Streaming
The best of what’s new streaming on Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney Plus, and more.
Welcome to Boston.com’s weekly streaming guide. Each week, we recommend five must-watch movies and TV shows available on streaming platforms like Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Disney+, HBO Max, Peacock, Paramount+, and more.
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For even more great streaming options, check out previous editions of our must-watch list here.
New Movies Streaming
‘Happy Gilmore‘ (1996)
Before “Happy Gilmore 2” drives down the fairway (and into Netflix subscribers’ homes) next week, it’s worth revisiting the sports comedy that cemented Adam Sandler’s legacy as one of the most — if not the most — successful movie star comedians of all time, at least financially.
When “Happy Gilmore” was released, the pipeline of “Saturday Night Live” cast members trying to make the transition to movie stardom was littered with cautionary tales. But Sandler, playing a failed hockey player who discovers his gift for golf, never changed his comic persona to fit the social mores of the era. Almost 30 years later, the longtime New Hampshire resident is still introducing new audiences to his ill-tempered, baby-talking id.
How to watch: “Happy Gilmore” is streaming on Netflix.
‘Mission: Impossible’ (1996)
The first edition of this long-running film franchise isn’t the best Mission: Impossible movie — that’s 2018’s “Mission: Impossible — Fallout.” But this is the one that started it all, and the one that’s most unlike the rest of the franchise.
Brian De Palma’s film prioritizes the cerebral over the sensational, even though the action scenes in this film are top-notch, and set the template for Tom Cruise’s escapades over the next 30 years. The suspense of the laser room scene remains second to none.
How to watch: “Mission: Impossible” is streaming on Netflix.
‘The Straight Story’ (1999)
Deep in the recesses of Disney+’s cavernous streaming library is this delightful David Lynch film, inspired by the true story of a man named Alvin Straight who rode a lawnmower 240 miles across Iowa and Wisconsin to see his ailing brother.
As Alvin, Richard Farnsworth gives such a naturalistic, lived-in performance that it is borderline criminal the Academy Awards picked Kevin Spacey in “American Beauty” over him. As someone who grew up with an Alvin Straight-type figure in the family (you can read more about it here), I’m immensely appreciative of the way Farnsworth (and Lynch behind the camera) captured the quiet dignity of Alvin’s Quixotic journey without an ounce of condescension.
How to watch: “The Straight Story” is streaming on Disney+.
New TV Shows Streaming
‘Dept. Q‘
I’m late to the party on this one, but this Scottish crime drama from Scott Frank (“The Queen’s Gambit”) features something I love: An early-season moment that completely recalibrates your expectations for the show. Something else I love: Kelly Macdonald, who plays the therapist of the protagonist (Mathew Goode), a curmudgeonly detective returning from a near-death shooting.
How to watch: “Dept. Q” is streaming on Netflix.
‘Dexter: Resurrection’
Shockingly, Showtime has found new life in Dexter Morgan (Michael C. Hall), even after eight seasons, a sequel (“New Blood”) and a prequel (“Original Sin”). “Resurrection” puts the serial killer with a code in New York City, where he is searching for his son, Harrison.
On his quest, he crosses paths with all matter of friends and foes both old and new, including David Zayas as his former Miami PD colleague Angel Batista and Krysten Ritter as a kindred spirit (read: a serial killer hiding in plain sight).
How to watch: “Dexter: Resurrection” is streaming on Paramount+.
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Discover the best movies and TV shows streaming now, with handpicked recommendations from Boston.com.