Another month, another slate of movies from which to choose—this is what I love about Netflix. Of all the streaming giants, Netflix seems to deliver the most eclectic bill of goods each month, offering everything from classic rom-coms to artsy war movies to fresh horror picks, all bolstered by Netflix Originals that dominate the conversation. And August 2024 is no different, with this month’s biggest highlights being the unrated cut of the most epic sci-fi saga in years, a harrowing yet hopeful Oscar-winning drama about a mother’s love for her son, and one of the most underrated action thrillers in years that essentially served as the inception for the latest Mission Impossible movies. So where do you start with so many great options?
Hopefully I can help. Below, you’ll find a list of the ten movies I most recommend this month on Netflix. And at the bottom of the article, I’ve house a comprehensive list of every single film coming to the platform in August 2024. The amount of options, per usual, may astound you, perhaps daunt you, so maybe my recommendations will ease the burden just a bit.
The 10 Best New Movies On Netflix In August 2024
Note: this list covers all releases leading up to Aug. 3, 2024.
Rebel Moon: Director’s Cut (2024)
I write this recommendation on Saturday morning. As a dad with two kids and very little time to watch movies, I was blessed to find the time to watch the first half of Zack Snyder’s unrated cut of Rebel Moon last night. And let’s just say...I don’t need to see the other half to give this movie my full recommendation. As a huge Snyder fan already, the director’s cut has already become my favorite movie in his catalog. If you don’t know the story yet, it follows a warrior named Kora (played by Sofia Boutella) whose farmer community comes under threat from the tyrannical, militaristic Imperium. The community is given ten weeks to gather harvest for the evil army and leave none for themselves, essentially a death sentence. But instead of giving in, Kora builds a small army of warriors (played by a cast that includes Djimon Hounsou, Michiel Huisman Doona Bae, Ray Fisher, Staz Nair and Charlie Hunnam). The director’s cut allows every one of the characters’ stories more room to breathe and find shape, taking Rebel Moon’s previously PG-13 story from great to spectacular. If you’ve got the patience, this movie will take you on a journey like few sci-fi epics ever have.
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The Spectacular Now (2013)
I remember that when so many young adult romance novels were becoming movies back in the early 2010s, I just couldn’t get into them. These movies always seemed to too exactly followed a formula, too trepidatiously detailed their characters, too quickly grabbed for the nadir. But there was one movie, largely thanks to its two main stars, that stood out above the rest: The Spectacular Now. This teen love story centers on Sutter Keely (Miles Teller), a charming and carefree high school senior who just likes to party and live life freely. But after he meets his shy, introverted classmate Aime Finecky (Shailene Woodley), he develops a relationship that forces him to confront insecurities he’s been pushing away for years. Yes, the movie is simple, but that’s actually what gives its story such power, as director James Ponsoldt focuses most on drawing the story’s raw emotional authenticity from realistic, painfully familiar situations that thrive on cinematographer Jess Hall’s warm embrace of the everyday, of the mundanity of the characters' suburban environment. This movie hasn’t aged one bit.
Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color (2024)
This is a rather odd experiment that has Netflix’s name written all over it. Almost akin to the streaming giant’s stunt with Zack Snyder’s unrated cut of Rebel Moon, Netflix has offered two different versions of the Academy Award-winning movie Godzilla Minus One. The only difference this time? It’s given a black and white palette, offering an old-school Godzilla feel to a modern update that didn’t own an intense color palette anyway—honestly, a super cool idea. The story is set in post-World War II Japan, where kamikaze pilot Kōichi Shikishima (Ryunosuke Kamiki) is struggling with guilt and loss as he and his army battle the famed sea creature. Along the way, he begins to care for a woman, Noriko (Minami Hamabe), and an orphaned baby. Backed by a stellar 98% approval rating on Rotten Tomatoes, Godzilla Minus One won so many people over for employing a comparatively low-budget approach for a Godzilla movie, focusing more on characters and social commentary than Hollywood’s current CGI-laden path. This take on Godzilla is much more visceral and thrilling.
