Stream these 15 titles before they leave Netflix in December

‘Magnolia’ (Dec. 31)

With “Licorice Pizza” in theaters across the country this month, it’s a good time to revisit that earlier effort by writer and director Paul Thomas Anderson, another of his dizzying explorations of colorful characters and emotional crises in the San Fernando Valley. Borrowing Robert Altman’s model of large-canvas, mass-market, interspersed storytelling, Anderson tells tales of addiction, family estrangement, romantic obsession, and the inevitability of mortality, shattering his disparate narrative threads. unexpectedly but delicious. The cast of the set is exceptional, with Oscar nominee Tom Cruise shining a spotlight as a misogynistic self-help guru.

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‘Mystic Pizza’ (December 31)

Three young working-class women contemplate the life that awaits them – and away from the pizzeria where they work and hang out – in this charming romantic comedy-drama. The wise and witty screenplay (whose authors include groundbreaking filmmaker Amy Holden Jones and playwright Alfred Uhry) is a real gem, but the key to the film’s success may well have been director Donald Petrie’s keen eye for young talent: the film features, in early and important roles, Julia Roberts, Lili Taylor, Annabeth Gish, Vincent D’Onofrio, and a first appearance by Matt Damon.

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“Pan’s labyrinth” (Dec. 31)

Like Paul Thomas Anderson, Guillermo del Toro has a new movie in theaters this month (his take on the film noir classic “Nightmare Alley”), which provides all the excuses you need to revisit his 2006 masterpiece. , winner of three Oscars. Skillfully blending the conventions of fairy tales, supernatural horror, and period drama, del Toro tells the haunting and often unsettling story of a young girl in post-Civil War Spain, where she must face magical creatures, his sick mother and his evil stepfather. The pieces shouldn’t fit together, but del Toro is a master at puzzle-making, and it remains one of his most visually striking and narratively compelling endeavors.

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“Spy Kids” (December 31)

It’s easy to forget these days, but once upon a time there was the idea of ​​Robert Rodriguez – the director of adult genre films such as “From Dusk Till Dawn”, “Desperado” and “The Faculty” – to direct a family movie seemed surprising. , if not downright subversive. But her quick comedic sensibility and fondness for gadgets made this 2001 adventure a surprise hit – it spawned three sequels and an animated spinoff series – and it stays fresh and fun, with Antonio Banderas and Carla Gugino in charming form. and glamorous as a super groom. spies whose fate may rest in the hands of their children (Alexa PenaVega, credited as Alexa Vega, and Daryl Sabara).

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“The Great British Baking Show: The Beginnings”: Season 1 (December 31)

OK, be careful, because there might be a quiz later: When PBS and Netflix imported ‘The Great British Bake-Off’ from the BBC, the title wasn’t the only thing that changed. The seasons (or “series,” as they call them Across the Pond) have fallen into disarray, with the fifth series streaming as Netflix’s first “collection”, the fourth series as as Netflix’s second collection, and this one, the show’s third series, streaming under the alternate title “The Beginnings”. Confused? Relax. “The Beginnings” offers all the pleasures of the regular series: delicious food, spirited hosts, terrified competitors and more.

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“Tommy Boy” (December 31)

Most critics dismissed Chris Farley and David Spade’s road trip comedy as another tired cinematic spinoff from “Saturday Night Live” when it hit theaters in 1995. But the weather turned out to be good, for a number of reasons. First of all, Farley’s big-screen output was sadly limited, and he never found a better vehicle for his particular vintage of needy sociability. He sports a nice supporting cast as well, with juicy turns from Brian Dennehy, Dan Aykroyd, and Rob Lowe. And Farley and Spade’s thorny comedic chemistry now makes this one look like something of a junior “Planes, Trains, and Automobiles”, with Spade’s picky companion particularly well suited to Farley’s rowdy anarchy. .

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