See ‘Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning' in theaters, rent ‘Cheech & Chong's Last Movie,' stream ‘Fountain of Youth' and more movies to watch this weekend

Hello, Yahoo Entertainment readers! I'm Brett Arnold, a longtime writer and editor at Yahoo and film critic for my podcast, Roger (Ebert) & Me, and welcome to Trust Me, I Watch Everything. I'm here to recommend what you should see in movie theaters, rent from the comfort of your couch or queue up from a streaming service you may already subscribe to. I watch it all so you don't have to. There are so many great picks — a new Mission: Impossible, Friendship, The Legend of Ochi, Fountain of Youth, Mickey 17, and more — it's safe to say there's something here for everyone.
What to watch in theaters
Movies newly available to rent or buy
Movies debuting on streaming services you may already have
Movies newly available on streaming services you may already have
My recommendation:
Why you should watch it: Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning spends much of its runtime reiterating that Tom Cruise's Ethan Hunt is the only person on the planet with the abilities necessary to save the world. Essentially, in this eighth installment of the franchise, the superagent is utilizing old-school practical 'analog' stunt work to defeat the all-powerful AI-algorithm known as the Entity, which was introduced in the previous film, that can be read as 'Tom Cruise isn't going to let Netflix or Warner Bros. sending their theatrical movies to streaming during the pandemic kill 'the movies.'' This one even takes its real-life metaphor a step further, getting into misinformation and how the algorithm is making us all distrust each other with weaponized lies.
Allegories aside, it's a Mission: Impossible movie and it absolutely delivers where it matters. The movie builds to two giant set pieces and both stunts are jaw-dropping, heart-skip-a-beat breathtaking, with the plane-wing-walking finale ending things on what's likely a series high.
The highs are so satisfying to watch that they almost make you forget that the first hour of this movie is all montage and exposition and completely expendable. It also falls into the same trap of the previous entry in trying to add legacy sequel elements and clumsily tie all 29-years of movies together, which provides some laugh-out-loud moments that likely weren't intended to be funny. There is a payoff to a throwaway line of dialogue from the very first movie here that's such a great gag, it won me over.
So while it may rank towards the bottom of the franchise overall, that speaks more to the quality of the series than how 'bad' this one is. A weak Mission: Impossible movie is still better than 99% of the blockbusters Hollywood churns out these days.
🍿 What critics are saying: Critics lean positive but are pretty mixed, with a Rotten Tomatoes score of 79%. Lindsay Bahr at the AP agrees 'that in attempting to tie everything together, Mission: Impossible lost the plot.' Rolling Stone's David Fear was kinder, saying the movie 'feels like a conclusion to 30 years worth of proving that yes, you still can conjure up a certain vintage strain of Hollywood magic.'
👀 How to watch: Mission: Impossible — The Final Reckoning is now in theaters nationwide.
Get tickets
➕ Bonus recommendation:
Why you should watch it: The comedy of Tim Robinson is definitely not for everyone, but those that do appreciate his comedy rabidly anticipate his work, and his beloved Netflix sketch comedy series I Think You Should Leave has become something of an obsession for its devotees. If you've ever watched that show and wondered, 'could one of these deranged characters ever anchor a feature-length film?" we now have an answer, and it's, quite surprisingly, a yes!
