Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter
I'm finally back from my annual leave, so it's time to give this guide a much-needed update. This week, I've added Find Me Falling and The Imaginary to this article's July section, removed any films that haven't been released in the last month or so, and updated the guide's 'coming soon' section with the latest intel available to me. Phew!
Welcome to TechRadar's new Netflix movies article. Below, you'll find a list of the most notable new movies that have debuted on the streaming service since late June, including numerous Netflix Originals and a few licensed flicks that I consider to be unmissable.
If, for some reason, none of the listed films tickle your fancy, I'd recommend you read TechRadar's best Netflix movies piece for an even bigger selection of top-tier flicks. You should also check our TechRadar's new on Netflix in July 2024 guide if you're after further recommendations, especially of the TV show and/or documentary variety, on the world's best streaming service. Bookmark those pages for later, though, and read on to see if any of July's new Netflix movies pique your interest first.
New Netflix movies: July
Find Me Falling
Release date: July 19
Runtime: 93 minutes
Age rating: R (US) / 15 (UK)
Cast: Harry Connick Jr, Agni Scott, Ali Fumiko Whitney, and Clarence Smith
Director: Stelana Kliris
Rotten Tomatoes (RT) score: 29% (critics); TBC (audience)
Yet another damp squib of a Netflix rom-com, Find Me Falling stars Connick Jr as Johnny Allman, a washed-up rock star who takes a break from the music scene by holing himself on Cyprus to re-energize himself. Unfortunately for Allman, distractions – including the re-emergence of an old flame in Scott's Sia – prevent him from re-finding his creative spark.
Initial reviews have not been kind to this one, with critics labeling it "predictable" and a film that "invokes no feelings in the viewers". You might have more fun checking out season 6 of middling reality TV series Too Hot to Handle than Find Me Falling, then...
Watch Find Me Falling on Netflix.
The Imaginary
Release date: July 5
Runtime: 108 minutes
Age rating: PG (US and UK)
Cast: Louie Rudge-Buchanan, Evie Kiszel, Hayley Atwell, Sky Katz, and Jeremy Swift
Director: Yoshiyuki Momose
RT score: 91% (critics); 81% (audience)
Another acclaimed Netflix animated flick, The Imaginary, which is based on A.F. Harrold's 2014 novel of the same name, is the first feature from beloved animation company Studio Ponoc since 2017. It tells the tale of Rudiger (Rudge-Buchanan), an invisible boy created by Amanda (Kiszel), a young girl who's struggling to cope after a tragedy befalls her, and the adventures the pair share.
Narratively or creatively, it's not a patch on most Studio Ghibli films, but The Imaginary is an endearing story that does more to examine the concept of imaginary friends (and what happens to them when we grow up) than Paramount Pictures' IF did earlier this year. One of July's new Netflix movies is gorgeous to look at, too, which always helps to sell animated movies to, well, anyone.
Watch The Imaginary on Netflix.
Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F
Release date: July 3
Runtime: 115 minutes
Age rating: R (US) / 15 (UK)
Cast: Eddie Murphy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Taylour Paige, Judge Reinhold, John Ashton, and Kevin Bacon
Director: Mark Molloy
RT score: 66% (critics); 78% (audience)
30 years after the action-comedy franchise's last entry, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F reunites audiences with Eddie Murphy's titular, fast-talking detective for more 80s-inspired police chases, firefights, humor, and California vibes. This time, Axel Foley teams up with new and old faces to unravel a conspiracy after his daughter's life is threatened.
A decades-later sequel that, unlike some of its contemporaries, actually brings the heat, Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F had our reviewers feeling nostalgic for an action-packed era they never experienced. A fresh and familiar take on the buddy cop formula that might convince Netflix to greenlight more adventures for the renegade law enforcer with a mercurial talent for never shutting up.
Watch Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F on Netflix.
Original Spider-Man film trilogy
![SPIDER-MAN [2002] – Official Trailer (HD) - YouTube](https://img.youtube.com/vi/t06RUxPbp_c/maxresdefault.jpg)
Release date: July 1
Runtime: 116 minutes to 133 minutes
Age rating: PG-13 (US) / 12 (UK)
Cast: Tobey Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, James Franco, Willem Dafoe, Alfred Molina, Thomas Haden Church, and Topher Grace
Director: Sam Raimi
RT score: 63% to 93% (critics); 51% to 82% (audience)
Sam Raimi's Spider-Man trilogy pioneered a lot of what we see in many Marvel, DC, and more of the best superhero movies today. Okay, they've aged slightly since their initial releases, and they can come off as somewhat goofy, campy, and a tad misogynistic. But, they're everything a comic book movie should be – thematically rich, funny, action-packed, narratively dark when needed, gorgeous to look at, and come equipped with a banging score and original soundtrack.
