Each week we highlight the noteworthy titles that have recently hit streaming platforms in the United States. Check out this week’s selections below and past round-ups here.
Ahed’s Knee (Nadav Lapid)
It’s always interesting, at the beginning of any Nadav Lapid film, to note the myriad Israeli institutions that have backed the project. Since Emile’s Girlfriend (2006), Lapid’s work has sought to make sense of Israeli society—his criticisms a byproduct of attempting to articulate the confusion and warring arguments in his own head. Having won Berlin’s Golden Bear with Synonyms in 2019, Lapid could claim to be the most renowned Israeli filmmaker of his generation. That his work is at risk of falling afoul of that same state speaks volumes about the country’s ever-increasing authoritarianism as a whole. Further confirmation of that renown came with news that his latest would compete for the Palme d’Or at an already-stacked Cannes. It’s titled Ahed’s Knee, a blistering work of meta filmmaking Lapid shot during the pandemic and that addresses censorship concerns head-on. – Rory O. (full review)
Where to Stream: The Criterion Channel
The Black Phone (Scott Derrickson)
Despite the rich texture of its late-1970s setting—the beginning of the latch-key kid era—Scott Derrickson’s The Black Phone fails to transcend its central premise. At its heart it is a contained thriller with only a few new ideas. In this adaptation of the fairly straightforward short story by Joe Hill, the specter of disappearing children haunts a North Denver suburb where children seem to grow up too quickly, getting into real fights that in the current day might lead to lawsuits and therapy. Rather than grabbing for ice and calling the lawyers, kids are told to walk it off. – John F. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
The Bob’s Burger Movie (Loren Bouchard, Bernard Derriman)
After struggling to find its footing over an initial season, Loren Bouchard’s Bob’s Burgers has become one of the most delightful half-hours on TV. Its feature-film expansion retains the series’ scope and scale and, unlike other big-screen adaptations, it resists the urge to branch out into gimmicks—no celebrity cameos, no big set pieces. That, after all, is not the Belchers’ style. A running gag is that every time they come close to success a slight mistake compounds their fate and keeps them from reaching beyond their modest but highly creative seaside burger joint. – John F. (full review)
Where to Stream: Hulu, HBO Max
Brian and Charles (Jim Archer)
Extended from the award-winning short of the same name, Jim Archer’s offbeat comedy Brian and Charles is borne of love and friendship. A sweet tale about a lonely inventor, the film (written by stars David Earl and Chris Hayward) leans on the earnest and the genuine. Whatever its issues reaching the already-short 90-minute runtime, it’s a delight: a happy-go-lucky story about found family, or in this case a created one. – Michael F. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Cliff Walkers (Zhang Yimou)
The mission: parachute into Manchukuo (an area of China under the unofficial control of Japan during the 1930s), find escaped comrade Wang, and escort him to freedom. It’s what Communist party operatives Zhang (Zhang Yi), Yu (Qin Hailu), Chuliang (Zhu Yawen), and Lan (Liu Haocun) have trained to accomplish during years spent in the USSR and they’re willing to give their lives towards that goal. It shouldn’t therefore be surprising when a last-minute order necessitates them splitting up into pairs that in turn splits up their marriages. There can be no question of treason. If one is captured, his/her love for the other cannot be used to compromise the operation. Zhang and Lan go one way while Yu and Chuliang go the other. Both walk into a trap. – Jared M. (full review)
Where to Stream: Tubi
Enemy (Denis Villeneuve)
When one reads a synopsis for the late Nobel Prize-winning author José Saramago’s The Double you’ll find a very straightforward tale of doppelgangers. There’s the alpha, the pushover, and the innocent victims caught between; the insanity of seeing an exact replica in the flesh paired with the infinite possibilities such a discovery could mean. One is married; one has a girlfriend. The latter injects himself into the former’s world through curiosity, the first into the second’s purely for unfounded revenge and sexual desire. They exist together without looking deeper into what they are, pushing forward along a path of self-destruction you can see coming a mile away, and yet still find yourself captivated through the actions of those left from the wreckage. Denis Villeneuve’s Enemy (adapted by Javier Gullón) looks to amplify it further. – Jared M. (full review)
Where to Stream: Tubi
Good Madam (Jenna Cato Bass)
A matriarch passes and the family swarms to poach whatever they can in the aftermath. Tsidi (Chumisa Cosa) tells herself it won’t matter—she’s been the one taking care of her grandmother and thus has a claim over that which she has called her home for years, but “fair” doesn’t factor where tradition is concerned. Her uncle (the eldest) allows Tsidi’s cousins to put her in her place as new construction plans made while the recently departed was still alive become colored as some sort of hostile takeover. And then he joins the chorus by telling her what she did means nothing. He decides who gets the house. Tsidi subsequently packs her things, steals her grandmother’s coat, and leaves with her daughter Winnie (Kamvalethu Jonas Raziya). – Jared M. (full review)
Where to Stream: Shudder
Mad Max: Fury Road (George Miller)
That George Miller returned to resurrect his Mad Max saga three decades after its last entry (the divisive Beyond Thunderdome) is, in itself, a certain sort of feat. That he produced an anti-patriarchal, post-apocalyptic, action-fantasy epic worthy of mainstream appeal is damn near achieving the impossible. But with the help of a stellar cast (led by Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron) and enough stunt people to fill ten movies, Miller introduced a new generation to his fully imagined world and all the carefully choreographed fight sequences and face-melting destruction that come with it. The fact that a film of such gloriously creative weirdness could become both a critical and box-office success makes me think there’s hope for us all. – Amanda W.
