After watching the Golden Globes and Oscars you probably have a long list of movies you need to see. Here's a round up of 28 new films that you can find on netflix now. Did you know netflix is celebrating it's 20th anniversary this year?
I, TonyaHere's the story of ice skater Tonya Harding and the most famous sports scandals in American history: the assault on rival Nancy Kerrigan before the 1994 Winter Olympics. Allison Janney won an Oscar and Golden Globe for Best Performance by an Actress in a Supporting Role. Margot Robbie had to use drugstore hair dye to get the right shade of blonde. There was a lot of controversy on Twitter for Margot taking Tonya Harding as her date to the Oscars. I mean would you invite OJ to an awards show for the TV show based on his life? lol
I loved this movie! It's a coming of age story set in 2002 of a lower middle-class, 17-year old girl in unglamorous Sacramento. She named herself Lady Bird, has a tumultuous relationship with her mother and wants to go to college in New York City against her mother's wishes. It's a slice of a suffocated teenage life. Directed by Greta Gerwig and starring Saoirse Ronan and Laurie Metcalf. It was nominated for five Oscars. Won two Golden Globes for Best Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy and Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Musical or Comedy - Saoirse Ronan.
I saw this in the movie theater and it was nominated for Best Picture at both the Oscars and Golden Globes. When the Washington Post agrees to publish the leaked Pentagon Papers, which point to a secret escalation of the Vietnam War, the Nixon administration tries to block publication, setting off an epic legal and political battle. Directed by Steven Spielberg and starring Tom Hanks and Meryl Streep who plays Katharine Graham who was the first female publisher of a major American newspaper in 1963. She got the role after her husband's death and had to demand the respect of her male colleagues.
I saw this in the movie theater and this dark, unique movie has a very captivating story line. When law enforcement fails to make headway on the months-long hunt for her daughter's killer, Mildred Hayes takes the drastic step of putting up three large signs questioning the motivation of the town's widely respected police chief. It won four Golden Globes including Best Motion Picture and Best Performance by an Actress in a Motion Picture - Frances McDormand. It won two Oscars for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role Frances McDormand and Best Performance by an Actor in a Supporting Role Sam Rockwell.
You may have not heard of this movie as it only ran for a week in limited release and three weeks in wide release in November before disappearing from most theaters. Denzel was nominated for both an Oscar and Golden Globe for Actor in a Leading Role. This is great movie because of its usual elements. It's about an adorable character (Roman played by Denzel) that does charity through his profession as a defense lawyer in Los Angeles while only being paid $500 a week. Roman seems to be on the autism spectrum although that is never mentioned in the movie. He uses an old computer, his files are on index cards in lieu of law-office software, uses a flip phone and only eats peanut butter and jelly sandwiches. Denzel had to gain 30 lbs for this role and his wardrobe consisted of looses fitting eighties vintage. When his firm closes he has to join a powerful law firm lead by Colin Farrell. The movie is about moral values in a world were profit is preventing us from making the right choices.
A female-led, big-budget superhero movie, when was the last time we had one of those? It was directed by a woman and gave middle-aged woman superhero roles in the movie. Including 50 year old Robin Wright who you see riding into battle and is a fierce fighter. The story line to the movie is that before she was Wonder Woman, she was Diana, princess of the Amazons, trained to be an unconquerable warrior. Raised on a sheltered island paradise, when an American pilot crashes on their shores and tells of a massive conflict raging in the outside world, Diana leaves her home, convinced she can stop the threat. Fighting alongside man in a war to end all wars, Diana will discover her full powers and her true destiny. You don't have to be a fan of superhero action movies to like this movie.
It won four Oscars including Best Motion Picture of the Year and two Golden Globes. At a top secret U.S. government laboratory in the 1960s, a lonely cleaning lady forms a unique relationship with an amphibious creature that is being held in captivity. Filmed in Baltimore and the color green played an important role in the movie as there were green walls, green lockers, green clothes, green cars, green jello pie, etc. I was expecting so much nudity in the film. Starring Sally Hawkins, Michael Shannon, Richard Jenkins, and Octavia Spencer.
