The 15 best films hitting Hulu in May 2022

A Sergio Leone crime epic, five Resident Evil movies, and the Gen-X classic The Breakfast Club are among the titles added to Hulu for May

By Robert DeSalvo  |  April 25, 2022 | 5:00am
Film Lists Films
The 15 best films hitting Hulu in May 2022
Screenshot: Wikipedia

A Gen X coming-of-age classic, an ’80s-inspired movie musical, and five Resident Evil movies starring Ukrainian-American actress Milla Jovovich are just a few of the 15 notable movies we’ve highlighted that will premiere on the Hulu streaming service this month. There’s also an underrated sci-fi thriller starring Matt Damon, a Sam Raimi horror-comedy that you may have missed in theaters, the original Karate Kid, a hilarious Simon Pegg buddy-cop comedy, and several other titles worth checking out.

A Beautiful Mind (2001) (Available May 1)
A Beautiful Mind (2001) (Available May 1)
Screenshot

A Gen X coming-of-age classic, an ’80s-inspired movie musical, and five Resident Evil movies starring Ukrainian-American actress Milla Jovovich are just a few of the 15 notable movies we’ve highlighted that will premiere on the Hulu streaming service this month. There’s also an underrated sci-fi thriller starring Matt Damon, a Sam Raimi horror-comedy that you may have missed in theaters, the original Karate Kid, a hilarious Simon Pegg buddy-cop comedy, and several other titles worth checking out.

A Beautiful Mind (2001) (Available May 1)

This biographical drama directed by Ron Howard and starring Russell Crowe as Nobel Prize-winning mathematician John Nash took home four Oscars: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, and Best Supporting Actress for Jennifer Connelly. Based on the 1997 book A Beautiful Mind by Sylvia Nasar, the movie highlights Nash’s struggle with paranoid schizophrenia as he wrestles with the belief that he has been recruited by U.S. government officials to thwart a Soviet plot. Crowe was also nominated for an Oscar for his performance as the delusional genius, but he didn’t take him a trophy that night.

The Breakfast Club (1985) (Available May 1)

Don’t you forget about The Breakfast Club, the classic John Hughes-directed coming-of-age dramedy featuring five high school students from different social groups forced to interact during weekend detention. If you want to know or remember what it was like to be a Gen-Xer in the 1980s, revisit this gem about a jock (Emilio Estevez), a popular beauty (Molly Ringwald), a bookworm (Anthony Michael Hall), a rebel without a cause (Judd Nelson), and an outcast (Ally Sheedy) who discuss social pressures, cliques, conformity, and the fear of growing up to be like their parents. Before the students are released back into the world, these five young people will have learned something important about themselves and their rad new friends.

Dazed And Confused (1993) (Available May 1)

This coming-of-age comedy directed and written by Richard Linklater follows several groups of Texas teenagers during their last day of school in 1976. The large ensemble cast includes many future stars, including Ben Affleck, Matthew McConaughey, Milla Jovovich, Joey Lauren Adams, Renée Zellweger, and Parker Posey. Although the movie was a box office disappointment at the time of its release, Dazed And Confused got heaps of critical praise in the years since and has become a cult classic.

Drag Me To Hell (2009) (Available May 1)

Sam Raimi directed and cowrote this outrageous supernatural horror-comedy about a young loan officer named Christine (Alison Lohman) who, in an attempt to show her boss that she can make tough decisions and is worthy of a promotion, decides not to grant an elderly gypsy woman a mortgage extension. Feeling shamed, the gypsy places a curse on Christine. Facing three days of increasing torment before an inevitable one-way ticket to hell, Christine and her boyfriend (Justin Long) try to undo the curse… or at least pass it on to someone else. Fans of Raimi’s Evil Dead movies will appreciate the crazy vibe and frenetic energy of this must-see horror gem.

Hot Fuzz (2007) (Available May 1)

Edgar Wright directed and cowrote this hilarious buddy-cop action-comedy starring Simon Pegg as a police constable named Nicholas Angel who is transferred from London to a small rural community in England. There he meets fellow constable Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), who is obsessed with buddy-cop movies. The mismatched duo team up to investigate a serious of gruesome, ritualistic murders in this second film in Wright’s so-called Three Flavours Cornetto trilogy, following Shaun Of The Dead and followed by The World’s End. When Pegg and Frost star together on-screen, it’s guaranteed comedy gold.

The Karate Kid (1984) (Available May 1)

If you’re a fan of Cobra Kai on Netflix, you must revisit the movie that started it all as Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) and Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) face off for the first time at a karate championship match in L.A.’s San Fernando Valley. Pat Morita famously appears as Daniel’s wise sensei Mr. Miyagi. Although you can enjoy Cobra Kai without having seen The Karate Kid, the Netflix series resonates even more if you’re familiar with this 1984 blockbuster.