Where to Stream: HBO Max
Out 1 (Jacques Rivette)
The greatest film ever made? An argument’s to be made. No doubt its title “holy grail of modern French cinema,” poster-ready thought it may be, at least bears scrutiny: Jacques Rivette’s 13-hour opus—a paean to story, storytelling, conspiracy, actors (one second to take this in: Jean-Pierre Léaud, Juliet Berto, Bulle Ogier, Michael Lonsdale, Bernadette Lafont, Eric Rohmer with a fake beard), and the city of Paris (circa 1971, via 16mm)—bears more weight than almost any film 1/6th its length, endures memory years from viewing. Watching Out 1 is like being let in on incredible secrets; let its addition to Filmatique let the cabal grow.
Where to Stream: Filmatique
Playground (Laura Wandel)
The camera never leaves young Nora (Maya Vanderbeque) throughout the entirety of Playground. Writer-director Laura Wandel needs us to follow her closely and understand the ups and downs of adolescence through eyes yet unversed in the unfortunate drama life has to offer. All this girl knows at the start is that she’s being left alone. Dad (Karim Leklou) isn’t allowed past the school gate, so his “goodbye” occurs well before the classroom door closes behind her. Older brother Abel (Günter Duret) has his own friends and teachers to deal with, the familiar hierarchy we’ve all experienced in our youth already known to him. So what’s Nora to do but wait for reunion? She bides time, says as little as possible, and rejoices at the recess bell. – Jared M. (full review)
Where to Stream: MUBI (free for 30 days)
Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii (Adrian Maben)
Le Cinéma Club stream, free and for one week, Pink Floyd: Live at Pompeii on the occasion of its 50th anniversary. In an “anti-Woodstock,” the group play in Pompeii’s empty ruins as Adrian Maben documents a band at work. A mix of myth and actuality compare stacks of speaker cabinets to the temples of Venus and Apollo, Maben’s camera stalking among volcanic fissures and gurgling mud.
Where to Stream: Le Cinéma Club
She Will (Charlotte Colbert)
While initially thought to be vanity, Veronica Ghent’s (Alice Krige) cold cruelty towards her nurse Desi (Kota Eberhardt) and stubborn defiance about her recovery from a double mastectomy is ultimately revealed as survival. She’s an aging film star who’s worked, since 13, during an era ruled by egomaniacal and abusive men. She’s endured what it means to be a successful woman in the public eye, so she’s ready for when the tabloids write about her surgery and looks while questioning her star viability. Thus, recovery isn’t just about the physical side. It’s very much psychological too. Veronica will deal with the pain of prosthetic breasts despite Desi’s warnings to combat the media scrutiny. She’ll also book a remote Scottish retreat to try eluding the circus of celebrity. – Jared M. (full review)
Where to Stream: VOD
Sunset Song (Terence Davies)
A tension is formed by a cut, quickly transporting our heroine from an expansive wheat field to a confined classroom. We’re not just talking the difference of 70mm for the former and the Ari Alexa for the latter, but that of, to quote Kate Bush, the “sensual world” versus the punishment of destiny. Based on a mainstay of Scottish classrooms, Sunset Song is a triptych of sorts chronicling farmgirl Chris’ (Agyness Deyn) womanhood; the first deals with her abusive father (Peter Mullan) and the pain he inflicts on her and the others in the family, the second follows her falling in love and marrying Ewan (Kevin Guthrie), while the third sees Ewan enlisting to fight in World War I and coming back a violent man that resembles her father. – Ethan V. (full review)
Where to Stream: MUBI (free for 30 days)
Under the Skin (Jonathan Glazer)
Each shot, scene, and location flows together in perfect harmony. Director Jonathan Glazer packs all these pretty images with real emotion, thanks to cinematographer Daniel Landin’s stunning work, Mica Levi’s haunting and moving score, and, of course, Scarlett Johansson’s ambitious performance as an alien who abandons her mission. This is the kind of risky performance where an actor could easily fall on their face. Some scenes take huge tonal risks that only a good actor could pull off. Thankfully, Johansson is always up for the challenge. – Jack G.
Where to Stream: Tubi
Also New to Streaming
Amazon Prime
Don’t Make Me Go
Nymphomaniac
The Criterion Channel
By the Time It Gets Dark
The Image You Missed
HBO Max
Gravity
Hulu
The Donut King
MUBI (free for 30 days)
Chevalier
Bulky Trash
Raining in the Mountain
Where Are You
Lucky
Netflix
Persuasion
Tubi
The Babadook
Bone Tomahawk
Boyhood
The Duke of Burgundy
The Flight of the Red Balloon
Life During Wartime
Locke
Secret Sunshine
Simon Killer
Summer Hours