A quick look at the Paramount+ top 10 rankings tells you everything you need to know about what movie lovers hold as a priority when it comes to choosing something to watch. The supernatural horror Passenger is still sitting at the top of the list, and Joe Dirt (which we covered last week) is in the top 5—two movies that have nothing in common other than the fact that they both have appalling Rotten Tomatoes scores. People like what they like.
Take the chart with a grain of salt, though, as none of the five movies below are on it, but they’re all bangers that have been endlessly argued about, quoted, and rewatched for decades—especially my top pick, which is in my hall of fame.
5
Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
Vince Vaughn takes on Ben Stiller in this comedy classic
Don’t laugh, but I played in a recreational dodgeball league for years (yes, as an adult), and there are a couple of things I can report—it is every bit as cutthroat as any other “legit” sport, and everyone, and I mean everyone, quotes this movie ad nauseam on the court. Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story is a brilliantly satirical story of Peter La Fleur (Vince Vaughn) and his failing Average Joe’s gym, a run-down refuge for its oddball regulars.
When massive debt threatens to shut Peter down, and with his tyrannical, spray-tanned competitor, White Goodman (Ben Stiller), standing by to bulldoze it for a parking lot, Peter and the Joes enter a Vegas dodgeball tournament to win the cash to save it. In their corner is legendary dodgeballer Patches O’Houlihan (Rip Torn), who trains them by throwing wrenches at them and teaching them the five D’s of dodgeball.
4
Seven
A killer whose playbook is the seven deadly sins
David Fincher’s second feature film may be from 1995, but it is still one of his greatest achievements and has one of the most disturbing twist endings I’ve still ever seen. Seven is a haunting psychological police thriller that follows veteran detective William Somerset (Morgan Freeman), who is wrapping up his long career when he’s saddled with a new partner, David Mills (Brad Pitt), who’s just transferred to town with his new wife Tracy (Gwyneth Paltrow).
When a demented killer starts leaving bodies behind, each thematically killed to match the seven deadly sins, the partners methodically work to track him down before he fulfills the last two sins, which one of them may be guilty of.
3
Rocky
The underdog story every underdog story copied
Rocky is intrinsically linked to Sylvester Stallone’s origin story. Tired of being passed up for roles, the struggling actor cranked out the script in a matter of days and refused to sell it unless he played the lead, a gamble that led to three Oscars, including Best Picture, and one of the most epic movie franchises in history.
If you don’t know the story by now, I don’t know what to say, but it’s the ultimate underdog tale about a downtrodden Philadelphia boxer in dire straits who’s given the chance of a lifetime—a publicity fight with heavyweight champ Apollo Creed (Carl Weathers). With his snarling, yelling trainer Mickey (Burgess Meredith) and best girl Adrian (Talia Shire) in his corner, all Rocky wants to do is go the distance with Creed, but he ends up shocking a nation. All six Rocky films landed on Paramount+ together, opening the gates for one hell of a marathon.
2
Creed
Apollo’s son finds the only trainer who gets it
Whether you watch all six Rocky movies first or not, 2015’s excellent Creed works as a seventh chapter in the saga, but also as a fresh starting point for newcomers. Before Ryan Coogler made Black Panther, he tapped Michael B. Jordan to play Adonis Johnson, the son Apollo Creed never knew he had. Raised by Apollo’s widow, Adonis has an unquenchable desire to follow in his dad’s footsteps, so he leaves his cushy life behind and heads to Philly to be trained by the one man who knew his father better than anyone.
A reluctant, aging Rocky Balboa (Sylvester Stallone) agrees, and as Adonis trains for a championship fight with “Pretty” Ricky Conlan, he must learn to stop running from his father’s legacy and embrace the “Creed” name. Stallone got his first Oscar nomination in nearly 40 years for the role. Creed II and Creed III are both on Paramount+ as well.
1
Tommy Boy
Fat guy, little coat, big heart
It’s embarrassing the number of times I’ve performed the “fat guy in a little coat” routine at parties, but it always kills—at least among my moronic friends. But that’s entirely the point with ridiculous slapstick comedies like Tommy Boy; they’re built for laughs, pure and simple. And when they’re blessed with comedic legends like Chris Farley and David Spade, it’s no wonder they’re so memorable and quotable.
When dim-bulb Tommy Callahan (Farley) finally finishes college (after seven years!), he comes home to Ohio to work at the family’s auto parts factory. But when his dad, Big Tom (Brian Dennehy), dies at his own wedding reception after marrying the suspicious Beverly (Bo Derek), Tommy and executive assistant Richard Hayden (Spade) go on an epic road trip to scare up sales to save the company before Beverly and her smarmy “son” (Rob Lowe) sell it off. It’s classic Farley and Spade, and my top pick this week.
More than enough to watch on Paramount+
Every week we round up this list of movie suggestions for Paramount+ subscribers in the U.S., but if you’re looking for more to watch, we also rally together some of the best thrillers the streamer has to offer. If you also happen to be a Netflix subscriber, we’ve, of course, got tons of movie recommendations for it, too.
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Yes, $8/month
- Simultaneous streams
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- Live TV
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Select live sports (NFL on CBS & UEFA Champions League)
- Price
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Starting at $8/month or $60/year