It’s the first streaming column of the month, which means Netflix and Amazon Prime have released a ton of new releases. And, as usual, we’ve narrowed down the selection to just the Certified Fresh choices. See below for the full list, which includes a nice mix of classic Hollywood, recent hits, and beloved gems.
Netflix adapted Justin Simien’s provocative film into a TV series, focusing on various students of color at an Ivy League university as they navigate social issues and their collegiate lives.
Available now on: Netflix
Isabelle Huppert delivers another powerhouse performance in Mia Hansen-Løve’s drama about a woman whose life is thrown into upheaval after her marriage falls apart.
Available now on: Netflix
Mike Birbiglia’s comedy focuses on the members of a New York improv group whose friendships are tested as they come to grips with individual success… or the lack thereof.
Available now on: Netflix
Sacha Gervasi’s unique documentary charts the paths of Canadian metal band Anvil’s two founding members, who rose to prominence during the 1980s and then quickly faded into obscurity.
Available now on: Netflix
Mathieu Amalric and Emmanuelle Seigner star in Julian Schnabel’s true story of magazine editor Jean-Dominique Bauby, who was suddenly paralyzed by a stroke at age 43 but went on to write an astonishing memoir of his experience.
Available now on: Netflix
Parker Sawyers and Tika Sumpter star as the young Barack Obama and Michelle Robinson in a romantic drama that follows the couple around Chicago on their first date.
Available now on: Netflix
Horror icon Wes Craven’s subversive deconstruction of the genre is a sly, funny and surprisingly effective satire of slasher flicks that just happens to work pretty well as a slasher flick itself.
Available now on: Netflix
Clive Owen and Catherine Keener star in David Schwimmer’s drama about a family torn apart when their teenage daughter falls victim to an internet predator.
Available now on: Netflix
Renée Zellweger reprises her role as the titular singleton, who must figure out who the father of her child is after a pair of trysts results in a pregnancy.
Available now on: Netflix
Geoffrey Rush and Paul Schneider star in this drama about the ripple effect that occurs within the community when a wealthy mill owner in rural Australia announces he’s shutting his business down.
Available now on: Netflix
Elijah Wood and Robin Williams lend their voices to this animated feature about an emperor penguin who overcomes his inability to sing by becoming a fantastic dancer instead.
Available now on: Netflix
Judy Garland stars as Dorothy in this classic adaptation of the L. Frank Baum novel about a young girl who is transported to a magical land where some strange new friends help her to find her way home.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Clark Gable and Vivien Leigh star in Victor Fleming’s multiple Oscar-winning Civil War-set romance about a selfish Southern socialite who catches the eye of a roguish opportunist from a wealthy family.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Jennifer Lawrence stars in Debra Granik’s drama about a teen living in the Ozarks who sets out to track her meth cook father after he skips out on the family.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Kevin Costner and Gene Hackman star in this thriller about a naval officer who is tasked with investigating the murder of the Secretary of Defense’s wife, with whom he had a brief affair.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Peter Billingsley stars in this holiday classic about a boy who holds out for the ultimate present — a Red Ryder BB gun — one Christmas in 1940.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Meryl Streep and Hugh Grant star in this lighthearted true story about the woman who famously became an opera singer despite her less than angelic voice.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Roberto Benigni and Nicoletta Braschi star in Benigni’s dramatic comedy about a Jewish father who concocts elaborate stories to prevent his young son from learning the truth when his family is imprisoned in a Nazi concentration camp during World War II.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Sasha Lane delivers a breakout performance in Andrea Arnold’s drama about a girl who sets out across the midwest with a traveling sales crew.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
This Oscar-nominated documentary takes a look at influential African-American writer James Baldwin’s life and sociopolitical legacy, focusing on an unfinished, unpublished manuscript Baldwin left behind when he died in 1987.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Asghar Farhadi’s Oscar-winning drama centers on a young Iranian couple whose relationship is tested when they are forced to move out from their apartment to the center of Tehran.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
Studio Ghibli co-produced this dialogue-free animated film about a shipwrecked man who wakes up on a deserted island and befriends a giant red turtle.
Available now on: FandangoNOW
