This week in streaming video, we’ve got two hit comedies available for purchase, as well as a brand new Netflix original series. There’s also some acclaimed indie films, noteworthy television, award-winners, and certified classics available on subscription services. Read on for the full list.
When an arms dealer identifies several of the CIA’s top field agents, desk-bound analyst Susan Cooper (Melissa McCarthy) gets her chance to go undercover in Paris. But during the course of her mission, Cooper must endure a string of indignities, from an unflattering cover story to a borderline-psychotic fellow agent (Jason Statham) who questions her competence at every turn.
This time out, the Barden Bellas a cappella group is in hot water after an embarrassing performance in front of a distinguished audience. In search of redemption, our heroines journey to Denmark to compete in an international vocal tournament, and wackiness follows them wherever they go.
Available now on: Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play
ABC’s drama centers on a woman (Emily VanCamp) who moves to the Hamptons but harbors a secret vendetta: she’s out for revenge on the people who framed her father for treason when she was young.
Available now on: Netflix
This Certified Fresh Hungarian drama centers on a dog named Hagen, who is abandoned by his master’s father and subsequently begins a trek home, inciting a seemingly organized mongrel revolt in the process.
Available now on: Netflix
This Netflix original series chronicles the rise of notorious Colombian drug lord Pablo Escobar and the Medellín Cartel. As with other Netflix shows, all 10 episodes of the first season are available to stream.
Available now on: Netflix
ABC’s Disney-themed drama centers on a fictional town called Storybrooke, whose residents are all classic fairy tale characters. Season four incorporates the latest Disney sensation, Frozen, by working Elsa and Anna into its plot while continuing its ongoing narrative.
Available now on: Netflix
The evil Foot Clan has taken control of New York City’s politicians and police force, so it’s up to our sewer-dwelling heroes — along with intrepid TV journalist April O’Neil (Megan Fox) — to save the day.
Available now on: Netflix
Woody Allen’s directs and stars in this classic comedy-drama that chronicles the separate but connected lives of a woman named Hannah (Mia Farrow) and her two sisters (Barbara Hershey and Dianne Wiest) over the course of two years.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
This Certified Fresh a comedy is the story of an African American college student whose no-holds-barred radio show shakes up the predominantly white campus.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Full of creepy campfire scares, mock-doc The Blair Witch Project keeps audiences in the dark about its titular villain — thus proving that imagination can be as scary as anything onscreen.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
Madonna and Rosanna Arquette star in this comedy about a bored New Jersey housewife who becomes obsessed with a mysterious New York woman whose life she’s been following via ongoing correspondence in the personals section of a tabloid.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
In this shlocky 1980s cult favorite, evil aliens who look like disfigured clowns arrive in a small American town and terrorize its citizens with deadly shadow puppetry, killer popcorn, and cotton candy cocoons.
Available now on: Amazon Prime
One of Woody Allen’s most acclaimed films, this Certified Fresh romantic comedy stars Allen, Mariel Hemingway (in an Oscar-nominated role), Diane Keaton, and more in a story about a neurotic writer who has difficulty choosing between the 17-year-old ingénue he’s dating and the mistress of his married best friend.
Available now on: HBO Now
Sidney Poitier and Rod Steiger star in Norman Jewison’s Best Picture-winning thriller about an African American detective who pairs with a racist sheriff to solve a murder in the Deep South.
Available now on: HBO Now
Joaquin Phoenix stars as Theodore Twombly, a lovelorn writer who falls in love with OS1, his computer’s highly intelligent operating system (voiced by Scarlett Johansson).
Available now on: HBO Now
Martin Scorsese’s Best Picture winner tells the story of two moles, one of whom (DiCaprio) is a cop undercover within a Boston crime family led by Jack Nicholson, and the other (Damon) a hood who has infiltrated the police department.
Available now on: HBO Now
Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, Edward James Olmos, and Daryl Hannah, Ridley Scott’s stylishly noir sci-fi tale of replicants and blade runners remains a favorite for its art-deco look and its haunting, mysterious ambience.
Available now on: HBO Now
In James Cameron’s multiple Oscar-winning romance, Leonardo DiCaprio and Kate Winslet play star-crossed lovers who meet aboard the ill-fated ocean liner. He teachers her how to spit.
