlowe in this Raymond Chandler adaptation, investigating a missing person case that spirals into blackmail and murder. Edward Dmytryk’s RKO thriller shaped the look and rhythm of American noir with shadow-rich photography by Harry J. Wild. The plot knits together nightclub crooks, a blindfolded beating, and a wealthy family’s secrets. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘They Live by Night’ (1948)

Nicholas Ray’s debut follows a young fugitive and the woman who loves him as they try to build a life on the run while an older gang keeps dragging them back. Adapted from Edward Anderson’s novel, it influenced later lovers-on-the-run stories with location shooting and intimate character focus. Farley Granger and Cathy O’Donnell headline the melancholy chase. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Bride of Frankenstein’ (1935)

James Whale continues the ‘Frankenstein’ saga with Boris Karloff returning as the Monster and Elsa Lanchester unforgettable as both Mary Shelley and the Bride. Franz Waxman’s score and John J. Mescall’s cinematography give the sequel its singular mix of wit, pathos, and Gothic grandeur. The film deepens themes of creation, companionship, and rejection. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Hellboy’ (2004)

Guillermo del Toro adapts Mike Mignola’s comic about a demon raised by humans who protects the world from occult threats within a secret government bureau. Ron Perlman leads a cast that includes Selma Blair and John Hurt, with practical creature effects blended with digital work. The film draws on the ‘Seed of Destruction’ arc and launched a devoted live-action following. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Beasts of the Southern Wild’ (2012)

In a Louisiana bayou, six-year-old Hushpuppy faces storms, illness, and mythic aurochs while her father fights to prepare her for independence. Benh Zeitlin adapts Lucy Alibar’s play, filming on Super 16 with nonprofessional leads Quvenzhané Wallis and Dwight Henry. Music, worldbuilding, and community texture power a story about resilience in a vanishing place. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘A United Kingdom’ (2016)

Seretse Khama, heir to Bechuanaland, marries Ruth Williams in London and faces political backlash that reshapes the future of Botswana. David Oyelowo and Rosamund Pike star in Amma Asante’s historical drama about exile, diplomacy, and independence. The film tracks negotiations that balanced personal commitment with national stakes. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Dangerous Liaisons’ (1988)

In pre-Revolutionary France, scheming aristocrats play games of seduction and revenge with devastating fallout for everyone in their orbit. Stephen Frears adapts Christopher Hampton’s play from Pierre Choderlos de Laclos’s novel, with Glenn Close, John Malkovich, and Michelle Pfeiffer leading. The production won Oscars for adapted screenplay, costumes, and production design. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘The Public Enemy’ (1931)

James Cagney’s breakout as Tom Powers tracks a Prohibition-era rise and the violent reckoning that follows. William Wellman’s gangster landmark, based on the unpublished ‘Beer and Blood,’ set templates for the studio crime cycle and later entered the National Film Registry. Jean Harlow and Joan Blondell co-star in a brisk eighty-plus minutes. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘The Roaring Twenties’ (1939)

Returning veterans navigate bootlegging’s temptations and betrayals from the end of World War I through the stock market crash. Raoul Walsh directs James Cagney and Humphrey Bogart, with a script by Jerry Wald, Richard Macaulay, and Robert Rossen that folds real events into a studio rise-and-fall tale. Priscilla Lane provides the story’s romantic and moral anchor. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘They Were Expendable’ (1945)

John Ford dramatizes the early defense of the Philippines through PT Boat Squadron Three, focusing on duty, camaraderie, and loss over easy heroics. Robert Montgomery and John Wayne lead, with Donna Reed in a stateside thread that underscores wartime separation. The story draws from William Lindsay White’s account of the real unit. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Thirty Seconds Over Tokyo’ (1944)

Mervyn LeRoy recounts the Doolittle Raid from training to the risky flight, with Van Johnson, Robert Walker, and Spencer Tracy in key roles. Dalton Trumbo adapts pilot Ted W. Lawson’s memoir as MGM mounts large-scale effects and location work. Contemporary audiences responded to its sincerity and morale-boosting approach. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Destination Tokyo’ (1943)

Cary Grant commands a submarine slipping into Tokyo Bay to insert scouts ahead of an air attack, with John Garfield among the crew. Writer-director Delmer Daves draws on ex-submariner Steve Fisher’s story to balance training detail with claustrophobic suspense. The mission builds toward a high-risk insertion and retrieval. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Objective, Burma!’ (1945)

