Time to settle in with a movie inspired by real events. The 30 best Netflix movies based on true stories streaming now

Time to settle in with a movie inspired by real events.

The 30 best Netflix movies based on true stories streaming now

Time to settle in with a movie inspired by real events.

By Declan Gallagher

and Kevin Jacobsen

on August 1, 2025 07:09AM EDT

Timothée Chalamet as Henry V in 'The King'; Colman Domingo as Bayard Rustin in 'Rustin'; Glen Powell as Gary Johnson in 'Hit Man'. Credit:

Netflix (2); Matt Lankes/Netflix

Since the dawn of the medium, fact-based films have given audiences insight into real events in a personal, visceral fashion. While there are dramatizations, such as 2023's *Society of the Snow*, there are also inventive docu-thrillers like the movies of Paul Greengrass, and epics like *The Irishman* (2019).

Unsurprisingly, Netflix has a treasure trove of movies based on true stories. In addition to original programming, the streamer offers endless options for outside projects that draw inspiration from real events far and wide.

Join ** as we recommend the 30 best Netflix movies based on true stories streaming now.

22 July (2018)

Isak Bakli Aglen as Torje Hanssen and Jonas Strand Gravli as Viljar Hanssen in '22 July'. Erik Aavatsmark/Netflix

Paul Greengrass, an expert at making fact-based docu-thrillers like *Bloody Sunday* (2002) and *United 93* (2006), helmed this gruesome but riveting account of the deadliest terror attack in Norway's history since WWII: when Anders Behring Breivik (Anders Danielsen Lie) murdered 77 people at a children's summer camp in 2011. Greengrass' harrowing epic, divided into three chapters and chronicling everything from Breivik's massacre to his sentencing, is not an easy watch. It is, however, timely and necessary, and by the end, it is somehow rather hopeful. —*Declan Gallagher*

Where to watch *22 July*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B– (read the review)

**Director:** Paul Greengrass

**Cast:** Anders Danielsen Lie, Jon Øigarden

American Gangster (2007)

Denzel Washington as Frank Lucas in 'American Gangster'.

David Lee/Universal

Denzel Washington. Russell Crowe. Ridley Scott. This irresistible combo joined forces to bring the fascinating story of drug kingpin Frank Lucas to the big screen, while admittedly taking some creative liberties in the process. The gangster epic tracks the rise and fall of Lucas (Washington) as his heroin business turns into a monopoly, with Det. Richie Roberts (Crowe) hot on his trail. EW's critic calls *American Gangster* "meticulous and detailed, a drug-world epic that holds you from moment to moment, immersing you in the intricate and sleazy logistics of crime." —*Kevin Jacobsen***

Where to watch *American Gangster*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** Ridley Scott

**Cast:** Russell Crowe, Denzel Washington, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Cuba Gooding Jr., Josh Brolin, Ted Levine, Armand Assante, John Ortiz, John Hawkes, RZA**

Black Hawk Down (2001)

Ewan McGregor as SPC John 'Grimesey' Grimes (center) in 'Black Hawk Down'.

Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

This harrowing war drama recounts the Battle of Mogadishu, in which Somali rebels shot down American Black Hawk helicopters whose crews were attempting to take down a Somalian warlord's advisers. While Ridley Scott's recreation got knocked for its inaccuracies, the film is nonetheless a gripping portrait of the hellish nature of war. "*Black Hawk Down* is driven by scenes of gripping, unflinching battle, touched by [Scott's] talent for communicating through the colors he chooses, even in the spray of mud on a wounded man's face," writes EW's critic. —*K.J.***

Where to watch *Black Hawk Down*: Netflix

**EW grade:** N/A (read the review)

**Director:** Ridley Scott

**Cast:** Josh Hartnett, Eric Bana, Ewan McGregor, Tom Sizemore, William Fichtner, Sam Shepard

The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind (2019)

Maxwell Simba as William Kamkwamba in 'The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind'.

Chiwetel Ejiofor directed this lovely adaptation of William Kamkwamba's memoir, chronicling his upbringing as a young African boy who, after being forced to leave his beloved school due to his family's impoverished condition, sets about constructing a windmill that he hopes will save his community from famine.

