Happy New Year!
While today could be a chance to celebrate, many of us would rather recover on our couches after a night of festivities. Hopefully, you have some time off to fire up a streaming service and watch a few movies. What streaming service should you use? Could we interest you in Paramount+
Paramount+ is the home of several notable franchises, including Mission: Impossible, Transformers, Star Trek, A Quiet Place, and Top Gun. That’s only the beginning, as more content finds a home on this streamer.
If you need something to watch, try one of these movies, including a delightful rom-com, a coming-of-age movie with a Hollywood icon, and a legacy sequel.
Blade Runner 2049 – 2017
Upon its release, Blade Runner 2049divided critics and fans. While many appreciated Denis Villeneuve’s vision and technical prowess, the Blade Runner sequel was not a financial hit, with many, including Ridley Scott, believing the film was too long. Time heals all bad takes, and while the length remains the same, Blade Runner 2049 is now considered a critical film in Villeneuve’s filmography and a stepping stone toward Dune.
Thirty years after Blade Runner, Officer K (The Fall Guy’s Ryan Gosling) works as a blade runner for the Los Angeles Police Department. After completing a mission, K makes a shocking discovery that could lead to a war between humans and replicants.
With this knowledge, K’s life is in danger, so he seeks help from Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), who might have the answers to prevent this war from happening.
Stream Blade Runner 2049 on Paramount+.
Risky Business – 1983
Tom Cruise is now known for flying jets in Top Gun: Maverick or riding motorcycles off cliffs in the Mission: Impossible franchise. Back in the 1980s, the little-known Cruise was still searching for his breakout role. After a few supporting performances, Cruise finally received his moment in the spotlight in 1983’s Risky Business.
High school senior Joel Goodsen (Cruise) has lived a straight and narrow life in hopes of attending Princeton. When his parents leave town for a few days, Joel hires a call girl named Lana (Rebecca De Mornay), and the two spend the entire night together.This decision sets off a chain of unfortunate events in Joel’s life, jeopardizing his shot at Princeton.
And yes, Risky Business inspired thousands of Halloween costumes thanks to his Old Time Rock and Roll dance.
Stream Risky Business on Paramount+.
Love, Rosie (2014)
Rom-coms are meant to be cheesy. Love, Rosie has its silly moments, but a heartfelt message about love and friendship propels this movie into a tender love story. Rosie Dunn (Lily Collins) and Alex Stewart (Sam Claflin) have been best friends since childhood.
Their relationship is strictly platonic, although Rosie and Alex once shared a drunken kiss on the former’s 18th birthday.Just when you think the two friends might become lovers, new challenges arise in their lives. For Rosie, it involves a high school crush who may not have her best interest at heart. For Alex, he grapples with leaving Europe to study in America.
There’s never the right moment to act on their feelings. However, love is never perfect, an important lesson these friends eventually learn.
Stream Love, Rosie on Paramount+.
Smile 2 – 2024
Released in 2002, Smile was a surprise box office hit, a horror movie about trauma that resonated with a mass audience. Naturally, a sequel was greenlighted, and in 2024, the original movie’s director, Parker Finn, crafted Smile 2, a leaner, meaner follow-up that tops the original in almost every way.
Pop star Skye Riley (Naomi Scott) seemingly has it all: a successful career, lots of money, and global fame. But she’s haunted by the death of her former boyfriend, and it’s that lingering trauma that makes her the victim to Smile‘s malevolent entity, which preys on the pain and fear of its victims. As Skye watches helplessly as her friends and family fall prey to the parasite, she must find a way to overcome her own personal demons to beat it once and for all.
Smile 2 on Paramount+.
The Last Voyage of the Demeter – 2023
Horror films are in vogue right now, but some still slip through the cracks. That’s what happened with The Last Voyage of the Demeter, a movie with a troubled production history that was ignored by many when it was released in August 2023. That’s a shame, as the film boasts incredible cinematography, score, and visual effects work that successfully brings its horror narrative to bloody life.
The movie adapts one chapter in Bram Stoker’s classic vampire novel Dracula called The Captain’s Log. Aboard the massive merchant ship the Demeter, a motley crew of workers discovers that among the cargo lies a vampire that is systematically killing them.
Stranded in an unforgiving sea with land miles away, the remaining crew must band together to try to find some way to stop the evil creature from consuming them all.
Watch on Paramount+
