588 Best Easy Movies to Watch (Page 6)

Staff & contributors

Sometimes all we want is a movie that won’t eat up any brain power, but still contains the ingredients for maximum enjoyment. If that’s you, here are the best easy watches that are now available for streaming.

Set in 1650 against the backdrop of the English colonization of Ireland, Wolfwalkers follows the story of Robyn, a young apprentice hunter who arrives in Ireland with her father to wipe out the last wolf pack. Completing the “Irish Folklore Trilogy,” Tomm Moore’s film is a tale of sisterhood, friendship, and acceptance told with phenomenal artistry. Beautifully animated, with warm autumn colors and refined attention to detail, the film is beyond pleasing to the eye. The outstanding voice work from Honor Kneafsey and Eva Whittaker, along with a well-written and emotionally compelling story, make Wolfwalkers a unique animation experience for young viewers and adults alike. 

Genre: Adventure, Animation, Drama, Family, Fantasy

Actor: Aoibhin Murphy, Ben Andrews, Eva Whittaker, Honor Kneafsey, Jerome Burelbach, John Morton, Jon Kenny, Maria Doyle Kennedy, Nora Twomey, Paul Young, Richie Cody, Sean Bean, Simon McBurney, Tommy Tiernan, Vince Drews

Director: Ross Stewart, Tomm Moore

Rating: PG

There’s a lot more to this show than what it packages itself as, which is a cute little show shot in the ‘90s/2000s about capable toddlers. We can assume the kids are safe and have adults offscreen with them, but anxious ol' me has too many questions (e.g. How many more guardians are there besides cameramen? This isn’t a nature docu, so do the cameramen step in a lot?) The flash forwards in later episodes are a warm and welcome wrinkle to the show that deepens a distant nostalgia into an instant connection with these people. This show maximizes its short runtime by packing cuteness, tension, and fascination, and even finding a way to hit you in the feels.

Genre: Documentary, Family, Kids, Reality

An early gem from Finnish maestro Aki Kaurismäki, Drifting Clouds is a deceptively simple story. The aftermath of job losses for wife Ilona (Kati Outinen) and husband Lauri (Kari Väänänen) holds a series of misfortunes, all of them tests to their marital bond. But this is only the beginning: as with Kaurismäki's endearing use of flat irony and detached performances by regular actors of his, things can only get worse before they get better. Humanism has always shined through the director's films, and this first part of a "Finland" trilogy makes no exception to the rule: the fact that labor and closeness are the two main themes (and are equally important for one's survival) already elevates the absurdist comedy to something way more caring, engaged, and ultimately, tender.

Genre: Comedy, Drama

Actor: Aarre Karén, Antti Reini, Clas-Ove Bruun, Elina Salo, Esko Nikkari, Kaija Pakarinen, Kari Väänänen, Kari Väänänen, Kati Outinen, Markku Peltola, Mato Valtonen, Matti Onnismaa, Matti Pellonpää, Ona Kamu, Outi Mäenpää, Pentti Auer, Rose-Marie Precht, Sakari Kuosmanen, Silu Seppälä, Sulevi Peltola, Tero Jartti, Tuire Tuomisto, Vesa Mäkelä, Yrjö Järvinen

Director: Aki Kaurismäki, Aki Kaurismäki

Rating: Not Rated