In the mood for blood and guts? America sure was last weekend, as Terrifier 3 topped the box office charts by making $18.9 million over three days. That’s impressive, especially for a micro-budgeted movie with no stars save for Art the Clown.
For those who want their movies free of bloodshed, streaming services like Max have plenty of options available. I’ve picked three underrated movies, each from a different decade, that are sure to entertain you. And I promise, no one gets eviscerated onscreen.
We also have guides to the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
Hereafter (2010)
Hereafter qualifies as one of the oddest movies made in the last 15 years — not just because of its content, which is a bit out there, but the creatives involved in the movie. Would it surprise you to discover that the person who directed a philosophical movie about a middle-aged French woman’s crisis of faith is Clint Eastwood? Throw in a psychic Matt Damon, an effective action sequence involving a giant tsunami, and beloved character actor Richard Kind, and you’ve got an oddly watchable yet deeply weird film.
Hereafter‘s plot contains three narratives that will all eventually overlap with one another. Marie (Cécile de France) is a Parisian journalist who, after barely surviving the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, goes soul-searching in her conviction that the afterlife exists. Meanwhile, Damon’s psychic George wants to quit the spiritual reading business because of exhaustion. He travels to London, where he meets Marcus (Frankie and George McLaren), who misses his recently deceased twin Jason. Marie, George, and Marcus are all tied by their fascination with the hereafter, and may find some peace in knowing they aren’t alone.
Hereafter is streaming on Max.
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells (2000)
Listen, sometimes, we all need to watch a movie that gives us more comfort than intellectual stimulation. And while you could watch a dumb Adam Sandler movie from the ’90s, why not watch a comedy that spotlights terrific performers of a certain age that has a sweet, soft center? The Last of the Blonde Bombshells is a largely forgotten cable TV movie from 2000, and it stars Judi Dench at the height of her Miramax fame, with Ian Holm, Leslie Caron, and Oscar-winner Olympia Dukakis providing backup.
After the death of her husband, retired Elizabeth (Dench) returns to her youthful passion: music. When she busks on the streets of London, she’s is seen by Patrick (Holm), who, to avoid fighting in WWII, dressed as a woman and joined a musical band, The Blonde Bombshells, that Elizabeth led. They begin to search for past members of their band to reunite for one last concert. Can they get the band together for one last, show-stopping number?
The Last of the Blonde Bombshells is streaming on Max.
Ordinary People (1980)
How can a movie that won multiple Oscars, including one for Best Picture, possibly be underrated? There can be many reasons, but in the case of Ordinary People, it’s Raging Bull. The acclaimed Martin Scorsese movie was also released in 1980, and is now considered one of the greatest films ever made. It didn’t win Best Picture or Best Director, but Ordinary People did, and the film has lived in the shadow of the boxing drama ever since.
That’s a pity as Robert Redford’s movie about an affluent Chicago family coping with a personal tragedy has stood the test of time and is just as good, if not as innovative, as Bull. Teenager Conrad (Timothy Hutton) has just returned home from a stint at a mental hospital following the accidental death of his older brother Buck. He doesn’t know how to deal with school, with swimming practice, and especially his parents, Calvin and Beth (a terrific Donald Sutherland and Mary Tyler Moore).
When Calvin begins to see a sympathetic shrink (Taxi star Judd Hirsch), he begins to face all the painful memories he’s suppressed to keep going. But will his epiphanies during therapy shatter the fragile bonds that hold his fractured family together? Ordinary People is a quiet, sensitive movie that’s not showy or particularly dynamic. But it’s honest, and the filmmaking and performances, especially Hutton’s as Conrad, are just about impeccable.
Ordinary People is streaming on Max.
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