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3 sci-fi movies on Paramount+ you need to watch in October

Paramount+ doesn’t quite have the film library that its competitors do, but it has bolstered its lineup with the premium Paramount+ with Showtime tier. We feel that it’s unfair when the best premium movies are withheld from the lower tiers. That’s why our choices for the three sci-fi movies on Paramount+ that you need to watch are available on all tiers.

This month, our selections include John Woo’s best American movie, an Oscar-nominated sci-fi parable, and the first collaboration between Tom Cruise and Steven Spielberg.

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Face/Off (1998)

Sean and Castor having a conversation through a wall in Face/Off.
Paramount

For the most part, Face/Off plays like a typical action thriller, which is why people tend to forget that its very premise is what makes it a science fiction film. FBI agent Sean Archer (John Travolta) has a serious grudge against a deadly criminal, Castor Troy (Nicolas Cage), thanks to a botched assassination attempt on Archer that left his son dead. During their next confrontation, Archer emerges victorious and Troy is knocked into a coma … but not before revealing that there is a bomb hidden in the city.

To locate the bomb before it can kill innocent people, Archer reluctantly undergoes an experimental procedure that literally puts Troy’s face on his body. And just when it seems like the plan is working, the real Troy emerges from his coma and forces the doctor to put Archer’s face on his body. Troy also kills anyone who knows the truth, leaving Archer on the run with everyone, including his own family, believing him to be the real Troy.

Watch Face/Off on Paramount+.

District 9 (2009)

An alien holds up his hands with police aiming their guns at him in District 9.
TriStar Pictures / Sony Pictures

Neill Blomkamp’s District 9 is so great that it’s kind of hampered Blomkamp’s career because nothing else he’s done has been able to recapture that success. (And that includes his recent movie Gran Turismo.) Even the Academy Awards recognized District 9 with a nomination for Best Picture of 2009. Blomkamp draws upon the all-too recent history of his native country South Africa, to present a vision of an alternate world where alien refugees are subjected to apartheid era discrimination and squalor.

Christopher Johnson (Jason Cope), one of the alien Prawns trapped on Earth, secretly conspires to regain access to the ship that brought them to our world. When a low-level human bureaucrat, Wikus van de Merwe (Sharlto Copley), is exposed to Christopher’s alien fuel, he begins mutating into a Prawn. Wikus’ only hope to retain his humanity is to help Christopher’s plan succeed and avoid the factions on Earth who want them both dead.

Watch District 9 on Paramount+.

Minority Report (2003)

Tom Cruise in Minority Report.
20th Century Studios

The reason why Hollywood keeps coming back to Philip K. Dick‘s stories and novels is that he had a knack for big sci-fi ideas that translate well to film. In the case of Minority Report, this Steven Spielberg-directed adaptation examined Dick’s vision of a future where the police’s Precrime division can so accurately predict lethal crimes that murder is practically a thing of the past. In theory, the precognitive trio who drive Precrime are never wrong. But Precrime Chief John Anderton (Tom Cruise, in one his best action movies) clings to the hope that the precogs were incorrect when they predict that he will kill Leo Crow (Mike Binder), a man whom he has never met.

There are no appeals with Precrime, and suddenly Anderton’s own officers are hunting him down. To escape and prove his innocence, Anderton has to dive into the criminal underworld and decide who he can trust before fate places him in the same room as Leo Crow at the time of Leo’s death.

Watch Minority Report on Paramount+.

Blair Marnell
Blair Marnell has been an entertainment journalist for over 15 years. His bylines have appeared in Wizard Magazine, Geek…
3 rom-coms on Netflix you need to watch in February 2025
A woman walks next to a man with people watching from behind.

February is in the running for the most romantic month of the year. Thanks to Valentine's Day, romance will be on the hearts and minds of singles and couples alike. Expect the number of rom-com options to increase because of the holiday. Netflix's romance section already boasts popular rom-coms, including Notting Hill, Sixteen Candles, Love Actually, Two Weeks Notice, and Hit Man.
On Netflix's romance page, there are several subgenres with options for all romance fans. Raunchy titles, familiar favorites, tearjerkers, crowd-pleasers, and coming-of-age tales are some of the options being offered this month. Below, try streaming one of our three selections: an adventure romance, a 2000 comedy, and a 2014 rom-com from a famous comedian.
We also have guides to the best movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
The Lost City (2022)

Not every rom-com is a "boy meets girl" story. In The Lost City, you can unexpectedly find love on a jungle adventure. Novelist Loretta Sage (Sandra Bullock) has written a series of successful romance-adventure novels about Dr. Angela Lovermore and her lover Dash McMahon. Despite her reclusiveness due to her husband's death, Loretta agrees to embark on a press tour with Alan Caprison (Channing Tatum), the model hired to play Dash.

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3 underrated (HBO) Max movies you should watch this weekend (January 31-February 2)
Sebastian Stan puts his arms down and stands over.

What's on Max this month? Uncharted, the adventure film starring Tom Holland and Mark Wahlberg, is currently the No. 1 movie in the top 10. Beetlejuice Beetlejuice, The Accountant, Dune: Part Two, and The Batman are some of the top blockbusters on the service. Don't be surprised if the Harry Potter or Lord of the Rings franchises find their way to the homepage.
There are more options on Max besides blockbusters. Scrolling through the genre pages, you'll see hundreds of underrated gems ready to be streamed. Our recommendations this weekend include a Nicolas Cage satirical drama, a psychological dramedy with a Marvel star, and a hilarious comedy from 2010.
We also have guides to the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
Dream Scenario (2023)

At TIFF 2023, Oscar winner Nicolas Cage shared the five best scripts he's ever read in his 45 years as an actor. Leaving Las Vegas, Raising Arizona, Vampire's Kiss, Adaptation, and Dream Scenario. Written and directed by Kristoffer Borgli, Dream Scenario stars Cage as Paul Matthews, a family man and professor at the local university.

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3 sci-fi movies on Hulu you need to watch in January 2025
Rinko Kikuchi suits up in Pacific Rim (2013), directed by Guillermo del Toro.

Hulu dropped a lot of its classic sci-fi movies at the end of December, so it will probably be a few months before the missing Planet of the Apes or Alien films return to their natural streaming home. In the meantime, Hulu has a handful of films on loan from other studios that should scratch that itch for genre lovers.
This month's picks for the three sci-fi movies on Hulu that you need to watch in January include two action films that don't require a lot of thinking, and you may enjoy them more if you don't try to make sense of them. Our final choice is a movie that tells a unique time travel story despite its low budget.

Need more recommendations? Then check out the best new movies to stream this week, the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
Pacific Rim (2013)

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