Everybody's comparing Friendship to I Love You, Man, which makes sense given the premise and the fact that Paul Rudd costars in both, but a better point of comparison might be The Cable Guy. It's about a suburban dad (Robinson) with an unsatisfied wife (Kata Mara) and a kid who thinks he's a loser befriending his super cool neighbor (Rudd) and becoming a little too into him, alienating him and his other pals along the way.
It's laugh-out-loud hilarious throughout if you find Robinson's antics amusing, and likely aggravating if you don't. It also features probably the funniest drug trip sequence of all time, a wonderful subversion of the comedy trope.
🍿 What critics are saying: Critics love it, with 90% on Rotten Tomatoes; Chase Hutchinson at the Wrap goes so far as calling it 'the year's best comedy.' Though Robinson's brand of humor is definitely divisive, with Time's Stephanie Zacharek aptly summarizing the average nonbeliever view: 'How much Tim Robinson is too much? Maybe the exact amount you get in Friendship.'
👀 How to watch: After a limited release in early May, Friendship is now in theaters nationwide.
Get tickets
🤔 If those aren't for you...
:A perfectly OK Disney live-action remake of a modern-classic cartoon, with fun performances and affecting emotional beats that still land, but it never justifies why you shouldn't just watch the way-nicer-to-look-at, hand-drawn original — get tickets.
: Neal McDonough stars in a movie he also cowrote about a retired rodeo star entering a high-stakes bull-riding competition to raise money to save his sick grandson. It's serviceable but a bit too contrived; Chloe Zhao's The Rider tells a similar story more effectively — get tickets.
My recommendation:
Why you should watch it: The Legend of Ochi tells a familiar tale with enough style and practical effects-based magic that it makes up for a relative lack of substance. In fact, it's basically just Lilo & Stitch, which itself was riffing on E.T. The Extra-Terrestrial. In a remote village on the island of Carpathia, a shy farm girl named Yuri is raised to fear an elusive animal species known as ochi. But when Yuri discovers a wounded baby ochi has been left behind, she escapes on a quest to bring him home.
What makes it stand out is the incredible designs of the creatures and the use of puppetry and animatronics to bring them to life. It's such a beautiful and striking-looking film that even though its attempt at an emotional payoff didn't really land for me, I still felt like watching this was time well spent. It's also just nice to see a live-action movie for children! We don't really get those anymore and instead have to settle for CGI-animated everything.
🍿 What critics are saying: According to Rotten Tomatoes, 77% of critics dug it, with Jesse Hassenger at the Guardian calling the film 'an anomaly in a world where US children's films are so intent on prodding and goading their audiences into predetermined reactions.
👀 How to watch: The Legend of Ochi is now available to rent or purchase on digital and on-demand.
Rent or buy
🤔 If that's not for you...
:An unexpectedly honest, moving and informative documentary exploring the 5-decade career of the iconic comedy duo. Now available to rent or buy.
: An adaptation of the video game of the same name that doesn't require any knowledge of its source material to enjoy. A fun, self-aware horror flick in the vein of Cabin of the Woods that cleverly subverts tropes. Now available to rent or buy.
My recommendation:
Why you should watch it: Fountain of Youthproves that all you need to make your streaming movie stand out from the pack is to hire a competent director like Guy Ritchie to make it. Casting Natalie Portman doesn't hurt either! Like Ochi, the movie is a derivative of a derivative — it's literally just a more international take on National Treasure, which itself is a facsimile of an Indiana Jones adventure. It's about John Krasinski's character forcing his estranged sister (Portman) to reunite with him for a treasure-hunting adventure to find the fabled fountain of youth. Thanks to Ritchie, the action sequences pop and it's a relatively breezy watch, despite the lack of originality. It's good enough, and even if I'll never watch it again, it gets points for using several exotic on-location sites.
