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 Jan. 4, 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
“Home Alone 2: Lost in New York” (1992; Hulu)
Formula sequel places the resourceful 10-year-old (Macaulay Culkin) on his own in the big city, this time determined to prevent the same bone-brained bandits (Joe Pesci and Daniel Stern) from ripping off a toy store on Christmas Eve. Writer-producer John Hughes and director Chris Columbus repeat their popular comic paces in a similar lively adventure similarly hampered by exaggerated comic violence and cloying sentiment. Much slapstick violence and some menace to a child. The OSV News classification is A-II — adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may be inappropriate for children.
“A Minecraft Movie” (2025; Amazon Prime)
Unrelentingly upbeat and undistracted by manufactured sentiment, director Jared Hess’ big-screen version of the best-selling video game of all time strikes and sustains its positive mood without resorting to the cheap jokes or occasional vulgarity that often plague such adaptations. The story centers on a frustrated doorknob salesman and would-be miner (Jack Black) who gets his shot at adventure when he’s transported to an alternate dimension where creativity is the key to survival. He’s eventually joined there by a former arcade video-game champ (Jason Momoa) who has fallen on hard times, a failed real estate agent (Danielle Brooks) who wants to be a zookeeper and a pair of youthful siblings (Sebastian Hansen and Emma Myers) who share a belief that their lives have taken a wrong turn. As this ensemble of characters learn life lessons in their new setting, and discover talents they didn’t previously know they had, the film conveys an implied theme about better living through gameplay. Intense action sequences, some scenes of cartoonish violence. The OSV News classification is A-II – adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may be inappropriate for children.
“PAW Patrol: The Mighty Movie” (2023; Netflix)
Spirited follow-up to the 2021 big-screen debut of the animated Nickelodeon TV series about a group of canine first responders led by a preteen boy (voice of Finn Lee-Epp). This time out, the pups are endowed with superpowers after a mad scientist (voice of Taraji P. Henson) diverts a magical meteor to Earth. Excited by her newfound abilities, the ensemble’s pilot (voice of Mckenna Grace) momentarily forgets the importance of teamwork and sets out to thwart the astronomer’s ongoing schemes on her own, with predictably disastrous results. Returning director and co-writer Cal Brunker and his script collaborator Bob Barlen intersperse the lively action with a touching backstory about the aviatrix’s early life as well as a subplot about the newest addition to the squad, a dachshund (voice of Marsai Martin) who initially does not seem to have received any new capability but who takes on the task of mentoring young aspiring rescuers. Too potentially frightening for the smallest moviegoers, the wholesome proceedings will prove winning for all others. Explosions and scenes of peril. 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.
Looking Ahead
Sunday, Jan. 4, noon-1:30 p.m. EST (EWTN) “Solemn Mass of the Epiphany.” Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio of the U.S. Archdiocese for the Military Services is scheduled to serve as celebrant and homilist at this Eucharisitc liturgy for the Feast of the Epiphany, broadcast live from Washington’s Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (TV-G — general audience).
Sunday, Jan. 4, 8-10:15 p.m. EST (TCM) “Rain Man” (1988). A shady Los Angeles car dealer (Tom Cruise) loses the family inheritance to an older brother (Dustin Hoffman) who suffers from irreversible autistic savant syndrome and has been institutionalized most of his life. On a cross-country auto journey, the younger brother drops his plans for a custody battle when he learns to love his brother despite his disability. Under Barry Levinson’s direction, the brothers’ intense and sometimes comical interaction during the life-affirming journey is wonderful but the rest of the movie is less satisfying and detracts from the character study. Much profanity, a few intense but brief emotionally unhinged outbursts by the autistic protagonist and a fleeting off-camera sex scene. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating was R — restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 3:30-5:15 a.m. EST (EWTN) “Solemnity of the Epiphany of the Lord.” Pope Leo XIV celebrates Mass for the Feast of the Epiphany. The liturgy will re-air 7-8:45 p.m. EST (TV-G — general audience).
Tuesday, Jan. 6, 8-10 p.m. EST (AMC) “Men in Black” (1997). Zany sci-fi comedy in which a brassy New York City cop (Will Smith) is recruited by a taciturn government agent (Tommy Lee Jones) who monitors extraterrestrial activity in the city to prevent a ferocious alien in human disguise from destroying Earth. Director Barry Sonnenfeld’s apt pairing of Smith and Jones mixes understated hip humor with witty creature puppetry and amusing special effects. Some cartoon-like comic violence and a few instances of profanity. 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. (The sequel “Men in Black II” (2002) follows, 10 p.m.-midnight EST)
Wednesday, Jan. 7, 10-11 p.m. EST (PBS) “After The LA Firestorm.” This episode of the series “Weathered” looks at how, in the wake of the city’s devastating wildfires, residents and firefighters have united to make Los Angeles a model for recovery — and a blueprint for communities facing future disasters.
Thursday, Jan. 8, 5:45-8 p.m. EST (TCM) “Moulin Rouge” (1952). Shallow dramatization of the driven, unhappy life of French artist Henri Toulouse-Lautrec (Jose Ferrer) from his early sketches of Paris nightlife in 1890 to his growing fame by the time of his death in 1900. Despite the heavy-handed focus on the artist’s stunted legs as the cause of his compulsive drinking and complicated relations with women (guttersnipe Colette Marchand and model Suzanne Flon), the picture has interest in director John Huston’s vibrant depiction of a changing cultural epoch bursting with talent, energy and commercialism. Sexual situations. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III — adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.
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