The Upstream: April 2023

10 great movies new to streaming this month.

Hey everyone! You could be forgiven for wondering where I’ve been recently — subscribers got posts on Spring Breakers and Everybody Wants Some!!, but I had to change course on my previously scheduled free post for last week. The plan was then to just put this out over the weekend, but life got in the way. Provided no major interruptions hit, I’m hoping to have that other post over as a bonus later this week!

So, better later than never, here are 10 movies worth checking out in April that just arrived on their respective streaming services. Miss out on some of these rarities, and maybe you’re the fool!

The Bourne Identity, Netflix

More to come on Matt Damon later this week, but talk about a great action franchise. Most of these movies are made to be so disposable and interchangeable these days, but the Bourne series puts craft and character above all else. (Well, at least the original three did…)

Bros, Amazon Prime Video

It was a mistake for Universal (and Billy Eichner) to sell Bros like it was the cinematic equivalent of an “RT if you agree!” on the topic of queer representation on screen. There are times when Eichner treats the film like it has to be so many things for so many people, and it’s painfully aware of all it has to “mean.” But there’s enough of the film that’s an enjoyable rom-com deeply versed in the genre’s Nora Ephron era to still make it recommendable. It’s a nice movie night in with a showstopper of an ending!

Inland Empire, Criterion Channel

If you’ve come to the point where David Lynch’s surrealist masterpiece Mulholland Dr. is too easy to understand, time to level up to his even more oblique and abstract Inland Empire. This variation on similar themes of acting, identity, and warped reality pushes his craft into even more experimental and avant-garde directions. Squint long enough at this three-hour oddity, which is available to stream for the first time since I’ve been keeping track, and you can find some interesting takeaways.

Iris, HBO Max

Somehow I missed that New York’s style maven Iris Apfel recently had her centennial birthday! Celebrate a true iconoclast with a documentary that captures and celebrates her unique triumph as a true eccentric in some crusty social circles. Iris is not just your run-of-the-mill puff piece, either. It’s the last major film directed by documentary pioneer Al Maysles, who films Apfel with an uncommonly keen eye.

Moulin Rouge, Hulu

Here’s an abridged version of the rant that I must inevitably launch into when someone asks for my opinion of the stage musical version of Moulin Rouge. The show retains all the “Bazmataz” of Baz Luhrmann’s often gaudy aesthetic but none of its understanding of music. Watch the film and see how it should be done. Luhrmann has the characters break into song when the emotion demands such an ecstatic expression of feeling, not because someone says the word “chandelier” and there happens to be a pop song of the same name. There’s a big difference, and you’ll notice if you watch it. We come to this place for magic, indeed.

Psycho, Netflix

Like Leonardo DiCaprio with women, Netflix also gets blinders with movies when it comes to anything conceived before the year 2000. Take the opportunity to catch up (or rewatch) a classic like Psycho in this exceedingly rare moment of them adding something older to their library! If you only know the shower scene, you don’t know much at all.

Puss in Boots, Netflix

The sequel to Puss in Boots, which arrived 11 years after its predecessor, became somewhat of a stealthy box office success story in early 2023. That might be in part thanks to low expectations and a general dearth of family-oriented movies in the marketplace, but — hear me out — these movies are both really good! Even the first one, which didn’t enjoy nearly the same critical acclaim on its release, is very much worth your time. It’s no Shrek but still packs a lot of fun and heart into this spinoff of the franchise’s beloved foe-turned-friend.

Rye Lane, Hulu

Now HERE is the new rom-com you’re looking for to end our recent drought in the genre. Rye Lane is a fun walk-and-talk tale following two would-be young lovers hitting it off in conversation as they amble through East London. It feels effortlessly contemporary without condescension. Is it possible the film also tries a little too hard? Sure, but I’ll take an overcorrection in this direction after so many recent straight-to-streaming rom-coms have been doing the absolute least. (Looking at you, Shotgun Wedding.)

Songs from the Second Floor, Criterion Channel

I cannot stress enough how much you should take the opportunity to watch Roy Andersson’s Songs from the Second Floor during this rare window of streaming availability. I’m still not even sure how to formulate all the thoughts swirling in my head from watching this drolly absurdist comedy at Film Forum a few years ago. But it touched on something profound and painful about the human condition in a way that I found revelatory, surprising, and deeply entertaining. It would not surprise me if, upon rewatch, it vaults into an all-time classic status for me. Watch it, too, so we can chat!

Trespass Against Us, HBO Max

OK, so this one wasn’t exactly a chart-topper at #71 in my A24 rankings earlier this year. But Trespass Against Us is still a really solid crime drama that’s nice to put on if you want something to entertain you without requiring too much of you. It gets a lot of mileage out of two dynamite performances by Michael Fassbender as a son trying to escape his family business … and Brendan Gleeson as his father trying to keep him in the fold.

You can always keep up with my film-watching in real-time on the app Letterboxd. I’ve also compiled every movie I’ve ever recommended through this newsletter via a list on the platform as well.

This is all the Boston I can stomach in one conversation, but Damon and Affleck on Bill Simmons was worth it all the same:

RIP Emahoy Tsegué-Maryam Guèbrou, the Ethiopian nun and pianist who gave Garrett Bradley’s magisterial Time a musical lift to the heavens. Read about her one-of-a-kind life here.

I really enjoyed reading this Esquire feature about an emerging “no budget” movement led by films like Shiva Baby, We’re All Going to the World’s Fair, and The Civil Dead. These scrappy indies make A24 movies look like Avatar budgets. It’s a great reminder that a spirit of inventiveness still thrives even in these dark times for the art and commerce of movies.

(It serves as an interesting contrast to this deeply reported Hollywood Reporter feature that attempts to answer the burning question of what the heck is going on at Amazon Studios right now.)

It’s been a big few weeks of interviews for me at Slant! Most notably, I chatted with the two-time Palme D’or winning Dardenne Brothers about their latest work, Tori and Lokita. This was a true honor given the way I’ve studied the work extensively and even made this video essay breaking down their aesthetic approach to Two Days, One Night:

Not to be outdone, I also talked to Enys Men director Mark Jenkin, as well as writer/director A.V. Rockwell and star Teyana Taylor of Sundance winner A Thousand and One.

For The Playlist, I reviewed The Super Mario Bros. Movie — you should be able to tell right away that I brought my advertising brain to bear here.

For Decider, I said stream it to Creed III (now on VOD) as well as to Johnny (on Netflix) but skip it to I See You (on Netflix).

You can keep track of all the freelance writing I’ve done this year through this list on Letterboxd.

Back to you later this week!

Air, 2023. © Amazon Studios

Yours in service and cinema,
Marshall