This is the true story of aspiring journalist Jay Bahadur who travels to Somalia in 2008 to make contact with the pirates who are hijacking trade ships as they pass by the African coast. The closing credits identify the many Somali refugees in the cast and crew with the year they became a refugee. I really enjoyed this movie about Somalia as I learned a little bit about the culture and people. Other movies filmed in Somalia based on true stories that I've enjoyed are Captain Phillips, Black Hawk Down, and Desert Flower.
A United KingdomBased on the true story of Prince Seretse Khama of Bechuanaland who was studying law in Britain in the late 1940s in preparation for his eventual ascension to the throne. The prince falls in love with a white British woman named Ruth Williams. When they wed after a brief courtship, their interracial union sparks an international political crisis. His uncle disapproves of this union and Britain fears a backlash from neighboring country apartheid country South Africa. This ends up causing international opposition, a diplomatic firestorm and domestic political tumult. Against all odds, King Khama and Ruth struggle to maintain their love and help their people in a land that becomes the Republic of Botswana. It's a beautiful movie starring David Oyelowo, Rosamund Pike about a story I knew nothing about.
Coco
Pixar's magical animation lights up this colorful tale of adventure that follows Miguel Rivera, a 12-year-old Mexican boy who unlocks a long-hidden family mystery after he ends up in the Land of the Dead.
Justice League
We have Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, Flash, Aquaman and Cyborg all in the same movie! The first hour was an introduction to each of them, which means the actual story was only an hour. Together, Batman and Wonder Woman work quickly to find and recruit a team of metahumans to stand against this newly awakened threat. But despite the formation of this unprecedented league of heroes, it may already be too late to save the planet from an assault of catastrophic proportions. Starring Ben Affleck, Gal Gadot, Amy Adams, Jason Momoa and Connie Nielsen. I didn't find it as good as the movie Wonder Woman.
Feeling that their lives are out of control, a husband and wife decide to be reduced to tiny size to make life more affordable and leave a smaller carbon footprint. Unfortunately, after he undergoes the procedure, his spouse backs out. Matt Damon, Kristen Wiig, and Christoph Waltz.
The Mountain Between Us
Kate Winslet and Idris Elba star in a drama based on Charles Martin's novel. When a plane they've chartered to beat a storm crashes in a remote mountain area, two strangers must trust each other in order to survive the extreme elements. With little hope of rescue, they begin a perilous journey that will shape the course of their lives. I wasn't sure I'd like a movie that was starring only 2 people in a remote location but it was a very poetic movie with stunning landscape.
When four lifelong friends (Regina Hall, Tiffany Haddish, Jada Pinkett Smith, and Queen Latifah) travel to New Orleans for the annual Essence Festival, sisterhoods are rekindled, wild sides are rediscovered, and there's enough dancing, drinking, brawling and romancing to make the Big Easy blush. I was surprised I actually liked this movie and Tiffany is hilarious!
Military related films:
This movie chronicles the experiences of three U.S. military veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder following their service in Iraq focusing on their struggle to reintegrate with the civilian world. This is not a war movie but a film of what war does to you and how it affects you after you are no longer in physical war but your mind stays in mental war and no one understands. This is a film about those veterans who are not supported by the psychological services of the Veterans Administration due to lack of funding. Amy Schumer has a small role as a wife in this movie and donated all the money she earned from it to army war vet foundations. The movie was based on real people who you see at the end of the film.
Based on the true life story of a young Marine corporal (played by Kate Mara) and her bomb-sniffing dog who sees them through more than 100 missions during the Iraq War until an improvised explosive device injures them both.
Movies that were just meh
Get OutI hated this movie, but it won an Oscar for Best Original Screenplay and nominated for Best Motion Picture of the Year. And at the Golden Globes it was nominated for Best Motion Picture. The story line is a young African-American (Daniel Kaluuya) visits his white girlfriend's (Allison Williams) parents for the weekend in a posh suburb where he learns that young African-American men like himself have been vanishing from. It's a cheesy, suspenseful horror movie with lots of eyes bugging out and hidden messages.
