For football fans, the Super Bowl is the culmination of their fandom; all the pre-season games, the post-season clashes, and endless commentary about quarterbacks, tight ends, and wide receivers have all led to this. For everyone else, it’s just another Sunday to pass the time by watching movies.
With the 2024 Super Bowl overwhelming the pop culture landscape, finding the right movie to watch can be hard. Digital Trends has compiled a list of movies on various streamers like Netflix, Amazon Prime Video, Peacock, Max, and Hulu that are guaranteed to please everyone in the household, from the hardcore cinephile to the most passive viewer.
Need more Super Bowl 2024 recommendations? Check out who is performing in the Super Bowl halftime show, how to watch the Super Bowl for free, how long is the 2024 Super Bowl, and three great sports documentaries to watch.
Netflix
Dumb Money (2023)
Here’s a movie that’s both topical and incredibly entertaining. The infamous GameStop short squeeze was dramatized for the big screen in Dumb Money. Mr. and Mrs. Smith co-star Paul Dano headlines the cast as Keith Gill, an armchair investor who notices that hedge funds and other big market players are betting that the video game retailer GameStop will go under. Instead of letting that happen, Gill and others like him drive up GameStop’s stock to unsustainable highs and cause professional investors to lose millions.
There’s no shortage of stars in this cast, which includes SNL vet Pete Davidson, Echo baddie Vincent D’Onofrio, America Ferrera, Myha’la Herrold, Nick Offerman, Anthony Ramos, Seth Rogen, Talia Ryder, Sebastian Stan, and Shailene Woodley. There are also plenty of shattered dreams, as many amateur investors lose everything they put into the GameStop stocks.
The Legend of Tarzan (2016)
In the mood for some vintage fun? Before the success of Barbie, Margot Robbie was venturing into the jungle as the main love interest in The Legend of Tarzan. This 2016 action-adventure film is impeccably well cast, with The Northman’s Alexander Skarsgård as the classic pulp hero, Tarzan, and Robbie as his wife, Jane. After retiring from a life in the jungle, Tarzan lives in London with his wife and now goes by his birth name, John Clayton III.
Tarzan is compelled to return when an American named George Washington Williams (Samuel L. Jackson) implores him to expose Belgium’s slave trade in his own home. What Tarzan doesn’t know is that Belgian’s representative, Captain Léon Rom (Christoph Waltz), is already out to get him in order to give Tarzan to Chief Mbonga (Djimon Hounsou), who has his own vendetta against the King of the Jungle.[/dt_media]
The Nest (2020)
The COVID-19 pandemic obscured a few great movies released during that time, and this movie is one of them. The Nest tells the story of Rory O’Hara (Jude Law), who has big dreams and aspirations that are seemingly just out of his grasp. After convincing his wife, Allison O’Hara (Carrie Coon), to go along with his plans, Rory moves their entire family back to his native England.
Although the O’Hara family gets to live in an estate, their financial situation is dire, and Rory is not living in reality. As Allison and Rory’s marriage starts to crumble, Rory makes a last grasp at a business deal that will either be his financial salvation or his utter ruin. This is a great thriller that features stellar acting from Law and Coon, who has never been better.
Hulu
Boston Strangler (2023)
For film fans who love movies like David Fincher’s Zodiac (still his best film), Boston Strangler should satisfy the urge to see a real-life serial killer terrorize an unsuspecting public. Based on true events, the film takes place in the 1960s and follows reporters Loretta McLaughlin (Keira Knightley, once again proving she’s one of the most underrated actresses working today) and Jean Cole (Carrie Coon again, with a Baw-stan accent) investigate the rape and murder of several women by a serial killer later named as the Boston Strangler.
Through their reporting, McLaughlin and Cole reveal that the police have botched the investigation by failing to pursue credible leads and not sharing critical information with police departments in other cities. Boston Strangler may be a tad derivative, but it’s nonetheless captivating to watch. Just leave the lights on when you do.
Uncharted (2022)
Fans of the Uncharted video games should not expect a faithful adaptation. The casting alone is egregious, with Tom Holland, the MCU’s Spider-Man, Tom Holland, playing a younger, different of the franchise’s main hero, Nathan “Nate” Drake. The Uncharted movie is an alternate take on Nate’s origin story and how he formed a partnership with Victor “Sully” Sullivan (Mark Wahlberg), a treasure hunter who claims to have been the partner of Nate’s missing brother, Sam Drake (Rudy Pankow).
