With so many new streaming services, I figured this year I’d expand the scope of this column again. I’m adding Disney+ and HBO MAX, so bear with me as a lot of new titles get added. I’ll still try to pick at least one thing on each service to highlight.
FILMS
Top Picks
Save Yourselves! – Hulu 1/1
Pieces of a Woman – Netflix 1/7
The Intouchables – Netflix 1/11
One Night in Miami… – Prime 1/15
The Little Things – HBO MAX 1/29
The classic of the bunch is The Intouchables. The French drama is inspirational without being corny, and more authentic than the star-studded U.S. remake (The Upside).
Prime and Netflix are getting their Oscar plays out with One Night in Miami… and Pieces of a Woman. Both should be getting, at a minimum, some acting nods, though bigger categories will depend on their campaigns.
Save Yourselves! is the ludicrous but timely sci-fi comedy that I saw at the Atlanta Film Festival this year. A hipster couple decide to do an “unplugged weekend” at a remote cabin the day before an alien invasion overtakes the Earth.
Finally, The Little Things is the first of HBO MAX’s 2021 slate to hit theaters and the service on the same day. This is the perfect test case, since it’s unlikely I would have paid to see this garbage crime movie (starring three Oscar winners!) in theaters, but will absolutely be watching Denzel Washington and Rami Malek try to catch a serial killer the weekend it goes up.
Recent Selections
Like a Boss – Hulu 1/1
Ma – HBO MAX 1/1
Piter – HBO MAX 1/1
Ready Player One – HBO MAX 1/1
A Star Is Born – HBO MAX 1/1
The High Note – HBO MAX 1/2
Mighty Oak – Hulu and Prime 1/6
Gretel & Hansel – Hulu and Prime 1/7
The Silencing – Prime 1/8
The King of Staten Island – HBO MAX 1/10
The Rhythm Section – Hulu and Prime 1/11
Promare – HBO MAX 1/12
Turtle Tale – HBO MAX 1/12
Alone – Hulu and Prime 1/14
The Secrets We Keep – Hulu 1/14
Pinkfong & Baby Shark’s Space Adventure – Netflix 1/15
Si Yo Fuera Rico – HBO MAX 1/15
Radium Girls – Netflix 1/16
No Escape – Hulu 1/17
Sightless – Netflix 1/20
Terra Willy – Hulu 1/22
Don’t Let Go – HBO MAX 1/23
Chick Fight – Prime 1/29
Mortal – Prime 1/29
Fatima – Netflix 1/31
Originals
The Minimalists: Less Is Now – Netflix 1/1
What Happened to Mr. Cha? – Netflix 1/1
Asphalt Burning – Netflix 1/2
30 Coins – HBO MAX 1/4
Ratones Paranoicos: The Band That Rocked Argentina – Netflix 1/6
Tony Parker: The Final Shot – Netflix 1/6
Charming – Netflix 1/8
Herself – Prime 1/8
Lupin – Netflix 1/8
Stuck Apart – Netflix 1/8
Tiger – HBO MAX 1/10
Double Dad – Netflix 1/15
Outside the Wire – Netflix 1/15
The Ultimate Playlist of Noise – Hulu 1/15
In & Of Itself – Hulu 1/22
So My Grandma’s a Lesbian! – Netflix 1/22
The White Tiger – Netflix 1/22
Penguin Bloom – Netflix 1/27
¡Animo Juventud! – HBO MAX 1/29
Below Zero – Netflix 1/29
The Dig – Netflix 1/29
Finding Ohana – Netflix 1/29
June & Kopi – Netflix TBD
Locked Down – HBO MAX TBD