*The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind* is reminiscent of those wonderful Disney movies from the '60s and '70s which told stories for younger audiences yet still delighted older viewers. Ejiofor's adaptation spins a heartwarming story that doesn't shave off its harder edges but is always entertaining and consistently feel-good. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The Boy Who Harnessed the Wind*: Netflix

**Director:** Chiwetel Ejiofor

**Cast:** Maxwell Simba, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Lily Banda

Captain Phillips (2013)

Tom Hanks as Capt. Richard Phillips in 'Captain Phillips'.

Columbia Pictures/Courtesy Everett

Another wonderful, impossibly taut Paul Greengrass thriller, this one charts the 2008 hijacking of the *Maersk Alabama* shipping vessel by Somali pirates. As Captain Richard Phillips (Tom Hanks) works to protect his crew and alert rescuers to their plight, he comes head-to-head with the antagonizers' de facto leader (the astonishing, Oscar-nominated Barkhad Abdi).

One of Greengrass' most assured and textured works, *Captain Phillips* tells a well-known true story with little concession to Hollywood storytelling or dramatic grandstanding. Greengrass is unrivaled at combining professional actors with inexperienced performers and semi-improvised scenarios to create the feeling of actually being present for an unprecedented event. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Captain Phillips*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Paul Greengrass

**Cast:** Tom Hanks, Barkhad Abdi

Dolemite Is My Name (2019)

Eddie Murphy as Rudy Ray Moore (center) in 'Dolemite Is My Name'.

Craig Brewer's excellent biopic profiles Rudy Ray Moore (Eddie Murphy), who directed a grindhouse passion project based around a character he created named Dolemite, inadvertently crafting one of the most iconic bad movies of all time in the process.

Brewer's film is a fine-tuned combination of period drama and behind-the-scenes comedy. It's also notable for giving future Oscar winner Da'Vine Joy Randolph her earliest scene-stealing performance; her penultimate scene with Murphy is the film's most radical and moving. In its story of outsiders banding together to fulfill their dreams, the movie is quietly but effectively heartwarming. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Dolemite Is My Name*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Craig Brewer

**Cast:** Eddie Murphy, Wesley Snipes, Keegan-Michael Key, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Mike Epps, Craig Robinson, Tituss Burgess

First They Killed My Father (2017)

Sarun Nika, Sveng Socheata, Run Malyna, Oun Srey Neang, Sareum Srey Moch, Heng Dara, and Phoeung Kompheak as Geak, Ma, Chaou, Keav, Loung, Meng, and Pa Ung in 'First They Killed My Father'.

Netflix/Courtesy Everett

Angelina Jolie directed and co-wrote this adaptation with Loung Ung, based on the latter's memoir about her experiences throughout the Khmer Rouge regime in Cambodia during the 1970s. Jolie is a director for whom overstatement is as essential in her craft as camera movement, but here, she tempers her more outrageous instincts and delivers a film that's more powerful for its subdued nature, comfortable in its quietness and content to let audiences fill in some of the more horrific details for themselves. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *First They Killed My Father*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Angelina Jolie

**Cast:** Sreymoch Sareum, Kompheak Phoeung, Socheata Sveng, Dara Heng, Kimhak Mun, Tharoth Sam

The Good Nurse (2022)

Eddie Redmayne as Charlie Cullen and Jessica Chastain as Amy Loughren in 'The Good Nurse'. JoJo Whilden/Netflix

Some films are made more disturbing with the knowledge that the events depicted really happened. *The Good Nurse* is one of them. Jessica Chastain stars as Amy Loughren, an ICU nurse who befriends a recently hired nurse named Charles Cullen (Eddie Redmayne). Working the night shift together, Amy is alarmed when one of their patients mysteriously dies, leading to an investigation that suggests the death may have been deliberate — and Charles is the main suspect. Bolstered by Chastain and Redmayne's committed performances, EW's critic calls *The Good Nurse* "a methodical and smartly wrought psychological thriller." —*K.J.***

Where to watch *The Good Nurse*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Tobias Lindholm

**Cast:** Jessica Chastain, Eddie Redmayne

The Highwaymen (2019)

Woody Harrelson as Maney Gault and Kevin Costner as Frank Hamer in 'The Highwaymen'. Netflix

Retired Texas Rangers — the upright Frank Hamer (Kevin Costner) and hard-drinking Maney Gault (Woody Harrelson) — are called back to duty by former governor Miriam "Ma" Ferguson (Kathy Bates) to hunt down the notorious Bonnie Parker (Emily Probst) and Clyde Barrow (Edward Bossert).

