Tom Hanks stars in "News
of the World" (2020, PG-13) as a Civil
War vet and widower who travels Northern Texas reading news stories
to small town audiences. He volunteers to accompany a traumatized
young orphan (Helena Zengel), a German immigrant raised by Kiowas and
left alone after a massacre of her adoptive poeple, through hostile
territory to bring her to her only living relatives. This western
from director Paul Greengrass is a touching drama set against the
violence and lawlessness of Texas after the Civil War. (HBO Max)
In the action thriller "Kate" (2021, R), Mary Elizabeth Winstead as an American assassin in Tokyo who awakens from a botched job to discover she's been poisoned. She spends her final day taking vengeance on her killers. Miku Martineau, Tadanobu Asano, Michiel Huisman, and Woody Harrelson costar. (Netflix)
"On
the Verge: Season 1" (TV-MA), created by and starring director/actor Julie Delpy, follows four women navigating professional, personal, and family lives in pre-pandemic Los Angeles. Elisabeth Shue, Sarah Jones, and Alexia Landeau costar in the dramedy. (Netflix)
"Doogie Kamealoha, M.D.: Season 1" (TV-PG) reworks the eighties sitcom "Doogie Howser" with Peyton Elizabeth Lee as a teenage prodigy balancing high school life with a medical career. Jason Scott Lee and Kathleen Rose Perkins play her overprotective parents. New episodes on Wednesdays. (Disney+)
"Come From Away" (2021, TV-MA), the filmed version of the hit Broadway musical about a small Newfoundland town that welcomes passengers stranded after flights were grounded in the wake of 9/11, features cast members of the original production. (Apple TV+)
Pay-Per-View / Video on Demand
A high school teacher embarks on a project to help autistic youth express themselves in "Language Arts" (2021, not rated). Ashley Zukerman and Sarah Shahi star in the drama produced and filmed in Seattle. Available from iTunes.
Netflix
The sixth and final season of "Lucifer" (TV-14), a mix of crime procedural and supernatural fantasy, follows the fallen angel (Tom Ellis) as he steps in to (quite literally) play God.
True stories: "Blood Brothers: Malcolm X & Muhammad Ali" (2021, PG-13) looks back at the brief friendship and falling out between the two men. Also new is the limited series "Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space" (TV-14) which follows the efforts to become the first all-civilian mission into orbit. Two episodes available, new episodes on Mondays.
International affairs: a group of hikers on the wilderness trip are hunted by an unseen shooter in "Prey" (Germany, 2021, TV-MA, with subtitles). Also new:
teen romantic drama "JJ+E" (Sweden, 2021, TV-MA, with subtitles) set in Stockholm;
true crime documentary "The Women and the Murderer" (France, TV-14, not rated) about the hunt for serial killer Guy Georges in 1990s Paris.
International TV: the second season of "Into the Night" (Belgium, TV-MA, with subtitles) continues the survival thriller set in a world where sunlight kills.
Kid stuff: a young dragon searches for a mythical paradise in the animated adventure "Firedrake the Silver Dragon" (2021, Germany, TV-Y7) featuring the voices of Thomas Brodie-Sangster, Felicity Jones, Freddie Highmore, and Patrick Stewart. Also new is the animated series "Pokémon Master Journeys – The Series: Season 1" (TV-Y7).
Amazon Prime Video
"LuLaRich" (TV-14) dives into LuLaRoe, a women's internet apparel company that is now under investigation as a viral pyramid scheme. The four-part documentary series is from Jenner Furst and Julia Willoughby Nason, directors of "Frye Fraud."
A young couple becomes fascinated by the sex life of their eccentric neighbors in the erotic thriller "The Voyeurs" (2021, R).
Tommy Lee Jones directs and stars in the modern western "The Three Burials of Melquiades Estrada" (2006, R).
Hulu
The second season of "Wu-Tang: An American Saga" (TV-MA) begins with three episodes available, new episodes on Tuesdays.
"The Killing of Two Lovers" (2020, TV-MA) stars Clayne Crawford stars as a husband and father trying to keep his family together during a separation from his wife.
The modern musical "La La Land" (2016, PG-13) earned Oscars for star Emma Stone and director Daniel Chazelle.
HBO Max
Horror veteran James Wan (director of "Saw" and "Aquaman") returns to the horror genre with "Malignant" (2021, R), starring Annabelle Wallis as a woman whose waking nightmares of grisly murders are actually visions of real events. Streams same day it opens in theaters, available for 31 days from September 10. (HBO Max)
Tom Hardy and Charlize Theron star in "Mad Max: Fury Road" (2015, R), a visceral action thriller that earned ten Oscar nominations.
"Mortal Kombat" (2021, R) is the very violent big screen spinoff of the hit video game.
Kid stuff: the animated sci-fi comedy for kids "Elliott from Earth: Season 1" (TV-Y7) arrives from Cartoon Network.
Other streams
Anthony Hopkins won an Academy Award play an aging man slipping into dementia in "The Father" (2021, PG-13). (Starz)
Charlie Cox and Aidan Gillen star in "Kin: Season 1" (TV-MA), a drama about a power struggle in a Dublin crime family. (AMC+)
"American Rust: Season 1" (TV-MA) stars Jeff Daniels as the compromised police chief of a Pennsylvania steel town. First episode streams ahead of cable debut, new episodes on Sundays. (Showtime Anytime)
"Days of our Lives: Beyond Salem" (TV-14) is a five-episode spin-off of the long-running soap opera. (Peacock)
"Kacey Musgraves' star-crossed: the film" (2021, not rated) is a 50-minute production showcasing the singer's new album. (Paramount+)
Action crime comedy "Pretty Hard Cases: Season 1" (TV-14) stars Meredith MacNeill and Adrienne C. Moore as detectives with troubled personal lives. Free with ads. (IMDbTV)
A London-based paranormal investigator returns home to South Africa to investigate ancient spirits and monsters in "Dead Places: Season 1" (not rated). New episodes on Thursdays. (Allblk / Sundance Now / AMC+)
"The Lubitsch Touch" features eight films by Ernst Lubitsch, from "Angel" (1937) with Marlene Dietrich to his final film, the sweet romantic comedy "Cluny Brown" (1946). (Criterion Channel)
New on disc and at Redbox: "The Girl Who Got Away"
Sean Axmaker is a Seattle film critic and writer. His reviews of streaming movies and TV can be found at https://streamondemandathome.com.
