Even if you're planning on catching the Super Bowl 2024 live stream this Sunday, the question of what to watch besides the big game still remains. With so many great movies coming and going on Netflix, Paramount Plus, and more of the best streaming services, narrowing down which ones are worth your time can be quite the challenge.
Easily leading this weekend's lineup is "American Fiction," which is up for five Oscar nominations, including the coveted Best Picture category, on paid video-on-demand (PVOD) streaming services. This comedy-drama is about what happens when a disillusioned author (Jeffrey Wright) who is told his work isn't "black enough" decides to throw up his hands and write a book filled with all the rote tropes expected of Black literature — and stumbles into stardom because of it.
Meanwhile, over on Hulu, the Sundance 2024 coming-of-age hit "Suncoast" is now streaming, while Paramount Plus with Showtime saw the arrival of a modern take on Hollywood's classic monster movie formula in "The Last Voyage of the Demeter." If you're in the mood for more scares, Jordan Peele's seminal directorial debut "Get Out" also landed on Prime Video.
Here are our top picks for what to watch on streaming this weekend.
'American Fiction' (PVOD)
"American Fiction" is a biting social commentary and comedy that shines a spotlight on the hypocrisy of modern culture when it comes to Black art. Jeffrey Wright stars as struggling and disillusioned author Thelonious "Monk" Ellison whose novels fail to earn commercial success despite being praised by critics. After his latest manuscript is rejected for not being "black enough," he pens an intentionally hackneyed book that panders to cliches expected of black literature.
To his chagrin, the white liberal elite hails it as a work of genius, and the novel becomes an overnight hit. That leaves Monk wrestling with a moral dilemma as the book's sales help him afford much-needed care for his Alzheimer’s-stricken mother. It makes for a deep and heartfelt story about loss and feeling stuck in your work that nonetheless shines in its comedic moments and satire.
Buy or rent on Amazon now
'Suncoast' (Hulu)
This Sundance 2024 darling is already landing on streaming services this week. "Suncoast" is a semi-biographical coming-of-age drama from writer/director Laura Chinn (Florida Girls) that follows teenager Doris (Nico Parker) who lives with her headstrong mother Kristine (Laura Linney) and comatose, terminally ill brother Max (Cree Kawa).
When Max's situation becomes a waiting game, Kristine makes the difficult decision to move him into a hospice facility — the very same one as Terri Schiavo, a cause célèbre whose family's battle over whether she should be taken off life support marked a landmark right-to-die court case in the early aughts. As she navigates the protests and the shadow of her brother's illness hanging over her head, Doris strikes up an unlikely friendship with a pro-life activist (Woody Harrelson).
Watch it now on Hulu
'The End We Start From' (PVOD)
Based on the 2017 novel of the same title, "The End We Start From" stars Jodie Comer ("Killing Eve") as a mother who, just days after giving birth, is forced to flee her home in search of safety as floodwaters close over London. As she navigates the flooded city to reunite with her family, she grapples with the challenges of motherhood, survival, and confronting her past trauma.
Comer is joined by Joel Fry as her character's romantic interest along with Katherine Waterston and Benedict Cumberbatch in supporting roles. However, it's Comer's portrayal of a terrified but steadfast new mother that has captivated critics and earned this cli-fi thriller widespread acclaim.
Buy or rent on Amazon now
'The Last Voyage of the Demeter' (Paramount Plus with Showtime)
A modern-day take on Bram Stoker’s "Dracula," "The Last Voyage of the Demeter" lands on Paramount Plus with Showtime this weekend. Director André Øvredal builds a feature-length story around one of the most haunting and cryptic chapters of the classic horror novel, The Captain's Log, about a doomed merchant vessel.
Corey Hawkins ("BlacKkKlansman," "The Color Purple") stars as a doctor who is granted passage aboard the Demeter after he saves the captain's (Liam Cunningham) grandson from being crushed during a cargo loading mishap. Once they've set sail, the crew uncovers a stowaway named Anna (Aisling Franciosi) barely alive and packed in dirt within a crate. When she comes to, she warns them of a monster from Transylvania named Dracula that has snuck onboard and starts hunting the crew one by one.
Stream on Paramount Plus with Showtime starting Feb. 9
'Get Out' (Prime Video)
Jordan Peele changed the horror landscape forever with his 2017 debut film "Get Out." It's a film that combines the slow-build psychological suspense of landmark horror flicks like "The Shining" and Rosemary’s Baby" with biting social commentary on racism, neoliberalism and problematic tropes of Black characters in horror movies.
Chris Washington stars as Daniel Kaluuya, a young Black photographer who is invited by his white girlfriend Rose (Allison Williams) to visit her family's estate. However, what starts as a seemingly harmless weekend getaway quickly transforms into a nightmare as Chris discovers disturbing secrets about Rose's family and their attitudes towards race. Without giving away too much, "Get Out" is a gripping and thought-provoking film that anyone, whether your a horror fan or not, should definitely add to their to-watch list.
Watch it now on Prime Video
'Brooklyn' (Max)
“Brooklyn” is a drama based on the 2009 novel of the same name by Colm Tóibín, and asks a simple, but deeply difficult-to-answer, question: What do you choose when you’re torn between your heart and your home? That’s the conundrum that Irish immigrant Eilis Lacey (Saoirse Ronan) finds herself wrestling with after moving across the ocean to New York City, falling in love with a Brooklyn native, and then being offered the chance to return home to her native Ireland.
Eilis is not just torn between the U.S. and The Emerald Isle, but also two very different men, baseball-mad Tony (Emory Cohen) and soft-spoken Jim (Domhnall Gleeson). “Brooklyn” is a tear-invoking romantic drama with a winning performance from Ronan, and an excellent supporting turn from Julie Walters as Mrs. Kehoe, the matron of Eilis’ boarding house. Just make sure you’ve got the tissues close by for this one, as things get pretty emotional.
Watch it now on Max
'The Lego Movie' (Max)
A wonderfully imaginative and seriously awesome animated adventure, “The Lego Movie” brings the popular Danish construction toy to life. Set in a world made entirely of plastic Lego blocks, Emmet (voiced by Chris Pratt) is just an average guy. But when he accidentally gets the fabled Piece of Resistance stuck to his back, he must lead a group of rebels to thwart the sinister schemes of Lord Business (Will Ferrell), who wants to glue the Lego world together.
Also featuring the voice talent of Elizabeth Banks, Morgan Freeman, Liam Neeson, Will Arnett and Nick Offerman, “The Lego Movie” is the perfect flick for master-builders young and old. It gets bonus points for being brilliantly self-aware, and regularly poking fun at itself. Plus, the movie’s unique animation style is glorious. The filmmakers managed to make the movie look like pieces of Lego come to life, and that’s arguably its biggest achievement.
Watch it now on Max
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