We’re still in the thick of summer movie season and Netflix isn’t letting that escape them, with a robust roster of big budget, warm weather options.
This month we have original Netflix movies like Chris Williams’ animated adventure “The Sea Beast” (just as thrilling and artful as any Disney production), starry Jane Austen adaptation “Persuasion” (led by Dakota Johnson) and “The Gray Man,” an action-packed spectacular starring Ryan Gosling, Chris Evans and Ana de Armas, that gives Marvel a run for its money.
Also headed to the service are classics from Steven Spielberg and Christopher Nolan and more recent fare starring Tom Holland and Sandra Oh.
In other words, if it gets too hot, you can just stay inside with these great movies.
The 60 Best Movies on Netflix Right Now
“Catch Me If You Can”
Think about this: Steven Spielberg released “Minority Report” and “Catch Me If You Can” in the same year. Just thought that needed to be acknowledged before we continue. Okay great. “Catch Me If You Can” tells the incredibly true story of con man Frank Abagnale (Leonardo DiCaprio, in his sole Spielberg collaboration), possessed with a single-minded capacity to commit crime. Tom Hanks is the FBI agent hot on his trail (at least at various points). This feels like Spielberg operating at the height of his ‘80s Amblin powers, not only because of the themes of fatherhood and abandonment are so strong, but also because aesthetically, you can feel Janusz Kaminski’s cinematography soften slightly, into something more wistful and romantic. What a romp.
“The Dark Knight Rises”
The conclusion of Christopher Nolan’s hugely influential Dark Knight trilogy isn’t perfect, but it’s the rare superhero adventure that has some real grandeur (both visually and emotionally) and also makes you wistful for the big budget franchise that actually knows when to end. Christian Bale returns as Batman, this time one that has been become a recluse after the events of “The Dark Knight,” but is drawn out of his shell by the emergence of a new villain in Gotham – Tom Hardy’s musclebound anarchist Bane. Full of lush visuals and heart-stopping set pieces (in particular a race-against-the-clock chase sequence), re-watching “The Dark Knight Rises” makes you appreciate just what Nolan was able to accomplish, even if this one is a little messier than the earlier two films. But hey at least it doesn’t involve a multiverse.
“The Sea Beast”
Netflix’s latest lavishly expensive animated feature, following their breakthrough last year with the Oscar-nominated “Mitchells vs. the Machines,” is a period seafaring adventure from “Big Hero 6” director Chris Williams. Set in a society that puts a premium on sea serpent hunting, it is the story of Jacob Holland (Karl Urban), a macho monster hunter who has his world turned upside down by a pint-sized stowaway (Zaris-Angel Hator) who teaches him how misguided his lifelong quest might be. Full of thrilling action sequences (animated beautifully by Sony Pictures ImageWorks), thoughtful character work and very modern politics, “The Sea Beast” really delivers.
“Uncharted”
Arguably the very best movie that was based on a video game (or at least the most fun), which is admittedly a low bar to clear, “Uncharted” was a modest hit when it came out earlier this year. The film version of the PlayStation game stars Tom Holland as a young Nate Drake, an explorer and treasure hunter who teams up with a more experienced soldier of fortune (Mark Wahlberg) for a globetrotting adventure. The action scenes have an appropriate amount of zest (particularly one where cars fall out of a plane, inspired by a similar moment from the game) and Wahlberg and Holland have good, flinty chemistry. The movie drops on Netflix July 15.
“Persuasion”
The world is not lacking for Jane Austen adaptations, and yet Netflix has a new take on “Persuasion” debuting July 15 anyway. Dakota Johnson stars in this new iteration of Austen’s story (her final published novel), which co-stars Henry Golding, Suki Waterhouse, Richard E. Grant and Cosmo Jarvis as Captain Frederick Wentworth. The story concerns a young woman who is reunited with her former fiancé after breaking off their engagement years before. It’ll be interesting to see how modern sensibilities will seep into this classic tale.
“Umma”
If you’re looking for a horror movie about intergenerational trauma, have we got one for you! “Umma,” which was quietly released earlier this year despite being very good (you’d think it being produced by Sam Raimi would have at least gotten it some buzz), stars Sandra Oh as a woman dealing with her daughter wanting to attend college and the vengeful spirit of her mother haunting her. You know, that old story. Writer-director Iris K. Shim fills the movie with wonderful, tactile details (mostly related to Oh living on a bee farm without electricity) and an unexpected sensitivity. It’s an emotionally resonant fright fest.
“The Gray Man”
After the Russo Brothers made “Avengers: Infinity War” and “Avengers: Endgame,” two of the most successful movies of all time, they could do just about anything – including bring Ryan Gosling out of a self-imposed sabbatical (he hasn’t made a movie since 2018’s Neil Armstrong biopic “First Man”) to star in a big, commercial movie. And honestly it’s good to have him back. Gosling plays a “gray man,” a dude who goes by a number (Sierra Six) and does the CIA’s dirty work. After a mission goes sideways, he finds himself hunted by a former spy and full-time psychopath (Chris Evans). It’s a globe-trotting spy-versus-spy adventure. “The Gray Man” is the most expensive movie Netflix has ever produced; it could also become one of its most popular when it premieres on July 22.