🍿 What critics are saying: Critics were mixed-negative, with a scant 44% on RottenTomatoes. Jordan Hoffman at Entertainment Weekly isn't wrong when he writes that the movie "feels like a light snack instead of a full meal." Kate Erbland at Indiewire was more positive, agreeing that "you could do far worse with a streaming subscription price."
👀 How to watch: Fountain of Youth is now streaming on Apple TV+.
Stream 'Fountain of Youth'
🤔 If that's not for you...
: The fourth entry in the Fear Street franchise, and the first since the original trilogy rolled out one week after another in 2021, adapts the R.L. Stine book of the same name. Now streaming on Netflix.
Stream 'Fear Street: Prom Queen'
My sort-of recommendation: Mickey 17
Why you should watch it: Mickey 17 is South Korean filmmaker Bong Joon Ho's follow-up to his Best Picture-winning Parasite. This, unfortunately, looks to be a classic case of a director cashing in his blank check from Hollywood after a big win at the Oscars.
Based on the 2022 novel Mickey7, Mickey 17 is a science-fiction film set in the year 2054 that follows a man, played by Robert Pattinson, who joins a space colony as an "Expendable," a disposable worker who gets cloned every time he dies for research purposes. The film is at its best when it leans into the humor regarding these deaths, highlighting the Mickey character's buffoonery and the various ways scientists experiment on him. It's at its worst when Mark Ruffalo and Toni Collette are chewing scenery as the villains.
The movie pivots in the third act to something completely different, aligning itself more with Bong's environmental message-heavy effort Okja than the rip-roaring excitement of something like Snowpiercer, which balanced its class-conscious satire with thrills in a more compelling fashion. Mickey 17 is unwieldy, but the setup is fun enough, as is watching Pattinson play against himself when Mickey 18 rears his head. Watching it for free on streaming feels like the right move.
🍿 What critics are saying: Many are kinder to Mickey 17 than I am — it's got a 77% on Rotten Tomatoes. The Atlantic's Shirley Yi praised Pattinson, saying 'the actor's delightfully offbeat performance anchors the story in an endearing humanity.' Variety's Peter DeBruge says the plot 'is easy enough to follow, though the film insists on making it more complicated.'
👀 How to watch: Mickey 17 is now streaming on HBO Max.
Stream 'Mickey 17'
➕ Bonus recommendation:
Why you should watch it: The Surrender is an indie horror movie that does a great job of setting up its basic plot before delivering the spooky goods. When the family patriarch dies, a grieving mother and daughter risk their lives to perform a brutal resurrection ritual and bring him back from the dead. Yes, this is yet another movie that could be described as familiar but its unique character dynamics and great performances make it feel alive. It's an incredibly strong debut from director Julia Max, boasting impressive visuals as well as deeper questions about family and the things we ignore. Not every demonic possession flick is created equal; this is a solid one!
🍿 What critics are saying: 84% of critics on Rotten Tomatoes enjoyed it, though Lena Wilson at IGN thought the familial drama in the first half worked, but that the horror element didn't.
👀 How to watch: The Surrender is now streaming on Shudder.
Stream 'The Surrender'
🤔 If those aren't for you...
Flight Risk: Mark Wahlberg stars as a bad guy hijacking a plane carrying a fugitive witness in this action flick directed by Mel Gibson. Starts streaming Saturday on Starz.
The Last Showgirl: Pamela Anderson earned acclaim and nominations for her performance in Gia Coppola's film about a Las Vegas showgirl who must plan for her future. Now streaming on Hulu.
That's all for this week — we'll see you next Friday at the movies!

