You can get almost any movie in Digital HD these days, but there are a few popular and highly-ranked titles that just aren’t available digitally (legally, at least). To find these elusive titles, we searched through “Best of Film” lists from Rotten Tomatoes and IMDB, then cross-referenced the titles with Amazon Video, Apple iTunes, and Vudu to confirm their unavailability in digital format. Out of a few hundred films, we could only come up with five.
Apocalypto (2006)
This adventure drama from writer/director Mel Gibson is not only hard to find on Blu-ray, but impossible to find in digital format. In Apocalyto, Rudy Youngblood stars as Jaguar Paw, a Mesoamerican tribesman who must save his family after his village was raided and forced into slavery. Rated: R
Short Cuts (1993)
Oscar-nominated comedy/drama Short Cuts stars Andie MacDowell, Julianne Moore, Tim Robbins, Lily Tomlin, and Madeleine Stowe among an all-star cast of actors. The film, directed by Robert Altman, gets a 95% score on the Rotten Tomatoes “Tomatometer” and was nominated for an Oscar for Best Director. The movie is currently unavailable in digital format. Rated: R
The Sweet Hereafter (1997)
Currently ranked No. 100 on Rotten Tomatoes‘ Top 100 Movies list, The Sweet Hereafter is about a tragic accident that kills most a small town’s population children. The film stars Ian Holm, Caerthan Banks and Caerthan Banks, and was written buy Atom Egoyan based on the novel by Russell Banks. As of now, you can’t buy or rent The Sweet Hereafter digitally. Rated: R
True Romance (1993)
Quentin Tarantino’s True Romance directed by Tony Scott is a crime/drama starring Christian Slater, Patricia Arquette, and Dennis Hopper. In the film, Slater plays the role of Clarence Worley who steals cocaine from a pimp and tries to sell it. Val Kilmer, Gary Oldman, Samuel L. Jackson, Christopher Walken and Brad Pitt also star in the film. But if you want to watch it, look for the Blu-ray, DVD, or on a premium movie channel. Rated: R
Hamlet (1990)
Another Mel Gibson film, Hamlet (1990) is not available to purchase digitally but can be rented on iTunes for $3.99. Gibson stars as the Prince of Denmark in this 2-time Oscar-nominated drama that was directed by Franco Zeffirelli. Glenn Close and Alan Bates also star in the film as Queen Gertrude and Claudiu, respectively. There are other film adaptations of Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” of course, but Mel Gibson’s rendition is currently impossible to purchase digitally. Rated: PG
