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The best dramas on Criterion Channel right now

Right now the best dramas and drama series on Criterion Channel in the United States are Modern Times (1936), La Haine (1995) and The Gold Rush (1925). This is the top 29 streaming there today, ranked by how well rated each one is, how many people have rated it, and what people are watching now.

Updated November 12, 2026 · streaming in the United States

Pick three for meAllFilmsSeries

  1. 1. Modern Times1936

    Film · 1h 27mComedy, Drama, Romance★ 8.3

    A bumbling tramp desires to build a home with a young woman, yet is thwarted time and time again by his lack of experience and habit of being in the wrong place at the wrong time...

    Stream onPrime VideoHBO MaxYouTube TVCriterion Channel+4

  2. 2. La Haine1995

    Film · 1h 38mDrama★ 8.1

    After a chaotic night of rioting in a marginal suburb of Paris, three young friends, Vinz, Hubert and Saïd, wander around unoccupied waiting for news about the state of health of a mutual friend who has been seriously injured when…

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  3. 3. The Gold Rush1925

    Film · 1h 35mAdventure, Comedy, Drama★ 8.0

    A gold prospector in Alaska struggles to survive the elements and win the heart of a dance hall girl.

    Stream onPrime VideoHBO MaxCriterion ChannelHistory Vault+11

  4. 4. Harakiri1962

    Film · 2h 15mAction, Drama, History★ 8.5

    Down-on-his-luck veteran Tsugumo Hanshirō enters the courtyard of the prosperous House of Iyi. Unemployed, and with no family, he hopes to find a place to commit seppuku—and a worthy second to deliver the coup de grâce in his suicide…

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  5. 5. Boogie Nights1997

    Film · 2h 36mDrama, Comedy★ 7.6

    In 1977, an idealistic porn producer and his promising protege try to catch up with the end of an era before their never-ending party collides with cold, hard reality.

    Stream onCriterion ChannelPlex (free)

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  7. 6. The Social Network2010

    Film · 2h 1mDrama★ 7.4

    In 2003, Harvard undergrad and computer programmer Mark Zuckerberg begins work on a new concept that eventually turns into the global social network known as Facebook.

    Stream onfuboTVYouTube TVCriterion ChannelPluto TV (free)

  8. 7. M1931

    Film · 1h 50mDrama, Thriller, Crime★ 8.1

    In this classic German thriller, Hans Beckert, a serial killer who preys on children, becomes the focus of a massive Berlin police manhunt.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelIndieFlix ShortsKanopy (free)+3

  9. 8. Ikiru1952

    Film · 2h 23mDrama★ 8.3

    Kanji Watanabe is a middle-aged man who has worked in the same monotonous bureaucratic position for decades. Learning he has cancer, he starts to look for the meaning of his life.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelKanopy (free)

  10. 9. Neon Genesis Evangelion1995

    Series · 1 seasonSci-Fi & Fantasy, Animation, Drama★ 8.6

    At the turn of the century, the Angels returned to Earth, seeking to wipe out humanity in an apocalyptic fury. Devastated, mankind's last remnants moved underground to wait for the day when the Angels would come back to finish the job.

    Stream onNetflixCriterion Channel

  11. 10. Wild Strawberries1957

    Film · 1h 31mDrama★ 8.1

    Crotchety retired doctor Isak Borg travels from Stockholm to Lund, Sweden, with his unhappy daughter-in-law, Marianne, in order to receive an honorary degree from his alma mater.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelKanopy (free)

  12. 11. The Last Emperor1987

    Film · 2h 43mDrama, History★ 7.6

    A dramatic history of Pu Yi, the last of the Emperors of China, from his lofty birth and brief reign in the Forbidden City, the object of worship by half a billion people; through his abdication, his decline and dissolute lifestyle; his…

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelCinemax

  13. 12. Infernal Affairs2002

    Film · 1h 41mDrama, Thriller, Crime★ 7.8

    Chan Wing Yan, a young police officer, has been sent undercover as a mole in the local mafia. Lau Kin Ming, a young mafia member, infiltrates the police force.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelShout! Factory TV (free)

  14. 13. Three Colors: Red1994

    Film · 1h 40mDrama, Mystery, Romance★ 7.9

    Part-time model Valentine unexpectedly befriends a retired judge after she runs over his dog. At first, the grumpy man shows no concern about the dog, and Valentine decides to keep it.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelTCM

  15. 14. The Circus1928

    Film · 1h 12mComedy, Drama, Romance★ 7.9

    Charlie, a wandering tramp, becomes a circus handyman - soon the star of the show - and falls in love with the circus owner's stepdaughter.

    Stream onPrime VideoHBO MaxCriterion ChannelFlixFling+5

  16. 15. The Prisoner1967

    Series · 1 seasonDrama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Mystery★ 7.7

    After resigning, a secret agent is abducted and taken to what looks like an idyllic village, but is really a bizarre Kafkaesque prison. His warders demand information. He gives them nothing, but only tries to escape.

