Despite the polar temperatures in some parts of the country, Paramount+ is coming in hot this week with a lineup of movies I can get behind.
For the week of January 19 to 25, how about a little horror to wake you up, a slapstick reboot of a cop satire classic, a doc about a comedy giant who left us too soon, and a little comedy comfort food?
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Smile 2
Some of the best and scariest horror and thriller movies are the ones that take perfectly harmless things, like dolls, water, or toys, and turn them against us. What’s more harmless than a smile, amirite? In pop superstar Skye Riley’s (Naomi Scott, Power Rangers) world, it turns out, nothing could be more terrifying. After returning from a year-long stint in rehab, Skye just wants to get on with her career. But after a relapse sends her to her old dealer for a fix, all she gets is a sinister smile and the demonic curse that comes with it.
If you’ve seen the excellent first film, you know what comes next—hallucinations, strangers smiling at you, glitches in reality, all meant to drive you mad until you pass it along to another, at the cost of your own life. Skye’s mom/manager Elizabeth (Rosemarie DeWitt) and assistant Joshua just think she’s relapsing, while Skye goes to some extreme measures to end the curse. Smile 2 is fun as hell, full of great jump scares, and is well-acted, garnering it an 86% on Rotten Tomatoes.
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The Naked Gun
Following in the footsteps of a comedy genius like Leslie Nielsen would be a daunting task for any actor, especially if your bread and butter has been deadly serious, gruff characters with a “certain set of skills.” Surprising no one, though, it turns out Neeson’s scowling exterior juxtaposed with the genre-defining silliness of Nielsen’s Frank Drebin character, is exactly what this legacy reboot of The Naked Gun needed.
Neeson plays Frank Drebin Jr., who’s been tasked with saving L.A.’s Police Squad from being shut down. That will all have to wait as Drebin gets tangled up in a conspiracy involving a tech mogul, unhinged self-driving cars, a beautiful woman (the excellent Pamela Anderson), murder, and a P.L.O.T. Device that will revert humans to their dormant primate nature. This reboot does the originals justice, keeping the franchise’s tradition of ridiculous one-liners, sight gags, bad puns, and moronic chaos alive.
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Belushi
If you love comedy giants and biographical documentaries about them, then this funny and heartbreaking 2020 portrait of the late, great John Belushi by famed doc producer R.J. Cutler will have you mesmerized. Belushi chronicles the life of the larger-than-life star of SNL, Animal House, and The Blues Brothers, from his youth, through his rise through Chicago’s Second City improv ranks, and beyond.
Told through rare interviews and behind-the-scenes footage, as well as with some gripping audio tapes discovered after his death, it’s a stark and bittersweet tracing of his life, which was also haunted by the pressures of fame, addiction, and obsession. Some of Belushi’s best friends and colleagues lend their thoughts to the doc as well, including his brother Jim Belushi, Dan Aykroyd, and Lorne Michaels. Belushi is a brilliant documentary that has a 91% rating on Rotten Tomatoes.
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School of Rock
Now for the comfort food. Whether you’re a fan of Jack Black’s whirlwind career that spans everything from bit parts on The Fall Guy to Tenacious D to High Fidelity, Jumanji, Nacho Libre, Kung Fu Panda, and beyond, for me and my daughter, School of Rock‘s Dewey Finn is primo Black. If you haven’t seen it, now’s the time. In a role written specifically for Black by White Lotus creator Mike White, Dewey is a burnout man-child still clinging to his dream of rock stardom, when his band kicks him to the curb.
Desperate and in need of a job, Dewey poses as his roommate Ned Schneebly (White), a substitute teacher at a well-to-do private school. But instead of arithmetic and grammar, he turns the class into a rock and roll machine—band, manager, roadies, sound and lighting—with the “class project” being a huge battle of the bands. Sure, it’s morally unethical and probably illegal, but Dewey’s charisma is addictive, the kids are adorable and can really rock, and it’s got a feel-good ending.
Paramount+ can be hit or miss week after week, but its vast library of movies, old and new, is a never-ending mine of titles. With any luck, one of this week’s suggestions will pique your interest.
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- Simultaneous streams
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If you enjoy CBS offerings, you’ll want to subscribe to Paramount+. You get access to hit shows like Star Trek and Yellowstone, as well as a variety of SHOWTIME content.