Once Upon A Time In America (1984) (Available May 1)

This epic crime film directed by Sergio Leone stars Robert De Niro and James Woods and is based on Harry Grey’s novel The Hoods. The movie depicts the lives of friends David “Noodles” Aaronson (De Niro) and Maximilian “Max” Bercovicz (Woods) who lead a group of Jewish gangsters in New York’s world of organized crime. Once Upon A Time In America is the third film in Leone’s Once Upon A Time trilogy, following Once Upon A Time In The West and Duck, You Sucker! The 1984 film was Leone’s first film in 13 years and the last film the Italian filmmaker made before he passed away in 1989.

Resident Evil (2002) (Available May 1)

Written and directed by Paul W.S. Anderson, 2002’s Resident Evil is the first film in the long-running franchise that is loosely based on the popular video game of the same name. Milla Jovovich begins her journey as Alice, a former employee of the ubiquitous Umbrella Corporation, who discovers that the deadly T-virus has been unleashed inside the company’s Hive complex located deep underneath Raccoon City. Jovovich went on to battle zombie mutants in six total Resident Evil flicks, the first five of which are available on Hulu this month.

Rock Of Ages (2012) (Available May 1)

This jukebox musical comedy follows Sherrie Christian, played by Julianne Hough, who arrives in L.A. from Oklahoma with stars in her eyes and dreams of becoming a singer on the Sunset Strip in the 1980s. The movie stars Diego Boneta, Russell Brand, Alec Baldwin, Catherine Zeta-Jones, and Mary J. Blige, but the real headliner is Tom Cruise as an egomaniacal rock god. Fans of 1980s music will appreciate tunes by Def Leppard, Journey, Scorpions, Poison, Guns N’ Roses, Pat Benatar, Joan Jett, Bon Jovi, REO Speedwagon, and many more. Watch and make a game of trying to spot all the cameos by several ’80s music artists, including Debbie Gibson and Sebastian Bach.

Taken (2008) (Available May 1)

Taken is the 2008 thriller that started Liam Neeson on his late-career journey as an unlikely action star. In the movie, Neeson plays Bryan Mills, a CIA officer with “a very particular set of skills” for tracking down and taking out his daughter’s kidnappers, who are part of an Albanian sex-trafficking ring. The movie also stars Maggie Grace as Mills’ daughter and Famke Janssen as his ex-wife. Neeson, Grace, and Janssen returned for Taken 2 and 3, but it all started right here.

The Wolfman (2010) (Available May 1)

If you missed the 2010 remake of 1941's The Wolf Man, now is the time to check it out on Hulu. Benicio del Toro plays Lawrence Talbot/The Wolfman with an impressive cast that includes Anthony Hopkins, Emily Blunt, and Hugo Weaving. Despite being a box office failure, Rick Baker, who tried to keep his creature designs as close to makeup legend Jack Pierce’s original concepts as possible, won the Best Makeup Oscar for transforming A-list actors into hairy werewolves.

The Adjustment Bureau (2011) (Available May 1)

So you watched The Wolf Man and still need more Emily Blunt? Hulu has got you. The Adjustment Bureau is a sci-fi romantic thriller based on a Philip K. Dick short story. Matt Damon plays Brooklyn congressman David Norris, who discovers that his chance second encounter with a woman (Blunt) was never meant to be and is messing with a mysterious organization known as the Adjustment Bureau and its priority of keeping people following “the Plan.” Heady concepts of free will and predestination are explored in this thinking-man’s science fiction.

Marie Antoinette (2006) (Available May 1)

This historical drama written and directed by Sofia Coppola stars Kirsten Dunst as Queen Marie Antoinette, the last queen of France before the French Revolution. Jason Schwartzman plays Louis XVI and Judy Davis plays Anne de Noailles. The main draws for this period piece—besides Dunst’s performance—are the Oscar-winning costume designs and the brilliant use of edgy New Wave and postpunk music during key moments, such as Siouxsie and the Banshees’ “Hong Kong Garden” during a masquerade ball.

Pretty Woman (1990) (Available May 1)

It’s hard to believe that Pretty Woman was originally conceived to be a dark, cautionary tale about the perils of the world’s oldest profession. In the hands of director Garry Marshall, it instead become a whimsical rom-com rescue fantasy about a down-on-her-luck Hollywood hooker (Julia Roberts) who starts a relationship with a wealthy businessman/client (Richard Gere). Roberts got her first Best Actress Oscar nomination for her performance, which also made her a household name. Despite mixed reviews from critics, Pretty Woman became the third-highest-grossing movie of 1990.

Pleasantville (1998) (Available May 1)

This teen fantasy comedy-drama written and directed by Gary Ross stars Tobey Maguire and Reese Witherspoon as very different siblings who end up trapped in a 1950s TV show about an idyllic Midwestern town. Despite critical acclaim, the movie failed to find its audience or recoup its budget during its theatrical release. But, hey kids, that’s what Hulu is for!

 
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