7 Movies on Prime Video That You Actually Have to Watch Twice

There are a lot of great movies on Prime Video. With an extensive catalog that spans every genre you can imagine, the streaming service has something for everyone and something for just about every mood. That includes movies that aren’t just simple one-and-done watches. While there are many movies that you can sit down and enjoy and then walk away from, there are many more that really require multiple viewings to fully appreciate and understand. Sometimes, it’s little details and jokes that make the experience that much better. Others, the story and narrative is so complicated that you need to watch twice (or even three times) to fully understand. These are the stories that you can’t stop thinking about — the stories you need to revisit.

Here are seven movies currently streaming on Prime Video that you need to watch twice. While some might even need third or fourth viewings to fully appreciate, these are films that you just can’t watch once. And honestly? They’re definitely worth the time.

7) Monty Python and the Holy Grail

Let’s be honest for a moment: there is no actual functional need to watch Monty Python and the Holy Grail twice.  Arguably the best Monty Python film, Holy Grail isn’t a case of an especially deep or complicated story that you need to absorb over multiple viewings but watching it twice (or three times or even more) is still a good idea. First, it’s hilarious and more laughter is always a good thing, but more seriously, Holy Grail has really well-layered jokes. Literally every aspect of the production has something slipped in, from the framing, the dialogue, to even the opening credits. These are details that viewers might not catch in just one watch, which makes a second watch a valuable expenditure of time.

There’s also the quotably nature of Holy Grail that makes it much better on rewatch. A parody of the legend of King Arthur’s quest for the Holy Grail, the movie is stuffed full of lines that are unique and timeless that make them very quotable and even meme able. The more times you watch Holy Grail, the more you find yourself involved with the movie itself by quoting the lines back which makes the whole experience just that much better. It’s a classic.

6) Coherence

Released in 2013, Coherence follows a group of friends who gather for a dinner party the night of the passing of Miller’s Comet. However, the evening becomes plagued by unusual occurrences as the comet passes and they soon discover that the comet created multiple alternate realities and, in each of those realities, the group of friends are looking for answers.

With all of the different realities and the same characters existing within them, Coherence is a difficult movie to understand on the first watch. However, watching the film a second time allows the viewer to pick up on different threads and small details that make the story more interesting and complex. There are a lot of twists and turns to be had here and Coherence is a movie that makes the viewer really think, but the more times you watch it, the more it makes sense, and it’s genuinely a fantastic film precisely for that reason.

5) Mr. Nobody

With Jared Leto’s latest film Tron: Ares now in theaters, adding one of his most complex films to this “watch twice” list seems fitting. Highly underrated when it was first released in 2009, Mr. Nobody stars Leto as Nemo Nobody, the 118-year-old last moral human on Earth after humanity has achieved quasi-mortality. The film follows Mr. Nobody as he reflects on his life and the past, but the film doesn’t just explore his actual experiences, but the roads not taken and what might have been.

With a non-linear narrative structure, Mr. Nobody is an extremely complex movie. It can be confusing on first watch and even a little frustrating, but repeated watches help really put the story together in a way that gives it a lot of rich emotional resonance. The film is also absolutely beautiful, visually, which make it a treat to watch even if you have to do a lot of intellectual work while doing so.

4) American Psycho

Another film that you don’t technically need to watch twice to understand, American Psycho is a movie that simply gets better when you watch it a second time. Starring Christian Bale, American Psycho follows Patrick Bateman, an investment banker in New York City who has a double life as a serial killer. The film satirizes 1980s yuppie culture and is a fascinating mix of black comedy and psychological horror.

While American Psycho is straightforward enough that one watch is generally sufficient, the film does benefit from a second watch. There are a lot of layers to this film, particularly in its satirical message about masculinity and consumerism. It also may not be especially clear on how Bateman’s mental state is unravelling on the first watch, leading to a slightly ambiguous ending that becomes a bit clearer when you watch it a second time.

3) Donnie Darko

Donnie Darko is one of those films that regularly comes up as one that you need to watch twice to fully grasp. Released in 2001, the film follows Donnie Darko (Jake Gyllenhaal), a troubled teen who escapes dying in a freak accident because he’s sleepwalking. However, he’s also having visions of a mysterious rabbit costume-clad figure named Frank telling him the world will end in 28 days.

To put it pretty bluntly, Donnie Darko is a complicated film. It has an unusual timeline and time travel mechanics, there are questions of what is real and what isn’t, and it isn’t helped by the fact that there is a theatrical cut and a Director’s Cut that are actually different. Most fans would suggest watching the theatrical cut first, then the Director’s Cut, and then the theatrical cut again (and both versions are available on Prime Video) to fully understand the plot, the mechanics, and also not lose the mystery of the story initially.

2) Pulp Fiction

Pulp Fiction is a modern classic and might be Quentin Tarantino’s best known (and best loved) movie. Following four intertwining tales of crime and violence in Los Angeles, Pulp Fiction is a film that is worth watching more than once just because it’s just that good, but there is also a functional reason to watch this gem twice.

With Pulp Fiction jumping between wildly different characters and containing a lot of violence all layered with some pretty dense dialogue and monologues, Pulp Fiction can be a lot to digest upon first watch. Watching the film for a second time really helps highlight just how good the story is, how things are connected, and even make some of the film’s humor that much better. And it has John Travolta and Samuel L. Jackson. It doesn’t get better than that.

1) Memento

Released in 2000, Memento is the film that put Christopher Nolan on the map and is still, in some ways, one of his best works. The film follows a man named Leonard Shelby who suffers short-term memory loss and can’t form new memories but uses an elaborate system of notes and photos and even tattoos to help him try to find out who killed his wife. The film is presented in a non-linear narrative with two different sequences, one in color and one in black and white. The two sequences eventually come together at the end to tell the whole story.

Watching Memento just one time really shortchanges the viewer. Given the structure, that first watch really leans into the confusion of it all and there are a lot of details and themes the viewer would miss if they stopped there. However, a second viewing lends a completely different perspective and frames the story in a totally new light. In fact, the more times you watch it, the clearer the story and perspectives become. It’s a rare case of a movie that becomes something else but gets better and better each and every time you watch.

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