Available now on: HBO Now
Ridley Scott directed this 1991 hit about a pair of women (played by Susan Sarandon and Geena Davis) who leave behind their regular lives for a road trip that quickly goes awry.
Available now on: HBO Now
Tim Burton’s offbeat comedy stars Michael Keaton as the titular ghoul, a chaotic wildcard whose services are called upon by a newly deceased couple (Alec Baldwin and Geena Davis) to help rid their home of its new occupants.
Available now on: HBO Now
This low-budget 1975 cult classic stars Barry Bostwick and Susan Sarandon as the unlucky couple who stumble into a secluded mansion on a rainy night and bear witness to a freakish party to end all parties, hosted by a transvestite named Dr. Frank N. Furter (Tim Curry).
Available now on: HBO Now
V for Vendetta tells the story of a near-future dystopia, where a lone freedom fighter named V (Hugo Weaving) plots a series of revolutionary bombings to bring down a shady, secretly policed government. Along the way, V recruits young, frightened Evey (Natalie Portman ), shaves her head, and turns her into a proper young revolutionary.
Available now on: HBO Now
Will Ferrell and Jon Heder star as rival figure skaters who, after an embarrassing throwdown at the World Championships, team up for a shot at redemption.
Available now on: HBO Now
Bruce Beresford’s 1980 Australian drama retells the 1902 court martial of the titular soldier, who was accused along with his fellow officers of murdering several prisoners of war while stationed in South Africa during the Second Boer War.
Available now on: Fandor
This John Ford western, which follows a handful of strangers as they embark on a perilous stagecoach journey from Arizona to New Mexico through Apache territory, is the film that catapulted John Wayne to stardom.
Available now on: Fandor
Erik Skjoldbjærg’s Norwegian thriller — which was remade in 2002 by Christopher Nolan — stars Stellan Skarsgård as a police officer who accidentally shoots his partner while in pursuit of a killer. He decides to keep mum about it, but the killer knows the truth, and psychological games ensue.
Available now on: Fandor
George A. Romero’s iconic debut set the template for the modern zombie film, and features tight editing, realistic gore, and a sly political undercurrent.
Available now on: Fandor
This quiet drama centers on a newlywed woman who becomes a spiritual seeker and slowly alienates her family and friends in the process.
Available now on: Fandor
One of Universal’s many iconic monsters, Gill-man (the creature’s infrequently used actual name) made his first appearence in this 1954 classic as a misguided amphibious humanoid, the last of his kind and prone to violence.
Available now on: Fandor
Milan Mumin stars in this musical drama about a Serbian rock star-turned-NYC cabbie trying to record one more album and dealing with relationship strife.
Available now on: Fandor
Tuning into this weekend’s Real Housewives of Atlanta might not be something all of us want to admit to, but honestly, doesn’t everyone have a TV guilty pleasure or two? Turns out, even some of our most esteemed critics on Rotten Tomatoes find time for shows not necessarily on their beats because — let’s face it — it just feels so good. Here are ten shows that critics are gleefully watching off-hours that might surprise you.
I am almost embarrassingly excited about the upcoming Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions — to see some of my favorite recent players back in action, of such different temperaments: Julia Collins, the winningest female ever (20 consecutive wins), who was always so cool and upbeat; and Arthur Chu, the aggressive and unsmiling strategist who freaked so many viewers out as he bounced around the board. I’m not sure this classic quiz show is ever a cause for guilt, though, so let me go on the record saying that I’m still watching Grey’s Anatomy as part of my weekly Shonda Crazy-Train Binge, and while anything involving the squabbling Callie-Arizona and/or chatterbox April makes we want to jump out the window, and I miss Sandra Oh terribly, I can’t imagine Thursday night TV without a dose of this soapy medicine.
In truth, I have a lot of guilty pleasures. I think they’re an antidote to stuff I have to watch to review. They include Cops, Jail, TMZ, but most of all, Judge Judy. I have it Tivo’d and in our broadcast area; we get two different episodes a day. If it were later in the evening, I’d be tempted to start a drinking game for the number of times she says “‘Um’ is not an answer” (which should be the title of her next book), or uses the word “kerfuffle,” or shouts, “put your hand down.” Or, “They don’t keep me here because I’m gorgeous.” Or: “Coulda, woulda, shoulda.” There are other shows I watch from time to time as guilty pleasures, but that’s my regular, daily go-to. And “um” really isn’t an answer.