John Lee Hancock's forceful procedural does a terrific job of complimenting Arthur Penn's 1967 classic *Bonnie and Clyde* without spoiling any of that film's pleasures, wisely keeping Parker and Barrow in the background and telling a different side of the true-crime saga altogether. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The Highwaymen*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** John Lee Hancock

**Cast:** Kevin Costner, Woody Harrelson, Kathy Bates, John Carroll Lynch, Kim Dickens, Thomas Mann**

Hit Man (2024)

Glen Powell as Gary Johnson in 'Hit Man'.

Matt Lankes/Netflix

Glen Powell cemented his A-list status with this jovial, fact-based comedy-thriller from director Richard Linklater based on an infamous *Texas Monthly* article about Gary Johnson, a mild-mannered professor who contributed to nearly 70 arrests by posing as a hitman.

*Hit Man* is a terrific showcase for Powell's comedic and leading man talents and one of the most unabashedly fun films Linklater has made in decades. Paired here with Adria Arjona, Powell is graced with a costar more than capable of curating a fizzy, classic romance, reminding one of the halcyon days of Hepburn and Tracy or Bogart and Bacall. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Hit Man*: Netflix

**Director:** Richard Linklater

**Cast:** Glen Powell, Adria Arjona, Austin Amelio, Retta

I'm Still Here (2024)

Selton Mello and Fernanda Torres as Rubens and Eunice Paiva with their onscreen children in 'I'm Still Here'.

Alile Onawale/Courtesy of Sony Pictures Classics

This 2025 Oscar winner for Best International Feature follows one woman's resilience through the Brazilian military dictatorship of the 1970s. Fernanda Torres stars as Eunice Paiva, a real-life activist who doggedly pursued answers following the enforced disappearance of her politician husband. Torres delivers a tremendously moving performance — for which she rightfully won a Golden Globe and received an Oscar nomination — as a woman who must maintain her strength for the benefit of her children, becoming an admired figure in her fight for justice in the process. —*K.J.*

Where to watch *I'm Still Here*: Netflix

**Director:** Walter Salles

**Cast:** Fernanda Torres, Selton Mello, Fernanda Montenegro**

The Irishman (2019)

Jesse Plemons as Chuckie O'Brien, Ray Romano as Bill Bufalino, Robert De Niro as Frank Sheeran, and Al Pacino as Jimmy Hoffa in 'The Irishman'. Netlfix

As much as we love a Martin Scorsese gangster epic, part of us hopes he'll never make another after this rigorous epic charting the rise and fall of real-life gangster Frank Sheeran (Robert De Niro), who claims to have had a hand in the disappearance of Jimmy Hoffa (Al Pacino).

Scorsese's picture sidesteps any hint of conspiracy that Hoffa's story typically carries, delivering a somber, lived-in portrait of organized crime members as mid-level businessmen. The film is nearly three and a half hours long but is so packed with history and incident that you'll hardly notice the length. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The Irishman*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Martin Scorsese

**Cast:** Robert De Niro, Al Pacino, Joe Pesci, Harvey Keitel, Anna Paquin, Ray Romano, Stephen Graham, Bobby Cannavale

The King (2019)

Timothée Chalamet as Henry V in 'The King'.

David Michôd helmed this highly entertaining historical epic starring Timothée Chalamet as Henry V, Prince of Wales, who is thrown into a dark world of betrayal and violence after inheriting the throne from his assassinated brother.

