Are you looking for movies to watch on acid? How about some trippy psychedelic cartoons?

It isn’t always easy to find the best movies to watch high when you’re already high; so, if you’re reading this sober, congratulations on thinking ahead. 

A quick internet search will produce list after list of trippy movies with the same mix of titles popping up on each. We decided to find the trippiest movies, shows, and cartoons that are often overlooked for their psychedelic enjoyment. 

We rated each movie on our list of best movies to watch high on its visual, audio, and mind-bending characteristics. We won’t spend much time explaining the plot or telling you explicitly what to expect (watch the trailers on YouTube). Instead, we’ll highlight the aspects that make each worth watching while you’re in the land of trippiness.

After all, every trip is unique, and every tripper wants a different experience. So buckle up – we’ll lay out the selection, and you’ll choose the destination.

What Makes a Movie a Psychedelic Movie?

Films and shows designed to play with your mind make for the best psychedelic movies. Psychedelic movies typically contain a fusion of image and sound characterized by visual distortion or experimental narratives. Trippy movies can delight your senses or leave you with your mind blown, sometimes both.

Often relying on psychedelic imagery or some distortion of reality, the trippiest movies also have the sickest soundtracks. Soundtracks in trippy movies help distort your understanding of reality through narration, music, or soundscapes.

Generally, a good psychedelic movie should be both confusing and soothing. If you enjoy exploring the darker side while you’re tripping, however, we’ve also included a few recommendations for DMT movies that pair well with that particular hallucinogenic. 

We want to emphasize that if you have a history of bad trips, you shouldn’t watch the DMT movies on our list. If you want something funny, soothing, or mind-bending, choose from one of the other categories on our list.

Best Movies to Watch High: LSD Movies

Fantastic Planet (1973)

Fantastic Planet might be one of the best, if not the best, movies to watch on acid. Based on a novel, Fantastic Planet turns reality on its head and explores life on another planet underscored by a Pink Floyd-like soundtrack.

This film is visually and auditorily captivating while completely melting your brain as its story unfolds, making Fantastic Planet stand out among all LSD movies. It’s also one of only two titles on our trippiest movies list that received top marks in all categories.

Audio: 5/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 5/5

How to Watch: HBO Max

Waking Life (2001)

Waking Life is one of the greatest movies to watch on acid because of its mesmerizing visuals and thought-provoking dialogue. Waking Life leads you from one rabbit hole to another on a philosophical exploration of consciousness, existentialism, and the nature of reality.

The discussions between the main character and everyone he interacts with, combined with the attention-grabbing animations, contribute to the mind-bending trippiness of Waking Life.

Audio: 3/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 5/5

How to Watch: HBO Max

Best Movies to Watch High: Shroom Movies

Fantastic Fungi (2019)

Fantastic Fungi is a powerful, mind-bending exploration into the world of mycology – heavy emphasis on the mind-bending. A trippy movie you can enjoy sober if you want to learn a thing or two, Fantastic Fungi presents a pro-fungi perspective from medicinal to hallucinogenic.

Pop a few caps, sit back, and enjoy this Brie Larson-narrated documentary from the perspective of mushrooms. Fantastic Fungi is an aesthetically beautiful psychedelic experience – and the time lapses are dope! 

Audio: 4/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 4/5

How to Watch: Netflix 

Fantasia (1940)

Fantasia is one of a handful of films that came out of Disney in the 1940s that leaned into experimental art, described by BBC Culture as “futurist, surrealist, [and] abstract.” Disney is hardly ever associated with trippy movies, but when Fantasia was reissued in 1969, it had a psychedelic poster and was embraced by the counterculture. 

If you’ve never seen it on mushrooms, you’re missing out. When you get to the dancing mushrooms scene, you’ll know why we had to include it as one of the best shroom movies ever. We can’t forget how perfectly the classical score pairs with the mind-bending visuals.

Audio: 5/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 3/5

How to Watch: Disney+

Best Movies to Watch High: Get High Movies

Jurassic Park (1993)

Jurassic Park is one of the most underrated get high movies out there. The special effects are pretty impressive for a film that dropped in the early 90s. The musical score underlines the stimulating visual of watching dinosaurs chase the characters throughout the film. 

