There's a lot of stuff to watch out there, but when you've seen all the big blockbusters,
all the hot original movies, and all the classics that everyone's told you to watch, what do
you check out next?
Thankfully, for every well-trafficked blockbuster, there are several less well-known movies waiting
for you to watch.
Whatever you're after, here are some hidden gems you can stream right now.
In 2019, brother filmmakers Josh and Benny Safdie exploded with Uncut Gems, a tense crime
film featuring a blistering lead performance from Adam Sandler.
If you saw that much-hyped film and you're looking to get into more of the Safdies' filmography,
you might want to start with the acclaimed crime drama they cooked up right before Uncut
Gems, which features another incredible performance at its core.
Good Time stars Robert Pattinson as Connie, a bank robber who ropes his developmentally
disabled brother into one of his schemes, only to find that he manages to escape while
his brother is arrested.
Desperate to save his brother, Connie sets out to scrape together the money to bail him
out, and hits obstacle after obstacle along the way.
If you like the way the Safdies build tension through pure, human moments of disasters on
both small and large scales, then you'll enjoy Good Time.
It's another crime story told with a very raw feel, but there's also a deep emotional
core at work in this film, driven by Pattinson's incredible lead performance.
Jake Gyllenhaal is one of those actors who seems like he can do anything, and he's shown
in film after film that he has the ability to totally disappear into a character.
"She's truly exceptional."
The same holds for Nightcrawler.
Gyllenhaal stars in the film as Lou Bloom, a thief who's always looking for an angle
that would allow him to get ahead.
He finally finds it one night when he witnesses freelance videographers filming the aftermath
of a car accident, and learns that they make money by selling the footage to news stations.
So he gets a camcorder and starts trolling the streets for the most gruesome footage
he can find.
"Crash with injuries, good neighborhood."
All the while, the adrenaline his new job generates slowly becomes addicting.
Gyllenhaal goes absolutely all-out to play Lou, delivering what's arguably his best performance
as he takes things to absolutely unhinged levels in director Dan Gilroy's critique of
media consumption in the age of instant news.
Unless you're a World War II movie completist, there's a chance you missed Defiance, director
Edward Zwick's 2008 film about the early years of the second World War.
The film follows two brothers - played by Daniel Craig and Liev Schrieber- as they flee
into the forest in 1941 to escape Nazi extermination squads who are rounding up and murdering local
Jews.
Over time, their attempt to hide develops into something more, as their forest hideaway
attracts more and more refugees.
Already out for revenge after the death of their parents, the brothers find themselves
at the forefront of a full-blown resistance movement centered on their forest camp.
If you love dramas centered around theaters of World War II that we don't often see, Defiance
tackles a well-worn era in a very different way.
Directed by Hong Kong cinema legend Chang Cheh, who also made The Five Venoms, Five
Elements Ninjas is an intoxicating and thrilling blend of Chinese and Japanese fighting styles.
What begins with a challenge between two Hong Kong martial arts schools soon involves outside
interference, as powerful ninjas seek to attack one of the schools and prove their might.
If you've seen other Shaw Brothers films from the same period, the overall plot of Five
Elements Ninjas should seem comfortable and familiar, but plot's not why we're here.
We're here to watch incredible fight choreography and some truly wild action elements come together
in a bloody kung fu finale.
And this is a film that absolutely delivers.
One of the great joys of action-adventure filmmaking is watching storytellers produce
their own riffs on the kinds of films they loved when they were kids.
Rim of the World, written by Zack Stentz and directed by McG is one of those films.
The film takes its name from a summer camp where a small group of misfit kids strike
up an unlikely friendship and attempt to face their various fears and personal issues.
Everything goes haywire when an alien invasion suddenly grips Earth.
Facing a dangerous path and a ticking clock, they might be the last hope to defeat the
alien threat.
Rim of the World racked up a healthy group of fans when it first debuted back in 2019,
but if you didn't catch it then, you're in for a treat.
It's a film designed in the mold of classics like Red Dawn, The Goonies, E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial,
and other '80s favorites.
Any fans of those films will have a blast with Rim of the World.
"Why the hell is it following us?"
"It's pissed about its dog.
You ever watch Marley and Me or Beethoven?
It's a primal bond.
It's out for revenge.
Ask John Wick."
These days, you might best know writer/director Colin Trevorrow for his big-budget work on
the blockbuster Jurassic World films.
Before he became a cinematic dinosaur wrangler, though, Trevorrow and writing partner Derek
Connolly proved they had a knack for clever sci-fi storytelling with Safety Not Guaranteed.