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Learn with AIFact CheckingText to SpeechAI Summary

Related Articles

Tom's Guide

3 hours ago

• Tom's Guide

Netflix is losing 41 movies this month — here's the 5 you need to stream now

The Netflix movie library is constantly rotating. While the streaming service adds plenty of new flicks each month, it also removes some old favorites to make room. On June 30, 2025, Netflix will remove more than 40 movies from its platform. These cover pretty much all genres, from family-friendly adventures like 'The SpongeBob Movie: Sponge Out of Water' to jump-scare-landed horror like 'The Nun.' The platform is also removing the complete 'Twilight' saga, so if you want to relive your angst-ridden teen years, you've got only a few days left. While some of the soon-to-be-removed movies probably won't be missed by many subscribers, there's a healthy handful that I'm sad to see go. But don't worry — you've still got a little time to watch because the month isn't over yet. These are the five Netflix movies you should stream right now before they head to the great streaming service in the sky. 'Crazy, Stupid, Love.' is unquestionably one of the most beloved rom-coms of the 21st century. It's not hard to see why, either. Any movie that brings together Steve Carell, Emma Stone, Ryan Gosling and Julianne Moore, flaked by John Carroll Lynch, Marisa Tomei and Kevin Bacon, is going to be a hotbed of lovable charm and charisma. Plus, that third-act scene (you know the one) seems to go viral literally every single week, for good reason. This easy-watching comedy opens with Cal Weaver (Carell) discovering his wife (Moore) is having an affair. Thrust back into single life and very out of practice when it comes to dating, a younger hotshot womanizer (Gosling) takes Cal under his wing. But his bar-hopping commitaphobe starts to change his ways when he begins to fall for one of his hook-ups named Hannah (Stone). Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Genuinely funny, surprisingly romantic and effortlessly warm, it's an almost perfect rom-com. Watch on Netflix until June 30, 2025 One of 2024's very best movies is making its exit from Netflix this month. 'Dune Part Two' is another sci-fi masterpiece from Denis Villeneuve, and it gives even 'The Lord of the Rings' a run for its money when it comes to epic scale. This sprawling blockbuster combines intergalactic politicking with deeply compelling characters and a hair-raising sense of spectacle. I thought Villeneuve's first 'Dune' movie was a remarkable achievement, but 'Part Two' raises the bar even further. And I've not even touched upon the ludicrously stacked cast, incorporating more than a dozen recognizable A-list names from Timothée Chalamet and Zendaya to Rebecca Ferguson and Javier Bardem. In the wake of the fall of House Atreides (as depicted in 2021's 'Dune'), Paul (Chalamet) has united with the Fremen clan, as he seeks to liberate the desert planet of Arrakis from the treacherous forces that betrayed his family. Struggling with his supposed destiny to become a great leader who will determine the fate of the universe, he also begins to fall in love with a Fremen rebel, Chani (Zendaya). Gripping from the drop, 'Dune: Part Two' is incredible. Watch on Netflix until June 30, 2025 With the franchise reboot on the horizon (it's set to arrive in theatres this summer), now is a great time to rewatch, or get familiar with, the '90s original. 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' is an archetypal slasher, the type of horror movie that 'Scream' was lampooning just a year prior, and was thoroughly mocked in the first 'Scary Movie.' Yet while it sticks to all the genre conventions, 'I Know What You Did Last Summer' remains an enjoyably silly popcorn-muncher, and there's enough bloody fun to keep you hooked throughout. The movie centers on a group of friends who accidentally hit a pedestrian following a beach trip to celebrate July 4. They swear a pact to hide the body and never speak of the incident again. However, a year later, one of the group, Julie (Jennifer Love Hewitt), receives a letter telling her that somebody knows what they did, and the mystery sender wants revenge. Also starring Sarah Michelle Gellar and Freddie Prinze Jr., it's a pretty cheesy, yet enjoyable watch. Watch on Netflix until June 30, 2025 Netflix is removing the entire original 'Ocean's' trilogy this month, so now is the perfect time for a movie marathon full of gripping heists and larger-than-life characters. Directed by Steven Soderbergh (whose new movie 'Black Bag' is one of the year's best to date), and a remake of the 1960s Rat Pack crowd-pleaser of the same name, it stars a legendary crew of 2000s top-tier talent including George Clooney, Brad Pitt, Matt Damon, Jula Roberts and Casey Affleck. Clooney plays the leader of the group, Danny Ocean, a career criminal who uses his charms to rob those he believes deserve their comeuppance. Alongside partner in crime Rusty (Pitt), he brings together a sophisticated group of thieves to pull off a seriously audacious heist. The plan is to rob three of Las Vegas' biggest casinos in one swoop, and the stakes are extra personal because the owner of these gambling establishments happens to be dating Danny's ex-wife, Tess (Roberts). Watch on Netflix until June 30, 2025 'The Equalizer 3' has enjoyed a fruitful run on Netflix, holding the No. 1 spot for several weeks when it first arrived on the streaming service in early 2024. Since then, it's always been in and around the top 10, but all good things must come to an end, and Netflix will soon lose one of Denzel Washington's best action efforts to date. For anybody who (foolishly) doubts it, 'The Equalizer 3' again confirms Washington's status as the coolest man in Hollywood. The second sequel to the 2014 original sees Washington return as Robert McCall, a former Marine and government assassin who now protects the vulnerable in society who are unable to defend themselves. Having moved to southern Italy to escape his past actions, McCall's sun-soaked retirement is short-lived when he's forced back into the field to save his new friends from a local mafia boss, who might be McCall's most ruthless foe yet. Watch on Netflix until June 30, 2025

