Home viewing roundup: What’s available to stream and what’s on the 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 June 21, 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:

“A Man Called Otto” (2022; Amazon Prime)

Generally goodhearted but formulaic profile of a curmudgeonly bereaved widower (Tom Hanks) whose grim outlook on life begins to change after he’s befriended, at first unwillingly, by a young couple (Mariana Treviño and Manuel Garcia-Rulfo) who’ve just moved into his suburban housing development. As the sunny, spunky Latina wife works to dispel his isolation and gloom, he reconsiders his long-standing alienation from another married pair in the neighborhood (Juanita Jennings and Peter Lawson Jones) with whom he and his late spouse (Rachel Keller) were once best pals. Director Marc Forster’s screen version of Swedish author Fredrik Backman’s 2012 novel “A Man Called Ove,” previously adapted, in its original language, by Hannes Holm, celebrates kindness, emotional openness and reconciliation. But its treatment of the protagonist’s continuously futile attempts to kill himself is somewhat frivolous while homage is paid to the zeitgeist by the inclusion of a secondary character (Mack Bayda) who is a downtrodden transexual. Mature themes, including suicide and gender-switching, a couple of profanities, about a dozen milder oaths, occasional crude language, several crass expressions. 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.

“Miracle” (2004; Netflix)

Inspirational crowd-pleaser which tells the real-life Cinderella story of the U.S. Olympic hockey team’s against-all-odds victory over their much-vaunted Russian rivals at the 1980 Winter Games in Lake Placid, New York, and the coach (Kurt Russell) whose uncompromisingly winning attitude helped lift the sagging patriotism of a nation and give it something to believe in. Director Gavin O’Connor scores a cinematic hat trick, with good writing, good acting and good direction, resulting in a movie that transcends sports. Minimal mildly crude language and some rough sports action. 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.

“The Remains of the Day” (1993; Hulu)

Having utterly sacrificed his personal life in the service of an English lord (James Fox) who ended up as a disgraced Nazi sympathizer, an aging British butler (Anthony Hopkins) journeys to the West of England in 1958, hoping to rehire and possibly risk romance with the spirited housekeeper (Emma Thompson) whose love he dutifully spurned decades earlier. James Ivory meticulously directs a splendid portrait of personal tragedy as a selfless man sadly comes to realize that, in his unquestioned devotion to his master, he has missed out on all the best things in life. A few emotional confrontations. 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:

Monday, June 22, 5-8 p.m. EDT (AMC) “Knives Out” (2019). Splendid comic whodunit in which a shrewd Southern detective (Daniel Craig) is hired by an anonymous client to investigate the death of a famous and wealthy crime novelist (Christopher Plummer). Though the police lieutenant (LaKeith Stanfield) and trooper (Noah Segan) assigned to the case insist it was suicide, the sleuth seeks answers among the eccentric members of the deceased’s conflict-ridden family (Chris Evans, Jamie Lee Curtis, Michael Shannon, Don Johnson and Toni Collette, among others). He also enlists the help of the late author’s caring and sensible Latina nurse (Ana de Armas). Writer-director Rian Johnson’s richly entertaining ensemble homage to Agatha Christie has clever twists and turns, abundant humor and sly social commentary. Though strictly for grown-ups, it’s a brainy and satisfying movie. Brief gory violence, a morally complex situation, drug use, sexual references, about a dozen profanities, a few milder oaths, a couple of rough terms, frequent crude and crass language, an obscene gesture. 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.

Tuesday, June 23, 8-10:15 p.m. EDT (TCM) “The Sting” (1973). Robert Redford and Paul Newman team up as two Chicago con men who concoct an elaborate scheme involving a phony betting parlor to get revenge on New York gangster Robert Shaw while turning a handsome profit. Director George Roy Hill’s action comedy is solid entertainment, though some might find it more than a little contrived. The Depression-era setting includes a house of prostitution. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III — adults. The Motion Picture Association rating was PG — parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.

Thursday, June 25, 10:30-11 p.m. EDT (PBS) “Lifecycle.” Filmmaker Andre Degas’ documentary profiles a multi-racial family as they cope with the closure of their 40-year-old bike shop in the Hell’s Kitchen section of Manhattan.

Friday, June 26, 8-10 p.m. EDT (TCM) “Out of the Past” (1947). Stylishly dark crime thriller in which a private eye (Robert Mitchum) is hired to find the double-crossing girlfriend (Jane Greer) of a big-time gambler (Kirk Douglas) but falls in love with her instead — until she double-crosses him on a murder rap. Director Jacques Tourneur keeps viewers off balance with a twisty plot that begins in a small town where the detective is hiding out until his sordid past catches up with him and he’s forced to protect himself from his former associates. Stylized violence and romantic complications. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II — adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.

Saturday, June 27, 4:30-6 p.m. EDT (EWTN) “Vigil Mass.” This liturgy at Boston’s Cathedral of the Holy Cross is part of the National Eucharistic Pilgrimage (TV-G — general audience).

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

Streaming Now:

Looking Ahead:

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