Top streams for the week
Stanley Tucci is the "Inside Man: Season 1" (TV-MA), a convicted murderer and criminal genius who helps a gentle vicar (David Tennant) solve the mystery of a missing woman. The clever crime drama with a witty edge comes for writer/creator Steven Moffat, who gave us "Sherlock," and Tucci has fun playing his Hannibal Lecter-like anti-hero. (Netflix)
There really is one Blockbuster Video store left in America—it's in Bend, Oregon—but "Blockbuster: Season 1" (TV-14) is not a documentary but a fictional sitcom about the efforts of the manager (Randall Park) trying to keep the last Blockbuster running in the streaming era. Melissa Fumero and J.B. Smoove also star in the half-hour comedy. (Netflix)
Biography and fiction are stirred together with blithe disregard to the facts in "Weird: The Al Yankovich Story" (2022, TV-14), a parody of biographical dramas starring Daniel Radcliffe as the iconic song parodist "Weird" Al Yankovic (who scripts and produces). Evan Rachel Wood plays as Madonna and Rainn Wilson is Dr. Demento, who really did discover "Weird" Al. Free with ads. (Roku Channel)
"Enola Holmes 2" (2022, PG-13) continues the adventures of Sherlock's teenage sister (Milly Bobby Brown) as she takes on her first official case and attempts to step out of the shadow of her famous brother (Henry Cavill), who is now also her legal guardian. The fictional mystery is built around the real life 1888 match girl strike in London. David Thewlis and Helena Bonham Carter costar in the sequel from the director and writer of the original film. (Netflix)
The lighthearted mystery comedy "See How They Run" (2022, R) stars Sam Rockwell and Saiorse Ronan as British cops investigating a murder backstage at a London West End theatre in 1953. David Oyelowo, Adrien Brody, and Ruth Wilson costars in this whodunnit spoof steeped in world of Agatha Christie mysteries. (HBO Max)
The sleeper horror hit "Barbarian" (2022, R) takes a simple premise—a young woman (Georgina Campbell) reluctantly shares a double-booked rental with a stranger—and upends expectations with a demented little story that takes audiences down a dark, twisted path. (HBO Max, also on VOD)
Kid stuff: new seasons of "Sesame Street" (TV-Y) and "My Sesame Street Friends" (TV-Y) begin on HBO Max and "Slumberkins: Season 1" (TV-Y), a new show for young kids from the Jim Henson Company, debuts on Apple TV+.
Classic pick: Ava Gardner is "The Barefoot Contessa" (1954) in this drama about an impoverished beauty discovered by a washed up movie director (Humphrey Bogart) and thrust into international stardom. Joseph L. Mankiewicz writes and directs this rich portrait of the destructive forces of Hollywood stardom, inspired in part by the lives of Rita Hayworth and Gardner herself. (Prime Video and Paramount+)
Pay-Per-View / Video on Demand
Idris Elba is a father of two teenage girls who has to fight off an abused, angry lion in "Beast" (2002, R), a thriller set at a game reserve in South Africa. Also on Blu-ray and DVD, and streaming on Peacock.
Netflix
A team of notorious criminal animals try their hand at being good in the animated comedy "The Bad Guys" (2022, PG). Features the voices of Sam Rockwell, Marc Maron, Awkwafina, Craig Robinson, and Anthony Ramos.
Before "Top Gun: Maverick," Tom Cruise teamed up with director Joseph Kosinski for the science fiction action thriller "Oblivion" (2013, PG-13). Also on Hulu.
Streaming TV: Before he became a genre-bending filmmaker, Jordan Peele created and starred in the Emmy-winning sketch comedy show "Key & Peele: Complete Series" (2012-2015, TV-14) with Keegan-Michael Key. Also new is season four of "Manifest" (TV-14), which Netflix picked up after it was cancelled by NBC.
International passport: a white hat hacker is framed for murder in "The Takeover" (Netherlands, 2022, TV-MA, with subtitles).
International TV: four best friends chase their fashion industry dreams in "The Fabulous: Season 1" (South Korea, TV-14, with subtitles).
