(Photo by Amazon)
What to Watch: June 2024’s Certified Fresh Movies and Shows
If you want just the cream of the June crop, here’s every movie and show that went Certified Fresh during the month!
In movies, four wide releases: crime drama The Bikeriders, Pixar comeback Inside Out 2, and A Quiet Place prequel Day One. On limited release, we had fun caper Thelma, A24’s Tuesday, and horror films Handling the Undead, Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person, and The Devil’s Bath.
On streaming, ’80s doc Brats hit Hulu, Disney+ got into The Beach Boys and Jim Henson (Idea Man), and Netflix geared up Ultraman: Rising and The Imaginary.
With TV, we got a new Walking Dead continuation, The Ones Who Live, and Star Wars saw The Acolyte, while The Bear, The Boys, and House of the Dragon continue to build on beloved previous seasons.
#1
Adjusted Score: 94473%
Critics Consensus: Led by young Sofía Otero's outstanding performance, 20,000 Species of Bees explores an array of weighty themes with gentle humanity.
Synopsis: In a small, sleepy village in the Basque Country, a sculptor named Ane and her three children arrive at her...
[More]
#2
Adjusted Score: 83969%
Critics Consensus: Anchored in an authentically relatable approach to its story of self-discovery, Am I OK? is further elevated by strong work from Dakota Johnson and Sonoya Mizuno.
Synopsis: Lucy and Jane have been best friends for most of their lives and think they know everything there is to...
[More]
#3
Adjusted Score: 86843%
Critics Consensus: An outstanding showcase for Devery Jacobs, Backspot is front of the line as an insightful and thrilling sports drama.
Synopsis: An ambitious cheerleader (Devery Jacobs) faces both new adversity and the increased drive for perfection and triumph when she and...
[More]
#4
Adjusted Score: 90952%
Critics Consensus: An overview of The Beach Boys' history that wraps all the essentials up in a warm blanket, The Beach Boys is a straightforward jam of greatest hits that congeals into a compelling harmony.
Synopsis: "The Beach Boys," which streams on Disney+ beginning May 24, 2024, is a celebration of the legendary band that revolutionized...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 101867%
Critics Consensus: Having set an exceedingly high standard of excellence for itself, The Bear spends its third season simmering, stewing, and giving off an aroma that whets the appetite.
#6
Adjusted Score: 93366%
Critics Consensus: Fueled by a charismatic cast and the gritty authenticity of writer-director Jeff Nichols' approach, The Bikeriders offers a conventional yet impactful look at motorcycle culture.
Synopsis: THE BIKERIDERS captures a rebellious time in America when the culture and people were changing. After a chance encounter at...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 101482%
Critics Consensus: Boxing in the political arena with a bloodied smile, The Boys' fourth season is grim and even a little glum while holding up a cracked mirror towards modern society.
#8
Adjusted Score: 86611%
Critics Consensus: An insightful overview of a bygone Hollywood era as well as a deeply personal journey for director Andrew McCarthy, Brats is a bittersweet reflection on childhood stardom.
Synopsis: Centering on 1980s films starring the "Brat Pack" and their profound impact on the young stars' lives....
[More]
Adjusted Score: 87426%
Critics Consensus: Sordid and soapy as befitting the story of Donald Sterling's fall from grace, Clipped's terrific ensemble brings this memorable cast of real-life characters to vivid life.
#10
Adjusted Score: 99650%
Critics Consensus: Copa 71 uses the real-life saga of a group of pioneering athletes to shine a light on a chapter from sports history that's as infuriating as it is inspiring.
Synopsis: The extraordinary story of the 1971 Women's World Cup, which was held in Mexico City and witnessed by more than...
[More]
#11
Adjusted Score: 81201%
Critics Consensus: A ruminative chamber piece on wheels, Daddio feels expansive thanks to Dakota Johnson and Sean Penn's compelling rapport.
Synopsis: New York City. JFK airport. A young woman jumps into the backseat of a yellow taxi, the cabbie throws the...
