Another month means another opportunity to check out a whole new group of streaming offerings onPrime Video. Lucky for you, we’re here to sort through all of them to provide you with the best that you’re able to check out for yourself. Looking for a classic coming-of-age sports drama? An animated adaptation of a beloved book? An unflinching documentary? There is all that and more which we have a good feeling you’re going to want to see.
Bend It Like Beckham (2003)
Available on:April 1
Director:Gurinder Chadha |Run Time:112 min |Genre:Comedy, Drama, Romance
Cast:Parminder Nagra, Keira Knightley, Jonathan Rhys Meyers
We don’t know about you, but there is no sports classic out there quite likeGurinder Chadha’sBend It Like Beckham. Released in 2002, it centers on the duo of Jesminder ‘Jess’ Bhamra (Parminder Nagra) and Jules Paxton (Keira Knightley) as they try to become professional football players. No, not American football, but what those outside most of the world will know as soccer. They each play on the same team with the former having to do so in secret due to her family’s disapproval. The less that is known about the film the better as, even though it wears its sincerity on its sleeves, the experience of taking it all in after all these years remains a great time. Though there was initial concern that some viewers might not even understand the title, it became a massive hit that has endured for a reason.
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Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs (2009)
Directors:Phil Lord, Christopher Miller |Run Time:90 min |Genre:Comedy, Adventure
Cast:Bill Hader, Anna Farris, Bruce Campbell
There is a good chance that many have missed out on the joyous animated film that isCloudy with a Chance of Meatballswhen looking at the films from the duo ofPhil LordandChristopher Millerthat would come later. However, this one is worth revisiting both because it was the one that started it all as their directorial debut and is just a fun time. Drawing inspiration from the 1978’s children’s book of the same name, it places us in the glue shoes of Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) as he tries to make inventions that seem to always fail. That is until one does not. Specifically, he makes a machine that can turn water into food. Sounds like a great idea, right? It is at first, but it will soon spiral out of Flint’s control with him as the only one who can set things right. A beautifully animated meal of a film that includes everything from a spaghetti tornado to raining hamburgers, it has plenty of glorious whimsy to spare.
Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon (2000)
Director:Ang Lee |Run Time:120 min |Genre:Action, Adventure, Drama
Cast:Michelle Yeoh, Chow Yun-Fat, Ziyi Zhang
The first film on this list from directorAng Lee,Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragonis one of those martial arts films that just takes the breath away. Not only does it have Michelle Yeoh, which is always a benefit to any film, but it is really remarkably constructed from top to bottom. Set in the 19th century, it is an emotional epic about the theft of a famous sword that kicks off an adventure unlike any other. Throughout all of it, there are just so many outstanding action sequences that it is impossible to pick just one to highlight. However, there is a fight scene that starts right at the ninety-minute mark that is just a cut above anything else ever put to screen. Not only does it often literally take flight, but it is just so well-crafted that it remains one of the best cinematic moments in action history all these decades later.
Life of Pi (2012)
Director:Ang Lee |Run Time:127 min |Genre:Drama, Adventure
Cast:Suraj Sharma, Irrfan Khan, Rafe Spall
Yes, this month we are including two Ang Lee films. Deal with it. ThoughLife of Piis not quite on the same level as the previous entry on this list, it is still a marvel to behold in how it made use of incredible visual effects that still hold up. It all follows the young Pi (Suraj Sharma) who is traveling aboard a ship to Canada when a sudden storm destroys his entire world. However, he is not alone. Trapped on a lifeboat, he discovers there is also an initially terrifying Bengal tiger there. With little hope of survival, the two then begin to form a bond as they drift alone through the water. It all seems like it shouldn’t work, but this is one that really does. Even with all its flaws in terms of its narrative construction that involve frequent interjections from far in the future, the moments where we are just at sea are truly striking.
The Big Lebowski (1998)
Directors:Joel Coen, Ethan Coen |Run Time:117 min |Genre:Comedy, Drama
Cast:Jeff Bridges, John Goodman, Julianne Moore, Steve Buscemi, Philip Seymour Hoffman
There is no list that would be complete withoutThe Big Lebowskion it. It is a film that basically needs no introduction as it remains as sharply funny and enthralling no matter how many times you see it. The story itself, which surrounds a case of mistaken identity that spirals out of control, matters far less than the experience and tone of how it all plays out. With a cast all operating at the top of their game, it is one of those films that never gets old.
Whiplash (2014)
Director:Damien Chazelle |Run Time:106 min |Genre:Drama, Music
Cast:Miles Teller, J.K. Simmons, Melissa Benoist
Thoughhis most recent filmhas proven to be a bit more divisive,Damien Chazelle’sWhiplashremains a work that is just flooring in the best way. While it wasn’t his first feature, it was the one that really made him one to watch. Following a talented drummer who meets a teacher that will either push him to greatness or completely obliterate him, it pulls no punches as it hurtles through a study about the chaos that can come from artistic obsession.
Whose Streets? (2017)
Available on:April 12
Directors:Sabaah Folayan, Damon Davis |Run Time:102 min |Genre:Documentary
A documentary that remains as urgent today as it is when it came out,Whose Streets?is one of those works that captures a movement that is responding to both a historic and modern crisis with clear-eyed focus when it counts. Specifically, it looks at the fallout of how 18-year-oldMichael Brownwas killed by police and the community in Ferguson, Missouri that rose up in protest. It is both a portrait of a people and a living capsule of our times that never holds back from observing the realities of racism that persist in the broken country we call America.
