Max started off 2025 with a very solid collection of movies from the 1930s to the 1950s, which was a nice change of pace. Unfortunately, black-and-white films remain a hard sell for casual movie lovers. So, for this month’s picks for the three underrated movies on Max that you need to watch in January, we won’t go back farther than 29 years.
Our choices for January 2025 include one of Jim Carrey’s darkest comedies to date, an underappreciated fantasy action film, and even a Max original that deals with YA romance and mental illness.
Need more recommendations? 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+.
The Cable Guy (1996)
You may think you’ve seen Jim Carrey go wild in Sonic the Hedgehog 3 or other films, but the actor has rarely delivered a more unhinged performance than his turn in The Cable Guy. It was also the movie that made Carrey the first actor to get $20 million for a leading role. Ben Stiller directed the film and co-stars as Sam Sweet, but the leading role goes to Matthew Broderick, who plays Steven. The only thing that Steve wanted was a slightly illegal cable setup. What he got was Ernie “Chip” Douglas (Carrey), a cable guy who is more than willing to bend a few rules for his new friend.
Steve soon discovers that Chip’s an obsessive man who doesn’t take no for an answer, and he’s overwhelming every aspect of his life. When Steve tries to break off their friendship, Chip really goes off the deep end and tries to destroy his pal’s life in the most darkly comedic way possible.
Watch The Cable Guy on Max.
Warcraft (2016)
Warcraft was not the box-office success that Blizzard or Universal would have liked, but it is a fun fantasy action flick that’s been often overlooked. The CGI is particularly impressive with the orcs, as it gives them more emotion and nuance than other films would have. Ostensibly, the orcs are the villains because they’re invading a realm called Azeroth to escape their dying home world. However, one of the orc chiefs, Durotan (Toby Kebbell), realizes that his people are being misled by an even greater threat.
Meanwhile, Azeroth’s human defenders are led by Anduin Lothar (Travis Fimmel), a knight who will sacrifice anything to save his world. Lothar also finds an unexpected ally in Garona (Paula Patton), a half-orc/half-human woman who doesn’t have a place on their side of the conflict.
Watch Warcraft on Max.
Turtles All the Way Down (2024)
Alien: Romulus co-star and The Last of Us season 2 cast member Isabela Merced headlines Max’s adaptation of the YA romance novel Turtles All the Way Down. Merced plays Aza Holmes, a young woman suffering from OCD and other mental disorders, and she kind of likes herself that way. Or at least she’s afraid of being medicated to the point of losing her identity.
Aza and her best friend, Daisy (Cree), have big dreams for college, which they can’t afford on their own. So they hatch a scheme to befriend Davis (Felix Mallard) — whom Aza used to know as a child — and pump him for information on his missing father, who is both a billionaire and a fugitive from the law. But once Ava and Davis get reacquainted, she starts having romantic feelings for him that she isn’t quite sure how to handle.
Watch Turtles All the Way Down on Max.
