Imaginary, Lisa Frankenstein, Netflix’s The Beautiful Game and every new movie to watch at home this weekend
Greetings, Polygon readers! Every week we round up the hottest new releases in streaming and VOD, highlighting the biggest and best new movies for you to watch at home.
This week, Imaginary, the new horror film from Blumhouse, is finally coming to VOD. Not interested? That is all right; there are tons of other exciting new releases to choose from this weekend. Lisa Frankensteinthe new horror comedy from Jennifer’s body writer-producer Diablo Cody comes to Peacock this weekend, along with the dark comedy When you’re done saving the world starring Julianne Moore and Finn Wolfhard on Netflix. There are also plenty of other intriguing VOD releases, including the 4K remaster of Stop making sensethe culinary romance drama The taste of thingsand more.
Here’s everything new to watch this weekend!
New on Netflix
The beautiful game
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Netflix
Genre: Sports drama
Duration: 2h 5m
Director: Thea Sharrock
Form: Bill Nighy, Michael Ward, Susan Wokoma
Bill Nighy stars as the manager of England’s homeless football team, who coaches them to take part in a global tournament in Rome in this new sports drama. Michael Ward (Kingdom of Light) also stars as Vinny, the talented but troubled player on the team whose skills could win them the championship.
The wages of fear
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Photo: Reda Laaroussi/Netflix
Genre: Thriller
Duration: 1h 28m
Director: Julien Leclercq
Form: Franck Gastambide, Alban Lenoir, Ana Girardot
The third remake of Henri-Georges Clouzot’s classic 1953 thriller follows a team of drivers on a deadly mission: deliver two truckloads of highly volatile nitroglycerin across a desert to extinguish a deadly gas explosion. This version of The wages of fear with a cast of great French talent, including Alban Lenoir Lost bullet fame.
When you’re done saving the world
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: A24
Genre: Black comedy-drama
Duration: 1h 28m
Director: Jesse Eisenberg
Form: Julianne Moore, Finn Wolfhard, Alisha Boe
Ziggy (Finn Wolfhard), a high school student with a passion for folk music, and his mother, Evelyn (Julianne Moore), the head of a women’s shelter, just don’t get along. As their relationship continues to falter, the two begin to seek emotional reciprocity from others and question what exactly they are looking for in their relationship, in Jesse Eisenberg’s directorial debut.
The Wonder Club
Where to watch: Available to stream on Netflix
Image: Zephyr Films/Sony Pictures Classics
Genre: Comedy drama
Duration: 1h 30m
Director: Thaddeus O’Sullivan
Form: Maggie Smith, Laura Linney, Kathy Bates
Set in 1967, this comedy follows a group of three close friends who reunite with their late friend Chrissie’s daughter while on vacation in the French city of Lourdes.
New on MGM Plus
The boys in the boat
Where to watch: Available to stream on MGM Plus
Image: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer/Smokehouse Pictures
Genre: Sports biopic
Duration: 2h 3m
Director: George Clooney
Form: Joel Edgerton, Callum Turner, Jack Mulhern
When I think of the 1936 Summer Olympics, I think of Jesse Owens and the incredible things he accomplished in the sprint and long jump events in front of a German crowd that passionately opposed him. But another group of Americans has also made history as they compete for Olympic glory: the University of Washington rowing team, a group of working-class athletes whose story is told in George Clooney’s latest directorial effort.
New at Pauw
Lisa Frankenstein
Where to watch: Available to stream Peacock
Photo: Michele K. Short/focus features
Genre: Comic horror
Duration: 1h 41m
Director: Zelda Williams
Form: Kathryn Newton, Cole Sprouse, Liza Soberano
Writer-producer Diablo Cody (Jennifer’s body) and director Zelda Williams’ latest film is a devilishly funny horror-comedy inspired by Mary Shelley Frankenstein. Kathryn Newton (Bizarre) stars as Lisa, a lonely and misunderstood teenage girl who finds love in the most unexpected of places: the reanimated corpse of a Victorian-era man (Cole Sprouse).
From our review:
A lot of Lisa FrankensteinThe film’s individual scenes are strong, but like the decaying male lead, the film could use more connective tissue. One of the film’s first scenes takes place at a party and lasts far longer than necessary, burying Lisa in the jumble of moving parts. When Lisa first encounters the creature, there is an involving sequence where she runs away from him, through the house, and eventually dangles out of a window in an attempt to get away. But not a full minute later, she tenderly cares for him, before she even realizes that he is the same man whose grave she is in love with.
