The best movies new to Netflix, HBO Max and Amazon Prime (January 2023)

Happy New Year, Polygon readers!

We’re excited to be trending again after the holidays and ready to share with you the very best movies available to stream right now on Netflix, HBO Max, Prime Video, Shudder and Hulu. Our list this month features Andrzej Żuławski’s 1981 cult-classic horror film possession with Sam Neill and Isabelle Adjani, 2004 the aviator starring Leonardo DiCaprio, Kathryn Bigelow’s 1995 cyberpunk thriller strange days, and more. Here’s what you should be watching this month based on everything that’s new on the platforms:

Editor’s choice

Possession on Shudder

Image: Gaumont/Anchor Bay Entertainment

Genre: Psychic Horror
Year: 1981
Duration: 2h 4m
Director: Andrzej Zulawski
Pour: Isabelle Adjani, Sam Neill, Heinz Bennent

Outside of the most avid cinephile circles, Andrzej Żuławski is not a name that elicits enthusiastic acclaim in the United States. Known for his transgressive art-house cinema, Żuławski’s career was hampered by the communist authorities in his native Poland, with many of his early films either being heavily censored, banned or, in one instance, nearly destroyed upon release. It also doesn’t help that the few films of his that have been released in the States are now out of print — though that seems to be changing soon.

If you know Żuławski’s name, it’s probably from his 1981 psychological horror film possession, a film whose cult status among horror connoisseurs has only been reinforced in the decades since its release by the fact that it’s difficult to obtain on physical media, let alone watch online. Luckily for everyone, that is no longer the case – possession is now Finally available to stream courtesy of Shudder.

Żuławski’s film stars are set in West Berlin during the Cold War Jurassic Park‘s Sam Neill as Mark, a Russian spy who returns home to find his wife Anna (Isabelle Adjani) has left him and is planning a divorce. When Anna refuses to reveal the reason, saying only that she didn’t leave him for someone else, Mark becomes suspicious and has her followed. What he eventually discovers is a terrifying secret he cannot understand, one that stirs up a long-slumbering source of fear, resentment, and despair between the two that threatens to tear apart not only their small family, but their sanity as well.

Inspired by Żuławski’s own turbulent divorce in 1976 and his subsequent struggles with suicidal thoughts, possession blurs the line between the autobiographical and the phantasmagorical, with hysterical performances from Neill and Adjani that vacillate between disturbing, comical and unsettlingly likeable. An inspiration for everything by Ari Aster midsummer to the 2016 music video for Massive Attacks “Voodoo in my blood

possession is available for streaming Shudder.

New on Netflix

the aviator

Image: Warner Bros. Video

Genre: biographical drama
Year: 2004
Duration: 2h 50m
Director: Mart in Scorsese
Pour:

Martin Scorsese’s 2004 biopic about the life of eccentric airline mogul Howard Hughes is one of the best movies to hit Netflix this month. So much so, in fact, that we made it our editors’ choice for the platform this week! Leonardo DiCaprio delivers a captivating performance as Hughes that combines the man’s legendary public reputation for bravery and outrageous business decisions with his personal struggles with undiagnosed OCD and hypochondria. It’s a stunning film, both in terms of the scale of its story and the exquisite craftsmanship evident in its majestic production. -THE

the aviator is available for streaming Netflix.

The raid 2

Image: Sony Pictures Home Entertainment

Genre: action thriller
Year: 2014
Duration: 2h30m
Director: Gareth Evans
Pour: Iko Uwais, Arifin Putra, and Oka Antara

The follow-up to the 2011 smash hit (and we mean smash). The attack, the 2014 sequel by Gareth Evans also packs a hefty punch (and some hammers). Set shortly after the events of the first film, Rama (Iko Uwais, reprising his lead role) is sent undercover to investigate corruption in the Jakarta police force. This includes being sent to prison, surviving a prison riot, and ingratiating himself with members of Jakarta’s underworld. Filled with high-octane action sequences, lots of gore and breathtaking performances of the Indonesian martial art Pencak Silat, fans of The attack should also check out the ante-upping sequel. —Pete Volk

The raid 2 is available for streaming Netflix.

New to HBO Max

strange days

Image: 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment

Genre: Science Fiction/Thriller
Year: 1995
Duration: 2h 25m
Director: Kathryn Bigelow
Pour: Ralph Fiennes, Angela Bassett, Juliette Lewis

Like the one mentioned above by Żuławski possession, Kathryn Bigelow’s 1995 cyberpunk film starring Ralph Fiennes and Angela Bassett, is another cult classic whose reputation is determined in no small part by its relative inaccessibility for online viewing. That, too, has changed, however, as HBO Max recently added the film to the service, and it’s in HD.

