We’re past the ides of March, which means it’s time to look ahead to April, and a whole new slate of movies and TV coming to Netflix streaming. This month, we’re getting a classic British comedy, a contemplative French film, and an Iranian vampire western—not to mention all the American stuff, like an Amy Poehler romcom parody! We’re a little light on television offerings, but the good news is that the Derek one-off special from last December will soon be available, and even though it’s a Ricky Gervais vehicle, it’s not the easiest program to get your hands on stateside.
Check out our featured recommendations, and read on for the full list of this month’s new offerings.
1. Hot Fuzz
Year: 2007
Director: Edgar Wright
Available: April 16
All is not as it seems in the sleepy little hamlet of Sandford, where Sergeant Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg), with assistance from his eager degenerate of a partner Danny Butterman (Nick Frost), investigates a suspicious rash of accidental deaths. Pegg and Wright’s script mostly remains true to the same kind of offbeat humor that made Shaun of the Dead, their previous film, a cult favorite, and Hot Fuzz manages to outdo most average, American buddy-cop comedies. —Tim Basham
2. Derek: The Special
Year: 2014
Stars: Ricky Gervais, Karl Pilkington
Available: April 3
Gervais has never shied from political incorrectness, so the idea of him portraying a character who may be suffering from a mental handicap might elicit a few premature cringes, but his performance works…he’s surprisingly adept at the more serious moments. And Gervais is sweet in the title role. Maybe this will be the show that’ll convince more viewers of what we’ve known to be true for years: this sharp-tongued comedian is actually a big softie. —Bonnie Stiernberg
3. Noah
Year: 2014
Director: Darren Aronofsky
Available: April 18
Darren Aronofsky’s film aims to strip all hokiness from the story of a guy who loads a bunch of animals onto a giant ark so they can survive a flood. Make no mistake, this is a tale of violence from both humans and their creator. It is about the struggle to do the right thing, and the difficulty of knowing exactly what that is…It’s these uneasy shades of gray that make Noah such a compelling movie. Certitude is easy, but when you see the horrifying reality of its wickedness, that’s when you have a dilemma to consider. —Jeremy Mathews
4. A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night
Year: 2014
Director: Ana Lily Amirpour
Available: April 21
The ravishing look of writer-director Ana Lily Amirpour’s feature debut is so enveloping that it doesn’t much matter that not a lot happens within the frame. Draped in dreamy black-and-white and scored with proto-Morricone instrumentals and evocative goth-rock, A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night proudly stakes its claim as an aspiring cult classic. Expect anything more from this exercise in luxurious cool and you’ll feel shortchanged. Go in with a spirit of midnight-movie playfulness, and you’ll have plenty to savor. —Tim Grierson
5. They Came Together
Year: 2014
Director: David Wain
Available: April 17
Parody is very easy to do, but difficult to do well, especially when you have to sustain it for an entire movie, as opposed to, say, an Internet video. David Wain’s They Came Together parodies the romantic comedy, and succeeds about as well as anybody could hope for…there are a lot of excellent jokes and visual gags, and the movie subverts expectations, and clichés, many times over. As a result, this is the best parody film to come along in a while—a reliable source of laughs, no matter how you feel about more traditional romantic comedies. —Chris Morgan
Avail. April 1
And Now … Ladies and Gentlemen… (2002)
Bandolero (2000)
Barnyard (2006)
The Beautician and the Beast (1997)
Bound (1996)
Buffalo Soldiers (2001)
The Crocodile Hunter: Collision Course (2002)
Down to Earth (2001)
Leprechaun 3 (1995)
Leprechaun 4: In Space (1997)
Leprechaun 6: Back 2 tha Hood (2003)
Suicide Kings (1997)
Sunset Strip (2000)
Underworld (2003)
Whiteboyz (1999)
Wrong Turn at Tahoe (2009)
Avail. April 2
Life Partners (2014)
Sinbad: The Fifth Voyage (2014)
Avail. April 3
Starry Eyes (2014)
The Quiet Ones (2014)
All Hail King Julien (season 1)
Derek (2014 special)
Avail. April 7
Preservation (2014)
Avail. April 8
Halt and Catch Fire (season 1)
Avail. April 9
Pioneer (2013)
Avail. April 10
The Awakening (2013)
Broken (2013)
Burning Bridges (2014)
Confusion Na Wa (2013)
Finding Mercy (2012)
Finding Mercy 2 (2014)
Flower Girl (2013)
Forgetting June (2013)
Knocking on Heaven’s Door (2014)
Lagos Cougars (2013)
Lies Men Tell (2013)
Mad Couple (2014)
Mad Couple 2 (2014)
Matters Arising (2014)
October 1* (2014)
Onye Ozi (2013)
Ties That Bind (2011)
Marvel’s Daredevil (season 1)
Avail. April 12
The Identical (2014)
Avail. April 13
Video Game High School (season 3)
Avail. April 14
The Babadook (2014)
Goodbye to Language (2014)
Kink (2013)
Avail. April 16
Hot Fuzz (2007)
Avail. April 17
Chris D’Elia: Incorrigible (2015)
They Came Together (2014)
Baby Daddy (season 4)
Avail. April 18
Noah (2014)
Avail. April 21
A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night (2014)
Avail. April 26
The Nutty Professor 2: Facing the Fear (2008)
Avail. April 27
National Treasure (2004)