Netflix‘s March schedule is full of potential hits: Damsel, a revisionist fantasy with Stranger Things star Millie Bobby Brown; The Gentlemen, a series sequel to the Guy Ritchie movie of the same name; and 3 Body Problem, the new show from the creators of Game of Thrones.
Unfortunately, none of those movies or shows are streaming this weekend. And while you can watch Avatar: The Last Airbender again, there are better things to stream on Netflix. Have no fear, as Digital Trends has compiled a list of three underrated movies that are worth checking out.
Need more recommendations? Read our guides to the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, and the best movies on HBO.
Voyagers (2021)
New to Netflix in March is Voyagers, a sci-fi movie from 2021 that got lost because of a little thing called the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s a shame, as the movie, while not perfect, is a nifty sci-fi thriller that has a great premise, appealing leads (Tye Sheridan, Lily Rose-Depp, and Fionn Whitehead) and a solid Colin Farrell (The Banshees of Inisherin) performance.
The premise is simple: Earth has become uninhabitable in the near future, so a team of astrophysicists sends a ship full of children plus one adult protector on an 86-year-long space flight to a recently discovered hospitable planet. During the journey, however, the passengers, now fully grown teens, discover their sole adult supervisor has been killed. Who did it? Was it an alien? Or something more sinister? Voyagers is decently suspenseful, and while you can see the ending coming a mile away, it’s still a fun journey to take.
It’s Complicated (2009)
Now here’s a movie that’s ostensibly set in reality, but is almost as fictional as those massive sandworms in Dune: Part Two. It’s Complicated tells the story of fiftysomething Grace Adler (Meryl Streep), a successful Santa Barbra baker who is suffering from empty nest syndrome. It’s understandable, then, that on the eve of her son’s graduation, she falls back into the arms of her rich ex-husband, Jake (Alec Baldwin). Sounds simple, right? Well, Jake is married to a younger woman (the woman he left Grace for!), has a child (but it’s not his, it’s his second wife’s, who cheated on him) and Grace is also attracted to her architect, Adam (Steve Martin).
It’s Complicated is a bit, well, complicated, but part of the pleasure is to get lost in its superficial details. Never has a kitchen sink or a croque-monsieur been so lovingly photographed on film. Streep is a hoot as Grace, and it’s fun to watch her get her flirt on with Martin and Baldwin.
Rush (2013)
Racing movies have had a bit of a renaissance in the last five years, with the excellent Ford v Ferrari starring Christian Bale, the just-ok Ferrari with Adam Driver, and the mediocre Gran Turismo movie from last year. Over a decade ago, there was another racing movie that, despite its prolific director (Ron Howard) and starry cast (led by Thor himself, Chris Hemsworth), didn’t get its due: Rush.
Rush chronicles the real-life rivalry between professional race car drivers James Hunt and Niki Lauda in the 1970s. In the heat of competition, with one man constantly trying to best the other, the film showcases their recklessness in their pursuit of glory and the respect each man ultimately wins from the other. It’s not hip to say that Ron Howard is a great director, and while he’s had his fair share of stinkers, this isn’t one of them. In fact, it’s one of his best pictures, and it deserves a watch or two.
Rush is streaming on Netflix.
