For the
second
time, we have curated a list of our best movie suggestions on Netflix.
Every movie on this list is highly-rated and relatively little-known,
and is available for streaming.
Our purpose at A Good Movie to Watch is to reference movies you
haven’t yet seen, that you can watch immediately and love. To do this,
we only recommend movies that have received a high rating on IMDb
combined with a high score on Rotten Tomatoes. This means that these
movies have been appreciated by both critics and viewers, so you can
trust that they’re awesome. We also only suggest movies that didn’t make
a huge splash at the box office or which didn’t get the attention they
deserved, so there is little chance you have already seen them.
Below we count down again our most favorite movies among those
available to stream on Netflix Instant America. For all the
little-known, highly-rated movies ready to stream on Netflix, visit
agoodmovietowatch.com/netflix.
New entry.
The acting… oh the acting! Your Sister’s
Sister is a fantastic comedy which makes great use of the amazing
talents and suitability of its cast, including the criminally underused
Emily Blunt. Far smarter, quicker and grown-up than most other Rom-Coms,
it’s a film built on secrets, lies and, yes, love, sex and family.
New entry.
Renton (McGregor), a Scottish twenty-something
junkie, must choose to clean up and get out, or continue following the
allure of the drugs and the influence of friends. Find out if he chooses
life in this brutal yet entertaining Danny Boyle masterpiece. While
definitely not for the faint of heart, Trainspotting still manages to be
funny at times, and provides an overall very entertaining experience.
New entry.
The impossibly true story of a mysterious
Frenchman that claims to be the 16 year old son of a family from Texas
that went missing three years prior. This movie is shot so well with a
story so unbelievable that I had to look it up to believe that it was a
real documentary instead of a fiction film played as true. Expect twists
and turns at every corner, with brilliant storytelling from the real
life people that lived through the whole thing. If Christopher Nolan
created a 48 hour story, it would pale in comparison to this film.
New entry.
Nebraska is a poem distilled into a
film. Peter Travers from Rolling Stone says “is it a comedy or a drama?
Both at the same time, as life itself.” Everything about it is perfect:
the acting, the photography, the story. In case that’s not enough and
you need to know the plot to get convinced, I’ll tell you that it’s a
road movie about a senile old man and his son. If you still want more
information, you can Google it, but come on! You’ll just be wasting time
that would be better spent on watching this masterpiece.
New entry.
On his daughter’s birthday, Oh Dae-su gets
drunk and soon he’s arrested by the police. His friend bails him out of
jail and while he is making a phone call Oh Dae-su disappears. Oh Dae-su
is held by unknown captors, in a room for 15 years only to see the
outside world through a television. But one day he’s released. That’s
all that can be revealed, without actually revealing too much of this
intense and twisted film. All I can add, and this is precisely how I
recommend Oldboy to new viewers: “You’re welcome & I’m sorry.” It is
truly a twisted film, one that is so mesmerizing in it’s directing,
acting, and plot, all of which will stay with you whether you would like
it to or not.
Ryan Gosling plays a Jewish Neo-Nazi in this
extremely riveting window into the definition of inner conflict. It is a
prime example of how character development should be done and it put
Gosling on the map for me. He starts out as an exemplary student in
Hebrew school until he starts questioning his teachings and exploring
alternative ideologies, leading him to the neo-Nazi movement. Won the
Grand Jury Prize at Sundance.
New entry.
In Bruges is a dark comedy about two
Irish assassins in a ‘boring’ continental European city. The dark crimes
that haunt them and their ineffably vulgar manner of speech contrast
gloriously with the quiet beauty of the Flemish architecture and order,
like a knife fight in a dollhouse. More endearingly, the relationship
between the two killers constantly swings between endearment and
distaste. If you liked
Four lions or dark comedies in general, then you will love In Bruges.
New entry.
Blue Ruin is a superbly acted, visually
striking drama about a man’s poignant and brutally violent journey for
revenge when the culprit responsible for the murder of his father is
released from prison. While it might seem like any other revenge tale,
it is so well-told and smart that any other similarities with its
crowded genre gently fade away.
