The weekend is here! If you’re looking for something to watch, we can help. We’ve dug through Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime Video, HBO Max and Disney+ to find some of the best titles on each service. STREAMING ON NETFLIX ‘Fall’
This thriller is worth praising for its simplicity and efficiency: There is a story, yes, but it boils down to tracking two young women as they climb to the top of a 2,000-foot TV tower, and are then stranded there, with no obvious way down. The screenplay (by the director, Scott Mann, and Jonathan Frank) works through every possible situation and variation, mining the loaded scenario for maximum scares, thrills and pathos. But the actors have to carry the show, and the newcomers Grace Caroline Currey and Virginia Gardner are charismatic and sympathetic — even when doing the dumbest things — while Jeffrey Dean Morgan lends gravitas as Currey’s concerned dad. These are the 50 best movies on Netflix.STREAMING ON NETFLIX ‘Good Cop/Bad Cop’
Set in the placid Pacific Northwest town of Eden Vale, this disarmingly goofy comedy follows a family of police officers who each have a unique approach to fighting crime. Clancy Brown plays Hank Hickman, the department’s chief, who would prefer to handle problems quickly and quietly to avoid scaring off any tourists. His daughter, Lou (Leighton Meester), is more gung ho, eager to tackle trouble. And Lou’s older brother, Henry (Luke Cook), is a fussy genius, who is good at solving puzzles but bad at talking to people. The trio cracks a variety of unusual cases in “Good Cop/Bad Cop,” a crime series with a light touch. Here are 30 great TV shows on Netflix.STREAMING ON HULU ‘Magnolia’
Paul Thomas Anderson’s second feature film and his first big splash, “Boogie Nights” (also on Hulu), is a blazing, energetic, Robert Altman-esque tapestry of life in the seedier corners of the San Fernando Valley, circa 1977. His follow-up is much in the same style (and brings back much of the same cast), but here, the filmmaker went for broke — creating a rich, lengthy (over three hours), mournful and often scathingly funny story of several interlocking lives over a single, extraordinary day. Tom Cruise landed an Oscar nomination for his against-type turn as a pick-up artist guru; Philip Seymour Hoffman, William H. Macy, Julianne Moore, Jason Robards and John C. Reilly are the standouts of the stacked cast. Operatic in its emotions and ambitions, it is Anderson’s messiest work, but also one of his best. Here are Hulu’s best movies and TV shows.STREAMING ON AMAZON PRIME VIDEO ‘The Graduate’
This wryly funny drama from Mike Nichols, adapted from the novel by Charles Webb, has become such an entrenched piece of popular culture (50-plus years later, you still don’t have to explain what “Mrs. Robinson” means), it is easy to lose track of what a great entertainment it is. But it is: Using Dustin Hoffman as his marvelously dry-witted vessel, Nichols dramatizes youthful ennui with a skill rarely seen in American cinema. Meanwhile, the soundtrack by Simon and Garfunkel is as evocative as ever, and Anne Bancroft’s performance remains a marvel of empathy and complexity. Our critic called it “funny, outrageous, and touching.” Here are a bunch of great movies on Amazon.STREAMING ON HBO MAX ‘Armed Only With a Camera: The Life and Death of Brent Renaud’
Working alongside his brother Craig, the Arkansas-based filmmaker and video journalist Brent Renaud brought his camera to some of the most dangerous locations in the world, giving special attention to ordinary people under extreme duress. The Oscar-nominated short “Armed Only With a Camera” pays tribute to Brent, who was killed by Russian soldiers in Ukraine, by unearthing extraordinary footage of the brothers in war zones like Iraq and Somalia, and in chaotic places like Haiti after the 2010 earthquake. A sequence in which eulogies at Renaud’s funeral are illustrated by his empathetic videos is particularly beautiful. Alissa Wilkinson called it “emotionally affecting.” See more great movies streaming on HBO Max.STREAMING ON DISNEY+ ‘Beauty and the Beast’
The renaissance of Disney animation that started with “The Little Mermaid” peaked with this romance between the book-smart Belle and the tempestuous Beast, a former prince who holds her captive in his enchanted castle until the curse that turned him into a monster is broken. The technical and artistic contributions are first-rate all around, none greater than the songs by Howard Ashman and Alan Menken, which include “Be Our Guest” and the title number. Our critic praised its combination of “the latest computer animation techniques with the best of Broadway.” The 50 best things to watch on Disney+ right now.
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