The best new movies on Netflix in June 2015

It’s no news to anyone who watches TV—especially local crime coverage—that the beat has devolved into a cesspool of gore and “hot content.” Writer-director Dan Gilroy’s viciously funny film starts from that premise, twinning the sleazy nightly hunt for shocking footage with the career ambitions of a closet psycho (Jake Gyllenhaal, never better) who, naturally, rises to the top. Closer in spirit to the media-amplified perversity of Martin Scorsese’s Taxi Driver and The King of Comedy, Nightcrawler feels like a major portrait of a sick, insatiable appetite.

Dead or alive, Elmore Leonard’s still got the best ear in the business. The late author’s dialogue sparkles in this double-cross comedy from director Daniel Schechter, who knows to keep things cooking. (Background: The original source material, Leonard’s 1978 novel The Switch, is set in the same universe as Quentin Tarantino’s Jackie Brown.) Actor John Hawkes finds a much-needed modulation from his onscreen creeps as the film’s crafty Detroit operator, but this one belongs to Jennifer Aniston, who demonstrates her underrated comic timing as a wealthy kidnapping victim turned confidante.

Belgium’s Dardenne brothers, Jean-Pierre and Luc, make punchy, contemporary, socially aware films—simple on the surface but alive with compassion and wisdom. This drama, one of their all-time best, features a career-high performance from Oscar winner Marion Cotillard and has a great premise: A young mother, Sandra (Cotillard), takes time off work for depression. In her absence, 14 of her 16 colleagues vote to take their bonuses rather than let her keep her job. But willed into action by a supportive husband, Sandra persuades her boss to give her one last chance and host a second round of voting two days later. Will she be able to save her job by knocking on doors over the weekend to persuade her colleagues to support her?

Already an esteemed corps dancer at New York City Ballet, Justin Peck dramatically expanded his artistic horizons after choreographing 2012’s “Year of the Rabbit,” which debuted to raves. Ballet 422, a free-floating documentary profile that throws you directly into the action, charts Peck’s intense work on his follow-up piece, “Paz de la Jolla.” He hones small movements, refines them, demonstrates them to his cast. This isn’t a place for ego; Black Swan fans will leave disappointed. But everyone else will appreciate this intense window into a largely private process.

Yes, we’re recommending a Michael Bay movie. After 2013’s underrated Pain & Gain, a Miami crime comedy with a nastier satirical bite than even The Wolf of Wall Street, Bay returns to his normal beat—big robots, explosions and tush shots—with a chip on his shoulder, as if to say: Fine, here’s nearly three hours of what you expect from me. Choke on it. We could tell you a bunch of boring plot stuff, about how Shia LaBeouf is gone, making way for Mark Wahlberg’s struggling Texas inventor. But what matters to Bay are fluttering American flags, sentimental sunsets and actors rappelling across the Chicago skyline as mechanical dogs chase them. You’re either awestruck, dumbstruck or just plain struck in the face.

And here’s the full list of what’s coming to Netflix streaming in June, by date:

Available June 1
Employee of the Month
Hidden Kingdoms
La Dictadura Perfecta
R.L. Stine’s Mostly Ghostly
Sex Ed
Shaquille O’Neal Presents: All Star Comedy Jam: Live From Atlanta
Shaquille O’Neal Presents: All Star Comedy Jam: Live from Las Vegas
Shaquille O’Neal Presents: All Star Comedy Jam: Live from Orlando
The Aviator
The High and the Mighty
The Magdalene Sisters
The Perfect Dictatorship

Available June 3
Best of Me
Hector and the Search for Happiness

Available June 5
Sense8

Available June 6
On the Road

Available June 7
Words and Pictures

Available June 8
Grace of Monaco

Available June 9
Free the Nipple
It's Tough Being Loved by Jerks

Available June 10
Nightcrawler
Pretty Little Liars: Season 5
Rosewater

Available June 11
Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Season 2
The Legend
The Legend 2

Available June 12
Champs
Life of Crime
Orange Is the New Black: Season 3
The Cobbler

Available June 13
Antarctica: A Year on Ice
Scandal: Season 4
Transformers: Age of Extinction

Available June 15
Bindi’s Bootcamp: Season 1
Danger Mouse: Seasons 1­-10
Pussy Riot: A Punk Prayer
Really Me: Seasons 1­-2
Rodney Carrington: Laughters Good
Team Toon: Season 1
Wizards vs. Aliens: Season 1-­3

Available June 16
Backstreet Boys: Show ’Em What You’re Made Of
Curious George
Lee Daniels’ The Butler
Two Days, One Night

Available June 17
Heartland: Season 6
Point and Shoot

Available June 19
A Most Wanted Man
Some Assembly Required

Available June 20
Cake

Available June 23
Advantageous

Available June 24
Beyond the Lights

Available June 25
Ballet 422

Available June 26
Dragons: Race to the Edge: Season 1
Katy Perry: The Prismatic World Tour
What Happened, Miss Simone?
Young & Hungry: Season 2

Available June 27
The Reluctant Fundamentalist