The Best HBO Max Movies and Shows for Auto Enthusiasts
HBO Max has quickly taken its place as one of America’s biggest and best streaming platforms for movies, documentaries, and television shows. For car-loving subscribers, these are just a few of the many gearhead gems that can be found in this service’s huge catalog of viewing options.
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Movies
American Graffiti (1973)
Loaded with vintage hot rods, rockin’ oldies, and wistful nostalgia for early 1960s teen culture, this beloved classic was George Lucas’s first smash hit at the box office.
Bonnie and Clyde (1967)
Groundbreaking when it first came out and still a great watch today, Bonnie and Clyde contains some fantastic car scenes, including a famous chase scene set to bluegrass music and a bloodily iconic roadside shootout.
The Fast and the Furious (2001) and 2 Fast 2 Furious (2003)
You won’t be able to finish a complete binge of all the Fast & Furious movies on HBO Max — but at least you can get started with the first two, which are significantly more earthbound than the ludicrous action extravaganzas that followed.
Fast Company (1979)
Canadian director David Cronenberg is famed (or notorious) for his adventurous and often disturbing films that push past the boundaries of sci-fi and horror. Fast Company isn’t one of those — it’s an entertaining action movie set in the world of drag racing.
Gran Torino (2008)
Clint Eastwood shares top billing with a classic Ford Gran Torino in this movie about an angry, bigoted old man who makes a connection with his young Hmong neighbor.
Mad Max: Fury Road (2015)
A leading candidate for best action movie of the 21st century, Mad Max: Fury Road delivers end-to-end excitement with its astonishing desert chases, wildly customized vehicles, and intricately choreographed stunts.
Speed (1994)
Is it silly? Of course. But this classic ’90s action thriller starring Keanu Reeves and Sandra Bullock is still a great watch nearly three decades later — probably because the pacing never drops below 50 mph.
Speed Racer (2008)
After the Wachowskis finished their Matrix trilogy, they wrote, produced, and directed this visually spectacular candy-colored sugar rush of a movie about a race driver’s fight against the odds.
The Wages of Fear (1953)
The suspense is nearly unbearable in this classic thriller, which follows four men as they drive trucks loaded with nitroglycerine through a dangerous mountain pass.
Documentaries
Agnelli (2017)
This documentary narrates the compelling life of Gianni Agnelli, the dashing Italian business giant who led Fiat for 30 years.
Dirty Driving: Thundercars of Indiana (2008)
In Dirty Driving: Thundercars of Indiana, local drivers passionately pursue racetrack glory in a rust-belt city crushed by unemployment and economic decline.
The Last Truck (2009)
This short documentary film portrays the final days of a General Motors vehicle assembly plant in Ohio — and explores how its shutdown impacted thousands of workers and the surrounding community.
Mann v. Ford (2011)
A combination of shocking expose and David-against-Goliath courtroom saga, this documentary follows New Jersey’s Ramapough Mountain Indians as they wage a legal battle against Ford for allegedly dumping toxic waste on tribal lands.
Saudi Women’s Driving School (2019)
In 2017, Saudi women finally won the right to drive, and this documentary explores their life-changing experiences behind the wheel.
Television
The Lady and the Dale
Was Liz Carmichael’s three-wheeled 1970s car — dubbed The Dale — a brilliant invention or a massive fraud? This four-part documentary series doesn’t provide easy answers as it explores Carmichael’s complicated and controversial story.
Top Gear: Seasons 17-29
Catch up on the past thirteen seasons of BBC’s globetrotting smash hit, which features epic vehicular stunts, intense racing and wrenching challenges, and an array of famous guests.
A longtime editor/writer and recently transplanted Hoosier, Caleb Cook lives in Xenia, Ohio. His favorite activities are reading and listening to music, although he occasionally emerges from the heap of books and vinyl records in his basement to stand blinking in the sunlight. Once fully acclimated to the outside world again, he can be observed hanging out with his wife, attempting a new recipe in the kitchen, attending movies, walking the dog, or wandering into a local brewery to inquire about what’s on tap. See more articles by Caleb.