Tom's Guide

5 hours ago

• Tom's Guide

5 best new movies to stream this weekend on Max, Netflix, Disney Plus, and more

Another weekend means a fresh wave of new movies across the best streaming services just arrived, including some of this year's biggest blockbusters. But figuring out what to watch with so much to choose from can quickly become a headache. That's why we regularly comb through all the new movies on streaming to highlight the best of the bunch. The biggest newcomer this week is easily "A Minecraft Movie" on Max, though my top pick would have to be 'Final Destination Bloodlines' arriving on premium video-on-demand streaming platforms. On Netflix, you can check out 'Kpop Demon Hunters," a fun and vibrant new animated adventure from the studio behind the "Spider-Verse" films. Over on Disney Plus, there's a new live-action musical version of "Frozen" with new songs from the original movie's songwriters. Lastly, Paramount Plus has a millennia-spanning love story starring Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun called "Love Me." So if you're looking for what to watch this weekend, your search is over. Here are our picks for the best new movies on streaming to add to your watchlist. Working as a prequel and a sequel, the long-awaited sixth "Final Destination" film reinvigorates the franchise by taking its iconic premise to a new level: If death hunts down those who cheat fate, what happens when those survivors have children? While this generational angle adds a fun new layer, "Bloodlines" still delivers on all the inventive gore and over-the-top kills that fans have come to expect. Get instant access to breaking news, the hottest reviews, great deals and helpful tips. Like every movie in the series, "Bloodlines" kicks off with a jaw-dropping premonition where a character foresees a deadly catastrophe and manages to save a few would-be victims. The twist this time is that a survivor's grandchild, college student Stefani Reyes (Kaitlyn Santa Juana), finds herself in the crosshairs when death comes to collect his dues. The time gap works in the film's favor, making the familiar formula of death stalking survivors feel fresh again for one of the best entries in the series since "Final Destination 2." Buy or rent now on Amazon or Apple Parents everywhere can breathe a sigh of relief: you don't have to brave the Chicken Jockey frenzy in theaters to see "A Minecraft Movie" anymore, now that it's landed on Max. Whether you find this year's biggest blockbuster delightfully entertaining or an exhausting barrage of meme fodder depends on your taste, but it's hard to deny the cultural impact it's had. Jason Momoa, Danielle Brooks, Emma Myers, and Sebastian Hansen star as a scrappy group of misfits who stumble through a portal into the pixelated world of Minecraft. To survive their blocky new world, their imagination will be put to the test as they team up with Steve (Jack Black), a seasoned crafter who's been stuck there for decades. Director Jared Hess ("Napoleon Dynamite") brings his signature offbeat humor, while Jack Black once again proves he's a comedic powerhouse capable of winning over a whole new generation of kids. Stream it now on Max What happens when a chart-topping music genre crashes headfirst into an animated realm crawling with soul-sucking demons? That's what we'll find out in "KPop Demon Hunters," Netflix's latest animated adventure. It's from the same animation studio behind the "Spider-Verse" films and "The Mitchells vs. the Machines," so if nothing else, this promises to be a stunning feast for the eyes. "KPop Demon Hunters" follows superstars Rumi (voiced by Arden Cho), Mira (May Hong), and Zoey (Ji-young Yoo), who split their time between selling out stadiums and (what else?) slaying demons. But they're faced with their biggest challenge yet when a rival boy band turns out to be a group of demons in disguise. With the souls of their fans at stake, not to mention their reputation, the idols gear up to slay the day. Watch it now on Netflix Anyone counting down the days until "Wicked: For Good" will be excited to learn that one of Disney's most popular movies of all time, "Frozen," is getting the "Hamilton" treatment on Disney Plus. The musical tells the same story as the animated film, only in a live stage format. You'd be forgiven for thinking this is the Broadway version based on the title, but it's actually a taping of the show's West End production at Theatre Royal Drury Lane in London, which ran from 2021 to 2024. The show features 12 new songs written exclusively for the musical by Kristen Anderson-Lopez and Robert Lopez, who co-wrote the songs for both "Frozen" and "Frozen 2." And of course, there's still all the original earworms from the movie, only this time with "Pretty Woman: The Musical" star Samantha Barks belting out "Let It Go" instead of Idina Menzel. Watch it now on Disney Plus For an offbeat romantic drama with a heavy helping of sci-fi, look no further than Kristen Stewart and Steven Yeun's "Love Me." Set in a future where humanity has gone extinct, it follows an unexpected duo: a weather buoy (voiced by Stewart) that becomes self-aware after a brief encounter with a passing satellite (Yeun). Yearning for a sense of self, the buoy calls itself 'Me' and dubs the satellite 'Iam.' Me persuades Iam to study the remnants of the internet with her to better understand what it means to be human. Though Iam doesn't realize it, Me begins to construct new identities for them both based on social media posts from a once-living couple. As their bond evolves into something that resembles love, the cracks in their borrowed identities as well as their growing connection begin to show. Watch it now on Paramount Plus

