The following are capsule reviews of theatrical movies available now for streaming or scheduled for broadcast on network or cable television during the week of Sept. 8, as well as notes on TV programming for the same week. Televised films may or may not be edited for language, nudity, violence and sexual situations while the programs listed have not been reviewed and therefore are not necessarily recommended by OSV News.
Streaming Now
“Greta” (2019; Hulu)
A naive waitress (Chloe Grace Moretz), still mourning the recent death of her mother, finds a lost handbag on a New York City subway train and, on returning it, discovers that its owner is a lonely French-accented widow (Isabelle Huppert). The two quickly bond, but all is not, of course, what it seems in director and co-writer Neil Jordan’s psychological thriller, which also features Maika Monroe as the server’s savvier roommate. Moretz and Huppert create sufficient dynamism to elevate the implausible proceedings into a guilty pleasure, and Jordan holds back any bloodletting until a single sequence that’s all the more shocking for the restraint that has preceded it. Gothic fun for grown-ups. Momentary but intense gory violence, a few gruesome images, references to a lesbian relationship, about a half-dozen uses of profanity, several crude and crass terms. The OSV News classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
“Migration” (2023; Netflix)
Endearing animated adventure about a family of ducks. Although the clan’s protective dad (voice of Kumail Nanjiani) is content to keep them safe by remaining on the New England pond they have always called home, the visit of a flock of migrating birds stirs not only mom’s (voice of Elizabeth Banks) imagination but that of the couple’s two kids (voices of Caspar Jennings and Tresi Gazal) as well. As they make their way south, with an initially reluctant uncle (voice of Danny DeVito) in tow, the group encounters a potentially predatory heron (voice of Carol Kane), a tough, street-smart New York City pigeon (voice of Awkwafina) and a Jamaican-bred parrot (voice of Keegan-Michael Key). Some possibly scary situations aside, director Benjamin Renner’s fun tale is suitable for all. Beneath the cheerful comedy of screenwriter Mike White’s script, mature viewers will discern themes about the proper balance between caution and courage, the need to overcome prejudice, the importance of helping others and the complementarity that makes for a good marriage. Characters in peril, brief vaguely scatological material. The OSV News classification is A-I — general patronage. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.
“10 Cloverfield Lane” (2016; Amazon Prime)
Audacious, witty, intelligent and skillfully made, this bracing combination of suspense and science fiction from director Dan Trachtenberg is also refreshingly free of vulgarity. Held captive in an underground bunker by a paranoid and possibly murderous survivalist (John Goodman) who insists he saved her from an apocalyptic event in the wider world, a lone traveler (Mary Elizabeth Winstead) must decide between the claustrophobic evil currently confronting her and the unidentified dangers that may be lurking outside. Probably acceptable for mature teens. Some bloody physical violence, including a shooting death, an intense atmosphere, a single use of rough language. The OSV News classification is A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG-13 — parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
Looking Ahead
Sunday, Sept. 8, 10-10:30 a.m. EDT (EWTN) “EWTN Bookmark.” On this episode of the weekly program, series host Doug Keck talks with Mary Claire Kendall, author of “Oasis: Conversion Stories of Hollywood Legends” (TV-G – general audience).
Monday, Sept. 9, 10-11:30 p.m. EDT (PBS) “Name Me Lawand.” Filmmaker Edward Lovelace’s documentary profiles a deaf boy whose refugee family is facing deportation from the UK. A “POV” presentation.
Thursday, Sept. 12, 8-10:45 p.m. EDT (TCM) “2001: A Space Odyssey” (1968). Director Stanley Kubrick’s epic work, co-written with Arthur C. Clarke, is both science fiction and metaphysical poetry using an unconventional mixture of visuals and music to bridge humanity’s reconstructed past, identifiable present and projected future, all tied together by the recurring image of a monolith as symbol of a superhuman existence. The central narrative follows the struggle of two astronauts (Keir Dullea and Gary Lockwood) to wrest control of their spacecraft from HAL, a talking computer (voice of Douglas Rain), on a half-billion-mile trip to Jupiter and the unknown. For young people and imaginative adults but too long, deep and intense for children. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II — adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating was G — general audiences. All ages admitted.
Saturday, Sept. 14, 5:23-8 p.m. EDT (Cinemax) “The Revenant” (2015). A wilderness survival drama, directed and co-written by Alejandro Inarritu, based on the life of Hugh Glass (Leonardo DiCaprio), an explorer and fur trader in the American West of the 1820s. On an expedition up the Missouri River led by a military captain (Domhnall Gleeson), Glass is attacked by a grizzly bear. Lying near death, Glass is powerless to prevent the murder of his son by a fellow hunter (Tom Hardy), who abandons him in the wilderness. Glass refuses to succumb, crawls out of the grave, and embarks on a 200-mile odyssey through vast uncharted lands to avenge his son’s slaying and bring the killer to justice. As such, he becomes a “revenant,” or one returned from the dead. For adults with stomachs strong enough to endure many squeamish moments, rewards await: a powerful film with first-rate performances, stunning cinematography, and timely messages about good versus evil, and of redemption versus revenge. Bloody violence and gore, several disturbing images, a sexual assault, frequent rough, crude, and profane language. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association rating was R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Saturday, Sept. 14, 5:45-8 p.m. EDT (TCM) “Monsieur Verdoux” (1947). Written, produced and directed by Charles Chaplin, this fact-based black comedy also stars Chaplin in the title role as a French Bluebeard who marries wealthy women, then murders them for their money. Though his first serious role disappointed audiences of its day, Chaplin as a performer was never better in the subtlety of gesture and expression. There is much sharp wit in the script along with some great slapstick, notably from Martha Raye, who proves impervious to all murderous stratagems. Its criticism of society’s hypocrisy is often strained and its attempts to punctuate serious themes with humor is uneven. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III — adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.
Saturday, Sept. 14, 8-9:51 p.m. EDT (HBO) “Civil War” (2024). Engrossing but hard-edged dystopian drama follows a celebrated photojournalist (Kirsten Dunst) as, in the company of two veteran colleagues (Wagner Moura and Stephen McKinley Henderson) and a youthful professional neophyte (Cailee Spaeny), she sets out to chronicle the last stages of a highly destructive second American civil war. Writer-director Alex Garland uses the mentoring relationship that develops between Dunst’s character and Spaeny’s to explore the psychological and ethical complexities of frontline journalism. His depiction of the mayhem the quartet encounters on its journey toward a besieged Washington, however, is distressingly realistic. Much graphic, gory violence, including torture, gruesome images, a couple of profanities, a few milder oaths, pervasive rough language, numerous crude terms. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was L — limited adult audience, films whose problematic content many adults would find troubling. The Motion Picture Association rating was R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
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