Michôd's picture is a refreshing entry in the genre, functioning just as well as an action picture as a moody, thoughtful coming-of-age drama with impossibly high stakes. An all-star cast including Robert Pattinson, Thomasin McKenzie, Lily-Rose Depp, and ​​Ben Mendelsohn help the director bring a suitably muddy and brutal image of the 15th century to life. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The King*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** David Michôd

**Cast:** Timothée Chalamet, Robert Pattinson, Joel Edgerton, Lily-Rose Depp, Ben Mendelsohn, Sean Harris

Kneecap (2024)

Naoise 'Móglaí Bap' Ó Cairealláin as himself in 'Kneecap'.

Sony Pictures/Courtesy Everett Collection

Some music biopics involve the artist in pre-production, getting their permission on what (and what not) to include in representing their life story. This rousing musical dramedy about the Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap takes it a step further by having them play themselves, a bold choice that's also perfectly in line with the group's unique and creative spirit. As the film explores, Kneecap gained notoriety with their embrace of the Irish language and politically-minded lyrics, providing an undercurrent of dramatic stakes and urgency not always seen in similar music-based dramas. —*K.J.***

Where to watch *Kneecap*: Netflix

**Director:** Rich Peppiatt

**Cast:** Naoise Ó Cairealláin, Liam Óg Ó hAnnaidh, JJ Ó Dochartaigh, Josie Walker, Fionnuala Flaherty, Jessica Reynolds, Adam Best, Simone Kirby, Michael Fassbender

Lion (2016)

Nicole Kidman as Sue Brierley, David Wenham as John Brierley, and Sunny Pawar as Saroo Brierley in 'Lion'. Mark Rogers/Weinstein Co.

This moving, Oscar-nominated drama tells the extraordinary true story of Saroo Brierley. As a 5-year-old boy living in Khandwa, India, Saroo was accidentally separated from his family after falling asleep on a moving train. Arriving in Calcutta, Saroo went through the orphanage system and was adopted by an Australian couple. In adulthood, he took great efforts to locate his original home to reunite with his birth family. Told with sincerity and nuance, *Lion* is an emotional triumph full of stellar performances, particularly by Sunny Pawar and Dev Patel as the younger and older versions of Saroo, respectively. —*K.J.*

Where to watch *Lion*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B

**Director:** Garth Davis

**Cast:** Dev Patel, Sunny Pawar, Rooney Mara, David Wenham, Nicole Kidman**

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Maestro (2023)

Bradley Cooper as Leonard Bernstein in 'Maestro'.

Bradley Cooper stars as Leonard Bernstein in this warts-and-all exploration of the famed composer, which he wrote, directed, and stars in alongside Carey Mulligan as Bernstein's long-suffering wife, Felicia Montealegre.

Cooper's film is much more an examination of Bernstein's marriage than his career, and all the better for it. Rather than run through Bernstein's accomplishments as many biopics would, it isolates incidents from his and Montealegre's life, which inevitably paints a well-rounded portrait of euphoria and sorrow. If there was any doubt after he took *A Star Is Born* to new heights, *Maestro* proves Cooper one of the most finely tuned filmmakers of his generation. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Maestro*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Bradley Cooper

**Cast:** Bradley Cooper, Carey Mulligan, Matt Bomer, Maya Hawke, Sarah Silverman, Michael Urie

Mank (2020)

Gary Oldman as Herman J. Mankiewicz in 'Mank'. Netflix

David Fincher's black-and-white dissection of *Citizen Kane*'s inception stars Gary Oldman as the titular Herman "Mank" Mankiewicz in one of the actor's best (and quietest) later-era roles. Approached by Orson Welles (Tom Burke) to write a script for the young director's magnum opus, *Mank* returns to memories of his aborted friendship with William Randolph Hearst (Charles Dance) and his beloved Marion Davies (a brilliant, Oscar-nominated Amanda Seyfried).

*Mank*, from a long-gestating script by the director's late father, Jack Fincher, is a celebratory exploration of filmmaking. There are moments at which he indulges a satirical cynicism that will be familiar to his fans, but overall he seems to be in unironic awe of the art form to which he's devoted his life. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Mank*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** David Fincher

**Cast:** Gary Oldman, Amanda Seyfried, Tom Burke, Lily Collins, Charles Dance, Tom Pelphrey

Maria (2024)

Angelina Jolie as Maria Callas in 'Maria'.

