If you’re a little bored with rewatching the old familiar favorites on Paramount+, then you’ve come to the right place, because I’ve combed through the streaming service’s respectably large movie library and picked out a few titles that I consider just a little bit overlooked.
My selections range from a visually stunning sci-fi thriller with plenty of thematic depth to a Denzel Washington drama which ranks among the legendary actor’s very best work (and that’s quite some praise). Plus, there’s also a real tear-jerker and a zany post-apocalyptic action-comedy, which, in my opinion, takes several world-building cues from the Fallout video games.
These are five of the best movies on Paramount+ that you (probably) haven’t watched.
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‘Annihilation’ (2018)
Alex Garland’s excellent “Ex Machina” is fondly remembered by sci-fi fans, but just four years later, he delivered “Annihilation,” a terrifying movie that is not only just as good, but it might be even better. With phenomenal visuals and a story that is rich in subtext, “Annihilation” rewards viewers who are willing to dig beneath the surface. If you like sci-fi that asks very big questions and isn’t afraid to take a few narrative risks, then you absolutely must watch it.
Lena (Natalie Portman) is a biologist and former soldier who joins a mission to step inside the Shimmer, a strange, quarantined zone created by a crashed meteor. Her objective isn’t just to discover the cause of the phenomenon, but also to discover what happened to her husband (Oscar Isaac), who was left traumatized by his own experience within the abandoned zone. Once inside the Shimmer, the expedition party discovers all manner of cosmic horrors.
Watch “Annihilation” on Paramount+ now
‘Fences’ (2016)
Denzel Washington can really do everything. Not only does he star in this hard-hitting adaptation of August Wilson’s 1985 play, but he also directed the Oscar-nominated film. Oh, and Viola Davis plays Washington’s character’s wife in a role that won her a deserved Academy Award. This movie has two of the greats starring side-by-side, giving everything they’ve got. If that doesn’t totally sell you on “Fences,” then maybe watching movies isn’t for you.
Set in 1950s Pittsburgh, Troy Maxson (Washington) is a sanitation worker with a real chip on his shoulder after his professional baseball career was thwarted by the major league’s refusal to allow black athletes to play until years after his prime. He’s deeply bitter and resentful when his son (Jovan Adepo) is given the sporting opportunity he never got. Alongside him is his wife, Rose (Davis), who struggles to stand by Troy as his self-destruction tears their family apart.
Watch “Fences” on Paramount+ now
‘Our Friend’ (2019)
If I tell you that “Our Friend” charts a trio of adults’ lives over several years, your first thought might be that it’s a soapy flick that can be boiled down to a cheap love triangle, but this tender drama doesn’t take such a predictable route. But it will put you through the emotional wringer. Based on a 2015 Esquire article, the biographical movie celebrates the bond between Nicole (Dakota Johnson), Matt (Casey Affleck) and Dane (Jason Segel).
Nicole and Matt are a married couple with two young daughters, but after receiving devastating news, their good friend Dane springs into action, putting his own needs aside to ensure the family is supported in their hour of need. Each of the leads gives a fitting performance, Segel being the movie’s real beating heart, and by the end, I challenge you not to shed a tear or two. “Our Friend” is a celebration of the bonds that make life worth living.
Watch “Our Friend” on Paramount+ now
‘Love and Monsters’ (2020)
Before we had the TV show on Prime Video, 2020’s “Love and Monsters” was probably the closest thing to an adaptation of the Fallout video games you could find. This apocalyptic action-comedy starts with a group of survivors living in an underground bunker, sheltering from the irradiated surface above. If that wasn’t bad enough, Earth’s animals have been turned into mutated monsters that will feed on anybody foolish enough to go topside.
The protagonist here is Joel Dawson (Dylan O’Brien), who reconnects with his old high school girlfriend, Aimee (Jessica Henwick), over a battered radio. She’s living in a colony 80 miles away, so Joel decides to venture out into the wasteland to find her. With its comedic tone, “Love and Monsters” doesn’t forget to have fun even during the end of the world. Plus, for a movie that can be very silly, it also shows a surprising degree of emotional maturity.
Watch “Love and Monsters” on Paramount+ now
‘Nocturnal Animals’ (2016)
![NOCTURNAL ANIMALS - Official Trailer [HD] - In Select Theaters November 18 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/JOsEU5oYpTA/maxresdefault.jpg)
This aloof psychological thriller won’t be for everybody, and it asks viewers to puzzle out some of its overarching narrative beats for themselves, but with confident direction from Tom Ford, and excellent performances from Amy Adams, Jake Gyllenhaal and Michael Shannon, there’s little not to like about “Nocturnal Animals.” Just don’t expect a simple watch; the movie goes to some dark places, and juggles a story set across two distinctive timelines.
Susan Morrow (Adams) is an L.A. gallery owner who receives a manuscript written by her first husband, Edward (Gyllenhaal), whom she hasn’t seen in years. The dark story within the novel’s pages entrances her. As she reads more, she starts to realize that elements of the manuscript reflect Susan’s own past relationship with Edward. The thrill of “Nocturnal Animals” is that it’s set in both the real world and within the fictional story contained within the manuscript.
Watch “Nocturnal Animals” on Paramount+ now
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