Netflix subscribers should be happy to hear that the streamer’s February lineup has a good mix of critically acclaimed films and crowd-pleasing movies.
Sometimes those categories will overlap with the high-ranked movies on Rotten Tomatoes.
Watch With Us has checked every film coming to the streamer to find the three new Netflix movies with at least 90 percent on Rotten Tomatoes in February.
This month’s picks include a romantic drama in the White House, the hunt for an infamous terrorist and a cautionary tale about AI.
‘The American President’ (1995)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 90
The American President was kind of like a dress rehearsal for The West Wing, both of which were written by Aaron Sorkin. West Wing star Martin Sheen even has a costarring appearance in this film. Director Rob Reiner treats the material as a romantic drama, and lead star Michael Douglas has one of his most likable roles ever as President Andrew Shepherd.
Andrew is a widower who never found love after the death of his wife. At least not until he meets environmental lobbyist Sydney Ellen Wade (Annette Bening). Being with Sydney makes Andrew feel whole again, but it also opens him up to attacks from his political rival, Senator Bob Rumson (Richard Dreyfuss), when the President is up for reelection. Sydney’s agenda to protect the environment may also conflict with the political realities that Andrew has to accept if he wants to maintain his office for another term. Is there room for a happy ending when the stakes are this high for both Andrew and Sydney?
The American President is streaming on Netflix.
‘Zero Dark Thirty’ (2012)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 91
There aren’t many political action thrillers, but Zero Dark Thirty lives up to that description as it dramatizes the hunt for terrorist leader Osama bin Laden just over a year after it concluded in real life. Before emerging as a star in his own right, Chris Pratt has a supporting role in this flick as Justin Lenihan, an operator for the Naval Special Warfare Development Group. But this film really belongs to Jessica Chastain.
CIA analyst Maya (Chastain) spends nearly a decade chasing leads about bin Laden’s whereabouts, and making more than a few ethical compromises to get results. Bin Laden’s operatives are willing to kill and die to protect his secrets, and not even Maya’s inner circle is immune to the threat that they represent.
Zero Dark Thirty is streaming on Netflix.
‘Ex Machina’ (2015)
Rotten Tomatoes Score: 92
Alicia Vikander‘s Ava is the most prominent female character in Ex Machina, which is ironic because she’s not female or even human. Ava is an artificial intelligence housed in an android body who presents itself as both female and human, and that’s the alarming thing for Blue Book CEO Nathan Bateman (Oscar Isaac). Ava is so convincing that she can potentially pass as a person.
At the request of Nathan, Blue Book programmer Caleb Smith (Domhnall Gleeson) is invited to a remote compound to see if he can relate to Ava even if he knows ahead of time what she really is. What neither Nathan nor Caleb could have predicted is that Ava has already picked up on the human art of subterfuge, and she may master that skill while manipulating Caleb towards her ultimate goal.
Ex Machina is streaming on Netflix.
Read the full article here
