It’s the weekend! And while there are plenty of movies to see in theaters, we’ve compiled a list of titles you can watch from home, whether you’re renting or streaming. Here are some of our favorite picks.
The Whisper Man is out on Netflix. Earlier this year, Polygon interviewed director James Ashcroft, who teased the movie as an Adam Scott-led psychological thriller inspired by The Silence of the Lambs.
Her Private Hell is also available to rent. Following its divisive Cannes premiere, the movie has stirred up the usual commotion associated with a Nicolas Winding Refn project; you’ll either love it or hate it. It marks his first movie in a decade after spending years away, focused on TV.
1
The Whisper Man
- Available on Netflix
- Genre: Thriller
- Run time: 1h 52m
- Director: James Ashcroft
- Cast: Robert De Niro, Adam Scott, Michelle Monaghan
The Whisper Man follows a widowed crime writer whose eight-year-old son is abducted. With no other option, he turns to his estranged dad, a retired cop. Through their investigation, they discover a link between the boy’s abduction and a serial killer known as the Whisper Man.
Per our Polygon Summer preview:
Ultimately, as a parent and a son, it’s the relationships at the heart of this story that resonated with me the most. It’s about fathers and sons. It’s a story about acceptance; acceptance that everything we experience becomes a part of who we are. And it’s a timely reminder that all things, good and bad, stem from the home. Those aren’t the usual fare found in this genre, and it was the potential of exploring those relations and emotions that made me lean in.
2
Her Private Hell
Image: NEON
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Thriller
- Run time: 1h 50m
- Director: Nicolas Winding Refn
- Cast: Sophie Thatcher, Havana Rose Liu, Charles Melton, Diego Calva
Nicolas Winding Refn’s new film seems to fit neatly into his body of work, with early reviews praising its visuals while criticizing the story. It follows a young woman in search of her father, all amid a mysterious mist that engulfs the story’s futuristic city.
3
The Last Sunrise
Image: Amazon MGM Studios
- Available on Prime Video
- Genre: Romance
- Run time: 1h 46m
- Director: Carlson Young
- Cast: Maia Reficco, Eva Longoria, Fernando Lindez
Based on the Anna Todd novel of the same name, The Last Sunrise follows Ry, a young American with health problems who moves to Majorca and finds love with a local boy.
4
Batman: Knightfall Part 1
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Animation
- Run time: 1h 19m
- Director: Jeff Wamester
- Cast: Anson Mount, Michael Mando, Pablo Schreiber
Knightfall is the latest Batman animated trilogy, following the Dark Knight as he tackles a massive breakout at Arkham Asylum, forcing him to recapture some of his most emblematic foes. Critics note the gory and unrestrained appeal of the movie, which seems to bask in the spirit of one of Batman’s darkest comic book stories.
Per our Polygon preview:
Bane has proven a tricky character to adapt. He was treated as a joke in Joel Schumacher’s 1997 film Batman & Robin. Christopher Nolan used some elements of Knightfall in The Dark Knight Rises, but the final film in The Dark Knight trilogy undermined him to focus more on Talia al Ghul and Catwoman. Knightfall director Jeff Wamester aims to do Bane justice by using the R rating to let him become a real monster who rips people apart. Studio Mir brings the animated carnage to life with the same panache they’ve shown in Devil May Cry.
5
Motor City
Image: IFC
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Action
- Run time: 1h 43m
- Director: Potsy Ponciroli
- Cast: Alan Ritchson, Ben Foster, Shailene Woodley
Alan Ritchson’s latest movie is set in 1977 Detroit, following ex-con and factory worker John Miller on a quest for revenge against the gangster who framed him and stole his girlfriend.
Per our Polygon review:
Motor City belongs in that tradition. Not because it’s trying to reinvent the revenge thriller, but because it remembers that audiences enjoy connecting the dots on their own. The satisfaction comes not from solving some impossible mystery but from realizing the movie has quietly been giving you the information you needed all along. That’s what makes its release feel so refreshing. Not because movies like this no longer exist, but because they no longer dominate the genre the way they once did.
6
Desert Warrior
- Available on Hulu
- Genre: Action
- Run time: 2h 6m
- Director: Rupert Wyatt
- Cast: Anthony Mackie, Aiysha Hart, Sharlto Copley, Ben Kingsley
Billed as the most expensive movie produced in Saudi Arabia, Desert Warrior is set in 7th-century Arabia, following a princess and her father who flee to the desert to avoid her becoming a concubine to a ruthless emperor. On the run, they rely on the protection of a legendary bandit.
7
Penny Lane is Dead
Image: Shudder
- Available on Shudder
- Genre: Horror
- Run time: 1h 28m
- Director: Mia Kate Russell
- Cast: Bailey Spalding, Alexandra Jensen, Fletcher Humphrys
Set in the late ‘80s, Penny Lane is Dead follows three best friends at a beach house getaway who must survive after a toxic family prank goes wrong.
8
Hadestown: The Musical
Image: Bleecker Street
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Musical
- Run time: 2h 30m
- Director: Brett Sullivan
- Cast: Reeve Carney, Andre De Shields, Amber Gray
The musical Hadestown has been one of the greatest successes in recent theater history. The film, directed by stage-to-screen expert Brett Sullivan, is a live recording of the play featuring the main cast from the beloved West End production.
9
Above & Below
Image: Aura Entertainment
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Horror
- Run time: 1h 36m
- Director: Jesse V. Johnson
- Cast: Antonio Banderas, Christina Ochoa, Laura Marano
Ever wanted to see Antonio Banderas play the leader of a drug cartel in a shark movie? Now you can. Above & Below follows a group of friends on a vacation in Mexico, where things take a wrong turn after encountering a drug cartel and going on a shark-diving excursion.
10
The Deb
Image: Vertical
- Available on VOD
- Genre: Musical
- Run time: 2h 1m
- Director: Rebel Wilson
- Cast: Natalie Abbott, Charlotte McInnes, Rebel Wilson
The Deb follows an outcast girl awaiting the local Debutante Ball, seeing it as her chance to fit in. Her plans are disrupted when her city-girl cousin arrives, criticizing the outdated ball.