Whether your monthly streaming bill is $100 or $0, you can always find something good to watch on Roku TV. In the past month, the platform has added a number of phenomenal films, including a handful of classic comedies, a little-seen comic book movie and two stellar Best Picture winners.
Here are the seven best new movies on Roku TV.
“Fences”
Giving some of the world’s most talented actors the words of one of America’s most talented playwrights makes for a pretty winning combination. Just look at “Fences,” where Denzel Washington directs himself and Viola Davis in a feature adaptation of one of August Wilson’s most celebrated and iconic plays. The performances are just as exceptional as you’d expect.
“His Girl Friday”
Roku TV has a wealth of classic comedies available for streaming, including the 1940 all-timer “His Girl Friday.” Cary Grant and Rosalind Russell star as a newspaper editor and his skilled reporter/ex-wife who bite off more than they can chew in what could be their last story together. Howard Hawks’ classic screwball comedy, written by Charles Lederer and adapted from Ben Hecht and Charles MacArthur’s “The Front Page,” remains a wonderful and engaging farce to this day.
“It Happened One Night”
In the early days of the Academy, Frank Capra wanted an Oscar bad. The filmmaker even went up to the stage at the 6th Academy Awards when Will Rogers said “Come up and get it, Frank!” to announce Best Director — not realizing the host was referring to Frank Lloyd, who won for that year’s Best Picture, “Cavalcade.” There were only three directors nominated that year.
But Capra bounced back a year after that embarrassment with “It Happened One Night,” which became the first of only three films to win the Big 5 Oscars: Picture, Director, Actor, Actress and Screenplay (that year, Best Writing (Adaptation).
It’s not hard to see why Oscar voters fell so deeply in love with this 1934 romance. Adapted from Samuel Hopkins Adams’ Cosmopolitan story “Night Bus,” the film follows a reporter and a socialite whose fates become intertwined as the latter attempts to cross the country by bus to reunite with her husband-to-be. The movie, starring Clark Gable and Claudette Colbert (who was involved in another Oscars controversy that year), is funny, romantic and deeply charming.
“Modern Romance”
Albert Brooks has it all. He’s a phenomenal actor, a tremendous writer and a great director — all of which are at the forefront of “Modern Romance,” his second directorial feature. Written with Monica Johnson, the film follows a film editor, his incredibly patient girlfriend and all the manners in which he can get in his own way. It’s biting, observant, horrifying and real. Brooks is one of one.
“Train to Busan”
Yeon Sang-ho’s action-horror “Train to Busan” quickly gained a reputation for itself as a modern classic of the zombie genre. Written by Park Joo-suk, the film follows a train full of passengers (on their way to Busan, if you would believe it) who find themselves in the midst of an undead outbreak. It’s tense, thrilling and, at times, emotionally devastating — everything a good zombie movie should be.
“Titanic”
In a newsletter last week, I confessed to just recently watching “Titanic” for the first time (I was waiting to see it in a movie theater, OK?). James Cameron’s historical masterpiece was well worth the wait. Every single element of this film fires on all cylinders — the performances, the screenwriting, the intricate crafts, the deep emotions. This is movie magic, pure and simple. I will be revisiting this movie for the rest of my life, and you should too.
“The Trial of the Incredible Hulk”
Before “Daredevil: Born Again” Season 2, you can go on Roku TV to watch the live-action debut of the Man Without Fear: “The Trial of the Incredible Hulk.” In this made-for-TV movie follow-up to the Bill Bixby/Lou Ferrigno television series (directed by Bixby and the second of three such films), the Hulk teams up with Daredevil/Matt Murdock in a battle against Wilson Fisk, a.k.a. the Kingpin. The film also provides the origin for the simple black costume worn throughout the first and third seasons of Netflix’s “Daredevil” (later brought to life in the comics during Frank Miller and John Romita Jr.’s iconic run on the character).
