Hulu today has added 78 new movies to its subscription Video on Demand service. Here are the four best, in my humble opinion:
The Good Shepherd
Did you know that Robert DeNiro was originally slated to play the Jack Nicholson role in Martin Scorsese’s classic crime drama, The Departed? Bobby D bowed out because he had a previous commitment — he wanted to direct The Good Shepherd. While that may now sound like a poor choice, The Good Shepherd is an underrated film that deserves some love.
The 2006 drama chronicles the early days of the Central Intelligence Agency through the eyes of Matt Damon’s character, who was based on two real-life CIA officers. It depicts the moral conflicts that quickly emerged at The Company as the agency’s architects tried to use their position to further American influence across the globe but actually resulted in diminishing that influence through abuse and overreach.
Borat
The 2006 comedy stars Sacha Baron Cohen as a dimwitted correspondent from Kazakhstan who comes to America in search of Pamela Anderson and other cultural phenomenon. This is a great showcase for the many talents of SBC who’s the closest thing we have now to Peter Sellers. Like Sellers, he dares to go where few comedians will and the result is a comedy classic.
The Girl Next Door
Emile Hirsch stars as a studious high school senior whose life turns upside down when a beautiful porn star (Elisha Cuthbert) moves in next door. This 2004 film is a sweet, underrated comedy that has an occasional dark side in the person of Cuthbert’s pimp, played with evil flourish by Timothy Olyphant. Both Hirsch and Cuthbert are charming and the supporting cast (Olyphant, Paul Dano, Olivia Wilde, James Remar) came ready with some fun over-the-top performances.
One Hour Photo
Robin Williams. We all remember his unique comedy. But this 2004 film is an exhibition of his exceptional dramatic skills. Williams plays a photo technician who becomes obsessed with one family who brings their pictures to him for developing. I won’t spoil what happens next, but Williams plays psycho like no one else. It’s a terrifying and thrilling performance.
Here is the complete list of new movies added today to Hulu:
3:10 to Yuma (2007)
Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter (2011)
Attack The Block (2011)
Best Night Ever (2013)
Bewitched (2005)
Borat (2006)
Brigsby Bear (2017)
The Broken Hearts Club: A Romantic Comedy (2000)
Bronson (2008)
Brother (2001)
Carnage (2011)
Celeste and Jesse Forever (2012)
Center Stage (2000)
Center Stage: Turn It Up (2008)
Chasing Mavericks (2011)
The Comebacks (2006)
The Cookout (2004)
The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
The Day the Earth Stood Still (2008)
Delivery Man (2013)
Diary of a Mad Black Woman (2005)
Due Date (2010)
Freddy Got Fingered (2001)
From Paris with Love (2010)
The Girl Next Door (2004)
The Good Shepherd (2006)
Goon (2011)
The Goonies (1985)
Gridiron Gang (2006)
Grown Ups (2010)
Grown Ups 2 (2013)
Hall Pass (2011)
Hoffa (1992)
Idiocracy (2006)
The International (2009)
Knight And Day (2010)
Life Before Her Eyes (2007)
The Little Hours (2017)
Man on Wire (2008)
The Marine (2006)
The Marine 2 (2009)
Monster House (2006)
The Monuments Men (2014)
Mr. Deeds (2002)
Mr. Nobody (2009)
The Newton Boys (1998)
Notorious (2009)
One Hour Photo (2002)
The Oxford Murders (2008)
Pompeii (2014)
Predators (2010)
The Quarry (2020)
The Right Kind of Wrong (2013)
The Ringer (2005)
Rio (2011)
Role Models (2008)
Semi-Pro (2008)
Slackers (2002)
The Sorcerer and the White Snake (2011)
Spirit: Stallion Of Cimarron (2002)
St. Elmo’s Fire (1985)
This Means War (2010)
Three Identical Strangers (2018)
Tim’s Vermeer (2014)
Tucker And Dale Vs. Evil (2010)
Turbo: A Power Rangers Movie (1997)
The Twilight Saga: New Moon (2009)
The Twilight Saga: Eclipse (2010)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 1 (2011)
The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn Part 2 (2012)
Tyler Perry’s Madea Goes to Jail (2009)
The Upside (2017)
Vice (2018)
What to Expect When You’re Expecting (2012)
Win Win (2010)
The Wolfpack (2015)
The X-Files: I Want to Believe (2008)
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— Phillip Swann
@tvanswerman