New on Mubi
The colonists
Where to watch: Available to stream on Mubi
Image: Quijote Films/MUBI
Genre: Crime drama
Duration: 1h 37m
Director: Felipe Galvez Haberle
Form: Camilo Arancibia, Mark Stanley, Benjamin Westfall
This revisionist western follows three horsemen: a Chilean sniper (Camilo Arancibia), the British lieutenant (Mark Stanley) and an American mercenary (Benjamin Westfall) who go on a mission to ‘secure’ a wealthy landowner’s plot of land. After realizing the true scope and purpose of their expedition, tensions flare between the men.
New for rent
The taste of things
Where to watch: Available to rent Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Photo: Carole Bethuel/IFC Films
Genre: Romantic drama
Duration: 2h 16m
Director: Tran Anh Hung
Form: Juliette Binoche, Benoit Magimel, Emmanuel Salinger
This historical romance follows the story of Eugenie (Juliette Binoche) and Dodin (Benoît Magimel), a chef and foodie living on a French estate in 1889. Although the two are in love, Eugenie refuses to marry Dodin and wants to. keep their relationship as it is. Desperate to woo her, Dodin sets out to prepare a meal that will catch her off guard.
The farmers
Where to watch: Available to rent Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Image: Breakthru Films/Sony Pictures Classics
Genre: Animated historical drama
Duration: 1h 54m
Directors: DK Welchman, Hugh Welchman
Form: Kamila Urzędowska, Robert Gulaczyk, Mirosław Baka
Loving Vincent Directing duo DK Welchman and Hugh Welchman return with yet another period drama consisting of live-action footage and thousands of hand-painted images. Set in a 19th century Polish village full of strife and gossip, a young woman named Jagna desperately tries to build a life for herself that exceeds the expectations of those around her.
Drift
Where to watch: Available to rent Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Photo: Nikos Nikolopoulos/Utopia
Genre: Drama
Duration: 1h 33m
Director: Anthony Chen
Form: Cynthia Erivo, Alia Shawkat, Ibrahima Ba
After fleeing her war-torn country, a Liberian refugee named Jacqueline (Cynthia Erivo) settles on a Greek island in hopes of starting a new life. She befriends a directionless American tour guide (Alia Shawkat), and the pair grow closer, helping each other face their past trauma.
Stop making sense
Where to watch: Available to rent Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Image: A24
Genre: Concert film
Duration: 1h 28m
Director: Jonathan Demme
You may be sitting on the couch at home, looking for something to watch. And you might find yourself scrutinizing what’s new in streaming and VOD. And you might be intrigued by the latest 4K remaster of Jonathan Demme’s critically acclaimed concert film about the Talking Heads’ performance. And you may wonder: Why don’t I look at that?
Bad Carter
Where to watch: Available to rent on Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Image: Magnolia Photos
Genre: Black comedy
Duration: 1h 20m
Director: Bob Byington
Form: David Krumholtz, Olivia Thirlby, Jocelyn DeBoer
When a worthless college professor learns that he only has six months to live, he makes a last-ditch effort to fulfill his dreams and not be such a worthless person. By the way, he also sleeps with the wife of his ‘best friend’, who hate it. Wow!
Imaginary
Where to watch: Available to rent Amazon, Appleand Vudu
Photo: Parrish Lewis/Lionsgate
Genre: Horror thriller
Duration: 1h 44m
Director: Jeff Wadlow
Form: DeWanda Wise, Taegen Burns, Pyper Braun
This supernatural horror film from director Jeff Wadlow (Kick Ass 2) follows the story of Jessica (DeWanda Wise), a children’s book author who returns to her childhood home with her new family. Jessica’s stepdaughter Alice bonds with her old teddy bear, and things quickly spiral out of control when she begins committing heinous acts on behalf of her new imaginary friend.
From our review:
It’s tempting to search this labyrinth of digressions to find meaning or intention, but Imaginary that never makes it feel like it’s worth it. There isn’t a single character in the film worth rooting for, and the performances are completely devoid of charisma. The script, written by Wadlow, Jason Oremland and Greg Erb, is full of wooden dialogue that is stiff and often feels almost completely nonsensical. Characters sometimes introduce new information as if it is a fact the audience has always known.