December 2022’s Best Streaming Titles: Zoolander, The Royal Tenenbaums, Blade Runner, Knives Out
Ben Stiller’s fashion satire, Wes Anderson’s dysfunctional family, replicants, Benoit Blanc’s latest mystery, and more.
As Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Prime, et al. add more content, it can be difficult to know what to look for amidst all of the newly added titles. So I’ve compiled a list of particularly noteworthy and interesting movies, TV shows, etc. to add to your streaming queues in the new month.
Amazon Prime Video
Capote (Dec 1)
After hearing about the brutal murder of a Kansas family, acclaimed author Truman Capote becomes fascinated by the story, and insists on traveling to Kansas to document it for his next book (which would eventually become In Cold Blood). The late Philip Seymour Hoffman gives a bravura performance as Capote, as he portrays the author as a charming and talented man who is not above using manipulation to achieve his own selfish goals for fame.
Thief (Dec 1)
Written and directed by Michael Mann (Heat, The Insider, Miami Vice), this cult noir classic from 1981 stars James Caan as a jewel thief who lives a tightly structured life. Ultra-moody and heavily stylized, as is Mann’s wont, Thief also boasts a score by German electronic geniuses Tangerine Dream.
True Grit (Dec 1)
When a young girl’s father is brutally murdered, she seeks justice with the help of Rooster Cogburn, an aging U.S. Marshal. But will the unlikely pair survive their travels as well as the vicious criminals they’re seeking to apprehend? One of John Wayne’s signature movies (he won an Oscar for his performance), True Grit was based on Charles Portis’ novel — which was also adapted by the Coen Brothers in 2010, with Jeff Bridges starring as Cogburn.
Zoolander (Dec 1)
Derek Zoolander used to be the world’s top model, but when he’s replaced by younger, cooler model, he hits rock bottom — and lands in the middle of a conspiracy to assassinate a foreign leader who threatens the fashion industry’s reliance on child labor. Written and directed by Ben Stiller, who also stars as the titular supermodel, this satire of the fashion industry features cameos from numerous fashion legends including Tyson Beckford, Tom Ford, Fabio, Tommy Hilfiger, Heidi Klum, and Karl Lagerfeld.