Find Free Movies (Legally) With WikiFlix, a Database of Films in the Public Domain
I love movies, and especially when I can watch them for free: and while streaming the latest Hollywood blockbusters can come at a price (at least for those who want to stay on the right side of the law), there is an ever-growing collection of older films that you can get online without paying a dime.
The WikiFlix site (as spotted by the folks at Gizmodo) lists movies available for streaming that are now in the public domain. The way copyright works in the United States essentially means that copyright on films expires after a period of 95 years. Thus, each year that passes, a batch of new films becomes accessible to everyone, for free.
If you’re looking for something classic for your next movie night, this is worth a look.
There are many categories to choose from.
Credit: Lifehacker
WikiFlix is easy to use, right from the home page. It tracks movies added to sites like Wikimedia Commons, YouTube, and Internet Archive, and every time you click on a movie you can also see where it came from. When you have made your choice, it is broadcast directly in your browser window.
The home page is divided into categories that you can browse – including female leads, animation and biopics, last time I checked – and there’s also a search button in the upper right corner if you know what you’re looking for. Next to the search button is an account button, which allows you to create a MediaWiki account if you also want to be able to contribute to the site.
Hover over the main WikiFlix header at the top of the page and a quick link to Movies by year appears. It’s a useful way to find the most recent movies added to WikiFlix and dig through the archives. Not all movies here are in the public domain because their copyrights have expired, and you’ll also find newer titles.
Click on any thumbnail to get more information about each film. You can usually get information about the director, cast, and duration of the movie, and a plot summary is also included. Some entries come with trailers (although you can also search for them separately on sites like YouTube).
What do you think of it so far?
Each film comes with a cast list.
Credit: Lifehacker
Start streaming a movie and the usual playback controls appear, although the interface depends to some extent on the site hosting the movie. For movies hosted on YouTube, for example, you can usually adjust the quality and playback speed. Some films are also subtitled.
Obviously a site like this is going to lean towards older classic films, but there’s a lot to explore here: Metropolis, It’s a wonderful life, All is calm on the Western Front, Nosferatucomedy by Charlie Chaplin The gold rushand much more.
Free movie repositories aren’t as rare online as you might think. We’ve previously written about the best free and legal streaming services for movies and TV, with ad-supported streaming platforms like Tubi and PlutoTV. Again, the focus is on older films, but there are plenty of films available for free.
