A new month means a whole load of new to Paramount Plus movies, and the popular streaming service is kicking off the year strong in January 2024 with a sizeable collection of well-received flicks.
There are dozens of new additions to the Paramount Plus catalog this month, and there’s no doubt that several of them are going to make their way into our roundup of the best Paramount Plus movies. But scrolling through every single new addition would take a lot of time, and that’s time that could be better spent watching movies!
That’s why we’ve done the hard work for you and found the 5 new to Paramount Plus movies that you need to watch first. All the picks on this list earned a score of 90% or higher on the review aggregate site Rotten Tomatoes, which is a real testament to their quality.
'My Left Foot' (1989)
Daniel Day-Lewis won his first Oscar for his performance as Christy Brown in "My Left Foot". This biographical comedy-drama follows Brown’s remarkable life. Born in Dublin to a poor Irish family in the 1930s, Brown had cerebral palsy and was capable of controlling only his left foot. Written off by most of society, including his father (Ray McAnally), Brown is determined to make something of himself with sheer determination spurring him on.
This empowering movie perfectly displays the strength of the human spirit, and as you might expect, features one heck of a leading turn from Day-Lewis. If you’re looking for a film full of high-stakes action, or dramatic twists you won’t find them in "My Left Foot." But if you want a charming movie packed with characters that are easy to root for, then search no further.
Genre: Drama
Rotten Tomatoes score: 98%
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'The Godfather' (1972)
The yardstick against which all mobster movies are measured, "The Godfather" is a crime epic and ranks as one of the most influential, and very best movies, ever made. Based on the Mario Puzo novel of the same name, Francis Ford Coppola’s chronicle of the Corleone mafia family is a remarkable cinematic achievement in every single department.
The first movie in a trilogy, "The Godfather" centers on the power struggle that breaks out when Don Vito Corleone (Marlon Brando) decides to hand over his mafia empire to his reluctant son, Michael (Al Pacino). But as tensions rise across the criminal enterprises of New York, Michael's succession could lead to the destruction of the Corleone dynasty. The Godfather is the very definition of a must-watch movie with two powerhouse performances from Brando and Pacino at its core.
Genre: Crime
Rotten Tomatoes score: 97%
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'True Grit' (2010)
The second silver screen adaptation of Charles Portis’ 1968 novel — the original starred John Wayne — True Grit is a modern western that brings the classic genre into the 21st century with a sharp screenplay courtesy of the Coen brothers, and a very talented cast. It’s also the flick that properly introduced Hailee Steinfeld to the world and saw her scoop an Oscar nom.
"True Grit" follows a spirited 14-year-old girl named Mattie Ross (Steinfeld) who hires an alcoholic lawman, Rooster Cogburn (Jeff Bridges), to bring her father’s murderer to justice. Along for the ride is a Texas Ranger going by the name LaBoeuf (Matt Damon) who is also tracking the outlaw. This unlikely trio starts at odds, but as their abilities are tested, they must come together to prove their grit.
Genre: Western
Rotten Tomatoes score: 95%
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'Gone Baby Gone' (2007)
"Gone Baby Gone" is a twisting thriller that is very much a family affair. Casey Affleck leads in front of the camera, while Ben Affleck makes his directorial debut behind the lens. The movie opens with the disappearance of a four-year-old girl from her home, and with the police making little progress, her desperate mother (Amy Ryan) calls into two private detectives, Patrick Kenzie (Affleck) and Angie Gennaro (Michelle Monaghan).
Out of their depths from the very start, the pair have one advantage that the cops don’t: they know how to navigate the mean streets of Boston. But as they uncover more evidence they start to question their personal and professional motivations and face a moral dilemma that could destroy multiple lives. Also featuring Morgan Freeman, Ed Harris and Titus Welliver, "Gone Baby Gone" packs a gripping mystery and a haunting ending that will stay with you for days after the credits roll.
Genre: Thriller
Rotten Tomatoes score: 94%
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'Face/Off' (1997)
John Travolta and Nicolas Cage swap faces in this classic action thriller. Do you need to know anything else? Okay, if you’re not sold yet, the movie sees the two legendary actors play dual roles as an FBI agent who switches faces with a criminal via plastic surgery to go undercover and learn the location of a bomb that has been planted somewhere in LA.
Directed by John Woo, Face/Off is pretty much as ridiculous as its high-concept premise makes it sound, But, don’t worry, everybody is in on the joke here. Woo brings his trademark adrenaline-pumping action in spades, and both Travolta and Cage give seriously committed performances. The gleeful approach to brutal violence will be off-putting to some viewers, but if you want a brash and thrilling action movie, Face/Off is pretty hard to beat.
Genre: Action
Rotten Tomatoes score: 93%
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