Netflix: 5 Great Movies to Watch This Weekend

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – Buy Me a Coffee!

Netflix is arguably best known for its original programming such as the immensely popular Stranger Things series, House of Cards, and The Night Agent. However, the world’s largest streaming service also has an extensive library of licensed shows and classic and new movies. With the weekend here, I have selected five movies on Netflix that I highly recommend that you check out.

Casino (1995)
What Kind of Movie: Crime Drama
Who’s In It: Robert De Niro, Joe Pesci, Sharon Stone, Don Rickles, James Woods
Director Martin Scorsese’s brilliant cinematic essay on the rise and fall of the Mob-controlled Las Vegas stars Robert De Niro as an obsessive gambler named Ace Rothstein who’s hired to operate a casino. Ace’s master plan is soon derailed by his chorus girl wife (played beautifully by Sharon Stone) and a ruthless sidekick (played deliciously over the top by Joe Pesci.) While some critics chafed that Casino did not measure up to Scorsese’s Goodfellas, the 1995 is an iconic classic on its own.

After Hours (1985)
What Kind of Movie: Black Comedy
Who’s In It: Griffin Dunne, Rosanna Arquette, Teri Garr, John Heard, Catherine O’Hara
The 1985 comedy/drama from director Martin Scorsese stars Griffin Dunne as an uninspired computer data entry worker who yearns for excitement in his life and, unfortunately for him, gets more than he can handle during a wild after-dark journey in a nightmarish Manhattan. Along the way, Dunne’s worker-bee is enticed, and sometimes entrapped, in bars, diners and matchbox apartments by the likes of Rosanna Arquette, Catherine O’Hara, Teri Garr, Cheech and Chong and John Heard. After Hours will make you laugh, sometimes cringe, and definitely make you think twice before deciding to head out on your own for a nighttime spin around the block.

The Killer (2023)
What Kind of Movie: Drama
Who’s In It: Michael Fassbender
Directed by David Fincher (and those four words alone should get you pick up your remote), The Killer stars Michael Fassbender as an assassin who becomes the hunted one after a botched hit. Fincher, who has helmed such works of genius as Fight Club, The Social Network, Panic Room, Zodiac and Se7en, never fails to produce an entertaining two hours (or more) and The Killer is no exception with his characteristic style, clever plotlines and atmospherics. And Fassbender is a powerhouse as the fastidious killer whose dedication to his mission could become a self-inflicted wound.

Zero Dark Thirty (2012)
What Kind of Movie: War Drama
Who’s In It: Jessica Chastain, Jason Clarke, Kyle Chandler
Director Kathryn Bigelow’s intense 2012 drama starring Jessica Chastain as a relentless CIA agent who hunts for the masterminds behind the 9/11 attack on America. The film was seen by some as glorifying the extralegal tactics required to obtain leads in the hunt for Osama Bin Laden. But it fairly characterizes the pain and zeal felt by the intelligence/military personnel at the time. And Chastain is riveting as a CIA case officer who can’t sit still (literally) until she finds her man. The supporting cast is equally as good with most notable performances from James Gandofini, Chris Pratt, Kyle Chandler, Jason Clarke, and Joel Edgerton.

The Iron Claw (2023)
What Kind of Movie: Drama/BioFilm
Who’s In It: Zach Efron, Jeremy Allen White, Holt McCallany, Maura Tierney
The 2023 biofilm (pictured above) stars Zach Efron and Jeremy Allen White as sons of wrestling promoter Fritz Von Erich who groomed them to become pro wrestlers despite physical and emotional tragedies that plagued the family for years. Holt McCallany, who co-starred in Netflix’s Mindhunter, plays the family patriarch with Maura Tierney as his wife. The critics loved The Iron Claw with an 89 score at Rotten Tomatoes. “The true story of the inseparable Von Erich brothers, who made history in the intensely competitive world of professional wrestling in the early 1980s. Through tragedy and triumph, under the shadow of their domineering father and coach, the brothers seek larger-than-life immortality on the biggest stage in sports,” the site states, I saw this film when it first aired on HBO Max and I highly recommend it. Great (and touching) performances from Efron and White as well as McCallany as the domineering Dad.

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