If you’re the kind of movie lover who actually enjoys bouncing between genres and appreciates the kind of classics that still hit even after you’ve seen them a dozen times, then Paramount+ has a deep well you can draw from for days.For this week, March 9 to 15, I've pulled a few go-tos that should make your watch list happy—a franchise-starting horror favorite, a historical epic to end all epics, and a breakneck spy-action blockbuster that doesn't stop.3 Scream The classic origins of Ghostface killer recently hit theaters, and while critics haven't been too kind to it, with the lowest Rotten Tomatoes score in the franchise's 30-year history, it's so far been a hit at the box office.
If you haven't gotten around to seeing it yet, why not first go back to where it all started with the OG, 1996's for a sure thing.Horror master Wes Craven broke the mold with , a teen slasher film with smarts and wit, that shook up the genre by making fun of and exploiting pretty much every horror cliche you could think of.The film follows the now-iconic character Sydney Prescott (Neve Campbell), a high school senior still grieving after the murder of her mother one year earlier.
When a killer wearing a ghost-faced mask starts stalking and picking off Sydney's friends (first taking out Drew Barrymore in the classic killer-inside-the-house scene), it's clear that his ultimate target is Sydney herself.What makes the original so good is that, even though it telegraphs all the horror tropes, it's still genuinely scary, funny, smart all at once.Costars include Courtney Cox as bloodhound reporter Gale Weathers and David Arquette as local deputy Dewey Riley, as well as Skeet Ulrich and Matthew Lillard.
And if you want to keep going after watching the first movie, Paramount+ has all six Scream films available for your own mini-marathon.Scream R Horror Mystery Thriller Crime Release Date January 14, 2022 Where to watch Close WHERE TO WATCH Streaming RENT BUY Cast Melissa Barrera, Jenna Ortega, Mason Gooding, Jasmin Savoy Brown, Jack Quaid, Mikey Madison, Courteney Cox, David Arquette, Neve Campbell, Dylan Minnette, Skeet Ulrich, Sonia Ammar, Roger L.Jackson, Kyle Gallner, Marley Shelton, Reggie Conquest, Heather Matarazzo, Chester Tam, Brooke Barnhill, Stephen West-Rogers, Milli M., Christopher Speed, Chelsea Rebecca, Jamie Kennedy, James A.
Janisse Runtime 114 minutes Director Matt Bettinelli-Olpin, Tyler Gillett Writers Guy Busick, James Vanderbilt Producers James Vanderbilt, William Sherak Prequel(s) Scream, Scream 2, Scream 3, Scream 4 Franchise(s) Scream Main Genre Horror Budget 24 million Studio(s) Disney Distributor(s) Disney Executive Producer(s) Kevin Williamson Powered by Expand Collapse 2 Gladiator Are you not entertained?! Whenever I watch this epic period action drama, and Russell Crowe’s hulking gladiator Maximus Decimus Meridius asks, "Are you not entertained?!" inside I’m fervently nodding, "Yes, yes I am." Ridley Scott's epic Roman action drama is like no other film, and it was a powerhouse when it came out in 2000, raking in 12 Oscar nominations and five wins, including Best Picture and Best Actor for Crowe.takes place in ancient Rome and centers around Maximus, the celebrated general of Emperor Marcus Aurelius (Richard Harris), whose twisted son, Commodus (Joaquin Phoenix), murders him to take the throne.After Commodus learns that his father wanted Maximus to succeed him instead, Commodus has Maximus’ family killed.
