Election season brings out the political documentaries. "All In: The Fight for Democracy" (2020, PG-13) takes on the rights of American citizens to vote and the issue of voter suppression, guided by the expertise of Stacey Abrams. (Amazon Prime)
https://youtu.be/t6jVGswLPd8
"The Fight" (2020, PG-13) puts the spotlight in the work of ACLU lawyers fighting for the rights of citizens over the past few years, with a focus on the inner workings of building and arguing cases. (Hulu).
https://youtu.be/eK8Pj4kN0YQ
The four-part docuseries "Challenger: The Final Flight" (not rated) takes a deep dive into the story behind the 1986 space shuttle disaster, from the astronauts that lost their lives to the reasons behind the accident and the inquest that followed. (Netflix)
https://youtu.be/ILAeVAgqFV4
Tom Holland stars in "The Devil All the Time" (2020, R), a Gothic crime thriller of small town psychopaths, bullies, and vigilantes in rural Appalachia. Adapted from Donald Ray Pollock’s award-winning novel by filmmaker Antonio Campos, it costars Robert Pattinson, Mia Wasikowska, and Riley Keogh. (Netflix)
https://youtu.be/EIzazUv2gtI
The limited series "We Are Who We Are" (TV-MA), created and directed by Academy Award-nominated filmmaker Luca Guadagnino ("Call Me By Your Name"), follows two American teenagers (Jack Dylan Grazer and Jordan Kristine Seamón) coming of age on an Air Force base in Italy. Chloë Sevigny, Alice Braga, and Kid Cudi costar. New episodes each Monday. (All HBO platforms)
https://youtu.be/u6VAQ6LdnKs
David Tennant and Michael Sheen star as stage actors who continue rehearsals online after COVID-19 puts their show on hold in "Staged" (not rated), a socially-distance British comedy series. (Hulu)
Susan Sarandon plays a dying matriarch who brings estranged family members and friends together in emotionally turbulent "Blackbird" (2020, R), directed by Roger Michell and costarring Kate Winslet, Mia Wasikowska, and Sam Neill. (Cable On Demand and VOD)
https://youtu.be/I9kb6ZJre78
Pay-Per-View / Video on Demand
Janelle Monáe stars in the horror film "Antebellum" (2020, R) as an author who finds herself in real-life slavery nightmare.
The Canadian drama "The Grizzlies" (2019, R) is an underdog sports drama based on the true story from an Alaskan Inuit community.
Netflix
Sarah Paulson stars in "Ratched" (TV-MA), a prequel about the manipulative nurse from the movie "One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest."
https://youtu.be/ZU9ZtlkSnnE
Tituss Burgess hosts the karaoke singing competition series "Sing On!: Season 1" (not rated).
https://youtu.be/wul2I13hIRo
A Mexican American woman aspires to become a sushi chef in the romantic drama "East Side Sushi" (2014, PG).
True stories: "Hope Frozen" (Thailand, 2019. not rated, with subtitles) chronicles the controversy over a scientist who cryogenically freezes his two-year-old daughter after she dies of brain cancer.
Foodie fun: "American Barbecue Showdown: Season 1" (not rated) and "Taco Chronicles: Volume 2" dive into cultural food traditions.
Streaming TV: new seasons of the British crime drama "Criminal: UK" (TV-MA) and period drama "Call the Midwife" (TV-MA) are now streaming.
International passport: the revenge thriller "The Paramedic" (Spain, 2020, not rated, with subtitles) gets a head start on the Halloween horror season. Also new:
- "The Last Word: Season 1" (Germany, with subtitles) about a widow who finds a new passion as a funeral eulogist;
- animated dark fantasy "Dragon’s Dogma: Season 1" (Japan, not rated), based on the 2012 video game.
Kid stuff: from Australia comes the family friendly animal rescue show "Izzy's Koala World: Season 1" (TV-Y). For the more adventurous, kids meets dinosaurs in the animated "Jurassic World Camp Cretaceous: Season 1" (TV-Y).
Stand-up: "Michael McIntyre: Showman" (not rated) and from Indonesia, "Dr. Jason Leong: Hashtag Blessed" (not rated).
