A new Margaret Qualley romance, a James Caan crime classic, two very different nightmares, and a panda who could improve everybody’s mood lead our October 24–26 watchlist.
The television is on, the food is getting cold, and somebody is still navigating the streaming menu. This week’s list is designed to settle the argument before dinner needs reheating. There is romance for anyone willing to feel something, crime for viewers who prefer their problems professionally organized, and enough horror to acknowledge that Halloween is almost here.
All five are different from last week’s selections. These picks draw on Prime Video’s U.S. listings checked October 23. Availability can change, so select the included-with-Prime option on the title page rather than a rental or separate channel subscription.
1. Love of Your Life
Watch it if: You want a recent release with romance and emotional complications.
Margaret Qualley plays Maya, whose meeting with Charlie, played by Gabriel Basso, opens up a future she had not anticipated. When that future is disrupted, she has to reconsider what comes next and how to love again. Rachel Morrison, whose directing credits include The Fire Inside, directs.
It is the recent-release choice for viewers who want relationships rather than another investigation, chase, or impending apocalypse. Choose it when the evening has room for emotional upheaval alongside the romance.
Weekend slot: Saturday afternoon.
2. Thief
Watch it if: You want a crime movie with atmosphere and an actor who commands your attention.
James Caan plays a professional safecracker trying to arrange an exit from a life that has made him very good at dangerous work. A final score and a relationship with the mob complicate those plans. Michael Mann directs the 1981 film, currently listed for Prime members.
This is an appealing alternative to a heist built around a crowd of quipping specialists. Its central attraction is a man with skills, demands, and an increasingly difficult path toward the future he wants.
Put the phone down for this one. Let the film establish its rhythm.
Weekend slot: Saturday night.
3. Candyman (1992)
Watch it if: You want Halloween horror that leaves room for a conversation afterward.
Virginia Madsen plays Helen Lyle, a graduate student investigating an urban legend. Tony Todd is the figure whose name she probably should have left out of her bathroom routine. The premise is simple enough to explain at a sleepover: say his name five times in a mirror.
The film’s lasting interest reaches into race, housing, violence, and who gets to treat another community’s fear as research material. Those themes make it a particularly good selection for viewers who want something beneath the scares.
Make sure you select the 1992 original.
Weekend slot: Sunday night.
4. Kung Fu Panda
Watch it if: You want the whole room to agree on something.
Po is an enthusiastic panda whose ambitions exceed his apparent qualifications. Jack Black supplies his voice in an animated adventure that turns an unlikely fighter into the potential guardian of his community. Angelina Jolie and Jackie Chan are among the voice cast.
The original 2008 movie runs about 90 minutes, making it a manageable choice for an afternoon with children or an adult evening that needs cheering up. A weekend watchlist should leave room for a movie whose main contribution is making people happy to have watched it together.
Weekend slot: Sunday afternoon.
5. Hereditary
Watch it if: You want a genuinely disturbing evening and have no plans to call this comfort viewing.
Toni Collette leads a family whose grief after the death of its matriarch gives way to discoveries about an increasingly threatening inheritance. Gabriel Byrne and Ann Dowd are also in the cast.
The 2018 film is the list’s heavier horror selection: family distress and supernatural dread occupy the same space. Its appeal is the sustained discomfort of a household coming apart, so choose your company accordingly. Someone asking for a few playful Halloween scares may prefer a different evening altogether.
Weekend slot: Late night, with willing participants.
If You Only Have Time for One
Make it Thief if you want the crime pick, or Candyman if the approaching holiday is setting the mood. Both offer a clear reason to revisit an older film instead of automatically choosing the newest thumbnail.
For a recent release, choose Love of Your Life. For a household with competing tastes, start with Kung Fu Panda. Save Hereditary for the people who mean it when they say they want to be scared.