While I could find a way to defend even the “least good” scripted shows on my TV docket (Gotham and New Girl being first to my mind), my only true guilty pleasure is Property Brothers on HGTV. Twins Drew and Jonathan help couples purchase and renovate their dream homes in charming — if redundant — hour-long blocks. It’s rather innocent and occasionally educational programming, with many of the ideas and prices going straight to my memory bank for future home-buying and in-house redesigns. Honestly, I only feel guilty because Property Brothers is reality television, and reality television is a drain on our country’s mental health.
Married at First Sight is something that shouldn’t exist, if we’re all being honest. The premise — marrying a complete stranger selected by psychologists — is not a dream any parent has for his or her child. Fortunately, science is real, and therein lies the fascination: what happens when two people are forced into a situation where the outcome is theoretically known? Do you fight it or accept it?
I know a lot of people “confess” to reality programming, and I did have a brief fling with Storage Wars, but my secret addiction is to re-watching British television dramas. And ever since AcornTV arrived, it is an issue I actually have to address fairly soon because I can lose entire days of my one and only life cruising through George Gently, Case Histories and Doc Martin. Law and Order: UK was a big problem for a while — no reason whatsoever to write about it, never missed an episode — and I will watch favorite episodes of Doctor Who, Foyle’s War, Luther, and Sherlock over and over and over again. These are all very fine programs, but there is no denying that I use them to soothe and escape more than anything else. I have a sneaking suspicion it’s all quite Freudian: from the time I can remember, my family’s main TV ritual was watching Masterpiece Theater. Also the men in these dramas all look so good in coats. And, apparently, I have a thing for men who look good in coats. Any age, any era, but must look good in a coat.
I love ABC’s Last Man Standing like I love Pepsi: I know it’s lacking in nutrients and loaded with noxious additives. But I’m hooked on its formula. And the bubbles tickle my nose.
My guiltiest pleasure is probably Glee. I tend to stick with shows I start through the bitter end, even when the masses have moved on (ER, Desperate Housewives, Smash), and Glee is in that slot for me right now. I can’t seem to quit Kurt, Rachel, and the gang, even though it’s all pretty eye-rolling these days!
I know [Andy’s] a carnival barker, a supreme trash-slinger, a manipulator and an instigator, but I love him. He’s an earnest, wide-eyed Chuck Barris, celebrating sleaze with a broad smile and a glint in his eye. I try to tell myself that I’m better than Real Housewives of New Jersey, for instance, but I can’t look away whenever my wife turns on one of the reunion shows or Watch What Happens Live.
It’s so utterly trashy, the closest thing we have on TV now to channeling Melrose Place. It also shows that trashy drama can still beat trashy reality, arguing that some things are still best left to professionals. With characters zipping from dead to alive, from governor to jailbird, it all has a wonderful making-it-up-as-we-go feeling, and the actors understand perfectly that it works best when they play it totally deadpan.
I love the Nutribullet commercial. I feel like there is great pathos in the studio audience for infomercials, and the promises they make on those shows really skirt against the laws of reality (and good taste). I heard someone say that the Nutribullet grew her hair back after chemo. That’s… that can’t be an actual claim, can it?
What’s your current TV guilty pleasure? Let us know below!
According to Variety, the suddenly VERY busy "40 Year-Old Virgin" Steve Carell has signed with Disney to star in Peter Hedges‘ comedy "Dan in Real Life," after he finishes work on Universal’s "Evan Almighty."
"Carell plays a widower with three daughters who writes a parenting column for his local newspaper. His strict rules for behavior are tested when he falls for the girlfriend of his younger brother.
Carell is in the midst of filming episodes of the second season of NBC’s "The Office" and recently completed indie "Little Miss Sunshine," directed by Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris and yet to be set for distribution.
Hedges, who last directed "Pieces of April" and who adapted "About a Boy" and "What’s Eating Gilbert Grape," has just completed a rewrite of Gardner’s script. Hedges also is adapting the Jonathan Tropper novel "Everything Changes" for Tobey Maguire and Sony."
