With Halloween behind us, viewers who gorged themselves on horror can return to regular viewing on streaming services in November. This can take a lot of different forms: a rewatchable comedy, a swooning romance, a thrilling action-adventure or an awe-inspiring drama.
Paramount+ has all of these in spades. Here are the seven best new movies on the streaming service this November.
“The Godfather”
This month, Paramount+ will add to its library, without exaggeration, some of the greatest American dramas of all time. This list would hardly be complete without “The Godfather,” Francis Ford Coppola’s epic story of a young man’s elevation and degradation in his family’s criminal empire.
Few films have been as influential on the cinema as “The Godfather,” an adaptation of Mario Puzo’s Mafia novel of the same name (Puzo co-wrote the screenplay with Coppola). Filled to the brim with legendary performances (from Al Pacino, Marlon Brando, James Caan, Diane Keaton and Robert Duvall, to name a few) the crime drama is a top-to-bottom showcase of dramatic achievement. “The Godfather” is the kind of film that has become shorthand for “Good movie” even among non-cinephiles — a quality shared by “The Godfather Part II,” also on Paramount+ in November.
“Raiders of the Lost Ark”
Steven Spielberg has a decent library joining Paramount+ in November, with “Catch Me If You Can,” “Saving Private Ryan” and “The Terminal” among them. It is also adding the director’s four-film run on the “Indiana Jones” franchise — a series that of course started with the impeccable “Raiders of the Lost Ark.”
Not a single moment is wasted in “Raiders of the Lost Ark,” a film that’s utterly iconic from its first frame to its last. Harrison Ford explodes off the screen as Indiana Jones, an action hero whose vulnerability (mainly, his punchability) makes him all the more compelling. Every glance, gesture and inflection from Ford is that of a total movie star, carrying viewers through a breakneck, globe-trotting adventure the likes of which are rarely seen today. “Raiders of the Lost Ark” may have its roots in pulp stories, serials and B-movies, but even the biggest budgets struggle today to evoke the pure magic that Spielberg, Lawrence Kasdan, George Lucas, Philip Kaufman and company created on-screen.
“Shakespeare in Love”
This November, Paramount+ will stream an Oscars hopeful about William Shakespeare using his real-life experiences as an inspiration to write one of his most well known tragedies. I am of course talking about “Shakespeare in Love.” (Why, was there another movie like that this year?)
While “Hamnet” sees a Shakespearean story inspired by heartbreak, “Shakespeare in Love” finds the famed poet inspired by heartache. The film follows a charming Joseph Fiennes as the titular playwright as he finds himself swept up in a whirlwind affair with Viola de Lesseps (Gwyneth Paltrow), who disguises herself as a man to take part in Shakespeare’s plays.
“Shakespeare in Love” lands on an unfortunate list of films that arguably have a lesser reputation for winning Best Picture. The movie won the Oscars’ top prize over Steven Spielberg’s “Saving Private Ryan” (also on Paramount+ this month) following an infamous, historic campaign from producer Harvey Weinstein. Now, “Shakespeare in Love” must bear the reputation of being the movie that beat Spielberg’s war epic — an unfair burden for a winsome, delightful romance such as this.
“Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby”
Before Adam McKay pivoted to satires and biographical dramedies, the writer/director built on a career around a single comic muse: Will Ferrell. After McKay’s debut feature, “Anchorman: The Legend of Ron Burgundy,” proved to be a rousing success, McKay and Ferrell set their sights on a follow-up feature — this time, focused on the world of Nascar and a dimwitted, egotistical man-child at its center.
The jokes in “Talladega Nights” are fast and furious, with the film carrying the high hit rate of the best Ferrell/McKay collabs. This time, rather than being surrounded by a news team of Steve Carell, David Koechner and Paul Rudd, Ferrell becomes one half of a duo with John C. Reilly — a pairing that would return to the screen in McKay’s “Step Brothers.” Watching two idiots bounce off each other’s stupidity is a tried and true comedic formula, one that Ferrell and Reilly are uniquely skilled at executing.
“Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles” (1990)
Remember when the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles used to be a bunch of guys in rubber suits? That was awesome.
Do not be mistaken: there have been plenty of strong “TMNT” adaptations since the days of this first cinematic outing. Yet Steve Barron’s debut “Ninja Turtles” feature, written by Todd W. Langen and Bobby Herbeck, is positively oozing with character in a manner befitting the comic book quartet.
The suits and puppets that bring Leonardo (leads), Donatello (does machines), Raphael (is cool but rude), Michelangelo (is a party dude) and Master Splinter (he’s a radical rat) are a delight to see on-screen, and a wonderful realization of the characters. Developed by Jim Henson’s Creature Shop, the suits are truly magical to behold, lending a tactile and, fittingly, silly energy to the central turtles and the movie at large. The whole film is a joy and one of the best interpretations of the characters to date.
“There Will Be Blood”
If you, like I, are still wanting to endlessly rewatch “One Battle After Another,” take the time to watch another Paul Thomas Anderson masterpiece: “There Will Be Blood.” This 2007 drama is one of the great American films, a story of greed and crushing progress following an early 1900s oil baron.
In a career full of stellar turns, Daniel Day-Lewis gives perhaps his finest here as Daniel Plainview, a character who rarely spends time off the screen. Day-Lewis is a man possessed in “There Will Be Blood,” delivering a haunting and singular performance as an almost mythic figure of innovation and destruction.
“When Harry Met Sally…”
As Halloween horror marathons turn to fall comfort watches, “When Harry Met Sally…” makes for a perfect November stream. Rob Reiner and Nora Ephron’s romantic comedy continues to be endlessly iterated upon to this day, a defining film of the genre.
Its reputation is well deserved. Billy Crystal and Meg Ryan make a delightful leading pair, making the most out of Ephron’s clever and touching screenplay. This film is an absolute joy, one worthy of many, many rewatches.
