Now Stream This: 'Taxi Driver', 'The Abyss', 'The Skeleton Twins', 'John Wick Chapter 3', And More
(Welcome to Now Stream This, a column dedicated to the best movies streaming on Netflix, Amazon, Hulu, and every other streaming service out there.)
Hello, streamers. It's time again to highlight some great titles you can kick-back with at home right this very second. You'll find classics, new films, a docu-series, a short film, and more. These are the best movies streaming right now.
Now Streaming on The Criterion Channel
Release Date: 1976Genre: DramaDirector: Martin ScorseseCast: Robert De Niro, Jodie Foster, Cybill Shepherd, Harvey Keitel, Peter Boyle, Leonard Harris, Albert Brooks
Even if you've seen Taxi Driver – the film where Robert De Niro plays a cab driver who slowly comes unhinged in dirty, filthy New York City – countless times (as I have), the version now streaming on The Criterion Channel is a big deal. Why? Because it contains a commentary track that's not exactly been readily available: The commentary from director Martin Scorsese and screenwriter Paul Schrader recorded for the long out-of-print Criterion Collection LaserDisc. This is a commentary track from the time when commentary tracks were relatively new things, which means it's much different than the type of commentaries we get today. It's incredibly informative, and even has some narration to buffer moments. Scorsese is very forthcoming here, talking about where he borrowed/stole from for certain shots – like a scene where the words Travis are writing pop-up on-screen is lifted from Jean-Luc Godard's Contempt; a scene where De Niro is at a red light borrowed from Powell and Pressburger, and so on. It's a must-listen for any cinephile who wants more insight into this American classic.
For fans of: Damn fine commentary tracks.
Now Streaming on HBO Now
Release Date: 1989Genre: Sci-FiDirector: James CameronCast: Ed Harris, Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio, Michael BiehnJames Cameron's The Abyss has never been released on Blu-ray, which seems like a huge goof. Cameron has previously revealed he worked on a 4K remaster of the film (in between shooting 300 Avatar sequels), and that it'll hit Blu-ray sooner or later. While we wait for that, though, we can check out the new HD remaster (in its original aspect ratio) now streaming on HBO Now. While this version isn't in 4K, it reportedly comes via the 4K transfer, so it'll do. For now. In Cameron's 1989 sci-fi classic, a group of deep-sea petroleum engineers (lead by divorced couple Ed Harris and Mary Elizabeth Mastrantonio) is drawn into a mission to help retrieve a sunken nuclear sub. What follows is a story full of cutting-edge special effects about contact with otherworldly beings from beneath the depts. It's exciting, it's thrilling, it's scary, it's emotional. It's a reminder that Cameron is the best at what he does (when he's not making Avatar sequels).For fans of: Alien, Underwater, special effects from over thirty years ago that look better than most of the junk we get today.
Now Streaming on Amazon Prime Video
Release Date: 2020Genre: True Crime Docu-SeriesDirector: Trish Wood
There have been many true crime docs about Ted Bundy, but I've never seen one as powerful as Ted Bundy: Falling For a Killer. What makes director Trish Wood's docu-series so special is its intense focus not on Bundy, but his crimes. This series has a distinctly female perspective, as Wood sits down with many women impacted by Bundy's horrific acts. The subjects include survivors of his attacks, and, at the center of it all, Elizabeth Kendall. Kendall was Bundy's long-time girlfriend, and even reported him to the police at one point. And yet, she also had a hard time believing he was guilty. Kendall has remained mostly in the shadows for decades, but here she's front and center, along with her daughter Molly. Falling For a Killer strives to explain how the charming, handsome Bundy was able to trick so many people for so long. But beyond that, it also underscores how many lives Bundy destroyed. Not only do his victims get long-deserved attention, but Wood also interviews the surviving relatives of many of those victims, and these interviews truly hammer home how devastating Bundy's actions were. It's not an easy watch – but it is an important one.
For fans of: The Ted Bundy Tapes, true crime done from a completely different perspective.
Now Streaming on Netflix
Release Date: 2017/2020Genre: David Lynch (a genre unto himself)Director: David LynchCast: David Lynch, Jack Cruz
Hey, do you want to see David Lynch interrogate a talking monkey (voiced by David Lynch) about an alleged murder in beautiful black and white? What if I told you that the monkey sings? And what if I told you a chicken was involved? Why aren't you watching this right this very second? It's only 17-minutes long. You've got the time. Trust me.
For fans of: David Lynch going full David Lynch.
Now Streaming on HBO Now
Release Date: 2019Genre: ActionDirector: Chad StahelskiCast: Keanu Reeves, Halle Berry, Laurence Fishburne, Mark Dacascos, Asia Kate Dillon, Lance Reddick, Anjelica Huston, Ian McShaneJohn Wick: Chapter 3 – Parabellum has it all. Keanu Reeves. Guns. Suits. Keanu Reeves wearing suits and firing guns. Horses. Keanu Reeves riding horses. Motorcycles. Keanu Reeves fighting dudes with swords while riding motorcycles. Dogs. Dogs who get in on the action. Halle Berry. Jason Mantzoukas. I could go on, but you get the point. At this point you're either 100% in on this franchise, or you're not. If you're not, well...I'm sorry. You're really missing out on the pinnacle of modern-day action cinema.For fans of: Keanu Reeves, baby.
