Even in a leap year, February is the shortest month of the year. February also tends to be pretty bleak at the box office, with only a handful of new titles compared to the rest of the months in the year. Regardless, there are still three movies that you need to watch in February. And one of them is a streaming original on Netflix, which means you won’t have to leave home for to watch it.
Our must-see movie picks for February include a new spy action comedy, an animated flick, and Ethan Coen’s road trip film that doubles as a crime comedy.
Argylle
Bryce Dallas Howard has been spending so much time establishing herself as a director that it’s refreshing to see her back in a leading role in Matthew Vaughn’s Argylle. Howard plays Elly Conway, a reclusive spy novelist who has created the next James Bond: Argylle (The Witcher‘s Henry Cavill). Argylle is the man of Elly’s dreams, but he’s just not real. The guy who is real is Aiden (Sam Rockwell), a genuine spy whose latest mission is to protect Elly.
It turns out that Elly is a bit too talented with her novels, and the world’s spy agencies are convinced that she’s working with actual intel that they’re willing to kill to get their hands on. Bryan Cranston co-stars as Ritter, with Catherine O’Hara as Ruth, Dua Lipa as LaGrange, Ariana DeBose as Keira, John Cena as Wyatt, Samuel L. Jackson as Alfred Solomon, Sofia Boutella as Saba Al-Badr, and Richard E. Grant as Fowler.
Argylle will hit theaters on February 2.
Orion and the Dark
DreamWorks Animation’s next movie, Orion and the Dark, is skipping theaters and going straight to Netflix. Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind writer Charlie Kaufman penned the script about Orion (Jacob Tremblay), a kid who is ruled by his fears. And nothing scares Orion more than the dark. That’s why the literal embodiment of the Dark (Black Bird‘s Paul Walter Hauser) is paying Orion a visit to see if he can get over his fears and turn his life around.
The rest of the voice cast includes Angela Bassett as Sweet Dreams, Ike Barinholtz as Light, Natasia Demetriou as Sleep, Golda Rosheuvel as Unexplained Noises, Nat Faxon as Insomnia, Aparna Nancherla as Quiet, Carla Gugino as Orion’s Mom, Matt Dellapina as Orion’s Dad, Jack Fisher as Richi Panichi, and Werner Herzog as the Narrator.
Orion and the Dark will hit Netflix on February 2.
Drive-Away Dolls
There aren’t any new Coen brothers movies on the horizon, but Ethan Coen is back in theaters next month with Drive-Away Dolls, a new film that he directed and co-wrote with his wife, Tricia Cooke. The film stars Margaret Qualley as Jamie, a jilted lesbian who has had it with her dead-end town. Geraldine Viswanathan co-stars as Jamie’s best friend, Marian, a woman is also making a change in her life.
When Jamie and Marian decide to rent a car for an impromptu trip to Tallahassee, Florida, Curlie (Bill Camp) accidentally gives them the vehicle that has something very valuable to Sen. Channel (Oppenheimer‘s Matt Damon) in the trunk. Even before Jamie and Marian make that discovery, some very bad men working with the senator start tracking them down. This movie has a great supporting cast including The Last of Us star Pedro Pascal, newly-minted Oscar nominee Colman Domingo, Beanie Feldstein, and Joey Slotnick.
Drive-Away Dolls will hit theaters on February 23.