[More]
#12
Adjusted Score: 92800%
Critics Consensus: A squirm-inducing period piece that locates true horror in both mind and spirit, The Devil's Bath might be Severin Fiala and Veronika Franz's most chilling directorial effort yet.
Synopsis: In 1750 Austria, a deeply religious woman named Agnes has just married her beloved, but her mind and heart soon...
[More]
#13
Adjusted Score: 100988%
Critics Consensus: An urgent drama grounded in its observant depiction of reservation life, Fancy Dance establishes director/co-writer Erica Tremblay as a rising filmmaking talent.
Synopsis: Since her sister's disappearance, Jax (Lily Gladstone) has cared for her niece Roki (Isabel Deroy-Olson) by scraping by on the...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 98058%
Critics Consensus: A colorful succession of sketches made cohesive by Julio Torres' one-of-a-kind sensibility, Fantasmas is another vivid variation on the wunderkind's imaginative themes.
#15
Adjusted Score: 96014%
Critics Consensus: Gasoline Rainbow takes an honest look at adolescence and -- befitting its title -- finds arresting beauty in incongruous and unexpected places.
Synopsis: Celebrated directorial duo the Ross Brothers (Bloody Nose, Empty Pockets and Contemporary Color) turn their pioneering hybrid approach to the...
[More]
#16
Adjusted Score: 104600%
Critics Consensus: A small film that elicits a huge emotional response, Ghostlight is a deeply moving and superbly acted meditation on grief.
Synopsis: When melancholic construction worker Dan (Keith Kupferer) finds himself drifting from his wife and daughter, he discovers community and purpose...
[More]
#17
Adjusted Score: 94915%
Critics Consensus: With unyielding clarity, Green Border renders a compassionate portrait of the unmerciful landscape that flanks the Polish-Belarusian border.
Synopsis: In the treacherous and swampy forests that make up the so-called "green border" between Belarus and Poland, refugees from the...
[More]
#18
Adjusted Score: 78592%
Critics Consensus: A grounded zombie picture with emotional bite, Handling the Undead shuffles along at a patient pace but succeeds as a poignant and thoughtful addition to the genre.
Synopsis: On a hot summer day in Oslo, the dead mysteriously awaken, and three families are thrown into chaos when their...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 97360%
Critics Consensus: Approaching its dynastic cataclysm with a deliberate stride rather than a charging gallop, House of the Dragon carefully sets up its emotional stakes to make the fiery spectacle all the more scorching.
#20
Adjusted Score: 90975%
Critics Consensus: While not as innovative as its title, Humanist Vampire Seeking Consenting Suicidal Person offers a dark-ish comedic take on a teen love story between misfits that renders a strangely sweet bite.
Synopsis: Sasha is a young vampire with a serious problem: she's too sensitive to kill! When her exasperated parents cut off...
[More]
#21
Adjusted Score: 84024%
Critics Consensus: Bringing a droll edge to deeply serious subject matter, Ally Pankiw's feature length debut provides Rachel Sennott a welcome opportunity to display her dramatic range.
Synopsis: I Used To Be Funny is a dark dramedy that follows Sam Cowell (Rachel Sennott), an aspiring stand-up comedian and...
[More]
#22
Adjusted Score: 93447%
Critics Consensus: A visually splendid and emotionally resonant anime film that appeals to the child in everyone, The Imaginary is a flight of fancy that audiences won't mind getting swept up in.
Synopsis: Rudger is a boy no one can see, imagined by Amanda to share her thrilling make-believe adventures. But when Rudger,...
[More]
#23
Adjusted Score: 109355%
Critics Consensus: Spicing things up with the wrinkle of teenage angst, Inside Out 2 clears the head and warms the heart by living up to its predecessor's emotional intelligence.
Synopsis: The little voices inside Riley's head know her inside and out--but next summer, everything changes when Disney and Pixar's Inside...
