Prime Video is a great platform to watch new releases, hidden gems and older movies.
This weekend, Watch With Us recommends watching these new-to-Prime films that are criminally underrated.
The streamer just added The Iron Claw, a 2023 sports drama featuring an Oscar-worthy performance from Zac Efron.
Everyone loves the 1995 film Get Shorty, but the 2005 follow-up, Be Cool, doesn’t get the love it deserves.
Finally, see Tom Cruise like you’ve never seen him before in the forgotten fantasy flick Legend, which features Dr. Frank-N-Furter himself, Rocky Horror Picture Show icon Tim Curry, as the Devil.
‘The Iron Claw’ (2023)
The Von Erich brothers are in the family business, and that business is professional wrestling. Long before the WWE, though, they were the stars of regional wrestling matches in the Midwest during the 1980s. The eldest son, Kevin Von Erich (Zac Efron), does his best to please his demanding father, Jack (Holt McCallany), while showing his younger brothers Kerry (Jeremy Allen White), David (Harris Dickinson) the ropes. But as the years pass, it seems the family is cursed by one tragedy after another. Kevin wants the best for his family, but even he can’t prevent his brothers from facing the inevitable.
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You’d think all of the death and misery seen in this drama is fictional, but you’d be wrong. This really happened, and the reality was so sad, the filmmakers had to omit one brother — and his subsequent death from The Iron Claw — because it was too much for one movie. What remains, though, is pretty gut-wrenching, but it never feels gratuitous. That’s due mostly to the stellar performances from the entire cast, particularly Efron as the family’s bedrock sibling. A human-sized Hulk, his Kevin is a witness to all the broken dreams his family endures over the years and the enduring spirit that remains.
The Iron Claw is streaming on Prime Video.
‘Be Cool’ (2005)
Ex-mob hitman Chili Palmer (John Travolta) made it big in the movie business in 1995’s Get Shorty, but by the time 2005’s Be Cool rolls around, he’s interested in a new line of work — music. When one of his pals gets whacked, he helps his widow, Edie Athens (Uma Thurman), take over her husband’s struggling independent record label. Chili thinks undiscovered singer Linda Moon (Christina Milan) could be Edie’s salvation, but he’ll have to get rid of Linda’s crooked producers first. Can Chili be cool long enough to break Linda’s contract, save Edie from financial failure and establish himself as a legit producer in the cutthroat world of pop music?
Be Cool is nowhere near as fun and stylish as the original, but it’s an entertaining crime comedy in its own right. Travolta and Thurman reteam for the first time after 1994’s Pulp Fiction, and they share an electric dance scene that reminds you why they’re so enjoyable to watch. Better still is Dwayne Johnson as gay bodyguard Elliot, who is built like a brickhouse but wants to be the next Laurence Olivier. His crackjack comic timing gives the movie just enough of a kick to make it stand out.
Be Cool is streaming on Prime Video.
‘Legend’ (1985)
Tom Cruise, fantasy hero? It happened briefly in 1985 with Legend, Ridley Scott’s big-budget disappointment featuring magical stallions, impish elves, hungry goblins and one scary-looking devil. The demon in question is the Lord of Darkness (Tim Curry), who wants to cast the world into eternal night. To do that, he has to kill the last surviving unicorn, who is protected by Princess Lili (Mia Sara). When he kidnaps both of them, forest child Jack (Cruise) and his ragtag team storm the villain’s castle to rescue Lili and save the world.
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Director Ridley Scott convincingly creates a fantasy world you’d want to visit time and again, even if it feels like you’ve been here before. Legend’s story is pretty routine, and some of the characters are nothing more than watered-down J.R.R. Tolkien archetypes, but it’s saved by its outstanding production design, impressive visuals and Curry’s deeply menacing performance as the embodiment of evil. As for Cruise, while he’s out of place in a genre like this, he still has that irresistible charisma that would make him a full-fledged star a year later in 1986’s Top Gun.
Legend is streaming on Prime Video.