Standing in the way of Nate and Sully’s first expedition is Santiago Moncada (Antonio Banderas), a very wealthy man who hires Jo Braddock (Tati Gabrielle) and her team of mercenaries to take out anyone in their path. Nate and Sully only have Chloe Frazer (Sophia Ali) to call upon for help, but even she may be less than trustworthy.
Amazon Prime Video
Air (2023)
Want a sports drama without the pigskins and Taylor Swift? Then watch Air, a 2023 movie that documents the invention and marketing of a pair of shows. Yes, that sounds incredibly boring, but these shoes aren’t just any other shoes; they are Air Jordans, and Air is more than about the product it’s ostensibly about.
Starring Matt Damon (Oppenheimer), Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, and Ben Affleck, the movie is really about the first emergence of eventual basketball legend Michael Jordan and how Nike, the company that produced those Air Jordans, was the first one to recognize the athlete’s greatness. Well, after his devoted mama, of course.
Saltburn (2023)
One of the most talked about movies late last year was Saltburn, a movie that forever changed how one drains their bathtub after a long soak. Saltburn concerns young Oliver Quick (Barry Keoghan), an Oxford University college student who befriends his affluent and handsome classmate, Felix Catton (Priscilla‘s Jacob Elordi). When Oliver experiences family tragedy, Felix invites him to stay at his family’s lush estate at Saltburn for the summer.
Felix’s immediate family, including his parents, Lady Elspeth Catton (Rosamund Pike) and Sir James Catton (Richard E. Grant), as well as Felix’s sister, Venetia Catton (Alison Oliver), are very welcoming towards Oliver. However, Felix’s cousin, Farleigh Start (Gran Turismo‘s Archie Madekwe), is immediately suspicious about Oliver’s motives. It will be a long summer at Saltburn, and Oliver will have to go out of his way to earn his place there.[/dt_media]
Peacock
The Holdovers (2023)
Christmas may be long over, but great movies never go out of style. And while it may be a bit early to call The Holdovers a classic, it’s well on its way, with a slew of critical accolades, tremendous audience goodwill, and multiple Oscar nominations, including Best Picture, Best Supporting Actress (Da’Vine Joy Randolph), and Best Actor (Paul Giamatti).
The Holdovers chronicles the unlikely bonding between Paul Hunham, a depressed, cynical prep school teacher with a drinking problem; Angus Tully, Hunham’s pupil who is left behind by his family; and Mary Lamb, the grieving school cook over Christmas break in 1970. Equal parts dryly funny and surprisingly moving, The Holdovers is emotionally gratifying without being overly sentimental.
Rise of the Planet of the Apes (2011)
In the mood for something more adventurous? Then Rise of the Planet of the Apes is just the ticket. The movie focuses on Caesar (Andy Serkis), a super-intelligent chimpanzee raised among humans by Dr. William Rodman (James Franco). Caesar’s intellect is vast compared to other apes, but even he falls short of actually being human.
When Will is forced to give up custody of Caesar, the chimpanzee is ostracized by the other apes until he can find a way to gain dominance. From there, Caesar sets in motion a revolution by exposing all of the other apes to the experimental drug that gave him his intelligence. Once Caesar shows his fellow apes how to say “no” to their human keepers, nothing will be the same again.
Watch Rise of the Planet of the Apes on Peacock.
Max (formerly HBO Max)
Everest (2015)
If sci-fi apes don’t float your boat, what about the real-life spectacle of Mount Everest? Mountain climbers from all over the world visit Mount Everest every year, but some enthusiasts don’t realize just how dangerous it can be. Everest dramatizes a real-life event that took place in 1996 as experienced guides Rob Hall (Jason Clarke) and Scott Fischer (Jake Gyllenhaal) led two different groups up the mountain.
Simple mistakes along the way escalate the situation into a life-or-death struggle among the group. If the altitude and exhaustion don’t get them, the intense cold will. When everything gets out of control, few will be able to survive Everest’s fury.
Watch Everest on Max.
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