Amazon Prime and Hulu
Ang Lee directs "Gemini Man" (2019, PG-13), a sci-fi action thriller which uses sophisticated digital effects to pit Will Smith against a younger version of himself. (Amazon Prime and Hulu)
https://youtu.be/AbyJignbSj0
Hulu
The romantic comedy "Babyteeth" (2019, MA-17), starring Eliza Scanlen as a terminally ill teenager living who falls in love with a small-time drug dealer, won two awards at the Venice Film Festival.
Hugh Jackman and Jake Gyllenhaal star in "Prisoners" (2013, R), Denis Villeneuve's thriller about a child abduction and a father pushed over the brink. Viola Davis, Maria Bello, Terrence Howard, Melissa Leo, and Paul Dano co-star.
Streaming TV: "Pen15: Season 2" (TV-MA) returns with adult comedians Maya Erskine and Anna Konkle playing middle-school girls in a cast of kids. Also new:
- animated espionage spoof "Archer: Season 11" (TV-MA) begins with new episodes on Hulu each Wednesday, a day after FXX debut;
- "Sherman’s Showcase: Black History Month Special" (TV-MA), an hour-long episode of the IFC comedy series.
HBO Max / HBO Now
The psychological thriller "The Third Day" (TV-MA) starring Jude Law and Naomie Harris plays out in an insular community of a remote British Island. New episodes of the six-part limited series arrive Monday nights. (All HBO platforms)
https://youtu.be/T43V6z9wYyE
Dan Levy, Sarah Paulson, Kaitlyn Dever, Bette Midler, and Issa Rae star in "Coastal Elites" (2020, TV-MA), an original satire from playwright Paul Rudnik about disconnected characters venting their frustrations, set and shot in the Covid era. (All HBO platforms)
Peacock
An airliner vanishes without a trace in "Departure: Season 1" (2019, not rated), a British-Canadian mystery series starring Archie Panjabi and Christopher Plummer. It makes its U.S. debut on Peacock.
Larry Wilmore takes on current events in the weekly late-night talk show "Wilmore" (not rated). New episodes each Friday night.
Other streams
Toby Jones plays a bus driver whose life takes an unexpected turn in "Don’t Forget the Driver: Season 1" (not rated), a British the comic drama he cocreated. New episodes each Tuesday. (BritBox)
https://youtu.be/-uz7rfHYcdo
An ambitious young Maori police detective (Dominic Ona-Ariki) takes on a case that stirs up supernatural powers in "One Lane Bridge: Season 1" (New Zealand). New episodes every Thursday. (Sundance Now)
https://youtu.be/Tad6ArwLWes
The documentary series "Becoming: Season 1" (not rated) chronicles the stories of celebrities (among them Julianne Hough and Nick Cannon). Ten episodes available on Disney+. Also newly arrived:
- fairy tale-meets-real world drama "Once Upon a Time: Complete Series" (2011-2018, TV-PG), which draws deep from the well of Disney movies;
- "Ever After: A Cinderella Story" (1998, PG-13) with Drew Barrymore.
Friends and motorcycle enthusiasts Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman reunite for "Long Way Up: Season 1" (not rated), which chronicles their journey from the southern tip of South America to Los Angeles. Three episodes available, new episodes each Friday. (Apple TV+)
https://youtu.be/611fw81BN98
The documentary "QT8: The First Eight" (2019, TV-MA) looks at the career of filmmaker Quentin Tarantino. (Starz)
Richard Linklater's "Boyhood" (2014, R) follows twelve years in the life of one boy (played by Ellar Coltrane) in a film shot over the course of twelve years. Criterion Channel presents the award-winning film along with interviews, featurettes, and other supplements from the special edition disc release. Also new:
- a collection of four films "Directed by Albert Brooks," among them his social satire masterpiece "Lost in America" (1985, R);
- "Three by Lucrecia Martel," including her most recent feature "Zama" (Argentina, 2017, not rated, with subtitles);
- a double features of F.W. Murnau's silent movie masterpiece "Tabu: A Story of the South Seas" (1931) and Miguel Gomes' "Tabu" (Portugal, 2012, not rated, with subtitles), inspired by Murnau's film.
Sean Axmaker is a Seattle film critic and writer. His reviews of streaming movies and TV can be found at http://streamondemandathome.com.