Hulu
Viggo Mortensen stars in "Crimes of the Future" (2022, R) as an artist who spontaneously grows new organs and turns surgery into performance art. Léa Seydoux and Kristen Stewart costar in filmmaker David Cronenberg's moody blend of science fiction, horror, and conspiracy thriller.
A teenage boy (Liam James) bonds with a lifeguard (Sam Rockwell) at water park over a summer vacation in the warm-hearted family comedy "The Way Way Back" (2013, PG-13).
True stories: "God Forbid: The Sex Scandal That Brought Down a Dynasty" (2022, TV-MA) looks at the affair that entangled Jerry Falwell Jr. and his wife.
International TV: an apartment building superintendent spies on and manipulates the tenants in the wily drama "El Encargado: Season 1" (Argentina, not rated, with subtitles).
HBO Max
The second season of the Emmy-winning satirical drama "The White Lotus: Season 2" (TV-MA) relocates to Sicily with returning actress Jennifer Coolidge joined by a new cast including Haley Lu Richardson, Theo James, Aubrey Plaza, and F. Murray Abraham. New episodes on Sundays.
Streaming TV: the fourth season of the young adult superhero series "Titans" (TV-MA) begins.
International TV: A cryogenically frozen super spy from the '60s is thrust into modern-day Madrid in "Garcia!: Season 1" (Spain, TV-MA, with subtitles), a science fiction spy adventure.
Stand-up: "Chris Redd: Why Am I Like This?" (TV-MA)
Disney+
"Donna Hay Christmas" (not rated) shares secrets for preparing holiday meals over four episodes.
Amazon Prime Video
The British drama "My Policeman" (2022, R) follows a romantic triangle that begins in an era when homosexuality was illegal and continues through decades of changing social mores. Harry Styles, Emma Corrin, and David Dawson play the characters in youth and Linus Roache, Gina McKee, and Rupert Everett the older incarnations.
Streaming TV: two defining shows the 20th century are now available. "The Mary Tyler Moore Show: Complete Series" (1970-1977, TV-PG), a sitcom about a single professional woman in the city created by James L. Brooks, and the ensemble cop drama "Hill Street Blues: Complete Series" (1981-1987, TV-14), which redefined the familiar genre. They won over 50 Emmy Awards between them. Also new are the David E. Kelly legal drama "The Practice: Complete Series" (1997-2004, TV-14) and its spinoff "Boston Legal: Complete Series" (2004-2008, TV-14) with James Spader and William Shatner.
Peacock
Jodie Turner-Smith and Brian Cox play reporters on the trail of a conspiracy in the American presidential election in the political thriller "The Independent" (2022, not rated).
Apple TV+
The documentary "Selena Gomez: My Mind and Me" (2022, TV-MA) chronicles the actress-singer's struggle with depression.
Other streams
The limited series thriller "The Suspect" (TV-14) stars Aidan Turner as a successful clinical psychologist who turns detective when a lie puts him in the midst of a murder. (AMC+ and Sundance Now)
Jon Hamm stars in the crime comedy "Confess, Fletch" (2022, R) as a roguish reporter who becomes the prime suspect in a murder investigation. (Showtime Anytime)
"Both Sides of the Blade" (France, 2022, not rated, with subtitles), a romantic drama of a love triangle that spins out of control directed by Claire Denis, stars Juliette Binoche, Vincent Lindon, and Gregoire Colin. (AMC+)
For classic movie buffs, November is Noirvember and Criterion Channel celebrates with the "Fox Noir" collection. The eight-film collection includes such classics as "Kiss of Death" (1947) with Victor Mature and Richard Widmark and Elia Kazan's pandemic noir "Panic in the Streets" (1950). Some of the standouts include Otto Preminger's "Fallen Angel" (1945) with Dana Andrews and Alice Faye, "The Dark Corner" (1946) with Lucille Ball, and Jules Dassin's "Thieves' Highway" (1949). (Criterion Channel)
New on disc and at Redbox:
"Top Gun: Maverick"
Sean Axmaker is a Seattle film critic and writer. His reviews of streaming movies and TV can be found at https://streamondemandathome.com.
Copyright © 2022 by Sean Axmaker
