The end of the year offers ample opportunity to catch up on movies, and we’ve put together a curated list of some of the best new titles added to Amazon Prime Video this month. They include a new release from 2024 starring Austin Butler and Tom Hardy, as well as two Batman movies newly added to the streaming service that are well worth checking out, plus a bona fide classic for good measure.
Check out the best new movies on Amazon Prime Video below.
“The Bikeriders”
One of last year’s very best movies is now one of this year’s very best movies. After playing the fall festivals and getting a primo, made-for-awards-season slot at the end of the year, New Regency and Disney decided to table the movie, with Focus Features agreeing to distribute, with a juicier summer date. It wound up a sleeper hit. “The Bikeriders,” written and directed by Jeff Nichols and based on the photography book of the same name by Danny Lyon, follows the Vandals Motorcycle Club, a fictitious biker gang in the 1960s. The movie glides along, as we watch a young member (Austin Butler), deal with the interpersonal dynamics of the group (led by Tom Hardy) and his affection for a young hothead (Jodie Comer). Part hangout movie, part lament for a bygone era (we watch as the clubs get seedier and more dangerous), “The Bikeriders” is extremely entertaining and extremely satisfying, concluding with arguably the best final shot of any movie this year. If you missed its brief theatrical run, we suggest you catch-up now. Go ahead. Rev those engines.
“A Haunting in Venice”
The best Poirot film Kenneth Branagh has made is 2023’s “A Haunting in Venice,” which puts Branagh’s inspector in the middle of a haunted house to discover whether the mansion is truly full of ghosts. Tina Fey, Jamie Dornan, Michelle Yeoh and “Yellowstone” star Kelly Reilly round out the cast, but it’s Haris Zambarloukas’ striking, shadow-filled cinematography that leaves the strongest mark. This one’s spooky!
“The Batman”
Putting a new spin on a character like Batman is incredibly difficult, but director Matt Reeves and star Robert Pattinson accomplish this and much more in the 2022 reboot “The Batman.” The film picks up in Bruce Wayne’s second year of prowling the streets as the caped crusader, and finds him roped into an investigation into a series of killings committed by The Riddler (Paul Dano). Reeves draws from films like “Zodiac” and “All the President’s Men” to result in a process-driven (and wildly compelling) crime thriller that packs some of the most striking cinematography in the character’s history thanks to Oscar-winner Greig Fraser. And that score by Michael Giacchino is a new classic. At three hours in length this one’s quite long, but it’s the detective-driven Batman story fans have long been waiting for.
“Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice – Ultimate Edition”
Yes, the Ultimate Edition of Zack Snyder’s much-maligned “Batman v. Superman: Dawn of Justice” is actually good. Or at least a major improvement over the theatrical cut. The director’s cut is over three hours long but adds much needed context to the supersized tale of Henry Cavill’s Superman and Ben Affleck’s Batman going toe-to-toe then eventually teaming up (with Gal Gadot’s Wonder Woman too!) to tackle Jesse Eisenberg’s Zuckerberg-esque Lex Luthor.
Knives Out
Get ready for the release of the third Benoit Blanc mystery next year by checking out the first “Knives Out,” a hilarious and supremely fun whodunit from the mind of writer-director Rian Johnson. This initial film is a “cozy mystery” with Daniel Craig’s smart but colorful private detective Blanc called to investigate the murder of a publishing titan at his Massachusetts estate. Chris Evans, Ana de Armas, Michael Shannon, Toni Collette, Jamie Lee Curtis and Don Johnson round out the impeccable ensemble of this Oscar-nominated feature.
“Almost Famous”
One of the best movies about music ever made, Cameron Crowe’s Oscar-winning 2000 film “Almost Famous” is based on his experience as a young (like really young) journalist writing for Rolling Stone in the 1970s. Patrick Fugit plays a 15-year-old who ends up following a rising band called Stillwater on the road, falling in love and learning about the dangers of idolization the hard way. Kate Hudson, Billy Crudup and Frances McDormand co-star.
“Sicario”
Before Denis Villeneuve brought “Dune” to life, he casually made one of the best thrillers of the century by teaming up with future “Yellowstone” creator Taylor Sheridan. “Sicario” stars Emily Blunt as an FBI agent who teams up with a government task force to bring down a powerful cartel. Josh Brolin is a CIA officer who knows no limits while Benicio Del Toro plays a quiet assassin enlisted to help their cause. It’s taught and immaculately photographed by the great Roger Deakins, but it’s the film’s allegory that truly leaves a mark as Blunt is a stand-in for your average American citizen while Brolin’s ethically nebulous character represents the lengths to which the government will go in the name of “the greater good.”
