Give Dad What He Really Wants & Spend Father's Day on the Couch Watching These Netflix Picks

We already know mom would rather not have to lock herself in the bathroom for 5 minutes of peace on Mother's Day, and we all know Dad doesn't want another tie. So instead of doing the usual thing, making Dad slave over a grill and sitting outside being bored, why not stock up a little mini cooler with beer for dad and rootbeer for the kids, order a pizza, and head down to the mancave for a movie marathon? These new and classic shows currently available on Netflix are going to be right up Dad's alley.

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA DREAMWORKS

Karate Kid

For the man who's like a dad (Or just loves the classics he grew up with).

Daniel's real dad isn't a part of the picture. But after getting himself in trouble with bullies, Daniel finds that Mr. Miyagi steps into the task of male role model more than admirably.

This ain't the kung fu remake; this is the 1980s real deal on Netflix. If your father figure is over the age of 30, I guarantee he's seen this classic. In fact, he probably took Karate lessons afterwards. Heck, even mom will probably appreciate this trip down memory lane.

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TRON / Tron Legacy

For the dad who has the classic poster hanging in his man cave and loves Sci Fi.

Netflix has both the original and newer remake, Tron Legacy, which is perfect if you're looking to do a back-to-back marathon run and do some classic appreciation. In the new one, which is a soft reboot, Sam gets trapped on the grid and unexpectedly finds his missing dad, Flynn.

Fair warning, though, the pacing of the original is a little slow for younger kids, like most 80s movies. If you opt for just the new one, be prepared for your kids to turn out Daft Punk fans (I see no downside to this, really).

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA WALT DISNEY PICTURES

An American Tail

For the dads who are history buffs and who appreciate immigrant history.

There are no cats in America, and the streets are paved with cheese! This is the optimism that sends the Mousewitz family across the ocean in search of a new life.

An American Tail is an extremely underappreciated movie that deserves a second watch if you saw it as a kid. It's a beautiful, colourful film good for ages 6-10. But there's so many historical references and nuances that make up Fievel Mousekewitz's adventure trying to find his dad after he gets separated from his family during their immigration to the United States that only an older viewer will appreciate. It was definitely a film in many ways ahead of its time.

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Star Wars: The Force Awakens

For the dad with a daughter he's going to raise to be a badass.

The award for most appropriate use of the word irony goes to: Star Wars. Because we the audience all know whose daughter Rey is, even if everyone else keep tippy toeing around it and remains happily oblivious. (My god, J.J. Abrahms, I'ma send you so much hate mail if you pull a SIKE!)

Yeah, yeah. The original trilogy drips the Hero Trope and the usual male coming of age blah blah. But the new episode starring Rey, female badass to be, is coming out this December, and it's going to have some daddy issues in it. But we expect these two to resolve them and kick some butt together.

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA WALT DISNEY PICTURES

Doctor Strange

For the dad who loves enjoying special effects and a good action movie without any particular subtext or deep thinking.

I know that sounds like I called this movie a bit shallow, and to be honest, it is. But lack of plot depth in Marvel Studio's various superhero films is not new, nor does it stop them from being solid (if unmemorable) popcorn flicks. For completionists, it's supposed to be an important stepstone to the introduction of the Marvel Multiverse. And this one is super-high in Matrix-esque special effects.

Plus, it has Benderdink Cumberbund or whatever his name is in it.

You know exactly who I'm talking about.

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA MARVEL / WALT DISNEY PICTURES

Army of Darkness

For the dad with older kids who LOVES B movies, Bruce Campbell, and quoteable cheese.

If you have kids over 13, Army of Darkness is required watching, in my opinion. If you're looking for a TL;DR plot synopsis of Army of Darkness, here it is: Bruce Campbell, nondescript Wal-mart-clone worker with attitude, finds himself trapped in the medieval past fighting witches and looking for the Necronomicon to get back to his own time and save the universe. He has a chainsaw to replace a missing hand gone bad, and he spews approximately 40 oz of solid gold per minute in such quotable deliveries as:

"Groovy."

"Hail to the king, baby."

"Alright you Primitive Screwheads, listen up! You see this? This... is my BOOMSTICK!"

and last but not least, "First you wanna kill me, now you wanna kiss me. Blow."

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA UNIVERSAL PICTURES

Megamind

For dads who love quotable cheese but whose kids are too young to appreciate Army of Darkness.

Will Ferrell, Brad Pitt, and every superhero movie cliche known to man join forces to make one of the most dazzling, hilariously quotable kids movies I've ever seen about what happens when the bad guy gets his way.

Believe it or not, I think it's actually better for the adults than the kids. Your kids might not laugh out loud at space dad, but I guarantee you will.

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Jurassic Park

For the dads who are big kids at heart.

Who hasn't had their imaginations captured by dinosaurs. But should man play God? The premise of Jurassic Park is that man manages to bring back the extinct thanks to the power of genetic engineering. And then they turn it into an amusement park.

It's been 24 years since Jurassic Park came out, which means it's definitely time for a refresher. Many dads might even be too young to remember watching this one in the theatre! But even though it was released in 1993, the T-rex was still real enough to scare the sh*t out of my six-year-old. Two thumbs up for the quality of special effects from a film made so early in the age of CGI.

IMAGE SOURCE: VIA UNIVERSAL PICTURES

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Anne Radcliffe

Anne is one of those people who usually speaks to others in memes, pop culture references, and SAT words. On those occasions she can be understood at all, she likes to entertain others with a sense of humour usually described by friends as “hilarious—once you get to know her.”