Gone by Wednesday: The best movies leaving Netflix this week

While there are daily drops of new material on Netflix, everything from crazy reality shows to classic rom-coms, there’s also a constant churn of content dropping off the global streaming service.

So although you might think a movie or TV show will be available to watch on there forever, the truth is that’s very much not the case, some only available for a few months at a time.

In order to assist those keen to get the most out of their subscription, and in order to help with your viewing priorities, Stuff to Watch has come up with a list of nine fabulous movies that won’t be around come Wednesday morning – so catch them while you can.

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The American (2010)

Inspired by Martin Booth’s 1990 novel A Very Private Gentleman, George Clooney essays an assassin who is hiding out in Italy for one last assignment.

“This is a western wrapped up in an Abruzzo tourism brochure, but that’s OK. I now know it’s my favourite kind of cowboy film,” wrote The Spectator’s Deborah Ross, while Sight & Sound’s Michael Atkinson thought it was “a retro-ish Euro-espionage thriller that’s written, acted and directed as if it were still 1974”.

Carlito’s Way (1993)

Scarface duo, director Brian De Palma and star Al Pacino, reunite for this epic crime-thriller about a just released from prison convict who makes a bold attempt to try and stay away from drugs and violence, despite immense pressure from those around him.

Based on Judge Edwin Torres 1970s novels Carlito’s Way and After Hours, the cast also includes Sean Penn, Penelope Ann Miller, Luis Guzman, John Leguizamo and Viggo Mortensen.

”Best watched as lively, colourful posturing and as a fine demonstration of this director’s bravura visual style,” wrote The New York Times’ Janet Maslin.

Eat Pray Love (2010)

Julia Roberts is front and centre in this adaptation of Elizabeth Gilbert’s beloved 2006 memoir about a woman who, after realising how unhappy her marriage really is, decides to take off on a round-the-world journey to “find herself”.

Joining her along the way are James Franco, Richard Jenkins, Viola Davis, Billy Crudup and Javier Bardem.

“Roberts is precisely the right actress to play this character: She adamantly refuses to be adorable — she’d rather just unleash that crazy, unladylike cackle,” wrote Movieline’s Stephanie Zacharek.

Jaws (1975)

Widely regarded as North America’s first-ever summer event movie, Spielberg’s creature-feature was also one which kept people out of the water for some time afterwards.

While a masterclass in building tension, today’s average blockbuster viewer may find the going a bit slow as Roy Scheider, Richard Dreyfuss and Robert Shaw bond.

The Painted Veil (2006)

Edward Norton headlines this star-studded adaptation of W. Somerset Maugham’s 1925 novel of the same name about a British medical doctor who is fighting a cholera epidemic in China, while trapped in a loveless marriage to an unfaithful wife.

Naomi Watts, Liev Schreiber, Diana Rigg and Toby Jones co-star.

“A satisfyingly slow-burning romance, beautifully scored and acted,” wrote BBC.com’s Stella Papamichael.

The Reader (2008)

Kate Winslet won an Oscar for her performance as Hanna Schmitz in this romantic-drama based on the 1995 by Bernhard Schlink. It’s the story of her love affair with German teenager Michael Berg (David Kross) during the late-1950s and what happens when they cross paths again almost a decade later as she is accused of war crimes.

“An absorbing and finally moving account of how one man comes to terms with both history and his story,” wrote Washington Post’s Ann Hornaday.

Red Dragon (2002)

Although released a decade after The Silence of the Lambs, Brett Ratner’s Hannibal Lecter tale (based on Thomas Harris 1981 novel which had previously been adapted in 1986 as the Brian Cox-starring Manhunter) is actually a prequel.

Edward Norton’s FBI agent Will Graham enlists the help of the serial killing Dr Lecter to catch another murderer – Francis Dolarhyde (Ralph Fiennes). The impressive cast also includes Harvey Keitel, Emily Watson, Mary-Louise Parker and Philip Seymour Hoffman.

“A thoroughly entertaining, efficiently mounted thriller,” wrote Empire magazine’s Ian Freer.

The Stanford Prison Experiment (2015)

Based on-fact drama about the infamous 1971 “experiment”, when 24 male Stanford University students were selected to take on randomly assigned roles of prisoners and guards in a mock prison situated in the basement of the well-known educational institution’s psychology building.

Among those actors to feature are Billy Crudup, Ezra Miller and Tye Sheridan.

“A riveting re-enaction of the still-notorious study. The young cast is electrifying,” wrote Newsday’s Rafer Guzman.

The Town (2010)

Adapted from Chuck Hogan’s 2004 novel Prince of Thieves, this Boston-set, Ben Affleck-directed crime-thriller focuses on a bank robber (Affleck) who begins to develop romantic feelings for a previous victim, while contemplating one final “big score”.

While part of a fabulous ensemble that also includes Rebecca Hall, Jon Hamm and Peter Postlethwaite, a believably-unhinged Jeremy Renner is a stand-out as the dangerous James Coughlin. A cut above the average crime drama, thanks to its emphasis on character over carnage.