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5 best new movies to stream this weekend on Netflix, Disney Plus, Prime Video, and more
Labor Day weekend is finally here, and the best streaming services are serving up plenty of great new movies to wile away your three-day holiday. Horror-comedies are absolutely having a moment this week, and I don’t know about you, but I don’t need much more excuse than that to start celebrating Halloween early.
Leading the pack is “Together” on premium video-on-demand platforms, a surreal and terrifying study of co-dependency led by real-life married couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco. “Stranger Things” star Finn Wolfhard also makes his directorial debut with “Hell of a Summer,” now on Hulu, which lampoons “Friday the 13th” and other slasher staples.
Over on Disney Plus, you can check out “Thunderbolts,” one of the best MCU entries in recent memory (and no, I’m not just saying that because I have a crush on Florence Pugh). Netflix also has a new murder mystery a la “Knives Out,” except it trades Detective Blanc for four retirees who are way in over their heads with this whole crime-solving business.
Lastly, Paramount Plus has a new documentary, “Stans,” that dives into the complicated relationship between one of the world’s most private artists and his massive public persona.
So without further ado, let’s dive into the best new movies on streaming to watch this weekend.
‘Thunderbolts’ (Disney Plus)
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Like a lot of folks, I fell hard off the MCU after “Avengers: Endgame.” But I love anything with Florence Pugh and remember enjoying “Black Widow” well enough, so I figured I’d catch the new Marvel movie in theaters for the first time in years. I enjoyed it a lot, though it felt less like a new generation of Avengers and more like group therapy with guns, but maybe that’s exactly the kind of shake-up Marvel needs right now.
Striking a similar chord to “Guardians of the Galaxy,” it sees a ragtag group of heroes (well, maybe if you squint) collide on a mission where the fate of the world hangs in the balance, forcing them to work together even if they can’t stand each other. Pugh’s Yelena acts as a great anchor for both the movie and its misfit team, and I was delighted to see her relationship with Harbour’s pseudo-father figure Alexei get more screentime. More than most MCU films, “Thunderbolts” dives into its characters’ neuroses, and it’s this zeroing in on what makes this band of screw-ups tick that we’re reminded why Marvel’s universe was such a fun escape to begin with.
Watch “Thunderbolts” now on Disney Plus
‘The Thursday Murder Club’ (Netflix)
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“The Thursday Murder Club” was one of my most anticipated Netflix originals this year (A book club that solves murders instead of reading books? Sign me up!), and it absolutely lives up to expectations. Based on Richard Osman’s hit novel of the same name and helmed by “Harry Potter” Chris Columbus, it follows a group of retirees at a luxury retirement home who solve cold cases for fun. But the stakes turn serious when a real-life murder occurs on their very doorstep.
The team includes ex-spy Elizabeth (Helen Mirren), retired psychiatrist Ibrahim (Ben Kingsley), former union activist Ron (Pierce Brosnan), and retired nurse Joyce (Celia Imrie). And if that sounds like an absolute powerhouse of talent, you’d be right. “The Thursday Murder Club” is genuinely funny, well-crafted, and warmly engaging, delivering exactly what it promises. The stellar ensemble cast is simply the icing on the cake. If you liked “Knives Out,” this is definitely one to add to your watchlist.
Watch “The Thursday Murder Club” now on Netflix
‘Stans’ (Paramount Plus)
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Eminem’s 2000 hit “Stan” has left an undeniable mark on pop culture, with the word itself coming to define the increasingly obsessive and parasocial behavior of fandoms. Paramount Plus’s latest documentary dives into this phenomenon through the lens of several of Eminem’s real-life stans, showcasing the profound personal connections they’ve formed with the artist through his lyrics.
This documentary from director Steven Leckart, known for “Challenger: The Final Flight” as well as “Legacy: The True Story of the LA Lakers,” and produced by Eminem traces the rapper’s career through stylized re-creations, archival footage, and interviews that offer a rare insight into how his private life differs from his public persona.
Watch “Stans” now on Paramount Plus
‘Hell of a Summer’ (Hulu)
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What a better way to wave goodbye to summer than by watching a good old-fashioned slasher movie? This comedy horror leans a little too hard toward the comedy end for my tastes, but it’s clear that “Stranger Things” breakout Finn Wolfhard and Billy Bryk, who co-directed, co-wrote, and co-starred in the film, had a blast spoofing the “Friday the 13th” formula.
Fred Hechinger stars as Jason Hochberg, a young camp counselor who can’t wait to put his summers of babysitting teens behind him. But his summer is about to get a lot more hellish after a masked killer shows up and starts murdering the other counselors. “Hell of a Summer” is rarely scary and only occasionally funny, but it’s entertaining enough for a single watch, even if I doubt there’s anyone out there dying for a sequel. Hechinger in particular stands out, bringing more of that same Gen Z slacker charm we’ve seen from him in “Thelma” and “The White Lotus.”
Watch “Hell of a Summer” on Hulu now
‘Together’ (PVOD)
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One of the year’s most twisted horror films, “Together,” is now streaming, and I’m excited to see how this darkly comic body-horror thriller stacks up. Real-life couple Alison Brie and Dave Franco star as Tim and Millie, a pair who hope moving to the countryside will be just the fresh start they need to mend their strained relationship.
However, after a hike in the woods, they notice their bodies are slowly being fused together by a mysterious supernatural force determined to put their relationship to the ultimate test. “Together” examines familiar themes of love, commitment, and identity — often explored in rom-coms — and turns them completely on their head. It blends eerie horror with unexpected humor, and amid all the surreal and terrifying moments, it manages to be genuinely funny, surprisingly sweet, and wildly romantic. Not to mention gooey. So very gooey.
Buy or rent “Together” on Amazon now
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