Streaming

5 must-watch movies & TV shows streaming right now

The best of what's new streaming on Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max, Disney Plus, and more.

Adria Arjona as Madison Masters and Glen Powell as Gary Johnson in "Hit Man." Netflix

June 7, 2024

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.

Many recommendations are for new shows, while others are for under-the-radar releases you might have missed or classics that are about to depart a streaming service at the end of the month.

Have a new favorite movie or show you think we should know about? Let us know in the comments, or email [email protected]. Looking for even more great streaming options? Check out previous editions of our must-watch list here.

Movies

“Godzilla Minus One”

Because American studios have been pumping out Godzilla movies and shows at a steady clip for more than 25 years, I thought I had a handle on the difference between a good Godzilla (the 2014 one) and a bad Godzilla (the 1998 one). As it turns out, the latest Japanese-made kaiju film, “Godzilla Minus One,” blows every single American edition out of the water on a fraction of the budget.

Set in 1950s Tokyo, “Minus One” follows the journey of former kamikaze pilot Koichi (Ryunosuke Kamiki), who, by failing to die at the hands of Godzilla during World War II, lives in shame and is seen as a coward. He’s part of a nontraditional nuclear family, raising an orphaned child (Minami Hamabe) with another woman who lost everyone during the war (and subsequent Godzilla rampage). When the Japanese government seeks volunteers to help stop Godzilla, Koichi sees a chance for redemption, even as he grapples (understandably) with a fight-or-flight response.

“Godzilla Minus One” is so much more than a standard monster movie, telling a hero’s tale and interrogating how Japanese social attitudes pre- and post- atom bomb shifted. Not to worry, though: Godzilla is still huge, looks incredible, and smashes and roars with the best of them.

How to watch: “Godzilla Minus One” is streaming on Netflix.

“Hit Man”

Richard Linklater’s newest movie has many of the director’s hallmarks: Darkly comic situations, erudite philosophical ramblings, and a humanistic streak that runs reel to reel. All that’s missing is a Linklater surrogate who used to play baseball. Starring the breakout actor from Linklater’s 2016 film “Everybody Wants Some!!,” “Hit Man” is loosely based on a true story about a nebbish college professor (Powell) who moonlights as a faux hit man for the New Orleans Police Department.

Gary, so afraid of breaking his low-stakes routine, takes the undercover duties as a chance to be someone else. When he meets an alluring woman (Adria Arjona, “Andor”) while in his hit man persona (this time a tough guy named Rod), the id and the superego (also the names of Gary’s cats) collide. Powell, who co-wrote the screenplay with Linklater, carefully modulates his performance as the line between Gary and Rod blurs — though not necessarily in a bad way. “Hit Man” is sexy, thought-provoking, and funny. And for a film about a fake hit man in over his head, it’s surprisingly grounded in reality when it comes to contemplating the nature of love, hate, and self.

How to watch: “Hit Man” is streaming on Netflix.

“Perfect Days”

Though it never stood a chance at unseating “The Zone of Interest” for Best Foreign Film at the Oscars, Wim Wenders’ “Perfect Days” was one of the best movies of 2023. It is a calming, meditative feature about finding the beauty of every moment in every day. Hirayama (Koji Yakusho) takes joy in his routine (filled with cassette tapes, nature photography, and paperback novels) and pride in his work as a janitor in Tokyo.

The first hour of the film immerses viewers in his daily life, showing how even the subtlest difference in a quotidian existence can be seen as life’s little treasures. Its closest analog is Jim Jarmusch’s “Paterson,” in which a bus driver (Adam Driver) writes poetry about the daily thrum of the city and its people. The second half of the film throws that routine into flux, though Hirayama never loses sight of the fact that, as he is fond of saying, “Next time is next time, and now is now.”

How to watch: “Perfect Days” is streaming on Hulu.

TV

“The Acolyte”

Judging by the 26 percent audience score on Rotten Tomatoes, there is some sort of angry fan controversy surrounding the newest Star Wars series, “The Acolyte.” I won’t bother to look it up (because those fan grievances are without fail extremely stupid), and will instead heartily endorse “The Acolyte,” a show that is refreshingly disconnected from the Star Wars canon.

Set a century before the events of “The Phantom Menace,” the show is set in a world where Jedi are all-powerful and truly do preserve order across the galaxy. Until, that is, an assassin begins knocking off Jedi masters left and right. The Jedi council, fearful of bad optics, blames Osha (Amandla Stenberg), a dropout of Jedi training who is also partially schooled in witchy ways. With the help of her former Jedi master Sol (Lee Jung-jae, “Squid Game”), Osha must clear her name and find out the who, why, and how behind the murders. “The Acolyte” moves at a brisk pace, features some of the best action sequences in recent Star Wars history, and tells a story that, while not reaching the heights of “Andor,” nevertheless breaks the standard Lucasfilm mold.

How to watch: “The Acolyte” is streaming on Disney+, with new episodes added weekly.

“Ren Faire”

HBO, the network that brought us “Game of Thrones” and “Succession,” is the perfect home for “Ren Faire,” a three-part docuseries about the king of a Texas renaissance fair trying to determine who should take over the company upon his death. The “king” of this ren faire is George Coulam, an octagenarian whose primary objectives are to find someone to take over his operations and to find a well-endowed woman to spend his remaining days with. George’s entire situation — lord of a low-rent tourist attraction — and demeanor — limitless ego and libido — bring to mind Joe Exotic, the vain, over-the-top star of the Netflix doc “Tiger King.”

Watching George’s handpicked succession candidates grovel and scheme to stay in his good graces feels like a work of fiction. But the truth is that when someone devotes their life to a calling, whether it’s a media conglomerate like Waystar Royco or a big amusement park out in the middle of nowhere, the stakes are real.

How to watch: “Ren Faire” is streaming on Max.