7 must-stream movies on Netflix in June 2023
One of the great things about Netflix’s catalogue is the way it keeps adding some stone-cold classics. And June is no exception, with a good selection of blockbuster action movies and some more unusual, oddball and challenging titles too.
With over 60 movies added this month, there’s tons to choose from on the world’s best streaming service. The titles we’ve added here are not some of the best Netflix movies available, but they are still worthwhile watches that you want to miss.
In fact, the first movie on our list is a new Netflix movie that will take you back to the early noughties, when superhero films weren’t yet the big multiverse franchises that they are today. These are some of my must-watch suggestions for this month.
1. The Spider-Man Trilogy
With Spider-Man: Across The Spiderverse reminding everyone of why Spider-Man is such a great character, Netflix’s timing is brilliant. All three of Sam Raimi’s Spider-Man films came to the platform on June 1. They’re not without their faults but there’s no denying the sheer thrill of seeing your friendly neighborhood Spider-Man brought to life so brilliantly. If you’re in the UK, the films are also streaming on Sky Cinema.
2. Terminator 2: Judgement Day
It’s ancient, we know. But Terminator 2 remains an absolute rollercoaster of superior sci-fi, and while its visual effects aren’t as cutting-edge as they were at the time they hold up surprisingly well. But what makes this film so great isn’t the effects; it’s the chemistry and charisma of Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton and Edward Furlong, as well as the steely determination of the genuinely frightening Robert Patrick as the relentless and apparently indestructible T-1000.
3. The Ring
This film is 21 years old and still scary. You’ve seen some of The Ring even if you haven’t seen The Ring – the things Naomi Watts sees in this chilling horror have been widely copied and parodied in everything from comedy films to halloween costumes. But the film itself remains a terrifying little thing, a tale of a cursed film that’s best watched solo with all the lights off. Like The Exorcist, it’s very much of its time while also existing in a timeline of its very own.
4. The Breakfast Club
If you haven’t already seen this stone-cold eighties classic, you’re in for a treat. John Hughes’ high school drama features five students kept back after class and features superb performances from Emilio Estevez, Judd Nelson and Molly Ringwald as students who start to realise they have more in common than they might first have thought. In lesser hands, it would have been a snooze-fest but here it’s a genuinely wonderful slice of teen cinema that’s warm, funny and never looks down on its teen characters. It’s a timeless gem.
5. Hanna
Saoirse Ronan is extraordinary here as the titular character, a girl raised in the Finnish wilderness by her CIA dad to become an assassin. It’s a fresh and propulsive action thriller and while like most such movies it falls apart if you think about it too much, the performances here are fantastic and the cast includes great actors including Cate Blanchett, Eric Bana and Tom Hollander.
6. Magic Mike
Magic Mike is a big daft cheeseburger of a movie. It won’t make you a better person, it’s probably bad for your health and you’ll enjoy every single moment of it. The take of a male stripper taken under the wing of his more experienced colleagues is tons of fun, and as Wendy Ide of The Times put it: “it’s surprisingly deep for a film about men waggling their bits on stage.” The plot isn’t exactly ground-breaking but nobody’s watching this film for that.
7. Jarhead
Jarhead looks like a Gulf War movie, but it’s really about the psychological effects of young men (and women) sent to war. Jake Gyllenhaal and Jamie Foxx deliver stellar performances in a film that’s often hard but worthwhile viewing. If you’re looking for a triumphant ‘USA! USA! USA!’ movie this is not for you, but as a portrayal of soldiers pushed beyond their limits it’s quite something. It’s not as self-pitying as the memoir by Anthony Swofford on which it’s based, and it’s often both visually and sonically stunning.