Forbes

6 hours ago

• Forbes

‘KPop Demon Hunters' Arrives On Netflix With Stellar Critics' Score

Mira (voice by May Hong), Rumi (voice by Arden Cho) and Zoey (voice by Ji-young Yoo) in "KPop Demon ... More Hunters." KPop Demon Hunters premiered on Netflix Friday and it has already won over Rotten Tomatoes critics and users. A musical fantasy comedy movie produced by Sony Pictures Animation, KPop Demon Hunters is being released on the streaming service as a Netflix Original. The official summary for KPop Demon Hunters reads, 'When they aren't selling out stadiums, Kpop superstars Rumi, Mira and Zoey use their secret identities as badass demon hunters to protect their fans from an ever-present supernatural threat. Together, they must face their biggest enemy yet – an irresistible rival boy band of demons in disguise.' KPop Demon Hunters stars the voices of Arden Cho as Rumi, May Hong as Mira and Ji-young Yoo as Zoe. The voice cast also includes Ahn Hyo-seop as Jinu, Kim Yunjin as Celine, Daniel Dae Kim as Healer, Ken Jeong as Bobby and Lee Byung-hun as Gwi-Ma. As of Friday, Rotten Tomatoes critics have given KPop Demon Hunters a stellar 94% 'fresh' rating based on 17 reviews. In addition, the film has received an even higher rating from viewers — a 97% 'fresh' Popcornmeter score based on 50-plus verified user ratings. RT's Critics Consensus and audience summary are still pending. What Are Individual Critics Saying About 'KPop Demon Hunters'? Toussaint Egan of IGN Movies is among the critics on RT who give KPop Demon Hunters a fresh rating, noting that the film is 'a terrific directorial debut for animator Maggie Kang and yet another feather in Sony Pictures Animation's well-plumed cap.' Isaiah Colbert also gives the film a 'fresh' rating on RT, writing, 'With high-energy fight sequences and moments of genuine hilarity, KPop Demon Hunters never loses sight of the magic that makes animation and idol culture so irresistibly fun.' Jeff Ewing of Collider also gives KPop Demon Hunters a 'fresh' review on RT, writing, 'It's a beautifully bonkers fantasy premise that works, thanks to gorgeous animation and choreography, fun lore, a set of talented voice performances, and catchy tunes.' Ryan Guar of Discussing Film also sings high praises of the film on RT, writing,' KPop Demon Hunters delivers on being one of the most visually interesting movies of 2025. Sony Pictures Animation is the best animation studio in the West right now, and even their narratively flawed films like this one are still exhilarating to watch.' As of this publication, only one RT critic — Mark Dujsik of Mark Reviews Movies — gave KPop Demon Hunters a 'rotten' review, writing, '[In] its quest to be about something 'real,' the movie loses its sense of genuine fun.' Directed by Maggie Kang and Chris Appelhans, KPop Demon Hunters is new on Netflix.