Here’s what’s new and ready to stream now on Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, HBO Now, video-on-demand, and other streaming services …
Gary Oldman stars as the colorful, alcoholic cowriter of “Citizen Kane” in “Mank” (2020, R), directed by David Fincher from his father’s screenplay. Fincher spent decades trying to get the film produced before Netflix stepped in and gave him carte blanche to shoot his portrait of classic Hollywood in black and white. It costars Amanda Seyfried as Marion Davies, Charles Dance as William Randolph Hearst, and Tom Burke as Orson Welles. (Netflix)
“Sound of Metal” (2020, R) is a drama about a punk-metal drummer (Riz Ahmed) who is afraid of losing his identity when he starts going deaf. Director Darius Marder uses creative sound design to explore his character’s experience. Olivia Cooke costars. (Amazon Prime)
“Selena: The Series” (TV-PG), starring Christian Serratos as Selena Quintanilla, tells the story of the Quintanilla family as it dramatizes journey of the Tejano singer from small town Texas girl to musical superstar. Her story concludes in the second part of the limited scheduled to run in 2021. (Netflix)
“The Hardy Boys: Season 1” (2020, not rated) brings the classic series about teenage detectives (played by Rohan Campbell and Alexander Elliot) back to the small screen in a version that, like the CW’s “Nancy Drew,” is darker than the books. All 13 episodes now streaming. (Hulu)
In “Sorry We Missed You” (2019, not rated), British filmmaker Ken Loach explores the stresses of the gig economy through the experiences of a British working class family. It makes its streaming premiere on the Criterion Channel.
Holiday Trimmings
“Godmothered” (2020, PG) stars Jillian Bell as a fairy godmother-in-training who follows up a mislaid letter from a ten-year-old girl to find a 40-something single mom (Isla Fisher) who no longer believes in fairy tale endings. (Disney+)
“Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special” (2020, TV-G) features Tiffany Haddish, Ariana Grande, and Jennifer Hudson among the guest stars. (Apple TV+)
“My Gift: A Christmas Special from Carrie Underwood” (2020, not rated) presents the country singer performing traditional carols and original songs with a live orchestra and choir. (HBO Max)
Classic picks: the nostalgic musical “Meet Me in St. Louis” (1944) with Judy Garland and the romantic comedy “The Shop Around the Corner” (1940) with James Steward and Margaret Sullavan are among the classic holiday films streaming on HBO Max.
Pay-Per-View / Video-On-Demand
The documentary “Billie” (2020, not rated) draws from rare archival interviews to tell the story of legendary blues singer Billie Holliday.
Aaron Eckhart is an unstable private investigator on the trail of conspiracy theory in “Wander” (2020, R), a thriller costarring Tommy Lee Jones and Heather Graham.
The romantic drama “Luxor” (2020, not rated) stars Andrea Riseborough as a British aid worker in the ancient city of Luxor.
Netflix
The comedy “Nate – A One Man Show” (2020, not rated) stars comedian Natalie Palamides as an alpha male learning to get in touch with his feelings.
The hand-painted animated feature “Bombay Rose” (France, PG-13) follows a romance tested by duty and religious divides.
Streaming TV: “Alien Worlds: Season 1” (TV-PG) blends science fact and fiction to imagine alien life on other planets.
Binge alert: “Stargate SG-1: Complete Series” (1997-2007, TV-MA) presents ten seasons and over 200 episodes of the science fiction adventure starring Richard Dean Anderson as the leader of a team of interstellar explorers.
Holiday trimmings: the animated film “Angela’s Christmas Wish” (2020, TV-Y) follows up on the Frank McCourt story and “The Holiday Movies That Made Us: Season 1” (TV-MA) explores the stories behind iconic Christmas hits.
Spend the holidays with Steven Spielberg with his heartwarming “E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial” (1982, PG) and his thrilling family adventures “Jurassic Park” (1993, PG-13) and “The Lost World: Jurassic Park” (1997, PG-13).
Stand-up: “Ari Eldjárn: Pardon My Icelandic” (2020, not rated) and “Hazel Brugger: Tropical” (2020, not rated).
Amazon Prime Video
Colin Firth is King George VI in “The King’s Speech” (2010, R), costarring Geoffrey Rush and Helena Bonham Carter. It won the Oscar for best picture, as did two other films streaming this month on Amazon Prime:
- Kathryn Bigelow’s “The Hurt Locker” (2009, R) with Jeremy Renner as bomb disposal expert in Iraq;
- “Gandhi” (1982) starring Ben Kingsley in an Oscar-winning performance.
The satirical comedy “Thank You For Smoking” (2006, R) starring Aaron Eckhart as a glib tobacco lobbyist skewers social politics and the culture of spin.
International Passport: “Hippocrates” (France, 2017, PG, with subtitles) is a drama that follows a new intern (Vincent Lacoste) in his first year of residency at a Paris hospital.
Kid stuff: Bill Hader and Anna Faris lead the voice cast in the whimsical animated comedy “Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs” (2009, PG).
