Home viewing roundup: What's available to stream and what's on horizon

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 Oct. 12, 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

“Chicken Run” (2000; Netflix)

Delightful clay animation feature about a plucky chicken (voice of Julia Sawalha) and her hen pals cooped up in a British egg farm who, with the help of a flying Yankee rooster (voice of Mel Gibson), must escape the cruel clutches of the egg farmer (voice of Miranda Richardson) before she turns them into chicken pies. Though the story lags in parts and some jokes may go over children’s heads, fantastic anthropomorphized features and the narrative’s witty details make directors Peter Lord and Nick Park’s first full-length feature both visually pleasing and cleverly amusing despite a few intense moments. The OSV News classification is A-I — general patronage. The Motion Picture Association rating is G — general audiences. All ages admitted.

“Juno” (2007; Hulu)

Smart, funny and ultimately moving comedy-drama with a strong pro-life message about an unwed teen (an outstanding Ellen Page) who decides not to have an abortion, and promises the coming baby to a childless couple (Jason Bateman and Jennifer Garner) who long to adopt. The narrative has just the right moral wrap-up; performances are tops, including J.K. Simmons and Allison Janney as the girl’s supportive parents and Michael Cera as the shy classmate responsible for her condition. Jason Reitman’s direction strikes a piquant tone, though Diablo Cody’s script contains a high expletive level for its appealing but sassy heroine. Possibly appropriate for older teens. Crude language and at least one instance of the F-word, some crass expressions, an irreverent remark, a nongraphic premarital teen encounter with brief partial nudity, sexual talk, an out-of-wedlock pregnancy, divorce. 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.

“Trolls Band Together” (2023; Amazon Prime)

Pleasant third animated adventure for the music-loving, doll-derived beings of the title who first arrived on the big screen in 2016. This time out, the franchise’s temperamentally contrasting central couple (voices of Anna Kendrick and Justin Timberlake) must contend with the bad feelings left over from his long-ago membership in a boy band that came to a disastrous end, the other members of which were his estranged older brothers (the two most prominent voiced by Troye Sivan and Eric André). With one of the siblings now being held captive, the family will have to come together to set him free. Along with Tim Heitz, returning director Walt Dohrn presides over another colorful, tune-fuelled and good-natured production that emphasizes spiritual as well as musical harmony and the breaking down of fear-based barriers. A few potty jokes and one needless sexual gag that only grown-ups are likely to catch aside, it’s a likable diversion suitable for all but the youngest. A couple of mild oaths, fleeting mature wordplay, brief scatological humor. The OSV News classification is A-II — adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

Looking Ahead

Sunday, Oct. 12, 8:30-11 p.m. EDT (ABC) “Haunted Mansion” (2023). Set in New Orleans, director Justin Simien’s adaptation of a theme park attraction features an ensemble cast (led by LaKeith Stanfield as a skeptical scientist) most of whose characters are united by the fact that, having visited the titular dwelling, one or another of its various ghosts has followed them home, eventually compelling them to return to the structure. Owen Wilson as a sketchy priest takes charge of the search for a solution, teaming with Tiffany Haddish’s sassy medium in what seems an unlikely partnership. They’re helped by the house’s current owner (Rosario Dawson) and her socially awkward preteen son (Chase W. Dillon) as well as by a local historian (Danny DeVito). While any potential offense given by Wilson’s dodgy clergyman is ultimately canceled out by an explanation of his true identity, the generally congenial tone of this production, the comic element of which is far more successful than its by-the-numbers horror ingredients, has to be balanced against its nonscriptural take on supernatural events. Mature teens may be as apt to shrug this viewpoint off as grown-ups. But the film, the second based on the Disneyland ride, is not a good fit for smaller, more impressionable kids. Occult themes, about a dozen mild oaths, brief irreverent humor. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating was PG-13 – parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.

Monday, Oct. 13, 6:30-7:45 p.m. EDT (EWTN) “Holy Mass on the Anniversary of the Apparition of Our Lady of Fatima.” Broadcast from the National Blue Army Shrine of Our Lady of Fatima in Asbury, New Jersey, this Eucharistic liturgy, celebrated by Msgr. Roger J. Landry, commemorates the 108th anniversary of the final apparition of the Virgin Mary at Fatima (TV-G — general audience).

Monday, Oct. 13, 10-11:30 p.m. EDT (TCM) “This Is Spinal Tap” (1984). Mock documentary on the last, inglorious American tour of an aging English heavy metal group whose fame is long gone makes the grade as a subtle and sometimes very funny satire both on rock groups and on the documentaries made about them. The four principals (Rob Reiner as the director and Michael McKean, Christopher Guest, and Harry Shearer as the not-overly-bright leaders of the group) also collaborated on the script. Reiner tripled as director. There is a great deal of crude language and many sexual references in the dialogue and song lyrics, but these are essential to the satirical nature of the film. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II — adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating was R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.

Tuesday, Oct. 14, 9-11 p.m. EDT (PBS) “Marlee Matlin: Not Alone Anymore.” This episode of the series “American Masters” profiles the first deaf actress to win an Academy Award.

Saturday, Oct. 18, 8-10 p.m. EDT (TCM) “Frankenstein” (1931). Stylish horror classic from Mary Shelley’s novel about the obsessed Dr. Frankenstein (Colin Clive) who robs graves to complete his composite creation (Boris Karloff) which is brought to life during an electrical storm, then breaks free to the consternation of the local village. The tampering-with-nature fable succeeds largely because of Karloff’s sympathetic portrayal of the monster as tormented victim and director James Whale’s treatment of the ghoulish proceedings as something more than mere horror fare. Stylized violence and recurring menace. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II — adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.

Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on horizon

Streaming Now

Looking Ahead

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