The first 15-20 minutes are pretty slow, but the pay-off is hot fire.
A very poetic film by Tony Kaye (American
History X) about an English Literature teacher (Adrien Brody – “The
Pianist”) who only works as a substitute in schools which are located in
very poor urban areas. The reason behind his choice is that he doesn’t
want to bond too much with his students and colleagues because he is
trying to control his dark emotions about life and the triviality of our
existences (although it sounds depressing it is absolutely not). He
also takes care of his last family connection, his grandfather, to whom
he is very close and who lives in an elderly home. Unsurprisingly, their
relationship is very emotional and deep. Every time you want to feel
inspired, watch Detachment.
New entry.
A documentary that is immediate and plays out
like a thriller. Beautifully shot in Virunga National Park in the
Eastern Congo, the story focuses on the struggles between Park Rangers
and a list of adversaries including poachers, oil company goons, and an
Islamic revolutionary army. The stories of the endangered gorillas and
the people who struggle to protect them will break your heart and at the
same time give you hope in humanity. On top of this, the editing is
superb and gives the film an intensity that rivals any recent thriller.
Boy is the highest-grossing New Zealand film
of all time, and a masterpiece of compassion and good humor. Set in New
Zealand’s rural East Coast in 1984, the film’s protagonist, Boy,
imagines a world outside, dreaming of meeting Michael Jackson and having
adventures. These fantasies serve to distract him from the sad
circumstances of his life, living with his grandmother while his father
serves out a prison sentence. However, adventure comes to Boy suddenly
when his ex-convict father returns to find a long hidden bag of money.
Written, directed, and starring Taika Waitit and featuring the new comer
James Rolleston as Boy, it’s a hilarious and heartwarming tale.
New entry.
Emma, a free minded girl with blue hair,
influences Adele’s life dramatically, teaching her how to be honest with
herself and discover her true desires about love. The film beautifully
and realistically portrays the evolution of Adele, from a highschool
girl to a grown-up woman, even though the spirit which Emma lighted up
in her never dies. Blue Is the Warmest Color or La Vie d’Adèle is a very
honest, intense, and charming picture, prepare not to blink much and
have your face glued to screen from start to finish.
In the grand tradition of the ethnographic
world tours like Mondo Cane, Samsara hits you in the face with the
diversity and wonder of human life on earth. Unlike many of its
predecessors, which often descended into colonialist gawping, Samara
maintains a non judgmental gaze. This film uses no words or narration to
travel the world showing you the breathtaking beauty of various
countries, cultures, religions, cities, industries and nature. Shot on
70mm film, the definition and clarity has to be seen to be believed.
Based on a beautiful premise, sprinkled with
artistic vision, it is an intelligent man’s sit back and relax movie.
The film explores the life and times of Nemo Nobody, the last mortal man
on earth, as he reflects on important choices he took. Each of these
choices are presented as branching pathways of what could have been,
utilizing innovative non-linear cinematography. In addition to the
film’s winning structure, its soundtrack is considered a masterpiece,
perfectly fitting the plot via looping and trilling melodies. The film
garnered 6 Margaritte awards, and has slowly been developing into an
indie cult classic.
Once again, Mads Mikkelsen gives us an
unforgettable performance in this Danish thriller. Lucas is a new
teacher in a small town. He is just starting a new life after a divorce
and the loss of his last job. One day, a child from the class he is
teaching accuses him of an unforgivable act. The lie will spread
throughout the small community and will tear Lucas’ life apart. The
Hunt, or “Jagten” in its original version, is one of those rare
thrillers that will haunt you for days, and make you question everything
in its aftermath. Extraordinary!
New entry.
Death is a weird and
scary concept. Ironically, however, the only way movies have been
successful in covering it was through humor (
Sunshine Cleaning and
Beginners
are other great examples). Departures gives this trend a new home,
Japan. By doing so it almost never saw the light of day, since at first
many distributors refused to release it given the taboos against people
who deal with death. Eventually however it received so many accolades,
including an Academy Award, that well-deserved attention was directed
towards it. It’s one of those rare movies that will take you through all
emotions: it will move from making you laugh, to making you cry,
then happy, and finally highly interested in its subject matter. It’s a
beautiful, funny, and compelling movie.
