SCREEN CRUSADES: WEEKLY STREAMING GUIDE 8.11.23

SCREEN CRUSADES: WEEKLY STREAMING GUIDE 8.11.23

- By Nicolas Delgadillo

Creepy dolls, murder mysteries and spy thrillers dominate streaming this week

Creepy dolls, murder mysteries and spy thrillers dominate streaming this week

NOW STREAMING:

‘The Communion Girl’ (Shudder)

May, 1987. While returning from a nightclub and after having taken drugs, new girl in town Sara and her friend Rebe find a doll wearing a communion dress. From that moment, their lives will become a living hell.

‘Only Murders in the Building (Season 3)’ (Hulu)

Charles, Oliver & Mabel investigate a murder behind the scenes at a Broadway show. Starring Steve Martin, Martin Short, Selena Gomez, Paul Rudd & Meryl Streep.

‘Heart of Stone’ (Netflix)

Gal Gadot is Agent Rachel Stone, the only intelligence operative who stands between her global, peace-keeping organization and the loss of its most valuable — and dangerous — asset, codenamed: The Heart.

‘Zombieverse’ (Netflix)

No one survives a zombie fight. But you can run to stay alive! Zombies have taken over Seoul! Who will live and who will die? It’s the ultimate fight for survival.

‘Painkiller’ (Netflix)

Painkiller, a fictionalized telling of real events, explores some of the origins and aftermath of the opioid crisis in America, highlighting the stories of perpetrators, victims, and truth-seekers whose lives are forever altered by the invention of OxyContin.

‘Enys Men’ (Hulu)

A wildlife volunteer on an uninhabited island off the British coast descends into a terrifying madness that challenges her grip on reality and pushes her into a living nightmare. Evoking the feeling of discovering a reel of never-before-seen celluloid unspooling in a haunted movie palace, this provocative and masterful vision of horror asserts Mark Jenkin as one of the U.K.’s most exciting and singular filmmakers.

‘Strange Planet’ (Apple TV+)

Based on the New York Times No. 1 bestselling graphic novel and social media phenomenon of the same name, “Strange Planet” is a hilarious and perceptive look at a distant world not unlike our own. Set in a whimsical world of cotton candy pinks and purples, relatable blue beings explore the absurdity of everyday human traditions.

‘Ladies First: A Story of Women in Hip-Hop’ (Netflix)

This timely limited doc series recontextualizes the role the irrepressible women of hip hop played throughout the revolutionary genre’s 50 years by reinserting them into the canon where they belong: at the center, from day one to present day.

‘Marry My Dead Body’ (Netflix)

After finding an odd envelope, Policeman Ming-han’s life takes a spooky turn: He’s now wed to a ghost husband, and they must solve a crime together.

‘Never Seen Again (Season 4)’ (Paramount+)

Never Seen Again tells the story of someone who vanishes into thin air, leaving behind a trail of evidence but often no smoking gun. It untangles every possible theory, following each twist, turn and red herring, taking the viewer on a suspenseful detective journey that lands on one final question…can you solve this case?

CONTINUED WEEKLY EPISODES:

‘Star Trek: Strange New Worlds (Season 2)’ (Paramount+)

Captain Pike (Anson Mount), Number One (Rebecca Romijn), Spock (Ethan Peck) and the rest of the Enterprise crew are back exploring strange new worlds and boldly going where no one has gone before. All episodes are now streaming.

‘Swagger (Season 2)’ (Apple TV+)

From NBA star Kevin Durant, filmmaker Reggie Rock Bythewood, and the team behind Friday Night Lights. A basketball prodigy must navigate a maze of pressure if he’s going to overcome the odds against him and learn what it truly means to have swagger. All episodes are now streaming.

‘Warrior (Season 3)’ (Max)

Struggling under the pressure of an increased police presence, the Hop Wei search for a new lucrative way to survive. Meanwhile, as Leary grows frustrated with his limitations on the city council, the Long Zii gain powerful new connections. The first nine episodes are now streaming with the finale arriving next week.

‘What We Do In the Shadows (Season 5)’ (Hulu)

What We Do in the Shadows, based on the feature film by Jemaine Clement and Taika Waititi, documents the nightly exploits of vampire roommates Nandor (Kayvan Novak), Laszlo (Matt Berry), Nadja (Natasia Demetriou) and Colin Robinson (Mark Proksch) as they navigate the modern world of Staten Island with the help of their human familiar, Guillermo (Harvey Guillén), and their vampire bureaucrat acquaintance, The Guide (Kristen Schaal). The first six episodes are now streaming.

‘Foundation (Season 2)’ (Apple TV+)

More than a century after the Season 1 finale, tension mounts throughout the galaxy. As the Cleons unravel, a vengeful queen plots to destroy Empire from within. Hari, Gaal, and Salvor discover a colony of Mentalics with special abilities that threaten to alter psychohistory itself. Meanwhile, the Foundation and Empire are on a collision course for war with the fate of humanity in the balance. The first five episodes are now streaming.

