Netflix’s critically acclaimed Dolemite Is My Name was actually based on Rudy Ray Moore, whose story has been done justice by the iconic Eddie Murphy. Taking his audience on a trip back to the 1970s, the struggling artist embarks on a journey of multiple successes and failures that realistically but hilariously portrays the nature of showbiz. This effect is highlighted with Eddie Murphy’s performance capturing Rudy Ray Moore’s colourful and profane persona, Dolemite.

Watch the trailer here.

Dolemite Is My Name is available on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

We never would have known this, but this was actually Olivia Wilde’s first try at directing a movie, which did extremely well for a directorial debut. Reminisce on your schooling days as this coming-of-age film features two BFF high-achieving high school seniors, Amy and Molly, on the brink of graduation – believing they hadn’t done much other than study. This then sets the movie up for an exciting and fast-paced plotline as the girls try to make the most out of one (action-packed and very wild) night that any of us would look back on with a smile.

Watch the trailer here.

Booksmart is available on Amazon Prime, Hulu and Apple TV.

Quentin Tarantino. Leonardo DiCaprio. Brad Pitt. Margot Robbie. If this namedropping hasn’t gotten you interested, it might be the fact that this comedy-drama has won two Academy Awards this year for Best Supporting Actor (Pitt) and Best Production Design.

A veteran Hollywood actor is confronted with the fear of his career drawing to a close as the Golden Age of Hollywood reaches its final moments. While this sounds like a string-along type of movie, in true Tarantino fashion, the film does take a more ominous turn as it intersects with the infamous Manson Murders. Complicated and introspective, Once Upon A Time In Hollywood is as generous with its offerings about the Golden Age of Hollywood as it is with its shocking and black-comedy elements.

Watch the trailer here.

Once Upon A Time in Hollywood is available on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and Apple TV.

If you missed out on the buzz last year, Shazam! makeovers the usual serious, suave and sometimes soul-destroying superhero movie into something more light-hearted and refreshing. It also has an extra emphasis on family, which makes it appropriate for the after-dinner movie, if you can endure your adolescents hearing occasional swearing (the movie is rated PG in Singapore).

The story follows a newly fostered boy, Billy, who’s suddenly given super powers, including being able to transform himself into an adult superhero (played by Zachary Levi) by saying “Shazam”. Through the story, he navigates his newfound powers, family relationships and a villain by the name of Thaddeus Sivana, who is after his powers.

Watch the trailer here. Shazam! is available on HBO, Hulu and Apple TV.

Fighting With My Family packs a big punch with its literally strong female lead played by Florence Pugh, along with a cast of other A-list actors and actress such as Nick Frost, Lena Headey and Dwayne Johnson. Gelling the elements of sports, heartfelt scenes and overall entertainment as a young female wrestler strives for success, this movie turned out to be an unconventional crowd-pleaser with wrestling fans and non-wrestling fans alike.

The first scene will already get you gripped: it starts off with an endearing scene of parents egging on and teaching proper chokehold techniques during a sibling fight.

Watch the trailer here.

Fighting With My Family is on Amazon Prime, Hulu and Apple TV. 

The well-known director of 50/50, Jonathan Levine, has finally gotten around to rom-coms after Warm Bodies in 2013 – and a feel-good rom-com is exactly what we need right now to forget about what’s going on in the world.

Not much has to be said about this flick except that it stars Charlize Theron as Charlotte Field, a US Secretary of State, and Seth Rogen as Fred Flarsky, a journalist in NYC. Once his babysitter and childhood crush, the two reunite at a fundraising event just as Charlotte decides to run for presidency – along a variety of other circumstances that led to Fred being hired as a speechwriter.

Watch as sparks fly and comedy ensues.

Watch the trailer here.

Long Shot is available on Amazon Prime, HBO, Hulu and Apple TV.

Coming-of-age films thrive on simplicity, and Eighth Grade is one of the films that does it best while reminding us of the very complex emotions we go through as teens. The clever film wades through these themes in today’s social media-powered age.

Watch as 13-year-old Kayla Day, an eighth grade student, tries to overcome her fears as an introverted and ‘most quiet’ girl in class – who ironically posts self-confidence videos on YouTube. The movie also shows the perspective of Kayla’s dorky and supportive single father who repeatedly tries again and again to connect with her.

Watch the trailer here.

Eighth Grade is available on Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple TV. 

Many of us have personal experiences with how rambunctious children and teenagers can get, but not many of us have had to deal with it overnight. That’s the reality for Pete (Mike Wahlberg) and Ellie (Rose Byrne), who get their lives thrown into a state of confusion as chaos as they turn from a couple to parents of three foster children.

Having been taunted by relatives who said they would never have kids, the kind, down-to-earth and sometimes reckless couple fumble with their newfound parenting, but along the way encounter a myriad of different emotion and exchanges because of their children. While it’s a rollercoaster ride, Pete and Ellie learn it’s all worth it and that being a family is determined by love, and not by blood.

Watch the trailer here.

Instant Family is available on Amazon Prime, Hulu and Apple TV.

Meeting someone, falling into a coma and being persuaded by unconditional love is a dramatic and cliche concept, right? Sure, it sounds like it’s straight out of a movie – but that doesn’t make it any less true for Kumail and Emily, who (spoiler alert) are now happily married and wrote a film together.

Featuring an Uber driver cum struggling stand-up comedian with Pakistani parents who are hell-bent on him marrying within his race, Kumail unexpectedly finds love in a one-night stand with a white student by the name of Emily.

Find out what events unfold after a messy separation, unfortunately followed by Emily’s induced coma as a result of a serious illness – a dramatic yet sweet ride sprinkled with moments of hilarity.

Watch the trailer here.

The Big Sick is available on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

Served with an artistic twist by Greta Gerwig in her solo directorial debut, Lady Bird talks about Christine McPherson, a passionate and strong-willed teenage girl who fights against but is exactly like her mother. She calls herself Lady Bird, wants to break out of her controlling mother in order to get to a prestigious liberal arts college in New York, and calls the place “a city of culture”.

As she goes through all her different resentments, the film deftly explores the intricacies of mother-daughter relationships, adolescence, as well as a dose of materialism. This is an autobiographical film that’s at once subtly mature and witty, described by The Atlantic as being “frequently laugh-out-loud funny but never short on pathos”.

Watch the trailer here.

Lady Bird is available on Amazon Prime and Apple TV.

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Text: Cherrie Lim