Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is the biggest new movie to watch online this week, but (thankfully) it's far from the best.
All of the folks who passed on seeing the third Marvel movie with Paul Rudd in the starring role in theaters should definitely take this opportunity to judge for themselves. Personally, when I saw Quantumania at a press screening, I couldn't have predicted the backlash it would get.
Over on Netflix, Rachel Leigh Cook is back to prove that she's all that. Or at least that she can lead a travelogue romance film in Vietnam. Apple TV Plus is also bringing worldwide romance, but its film features Chris Evans getting ghosted, so you know it has to be fiction.
Also, Hulu's got an action movie where Russell Crowe's playing a rich guy hosting old friends he doesn't trust. Elsewhere, though, we've got a trio of critically-beloved films that we're eager to watch. Two are on services you don't hear about often: MGM Plus and The Criterion Channel.
Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania (Digital)
Scott Lang (Paul Rudd) had done it all. From from ex-con to Avenger, he's helped save the world. And he's finally getting a chance to be a normal dad. At least until his daughter Cassie (Kathryn Newton) got so industrious that she got their whole family sucked into the Quantum Realm.
There, they meet Kang (Jonathan Majors) whose shared past with Janet (Michelle Pfeiffer) is a skeleton unwilling to stay in the closet. Widely mocked for its poor CGI, Ant-Man and the Wasp: Quantumania is seen as one of the worst Marvel movies. That said, it's yards better than Eternals.
Majors, we must note, is now the elephant in the room for Marvel. Three weeks ago, he was arrested on domestic violence charges in New York City. On May 8th, Majors is expected to appear before a judge in regards to multiple counts of harassment and assault from the New York City D.A..
Buy digitally on Amazon and others starting today (April 18)
Till (MGM Plus)
You may know the name Emmett Till, but you might not know about his mother Mamie Till Mobley. Till looks to change that, as we see Mamie (Danielle Deadwyler) fight for justice in her son's name.
After Emmett (Jalyn Hall) was lynched on a trip to visit his cousins in Mississippi, Mamie risks her safety in order to take a stand. Critics adore Till for Deadwyler's performance (as well as those in the supporting cast), and Till is one of the best movies that might have gone under your radar during this past awards season.
Watch right now on MGM Plus (also available via Prime Video Channels) right now (released Monday, April 17)
A Tourist's Guide to Love (Netflix)
Amanda (Rachael Leigh Cook) is a travel executive powerhouse, and one who shouldn't be messed with. That didn't stop her boyfriend John (Ben Feldman) from shocking her with some personal news that leads to their breakup.
But unlike the rest of us, Amanda gets to cope her way through the split by playing tourist in Vietnam. There, her tour guide Sinh (Scott Ly) refuses to let her be a generic traveler. And right when it looks like she's going to fall for him, Amanda gets another surprise.
Yes, A Tourist's Guide to Love looks like a Hallmark Christmas movie that takes place in summery Vietnam. And that's the point.
Watch on Netflix starting Friday (April 21)
Ghosted (Apple TV Plus)
Dating is trouble, as Cole (Chris Evans) learns when he falls for Sadie (Ana de Armas). If it wasn't bad enough that Sadie ghosts Cole, she turns out to be a secret agent. Just the kind of woman you want to introduce to your parents, right?
Unfortunately, he only figures all this out once he's already flown to London to try and find her. Now, wrapped up in her espionage mission, Cole's got a hell of a second date to finish.
Watch on Apple TV Plus starting Friday (April 21)
Poker Face (Hulu)
Peacock isn't the only one with a poker face. This week, Hulu provides the streaming service debut of the other Poker Face, a Russell Crowe-led thriller where a friendly poker game turns into a shootout.
Crowe plays a tech billionaire, who's decided to poison his friends (played by the likes of Liam Hemsworth and The RZA), who've been hiding secrets. But that's just the premise, as a heist arrives to set everyone further on edge. Critics did not take to this Poker Face (which Crowe directed) at all, but you may like it.
Watch on Hulu starting Friday (April 21)
A Thousand and One (Digital)
New Yorker Inez (Teyana Taylor) is fresh out of Rikers, and trying to make things right with her young son Terry (Aaron Kingsley Adetola). And while she's OK to just confirm he's doing well in the foster care system, she soon springs him from that world to raise him herself.
A Thousand and One follows both Inez and Terry as he gets older, and his potential becomes a potential wedge that could drive them apart. Awarded praise for Taylor's performance, A Thousand and One is also applauded for being a throughly impressive debut film for writer/director A.V. Rockwell.
Buy digitally on Amazon and others starting today (April 18)
No Bears (Criterion Channel)
Iranian director Jafar Panahi stars in his latest film, where he (playing himself) is virtually directing a movie about two lovers. In that meta-film, Bakhtiar (Panjeei) and Zara (Kavani) are trying to escape Iran, which is also what the actors want to do off camera.
At the same time, Panahi's under suspicion for taking photos of a different couple, as he learns of a story too complicated to properly explain in a short blurb. And at night, Panahi the character drives around in a luxe SUV. Is he going to leave it all?
All that said, No Bears is a much more complicated work of art than its trailer and the above would suggest. Made in secrecy, as the Iranian government banned Panahi from making movies in 2010 (his previous work wasn't positive enough about Iran), No Bears won critics over for its beauty and complexity.
Watch on Criterion Channel starting today (April 18)
