January is a strange moment of duality for audiences. While there is a keen to desire to jump into our cosiest clothes and await warmer weather and brighter days, thus propelling our watching habits towards the comfortability of our predetermined favourite films, it is also a time of new beginning, meaning we are more likely than ever to try something new. Our most popular films on the Netflix chart suggest that the streaming platform’s audience is indulging in both.
Let’s start with the new entries on this week’s chart. First up in number ten on our list is Disconnect: The Wedding planner which grabbed under 4 million hours of viewing this week. Starring Wuraola Adeleke, the movie sees a man scammed for his wedding budget only to have t plan an overseas extravaganza against the clock. And, if that sounds like a shoddy premise for a classic movie, then you’re dead right.
In fact, not much of the entire chart is worth watching. Another new entry to our list, A Quiet Place II, with Emily Blunt as the lead, is certainly worth a go, but even that pales in comparison to the original. The final new entry is Puss in Boots, which despite having the fuzzy nostalgia of the Shrek-affiliated cat, still feels a bit hollow.
Thankfully, there are a few good films on this week’s chart; they just so happen to have been on them for weeks. The Pale Blue Eye, starring Christian Bale, is certainly a great movie. Grabbing 13 million hours of viewing, the Edgar Allan Poe-adjacent story is some of the streaming platform’s best work this month. Otherwise, we will look to 2022 for the remainder of the high-quality movies.
The second instalment of Rian Johnson’s Glass Onion is still in our most popular chart, with Daniel Craig’s role as Benoit Blanc still delighting new audiences, grabbing 12 million hours of viewing. The musical version of Matilda is another great watch, providing a soulful bowl of chicken-soup-flavoured merriment. Sing provides a similar warmth but via the medium of animated animals, which may well amplify such a flavour.
Top of the charts, however, is one of the more embarrassing moments of the streaming platform’s output. Dog Gone is the kind of movie that is usually reserved for the most obscure cable channels. Starring Rob Lowe, the movie’s synopsis reads: “When his beloved dog goes missing, a young man embarks on an incredible search with his parents to find him and give him life-saving medication.”
It’s as saccharine as you might expect and while it naturally induces tears — anything with a missing pet tends to evoke similar emotions — outside of the jerked tears and story of reconciliation, there isn’t much to sink your teeth into.
Find the full list of the most popular movies this week below.
The 10 most popular films on Netflix this week:
- Dog Gone
- The Pale Blue Eye
- Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery
- The Hatchet Wielding Hitchhiker
- Sing
- Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical
- Puss in Boots
- A Quiet Place Part II
- Trolls
- Disconnect: The Wedding Planner