The summer is heating up, and so are the movie offerings across the best streaming services. To help you beat the heat, we've rounded up the best movies to watch that just landed on streaming.
Leading this weekend's line-up is John Krasinski's "IF" on video-on-demand platforms. This colorful family adventure imagines a world where imaginary friends exist long after their creators have forgotten about them, and it's up to one girl and her curmudgeonly neighbor to find them new homes. Another family-friendly pick, "Kung-Fu Panda 4," lands on Peacock, which sees Jack Black's Po and co. fighting a new shapeshifting menace.
Meanwhile, Netflix has a new thriller led by Jessica Alba called "Trigger Warning" as well as a documentary that dives into a lesser-known corner of Mattel's history with "Black Barbie." And over on Prime Video, you can now find Christopher Nolan's Oscar-winning biopic "Oppenheimer."
So without further ado, here are the best new movies that just landed on streaming. If you're looking for more recommendations on what to watch, be sure to check out our round-up of the best new TV shows this week.
‘IF’ (PVOD)
When I first saw the trailer for "IF," it reminded me of a cross between "Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends" with the mix of live-action and animated characters of "Who Framed Roger Rabbit?" Written and directed by John Krasinski of "A Quiet Place" fame, it stars Cailey Fleming as Bea, a young girl going through a traumatic period in her life who discovers she can see other people's imaginary friends, known as IFs.
She uncovers this ability after moving into her grandparent's New York apartment as her father preps for heart surgery. These imaginary friends include the fuzzy, Grimace-esque Blue (voiced by Steve Carell) and Blossom (Phoebe Waller-Bridge), who looks like a cross between a butterfly and Betty Boop. Bea's new neighbor Cal (Ryan Reynolds), can see them too, and together the two attempt to find new homes for forgotten imaginary friends whose creators outgrew them long ago.
Buy or rent now on Amazon or iTunes
'Trigger Warning' (Netflix)
Netflix’s newest action-thriller "Trigger Warning" comes from award-winning Indonesian director Mouly Surya. Jessica Alba stars as Parker, a Special Forces commando on active duty abroad who's called back to her hometown after he father's death. Tasked with running her father's bar, Parker juggles her new responsibilities with investigating the strange circumstances of his death.
Her search for answers puts her at odds with a violent local gang, and she ends up putting her combat training to good use. This film has a stacked cast; in addition to being Jessica Alba’s first feature film in five years, it stars Anthony Michael Hall, Mark Webber, and Gabriel Basso. Netflix has had pretty good luck with original movies this month (looking at you, "Hit Man") so we'll see if "Trigger Warning" continues the trend.
Watch it now on Netflix
‘Black Barbie’ (Netflix)
I'm a sucker for a good documentary, and Netflix's newest one is definitely on my watchlist this weekend. "Black Barbie" celebrates how three women at Mattel—Beulah Mae Mitchell, Kitty Black Perkins, and Stacey McBride Irby—changed the Barbie brand as we know it with the creation of the first Black Barbie in the 1980s.
The documentary looks back at the history of diversity within Mattel’s Barbie world while also shining a light on the untold story of the charismatic insiders who moved the company forward. But it isn't just a retrospective. Through insider interviews, "Black Barbie" offers a look behind the scenes at this transformative period in toy history that demonstrates why the first Black Barbie was so much more than just a doll.
Watch it now on Netflix
‘Kung Fu Panda 4’ (Peacock)
Po (Jack Black) and the Furious Five are back in "Kung Fu Panda 4," the latest installment in Dreamworks' beloved animated series that pits anthropomorphic animals against each other in thrilling martial arts showdowns. In "Kung Fu Panda 4," our loveable hero Po faces a career crossroads of sorts. As he prepares to become the spiritual leader of his hometown, the Valley of Peace, he must relinquish his title as the Dragon Warrior. But finding a suitable successor is no easy task.
Things take a turn for the worse when a new villain, the shape-shifting Chameleon (Viola Davis), emerges. The Chameleon can take the form of Po’s past enemies, even mimicking their formidable fighting styles. With the help of a new ally, a cunning fox named Zhen (Awkwafina), Po sets out on a mission to thwart the Chameleon's nefarious plot before she can steal the kung-fu abilities of every material arts master in China.
Watch it now on Peacock
'Oppenheimer' (Prime Video)
Christopher Nolan's Oscar-winning "Oppenheimer," a sprawling biographical thriller about the man behind the creation of the first nuclear weapons, just landed on Prime Video. Cillian Murphy stars as J. Robert Oppenheimer, an American theoretical physicist widely considered to be the father of the atomic bomb.
The story follows the young Oppenheimer from his college days studying quantum physics to spearheading America's development of an atomic bomb during World War II. After Matt Damon's character recruits him to the war effort, Oppenheimer sets up the Manhattan Project in Los Alamos, New Mexico. But once the fighting ends and the smoke clears, Oppenheimer is haunted by his part in all the bloodshed.
Watch it now on Prime Video
'Aftersun' (Netflix)
"Aftersun" has been on my radar ever since Paul Mescal's powerful portrayal of a troubled father netted him a nomination at the 2023 Oscars. Now that it's on Netflix, I have the perfect excuse to watch A24's coming-of-age drama, which has earned an impressive 96% critics score on Rotten Tomatoes.
The feature debut of Scottish director Charlotte Wells, "Aftersun" weaves a mesmerizing narrative through the past and present through the lens of a summer trip between a young father (Mescal) and his 11-year-old daughter Sophie (Frankie Corio) in the '90s. Years later, an adult Sophie (played by Celia Rowlson-Hall) looks through the camera footage from that holiday to try to understand what happened to the father she once knew.
Watch it now on Netflix
'Federer: Twelve Final Days' (Prime Video)
Originally shot as a home video to record the final days of tennis legend Roger Federer’s career, this new Prime Video documentary is already being called a must-watch for tennis fans. It offers a glimpse into Federer's personal life as he prepares for and plays his final tournament, the Laver Cup, in 2022.
His final match ends up being a dramatic tiebreaker after Federer commits an unforced error that evens the score in an already tight game. Naturally, the documentary features plenty of footage of the tennis great himself as well as archival footage and interviews with former rivals and colleagues, including Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic, Andy Murray, and other players across Federer's sprawling career.
Watch it now on Prime Video
