December 2024’s Best Streaming Titles: Knives Out, Gladiator, The Muppets, Squid Game, Happy Gilmore

It’s easy to look at J. Michael Straczynski’s sci-fi series and poke fun at its cheap-looking, vintage ’90s sets and special effects. But doing so overlooks Straczynski’s ambitious, complex storyline. Set in the 23rd century, Babylon 5 takes place on the titular space station where humanity and numerous alien races strive for galactic peace even as other, more ancient forces work towards all-out war. The series addressed a number of themes during its run, from ethnic cleansing and slavery, to government conspiracies and corruption, to the role of religion in society.

As always, hapless Hong Kong detective Kevin Chan (Jackie Chan) finds himself in over his head when he works with the CIA on a nuclear smuggling case. Soon enough, he’s on the run from the Russian mafia who are trying to acquire a nuclear bomb. Although First Strike might not rank as highly as Police Story or Drunken Master II, it’s still a lot of fun to watch as Chan takes on the bad guys with his trademark blend of martial arts, elaborate stunts, and prop comedy.

After concluding his Dollars Trilogy with 1966’s The Good, the Bad and the Ugly, Sergio Leone planned to retire from making Westerns. He was persuaded, however, by Paramount Pictures to return to the genre, with the result being 1968’s Once Upon a Time in the West. The iconic Western stars Henry Fonda (cast against type as the villain), Jason Robards, and Charles Bronson, and features another one of Ennio Morricone’s famous scores (read my review).

After they’re falsely accused of murdering the leader of the city’s most powerful gang, the Warriors must make the long journey back to their home base while fending off the rest of New York’s gangs. This simple premise makes for one of the great cult movies, as the Warriors make their way through a nightmarish, dystopic New York as imagined by director Walter Hill (The Driver, Streets of Fire).

Blur Studio had great success with the first season of Love, Death & Robots for Netflix, and now they’re hoping to repeat that success on Amazon Prime Video with Secret Level. The animation anthology features 15 episodes inspired by some of the world’s most popular and beloved video and tabletop games, including Armored Core, Dungeons & Dragons, Mega Man, and Warhammer 40,000.

Rian Johnson teamed up with Daniel Craig for this utterly delightful murder mystery whodunit. When a famed — and wealthy — mystery novelist apparently commits suicide, private detective Benoit Blanc (Craig) is hired to investigate, but the case grows increasingly convoluted and deadly. Knives Out boasts a star-studded cast, including Ana de Armas, Toni Collette, Jamie Lee Curtis, Chris Evans, and Michael Shannon, all of whom are obviously having a blast with Johnson’s witty script and clever direction. Knives Out subsequently spawned two sequels, 2022’s Glass Onion: A Knives Out Mystery and 2025’s Wake Up Dead Man: A Knives Out Mystery.

The Star Wars universe certainly looks to be riffing on the Goonies with their latest series. Skeleton Crew follows a group of kids who discover a crashed spaceship on their home planet and soon find themselves lost amongst the stars. Even worse, they’ve got a gang of pirates on their trail, and their only hope is a mysterious stranger (Jude Law). Skeleton Crew also stars Kerry Condon, Jaleel White, Fred Tatasciore, and the voice of Nick Frost.

The third and final season of Marvel’s animated anthology series streams in December, in which well-known MCU characters — e.g., Sam Wilson, Bucky, Peggy Carter, Agatha Harkness, Shang-Chi — appear as alternate versions of themselves.

Ridley Scott’s Gladiator was one of 2000’s biggest and most successful films, thanks to an epic plot, incredible special effects, and thrilling action sequences (read my review). Russell Crowe stars as Maximus Decimus Meridius, a disgraced Roman general who is enslaved and forced to compete in Rome’s brutal gladiatorial exhibitions. Gladiator also stars Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed (in his final film appearance), Djimon Hounsou, Richard Harris, and Joaquin Phoenix as the corrupt Roman emperor.

This reboot of the Muppets could’ve gone wrong in several ways. It could’ve been mawkish nostalgia or a cynical deconstruction. But the filmmakers made the very wise decision to just play things straight and earnest, and as a result, The Muppets is a true delight. When the Muppets’ old theater is about to be torn down, Kermit and the gang reunite for one last hurrah — but has the world forgotten all about them? In addition to Kermit, Miss Piggy, and Gonzo the Great, The Muppets also stars Jason Segel, Amy Adams, and Chris Cooper.

Keanu Reeves officially became an action movie star in this thriller about a SWAT officer (Reeves) trying to stop a mad bomber (Dennis Hopper) threatening the Los Angeles. When the bomber’s latest ploy is a bus that will explode if it slows down below 50 miles/hour, Reeves must find a way to stop him and save the passengers. Thanks to its strong performances, taut set pieces, and thrilling twists, Speed was one of 1994’s most successful movies, commercially and critically, and its status has only grown over time (read my review).