Room (2015)
As we’ve all watched Brie Larson become one of the hottest commodities in Hollywood, starring in two different billion-dollar franchises (the Marvel franchise and the Fast & Furious movies), it’s easy to forget this all started thanks to an Oscar-winning performance in a small, emotionally draining experience known as Room. This sad tale follows Joy (played by Larson) and her five-year-old son Jack (Jacob Tremblay) as they live in captivity in a small, confined space they call “Room.” Held captive for years they refer to as “Old Nick,” Joy creates a nurturing environment for her son who’s never known the outside world as she tries to preserve his goodness, his innocence. Then, suddenly, the film shifts from this prison sentence to the outside world, where they must learn to fit in and move on. This intimate and immersive experience tells its story through both a mother’s and a child’s gaze, offering a tension-filled lens that plays with perspective when unfolding its narrative, when exploring how people recover and reintegrate into this strange, cruel world.
Tarot (2024)
so many horror movies are made every year that many fly under the radar. Sometimes you’ll find a gem, but for the most part you’re watching the same old formula play out over and over in tired ways. But one movie has managed to rise amongst the dreck this year: Tarot. The story centers on a group of friends who rent a mansion and discover a cursed deck of tarot cards. After they each receive a card, they experience terrifying (and often deadly) encounters that match their readings. To combat the dark forces, they recuit occult expert Alma, who reveals the cards’ dark history. This horror movie directed by Spenser Cohen and Anna Halberg stars Harriet Slater, Adain Bradley, Avantika and Wolfgang Novogratz. While Tarot isn’t the best horror movie in years, it’s entertaining and effectively done. It’s cool that Netflix is giving this movie that might not otherwise ever find an audience a chance to connect with people who enjoy venturing into the pits of genre.
Jack Reacher (2012)
At this point, director Christopher McQuarrie and superstar Tom Cruise’s partnership is well known for reinvigorating the Mission Impossible franchise, as that dynamic duo has given us Rogue Nation, Fallout and Dead Reckoning. But before those movies, McQuarrie brought his tightly controlled pacing and concise storytelling, and Cruise delivered his usual charismatic yet intense performance in the underrated action thriller Jack Reacher. Cruise stars as the titular character, who is drawn into a convoluted case when a sniper kills five random victims. The accused claims innocence and asks for Reacher’s help, sending the former-United-States-Army-Military-Police-Investigator-turned-drifter on a dangerous mission to uncover a conspiracy. Alongside Cruise, who gives you your money’s worth throughout with his compelling presence, Jack Reacher is filled with incredible supporting performances from the likes of Rosamund Pike, Richard Jenkins, Werner Herzog, David Oyelowo and Robert Duvall. It’s truly incredible that this movie exists, with such a stellar cast coming together to offer an entrancing take on a familiar genre story.
Save the Last Dance (2001)
Part of me thinks I cannot detach this movie from my childhood—and, perhaps in many ways, I cannot. I will forever be drawn to the natural chemistry between Julia Stiles and Sean Patrick Thomas, the humble focus on aspiration and resilience, the killer hip-hop and R&B-laden soundtrack that gives the movie charisma and personality. But now as an older movie watcher, I find myself appreciating this movie from director Thomas Cater for its careful character work, its exploration of race and identity and class, its genuine emotional depth that never feels pretentious or dishonest—it’s a movie that just flat-out works. The story centers on Sara (Stiles), a young aspiring ballerina who moves into a tough Chicago neighborhood after her mother’s sudden death. There, she shares her passion for dance with Derek, a gifted hip-hop dancer who helps her rediscover her love for dancing. There’s something so charming about its simple, yet incredibly dramatic tale, its authentic capture of grief and struggle at such a young age.
Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024)
Who lives in a pineapple under the sea? If you know the answer to that question, or if you can sing out the answer to that question with the sort of enthusiasm that’s delivered in the theme song for SpongeBob SquarePants, then you’re one of the real ones. You might also be interested to learn that that they’re making another SpongeBob movie (the fifth one so far, with another one purely focused on Plankton on the way), with The Sandy Cheeks Movie placing SpongeBob’s underwater squirrel friend in the spotlight. This franchise film stars Sandy (voiced by Carolyn Lawrence), who teams up with SpongeBob (Tom Kenny) to save their beloved underwater home from a villainous plot. This film features a star-studded voice cast, including Wanda Sykes, Clancy Brown, Bill fa*gerbakke and Johnny Knoxville, who will all come together for a movie that owns the fun, goofy aesthetic of the original television series.
