April showers bring May flowers, but Amazon Prime Video’s April slate of new movies contains some bright watches for any leftover rain. The “Judy Blume Forever” documentary arrives toward the end of the month, telling the author’s life story and highlighting the impact her writing made on literature and the world. The doc will precede “Are You There God? It’s Me, Margaret” which releases in theaters at the end of the month.
George Clooney returns to a tropical setting alongside Julia Roberts in the 2022 romantic comedy “Ticket to Paradise,” and his earlier Hawaiian-set film “The Descendants” will be available too. “Bros” provides another rom-com option that landed on the streamer on April 4. And we’ve even got a pick for the whole family.
Here are our picks for seven of the best new movies to watch on Amazon Prime Video in April 2023:
“Judy Blume Forever”
One of the most beloved authors, whose children’s books and adult fiction influenced culture, will enter the spotlight in this documentary that chronicles her career, personal life and impact on the literary world as well as readers everywhere. Blume sits down to answer all kinds of questions and takes viewers through her correspondence with readers as well as her personal life. Several Young Adult authors guest star to speak about Blume’s contributions to the world of books. This deep dive into the imagination and land of Judy Blume arrives April 21.
“Ticket to Paradise”
The dynamic duo Julia Roberts and George Clooney provide reason enough to check out “Ticket to Paradise.” Add in Kaitlyn Dever (“Rosaline”) as their daughter and Lucas Bravo (“Emily in Paris”) as Paul, the comedic French side piece of Roberts’ character Georgia Cotton, and viewers are set. David (Clooney) and Georgia Cotton got married right out of college, but they divorced five years later with their daughter Lily (Dever) left to adjust to this major life event. Georgia curates art galleries while David, an architect, supervises construction, and they hate each other for a host of reasons. But nothing unites them quicker than their daughter’s announcement that she’s going to marry Gede (Maxime Bouttier), a seaweed farmer she meets two months after graduating college on her post-grad trip to Bali. Before the trip, Lily was studying to become a lawyer, and her parents fly to Bali to try and dissuade her from abandoning these plans. In the process of secretly sabotaging their daughter’s engagement, Daniel and Georgia ironically rekindle their own relationship. Sweet rom-com delights.
“Peter Pan”
“I do believe in fairies! I do! I do!” The 2003 version of Peter Pan in which Jeremy Sumpter portrays the flying boy and Jason Isaacs portrays Captain Hook as well as Mr. Darling is a solid rif on the classic story. The uplifting music and live-action take on the magical story will transport you away from any worries or stress. After a long hard day of adulting, the concept of never growing up that Peter believes in so strongly is a welcome escape. The scene where Wendy (Rachel Hurd-Wood), John (Harry Newell and Michael (Freddie Popplewell) learn to fly and speed through the galaxy to Neverland is an adrenaline rush, and all the mythical creatures like mermaids, fairies (Ludivine Sagnier makes a great Tinkerbell) and of course the ticking crocodile that swallowed a clock cement the film’s aloofness. You can stream the film with ads via Freevee.
“Life of Pi”
Based on the novel by Yann Martel, Ang Lee’s Oscar-winning ”Life of Pi” finds a young man stranded at sea form bonds with animals who were aboard the same ship that sunk — a hyena, a zebra and an orangutan along with a fierce Bengal tiger. The film won four Oscars for Lee’s directing, Claudio Miranda’s cinematography, Mychael Danna’s original score and visual effects by Bill Westenhofer, Guillaume Roberon, Erik De Boer and Donald Elliott.
“Soul Surfer”
The story of surfer Bethany Hamilton is an emotional one. The film chronicles how she lost her left arm to a shark attack and adapted to pursue her love of surfing, Hamilton is portrayed by Anna Sofia Robb, who embodies her positive energy and hope. Singer Carrie Underwood portrays Bethany’s church mentor Sarah Hill. Dennis Quaid and Helen Hunt unite to portray Bethany’s supportive and encouraging parents. The influence Bethany has on those around her can be felt through this poignant film. The ensemble also includes Chris Brochu as Timmy Hamilton, Jeremy Sumpter as Byron Blanchard and Craig T. Nelson as Dr. Rovinsky.
“Bros”
Billy Eichner’s promotion for this, a major LGBTQ+ theatrical rom-com — which captures all the magical energy that a romantic comedy should — built up a lot of hype. Luke MacFarlane stars as Eichner’s more jock-y love interest, Aaron. Eichner stars as Bobby, a cynical gay man looking for true love, but sarcastic about it. The supporting ensemble cast of TS Madison, Dot-Marie Jones, Guy Branum, Miss Lawrence, Jim Rash and Debra Messing as herself makes it worthwhile as well. Bowen Yang makes a delightful cameo as well.
“Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs”
This animated film from the minds of Phil Lord and Chris Miller is fun for the whole family. Flint Lockwood (Bill Hader) the chaotic inventor finally experiences success in creating a machine that converts water into food. Launching it into the sky, he transforms all weather into some form of sustenance, from spaghetti tornados to hamburger rainstorms. Sam Sparks (Anna Faris) gets in on the action and kindles a relationship with Flint. The late James Caan voices Flint’s dad Tim, who never really understands his son until this culture-shifting device. Andy Samberg voices “Baby” Brent, who became a celebrity for an accident. Other voices like Mr. T as Earl Devreaux, Neil Patrick Harris as Steve the monket and Lauren Graham as Fran Lockwood seal the deal. Oh, and Al Roker voices Patrick Patrickson and Bruce Campbell voices Mayor Shelbourne. Flint and Sam join forces to save the world from his creation when it malfunctions trying to protect itself. Despite the spray-on shoes, this film will make you hungry.