Movie

© The Weinstein Company

Every month, a number of movies and TV series leave Netflix streaming, sometimes only temporarily, usually because licensing deals have expired. Several new titles arrive in their place. So what’s coming next month, and which of these new arrivals should you watch? Below, we’ve chosen the best new movies and TV shows coming to Netflix Instant streaming in May 2015. Plan your weekend marathons accordingly.

The Last Waltz
Arriving: May 1

Often described as one of the greatest concert documentaries of all time, and legendary for the dangling cocaine rock that Scorsese had to digitally erase from Neil Young’s left nostril, The Last Waltz is a sweaty tour de force. The Scorcese-directed 1978 movie of The Band’s farewell concert is scattered and not exactly propulsive, but it’s an unbelievable slice of music history. The first frame announces “This film should be played loud, ” and it’s this wild-eyed spirit that rules the film. Frequent frontman Robbie Robertson is the documentary’s protagonist (a feature of the film that not all bandmates appreciated), but drummer Levon Helm steals scenes with his folksy intensity. And needless to say, there’s the murderer’s row of cameos: Bob Dylan, Emmylou Harris, Muddy Waters, Joni Mitchell, and Van Morrison, to name a few. When they all take the stage together, it’s the best closing number you’ve ever seen. —Laura Bennett, senior editor

Legally Blonde
Arriving: May 1

Reese Witherspoon delivers one of her most memorable performances as Elle Woods, a seemingly silly sorority girl navigating the stodgy halls of Harvard Law School in pursuit of love—namely, with her caddish ex-boyfriend, Warner Huntington III. Whether you keep coming back for the hilarious writing, the even more hilarious early-millennium wardrobe choices, or to brush up on your bend-and-snap technique, this instant girl-power classic never disappoints. —Laura Bradley, editorial assistant