A flawed, ambitious, and deeply relevant genre entry. Watch it for Dominique Fishback and the ice-fight scene; stay for the uncomfortable truths about power in the real world.

1. Executive Summary Project Power is a 2020 American superhero action-thriller film directed by Henry Joost and Ariel Schulman (known for Catfish and Paranormal Activity 3 & 4 ), written by Mattson Tomlin, and released by Netflix. Set in a hyper-stylized, near-future New Orleans, the film explores a high-concept premise: a temporary, pill-shaped drug that grants the user five minutes of a random, unpredictable superpower. The narrative follows an unlikely trio—a local cop, a teenage dealer, and a mysterious ex-soldier—as they navigate the city’s criminal underworld to find the drug’s creator.

By centering a Black father’s search for his lost daughter, a white cop’s addiction, and a young Black girl’s refusal to use drugs, the film weaves a complex social tapestry. It is a superhero movie for people who are tired of superhero movies—one that knows the real superpower is surviving another day without losing yourself.