12 movies to check out on Hulu this May

An animated fantasy film with a cult following, a White Men Can't Jump remake, and Nicolas Cage's first Western lead Hulu's new titles

By Robert DeSalvo  |  April 26, 2023 | 6:37pm
Film Lists Hulu
12 movies to check out on Hulu this May
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Clockwise from top left: White Men Can’t Jump (Hulu), The Old Way (Saban Films), Beetlejuice (Warner Bros.), The Last Unicorn (Jensen Farley Pictures) Image: The A.V. Club

Whether or not you think that the world needs a fresh version of White Men Can’t Jump, you’re getting a remake starring Sinqua Walls and Jack Harlow this month. Also premiering on Hulu in May is Tim Burton’s Beetlejuice, the animated fantasy film The Last Unicorn, the Nicolas Cage Western The Old Way, the meta slasher flick Alone At Night, and Ryan Phillippe in the crime drama American Murderer. Here are all 12 of the titles streaming on Hulu this month that caught our eye.

Beetlejuice (1988, available May 1)
Beetlejuice | 4K Trailer | Warner Bros. Entertainment

It was announced in 2022 that a sequel to Tim Burton’s 1988 fantasy-horror-comedy was in the works with Michael Keaton and Winona Ryder likely to reprise their roles. Keaton also recently reprised his titular role from another Burton movie, Batman, in this summer’s The Flash. In Beetlejuice, Keaton plays an obnoxious “bio-exorcist” who tries to help a recently deceased couple frighten away the new inhabitants of their house. Hulu adds the film to its library just in time for its 35th anniversary and to satisfy the curiosity of fans who have read the buzz about its long-overdue, upcoming sequel.

Best In Show (2000, available May 1)
Best in Show (2000) Official Trailer - Catherine O’Hara Movie

People who just discovered Jennifer Coolidge on The White Lotus will want to check her out in this hilarious Christopher Guest mockumentary about prestigious dog competitions. Coolidge plays Sherri Ann Cabot, the heavily made-up trophy wife of an elderly sugar daddy, who has won Best in Show twice thanks to butch trainer (and secret lover) Christy Cummings (Jane Lynch). also stars Guest regulars such as Eugene Levy, Catherine O’Hara, Fred Willard, and Parker Posey, the latter of whom is a scream here as a neurotic yuppie dog owner who cannot accept failure.

Manifest West (2022, available May 5)
MANIFEST WEST Official Trailer (2022)

is an unusual coming-of-age story about a 10-year-old girl (Lexy Kolker) who moves off the grid with her parents in an attempt to live off the land and escape the pressures of modern society. But it turns out that you can’t run away from all of your problems by isolating yourself in the wilderness, and things quickly boil over in this mystery-thriller directed by Joe Dietsch and Louie Gibson. Milo Gibson, Mel Gibson’s son, stars as the family patriarch, with Annet Mehendru on board as his wife.

Alone At Night (2022, available May 5)
ALONE AT NIGHT Official Trailer (2023)

In the horror-thriller , Ashley Benson plays Vicki, a young woman who retreats to a remote cabin in the woods to work as a webcam lingerie model and clear her head following a bad breakup. Before you can say “this setup sounds oddly familiar,” the power goes out and a masked killer with a crowbar shows up to crank things up a notch. It’s worth mentioning that Pamela Anderson appears as the local law woman and Paris Hilton plays the “Trap Stars host” in this modern-day slasher flick.

The Last Unicorn (1982, available May 12)
The Last Unicorn (1982) - 25th Anniversary Edition Trailer

An evil king (Christopher Lee) is hell-bent on destroying all of the world’s unicorns in this animated musical featuring the voices of Mia Farrow, Jeff Bridges, Alan Arkin, and Angela Lansbury. Based on the 1968 novel of the same name by Peter S. Beagle and featuring music by the band America,  has developed a cult following since its modest theatrical debut in 1982. Fans of the animated The Lord Of The Rings and Ridley Scott’s Legend should definitely give this unusual children’s film a peek.

