Here Are the Best Movies to Stream this Weekend on HBO Max, Including ‘The Alabama Solution’

Whether you’re in the mood for a gripping new documentary, a provocative festival favorite, or a comfort-rewatch classic, HBO Max has a weekend lineup that spans brand-new premieres and deep-cut gems. The mix below pulls from this week’s fresh arrivals and recent library adds, with up-to-date titles across documentary, horror, comedy, romance, and vintage noir.

To keep things simple, each pick includes a quick plot snapshot plus key cast and crew so you can decide fast what fits your vibe. From headline-making leaders to masked slashers and two-color Technicolor thrills, here are ten films ready to queue up right now.

‘Prime Minister’ (2025)

This feature documentary follows Jacinda Ardern through the years she served as New Zealand’s 40th prime minister, chronicling major crises and day-to-day governance alike. Using campaign-trail footage, cabinet-room moments, and personal material, it charts her path from party leader to globally recognized figure and captures how decisions were made under intense public scrutiny.

Directed by Lindsay Utz and Michelle Walshe, the film features extensive access to Ardern alongside colleagues and family, with production backed by MWM Studios. Editors and producers shape a timeline that includes the Christchurch response and pandemic management, presenting a single-film overview of a high-pressure term in office.

‘The Alabama Solution’ (2025)

‘The Alabama Solution’ investigates conditions within Alabama’s prison system, assembling testimony from incarcerated organizers and families with on-the-ground footage gathered over multiple years. The film examines violence, labor, and accountability inside the system, contextualizing first-person accounts with reporting and records.

An HBO Documentary Films release directed by Andrew Jarecki and Charlotte Kaufman, the project was produced with a large investigative team and features original music and extensive archival materials. Interviews and cellphone video help authenticate the timeline as the documentary follows cases and policy debates through to recent developments.

‘The Substance’ (2024)

Writer-director Coralie Fargeat’s satirical body-horror centers on a celebrity who turns to a clandestine procedure that creates a younger double, triggering a power struggle between two versions of the same person. The plot escalates as success, control, and identity collide, moving from industry spectacle to increasingly gruesome consequences.

Demi Moore leads as Elisabeth Sparkle, with Margaret Qualley and Dennis Quaid in pivotal roles. The film is an English-language production involving Working Title; cinematography is by Benjamin Kracun, and the score is by Raffertie, with practical effects and makeup driving its transformative setpieces.

‘The Witch’ (2015)

Set in 1630s New England, this folk-horror story follows a banished Puritan family whose newborn’s disappearance and failing crops ignite suspicion and superstition. As fear turns inward, accusations of witchcraft tear at the family’s faith and bonds, isolating them in the woods.

Written and directed by Robert Eggers, the film stars Anya Taylor-Joy, Ralph Ineson, Kate Dickie, and Harvey Scrimshaw. It features a period-accurate production design, natural-light cinematography, and an unsettling score by Mark Korven, establishing Eggers’ signature historical detail and atmosphere.

‘Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa’ (2013)

‘Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa’ takes the hapless Norfolk DJ from the radio booth to a hostage crisis when a disgruntled former colleague storms the station. The plot unfolds in real time as Alan becomes the unlikely go-between for police and gunman, broadcasting blunders and all.

Directed by Declan Lowney, the film stars Steve Coogan, Colm Meaney, and Felicity Montagu, with a screenplay by Coogan, Rob Gibbons, Neil Gibbons, and Peter Baynham. Produced by Baby Cow and StudioCanal, it translates the long-running character to a feature with location shooting around Norwich and a compact, incident-driven structure.

’50 First Dates’ (2004)

This romantic comedy follows Henry, a marine veterinarian, who falls for Lucy, a woman with anterograde memory loss that resets her day every morning. The story tracks Henry’s daily attempts to reintroduce himself and build a relationship that can survive constant restarts.

Directed by Peter Segal, the film stars Adam Sandler and Drew Barrymore, with Rob Schneider, Sean Astin, and Dan Aykroyd in supporting roles. Shot largely in Hawaii, it was produced under Happy Madison alongside Anonymous Content, with cinematography by Jack N. Green and music by Teddy Castellucci.

‘Halloween H20: 20 Years Later’ (1998)

Two decades after the events in Haddonfield, Laurie Strode has rebuilt her life under a new name when Michael Myers resurfaces, forcing a final face-off in a secluded California prep school. The plot tightens across a single night as Laurie confronts her past and protects her son and students.

Directed by Steve Miner from a story by Robert Zappia, the film stars Jamie Lee Curtis, Josh Hartnett, Michelle Williams, Adam Arkin, and LL Cool J. Produced by Miramax/Dimension, it features editing by Patrick Lussier and music by John Ottman, returning the franchise to a lean, character-driven confrontation.

‘The Steel Jungle’ (1956)

This prison drama follows Danny, a small-time offender whose incarceration exposes him to a system of intimidation and control run by inmates and compromised officials. The plot tracks shifting loyalties and the strain of confinement on Danny’s marriage as he navigates survival behind bars.

Written and directed by Walter Doniger, the film stars Perry Lopez and Beverly Garland, with Walter Abel and Ted de Corsia in key roles. Produced by Warner Bros., it reflects mid-century studio crime storytelling, with black-and-white photography and a compact running time characteristic of the era.

‘The Unfaithful’ (1947)

A Los Angeles socialite kills a man in apparent self-defense, only for the case to expose a secret relationship that complicates her marriage and legal standing. The narrative blends courtroom maneuvering with domestic tension as evidence and alibis are tested.

Directed by Vincent Sherman and produced by Jerry Wald for Warner Bros., the film stars Ann Sheridan, Lew Ayres, Zachary Scott, and Eve Arden. The screenplay by David Goodis and James Gunn reworks themes from W. Somerset Maugham’s ‘The Letter’, with cinematography by Ernest Haller and music by Max Steiner.

‘Mystery of the Wax Museum’ (1933)

After his London gallery burns, master sculptor Ivan Igor relocates to New York and rebuilds his wax museum, where new “exhibits” begin to resemble victims of recent crimes. A persistent reporter connects disappearances to the workshop as Igor prepares his next macabre masterpiece.

Directed by Michael Curtiz for Warner Bros., the film stars Lionel Atwill, Fay Wray, and Glenda Farrell. Shot in early two-color Technicolor with cinematography by Ray Rennahan, it’s a milestone in pre-Code horror-mystery, later inspiring remakes and genre updates.

Share your own must-watch picks from this lineup in the comments and tell us what you’re streaming first!