With scintillating performances from Maguire, Kirsten Dunst, Willem Dafoe, and Alfred Molina (in Spider-Man and Spider-Man 2 in particular), the webslinger's first live-action films laid the foundations for many of its contemporaries, and proved there was a space for comic book films to thrive on the big screen.
(NB: UK viewers can watch them on Sky/Now TV. Australian fans can watch Spider-Man on Foxtel/Binge/Stan, and its two sequels on that trio as well as Netflix).
Watch 2002's Spider-Man on Netflix.
The Back to the Future movie collection
Release date: July 1
Runtime: 107 minutes to 118 minutes
Age rating: PG (US) / 12 (UK)
Cast: Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd, Crispin Glover, Lea Thompson, and Tom Wilson
Director: Robert Zemeckis
RT score: 63% to 93% (critics); 78% to 95% (audience)
One of the best and most consistently great sci-fi trilogies ever made, the Back to the Future films are tailormade flicks for fans of all ages. In fact, I'd consider them to be not only genuinely terrific comfort viewing, but also worth watching on an annual basis. For the uninitiated: Fox plays Marty McFly, a teen who gets sent back to various points in the past by Doc Brown's (Lloyd) insanely cool-looking, car-based DeLorean time machine. Each movie sees McFly venture to a different time period to save Brown, get caught up in all sorts of hijinks, and try not to alter anything that'll impact the pair's future.
A funny, heartfelt, action-packed, and wholly innovative series of sci-fi films, the Back to the Future franchise is must-see. Just try to ignore what the second movie thought 2015 would look like!
(NB: UK fans can stream them on Sky/Now TV. Australian viewers can watch them on Paramount Plus, Foxtel, and Binge).
Watch Back to the Future on Netflix.
American Psycho
Release date: July 1
Runtime: 103 minutes
Age rating: R (US) / 18 (UK)
Cast: Christian Bale, Willem Dafoe, Jared Leto, Reese Witherspoon, and Samantha Mathis
Director: Mary Harron
RT score: 68% (critics); 85% (audience)
Less than a decade before the donned Batman's famous cape and cowl, Bale made a name for himself by having the time of his life in this dark comedy-thriller. In it, he plays Patrick Bateman, a young professional who lives a second life as a horrifying serial killer by night.
A ferocious and wry black comedy masquerading as a gruesome horror, American Psycho's thematic exploration, iconic and meme-worthy scenes, and electrifying performance from Bale were worth the admission fee alone. Stick this on your new Netflix movies watchlist, and thank me later once you've been left enthralled and scarred by it.
(NB: UK audiences can stream it on MGM Plus and Channel 4. Australian fans can also watch it on Stan/Netflix).
Watch American Psycho on Netflix.
New Netflix movies: June
A Family Affair
Release date: June 28
Runtime: 113 minutes
Age rating: PG-13 (US) / 12 (UK)
Cast: Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, and Joey King
Director: Richard LaGravenese
RT score: 36% (critics); 31% (audience)
Romantic comedies are all the rage on Netflix recently, and A Family Affair is yet another bang average film offering from the streaming giant. King plays Zara, whose mother Brooke (Kidman) becomes romantically entangled with Zara's self-absorbed Hollywood star boss Chris Cole (Efron) – an incident that, according to Netflix, leads to plenty of comedic moments.
Fans of the movie's leading trio will likely enjoy what's on offer, as will anyone entertained by rom-com tropes and easy-to-watch flicks with unsubstantial narratives. Everyone else, though, will want to give it a wide berth.
Watch A Family Affair on Netflix.
New Netflix movies: what's coming in 2024?
Here's a list of new Netflix movies you'll see on the service before the year ends:
- Rebel Moon – Chapter One: Chalice of Blood (August 2)
- Rebel Moon – Chapter Two: Curse of Forgiveness (August 2)
- Saving Bikini Bottom: The Sandy Cheeks Movie (August 2)
- The Union (August 16)
- Incoming (August 23)
- The Deliverance (August 30)
- The Uglies (September 13)
- His Three Daughters (September 20)
- The Platform 2 (October 4)
- Family Pack (October, date TBC)
- Back in Action (November 15)
- Spellbound (November 22)
- Carry-On (November, date TBC)
- That Christmas (December, date TBC)
- The Electric State (expected 2024)
- Joy (expected 2024)
- Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (expected 2024)
- The Witcher: Sirens of the Deep (expected 2024)
For more Netflix-based coverage, read our best Netflix shows and best Netflix documentaries guides. Alternatively, find out how to sign up to Netflix or get the lowdown on whether it's worth cancelling your Netflix subscription.