Pablo Larrain/Netflix

Like director Pablo Larraín's previous biopics about famous 20th-century women (2016's *Jackie* and 2021's *Spencer*), this drama about renowned opera singer Maria Callas is less a traditional recounting of her life and more an examination of her damaged psyche. Angelina Jolie stars as Callas in the last seven days before her death, reminiscing about her tumultuous life and career fluctuations. It's a marvelous showcase for Jolie, who, as EW's critic writes, "employs her mystique to convey Maria's own air of detached mystery while also digging deep into the diva's psychological wounds." —*K.J.***

Where to watch *Maria*: Netflix

**EW grade:** A– (read the review)

**Director:** Pablo Larraín

**Cast:** Angelina Jolie, Pierfrancesco Favino, Alba Rohrwacher, Haluk Bilginer, Kodi Smit-McPhee

Marriage Story (2019)

Scarlett Johansson as Nicole Barber and Adam Driver as Charlie Barber in 'Marriage Story'. Wilson Webb/Netflix

Noah Baumbach's superb portrait of a once-loving marriage in decline, inspired in no small part by his own divorce from Jennifer Jason Leigh, stars Scarlett Johansson and Adam Driver as warring spouses who suffer myriad indignities throughout 137 minutes, most notably being forced to relocate to Los Angeles.

Baumbach is a master at crafting highly watchable films around fairly repugnant characters, so it's something of a surprise that *Marriage Story* contains the highest volume of empathetic people in any of his works to date. This is probably Baumbach's least caustic and most heartfelt work, a movie that paints realistic subjects in situations that are authentic, and, at times, harrowing. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Marriage Story*: Netflix

**EW grade:** A– (read the review)

**Director:** Noah Baumbach

**Cast:** Scarlett Johansson, Adam Driver, Laura Dern, Alan Alda, Ray Liotta, Julie Hagerty, Merritt Wever

The Mauritanian (2021)

Tahar Rahim as Mohamedou Ould Slahi in 'The Mauritanian'.

Graham Bartholomew/STXfilms

This harrowing drama recounts the harrowing true story of Mohamedou Ould Slahi, a Mauritanian man held at Guantanamo Bay for nearly 15 years without being charged following the events of 9/11. The film details the torture and abuse Slahi (Tahar Rahim) experienced while detained, and the efforts of lawyer Nancy Hollander (Jodie Foster, in a Golden Globe-winning performance) to secure him a fair trial. EW's critic notes, *The Mauritanian* "reaches for something not many Hollywood productions do: Telling a story centered not just the moral quandaries its Western characters face, but on the soul of the man at the center of it all." —*K.J.***

Where to watch *The Mauritanian*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** Kevin Macdonald

**Cast:** Tahar Rahim, Jodie Foster, Shailene Woodley, Benedict Cumberbatch

On the Basis of Sex (2018)

Felicity Jones as Ruth Bader Ginsburg in 'On the Basis of Sex'. Focus Features

Ruth Bader Ginsburg was an extraordinary woman, particularly in her fight for gender equality. This sturdy biopic, about the future Supreme Court Justice's early career, follows Ginsburg's (Felicity Jones) struggle to be taken seriously as a woman in the legal field and her taking on a case that would help create a precedent against sex discrimination. Writes EW's critic, "the film represents a noble attempt to showcase the roots of how deeply her efforts and passions would come to alter the fabric of American life." —*K.J.***

Where to watch *On the Basis of Sex*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** Mimi Leder

**Cast:** Felicity Jones, Armie Hammer, Justin Theroux, Sam Waterston, Kathy Bates

Roma (2018)

Yalitza Aparicio as Cleodegaria 'Cleo' Gutiérrez, Marco Graf as Pepe, Fernando Grediaga as Antonio, and Marina de Tavira as Sofía in 'Roma'. Carlos Somonte/Netflix

Inspired by his own childhood, Alfonso Cuarón's gorgeously designed, emotional portrait of a Mexico City family and their live-in domestic worker is remarkably intimate and astoundingly relatable, regardless of the audience's ages or where they grew up. Much like Greta Gerwig's *Lady Bird *(2017), *Roma *tells a focused story about a specific time and place which somehow paints a broad portrait of the entire world at this moment. It's a bold and invigorating piece of cinema that conjures and sustains a mysterious, warm yet dangerous mood for its duration. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Roma*: Netflix