Set in Los Angeles, this romantic comedy follows a recently divorced single mother (Reese Witherspoon) as she defies common sense and takes in three young male boarders who become part of her unconventional family. The premise of the story was unbelievable.
In this big-screen adaptation of the popular TV drama, the hard-bodied lifeguards who patrol a sun-soaked Florida beach uncover a criminal plot that could destroy the bay where they work. Starring Dwayne Johnson, Zac Efron. Priyanka Chopra, and Charlotte McKinney. I was disappointed they changed the beat to the theme song.
Rough Night
Preparing for a seriously crazy bachelorette party, five friends rent a Miami beach house for the weekend and hire a male stripper to get things started. But what they didn't expect was that the stud would end up a stiff. Starring Scarlett Johansson and Kate McKinnon with an Australian accent.
When an MI6 agent is murdered in 1989 Berlin, fellow spy Lorraine Broughton is dispatched to investigate and retrieve the list of double agents he was carrying. But that means working with the Berlin station chief which could prove tricky. Starring Charlize Theron and John Goodman.
Sleepless
Worse movie ever, I fast forwarded through most of it. Cop Vincent Downs (Jamie Foxx) has been working both sides of the law for some time with a fair degree of success. But after he and his partner get caught stealing a drug kingpin's cocaine shipment, the life of Vincent's son is put in danger.
Tulip Fever
As 17th-century Amsterdam is immersed in tulip mania, a struggling artist and a wealthy married woman fall in love when he's commissioned to paint her portrait. To pay for a new life together, they gamble on the tulip bulb market. Starring Alicia Vikander, Judi Dench, and Cara Delevingne.
Coming out in April in DVD
The Greatest ShowmanBehind "The Greatest Show on Earth" was one of history's greatest showmen, P.T. Barnum. This musical biopic centers on Barnum's creation of the three-ring circus and his infatuation with Swedish songbird Jenny Lind. Starring Hugh Jackman, Zac Efron, Michelle Williams, and Zendaya.
All the money in the worldIn a crime that rivets the American public for months in 1973, members of an Italian paramilitary organization kidnap John Paul Getty III. When his oil-rich grandfather balks at paying the ransom, the bad guys up the stakes dramatically. Starring Michelle Williams and Mark Wahlberg.
Insurance salesman Michael Woolrich's (Liam Neeson) quiet train ride home turns into a terrifying situation when a mysterious woman forces him to find a specific passenger before the last stop, entangling Woolrich in a deadly conspiracy.
After her heroics in "The Force Awakens," space wanderer Rey carries on her quest to discover her origins. When she learns the possible location of the long-missing Luke Skywalker, Rey and her allies begin a journey rife with perils.
12 Strong
This tense military drama follows the first American forces to land in Afghanistan after the 9/11 attacks: a small band of elite soldiers who travel on horseback through deadly territory to help coordinate the efforts of anti-Taliban forces. Starring Chris Hemsworth, his wife Elsa Pataky, and Trevante Rhodes from Moonlight.
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oh my gosh - its like all the Oscar movies are out right now - looks like I have a ton of watching to do!
ReplyDeleteThese are some interesting movies. I am waiting for Black Panther and I Can Only Imagine to be on this list soon! I know they are still in theaters, but I never have time to go! From this list, I may want to check out Thank You For Your Service, because I know friends who have enlisted in the military, and Roman Israel, because I may be able to relate to the main character somewhat.
ReplyDeleteAwesome reviews! I have heard a lot of great things about I, Tonya so I'm excited to check it out.
ReplyDeleteI would totally recommend : Coco, Girls Trip, Megan Leavey those are my top 3. I wish that the death is really like in the Coco movie! I'll watch Tonya for sure sounds very interesting!🙃
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