The best movies new to streaming in January 2024
Happy new year, Polygon readers! The holiday season is behind us, and 2024 beckons.
The new year has already given us a banger action movie, and many more exciting upcoming movies wait around the corner. But the new year also means a shuffling of movies on streaming services, with exciting new titles on Netflix, Hulu, Max, and Prime Video.
We went through the very long lists of new titles on each platform and picked out the best of the best for you to enjoy at home this month. There are award-winning films from directors with new movies out, hidden gems from beloved stars, and much more.
Let’s dive in and see what this month has in store!
Where to watch: Hulu
Genre: Drama
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Cast: Lily Franky, Sakura Ando, Mayu Matsuoka
The masterful Japanese director Hirokazu Kore-eda was responsible for two of the best movies of 2023: The found-family crime drama Broker and the beguiling mystery thriller Monster.
While many attuned to the international film scene were fans of Kore-eda’s before his drama Shoplifters, the movie’s Palme d’Or win and Oscar nomination for Best Foreign Language Film helped introduce a whole new audience to his work.
Like many of Kore-eda’s movies, Shoplifters is concerned with the nature of what family is, and the lengths we have to go to survive. It follows a found family living in poverty who work odd jobs and shoplift to make ends meet. The family encounters a young girl and takes her in, growing their circle despite the difficulty that comes with one more mouth to feed.
Gorgeously shot on 35mm film, and with deeply felt performances that immerse you completely in its story, Shoplifters is a master work from one of our most thoughtful and empathetic filmmakers. —Pete Volk
Genre: D
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