Errol Flynn leads paratroopers on a raid to destroy a radar site, then fights through hostile jungle to reach safety. The film was praised for realism but drew controversy in Britain for downplaying Commonwealth roles, prompting changes on rerelease. It stands as a key entry in Warner’s World War II cycle. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘The Postman Always Rings Twice’ (1946)

A drifter’s affair with a married woman turns deadly, leading to courtroom maneuvers and mounting paranoia. Lana Turner and John Garfield headline Tay Garnett’s adaptation of James M. Cain’s novel, with Cecil Kellaway as the unsuspecting husband. The roadside California setting frames a spiral of crime and consequence. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Happy Feet’ (2006)

A tap-dancing emperor penguin searches for his place and the cause behind dwindling fish stocks in Antarctica. Voices include Elijah Wood, Robin Williams, and Nicole Kidman, with music by John Powell and large-scale musical numbers. The film became a worldwide hit and won the Oscar for Best Animated Feature. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Puss in Boots’ (2011)

This ‘Shrek’ spinoff gives Puss his own swashbuckling origin as he teams with Kitty Softpaws and a wily Humpty Dumpty to chase magic beans and a golden goose. Antonio Banderas and Salma Hayek lead the voice cast, with Guillermo del Toro as executive producer. The adventure earned a Best Animated Feature nomination and sparked a small franchise. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Ice Age: Continental Drift’ (2012)

The fourth entry rafts Manny, Sid, and Diego across an ocean on a cracked iceberg, where pirate crews and long-lost family complicate the journey. Blue Sky Studios returns with Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah, and Jennifer Lopez among the voices. The global voyage folds in Scrat-driven antics and big-scale set pieces. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘Elf’ (2003)

Raised at the North Pole, Buddy heads to New York to find his father and bring some cheer to a skeptical city. Will Ferrell leads a cast that helped turn the movie into a modern holiday staple, later inspiring a Broadway musical and TV special. Jon Favreau directs a story built on sincerity and seasonal warmth. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘A Christmas Story’ (1983)

Ralphie wants a Red Ryder BB gun for Christmas and navigates schoolyard dares, family dinners, and department-store rituals to get there. Bob Clark adapts Jean Shepherd’s nostalgic vignettes, with the author narrating and Cleveland and Toronto standing in for the Midwest. The film grew from modest box office to a perennial holiday marathon fixture. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation’ (1989)

Clark Griswold’s perfect holiday plan is sabotaged by outages, unwelcome guests, and a bonus that never arrives. The third entry in the series became the franchise’s top domestic grosser of its time and settled into seasonal rotation for generations of viewers. John Hughes supplies the script, with Chevy Chase and Beverly D’Angelo returning. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘The Polar Express’ (2004)

A boy boards a magical train to the North Pole on Christmas Eve, as performance-capture animation lets Tom Hanks play multiple roles. Robert Zemeckis adapts Chris Van Allsburg’s picture book, and the film rolled out in both conventional and IMAX 3D formats. It has since become a holiday programming regular. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘A Man Called Otto’ (2022)

A widower’s rigid routines begin to thaw when a lively family moves in next door and nudges him back toward connection. Tom Hanks stars in this English-language remake of a Swedish novel and film, directed by Marc Forster with a score by Thomas Newman. The story revolves around neighborly acts that add up to a second chance. It streams on Max on November 6, 2025.

‘Missing’ (2023)

Told entirely through screens, a Los Angeles teen races to find her mother after she disappears on a trip to Colombia with a new boyfriend. The search unfolds across video chats, account resets, and surveillance pulls in a stand-alone follow-up to ‘Searching.’ Storm Reid leads, with Nia Long as the missing parent. It streams on Max on November 20, 2025.

‘The Unsuspected’ (1947)

Claude Rains plays a suave radio host whose world is rattled by a supposed suicide and a missing heiress as hidden motives surface. Michael Curtiz directs from a Charlotte Armstrong novel, pairing Rains with Joan Caulfield and Audrey Totter in a shadow-rich late-studio-era noir. It was the first production under Curtiz’s company deal with Warner Bros. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

‘The Women’ (1939)

An all-female cast brings Clare Boothe Luce’s Manhattan comedy of gossip, divorce, and reconciliation to the screen under director George Cukor. Anita Loos and Jane Murfin reshape the stage text while MGM’s fashion sequences and production design showcase late-thirties gloss. Norma Shearer, Joan Crawford, and Rosalind Russell headline. It streams on Max on November 1, 2025.

Share your own November must-watch picks on Max in the comments so others can build their weekend queues too!