In a Netflix Rut? Try One of These 17 Underrated Gems

A young man discovers that his family has a genetic ability to travel through time. He uses this ability first to go back and undo the mistakes he makes in the process of trying to win the heart of his true love, then to touch on his complicated relationship with his similarly gifted father.

Watch About Time on Netflix.

In this niche but delightful documentary, a comedy writer begins researching the world of obscure, increasingly bizarre, and little-known musicals and their cast recordings, leading to a deep dive into some of the funniest forgotten musicals of the past century.

Watch Bathtubs Over Broadway on Netflix.

This historical drama is loosely based on one of the most headline-grabbing figures of the 18th century: Georgiana Cavendish, the Duchess of Devonshire. Married off to one of the most powerful men in England, Georgiana rebels against the stifling expectations of her role, only to wind up tangled in a devastating love quadrangle.

Watch The Duchess on Netflix.

A young sheep farmer in Yorkshire copes with monotony and loneliness through casual sex and drinking. When a migrant worker arrives to help with the farm, the relationship between the two men slowly shows them a different way to live and maybe even to be happy.

Watch God’s Own Country on Netflix.

When a talented Indian chef moves with his family to France, they set up an Indian restaurant in their new home village. Only a hundred feet away, however, is an established and acclaimed restaurant run by a haughty chef with very strict ideas about how food should be – until the rivalry between the two turns into a learning experience.

Watch The Hundred-Foot Journey on Netflix.

Less sunny and humorous than some of Jane Austen’s more famous works, this dramedy follows a girl sent to be raised by her rich aunt and uncle. As she and her cousins reach adulthood, their hopes and desires come into conflict with what’s expected of them, resulting in a series of messy love triangles and family secrets revealed.

Watch Mansfield Park on Netflix.

For campy, over-the-top fun, you can’t beat this musical. Christina Aguilera plays a small-town girl with a big voice who arrives at a burlesque club run by a former dancer (played by Cher). It’s an old-fashioned musical with a straightforward plot and tons of glitzy song and dance, with two pop divas at center stage.

Watch Burlesque on Netflix.

This quirky indie flick stars Greta Gerwig (who co-wrote the screenplay with her partner, director Noah Baumbach) as a free spirit and aspiring dancer in New York City. As Frances struggles to make her dreams come true, she and her friends encounter the very real struggles of city life and growing up.

Watch Frances Ha on Netflix.

Meryl Streep and Amy Adams play two different women in two different times whose stories nevertheless intersect. In one narrative, Julia Child fights to be taken seriously and develops her iconic brand of cooking instruction. In the other, a blogger decides to try to cook every recipe in Child’s famous cookbook, which turns out to be a much more emotionally demanding undertaking than she thought.

Watch Julie & Julia on Netflix.

It’s the first and least famous of Baz Luhrmann’s “Red Curtain Trilogy,” but it’s definitely worth a second glance! A ballroom dancer with unconventional ideas chooses a total novice as his new partner after getting dumped before a big competition, and the unexpected pairing pursues the coveted national championship title with their own unique style.

Watch Strictly Ballroom on Netflix.

It may be deeply meme-able, but this bizarre and beautiful sci-fi movie is also strangely engaging. When a young working-class woman discovers she’s the genetic heir to a cosmic empire, she’s tossed into the deep end of political scheming that could put her life and the future of the universe in jeopardy.

Watch Jupiter Ascending on Netflix.

Angelina Jolie plays a falsely accused spy in a role that was, famously, originally written as a male character. After being set up to take the fall for being a sleeper agent, she goes on the run in an attempt to clear her name and find out what’s really happening and who’s really behind the conspiracy.

Watch Salt on Netflix.

Years after hooking up in college, two sort-of exes reconnect and realize that they’ve both been equally unlucky and self-sabotaging in their love lives. As they try to support each other through starting new relationships, they start to realize that their feelings for each other are getting a lot messier and more complicated.

Watch Sleeping With Other People on Netflix.

In this dark musical tale of revenge, a wrongfully convicted man returns home after his imprisonment to find his wife gone and his daughter the captive of the man who imprisoned him. With the help of his equally twisted landlady, he vows bloody revenge – and is perfectly willing to turn his blade on anyone who gets in his way.

Watch Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street on Netflix.

In early 20th-century England, a young suffragette’s ideals are shattered when she encounters the reality of the opposition to giving women the right to vote. Over time, she begins joining in with more radical and outspoken activists, including some of the most famous suffragettes of the era, even as they face more and more severe threats to their livelihoods and lives.

Watch Suffragette on Netflix.

Part of a wave of historical films in the late ’90s and early ’00s, Elizabeth stars Cate Blanchett as a young Queen Elizabeth I. When her sister Mary dies childless, Elizabeth becomes the queen. As an unmarried and young woman in a world run by men, she struggles to assert her own power and stay alive while also trying to follow the desires of her heart.

Watch Elizabeth on Netflix.