Fury (2014)
On the list of underrated war films that more people should talk about, Fury is near the top of the list. And on the list of directors who deserve more love and freedom in Hollywood, Fury director David Ayer stands front and center. So...yeah, I’m basically recommending you watch Fury—the kind of war movie that feels transcendent in its scope and vision, and uniquely stands out in a field of formulaic genre vehicles. Fury follows a battle-hardened tank crew led by Sergeant Don "Wardaddy" Collier (Brad Pitt) during the final months of World War II. His platoon consists of young troop members played by actors Shia LaBeouf, Logan Lerman, Michael Peña and Jon Bernthal, who come together to craft together an intense dynamic amidst the film’s confined and claustrophobic environment, its brutal and unflinching depiction of the realities of war, its intense and immersive action sequences. All in all, Fury gives you a truly cinematic experience. Play this one loud and enjoy.
Star Trek: Beyond (2016)
The Star Trek trilogy feels like it was released a million years ago, with the first Star Trek released back in 2009, its sequel Into Darkness coming out in 2013, before finally closing out the story in 2016 with Beyond. The big difference between the first two movies, which were fine, and the third movie, which is pretty awesome, is the man behind the camera. We went from the reliable J. J. Abrams to the electric Justin Lin, director of all the greatest Fast & Furious movies (especially Fast Five). Star Trek Beyond continues the adventures of the USS Enterprise crew as they explore the far reaches of uncharted space. During their mission, they encounter a powerful new enemy, Krall (played by Idris Elba), who attacks the Enterprise, forcing the crew to abandon ship and become stranded on a hostile planet. All of the usual players are back to reprise their roles—Chris Pine as James T. Kirk, Zachary Quinto as Spock, Karl Urban as Leonard McCoy, Zoe Saldaña as Nyota Uhura, Simon Pegg as Montgomery Scott, John Cho as Hikaru Sulu and Anton Yelchin as Ensign Pavel Chekov—in this awesome conclusion to an entertaining trilogy.
Every New Movie on Netflix in August 2024
- August 1: Borderless Fog (2024); Breaking and Re-Entering (2024); Bride of Chucky (1998); Child’s Play 2 (1990); Child’s Play 3 (1991); Cult of Chucky (2017); Curse of Chucky (2013); Dr. Seuss’ The Cat in the Hat (2003); Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax (2012); Fury (2014); Godzilla Minus One/Minus Color (2024); Hop (2011); Jack Reacher (2012); Jack Reacher: Never Go Back (2016); Love, Charlie: The Rise and Fall of Chef Charlie Trotter (2021); Mon Laferte, te amo (2024); Monster House (2006); Mr. Deeds (2002); Not Another Teen Movie (2001); Red (2010); Red 2 (2013); Room (2015); Save the Last Dance (2001); Star Trek: Beyond (2016); Tarot (2024); The Deer King (2022); The Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (2013); The Next Karate Kid (1994); The Spectacular Now (2013); White Chicks (2004); World War Z (2013).
- August 2: Modern Masters: SS Rajamouli (2024); Rebel Moon – Part One: Director’s Cut (2024); Rebel Moon – Part Two: Director’s Cut (2024); Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (2024)
- August 6: Reminiscence (2021)
- August 7: Downtown Owl (2023); Lolo and the Kid (2024)
- August 8: The Emoji Movie (2017)
- August 9: Inside the Mind of a Dog (2024); Mission: Cross (2024); Phir Aayi Hasseen Dillruba (2024)
- August 11: Night School (2018)
- August 14: Daughters (2024); Robocar Poli Special: The Story of the Desert Rescue (2023); They Shot The Piano Player (2023)
- August 16: First Man (2018); Pearl (2023); The Union (2024)
- August 20: Untold: The Murder of Air McNair (2024)
- August 21: Nice Girls (2024)
- August 22: Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon Cosmos The Movie (2024); Secret Lives of Orangutans (2024)
- August 23: Incoming (2024)
- August 28: Untamed Royals (2024)
- August 30: The Deliverance (2024); (Un)lucky Sisters (2024)
