The weather may be getting nicer, but Max is making staying inside all the more appealing with a slate of new movies this month that includes several critically acclaimed hits.
With so many new movies hitting Max in April 2024, we're rounding up the ones with an 85% or higher score on Rotten Tomatoes to help you narrow down what to watch on your next movie night. Sure, a high rating on the review aggregate site doesn't guarantee that you'll love the film, but it is a useful indicator of what's earned the stamp of approval from people who evaluate movies for a living.
The best new to Max movies in June 2024 span a range of genres, from a whimsical comedy about a toymaker struggling through the American immigration process to one of the greatest martial arts movies of all time. There’s something for everyone on our favorite streaming service this month.
'Uncut Gems' (2019)
Considered one of the best Adam Sandler movies of his career, "Uncut Gems" is the kind of thriller that'll stick with you long after the credits roll. Sandler is at the top of his game as Howard Ratner, a motormouth jeweler whose gambling addiction has left his family and career in shambles.
With his debts mounting and angry collectors closing in, things finally start to turn around for him when he gets his hands on an uncut black opal smuggled in from Ethiopia. An NBA star friend of his business associate convinces Howard to lend him the jewel for luck in the big game but never returns it. Everything comes to a head as Howard tries to reclaim the opal that he is convinced will solve all his problems and finally get his life back on track.
Genre: Mystery & Thriller/Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%
Stream it on Max
'The Disaster Artist' (2017)
Based on actor Greg Sestero’s memoir of the same name, "The Disaster Artist" is a ridiculous comedy that chronicles the stranger-than-fiction story behind an absolute trainwreck: 2003's “The Room." Often cited as the worst movie ever made, "The Room" is the quintessential "so bad, it's good" movie thanks to its illogical direction, hilarious performances and a screenplay packed with bizarrely quotable lines.
"The Disaster Artist” celebrates “The Room” with an earnest look at the friendship between its stars and how this flop even got made to begin with. Dave Franco plays Greg, an aspiring actor who moves to LA in the '90s to make it big. His life takes a turn after meeting the oddball Tommy Wiseau (portrayed by his brother James Franco, who also directs) in acting class. The two become fast friends and decide to make a movie together — what ends up becoming known as the "Citizen Kane" of awful movies.
Genre: Comedy/drama
Rotten Tomatoes score: 91%
Stream it on Max
'Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon' (2000)
Even if you've never seen "Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon," odds are you've probably seen at least one movie influenced by it. This breathtakingly beautiful epic takes place in 19th-century Qing dynasty China where swordsman Li Mu Bai (Chow Yun-fat) and the machete-wielding warrior Yu Shu Lien (Michelle Yeoh) have had to keep their feelings for each other secret. She was engaged to his best friend before he died, leaving both unable to confess their love.
But when Mu Bai decides to retire, his request to have Shu Lien deliver his iconic sword to their benefactor kicks off a chain of events that changes everything. No matter how much action and drama piles up, director Ang Lee makes every shot look picture-perfect. Any director can make an action movie with great fight sequences, but to infuse it with an artistic vision and characters simmering with romance, that's how you leave a mark.
Genre: Adventure/action
Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%
Stream it on Max
'50/50' (2011)
Starring Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Seth Rogen, "50/50" is the rare film that perfectly balances between buddy comedy and emotional drama. Loosely based on the real-life experience of cancer survivor and screenwriter Will Reiser, it sees Gordon-Levitt star as Adam, a mild-mannered radio presenter who is diagnosed with cancer for which the survival rate is 50/50.
He embarks on a journey of recovery alongside his fowl-mouthed best friend Kyle (Rogen), who does his best to keep Adam's morale up through chemotherapy. All the while it explores the complicated dynamics of young adult/parent relationships and examines what it means to finally accept some maturity when the end of your 20s is on the horizon.
Genre: Comedy/drama/romance
Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
Stream it on Max
'Problemista ' (2024)
This surrealist comedy isn't for everyone, but if your sense of humor is a little more off-beat, you're in for a delightful time. Breakout "SNL" writer Julio Torres directs and stars as Alejandro, an aspiring toy designer from El Salvador living in New York City with dreams of one day working at Hasbro.
His ideas are ... unconventional, to say the least: Cabbage Patch Kids with smartphones to suggest they have lives outside of playtime; Barbie dolls with their fingers crossed to add an air of "tension;" a Slinky that doesn't work on its own, encouraging kids to embrace the journey over the destination. But with time on his work visa running out, a job assisting an erratic art-world outcast (Tilda Swinton) becomes his only hope to stay in the country and realize his dream.
Genre: Comedy
Rotten Tomatoes score: 88%
Stream it on Max starting on June 28