[More]
#24
Adjusted Score: 87806%
Critics Consensus: Unfolding at a gentle pace with an even more subdued sense of drama, Janet Planet revolves around Julianne Nicholson and Zoe Ziegler's outstanding performances.
Synopsis: In rural Western Massachusetts, 11-year-old Lacy spends the summer of 1991 at home, enthralled by her own imagination and the...
[More]
#25
Adjusted Score: 103025%
Critics Consensus: A rich and warm overview of Jim Henson's life and career that avoids simplistic hagiography, Ron Howard's documentary will give audiences a much clearer idea of the pioneering puppeteer's artistry.
Synopsis: "Jim Henson Idea Man" takes us into the mind of this singular creative visionary, from his early years puppeteering on...
[More]
#26
Adjusted Score: 85959%
Critics Consensus: A study of unbridled lust, Last Summer may not tell a new taboo story but is never less compelling for it.
Synopsis: With her first film in a decade, the fearless 75-year-old French auteur Catherine Breillat (Fat Girl, The Last Mistress) proves...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 94165%
Critics Consensus: A romp-antasy for revisionary souls, My Lady Jane has her cake and slays it too.
Adjusted Score: 79311%
Critics Consensus: The Power is too ill-defined to do justice to its mighty potential, but the core idea is intriguing enough to give it a charge.
Adjusted Score: 83360%
Critics Consensus: Enlivened by an outstanding ensemble, Presumed Innocent isn't guilty of upstaging the original movie but acquits itself well as an entertaining courtroom drama.
Adjusted Score: 88561%
Critics Consensus: Compelling and flawed as its titular character, Queenie does justice to its acclaimed source material by fully embracing the messiness of coming into one's own.
#31
Adjusted Score: 100641%
Critics Consensus: Grounded in raw humanity by Lupita Nyong'o and Joseph Quinn, this sideways entry into A Quiet Place finds fresh notes of fright to play amongst the silence.
Synopsis: Experience the day the world went quiet....
[More]
Adjusted Score: 95300%
Critics Consensus: Taking fresh risks with Star Wars lore while having infectious fun playing with the stylistic trappings of a galaxy far, far away, The Acolyte is a Padawan series with the potential to become a Master.
#33
Adjusted Score: 108557%
Critics Consensus: A stellar showcase for the talented June Squibb, Thelma avoids cheap laughs as it finds the lighter side of some serious issues.
Synopsis: Inspired by a real-life experience of director Josh Margolin's own grandmother, THELMA puts a clever spin on movies like MISSION:...
[More]
#34
Adjusted Score: 98374%
Critics Consensus: A clever and stylish riff on the body horror that is puberty, Tiger Stripes is an exuberant allegory for personal agency as well as an impressive debut for writer-director Amanda Nell Eu.
Synopsis: The first amongst her friends to hit puberty, Zaffan, 12, discovers a terrifying secret about her body. Ostracized by her...
[More]
#35
Adjusted Score: 85428%
Critics Consensus: A meditation on mortality full of risky stylistic gambits, Tuesday achieves real grace thanks to Julia Louis-Dreyfus' committed performance and director Daina Oniunas-Pusic's impressive ambition.
Synopsis: A mother (Julia Louis-Dreyfus, in a profoundly moving performance) and her teenage daughter (Lola Petticrew) must confront Death when it...
[More]
#36
Adjusted Score: 85623%
Critics Consensus: Ultraman: Rising adds an interesting wrinkle of childrearing to the franchise's high-octane formula, making for a colorful romp fit for the whole family.
Synopsis: With Tokyo under siege from rising monster attacks, baseball star Ken Sato reluctantly returns home to take on the mantle...
[More]
Adjusted Score: 89545%
Critics Consensus: A Walking Dead spinoff that balances past and present without skimping on blockbuster scope, The Ones Who Live is a consistent treat for longtime fans.
Adjusted Score: 78208%
Critics Consensus: The Woman in the Window's morbid mystery touches on real historical territory that it's not always equipped to handle, but Ruth Wilson's terrific performance provides ample enough reason to keep watching.