Hulu
The TV holiday music specials “CMA Country Christmas” (TV-PG) and “Disney Holiday Singalong” (TV-PG) are now streaming.
Emily Blunt is “The Young Victoria” (2009, PG) in the historical drama about Queen Victoria’s marriage to Prince Albert (Rupert Friend).
Streaming TV: “Deutschland 89 (Season 3)” (Germany, TV-MA, with subtitles) takes the story of the East German spy Martin Rauch (Jonas Nay) through the fall of the Berlin Wall.
True stories: Ron Howard directs “Rebuilding Paradise” (2020, TV-14), a documentary about the Paradise community one year after the 2018 Camp Fire.
Holiday binge alert: watch Peter Jackson’s epic “Lord of the Ring” trilogy like a fantasy miniseries: “The Fellowship of the Ring” (2001, PG-13), “The Two Towers” (2002, PG-13), and “The Return of the King” (2003, PG-13).
HBO Max / HBO Now
The four-part documentary “Heaven’s Gate: The Cult of Cults” (2020, TV-MA) explores the notorious religious movement that created the biggest mass suicide on U.S. soil. (HBO Max)
Harrison Ford stars in “The Call of the Wild” (2020, PG), the latest screen adaptation of the Jack London novel and the first to use an entirely CGI-created dog in the leading role. (All HBO platforms)
Streaming TV: all episodes of the high finance drama “Industry: Season 1” (TV-MA) are now available on HBO Max (they roll out weekly on other HBO platforms) and the teen-oriented superhero adventure “Stargirl: Season 1“(2020, TV-PG) arrives from DC Universe. (HBO Max)
More true stories: “Baby God” (2020, TV-14) looks into the misdeeds of Las Vegas fertility specialist Dr. Quincy Fortier, who secretly used his own genetic material to help couples conceive. (All HBO platforms)
More holiday trimmings: the Christmas romance “Holiday Affair” (1949) with Robert Mitchum and Janet Leigh and comedy “It Happened on Fifth Avenue” (1947) with Victor Moore and Don DeFore are sweet holiday classics that deserve to be better known. More warm-hearted classics new this month:
- “Father of the Bride” (1950) with Spencer Tracy;
- “Young Man with a Horn” (1949) with Kirk Douglas and Doris Day;
“Bundle of Joy” (1956) and “Susan Slept Here” (1954) with Debbie Reynolds; - Doris Day musicals “On Moonlight Bay” (1951), “Tea for Two” (1950), “My Dream is Yours” (1949), and “Romance on the High Seas” (1948).
Disney+
Taylor Swift performs every song from her new album in the intimate music special “Folklore: The Long Pond Studio Sessions” (2020, TV-14).
Apple TV+
The natural history series “Earth at Night in Color: Season 1” (TV-PG) uses next-generation cameras to observe the nocturnal lives of animals in full color. Tom Hiddleston narrates. (Apple TV+)
Sundance Now
The near-future thriller “The Commons: Season 1” (not rated) is set in a world on the verge of climactic catastrophe. New episodes each Thursday.
BritBox
The one and only season of “The Body Farm” (2011, not rated), a spin-off of the British crime drama “Waking the Dead,” is now streaming, along with the surviving episodes of sketch comedy series “Do Not Adjust Your Set” (1968-1969) starring Eric Idle, Terry Jones, and Michael Palin.
Shudder
An elderly couple (Julian Richings and Sheila McCarthy) kidnaps a pregnant woman to perform a reverse exorcism in order to bring their dead grandchild back to life in the Canadian horror film “Anything for Jackson” (2020, not rated).
Also new is “Porno” (2020, not rated), about a cursed sex education film.
The Criterion Channel
The collection “Three by Terrence Malick” presents “Badlands” (1973, R) with Martin Sheen and Sissy Spacek, the Oscar-winning “Days of Heaven” (1978, PG) with Richard Gere and Brooke Adams, and “The New World” (2005, PG-13) with Christian Bale and Q’orianka Kilcher. Also new:
- Mathieu Amalric plays Paul Dedalus, on-screen alter ego of French filmmaker Arnaud Desplechin, in his films “My Sex Life . . . or How I Got into an Argument” (France, 1996, with subtitles) and “My Golden Days” (France, 2015, R, with subtitles);
- two “Films by Rithy Panh,” the Cambodian director who survived the Cambodian genocide;
- more films restored by The Film Foundation, including the early color horror film “Mystery of the Wax Museum” (1933) and Charles Laughton’s “Night of the Hunter” (19955) starring Robert Mitchum;
- Oscar-winning comedy “The Awful Truth” (1937) with Cary Grant and Irene Dunne, presented with interviews and featurettes from the Criterion disc release;
- classic western “Bad Day at Black Rock” (1955) with commentary by director original John Sturges from Criterion’s 1991 laserdisc edition.
The weekly column is featured in The Seattle Times, The Spokesman-Review, and other newspapers.
Don’t miss a single recommendation. Subscribe to the Stream On Demand weekly newsletter (your E-mail address will not be shared) and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.