The film follows a team of journalists who find a classified ad from someone claiming
to have a time machine, and what happens when they investigate that claim.
Darius, an intern working on the team, is the one who manages to connect with Jeff,
the would-be time traveler who's searching for the perfect partner to take his journey
with him.
"So, so what, that's it?"
"Oh no.
This just got good."
What begins as a quirky setup for a story soon evolves into a witty, heartfelt and delightfully
strange film about a pair of lost humans who manage to find each other and pursue something
deeper.
Aubrey Plaza, Mark Duplass, and supporting cast members like Jake Johnson are all delightful
in the film.
Daniel Radcliffe has a knack for picking bold, unconventional, and sometimes flat-out crazy
projects that have to be seen to be believed.
And nowhere is that more apparent than Swiss Army Man.
Part dark human comedy, part fantasy, the film stars Paul Dano as a man named Hank who
decides a noose is his only option after he gets stranded on an island.
That changes when he finds a dead body, played by Radcliffe, that washes up on shore.
Upon seeing what he was about to become, Hank has second thoughts, and develops a strange
relationship with the body.
"Hi.
Hello.
Hello, Hank.
That's very good."
Of course, it helps that the body can be used for all sorts of strange things, much like
a decomposing Swiss Army Knife.
If that sounds absolutely insane to you, that's because it is.
But Swiss Army Man is much more than just a wild premise.
It's a daring, poignant, life-affirming movie that features brilliant performances from
both Dano and Radcliffe.
Oh, and plenty of farts.
"I know it sounds dumb, but I really thought for a moment that maybe, just maybe, there
was a reason that you ca--"
In 2014, writer/director Ana Lily Amirpour wowed critics with her debut feature film,
the haunting and gorgeous A Girl Walks Home Alone At Night.
After reinventing the vampire genre to her own taste, Amirpour decided her follow-up
film would take things to the post-apocalyptic wasteland.
The result is The Bad Batch, and just like her first film, this is an example of Amirpour
putting her own particular spin on a classic horror/sci-fi concept, with compelling results.
The film begins as the story of a woman exiled into the wastelands beyond Texas.
Her subsequent adventures bring her in contact with everyone from a band of cannibals to
a group of charismatic settlers living what seems to be the sweet life, despite the horrors
of the world around them.
Starring Suki Waterhouse with a supporting cast that includes Jason Momoa, Keanu Reeves,
and Jim Carrey, The Bad Batch has built a cult following thanks to its ambitious storytelling,
wild visuals, and vivid characters.
"It's time to wake up.
It's time to find the dream."
Most American viewers were introduced to Dan Stevens in Downton Abbey, and many fell in
love with him all over again in Eurovision Song Contest: The Story of Fire Saga.
If you're looking for yet another side to this talented actor, one you might not have
seen when it was first released, then The Guest is for you.
Stevens stars as David, a soldier who shows up at the home of the family of one of his
fallen comrades and is quickly adopted as a polite but enigmatic houseguest.
Almost immediately, things start to get weird.
David develops a mentor relationship with the family's surviving son, gets a little
too friendly with the daughter, and might even be linked to some mysterious deaths in
the area.
Directed by Adam Wingard, The Guest is a relentlessly entertaining mixture of violent action sequences
and wicked humor, all led by Stevens' inexhaustible charm.
It's one of his essential performances, and features more than a few amazing visual flourishes
along the way.
"If you brought money for all of them, I'll cut you a deal.
You can take them all off my hands."
"No, I'm going to kill you."
These days, Jon Watts is a blockbuster filmmaker thanks to his time in the Marvel Cinematic
Universe.
Watts has helmed two hit Spider-Man films starring Tom Holland since 2017.
But before he took on superheroes, he was making smaller, extremely effective genre
films to show off his talents.
Cop Car, Watts' second feature, is one such effective film, and if you're into tight,
witty crime films, you'll want to check it out.
The film follows two boys who come across an abandoned sheriff's cruiser, and decide
to steal it for a little joyride.
"What if someone sees us?"
"We'll just tell them we're cops."
Unbeknownst to them, the car's actual owner - a corrupt sheriff played by Kevin Bacon
- has been up to no good, and he's left some remnants of his misdeeds in the car.
What follows is a tense, funny, and unpredictable game of cat and mouse as the sheriff tries
to get his cruiser back, and the boys try to escape with their lives.
Anchored by Bacon's phenomenal performance, Cop Car served as a dynamic calling card for
Watts as a director, and is an extremely entertaining film.
"Son, I am the only person out here that you can trust."
Thanks for watching.
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