If you’re looking for your next favorite film, it can be hard to know where to begin. That’s why Watch With Us likes to keep you informed about great movies you may have overlooked over the years.
These three flicks, which star Kumail Nanjiani, Colman Domingo and Marisa Tomei, were all critically acclaimed, but still don’t get as much love as they deserve.
Luckily for us, they’re all available to stream. Check them out on Amazon Prime Video and HBO Max.
‘The Big Sick’ (2017)Kumail Nanjiani and his wife Emily V. Gordon cowrote this movie based on their own courtship. It follows fictionalized versions of Kumail and Emily, whose budding relationship is nearly ended by the pressure Kumail feels from his family to marry a Pakistani woman. But when Emily is hospitalized with a mysterious illness, Kumail is forced to take on the responsibility of contacting her parents and helping them through the difficult time.
With Emily in a medically induced coma for her own safety, Kumail bonds with Emily’s parents (Ray Romano and Holly Hunter) and reckons with what he is willing to do to save this relationship. It’s a sweet, funny and heartfelt film about sacrifice, family and how love can overcome any obstacle.
Watch The Big Sick on Amazon Prime Video.
‘Sing Sing’ (2024)Colman Domingo (The Four Seasons) stars in this incredibly moving film about a remarkable program that still helps incarcerated people to this day. Domingo plays Divine G, a wrongly convicted inmate at Sing Sing Correctional Facility who has found meaning in his life by performing theater with the Rehabilitation Through the Arts (RTA) program. Throughout the film, Divine G helps with the writing and staging of a new play, while also attempting to appeal his conviction.
Incredibly, Domingo is one of only a few professional actors in the movie — much of the cast is made up of formerly incarcerated men who participated in the program. The movie functions as genuine evidence of the impact that the arts can have on people in dark circumstances. Though it received significant awards attention, including three Oscar nominations, it only grossed $5 million at the box office. (Albeit against a $2 million budget.) Don’t miss this moving drama.
Watch Sing Sing on Max.
‘The King of Staten Island’ (2020)Pete Davidson has long been open about his struggles with mental health and substance abuse. This dramedy helps the viewer really understand what it might be like to live inside his head. Loosely inspired by Davidson’s own life and co-written by him, Dave Sirus and Judd Apatow.
The story follows Scott (Davidson), an unemployed high school dropout who has stayed in arrested development since his firefighter father died when he was young. (In real life, Davidson’s father died fighting fires on September 11.) When his mother Margie (Marisa Tomei) begins dating Ray (Bill Burr), who is also a firefighter, Scott quickly develops an intense animosity towards his mother’s new boyfriend. But that animosity might be just what Scott needs to finally reconcile with his dad’s death.
Told with a lot of affection for the oft-maligned New York City borough, The King of Staten Island is at turns heartbreaking and heartwarming. The performances, especially from Davidson and Burr, really sell the material and paint a lovely portrait of moving beyond a tragedy. And of course, since it’s from Davidson and Apatow, there are plenty of laughs along the way.
Watch The King of Staten Island on Amazon Prime Video.