Exiled and thought dead, Maximus is sold to slavers, where he is forced to fight for his freedom as a gladiator.And he’s really, really good at it.Eventually, his success brings him back to Rome, where he might just get his chance to exact his revenge on Commodus.
had a big hand in reviving the ancient-world/historical epic genre of the day, which makes it surprising that it took more than two decades for them to make a sequel, , starring Pedro Pascal and Paul Mescal, which you can also stream on Paramount+ right now.Gladiator R Action Adventure Drama Release Date May 5, 2000 Where to watch Close WHERE TO WATCH Streaming RENT BUY Cast Russell Crowe, Joaquin Phoenix, Connie Nielsen, Oliver Reed, Richard Harris, Derek Jacobi, Djimon Hounsou, David Schofield, John Shrapnel, Tomas Arana, Ralf Moeller, Spencer Treat Clark, David Hemmings, Tommy Flanagan, Sven-Ole Thorsen, Omid Djalili, Nicholas McGaughey, Chris Kell, Tony Curran, Mark Lewis, John Quinn, Alun Raglan, David Bailie, Chick Allan, David J.Nicholls, Al Hunter Ashton, Billy Dowd, Giannina Facio, Giorgio Cantarini Runtime 155 minutes Director Ridley Scott Writers David Franzoni, John Logan, William Nicholson Sequel(s) Gladiator II Main Genre Adventure Story By David Franzoni Budget $103 million Studio(s) DreamWorks Distribution, Universal Pictures, Scott Free Productions, Red Wagon Entertainment Distributor(s) DreamWorks Distribution, Universal Pictures Powered by Expand Collapse 1 Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol Ethan Hunt and his team go rogue to save the world It’s a great time for Mission Impossible movies on Paramount+, with all eight of Tom Cruise’s action-packed spy franchise available to stream.
And while you should set aside some time to watch them all from the beginning, it’s 2011's Brad Bird-directed installment (and his live-action directorial debut), , that always stands out for me, and is arguably the film that breathed new life into the struggling series.Ethan Hunt's (Cruise) trusty Impossible Mission Force team—which this time out lacks Ving Rhames' Luther, but includes field agent Brandt (Jeremy Renner), tech wiz Benji (Simon Pegg), and operative Jane (Paula Patton)—find themselves blamed for a Kremlin bombing and blacklisted.The team is forced to go rogue, and completely off-grid (hence the "ghost" protocol), to clear their name.
Oh, and they still have to track down and stop a dangerous figure known as Cobalt, who is hellbent on starting a nuclear war.This is the Mission movie where Cruise insanely scales the outside wall of Dubai’s Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest building.Just another day at the office for the then 48-year-old.
Ghost Protocol still holds an impressive 94% freshness on Rotten Tomatoes.Mission: Impossible - Ghost Protocol PG-13 Action Thriller Adventure Release Date December 21, 2011 Where to watch Close WHERE TO WATCH Streaming RENT BUY Cast Tom Cruise, Paula Patton, Simon Pegg, Jeremy Renner, Michael Nyqvist, Vladimir Mashkov, Samuli Edelmann, Ivan Shvedoff, Anil Kapoor, Lea Seydoux, Josh Holloway, Pavel Kříž, Miraj Grbić, Ilia Volok, Goran Navojec, Pavel Bezděk, Ladislav Beran, Pavel Cajzl, Vitaly Kravchenko, Andrej Bestchastny, Jan Filipenský, Jiří Kraus, Ales Putik, Tomáš Valík, Randy Hall Runtime 133 minutes Director Brad Bird Writers André Nemec Producers J.J.Abrams, Tom Cruise, Bryan Burk Prequel(s) Mission: Impossible, Mission: Impossible 2, Mission: Impossible III Sequel(s) Mission: Impossible - Rogue Nation, Mission: Impossible - Fallout, Mission: Impossible - Dead Reckoning, Mission: Impossible - The Final Reckoning Franchise(s) Mission: Impossible Main Genre Action Budget $145 million Studio(s) Paramount Pictures Distributor(s) Paramount Pictures Executive Producer(s) Dana Goldberg, David Ellison Powered by Expand Collapse Paramount+ has your number for classics this week with this trio.
Pick whichever fits your mood, or scroll through some of our other recommendation lists over the past weeks for more ideas.Paramount Plus Subscription with ads Yes, $8/month Simultaneous streams 3 Live TV Select live sports (NFL on CBS & UEFA Champions League) Price Starting at $8/month or $60/year Stream on Paramount+ Expand Collapse
Read More
