25-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Digital Trends
Kevin Costner's ambitious Western is underrated — watch it now on HBO Max (July 25-27)
Several of Warner Bros.' biggest releases of 2025 are streaming on HBO Max. A Minecraft Movie, the third-highest-grossing movie of 2025, and Sinners, Ryan Coogler's critically acclaimed vampiric horror, are occupying the first two spots in the top 10.
Beyond the top 10, there are a plethora of underrated movies worthy of your time. Kevin Costner's Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 is much better than the mixed reviews it received at the time of its release. This weekend, give Horizon and these two underrated movies a shot.
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Music Box: Yacht Rock: A Documentary (2024)
Christopher Cross. Michael McDonald, Kenny Loggins. Steely Dan. Toto. These five musicians and bands helped pioneer a genre of music that became known as yacht rock. Developed in the late '70s and early '80s, yacht rock is a West Coast sound that infused soulful vocals with easy-listening lyrics. Yacht rock is a combination of soft pop, jazz, R&B, and funk. Yacht rock's popularity exploded in the mid-1980s, but by the end of the decade, it began to lose its stranglehold on pop culture.
That's when an unlikely ally — hip hop artists — began sampling yacht rock beats in their songs, which led to a resurgence in the genre. Yacht Rock: A Documentary is an informative exploration into a genre that deserves much more credit for its significant impact on the music industry.
Stream Music Box: Yacht Rock: A Documentary on HBO Max.
Blue Beetle (2023)
Blue Beetle was one of DC's casualties in 2023. James Gunn and Peter Safran, the new heads of DC Studios, clearly wanted the 2023 slate — Shazam 2, The Flash, Blue Beetle, and Aquaman 2 — to disappear and make way for the new DC Universe. That being said, Blue Beetle displayed the most potential, which is probably why an animated series was greenlit.
Cobra Kai's Xolo Maridueña as Jamie Reyes, a recent college graduate who becomes the Blue Beetle after fusing with the Scarab. The Scarab encases Jamie in an armored exoskeleton with superpowers, including flight, strength, and agility. Despite his initial hesitation, Jamie comes to accept his newfound abilities and embraces his new calling. On its surface, Blue Beetle is a superhero adventure, but the movie works best as a grounded family drama thanks to its terrific cast.
Stream Blue Beetle on HBO Max.
Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 (2024)
Kevin Costner has become the butt of a lot of jokes for Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1. Costner personally funded $38 million of the $100 million budget shared by the first two films. His ambition may have gotten the better of him, considering Chapter 1 flopped at the box office, and Warner Bros. removed Chapter 2 from its release calendar.
All that being said, I'm glad Horizon exists because there are moments in this film — including the Apache raid and Hayes' confrontation with Caleb — that are pure cinematic magic. A Western about life on the American frontier is in Costner's wheelhouse. Mr. Costner, please sell the rights to Netflix to release the next three chapters.
Stream Horizon: An American Saga – Chapter 1 on HBO Max.
