A number of Boston-set movies have been popping up on Netflix’s High 10 checklist these days (shout out to Patriots Day), which implies it is time for followers of the surprisingly expansive Boston movie style and its extremely widespread sub-genre Boston Crime to have fun by watching much more movies which can be set in or round Boston.
Now, the movies on this checklist won’t be one of the best motion pictures ever made (although some are undoubtedly glorious), however they really feel genuine and lived in, feature the famous Boston accent (for higher or worse), and infrequently star quite a lot of well-known Boston-area natives — OK, it is largely Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and Mark Wahlberg (sorry, Chris Evans — you may get there at some point), however that is just like the holy trinity, proper? So should you’re on the lookout for a fantastic Boston film to look at, these are one of the best ones.
On the lookout for extra suggestions of what to look at subsequent? We have a ton of them! And should you’re on the lookout for hand-picked suggestions primarily based on exhibits you like, we have those too.
The Town
Watch it on: Netflix
Ben Affleck and Jeremy Renner, The City
Say what you’ll about Ben Affleck as an individual — or as a shill for Dunkin’ — however when it comes to Ben Affleck as a man who makes movies set in Boston, he is the undefeated champ. The Town, the 2010 movie he co-wrote, directed, and starred in, is an undeniably nice heist movie with a excessive rewatchability issue. Affleck stars as Doug MacRay, a financial institution robber from Charlestown who hopes to tug off one closing rating with a gaggle of lifelong associates by robbing Fenway Park after which skipping city for greener pastures. Nevertheless, his coronary heart will get tousled with the one one that may determine Doug and his associates from an earlier heist, and shortly his massive plan threatens to crumble. Between Affleck’s spectacular course and a very good and memorable supporting flip from Jeremy Renner, who obtained his second Academy Award nomination for the efficiency, The City is an all-time nice Boston film.
Good Will Hunting
Watch it on: HBO Max, Showtime, Hulu (with Showtime add-on), Amazon (with Showtime add-on)
The 1997 movie that launched many of the world to finest associates Matt Damon and Ben Affleck, Good Will Hunting obtained quite a lot of award nominations and even earned the pair the Academy Award for Authentic Screenplay. Damon stars within the movie as Will, a self-taught genius from an abusive foster residence who as an grownup works as a janitor at MIT. Via a sequence of occasions, he comes to review with a famend arithmetic professor and finally finds a path out of South Boston and to a greater life, a growth that pleases his pal Chuckie (Affleck) to no finish. There is a good likelihood you’ve got already seen this film, however it by no means will get previous, and it options quite a lot of the identical Boston-centric themes as different movies on this checklist.
The Departed
Watch it on: HBO Max
Leonardo DiCaprio, The Departed
One of the best Boston-set film ever made, The Departed is a kind of movies you need to watch each time it pops up on TV (bear in mind simply watching stuff as a result of it was on?). A remake of the Hong Kong movie Inside Affairs directed by Martin Scorsese — who lastly took residence an Oscar for steering for the movie — the gangster drama tells an more and more tense story of two cops — one who’s infiltrated the crew of infamous crime boss Frank Costello (performed by Jack Nicholson) in an try to carry him down, and one who’s working for him as a mole within the BPD and making an attempt to guard him from inside. After they every discover out the opposite exists, they go to nice lengths to find the opposite’s identification whereas defending their very own. The film featured a really ridiculous solid — along with Nicholson, the movie starred Leonardo DiCaprio and Matt Damon as the 2 cops, and featured supporting work from Martin Sheen, Mark Wahlberg, Alec Baldwin, Vera Farmiga, and one infamous rat — and, as a bonus, gifted us with some of Marky Mark’s best work to date.
Spotlight
Watch it on: IMDb TV
Highlight
Spotlight is not like the opposite movies on this checklist; the 2015 winner of the Academy Award for Finest Image is not a gritty thriller or a movie steeped in gangster themes. It’s primarily based on the true story of The Boston Globe‘s “Highlight” workforce — a gaggle of investigative journalists — who uncovered widespread, systemic baby intercourse abuse within the Boston space by an astonishing variety of Catholic clergymen. The sequence of tales revealed by the Globe on the subject earned the newspaper a Pulitzer, and though the movie took some inventive liberties in telling this story, it is an engrossing, transferring, and well-acted movie that honors the work of its topics.
Mystic River
Watch it on: HBO Max
Mystic River
Based mostly on the Dennis Lehane novel of the identical identify, Mystic River tells the story of three childhood associates — performed by Tim Robbins, Sean Penn, and Kevin Bacon — who’re drawn again collectively as adults after the homicide of considered one of their daughters. As secrets and techniques are revealed, tensions rise, and mistrust types, layers of tragedy are revealed, and the movie, which was directed by Clint Eastwood, turns into one emotional intestine punch after one other. The film stands out for its spectacular solid — which additionally contains Laurence Fishburne, Marcia Gay Harden, and Laura Linney — and their much more spectacular performances.
Gone Baby Gone
Watch it on: Starz, Hulu (with Starz add-on), Amazon (with Starz add-on)
Gone Child Gone
Oh look, one other film linked to the Affleck household. Apparently it is unimaginable to make Boston-set film with out a minimum of one Affleck. Jokes apart, Gone Baby Gone is the movie that turned Ben’s profession round; it was his feature-length directorial debut, and he additionally co-wrote the script, which was primarily based on one other considered one of Dennis Lehane’s novels. A neo-noir set within the Boston neighborhood of Dorchester, the movie explores Boston’s seedy underbelly and stars Casey Affleck and Michelle Monaghan as two PIs looking for a younger lady who was kidnapped from her residence. The thriller follows quite a lot of twists and turns, and is one which stays with you lengthy after you’ve got watched.
Fever Pitch
Watch it on: Amazon Prime (to hire or purchase)
Fever Pitch
Admit it, you weren’t anticipating to see Fever Pitch, a rom-com starring Jimmy Fallon and Drew Barrymore, on this checklist that options largely what quantities to Boston Crime Motion pictures. However the movie deserves to be on this checklist, not as a result of it is an unimaginable feat of filmmaking — it is actually, actually not — however as a result of it captures a distinct aspect of town and a selected second in time: when the Pink Sox reversed the curse and received the World Sequence in 2004. Certain, Boston went on to win three extra instances by way of 2018, annoying just about each baseball fan outdoors the larger Boston space, however this was an enormous second for Boston sports activities, and for sports activities historical past, so even should you now root towards the egotistical Pink Sox, this movie is a vital one to look at.