April usually brings fresh showers and blooming flowers, but it also has a stacked streaming schedule full of interesting movies and TV shows. This week, Netflix is debuting the intriguing new South Korean series Karma and the medical drama Pulse.
Those TV shows require some time commitment, so if you’re looking for a quick movie or two, Netflix also has plenty of films to satiate that need.
In this weekend’s list, What to Watch is recommending three recent additions to Netflix’s library. One is a criminally underrated Bradley Cooper movie, while the other is a female-led action movie that deserves more attention. The last movie is a comedy classic starring an underappreciated actor.
‘The Place Beyond the Pines’ (2012)
Not enough people know about the excellent crime drama The Place Beyond the Pines, and fewer appreciate its greatness. That might change, however, now that the movie — which stars Ryan Gosling and Bradley Cooper as two men on opposite sides of the law — is now available to stream on Netflix.
Gosling stars as Luke Glanton, a tattooed motorcycle stuntman who robs banks to provide for his ex-girlfriend Romina (Eva Mendes) and their newborn son, Jason. But Luke’s criminal lifestyle catches up with him and soon he’s on the run with determined cop Avery Cross (Cooper) in pursuit. Can Luke evade Avery and reunite with Romina?
That’s just part of the plot, as the story takes an unexpected turn midway through the film and develops into a drama that touches on generational trauma and the complicated relationships between fathers and sons. Cooper and Gosling are terrific as the ambitious cop and charismatic robber who have more in common than they might think, while Mendes’ performance makes you wish she’d come out of retirement and act more in films like this.
The Place Beyond the Pines is streaming on Netflix.
‘Uncle Buck’ (1989)
There’s never been a performer who was more big-hearted and likable than John Candy. It’s easy to overlook the late comedian’s talents, especially in his 1980s comedies that don’t involve planes, trains and automobiles. His best starring role was arguably in Uncle Buck, where he starred as the titular cigar-smoking, pancake-making relative who thaws the hearts of his icy relatives.
After a family tragedy forces his brother and sister-in-law to leave their three children in his care, Buck has to figure out how to be a temporary parent and a responsible adult at the same time. The youngest, Miles (Macaulay Culkin), adores him, but the oldest, sullen teen Tia (Jean Louisa Kelly), hates him. Can Buck win Tia over and mend the broken bonds of his extended family? A highlight of the film is Candy’s impromptu seduction dance with Laurie Metcalf, who plays a horny neighbor intrigued by Buck’s blue-collar charms.
Uncle Buck is streaming on Netflix.
‘Lucy’ (2014)
“Action heroine” isn’t a title normally associated with Scarlett Johansson, but the Black Widow star has starred in her fair share of successful action movies over the last 15 years. One of the better ones is Lucy, a 2014 Luc Besson film that throws in some sci-fi elements to the usual punch-kick-punch recipe. Johansson plays the titular character, a young woman who unexpectedly gains superpowers after unknowingly ingesting some experimental drugs.
As Lucy flees from people who want to exploit her capabilities, she develops additional special abilities like super strength, agility and total control over her mind. But will she be strong enough to overpower her enemies?
Lucy is total nonsense in the best kind of way, and its action sequences surpass most of what you’d see in the MCU nowadays. The direction is stylish and kinetic, and Morgan Freeman pops up as a sympathetic professor. Still, Lucy is ScarJo’s show, and her kickass heroine is right up there with Angelina Jolie’s Salt and Jennifer Lawrence’s Katniss.
Lucy is streaming on Netflix.
