It’s probably too aggressive to say that Hulu has the streaming library with the largest amount of highly acclaimed movies.
Still, it certainly has a lot of them. And every month, the streamer adds even more high-quality flicks to its ever-expanding collection.
This February, Watch With Us wants to highlight three movies in particular that aren’t just fantastic — they have the distinction of holding at least a 90 percent score on Rotten Tomatoes.
Our first pick is the Best Picture-winning 12 Years A Slave, a riveting biographical drama about a free Black man who is kidnapped back into slavery.
’12 Years a Slave’ (2012)
Rotten Tomatoes score: 95 percent
In the years before the Civil War, Solomon Northup (Chiwetel Ejiofor) lives as a free Black Man in upstate New York with his wife and two children. When two white men stop by offering Solomon part-time employment, they instead kidnap him and sell him into slavery. Despite protesting his legal freedom, Solomon’s pleas for help are ignored, and he is sent to work for the cruel plantation owner Edwin Epps (Michael Fassbender). Solomon suffers in slavery for 12 years and manages to survive, eventually finding freedom in the form of Canadian abolitionist Samuel Bass (Brad Pitt).
Based on the real-life story of Solomon Northup, 12 Years a Slave is a difficult but necessary watch, a gripping historical drama that lays bare the atrocities that were inflicted on our fellow Americans. Unflinching, brutal and masterfully directed by Steve McQueen, 12 Years a Slave took home top Oscar gold back in 2013. The fantastic ensemble cast also includes Benedict Cumberbatch, Paul Dano, Sarah Paulson and Lupita N’yongo, the latter of whom won Best Supporting Actress at the Academy Awards.
‘Martha Marcy May Marlene’ (2011)
Rotten Tomatoes score: 90 percent
After living with a cult for two years, Martha (Elizabeth Olsen) finally manages to escape and seek refuge with her estranged sister, Lucy (Paulson), and Lucy’s new husband, Ted (Hugh Dancy). As Martha tries to adjust to a safe and peaceful new life in her sister’s Connecticut home, she struggles to reclaim a sense of normalcy due to the trauma she endured. As painful flashbacks continue to cloud her days, Martha has the unshakeable feeling that the cult’s leader (John Hawkes) may come looking for her.
Martha Marcy May Marlene bears the distinction of being the breakout role for Olsen, who instantly cemented herself as an actress who can handle difficult, nuanced roles with stunning emotional depth. The film is a haunting and complex psychological drama directed with slow-burn tension by Sean Durkin, structured in a layered narrative that oscillates between past and present. Far from being a stereotypical thriller, Martha Marcy May Marlene places most of its focus on the lingering effects of paranoia, PTSD and abuse.
‘The Hate U Give’ (2018)
Rotten Tomatoes score: 97 percent
Starr Carter (Amandla Stenberg) is a teenager caught between two worlds: the poor, mostly Black neighborhood where she lives, and the primarily white prep school that she attends. This uneasy tension between Starr’s dual lives comes to a shocking head when she witnesses the murder of her childhood best friend at the hands of the police. As she suddenly finds herself at the center of the fallout and facing pressure from both sides of her life, Starr struggles to realize her true identity and stand up for justice.
Recent action movies are in short supply on Hulu in February, which only means we’ll have to dive into the streamer’s library of older hits. Will Smith‘s I, Robot is back on Hulu this month, and it should satisfy anyone who needs some sci-fi action. Thank You! You have successfully subscribed. Subscribe to newsletters Please […]
Based on the YA novel of the same name, The Hate U Give proves that there’s much more nuance to YA than many give it credit for. Carried by a phenomenal turn from Stenberg, The Hate U Give is a raw and powerful portrait of systemic racism, police brutality, social activism, and the power that comes from standing with your community. Instead of focusing solely on police violence, the film finds its strength in its depiction of a young Black girl finding her voice.
