7 Movies To Watch Before They Leave Netflix In January 2021

Todd Van Luling
·Senior Culture Reporter, HuffPost
·4 min read

Over a dozen movies leave Netflix throughout January. That’s fewer than the over three dozen films that left Netflix on Dec. 31 alone, but this new batch includes ones that will still be missed.

Netflix will lose popular hits like “Mary Poppins Returns” and “Pineapple Express,” along with contemporary critical favorites such as “The Master” and “A Serious Man.”

Below, I’ve compiled seven recommendations from the full list of departures worth watching before the end of the month. I’ve also included their trailers to entice you to check them out.

One of the movies that’s leaving, but I didn’t recommend, is 2006′s “Employee of the Month,” with Dane Cook and Jessica Simpson. I included the trailer underneath the recommendations, though, as it’s a fascinating glimpse of a very different time in all our lives.

"Mary Poppins Returns" will leave Netflix. (Photo: Jay Maidment/Disney)
"Mary Poppins Returns" will leave Netflix. (Photo: Jay Maidment/Disney)

You can see the full list of January departures at the bottom of this article.

And if you want to stay informed on everything joining Netflix on a weekly basis, subscribe to the Streamline newsletter.

Streamline (Photo: Ji Sub Jeong/HuffPost)
Streamline (Photo: Ji Sub Jeong/HuffPost)

“Mary Poppins Returns” (2018)

Premise: In this musical sequel to the 1964 movie “Mary Poppins,” the famous nanny returns to care for the children of the now-adult boy she cared for years before. Poppins helps the family through a stressful ordeal during the Great Depression in England, as the family tries to save their longtime house from foreclosure.

“Mary Poppins Returns” earned three Academy Award nominations, including Best Costume Design.

Departure date: Jan. 8

Runtime: 2 hours, 10 minutes

“The Master” (2012)

Premise: In this drama written and directed by Paul Thomas Anderson, a man searching for shelter and purpose gets entangled with a nascent religious organization. The group embraces him until diverging ideas of life’s meaning create a schism.

“The Master” earned three Academy Award nominations, including Best Actor for Joaquin Phoenix.

Departure date: Jan. 14

Runtime: 2 hours, 18 minutes

“A Serious Man” (2009)

Premise: In this drama written and directed by Joel and Ethan Coen, a physics professor living in 1960s Minnesota finds his life falling apart, so he consults with local rabbis. Nobody seems to be able to help his objectively terrible situation, and his futility heightens to absurdity.

“A Serious Man” earned two Academy Award nominations, including Best Picture.

Departure date: Jan. 15

Runtime: 1 hour, 46 minutes

“Dallas Buyers Club” (2013)

Premise: This biographical drama directed by Jean-Marc Vallée focuses on Ron Woodruff, a man who smuggled experimental AIDS treatments into Texas after contracting the virus himself. The U.S. government wasn’t acting quickly enough to help the AIDS crisis, so with only a few months to live, Woodruff attempted to take significant risks to save his and other terminal patients’ lives.

“Dallas Buyers Club” earned six Academy Award nominations, with three wins, including Matthew McConaughey for Best Actor.

Departure date: Jan. 15

Runtime: 1 hour, 57 minutes

“Swiss Army Man” (2016)

Premise: In this black comedy, a man finds a seemingly magical corpse with gross powers born of bodily functions. The corpse comes back to life, and the two become friends, even as they get into increasingly bizarre troubles.

Departure date: Jan. 29

Runtime: 1 hour, 37 minutes

“Death at a Funeral” (2010)

Premise: In this remake of a British film with the same name, an expansive family is brought together due to the death of the patriarch. This reunion causes long-festering resentments to surface and unexpected new problems to arise, all to comedic effect.

Departure date: Jan. 31

Runtime: 1 hour, 32 minutes

“Pineapple Express” (2008)

Premise: In this stoner action comedy written by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg, a down-on-his-luck man accidentally witnesses a murder while high. The murderers find out his identity, and the man tries to make an unlikely escape while partnering with his weed dealer.

Departure date: Jan. 31

Runtime: 1 hour, 51 minutes

“Pineapple Express” didn’t earn any Academy Award nominations, but the movie did get a devoted skit at the ceremony.

And the promised blast from the past...

All the movies leaving in January

Jan. 1

  • “Bloodsport” (1988)

Jan. 4

  • “Mara” (2017)

Jan. 5

  • “The Monster” (2016)

Jan. 8

  • “Mary Poppins Returns” (2018)

Jan. 14

  • “The Master” (2012)

Jan. 15

  • “A Serious Man” (2009)

  • “Dallas Buyers Club” (2013)

Jan. 26

  • “We Are Your Friends” (2015)

Jan. 29

  • “Swiss Army Man” (2016)

Jan. 30

  • “The Hundred-Foot Journey” (2014)

Jan. 31

  • “A Thin Line Between Love & Hate” (1996)

  • “Death at a Funeral” (2010)

  • “Employee of the Month” (2006)

  • “For Colored Girls” (2010)

  • “Malicious” (2018)

  • “Mr. Deeds” (2002)

  • “Pineapple Express” (2008)

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This article originally appeared on HuffPost and has been updated.