Yes, it’s the weekend again, and time to review the new movies and series added to the or three streamers online. So let’s get started!
Hulu
The biggest movie Hulu added this week is supposed to be added today, Beatriz At Dinner, the 2017 movie starring Salma Hayek. But they only have the trailer now, so stay tuned. It has a great cast, too, with John Lithgow, Connie Britton and Jay Duplass. It’s a comedy about politics today, and gets 76% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.Hulu has also added one movie I’ve overlooked last week, which is Stories We Tell, a 2014 documentary by Sarah Polley, actor and oscar-nominated director. It’s about her own family and the secrets they never talked about. It was named one of the ten best Canadian films of all tie, and gets a 7.6/10 on IMDb and a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. Definitely worth checking out. Also, new on Hulu, is We Have a Pope, the 2011 French-Italian comedy about a new pope and his difficulty adjusting to his new job. It stars Michel Piccoli, Nanni Moretti and Margherita Buy and is directed by Nanni Moretti, as well. It played at the 64th Cannes Film Festival and caused a bit of a stir when it came out, especially in Italy, with it’s portrayal of the pope and his conclave. It gets a 6.7/10 on IMDb and got some good reviews, too. Hulu has some wonderful classic movies, one of them being Lawrence of Arabia,from 1962, starring Peter O’Toole. Directed by David Lean, it is an epic about T.E. Lawrence, and it won seven Academy Awards, including Best Picture and Best Director. It also stars Alec Guinness, Omar Sharif and Claude Rains. It gets an 8.3/10 on IMDb and was named the 3rd best British movie of all time in 1999. And finally, Hulu has added Mansfield Park, the 1999 film starring Embeth Davidtz, Jonny Lee Miller and Hugh Bonneville. And this Mansfield Park departs from Jane Austen‘s classic novel, incorporating aspects of Austen’s own life. It’s unusual, and had some critics angry for it’s differing from the novel. But it gets a 77% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 6.9/10 on IMDb. You can decide for yourself.
Netflix
The most exciting addition to Netflix this week is Cargo, starring Martin Freeman(Sherlock). It’s a Netflix Original movie, set in Australia, in a post-apocalyptic world threatened by a pandemic. It also stars Caren Pistorius, Anthony Hayes and Kris McQuade. It gets an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes, though there are only 28 reviews thus far, and a 6.7/10 on IMDb. Also new on Netflix is Catching Feelings, a 2017 movie from South Africa. It stars Kagiso Lediga, Pearl Thusi and Precious Makgaretsa. It’s romantic comedy about a Johannesburg professor and his wife, as their lives goes haywire as a famous author joins their household. It premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival in 2017, but has only become available widely in the U.S. now. It gets a 5.9/10 on IMDb.Netflix also added a new season of Dear White People, it’s sardonic comedy about being black and in college in America, at a predominantly white school. It stars Logan Browning, Brandon P. Bell and Antoinette Robertson. It’s been called “razor-sharp” by the Hollywood Reporter, and gets a 100% on Rotten Tomatoes. Truly worth your time. And, finally, Netflix has The Forty Year Old Virgin, Steve Carell‘s breakout movie of 2005. It was debut of director Judd Apatow, and also stars Catherine Keener, Jane Lynch and Seth Rogen. It was also co-written by Steve Carell, but has a lot of ad-libbing. it gets an 85% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.2/10 on IMDb.
Amazon Prime
Amazon didn’t add many new films this week, but one of interest is An Inspector Calls, a 2015 thriller film adapted from a J.B. Priestley work. It stars Chloe Pirrie, David Thewlis and Miranda Richardson, and takes place in 1912. Following a suicide, an inspector interviews a family with secrets, interrupting a dinner party. It gets a 7.7/10 on IMDb. Also , new to Amazon is How to Be a Latin Lover, a 2017 movie. It stars Salma Hayek, Eugenio Derbez, Kristin Bell, Renee Taylor and Raquel Welch, in an American comedy about a gigolo forced to fend for himself after being kicked out by his wife.It has an awesome cast, which is good, because it gets a 38% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 5.9/10 on IMDb. Watch at your peril. If you want a better bet than that, Amazon has also added Insomnia, the 2002 movie starring Al Pacino. It’s an amazing thriller directed by Christopher Nolan(!) and also stars Robin Williams, Hilary Swank and Paul Dooley. It’s the American version of a Norwegian 1997 classic,with a LAPD detective(Pacino) sent to solve a crime, during the nightless summer of Alaska. It got wonderful reviews, even from the New York Times, and gets a 92% on Rotten Tomatoes and a 7.2/10 on IMDb. `And, finally, Amazon offers The Elephant Man, the beautiful 1980 movie directed by David Lynch. It is about David Merrick, a man beset by disease and deformity and a doctor who tries to help him. It stars John Hurt, Anthony Hopkins, Anne Bancroft, Wendy Hiller and John Gielgud, was nominated for countless awards, won the BAFTA Award for Best Film and gets a 90% on Rotten Tomatoes.
So if you’re overdosed on wedding regalia, or just over worked, sit back and enjoy some good movies, and relax for the weekend.
Grownups Guide to Streaming 