Saint Omer (2022, available May 12)
Saint Omer Trailer #1 (2023)

is a French legal drama directed by documentary filmmaker Alice Diop about a pregnant novelist (Kayije Kagame) searching for inspiration who attends the trial of a Senegalese woman (Guslagie Malanda) accused of killing her own baby by letting the tide sweep her away. The movie is based on the French court case of Fabienne Kabou, who was convicted of the crime detailed on-screen. Saint Omer won many awards, including the Grand Jury Prize at the Venice Film Festival and Best Feature Film at the César Awards.

The Locksmith (2023, available May 13)
THE LOCKSMITH Trailer (2023) Kate Bosworth, Ryan Phillippe, Thriller Movie

If you are feeling nostalgic about I Know What You Did Last Summer and are thinking that you need more Ryan Phillippe in your life, Hulu has you covered this May. First up is , in which Phillippe plays a professional locksmith who did time in prison after a job. After being released, he tries to reboot his relationship with his daughter (Madeleine Guilbot) and his ex-girlfriend (Kate Bosworth), but an unexpected kidnapping forces him to fall back on his go-to talent in this thriller that is the feature directorial debut of Nicolas Harvard.

Slash/Back (2022, available May 13)
SLASH/BACK Official Trailer (2022)

is a Canadian alien-invasion thriller helmed by first-time director Nyla Innuksuk. When Maika (Tasiana Shirley) and her friends discover that aliens have invaded their isolated arctic hamlet, the girls must use homemade weapons and knowledge culled from movies to confront the alien threat to their community during a typical summer day when the sun doesn’t set. One reviewer dubbed the movie a “spiritual successor to The Thing.”

White Men Can’t Jump (2023, available May 19)
White Men Can’t Jump | Official Trailer | 20th Century Studios

The Hulu Original is a remake of the 1992 sports comedy of the same name starring Woody Harrelson and Wesley Snipes. The 2023 film directed by Calmatic stars rapper Jack Harlow and Friday Night Lights actor Sinqua Walls as basketball hustlers who team up to make some extra cash. The remake features one of the last appearances by John Wick actor Lance Reddick, who passed away in 2023 at the age of 60.

American Murderer (2022, available May 19)
American Murderer Trailer #1 (2022)

It’s Ryan Phillippe again on Hulu, this time in the true-crime drama directed by Matthew Gentile. Phillippe plays FBI Special Agent Lance Leising, who is on the trail of fugitive Jason Derek Brown (Tom Pelphrey)—a man still wanted to this day for first-degree murder and armed robbery committed in Phoenix, Arizona. Gentile enjoyed accolades and decent reviews for his directorial debut, which also stars Idina Menzel, Jacki Weaver, Paul Schneider, and Shantel VanSanten.

Broker (2022, available May 24)
Broker Trailer #1 (2022)

is an acclaimed South Korean drama written and directed by Japanese filmmaker Hirokazu Kore-eda about baby boxes, which are designated safe places where people can abandon newborns to be cared for by someone else. Two friends (Song Kang-ho and Gang Dong-won) run an illegal business by stealing babies from the baby boxes and selling them on the adoption black market. When a young mother (Lee Ji-eun) who abandoned her infant at a baby box discovers what the men are doing, she bonds with them on a road trip to find the perfect family to adopt her baby.

The Old Way (2023, available May 26)
The Old Way (2023 Movie) Official Trailer - Nicolas Cage, Ryan Kiera Armstrong

Oscar winner Nicolas Cage is unapologetic about his role choices, reportedly saying recently that at one point he accepted a lot of subpar parts to pay off a $6 million debt. Whether he was genuinely inspired to take the part or just punching the clock, marks Cage’s first appearance in a Western. Set in the Montana Territory in 1878, The Old Way features Cage as a retired gunman who teams up with his 12-year-old daughter (Ryan Kiera Armstrong) to find the outlaws responsible for killing his wife.

 
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