Now Streaming on Amazon Prime Video and Hulu
Release Date: 2014Genre: Comedy-DramaDirector: Craig JohnsonCast: Bill Hader, Kristen Wiig, Luke Wilson
In The Skeleton Twins, estranged siblings Milo (Bill Hader) and Maggie (Kristen Wiig) are both independently planning to commit suicide on the same exact day, but by luck or fate or something else, things don't go according to plan. Now, the pair are reunited, and they must try to figure out why they're both so unhappy. That may not sound like the most cheerful of movies – and it's not. But Hader and Wiig are both wonderful here, turning in mostly dramatic performances that really work. Craig Johnson's film feels a little too "indie film festival paint-by-numbers" at times, but it's the solid lead performances that truly anchor this off-beat dark comedy.
For fans of: Rushmore, World's Greatest Dad, Bill Hader and Kristen Wiig lip-syncing "Nothing's Gonna Stop Us Now".
Now Streaming on Hulu
Release Date: 2019Genre: DramaDirector: Julius OnahCast: Naomi Watts, Octavia Spencer, Kelvin Harrison Jr., Norbert Leo Butz, Tim RothJulius Onah's Luce is a disturbing drama featuring a magnificent performance from Kelvin Harrison Jr. (who really should've received more awards season love for this and Waves). Harrison plays Luce, the adopted child of white liberal couple Naomi Watts and Tim Roth. To everyone – his parents, his teachers, his friends – Luce seems perfect. Perfect son, perfect student, perfect young man. But is he? One of Luce's teachers (Octavia Spencer) grows troubled when the high school student turns in a questionable essay, and this triggers a wave of uncertainty in nearly everyone around the young man. Is he really all he's cracked up to be? Or is he hiding a dark secret? Things get incredibly tense, with the script from Onah and JC Lee keeping you on your toes until the final frame.For fans of: House of Games, Clemency, performance-driven films.
Now Streaming Amazon Prime Video
Release Date: 1996Genre: ComedyDirector: Jim MallonCast: Michael J. Nelson, Trace Beaulieu, Kevin Murphy
After it was canceled by Comedy Central, Mystery Science Theater 3000 went to the big screen. Mystery Science Theater 3000: The Movie has Mike and the 'bots riffing on This Island Earth, and the results are predictably delightful. Like the show itself, MST3K: The Movie is a very niche piece of entertainment – some will love it, others won't understand what is happening. This flick has a very limited theatrical release, but I managed to catch it twice on the big screen. The first time was opening weekend, and the audience was in hysterics from beginning to end. The second time was a week later, and the audience – save me – was dead silent. So it goes – you're either in tune with the weird wise-cracks of MST3K, or you just wish these guys would pipe down and watch the movie.
For fans of: Riffing responsibly.
Now Streaming on Netflix
Release Date: 1992Genre: ThrillerDirector: Brian De PalmaCast: John Lithgow, Lolita Davidovich, Steven Bauer
Brian De Palma's gloriously over-the-top thriller borrows from Psycho, and more Hitchcockian filmography, to tell the story of a child psychologist (John Lithgow) suffering from multiple personality disorder. This enables Lithgow to go big, playing several different personalities as he struggles with his inner demons. And things only get more deadly when Lithgow's character(s) discovers that his wife, Lolita Davidovich, is having an affair. To be fair, a lot of this doesn't make sense (a recent Scream Factory Blu-ray release re-edited the film into a more coherent narrative more in line with what De Palma originally intended), but it's so much fun to watch. De Palma goes all-out here, using every trick up his sleeve to make the most lurid thriller possible.
For fans of: Dressed to Kill, Body Double, Lithgow!
Now Streaming on Hulu and Amazon Prime Video
Release Date: 2019Genre: HorrorDirector: Nicholas McCarthyCast: Taylor Schilling, Jackson Robert Scott, Colm FeoreThe Prodigy is a surprisingly nasty creepy kid pic – one that goes to extremely dark places that you might not expect from such a mainstream horror film. Taylor Schilling plays a woman who gives birth to a baby the same day a vicious serial killer is gunned down. The baby, Miles, begins to show an extreme aptitude for many things at a young age. In fact, he seems wise beyond his years. If you were paying attention to the opening scenes with the serial killer dying just as Miles is coming into this world, you can probably see where this is going. The predictability hampers The Prodigy a bit, but the film manages to pull off some seriously ominous moments that will surprise even the most jaded of horror fans.For fans of: The Hole in the Ground, Annabelle Comes Home, kids doing the darndest things (like murder).