Great films streaming this week:
Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World (2003)
Streaming on: Disney+
Director: Peter Weir
Cast: Russell Crowe, Paul Bettany
Genre: Action/Adventure
Runtime: 138 min
Synopsis: During the Napoleonic Wars, Captain Jack Aubrey commands the HMS Surprise in pursuit of a powerful French warship, testing his leadership, crew, and friendship with ship’s surgeon Stephen Maturin.
Why watch it?
Master and Commander is a visually breathtaking seafaring epic with Oscar-winning craftsmanship and finely drawn camaraderie. It’s also a fine example of non-toxic masculinity and male friendship.
Twister (1996)
Streaming on: Binge, Prime Video, Foxtel Now
Director: Jan de Bont
Cast: Helen Hunt, Bill Paxton
Genre: Action/Thriller ·
Runtime: 113 min
Synopsis: Rival storm-chasing teams race to deploy experimental weather sensors into deadly tornadoes, facing both professional rivalry and nature’s fury.
Why watch it?
Twister is a thrill-ride of ’90s spectacle with practical effects that still impress.
Cosmopolis (2012)
Streaming on: Stan
Director: David Cronenberg
Cast: Robert Pattinson, Juliette Binoche, Paul Giamatti
Genre: Drama/Thriller
Runtime: 109 min
Synopsis: A billionaire asset manager’s limo ride across a gridlocked Manhattan turns into a surreal odyssey of power, capitalism, and existential unraveling.
Why watch it?
Composolis is an icy, hypnotic adaptation of Don DeLillo’s novel of the same name, that captures Cronenberg’s fascination with disintegration – both human and societal – and gets an underseen, fantastic performance from Pattinson.
The Man Who Fell to Earth (1976)
Streaming on: SBS On Demand
Director: Nicolas Roeg
Cast: David Bowie, Rip Torn, Candy Clark
Genre: Sci-Fi/Drama
Runtime: 138 min
Synopsis: An alien arrives on Earth seeking water for his dying planet, but human greed and vice derail his mission.
Why watch it?
Bowie’s magnetic performance and Roeg’s fragmented storytelling make this flick a psychedelic sci-fi landmark.
Let Me In (2010)
Streaming on: Stan
Director: Matt Reeves
Cast: Kodi Smit-McPhee, Chloë Grace Moretz
Genre: Horror/Drama
Runtime: 115 min
Synopsis: A lonely boy befriends a mysterious new neighbour, only to discover her terrifying secret: she’s a centuries-old vampire.
Why watch it?
The US version of Let Me In is a rare remake that stands on its own, balancing tenderness with dread.
After Blue (Dirty Paradise) (2021)
Streaming on: SBS On Demand, Beamafilm
Director: Bertrand Mandico
Cast: Elina Löwensohn, Paula Luna, Vimala Pons
Genre: Sci-Fi/Fantasy
Runtime: 127 min
Synopsis: On a distant, all-female planet, a teenager and her mother hunt down a dangerous criminal she accidentally freed.
Why watch it?
After Blue is a hallucinatory blend of camp, surrealism, and space-western aesthetics that’s pure Mandico.
CODA (2021)
Streaming on: Apple TV+
Director: Siân Heder
Cast: Emilia Jones, Troy Kotsur, Marlee Matlin
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 111 min
Synopsis: As the only hearing member of her deaf family, a teenager must choose between pursuing her passion for music and her family’s fishing business.
Why watch it?
CODA is heartwarming, Oscar-winning storytelling with authentic representation of Deaf culture.
Jane Eyre (2011)
Streaming on: Binge, Paramount+, Foxtel Now
Director: Cary Joji Fukunaga
Cast: Mia Wasikowska, Michael Fassbender, Judi Dench
Genre: Drama/Romance
Runtime: 120 min
Synopsis: The orphaned Jane Eyre becomes governess to the enigmatic Mr Rochester, uncovering dark secrets at Thornfield Hall.
Why watch it?
Fukunaga’s Jane Eyre is the definitive adaptation for many, due to its standout performances from Wasikowska and Fassbender, and its rich atmosphere that blends gothic mystery with heartfelt romance.
Alphaville (1965)
Streaming on: SBS On Demand
Director: Jean-Luc Godard
Cast: Eddie Constantine, Anna Karina
Genre: Sci-Fi/Noir
Runtime: 99 min
Synopsis: In a futuristic city ruled by a sentient computer, a secret agent defies logic and law to rescue a woman and dismantle the regime.
Why watch it?
Godard’s stylish collision of hard-boiled noir and dystopian science fiction remains timelessly cool.
All We Imagine as Light (2024)
Streaming on: MUBI
Director: Payal Kapadia
Cast: Kani Kusruti, Divya Prabha, Chhaya Kadam
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 118 min
Synopsis: Two nurses in Mumbai navigate friendship, desire, and transformation as they journey to a coastal town.
Why watch it?
All We Imagine as Light, which showed at last year’s MIFF, is a luminous, Cannes-lauded meditation on intimacy and female solidarity.