    Stream onPrime VideofuboTVCriterion ChannelNight Flight Plus+8

  17. 16. War and Peace2016

    Series · 1 seasonDrama★ 7.5

    The love story of young Countess Natasha Rostova and Count Pierre Bezukhov is interwoven with the Great Patriotic War of 1812 against Napoleon's invading army.

    Stream onPrime VideoPeacockBritBoxCriterion Channel+2

  18. 17. Il Sorpasso1962

    Film · 1h 45mDrama, Comedy, Adventure★ 8.2

    Roberto, a shy law student in Rome, meets Bruno, a forty-year-old exuberant, capricious man, who takes him for a drive through the Roman and Tuscany countries in the summer.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  19. 18. Throne of Blood1957

    Film · 1h 48mDrama, History★ 7.9

    Returning to their lord's castle, samurai warriors Washizu and Miki are waylaid by a spirit who predicts their futures. When the first part of the spirit's prophecy comes true, Washizu's scheming wife, Asaji, presses him to speed up the…

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion Channel

  20. 19. We All Loved Each Other So Much1974

    Film · 2h 5mDrama, Comedy★ 8.3

    Three partisans bound by a strong friendship return home after the war, but the clash with everyday reality puts a strain on their bond.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  21. 20. Rome, Open City1945

    Film · 1h 44mDrama, War★ 8.0

    During the Nazi occupation of 1944 Rome, Resistance leader Giorgio Manfredi is pursued by the Nazis as he seeks refuge and a means of escape.

    Stream onHBO MaxCriterion ChannelDarkroomArtiflix

  22. 21. The Celebration1998

    Film · 1h 41mDrama★ 7.7

    The family of a wealthy businessman gather to celebrate his 60th birthday. During the course of the party, his eldest son presents a speech that reveals a devastating secret that turns the night into a battle of truth and denial.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  23. 22. Blossoms Shanghai2023

    Series · 1 seasonDrama★ 8.6

    Set against the backdrop of massive economic growth in the 1990s, the story follows A Bao, a self-made millionaire and his journey from being a young opportunist with a troubled past to accumulating dazzling wealth in the city of Shanghai.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  24. 23. Le Trou1960

    Film · 2h 12mDrama, Thriller, Crime★ 8.2

    Four prison inmates have been hatching a plan to literally dig out of jail when another prisoner, Claude Gaspard, is moved into their cell. They take a risk and share their plan with the newcomer.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  25. 24. Woman in the Dunes1964

    Film · 2h 27mDrama, Thriller★ 8.2

    A vacationing entomologist suffers extreme physical and psychological trauma after being taken captive by the residents of a poor seaside village and made to live with a woman whose life task is shoveling sand for them.

    Stream onCriterion ChannelDarkroom

  26. 25. Fanny and Alexander1984

    Series · 1 seasonDrama★ 8.3

    Through the eyes of ten-year-old Alexander, we witness the delights and conflicts of the Ekdahl family, a sprawling bourgeois clan in turn-of-the-twentieth-century Sweden.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  27. 26. Scenes from a Marriage1973

    Series · 1 seasonDrama★ 8.1

    Johan and Marianne's marriage appears stable, but their relationship begins to unravel when Johan reveals an affair. Over several years, we follow their separation, divorce, and continued interactions as they form new relationships while…

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  28. 27. Berlin Alexanderplatz1980

    Series · 1 seasonDrama, Crime★ 7.5

    In late 1920s Berlin, Franz Biberkopf is released from prison and vows to go straight. However, he soon finds himself embroiled in the city’s criminal underworld.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  29. 28. World on a Wire1973

    Series · 1 seasonDrama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy, Mystery★ 7.3

    In the future, Simulacron, a computer project simulating reality, encounters strange occurrences after its leader's death. Dr. Stiller questions the sudden disappearance of a friend and wonders if Simulacron holds the answers.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

  30. 29. Carlos2010

    Series · 1 seasonDrama, Crime, War & Politics★ 7.4

    The story of the Venezuelan Ilich Ramirez Sanchez known as "Carlos", who was, for almost twenty years, one of the most wanted terrorists in the world.

    Stream onCriterion Channel

Questions

What are the best dramas and drama series on Criterion Channel right now?
In the United States, as of November 12, 2026: Modern Times (1936), rated 8.3 out of 10 on TMDB, then La Haine and The Gold Rush.
How is this list made?
Watchwalla asks TMDB for everything of this kind that streams in your country today, ranks it by rating (pulled toward the middle until enough people have rated a title), with a nudge for what's new and what people are watching now, and refreshes the list every day. Streaming availability comes from JustWatch, through TMDB.
Can it pick something for me?
Yes. The picker at watchwalla.com/tonight asks who's watching, how much time you have and what you're in the mood for, and gives three picks streaming where you are. Sign in and every title also gets a match score for your own taste.

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