It is set in a futuristic Los Angeles just two days before the end of the 20th century. strange days follows Lenny Nero (Fiennes), a black market broker who deals in an illegal technology that allows the user to record their own memories and bodily sensations and relive them retrospectively. When Lenny stumbles upon a recording that threatens to implicate the LAPD in a high-profile murder, he is forced to turn to his old friend Lornette “Mace” Mason (Bassett) to uncover the origins behind the recording, and always one One step ahead of a mysterious killer who wants him dead.

Conceived by producer James Cameron and inspired by the 1992 LA riots that broke out after the infamous Rodney King trial, strange days is a pitch-black sci-fi thriller that touches on institutional racism, voyeurism, societal breakdown, and sexual violence, the latter focusing primarily on women and black people. It’s a tough watch – but a rewarding one nonetheless, rewarding its audience with a trio of great performances and a strikingly original vision of a bygone alternate future. -THE

strange days is available for streaming HBO Max.

New on Hulu

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women

Image: Sony Pictures Entertainment

Genre: biographical drama
Year: 2017
Duration: 1 hr 48 mins
Director: Angela Robinson
Pour: Luke Evans, Rebecca Hall, Bella Heathcote

You may know the story of the DC Comics superhero Wonder Woman, also known as Princess Diana of Themyscira. But do you know the real-life origins of the leotard, tiara, and golden lasso-wearing demigod? Angela Robinson’s 2017 biographical drama follows the story of William Moulton Marston (Luke Evans), the psychologist-turned-comics writer behind the creation of Wonder Woman, and his polyamorous relationship between his wife Elizabeth (Rebecca Hall) and his lover Olive (Bella Heathcote). ), served as inspiration for the character’s earliest adventures and depictions. Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is a fascinating film, not only because it tells an extraordinary real-life story, but also because of its sensitive and sympathetic portrayal of a committed polyamorous couple and the BDSM community in general. You’ll never look at the Wonder Woman character the same way again after seeing this, and I mean that specifically as a compliment. -THE

Professor Marston and the Wonder Women is available for streaming Hi.

New to Amazon Prime Video

The Indiana Jones series

Credit: Paramount Pictures/Lucasfilm

Genre: Action/Adventure
Year: 1981 (Hunter of the lost treasure); 1984 (Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom); 1989 (Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade); 2008 (Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
Duration: 1 hr 55 min (Hunter of the lost treasure); 1 hr 58 min (Temple of Death); 2h 7m (Last Crusade); 2h 2m (Kingdom of the Crystal Skull)
Director: Steven Spielberg
Pour: Harrison Ford, Karen Allen, Paul Freeman

Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destinythe fifth entry in the legendary action-adventure series and the first since 2008 Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull, is slated to hit theaters this June. What better time to reconnect with the unabashed, death-defying exploits of Dr. Familiarize yourself with Henry Walton “Indiana” Jones Jr.? The entire series was added to Prime Video this month, and you really can’t go wrong watching them all (yes, that includes Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull). the first movie Hunter of the lost treasure, is an undisputed classic and a must-have for anyone who loves globetrotting adventures and watching Nazis get smashed into airplane propellers. However, I feel a special obligation to recommend the 1989s Indiana Jones and the Last Crusadein which series star Harrison Ford and Sean Connery join forces as an estranged father-son duo in a race to find the Holy Grail and stop a ruthless businessman allied with the Nazis from becoming immortal. -THE

The Indiana Jones series is available for streaming Prime video.

The best of the rest

The day after Trinity

Credit: PBS/The Criterion Collection

Genre: documentary
Year: 1981
Duration: 1h 28m
Director: Jon Else

Christopher Nolan is returning this July Oppenheimer, a biographical drama based on the life of theoretical physicist J. Robert Oppenheimer, starring Cillian Murphy. If, like us, you’re waiting with bated breath for Nolan’s latest release, you might be curious enough to refresh the story of Oppenheimer’s pivotal role as the “father of the atomic bomb.” Lucky for you the 1981 documentary The day after Trinity was added to streaming. Else’s film traces Oppenheimer’s life from his schooldays to the making of what would become both his greatest contribution to human history and his deepest, life-defining regret. -THE

The day after Trinity is available for streaming criterion channel.