Movies worth watching.
Force Five is about finding the next movie you'll love.
I'm Jason Kleeberg, a former video store clerk who spent years helping people figure out what to watch next. Now I do the same thing here: five concise reasons you might like a movie, covering everything from brand-new releases and overlooked classics to cult oddities, horror, action, martial arts, animation and movies that simply deserve another look.
No grades. No rage bait. No AI-generated recommendations. Just movies I think are worth putting on your radar.
Not sure where to start? Browse by genre below or jump into the latest recommendation.
Witchcraft, romance and total insanity | Practical Magic (1998)
Practical Magic is part romantic comedy, part supernatural horror and entirely its own strange creation. Sandra Bullock and Nicole Kidman lead a terrific cast through family curses, midnight margaritas, possession and one of the most beautiful movie houses of the 1990s.
The other 1996 horror classic | The Craft (1996)
Thirty years after its release, The Craft remains a terrific combination of teenage rebellion, witchcraft, high-school cruelty and mid-90s alternative culture. From its surprisingly authentic rituals to Fairuza Balk's unforgettable performance as Nancy, here are five reasons this cult favorite still deserves a watch.
Killer puppets, RZA, and so much gore | V/H/S/Mixtape (2026)
V/H/S/Mixtape cranks up the long-running found-footage franchise with killer puppets, weaponized sound, extreme gore and four wildly different horror stories built around music.
Robert De Niro’s other Vietnam movie | Jacknife (1989)
Robert De Niro, Ed Harris and Kathy Baker deliver three tremendous performances in Jacknife (1989), a largely forgotten drama about the lasting impact of Vietnam, complicated family relationships and finding the courage to move forward.
Big, dumb, action packed fun | Matchbox: The Movie (2026)
Critics may not love Matchbox: The Movie, but Sam Hargrave’s practical car stunts, likable cast and family-friendly action make it an easy watch for anyone looking for big, uncomplicated blockbuster fun.
A nasty little Ozploitation flick | Penny Lane is Dead (2025)
Penny Lane Is Dead turns a 1986 Australian beach-house celebration into a vicious Ozploitation nightmare filled with dark comedy, unhinged villains and seriously nasty practical gore.
A rap, kung-fu melodramatic fever dream | City Dragon (1995)
City Dragon is a 1995 martial-arts comedy where nearly every conversation becomes a rap, the soundtrack unexpectedly slaps and MC Kung Fu somehow finds time for romance, capitalism and actual kung fu.
A kung-fu giallo? | Bruce and the Iron Finger (1979)
Bruce and the Iron Finger is part kung-fu movie, part murder mystery and part completely unhinged Bruceploitation artifact. Bruce Li investigates a killer with a deadly finger technique while the movie piles on great fights, hilarious dubbing and plenty of weirdness.
Tom Cruise just made a future cult classic | Digger (2026)
Digger is huge, strange, divisive and maybe destined for cult status. Here are five reasons to watch Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s 2026 satire, including Tom Cruise, Riz Ahmed and one extraordinary ten-minute monologue.
Robert Pattinson became Chris Hansen | Primetime (2026)
Robert Pattinson transforms into To Catch a Predator host Chris Hansen in Primetime, Lance Oppenheim’s disturbing media satire about ratings, public humiliation and our appetite for watching it.
Batman has been broken | Batman: Knightfall Part 1: Knightfall (2026)
DC finally brings the legendary Knightfall storyline to animation, complete with R-rated violence, striking ’90s comic-book visuals and a fantastic Michael Mando as Bane.
The 90s serial killer thriller is back | The Whisper Man (2026)
The Whisper Man feels like Netflix pulled a mid-budget serial-killer thriller straight out of the 1990s, with Adam Scott, Robert De Niro, Michael Keaton and a surprisingly emotional story about fathers and sons.
Catholic school has never been this awkward | Lemonade Blessing (2026)
Lemonade Blessing turns Catholic guilt, first love, divorced parents and teenage embarrassment into a painfully funny coming-of-age movie that understands how enormous everything feels when you’re fifteen.
Some of the wildest kills in horror this year | Ghost in the Cell (2026)
Joko Anwar turns a brutal Indonesian prison into the setting for a supernatural horror comedy packed with corruption, bizarre humor and some of the wildest kills of 2026.
If you liked The Wire, check this movie out | Brooklyn’s Finest (2009)
Missing The Wire? Brooklyn’s Finest combines morally compromised cops, interlocking crime stories, gritty New York atmosphere and an incredible cast led by Don Cheadle, Ethan Hawke, Richard Gere and Wesley Snipes.
The best dinosaur movie since Jurassic Park | The End of Oak Street (2026)
Anne Hathaway fights dinosaurs in suburbia in The End of Oak Street, David Robert Mitchell’s wild 2026 sci-fi adventure. Here are five reasons dinosaur and creature-feature fans need to see it.
The Raid at 30,000 Feet | Wings of Dread (2026)
Wings of Dread is a compact 2026 Chinese action thriller starring Ashton Chen and The Raid’s Iko Uwais, taking martial arts mayhem 30,000 feet into the air. Air police officer Gu Chaoyang finds himself aboard a flight carrying a dangerous prisoner when a group of hijackers led by Iko Uwais’ Paquet attempts to free him.
What follows is an sub-90-minute barrage of close-quarters fights in aisles, cargo holds and even an airplane bathroom.
In this episode, I give you five reasons you might want to watch Wings of Dread.