**EW grade:** A (read the review)

**Director:** Alfonso Cuarón

**Cast:** Yalitza Aparicio, Marina de Tavira, Jorge Antonio Guerrero

Rustin (2023)

(From left to right): Gus Halper as Tom Kahn, CCH Pounder as Dr. Anna Hedgeman, Colman Domingo as Bayard Rustin, Melissa Rakiro as Yvette, Ayana Workman as Eleanor, Lilli Kay as Rochelle, and Jordan-Amanda Hall as Charlene in 'Rustin'.

Colman Domingo received a much-deserved Oscar nomination for his turn here as Bayard Rustin, a key adviser to Martin Luther King Jr. (Aml Ameen) who dedicated his life to the Civil Rights movement but was largely erased from history due to his homosexuality. Domingo and director George C. Wolfe (*Ma Rainey's Black Bottom*) take a rousing and rather imaginative approach to the material, which has been covered in many other projects but never quite from this perspective. Framed around King's famous "I Have a Dream" speech at the 1963 March on Washington, Wolfe's film is both an all-encompassing portrait of Rustin and that of the cause to which he dedicated his life. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Rustin*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** George C. Wolfe

**Cast:** Colman Domingo, Chris Rock, Jeffrey Wright, Glynn Turman, CCH Pounder, Da'Vine Joy Randolph, Audra McDonald

Scoop (2024)

Billie Piper as Sam McAlister in 'Scoop'.

An Emmy nominee for Outstanding Television Movie, *Scoop *dissects how the BBC program *Newsnight* landed its earth-shattering interview between Prince Andrew (Rufus Sewell) and Emily Maitlis (Gillian Anderson) over the now disgraced royal's long-standing relationship with Jeffrey Epstein.

*Scoop* is a compelling dramatization of an unbelievable true story that's still fairly recent history. It's a breathless newsroom thriller that clocks in at a perfectly modulated 102 minutes. Anderson steals scenes, but Billie Piper carries the film as *Newsnight* booker Sam McAlister, who works her bum off to secure Andrew's public self-immolation. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Scoop*: Netflix

**Director:** Philip Martin

**Cast:** Gillian Anderson, Keeley Hawes, Billie Piper, Rufus Sewell

Shirley (2024)

Regina King as Shirley Chisholm in 'Shirley'.

Glen Wilson/Netflix

John Ridley's galvanizing biopic stars Regina King as Shirley Chisholm, the first Black congresswoman in the United States who launched a 1972 bid for president. King's powerhouse performance, Ridley's keen visual direction, and the subject's exceptional mettle set *Shirley* apart from other biopics that struggle to find life. This is a vibrant and exceptionally lively film that celebrates Chisholm's singular accomplishments as it explains them to a new generation of viewers perhaps unfamiliar with her historical career. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Shirley*: Netflix

**Director:** John Ridley

**Cast:** Regina King, Lance Reddick, Lucas Hedges, Brian Stokes Mitchell, Christina Jackson, Michael Cherrie, André Holland, Terrence Howard

Society of the Snow (2023)

The cast of 'Society of the Snow'.

J.A. Bayona's harrowing film — about the infamous 1972 plane crash that stranded a Uruguayan rugby team in the Andes mountains — is a chilling account of the lengths one will go to live another day and a hopeful tribute to the resilience of the human spirit.

Bayona also directed 2012's *The Impossible*, which chronicled a family's attempts at reunion after being separated by the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami. Much like that film, *Society of the Snow *finds tremendous compassion in the most extreme circumstances. He grounds this picture with genuine heart, rewarding his viewers for what can at times be a gruesome watch that's among the most visceral and authentic survival pictures in recent memory. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Society of the Snow*: Netflix

**Director:** J.A. Bayona

**Cast:** Enzo Vogrincic, Matías Recalt, Agustín Pardella, Felipe González Otaño, Luciano Chatton, Valentino Alonso, Francisco Romero, Agustín Berruti, Andy Pruss, Simón Hempe, Juan Caruso, Esteban Bigliardi, Rocco Posca, Esteban Kukuriczka, Rafael Federman, Manuela Olivera, Agustín Della Corte, Tomas Wolf

