Club Benefits
Another weekend is here which means what to watch is fresh on our minds again. And that's not an easy question with all the new movies the best streaming services are serving up in the new year.
That's why I'm here every weekend to shine a spotlight on the best new movies on streaming that actually cut the mustard. Leading the pack this week is the riveting "Predator: Badlands" reboot on paid video-on demand platforms. For even more sci-fi escapism, Disney Plus just brought another '80s franchise back from the dead with "Tron: Ares," and Peacock just got the bizarre and hilarious "Bugonia," which left me delightedly baffled when I saw it in theaters.
‘Predator: Badlands’ (PVOD)
Director Dan Trachtenberg’s “Predator: Badlands” is a bold spin on the franchise with plenty of fresh thrills and surprises to get audiences swept up in the hunt. The full scope of Trachtenberg’s imagination, which we previously got a peek at in “Prey” and “10 Cloverfield Lane,” comes to the forefront in “Badlands,” and it's a must-watch for sci-fi fans.
Dimitrius Schuster-Koloamatangi stars as Dek, an outcast Predator who's shunned as a runt by his people, including his father, the Yautja clan leader Njohrr (Reuben de Jong). Only his brother, Kwei (Mike Homik), remains by his side, a bond that's put to the ultimate test and sees Dek stranded on the so-called "death" planet fighting his life. To prove he's worthy of the Yautja clan, he must slay the deadly Kalisk and takes its place as the planet's apex predator.
Buy or rent on Amazon and Apple now
‘Tron: Ares' (Disney Plus)
"Tron: Ares" fell flat with critics in theaters, but audiences have been much warmer to Disney's nostalgia cocktail of high-tech spectacle set to the tune of Nine Inch Nails. It stands at a perfectly solid 84% on Rotten Tomatoes' Popcornmeter.
As dazzling as the special effects were in IMAX, this was one I wish I'd waited until it was on streaming. It's a flashy but forgettable follow-up that feels aimed squarely at Gen Xers and fans of divorced dad rock.
Jared Leto stars as Ares, a sophisticated A.I. program who breaks free from its directive and crosses into the real world to hunt down his creator’s powerful rival (Greta Lee). Life outside the grid is more tempting than he gambled for, but when he begins to push back against his own programming, all hell breaks loose.
Watch it now on Disney Plus
'People We Meet on Vacation' (Netflix)
Netflix's latest romcom feels like its' coming for BookTok specifically. Adapted from Emily Henry’s hit 2021 novel, "The People We Meet on Vacation" is a breezy watch that's just to thing to lift that post-holiday malaise.
A pair of unlikely college best friends, Poppy (Emily Bader) and Alex (Tom Blyth), have a summer tradition of spending one week together on vacation. The hijinks are always strictly platonic until the moment they're not, and the pair can finally see what all their friends and family have been telling them for ages, right in front of them all along.
Romcoms don't always fare well among critics, but "The People We Meet on Vacation" earned a 79% critics score and 85% from audiences on Rotten Tomatoes. Not too shabby for a sunny slice of escapism.
Watch it now on Netflix
'Bugonia' (Peacock)
![BUGONIA - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters October 24 - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/bd_5HcTujfc/maxresdefault.jpg)
"Bugonia" was easily the most surreal movie I saw last year, and I expected no less from the Oscar-winning team behind "Poor Things" and "The Favourite." It's also my favorite of the three by a country mile. I love a movie that leaves you questioning who's telling the truth and who's just talking crazy, and "Bugonia" had me gaslighting myself several times with some of the twists and turns.
Conspiracy-obsessed beekeeper Teddy Gatz (Jesse Plemons) has convinced his cousin Don (Aidan Delbis) that the only way to stop an imminent alien invasion hellbent on destroying Earth is to capture one and get it to talk. He "discovers" the CEO of a pharmaceutical megacorporation Michelle Fuller (Emma Stone) is actually a high-ranking alien in disguise, and hatches up a half-baked plan to take her hostage.
When that plan actualy works, Michelle is stuck trying to bargain for her freedom from a basement cell, playing along with the delusion to capitulate to her increasingly violent captor. It's hard to say more without spoiling the deliciously surreal places "Bugonia" goes, but anyone with a sense of humor and Douglas Adams-y sci-fi will want to check this one out.
Watch it now on Peacock
'Kung Fu Panda 4' (Prime Video)
If there's one universal truth we can all agree on, it's that kids are obsessed with Jack Black. "Kung Fu Panda 4" left Netflix a few months back and now the latest installment in DreamWorks' beloved animated series has jumped to Prime Video, starring Black as the bumbling-but-heartfelt hero Po.
"Kung Fu Panda 4" sees Po at a crossroads after all his high-flying adventures. To become the spiritual leader of his hometown, the Valley of Peace, he'll have to relinquish his title as the Dragon Warrior. But finding a suitable successor won't be easy, especially after the shape-shifting Chameleon (Viola Davis), crashes the party.
The Chameleon can take the form of Po’s past enemies, even mimicking their fighting styles. With the help of a new ally, a shifty fox named Zhen (Awkwafina), Po sets out on a mission to thwart the Chameleon's nefarious plot before she can steal the kung-fu abilities of every material arts master in China.
Watch it now on Prime Video
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