This year, a whole summer of festivals (and many other things) got cancelled. What can you do to kill time? Why not enjoy a summer of great movies instead? Just for you, we have compiled 10 of the best movies we’ve watched on Netflix recently. The digital platform has been especially busy this month, adding close to 100 new movies in August alone. However, Netflix also takes down about 50 movies on the first of each month, so make sure you put that subscription to good use and get watching!

First off, here are the ones not to miss with an end of month countdown. If you still haven’t got around to watching Blue Is the Warmest Colour, you’ve got until the 25 August. The movie was nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign Language Film, and with nothing quite like it ever produced before the screenplay turned quite a few heads. This film marks a change of era, it is a modern classic. You’re welcome!

Lady Bird is another must-watch on our list. This one has been shown for a while, but it’s a film that will be spoken about for years to come—whoever you are, Saoirse Ronan’s character in Lady Bird will speak to you. If you’re still not convinced, should we mention that Timothée Chalamet is the main love interest?

Da 5 Bloods follows four African American Vietnam vets who return to Vietnam years after the war to search for the remains of their fallen squad leader, along with some buried treasure. It’s an adventure story where future and past are coherently lived by the main characters, real footage from the war is shown throughout too, which allows for a heartbreaking insight on what war brings.

If you like a mafia drama with an A-List cast, then The Irishman will not disappoint. Starring Robert de Niro, Al Pacino and Joe Pesci, this 3 hours and a half long movie is definitely worth it. Just prepare your snacks beforehand!

Million Dollar Baby is one of those films that make you feel invincible and want to run for your dreams with all guns blazing. It takes your emotions for a heck of a ride. If you’re lacking motivation or self-doubt is creeping along your peripherals, trust us and watch this.

Unbroken is Angelina Jolie’s directorial debut and we are obsessed with it. The outstanding performances come close to none, based in WW2, Olympian Louis Zamperini (Jack O’Connell) fights for his sanity and life in a Japanese prisoner-of-war camp. Nice one, Jolie.

To lighten up the mood or when you feel like an easy watch without much concentration to spend, Love Wedding Repeat is the one to go for. It’s all drama and laughter for this one and who can say no to that?

The Guernsey Literary and Potato Peel Pie Society is the British historical drama for the romantics out there. Set on Guernsey Island, it is beautiful enough to make us all want to escape to an internetless town and fall in love.

Project Power is the latest action film with a sci-fi twist that everyone is talking about. Starring Jamie Foxx, it ticks all the boxes for an edge-of-a-seat watch.

To end on a ‘true cinema’ note, last but not least is Roma, one of the most cinematographically satisfying watches available on Netflix. Shot in black and white, the movie is a stunning piece of work that will make anyone want to go to film school. A slither of modern cinema, the list that keeps growing! Enjoy.

How often did the eggplant emoji make you absolutely cringe when swiping through Tinder? A recent study conducted by researchers at the Kinsey Institute found that a frequent use of emojis is directly linked to having sex more frequently. Yes, you read that correctly—your sex life now depends on emojis.

And it is not just your sex life; in fact, emojis have been proven to be effective signals for relationship-oriented digital communication, leading to a more successful dating life. The researchers have conducted two separate surveys. In the first, they found that 28 percent of Americans use emojis regularly, 3 percent use one in every text, 2.5 percent use more than one in every text, and all participants found that using emojis provided them with a better outlet for self expression than text-based messages.

The second survey found that 97 percent of its partakers use emojis when speaking to potential love interests and showed that emoji use is related to maintaining connections with a first date, meaning that people would be more likely to engage in intimate behaviours as time progresses. Both surveys were then connected to information such as how often do these people have sex, go on a second date, and kiss their partner, and it appeared that those who participated in these activities the most also happened to send the most emojis.

This probably shouldn’t come as a surprise—emojis, in a way, are a 21st century art form in itself. There is even an animated film dedicated to them titled, perhaps unsurprisingly, The Emoji Movie, and a few years ago a university in Ireland shared potential plans of creating an emoji as a foreign language course. Somehow, emoticons have gained immense pop-cultural value, and it was only a matter of time until they caught up with the way we communicate among each other.

There are limitations to the study, however, as there is no evidence of what type of emojis are used most frequently and which emojis link to what outcome. It is also important to note that the survey focused on the sending out of emojis rather than receiving, therefore there is no proof of how the latter reacts. While we question the likelihood of each emoji’s ability to turn us on, it is important to take the entire research with a grain of salt. But what does this say about our use and understanding of emojis?

It is no secret that when conversing via text certain elements of human communication get lost. Verbal communication and its meaning are greatly affected by the person’s voice, tone, and intonation, which simply can not be present in a text. Emojis can add that tone of voice into the conversation, allowing for a much more expressive and friendly flow, and essentially ease out the conversation.

Dating in today’s world is, without a doubt, stressful. Dating apps and websites have made dating a lot more accessible, as we now have the ability to plan our next hook-up with the tips of our fingers. However, the link between romance and technology has also created a handful of its own issues, such as the inability to find meaningful love or presenting us with too much choice, which results in confusion as well as anxieties over not appearing too desperate. Emojis are able to add a certain tone of casualty and laid-backness to the conversation.

The previous idea could then be traced back to the survey and success of emojis in conversing among potential romantic partners. Emojis can sometimes make the conversation more relaxed and less serious, which could lead to a follow-up date. Of course, the fact that we need emojis to communicate better is slightly concerning, but, then again, we are shifting towards a digital future, and it is only natural that each and every element of our lives will become impacted by this, for better or for worse.

Considering the countless debates around how technology and mass digitalisation have changed dating as we know it, making it even more difficult to connect romantically and intimately, the argument that emojis are now improving our sex lives certainly comes as a paradox. But hey, it seems to work. So go on and up your emoji game.