When picking selections for the weekend ahead, we don’t tend to do so by year. But by a fluke of the February release schedule, all of our selections for the three great Hulu movies that you need to stream this weekend were released in theaters in 1998. And they couldn’t be more different from each other.
Our first selection is a powerful father-and-son drama from director Spike Lee, while the second features one of Oprah Winfrey’s performances. The final selection is a classic comedy that caused quite a stir when it was originally released, but it may seem relatively tame nearly three decades later.
Need more recommendations? We also have guides to the best movies on Netflix, the best movies on Hulu, the best movies on Amazon Prime Video, the best movies on Max, and the best movies on Disney+.
He Got Game (1998)
Spike Lee’s He Got Game is a basketball fable that allowed NBA player Ray Allen to give the performance of a lifetime as Jesus Shuttlesworth, one of the top high school basketball prospects in the country. Colleges are so eager to sign Jesus that the governor of New York briefly releases his estranged father, Jake Shuttlesworth (Denzel Washington), from prison just to convince Jesus to attend the governor’s alma mater.
Jesus isn’t about to bend to his father’s wishes, especially since Jake has been imprisoned for accidentally killing Jesus’ mother. Jake also tries to find some redemption by helping an abused prostitute, Dakota Barns (Milla Jovovich), pick up the pieces of her life. But if Jake wants his freedom back permanently, he needs his son’s help.
Watch He Got Game on Hulu.
Beloved (1998)
Beloved was a reunion for The Color Purple co-stars Oprah Winfrey and Danny Glover, as well as an adaptation of Toni Morrison’s Gothic romance. In the years after the Civil War, a former slave named Sethe (Oprah Winfrey) is haunted by an apparition that has scared most of her children away.
Paul D. (Glover), a man who suffered in slavery alongside Sethe, reenters her life and seemingly drives the dark spirit out of her home. However, he’s horrified to learn why Sethe was haunted in the first place. Meanwhile, Sethe’s remaining daughter, Denver (Kimberly Elise), forms a bond with Beloved (Thandiwe Newton), a young woman whose link to Sethe’s past may destroy everyone she loves.
Watch Beloved on Hulu.
There’s Something About Mary (1998)
Before Ben Stiller reinvented himself as a director on projects like Apple TV+’s Severance, he starred in multiple over-the-top comedies in the ’90s. None were wilder than There’s Something About Mary. In high school, Ted Stroehmann (Stiller) had one chance to go on a date with Mary Jensen (Cameron Diaz), which ended in such a disastrous way that we can’t even describe it without going into the gross-out details.
Years later, Ted’s friend, Dom (Chris Elliott), convinces him to send a private investigator, Pat Healy (Matt Dillon), to find out what Mary’s life is like and if she’s still single. Unfortunately for Ted, Pat becomes infatuated with Mary too, and he decides to prevent his newfound rival from reuniting with her. As Ted slowly realizes that Pat is lying to him, both men discover that they aren’t the only ones vying for Mary’s heart. And some of the rivals really go to extremes to win her over.
Watch There’s Something About Mary on Hulu.