We’ve had a few rough weeks, but things are finally getting easier for Netflix fans. We may be losing a pretty big crop of movies from the stream this week, but they’re generally pretty bad ones. In exchange, we get a few newer releases and the return of one of my favorites.

Leaving the Stream

1. ‘Othello’ (5/1): Let’s start with a little bit of class. Laurence Fishburne and Kenneth Branagh star in this 1995 adaptation of the Shakespeare play of the same name. It’s also the first mainstream adaptation to star a black man as the title character. ‘Othello‘ wasn’t a hit, but critics liked it, and especially liked Branagh as Iago.
2. ‘Slap Shot’ (5/1): I’m not really a hockey fan, which is a dangerous thing to say when you live in Detroit. I don’t watch too many sports movies either, but ‘Slap Shot‘ is something special. You don’t need to know anything about the game to enjoy it. Things start a little slow, but once the Hanson brothers get into the flick, you’ll understand why people love it so much. Paul Newman is excellent too, just not quite as funny.
3. ‘Blood Monkey’ (5/1): This is one of those films that I watched because I was sick and it was on TV. Or I was hung-over and it was on TV. Or I was lazy and it was on TV. ‘Blood Monkey‘ is not something I went out of my way to check out, but I’m glad I did. It’s amazingly bad, and it gets bonus points by bringing down Oscar winner F. Murray Abraham.

Entering the Stream

1. ‘Kick-Ass’ (5/6): Every once in a while, a film comes along that takes you by surprise. I didn’t hold out a lot of hope for ‘Kick-Ass‘, but both Aaron Johnson and Chloe Moretz surprised me by being completely awesome. There’s almost always something I hate in comic book movies, but I enjoyed ‘Kick-Ass’ from beginning to end. Exciting, funny and incredibly violent, ‘Kick-Ass’ is a welcome addition to the Netflix stream. (Read Blu-ray review.)
2. ‘Harold and Maude’ (5/7): Huzzah! After losing two of the hard to find films I wrote about last week, we get one back. ‘Harold and Maude‘ is an incredible dark comedy directed by Hal Ashby. It’s both uplifting and depressing all at once, which is one of the things that makes it such a great film. It’s also the home to one of my favorite Cat Stevens songs. I can’t recommend this film highly enough. (See my One From the Vault post about it.)
3. ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice’ (4/30): If you missed it in theaters and you didn’t feel like shelling out for the Blu-ray, you’ll be able to check out ‘The Sorcerer’s Apprentice‘ on Blu-ray starting this Saturday. Jay Baruchel stars alongside Nicolas Cage in this flick that’s a perfect fit for Netflix streaming. Not spending extra money to enjoy a mediocre movie is fantastic. (Read Blu-ray review.)