Directed by Richard Donner and produced by Steven Spielberg, The Goonies is about as good as a classic kids adventure film can get. When a group of social misfits on the verge of being kicked out of their homes discover a pirate treasure map, they see it as the perfect solution to their problems — if they can survive the elaborate booby traps and vicious criminals on their tail.

Arguably the most well-known example of classic Hollywood film noir, The Maltese Falcon stars Humphrey Bogart as Sam Spade, a jaded P.I. who gets pulled into a mysterious and deadly case involving missing sisters, femme fatales, and a valuable statue. Based on Dashiell Hammett’s novel and directed by John Huston, The Maltese Falcon also stars Mary Astor and Peter Lorre.

Max’s latest adult animation series follows the exploits of a group of inhuman prisoners used by the U.S. government for the most dangerous and violent missions. Needless to say, Creature Commandos promises to be exceedingly violent and darkly humorous, as evidenced by the trailer. The series features the voices of Frank Grillo, Sean Gunn, David Harbour, Alan Tudyk, and Viola Davis.

Christopher Reeve will forever be identified as the Man of Steel, thanks to his performance in Richard Donner’s 1978 Superman film. This original documentary follows Reeve’s life and career, including his activism and advocacy for disabled people after a 1995 equestrian accident left him paralyzed from the neck down.

Taron Egerton stars in this original Netflix thriller as a TSA agent who’s blackmailed by Jason Bateman’s mystery man into letting a dangerous package onto a Christmas flight. Director Jaume Collet-Serra has directed several thrillers in the past, including 2011’s Unknown and 2018’s The Commuter (both starring Liam Neeson), but is arguably best known for 2021’s Jungle Cruise.

One of Netflix’s biggest hits of all time, Squid Game returns for a second season, as the game’s survivors vow revenge on the individuals behind the nefarious game. The series’ first season was incredibly successful, winning widespread acclaim and numerous nominations. Series lead Lee Jung-jae ultimately won an “Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama” Emmy for his performance, the first Asian actor to win the award for a non-English part.

George Miller’s Mad Max: Fury Road is an absolute juggernaut of a film, from its mind-blowing visuals of an apocalyptic wasteland to some of the most insane and over-the-top action sequences in recent history. (Read my review.) Indeed, you’ll often find yourself wondering how no one died during the making of this film. Even more surprising, though, are the quiet and even hauntingly beautiful moments that Miller intersperses amongst the action and chaos.

Before they dazzled everybody with The Lego Movie and Spider-Man: Into the Spider-Verse, Phil Lord and Christopher Miller turned in this delightfully zany adaptation of Judi and Ron Barrett’s Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs. Bill Hader voices Flint Lockwood, a crazy inventor who solves his town’s crisis by inventing a device that can create any kind of food imaginable. But when the device goes haywire, Flint’s town could be destroyed by massive food disasters. The movie also features the voices of Anna Faris, James Caan, Bruce Campbell, and Mr. T.

One of the greatest action movies of all time, period (read my review). Bruce Willis stars as John McClane, a sardonic detective from New York who’s visiting his estranged wife in Los Angeles for a Christmas party at her office. And then, wouldn’t you know it, a bunch of terrorists break up the party and hold everyone hostage. It’s up to McClane to take on the terrorists — who are led by Alan Rickman at his most suave — armed with little more than some one-liners. Suffice to say, the terrorists don’t stand a chance.

This classic Adam Sandler comedy from 1996 stars Sandler as a wannabe hockey player who discovers a secret talent at playing golf — which comes in handy when he needs to save his grandmother’s house from foreclosure. Needless to say, Happy Gilmore’s unorthodox playing raises the ire of professional golfers, most notably Shooter McGavin (played with slimy glee by Christopher McDonald). Happy Gilmore also stars Carl Weathers as Happy’s one-handed coach and The Price Is Right’s Bob Barker in a truly glorious cameo.

Hong Kong superstar Jet Li stars in this sci-fi thriller about a police officer who comes face to face with his murderous doppelgänger from a parallel universe (read my review). Blending Li’s lighting fast martial arts with cutting edge (for 2001, anyway) special effects, The One was widely dismissed by critics but still reasonably well at the box office. The One also stars Jason Statham, Delroy Lindo, and Carla Gugino.

On paper, the combination of Jackie Chan and Chris Tucker seems terrible, or at the very least, terribly annoying. But in Rush Hour, the two became a surprisingly effective comedic duo as they race to save the kidnapped daughter of a Chinese dignitary with a combination of fast talking and martial arts mayhem.