The Netflix library is ever-growing, but it isn’t often that most titles are available worldwide. So, this week, we are here to highlight five critically acclaimed titles that have recently arrived on Netflix UK.
These recent additions offer a tantalising array of cinematic experiences. While each film traverses disparate genres, from romantic drama to slasher horror, they collectively showcase the depth and diversity of storytelling available to audiences today.
The highlight of this curated list is Past Lives, the poignant romantic drama nominated for two Academy Awards, including ‘Best Picture’. Past Lives invites viewers into the intertwined lives of childhood friends Nora and Hae Sung. Set against the backdrop of South Korea and New York City, the film delicately explores the evolution of their relationship over 24 years.
Directed by Celine Song in her remarkable feature directorial debut, Past Lives is a love letter to the enduring power of connection amid life’s many tumultuous changes. Greta Lee and Teo Yoo deliver the most heartfelt performances in Past Lives as Nora and Hae Sung grapple with adulthood and the haunting spectre of things that could have been if not for lost time.
Contrasting the tender introspection of Past Lives is X, which plunges viewers into a chilling world of horror and suspense. Directed, written, and produced by Ti West, this atmospheric slasher film transports audiences to 1979 rural Texas, where a film crew descends upon an elderly couple’s property to shoot a pornographic movie. However, their plans take a dark turn as they encounter the homicidal couple lurking in the shadows. Mia Goth’s dual performance as both a young woman named Maxine and an elderly woman named Pearl adds an eerie dimension to the story, while Jenna Ortega and Martin Henderson deliver captivating turns as members of the beleaguered film crew.
Beyond the slasher goodness of X, there is also the classic horror of It. The Andy Muschietti film delivers spine-tingling terror with its adaptation of Stephen King’s classic novel, as a group of children confronts their deepest fears in the form of the evil killer clown. The film stars Bill Skarsgård as the terrifying It, along with Jeremy Ray Taylor, Sophia Lillis, and Finn Wolfhard.
Netflix UK also currently has The Outfit streaming. Graham Moore presents a stylish crime thriller set in the world of organised crime in 1950s England. Featuring a stellar performance by Mark Rylance as a Saville Row tailor drawn into a deadly game of cat and mouse. And then, there is Brad Pitt’s star turn in Moneyball. Pitt anchors this compelling sports drama, which explores the innovative strategies employed by the Oakland Athletics baseball team. The Bennet Miller film adapted from Michael Lewis’ Moneyball: The Art of Winning an Unfair Game was nominated for six Oscars, including ‘Best Picture’, but lost it to Thomas Langmann’s The Artist.
Five recently added films to binge on Netflix UK:
- Past Lives (2023)
- The Outfit (2022)
- Moneyball (2011)
- It (2017)
- X (2022)