A fantastic return to form for disgraced actor
Mel Gibson, Get the Gringo is proof that you can have all the
controversy you want off-screen, and come back to make a great piece of
film. Fast, entertaining and crazy, Get the Gringo is a wild tale of a
crime gone bad and eventually, becomes a fish out of water story of the
lone ‘gringo’ in a Mexican prison. Perhaps most unbelievably, the film
even makes you go “ahh Mel Gibson”, and reminds you of his charm and
talent. Nice comeback Mel.
Awkward. That is how Oliver Tate can be
described, and generally the whole movie. But it is professionally and
scrutinizingly awkward.
Submarine is a realistic teen comedy, one that makes sense and in
which not everyone looks gorgeous and pretends to have a tough time. It
is hilarious and sad, dark and touching. It is awesome and it’s
embarrassing, and it’s the kind of movie that gets nearly everything
about being a teen right, no matter where you grew up.
The Station Agent is about loneliness, change
and friendship. Sounds corny right? It’s not. The characters are
developed, they have their own reasons for the choices they make and
nothing feels forced, neither actions or conversations. It’s a small and
wonderful movie about a little man that moves out of the city and his
comfort zone when his only friend dies, moves to said friend’s old train
station and sets his life there. From there on it follows his social
interactions with a slew of people, the relationships he forms with
them. Oh, and the little man? Peter Dinklage (Tyrion Lannister),
who pulls off a great performance, albeit a quiet one.
New entry.
Authentic and filled with great performances,
Mud is a beautiful tale of love, loss, and growth. While you had
probably thought you couldn’t be more impressed with him than in Dallas
Buyers Club, Interstellar, or True Detective, Mathew McConaughey’s
performance here is probably his best, and is nothing short of a
masterpiece. It takes the entire movie to an unprecedented level of
authenticity and power as well as give his character’s interaction with
two young boys in the South the perfect balance between uneasiness and
sorrow. The story is also very thrilling, and will keep you at the edge
of your seat more times than not.
New entry.
An American romantic comedy, Beginners is told
through a series of flashbacks telling the story of Oliver and his
complicated and difficult relationship with his father. The film is
gorgeously heartbreaking, demonstrating how hurtful we are to those we
love, while showing the ties of mutual need that bind people. In the way
it also takes on the process of finding one’s happiness, through the
character’s eyes and his father’s, what that process has in common for
both, and how one is inspired from the other. Beginners is lovely,
funny, interesting, and above all very enjoyable.
Moving from third to second place.
Unbelievably powerful, real, and with limitless ambition, Dear Zachary
might be a difficult watch, but as you will discover it is hard to find a
movie more worth watching. Considered as one of the best movies of the
decade, it somehow also ended up grossing one of its lowest revenues, a shocking and outrageous $18,000.
You will not come out of this movie the same
person you were going into it. Get ready to cry your eyes out, scream in
anger, and rejoice that such a powerful love can exist in our world. DO
NOT READ ANY SPOILERS OR SUMMARIES BEFORE VIEWING! This loving
documentary about the father of a young boy is one of the best movies of
this decade.
Short Term 12 maintains its position as
the best highly-rated, little-known movie on Netflix. Note that this
movie was almost a commercial failure, while being, and we restate, one
of the best movies of the past 20 years.
Short Term 12 is exactly like being injured in a
part of your body where you didn’t think it was possible to get injured
before. It will hurt but it will make you care.
Natural and understated by budget and by purpose, it is powered by
perfect performances that will take you on an emotional roller coaster
ride you will never forget. It is at times sweet, at times depressing
and at times hilarious. The thing is, without even taking into
consideration its small budget or the importance of the issues it talks
about – we would still consider Short Term 12 as one of the best movies
of the past 20 years.
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