HBO shows are streaming on Netflix, Disney movies are streaming on Max and with the rise of FAST channels and the mass shakeups in streaming over the last year, it’s never been more difficult to know where exactly you can watch your favorites. Not to worry, we’ve hand-picked the best new movies on Paramount+ this month so you can stop wondering what to watch and where to watch it and skip right to some good movies.
Paramount+ has a solid offering of truly great films at the moment, and for the sake of keeping things simple and making sure all subscribers have access, we’re not even including the titles available through Paramount+ with Showtime here. From cinematic classics to horror hits to a beloved early-aughts rom-com, there’s something for everyone on the list – but if you don’t find what you’re looking for here and you’re still wondering what to stream on Paramount, be sure to check out our bigger list of the Best Movies on Paramount+.
“3:10 to Yuma”
Before he took on iconic characters like Indiana Jones and Wolverine, director James Mangold revisited and reimagined a Western classic with “3:10 to Yuma.” Starring Russell Crowe as an outlaw on his way to trial and Christian Bale as the desperate ranch owner who takes on the perilous job of getting him to the train on time, “3:10 to Yuma” is a well-crafted nail-bitter that puts every possible obstacle in their way. Crowe and Bale are both extraordinary in their roles (as is Ben Foster as a devoted member of Crowe’s gang) and Mangold, who has a fabulous and diverse resume of genre exploration from romantic comedy (“Kate & Leopold”) to award-winning dramas (“Girl, Interrupted,” “Walk the Line”) full flexes those skills with a firm embrace of the Western genre and all the grey areas it best explores. Pin on an unforgettable ending and you’ve got yourself a must-watch, even if you don’t consider yourself a fan of Westerns.
“Chinatown”
Who knew the Department of Water and Power could make for such compelling cinema? From Robert Towne’s seminal screenplay, Roman Polanski’s 1974 crime drama “Chinatown” is a high note in the celebrated wave of dark, unforgiving noir films that dominated in the decade. Jack Nicholson stars as a private investigator hired to investigate adultery, but quickly realizes this is no ordinary case when he stumbles onto a web of corruption and conspiracy within the seedy streets of Los Angeles. Both Nicholson and co-star Faye Dunaway were nominated at the Oscars for their performances and Towne took home the gold for his screenplay. Inspired by the true story of the California water wars, “Chinatown” is a cynical cry against injustice and a testament to the power of storytelling in elevating society’s unknown ills.
Collateral
Between the juggernaut success of “Top Gun: Maverick” (also streaming on Paramount+), the worldwide tour for “Mission: Impossible – Dead Reckoning Part One” or the unusual cross-studio hype he’s been doing with “Barbie” star Margot Robbie, Tom Cruise has spent a lot of time in the spotlight over the last year. That, of course, is nothing new for the bonafide, capital Movie Star, so if the Cruise hype has you in the mood to revisit some of his older films, you can’t go wrong with Michael Mann’s “Collateral.” In perhaps the most uncharacteristically Cruise role of his long career, he plays ruthless hitman Vincent — and it’s one of his best performances.
Jaime Foxx co-stars in an Oscar-nominated turn as Ray, a Los Angeles cab driver who picks up Vincent and accepts $600 to take him to multiple locations, unaware that he’s driving the killer from hit to hit. Nobody films Los Angeles like Mann and “Collateral” is a crackling thriller, alive with the energy of a city so sprawling and so easily seduced that a sartorial hitman could carve his way through, a shark that never sits still (except for that dang LA traffic).
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
One of the most enduring rom-coms of the early 2000s (a rough era for the genre, indeed), “How to Lose A Guy in 10 Days” has a catchy title, a clever rom-concept and an unforgettable final act glam moment for Kate Hudson in the form of that iconic yellow Carolina Herrera dress. But it could have coasted on the charms of its stars alone because Hudson and co-star Matthew McConaughey are magnetic as the ultimate mismatched duo who accidentally fall in love. If you’re wondering what casting directors look for in chemistry reads, watch this movie and you’ll get a whopping dose of it.
Hudson plays journalist Andie Anderson, who sets out to write an article titled “How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days,” and as it says on the tin, she finds a man to torment with emotional outbursts and needy behavior in an attempt to push him away in just 10 days. That man turns out to be Ben (McConaughey), who happens to be running his own scheme — his boss promised him a juicy client if he can make any woman fall in love with him in 10 days. You can see the conflict already, and coming off of another 2000s rom-com gem “Miss Congeniality,” director Doug Petrie has the touch to pull off all the over-the-top rom-com hijinks, as well as the heart to ultimately make the love story hit home. Bonus: Katherine Hahn as the best friend. Bonus bonus: Bebe Neuwirth as Andie’s chic publishing maven boss.
Interview With the Vampire
While we wait for Season 2 of AMC’s spectacular series adaptation, it’s the perfect time to revisit Neil Jordan’s gorgeous 2004 film version of “Interview With the Vampire.” It’s also another great pick if you’re in the mood for some vintage Tom Cruise, who stars alongside Brad Pitt, Kirsten Dunst and Antonio Banderas in the lush, acclaimed and oh-so-sensual vampire drama based on Anne Rice’s phenomenally popular novel of the same name. Cruise and Pitt are positively radiant as the hedonistic Lestat and the tormented Louis, respectively, and Dunst is heartbreaking and horrifying in turns as the child vampire Claudia.
Pet Sematary (1989)
If you’re in the mood for some more outright horror, Mary Lambert’s 1989 adaptation of “Pet Sematary” reins as one of the more enduring Stephen King adaptations in a very crowded field. From the concept of a graveyard that brings the dead back to life in horrifying, corrupted fashion, King crafted one of his most human horrors, striking right at the core of what makes everything else so scary — the certainty of our mortality and the absolute uncertainty of what awaits us after. The film skews a bit camp and doesn’t quite reach the heights of unsettling dread in King’s novel, but it also just feels so right, so Stephen King in that elusive way so few filmmakers are able to capture.
The Godfather (Remastered)
I mean, it’s “The Godfather,” need I really say more? Paramount+ is currently hosting the remastered versions of the first two films, as well as “The Godfather Coda” cut of the much less revered third entry. But Francis Ford Coppola’s first two films are widely regarded as two of the best movie of all time, so if you’ve never experienced the saga of the Corleones, now’s the perfect time. And if you have, then you know it’s always the perfect time to re-watch them. If you’re still craving more “Godfather” goodness after the trilogy, Paramount+ is also home to the original series “The Offer,” about the production of the film.
