What's New To Streaming In May
We also preview three new Netflix Original movies debuting this month
There’s something for everyone in the new movies hitting streaming services this month. You like 2000s comedies? Go ahead and laugh until you can’t breathe with Wedding Crashers and Austin Powers on Netflix, as well as Knocked Up and Borat on Hulu. For you sci-fi heads, all three of The Matrix movies are hitting Netflix. Sports movie fans can revisit Hoosiers (Netflix) and Major League (Hulu).
There’s much more that’s new in May that you can see here, but below we hand select a few that we ride hard for. Spring is here, which means you should get outside, but maybe put one or two of these in your queue for those rainy days.
Billy recommends…
Dumb and Dumber (streaming on Netflix)
It might be a sad and slightly embarrassing statement, but I don’t think a movie has shaped me more than Dumb and Dumber. I now feel comfortable telling you all that because Peter Farrelly, who made his name as a part of the directing duo the Farrelly Brothers, is now an Oscar-winning director for the movie Green Book.
That is enough about the director. The true stars of this movie are the two lead characters Lloyd Christmas and Harry Dunne, played masterfully by Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels. These are truly all-time performances. There is no sarcasm in that statement. What these two actors do with these characters should not have worked, but it works tremendously. Every scene in this movie is gold and it is taking every muscle in me to not make this next paragraph quotes from the movie. Instead I will go into the process of getting this movie made.
Jim Carrey was cast almost right away and he was heavily involved in casting the other actor to play opposite him. The producers were naturally wanting another comedian. Carrey is a tour de force comedic actor and keeping up with him is almost impossible. For whatever reason Carrey recommended casting Jeff Daniels. A typically serious actor? No way, but they decided to go with Daniels anyway. It is clear that the craziness of the pre-production leaked into the craziness of the film. I think that it needed to for it to work and this movie works the entire way through.
Signs (streaming on HBO Now)
M. Night Shyamalan is the most polarizing director of all-time. No filmmaker has directed so many masterful movies while also creating so many all-time bad movies. Signs is a controversial one for Shyamalan fans. Is it great? Is it terrible? These are the only two outcomes coming out of this film. Luckily for me, I find this one great.
Signs follows former reverend Graham Hess (Mel Gibson), who after the death of his wife loses his faith that he once held dear. Hollywood does not portray faith well in movies, but Signs brilliantly shows how traumatic a crisis of faith can be. Gibson, a real-life Catholic, must have brought his own life into this role because you feel every emotion that he is going through.
Weirdly, at times, it almost feels like the lack of faith is freeing for his character. Shyamalan makes it clear that that is the problem. For himself it is initially freeing, but for everyone else in his life (his kids and brother-in-law) it has become a detriment. I do not know if such a tie to your faith is a good thing or bad thing, but once Hess lost his faith he became a more selfish person. By the end of the movie we realize that Hess needs his faith to live a fulfilled life.
Hollywood movies typically pick one side or the other. Show faith as a detriment or show it as only a positive. Signs is so unique in that it shows the complexity of faith. The ups and downs and the difficulty to keep it in the midst of tragedy. This one is funny, scary, sad, and maniacal. That combination leads to an amazing film. Give this one a look.
Drew recommends…
Snowpiercer (streaming on Netflix)
Original action movies can be hard to come by these days. Most of them are tied to a franchise, like Fast & Furious, Star Wars, or Marvel (Speaking of, check out last week’s newsletter on Marvel movies!). But when you’re introduced to a brand new world, it can be a different kind of thrilling experience. Released in 2014, Snowpiercer is an ambitious sci-fi action film with heady ideas that takes place on a single train.
The premise, based on a French graphic novel, is that humanity accidentally killed almost all life on the planet from a failed global-warming experiment that initiated a deep freeze. The last humans boarded a train called the Snowpiercer that hurtles across the Earth. On the Snowpiercer, there is a strict class structure, with poor people in the tail and richer passengers towards the front. Chris Evans stars a member of the lower-class that leads a revolution against their oppressors.
Snowpiercer is quite obvious in its allegory of capitalism and class warfare, but it’s also highly entertaining. Director Bong Joon-ho (Okja) shoots the action scenes with stunning realism and choreography. Although it’s pretty violent, it never curdles into the purely stylized violence of so many action flicks. As the revolutionaries make their way through the train, each section is a whole new world they must navigate, which is enthralling and unpredictable to watch. Plus, you have fully committed performances from Evans, Ed Harris, and, especially, Tilda Swinton.
As apocalyptic movies go, this is one of the more excitingly original offerings. And, if you like your action movies imbued with thought-provoking ideas about society and humanity, Snowpiercer is a must-watch.
Zombieland (streaming on Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Hulu)
Look, I’ve never been a big zombie guy. I haven’t seen Shaun of the Dead or World War Z or 28 Days Later. I’ve never given The Walking Dead a chance and the White Walkers storyline on Game of Thrones was never as interesting to me as the battle for the Iron Throne.
But, I love Zombieland.
My college roommate (hi, Aaron) forced me to watch this soon after it came out in 2009, and I’m so glad he did because it is a non-stop delight. Zombieland is basically a road trip comedy that has fun with zombie movie tropes. Jesse Eisenberg, Woody Harrelson, Emma Stone, and Abigail Breslin play survivors of the zombie apocalypse that reluctantly team up to travel across the country in search of a sanctuary free of flesh-eating zombies.
There’s plenty of great zombie-killing action, but the jokes are what makes the movie. Eisenberg’s character has a running list of rules for survival, (such as “Limber up,” “Check the back seat” and “Double-knot your shoes”), Harrelson has an unhealthy obsession with Twinkies, and the zippy back-and-forth dialogue between all four characters ensures you’re never bored between the zombie encounters. There’s also a hilarious celebrity cameo that I won’t give away for those who haven’t seen it.
A cool thing I just found out is that there will be a sequel called Zombieland: Double Tap in October this year with the whole cast coming back. Watch or rewatch the original in preparation and remember: “Enjoy the little things.”
New Netflix Original Movies Arriving In May
Extremely Wicked, Shockingly Evil and Vile (available May 3)
Zac Efron as infamous serial killer Ted Bundy? Alright, then. If you’re a true crime fanatic, this is right up your alley. The director that made the documentary series The Ted Bundy Tapes (which premiered on Netflix earlier this year) also directed this, so this guy is kind of an expert on all things Bundy. Efron looks like he is putting in a properly creepy and charismatic performance as the handsome killer, and Lily Collins plays his girlfriend who believes him to be innocent.
Wine Country (available May 10)
Before you head to Sonoma this summer, give Wine Country a watch. Amy Poehler is making her directorial debut by getting the SNL gang back together for a comedy set in, well, wine country. All your favorites are here: Tina Fey, Maya Rudolph, Rachel Dratch, and more. What’s not to love about this?
The Perfection (available May 24)
This one looks like a skin-crawler -- literally, if you watch the trailer. Former Girls star Allison Williams is carving out a nice thriller movie career for herself with this and Get Out. The Perfection is a horror-thriller that focuses on rival cellists competing in the high intensity world of professional musicians.
Streaming TV Corner
The Office Episode of the Week
Billy: “Moroccan Christmas”
They call him Ace, Buzz, and Puke. Those nicknames are for none other than Andy Bernard. This episode is pure insanity. We see Phyllis head up her first party as the head of the Party Planning Committee. Michael confronts Meredith about her drinking problem in the most inappropriate of ways. Dwight is extorting Christmas shoppers by selling them the most popular toy item of the year for triple the actual price. This is one of the more chaotic episodes of The Office without being the cringiest. Give it a watch!
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