Club Benefits
This week's slate of top new movies across streaming services is particularly packed. In fact, pretty much all the major platforms are getting involved with Netflix, Prime Video, Hulu, Peacock and HBO Max offering new films.
In the premium streaming space, you buy (or rent) "The Super Mario Galaxy Movie." But if you don't want to cough up a PVOD fee, you can instead enjoy a new satirical comedy on Netflix, the return of Jack Ryan on Prime Video, or the entire "Kill Bill" saga in one seamless experience over on Peacock. And that's just the start of this week's new movie offerings.
'The Super Mario Galaxy Movie’ (PVOD)
“The Super Mario Galaxy Movie” blasts onto premium streaming this week. The sequel to the 2023 movie that brought Nintendo’s iconic plumber to the big screen is another sugar rush adventure, boasting rainbow-colored visuals, plenty of beloved gaming characters, and a plot as thin as paper. It’s a fun distraction, just don’t expect a story that's any more complex than the one you’d typically find in a Super Mario video game.
Now settled in the Mushroom Kingdom, Mario (Chris Pratt) and Luigi (Charlie Day) travel to the cosmos to help Princess Rosalina (Brie Larson). But much like the movie version of Princess Peach (Anya Taylor-Joy), she’s no damsel in distress, and is more than capable of fending off the villainous Bowser Jr. (Benny Safdie) with the help of her magical Lumas pals. Oh, and Jack Black returns as the bigger Bowser, and is again a real evil delight.
Watch on Prime Video (buy/rent) from May 19
‘Lee Cronin’s The Mummy’ (PVOD)
The latest "Mummy" doesn’t star Tom Cruise or Brendan Fraser, but is instead a horror spin from Lee Cronin, director of “Evil Dead Rise.” It’s not so much an evolution of the franchise; instead, it’s a return to its roots. “Lee Cronin’s The Mummy” brings the series back to its Universal Monster roots (but Warner Bros is the distributor, so expect the film on HBO Max in the future). I’d love to say it’s also a return to form, but I didn’t care for this one.
The horror flick sees a journalist (Jack Reynor) stunned when his daughter is found eight years after going missing in Egypt. However, her homecoming turns dark when it becomes clear she’s been possessed by a sinister evil. Gore fans will love how bloody disgusting this movie gets, but it’s lacking in scares, and the bloated runtime is the real killer. Perhaps the return of Brendan Fraser's version of “The Mummy” will fare better in 2028.
Watch on Prime Video (buy/rent) from May 19
‘Jack Ryan: Ghost War’ (Prime Video)
You can’t keep Jack Ryan down for long. The popular Prime Video series starring “The Office’s” John Krasinski as the titular CIA analyst-turned-superspy concluded after four seasons in 2023, but Ryan is back in this feature-length continuation of the franchise. The movie doesn’t premiere on Prime until Wednesday, but a few early reviews online suggest it’s basically more of the same, which I reckon most fans won’t mind.
Prime Video seems to be keeping the plot largely under wraps, and I’ll admit I haven't watched the original Jack Ryan series on Prime Video (I might have watched one episode on a plane several years ago). However, the logline reads, “Jack Ryan reunites with CIA operatives to navigate betrayal from an enemy who knows their moves and faces a past once thought settled.” Sure does sound like the plot of a Jack Ryan film to me!
Watch on Prime Video from May 20
‘Arco’ (Hulu)
Nominated for a Critics' Choice Award, Golden Globe and Oscar, if you’re looking for an animated movie that's perfect for the whole family this week, my advice is to skip Mario and meet Arco instead.
This French movie is a little all-over-the-shop tonally, so it might not be suitable for very young audiences, but it’s got dazzling moments and a sweet story about finding family in unexpected places. Plus, the English-language dub packs the voices of Mark Ruffalo, Natalie Portman, Will Ferrell, Andy Samberg, America Ferrera, and Flea. Yes, the “Red Hot Chili Peppers" bassist.
Arco is a 10-year-old boy in a distant future where flight and time travel are possible. Frustrated that his parents deem him too young to fly, he steals his sister’s magical gear and accidentally gets stuck in the year 2075. Here, he meets a precocious young girl and her robot caretaker. The two set about on a quest to return Arco home and maybe even save the world.
Watch on Hulu from May 22
‘Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair’ (Peacock)
Director Quentin Tarantino has always said that he views “Kill Bill” as one single movie, rather than a two-parter, as it was originally released in 2003 and 2004. Now you can enjoy this martial arts masterpiece the way it was intended, thanks to “Kill Bill: The Whole Bloody Affair.” As you can probably surmise, this butt-numbingly long 253-minute action epic is “Kill Bill: Volume 1” and “Kill Bill: Volume 2” stitched together to become a single movie. And there’s also an animated short thrown in as a sweetener.
If you’ve not seen either “Kill Bill” movie yet, first of all, where have you been the last two decades, and second of all, “The Whole Bloody Affair” is the perfect excuse to catch up. The movie stars Uma Thurman as “The Bride,” a former assassin, betrayed by her once boss/lover and left for dead on the eve of her wedding day. Naturally, she swears bloody revenge on the eponymous Bill (David Carradine) and his gang of lethal killers.
Watch on Peacock from May 22
‘Ladies First’ (Netflix)
Netflix’s new original comedy looks to bring together an exciting cast (Sacha Baron Cohen, Rosamund Pike, Richard E. Grant, Emily Mortimer and Charles Dance) while using its comedy to make an important point. It’s a movie that explores the power dynamics between men and women, and what would happen if the established societal norms were shifted.
Damien Sachs (Cohen) is living the good life. He has power, money, and a never-ending string of casual flings. But days before being named CEO at a leading ad agency, he awakes to his own personal nightmare: A parallel world where women call the shots. Locked in a corporate battle for control against the empowered Alex Fox (Pike), Damien has to get his head around this new world, and maybe he’ll learn a life lesson or two along the way.
Watch on Netflix from May 22
‘The Bride!’ (HBO Max)
If you’re the morbidly curious type, perhaps you’ll want to check out “The Bride!” this week on HBO Max.
My colleague, Malcolm McMillan, labeled it a frontrunner for the worst movie of 2026 earlier this year. I can’t fully agree with that assessment (it’s hard to see anything being worse in my books than “Return to Silent Hill”), but I can very much agree that it’s awful. It’s a mess of a movie that leaps between blaffingly silly scenes played with a curious seriousness and terrible attempts at dark comedy. Plus, it wastes a very talented cast list.
A new spin on Mary Shelley’s classic gothic novel, “The Bride!” sees a murdered woman (Jessie Buckley) brought back from the dead to serve as a companion to Frank (Christian Bale), a monster created by Dr. Frankenstein. In classic Bonnie and Clyde style, the two go on the lam, causing chaos everywhere they go, while the authorities hunt them down.
Watch on HBO Max from May 22
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