A24 has emerged as one of the first manufacturing companies in recent years. And while the films it produces cover all genres — horror, documentary, comedy and beyond — the funhouse has become synonymous with a certain aesthetic.
The company has attracted independent filmmakers such as Sofia Coppola, Ari Aster, Yorgos Lanthimos and Barry Jenkins, who have helped define the company’s creative ethos so that it is often easy to recognize the film as an A24 production. And its films aren’t just underground hits, either. Many of them have also won Oscars, including several titles arriving this month such as Moonlight and Everywhere at Once.
While HBO Max is the best place to stream many of A24’s movies, you can find some of its best movies on several. free streaming services like The Canopy, TubiPluto TV and The Plex. This July, in addition to the Oscar winners we have already mentioned, you can find famous songs such as Greta Gerwig’s Lady Bird and Sean Baker’s Red Rocket and a few other great titles.
Here are some of our favorite A24 hits to watch in July without spending a penny.
Everywhere Everywhere All at Once is that rare comedy that won the Oscar for Best Picture. More absurd than funny, the 2022 film also nabbed Best Actress for Michelle Yeoh as her Chinese immigrant husband, Waymond (Best Supporting Actor winner Ke Huy Quan), who finds variety that allows them to jump from one universe to the next. The film also stars Stephanie Hsu and Jamie Lee Curtis, who won the Oscar for Best Supporting Actress. Combining comedy, action and drama all in one place, it’s time-bending and genre-bending.
Civil War, written and directed by Alex Garland, is a dystopian thriller that also happens to feel very real. This film is about the modern American civil war between the government and separatists. As violence erupts everywhere, a group of war correspondents attempt to travel a dangerous route from New York to Washington to interview the President. Kirsten Dunst, Wagner Moura, Cailee Spaeny and Stephen McKinley Henderson co-star.
Yes, it’s a film based on a series of tweets, but in the hands of director Janicza Bravo, Zola is more than that. In 2015, a woman named A’Ziah “Zola” King went viral for a story she wrote in 148 tweets about a road trip she took to Florida with her new friend who wasn’t what she looked like. Taylor Paige plays the title character, and Riley Keough plays Stefani, who undresses and invites Zola to Tampa so they can make money by dancing. But what follows is a wild tale of sex and violence that eventually boils down to murder.
Another entry for Alex Garland, Ex Machina stars Domhnall Gleeson as Caleb, a man tasked by his employer Nathan (Oscar Isaac) to determine if the robot he is developing can pass as a human. Caleb develops feelings for a robot, named Ava (Alicia Vikander), and soon realizes that Nathan’s motives are more deceitful and manipulative than Caleb realized.
Moonlight is another Best Picture winner to hit the free-to-air platforms this month. The film, directed by Barry Jenkins, is the story of a boy, Chiron Harris, told in three parts, as he moves from adolescence to adulthood as he begins to confront his sexuality. He forms a bond with a drug dealer named Juan (Mahershala Ali, who won an Oscar for his role), who becomes a father figure to him as he grows up.
Written and directed by Greta Gerwig, Lady Bird stars Saoirse Ronan as Christine McPherson, a high school senior who calls herself “Lady Bird.” As the school year progresses, she wishes to leave her home in Sacramento to attend college on the East Coast, something her family cannot afford. When he secretly applies — and is accepted — to a school in New York, his relationship with his mother (Laurie Metcalf) becomes strained. Gerwig said the film is not a biography of her life, but the themes of family relationships, teenage yearnings and hopeful aspirations are universal and well captured. (Catch Timothée Chalamet in one of his first roles as one of Lady Bird’s high school sweethearts.)
Sean Baker received an Oscar for Anora, but before that, he directed Red Rocket, a popular drama about recently retired movie star Mike “Saber” Davies (played by Simon Rex), who returns to his hometown in Texas to start over. While he tries unsuccessfully to adjust to small-town life, he meets a 17-year-old girl (Suzanna Son) who persuades him to start her own adult movie, so they can move to LA together. Rex has received numerous awards, including an Independent Spirit Award for his role as Mikey.