If you find yourself sufficiently stoned and just want to chill, you might want to revisit this Spielberg classic. If nothing else, it’s good for laughs. 

[Stoner Game: Take a hit every time Mr. Jackson’s character (Ray Arnold) smokes a cigarette.]

Audio: 4/5

Video: 4/5

Mind Bending: 2/5 

How to Watch: HBO Max

Fantastic Mr. Fox (2009)

Fantastic Mr. Fox is an excellent movie, whether or not you’re tripping. It’s among the best movies to watch high, partly because of the dry humor, comicality of the characters, and somewhat creepy imagery. Scenes that invoke a chuckle while sober will make you laugh out loud once you take a few rips off the bong.

It also has some mesmerizing visuals to go along with an existential storyline. Consider pressing play after the peak if you plan to add this to your LSD movies watchlist.

Audio: 4/5

Video: 4/5

Mind Bending: 2/5

How to Watch: Disney+

Best Movies to Watch High: Trippiest Movies and Shows

Weird Movies on Netflix: Elephants Dream (2006)

Weirdness, much like beauty, is in the eye of the beholder – most of the time. Every once in a while, a film comes along that is universally classified as bizarre. Elephants Dream goes above and beyond to cement its place in the weird movies on Netflix hall of fame. 

For one, you can't find this 10-minute short film by searching within the streaming giant’s platform – you have to use an internet search and follow the link to watch it. What puts Elephants Dream over the top (and makes it a great movie to watch on acid) is that you can also experience a four-hour film loop.

Audio: 4/5

Video: 4/5

Mind Bending: 4/5

How to Watch: Netflix (10-minutes, 4-hour loop)

Trippy Shows on Netflix: Absurd Planet (2020)

This documentary series is a perfect companion for a relaxing, awe-inspiring trip. Absurd Planet is an excellent substitute for LSD movies or shroom movies when you’re short on time. Although, since each episode is around 19 minutes, if you watch them back-to-back, you can enjoy almost four hours of captivating, visually-stimulating entertainment. 

Absurd Planet will engage you auditorily and visually with its unique approach to documentary narration and a wonderfully original score. You might even learn something from all the mind-blowing facts about the natural world. And at times, it’s pretty funny, too.

Audio: 4/5

Video: 4/5

Mind Bending: 2/5

How to Watch: Netflix 

Trippy Cartoons: Midnight Gospel (2020)

If you like watching trippy shows on Netflix that make you think, you should check out Midnight Gospel. Midnight Gospel is unlike any animated show we’ve ever seen. Even in the most popular trippy psychedelic cartoons, you’ll never see deep discussions centered around existential themes paired with mind-bending visuals and spell-binding soundscapes. 

Prepare for a trippy cartoon that takes you on adventures through fantastical worlds and can keep you entertained even when you fall behind on the dialogue.

Audio: 4/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 4/5

How to Watch: Netflix 

DMT Movies: Koyaanisqatsi: Life Out of Balance (1982)

Describing a DMT trip to someone who has never taken it can be tricky. Similarly, explaining the plot of Koyaanisqatsi would be just as futile. Suffice it to say the film explores the concept of balance in the world while blending breathtaking images and sound.

Much like the hallucinogenic, this DMT movie is best experienced rather than explained. If you enjoy it, there are two other non-narrative films in the Qatsi trilogy.

Audio: 5/5

Video: 5/5

Mind Bending: 5/5

How to Watch: YouTube

Get the Most Out of Our Best Movies to Watch High

If you prefer to smoke, you may already know the best way to consume and watch trippy movies. For argument’s sake, let’s assume you don’t. The best get high movies on our list can be enjoyed whether you smoke before you press play, at the start, or continuously throughout. 

Get the most enjoyment from trippy movies or shows by waiting an hour after taking your hallucinogenic of choice before you press play. As the movie plays, you’ll get more and more sucked in. Before you know it, you’ll be fully peaking, and time will no longer have meaning. A ten-second scene can feel like 30 minutes have passed – in the best way.

Remember, these are just suggestions; how you watch trippy movies is entirely up to you. However you go about it, we hope our list of best movies to watch high has provided you with unique content for your next hallucinogenic adventure.

Further Reading

How to Grow Psychedelic Mushrooms

Ayahuasca retreats in the USA

How to pass a drug test