Tick, Tick… BOOM! (2021)

Andrew Garfield as Jonathan Larson in 'Tick, Tick... BOOM!'. Macall B. Polay/Netflix

This Lin-Manuel Miranda-directed bio-drama profiles *Rent* scribe Jonathan Larson in an all-singing, all-dancing celebration of art and life itself which ranks among the finest works much of its cast has participated in. Larson penned the musical of the same name in 1990, six years before he died of an aortic dissection on the eve of *Rent*'s Off-Broadway debut. Played here by Andrew Garfield, Larson is given something of a second life through Miranda's film, in which he's able to live out the success and adulation that eluded him during his lifetime. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Tick, Tick… BOOM!*: Netflix

**EW grade:** A– (read the review)

**Director:** Lin-Manuel Miranda

**Cast:** Andrew Garfield, Alexandra Shipp, Robin de Jesús, Joshua Henry, Judith Light, Vanessa Hudgens

The Trial of the Chicago 7 (2020)

(Center, from left to right): Yahya Abdul-Mateen II as Bobby Seale, Mark Rylance as William Kunstler, Ben Shenkman as Leonard Weinglass, and Eddie Redmayne as Tom Hayden in 'The Trial of the Chicago 7'.

Niko Tavernise/Netflix

Aaron Sorkin's second directorial project (which, of course, he also wrote) details the infamous 1969 trial in which seven defendants were charged with conspiracy by the United States after participating in protests at the Chicago Democratic National Convention.

More visually dynamic and emotionally nuanced than *Molly's Game* but equally thrilling, *Chicago 7* is an ambitious work that straddles satire and genuine sentiment. But this Sorkin project has a superior relevance and heft as, more than 50 years after the events depicted, the country continues to find itself in flux. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The Trial of the Chicago 7*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B (read the review)

**Director:** Aaron Sorkin

**Cast:** Eddie Redmayne, Sacha Baron Cohen, Jeremy Strong, Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, Mark Rylance, Frank Langella, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Michael Keaton

The Two Popes (2019)

Anthony Hopkins as Pope Benedict XVI and Jonathan Pryce as Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio in 'The Two Popes'. Peter Mountain/Netflix

Jonathan Pryce and Anthony Hopkins each earned Oscar nominations for their turns as Cardinal Bergoglio (the future Pope Francis) and Pope Benedict XVI, respectively. Following the Vatican leaks and Benedict's tainted legacy, Bergoglio aims to deliver his resignation but is met with resistance by the acting Pope, who has other plans for the Cardinal.

With heavy dialogue and closed settings, Fernando Meirelles' film is clearly adapted from a play (Anthony McCarten's *The Pope*, to be exact), but it never feels unduly contained or claustrophobic. *The Two Popes* is a masterclass in performance from two veterans of the form, one wise enough to clear the aisles so they may do what they do best without any distraction. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *The Two Popes*: Netflix

**EW grade:** B+ (read the review)

**Director:** Fernando Meirelles

**Cast:** Jonathan Pryce, Anthony Hopkins

Wicked Little Letters (2024)

Olivia Colman as Edith Swan and Jessie Buckley as Rose Gooding in 'Wicked Little Letters'.

Sony Classics Pictures

Olivia Colman and Jessie Buckley star as former friends who find themselves embroiled in a legal case regarding some creatively profane letters terrorizing a sleepy English village. In addition to being a properly funny, pleasingly irreverent comedy featuring stupendous turns from two of the best actors working today, *Wicked Little Letters* is also a tense mystery. Director Thea Sharrock wields a confident hand, never letting the humor get too broad or allowing the suspense (and some unexpected tragedy) to overtake the tone. —*D.G.*

Where to watch *Wicked Little Letters*: Netflix

**Director:** Thea Sharrock

**Cast:** Olivia Colman, Jessie Buckley, Anjana Vasan, Joanna Scanlan, Gemma Jones, Malachi Kirby, Lolly Adefope, Eileen Atkins, Timothy Spall

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