What are you going to watch on Netflix this week? Sure, you could open the app and scroll through the homepage, but I bet you’ll end up paralyzed by choice. That’s why you should keep reading, as I’ve rounded up four movies that are genuinely good.
A Tom Hanks classic? An action-packed Spielberg blockbuster? A movie over the decade in the making? Whatever your flavor, there is something for everyone.
4
The Green Mile
Many people consider The Shawshank Redemption to be their favorite movie of all time. That film, directed by Frank Darabont and adapted from a Stephen King novel, is indeed excellent. Five years after its release, the pair struck gold again with The Green Mile in 1999. It stars Tom Hanks as Paul Edgecomb, a death row prison guard who encounters a prisoner with a curious supernatural power. That man is John Coffey (Michael Clarke Duncan), a large and seemingly gentle inmate who is accused of murdering two young girls. The film takes its name from the floor that leads to the execution room.
The Green Mile was nominated for four Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and to this day it’s clear to see why. Hanks and Duncan are spectacular, with two touching and deep performances that will stay with you well after the (admittedly long) running time. Combine that with a powerful story, Thomas Newman’s lovely score, and Darabont’s accomplished direction, and you’ve got an incredibly moving film. It’s one that I can watch repeatedly and always find something new to appreciate.
3
Ready Player One
The book Ready Player One, written by Ernest Cline and published in 2011, was a giant success. Set in a dystopian 2045, it follows the eighteen-year-old Wade Watts as he hunts in a globally connected virtual reality game for a secret left by its late creator, James Halliday. The finder will inherit Halliday’s fortune and ownership of the virtual world, which would allow Wade to escape poverty. The book is fun, breezy, and crammed with nostalgic 80s references. When it came time for the film adaptation, who better to take the director’s chair than the king of that decade, Steven Spielberg.
The movie Ready Player One follows the book’s premise and stars Tye Sheridan as Wade and Mark Rylance as Halliday. Alongside them are great actors like Olivia Cooke as Samantha, another player who Wade has feelings for, and Ben Mendelsohn as Nolan, the CEO of a company who aims to forcefully take control of the game. The film is gloriously grand and silly, bursting with action and not skimping on the pop culture references (like Back to the Future, The Shining, and The Iron Giant). You’re bound to have a grin on your face from beginning to end.
2
Baby Driver
With director Edgar Wright’s The Running Man debuting in theaters soon, now’s the perfect time to watch his 2017 hit, Baby Driver. Ansel Elgort leads as Baby, a talented getaway driver who wants to escape his crime boss and run away with his girlfriend Debora (Lily James). Of course, leaving a life like that is never easy. Part of what makes Baby unique is that he has tinnitus, so he’s constantly listening to music to drown it out; this results in some wonderfully kinetic and stylish scenes built around the soundtrack, directed with Wright’s usual panache.
The acting is great; portraying other criminals in the crew are Jamie Foxx, Jon Bernthal, and Jon Hamm and Eiza González as an intense couple. They are all magnetic and nail the tone. You have no doubt seen plenty of action movies with car chases, but you’ve never seen it quite like this. Baby Driver is thrilling, funny, and easily one of Wright’s best films, which is high praise considering he’s responsible for Shaun of the Dead. A sequel is planned and a script exists, though whether it gets off the ground remains to be seen. Either way, Baby Driver is a joyous, self-contained watch.
1
Boyhood
When I first saw Boyhood in theaters back in 2014, I knew I was witnessing something special. I’d never seen anything like it, nor have I since. Written and directed by Richard Linklater, the movie was shot over a 12-year time span. It centers around Mason (Ellar Coltrane), a young boy growing up in Texas, and the events that shape him—both the mundane and the meaningful.
Due to the nature of the production, it doesn’t have a traditional story (Linklater adapted the script as the years went by), but it’s that looseness and realism that helps Boyhood succeed. There are no plot twists or huge reveals. Instead, it invites you to ponder the passing of time. Patricia Arquette and Ethan Hawke play Mason’s parents, and you don’t need me to tell you how fantastic these actors are. Their performances are so natural, it’s easy to forget that you’re watching a work of fiction.
Simply put, if you’ve never seen Boyhood, correct that now; it’s undoubtedly Linklater’s masterpiece. Can he ever best it? Well, he’s currently working on an adaptation of Merrily We Roll Along that will be in production for at least 20 years, so we shall see.
Movies come and go from Netflix, so if you see something that you want to watch, don’t wait too long to press play. We have a list of everything leaving Netflix this month if you want to prioritize your viewing.
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Yes, $8/month
- Simultaneous streams
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Two or four
Stream all of these great movies, along with plenty more original and licensed programming, with a Netflix subscription.