At Watch With Us, we talk a lot about what’s “popular” and what’s “trending.” But what about those quality films that fly under the radar?
As the weekend approaches, maybe you’re thinking of digging into a deep cut instead of whatever’s in the Netflix top 10. Well, if you need a little guidance on where to look, allow Watch With Us to be your guide.
We have three of the best, most underrated films currently streaming on the platform. From a psychological horror to a pulpy thriller and a hidden-camera comedy, there’s a little something for everyone here.
The Woman in the Window deeply polarized critics upon its release, but we’re here to offer a defense of the campy mystery-thriller. The film stars Amy Adams as agoraphobic child psychologist Anna Fox, who believes that she witnesses a murder across the street from her New York City home, à la Alfred Hitchcock’s Rear Window. As she pursues her suspicions of the violent crime, she puts herself further in imminent danger.
Forgo any expectations of what you think a “good movie” should be and just allow The Woman in the Window to float you along its goofy little river. It’s not reinventing the wheel by any means, but it’s a fun time seeped in melodrama and laughably overwrought aesthetics. Still, the cinematography is genuinely gorgeous and, as ever, Adams gives it her all. Trashy, stylish and all-around entertaining, we believe that the critics got it terribly wrong with this one.
Comedian Eric Andre rose to fame in part due to his many hidden camera pranks that he pulled on his popular absurdist talk show series The Eric Andre Show. By 2021, Andre had gained enough clout for an entire film based on hidden-camera pranks in the spirit of Jackass, but with an overarching narrative thread to boot.
The “story” follows two best friends named Chris and Bud, played by Andre and Lil Rel Howery. The pair go on a road trip together so that Chris can profess his love to his high school crush, while Bud’s criminal sister, Trina (Tiffany Haddish), chases after them to get back her car that they stole to drive to New York City. Inventive, shocking and always hilarious, Bad Trip takes hidden camera comedy to new heights and has supremely gratifying results.
This surreal psychological horror film is based on the book of the same name by Ian Reid, adapted for the screen by Charlie Kaufman, who once broke everyone’s hearts with Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. In I’m Thinking of Ending Things, Jesse Plemons and Jessie Buckley star as a boyfriend and girlfriend who go on a trip to visit the boyfriend’s parents. However, things are not all that they seem, and in very dark and disturbing ways, and the girlfriend begins to have misgivings about her relationship.
Beautifully acted, shot and written, I’m Thinking of Ending Things is not only a fitting adaptation of the source material but a fantastic film all on its own. Kaufman is a master of layered psychological drama, and the melding of family and relationship dynamics with horror that’s given a surrealist bent is totally seamless. The film offers you a lot to chew on, but in a way that’s fulfilling as opposed to confounding.