‘The Afterparty (Season 2)’ (Apple TV+)

Each episode of The Afterparty explores a different character’s account of one fateful evening, all told through the lens of popular film genres and unique visuals to match the storyteller’s perspective. In season two, a wedding is ruined when the groom is murdered and every guest is a suspect. Detective Danner (Haddish) returns to help Aniq (Sam Richardson) and Zoë (Zoe Chao) solve whodunnit by questioning family members, star-crossed lovers and business partners, and hearing each suspect’s retelling of the weekend, each with their own unique perspective and visual style. The first six episodes are now streaming.

‘Bleach: Thousand-Year Blood War (Season 2)’ (Hulu)

The final conflict between the Soul Reapers and the Quincies begins as Ywach and his army invade the Soul Society once more. Ichigo Kurosaki and his friends race to complete their training with the Royal Guard in time to help before their allies are overwhelmed. The first five episodes are now streaming.

‘Justified: City Primeval’ (Hulu)

Raylan Givens left the hollers of Kentucky and is balancing life as a U.S. Marshal with being a part-time father. A chance encounter sends him to Detroit and on a collision course with a violent sociopath and a formidable defense attorney. The first five episodes are now streaming.

‘Special Ops: Lioness’ (Paramount+)

Special Ops: Lioness, inspired by an actual US Military program, follows the life of Joe (Zoe Saldaña) while she attempts to balance her personal and professional life as the tip of the CIA’s spear in the war on terror. The Lioness Program, overseen by Kaitlyn Meade (Nicole Kidman) and Byron Westfield (Michael Kelly), enlists an aggressive Marine Raider named Cruz (Laysla De Oliveira) to operate undercover alongside Joe among the power brokers of State terrorism in the CIA’s efforts to thwart the next 9/11. The first four episodes are now streaming.

‘Futurama (Season 11)’ (Hulu)

Fry risks permanent insanity when he attempts to binge-watch every TV show ever made. Amy and Kif’s children emerge from an alien swamp. Bender and the crew head west to join the bitcoin mining rush. That’s right, Futurama is back – again. The first three episodes are now streaming.

‘Praise Petey’ (Hulu)

Petey, a New York City “it” girl, has it all until her life comes crashing down around her, but she gets a new lease on life when she “leans into” modernizing her father’s small-town cult. The first eight episodes are now streaming.

‘Reservation Dogs (Season 3)’ (Hulu)

From Sterlin Harjo and Taika Waititi, Reservation Dogs is a half-hour comedy that follows the exploits of four Indigenous teenagers from rural Oklahoma. This season, the Rez Dogs find themselves stranded in Cali and have to figure out their way back home. Season three is full of road trips, bathroom wisdom, unexpected fathers, boarding schools, Bigfoot, rumors, revenge and healing. The first three episodes are now streaming.

‘Physical (Season 3)’ (Apple TV+)

Set in the idyllic but fragile beach paradise of sunny 1980s San Diego, Physical is a dark comedy following Sheila Rubin (Rose Byrne), a quietly tortured, seemingly dutiful housewife supporting her smart but controversial husband’s bid for state assembly. But behind closed doors, Sheila has her own darkly funny take on life she rarely lets the world see. She’s also battling a complex set of personal demons relating to her self-image… that is, until she finds release through the unlikeliest source: the world of aerobics. The first three episodes are now streaming.

Also streaming now:

Netflix –  ‘Untold: Johnny Football’, ‘Mech Cadets’, ‘Pending Train’

Hulu – ‘Moving’, ‘Polaroid’, ‘Beautiful Disaster’, ‘Sam & Kate’

Shudder – ‘Tower: A Bright Day’, ‘Monument’

Prime Video – ‘Bones and All’, ‘The Killing Vote’, ‘2 Guns’, ‘Red, White & Royal Blue’

Paramount+ – ‘ShoBox’, ‘RuPaul’s Drag Race (Season 15)’, ‘Superfan’, ‘Billions (Season 7)’, ‘All Up in the Biz’

Disney+ – ‘The Amazing Spider-Man 2’

COMING NEXT WEEK:

Netflix – ‘Behind Your Touch’, ‘Paddington’, ‘Ancient Aliens (Season 15)’, ‘Ballers’, ‘Eye of the Storm’, ‘Untold: Hall of Shame’, ‘At Home with the Furys’, ‘Boy Erased’, ‘Depp v. Heard’, ‘The Chosen One’, ‘The Pope’s Exorcist’, ‘The Monkey King’

Hulu – ‘Solar Opposites (Season 4)’, ‘America’s National Parks’, ‘The Intruder’, ‘Miguel Wants to Fight’, ‘Thoroughbreds’, ‘Four Samosas’, ‘The Friendship Game’, ‘War of the Worlds: The Attack’

Shudder – ‘Bad Things’, ‘Elizabeth Harvest’, ‘A Dark Song’, ‘America Latina’, ‘Sea Fever’

Max – ‘Scent of Time’, ‘Avatar’

Prime Video – ‘Cocaine Bear’, ‘Of an Age’, ‘Harlan Coben’s Shelter’, ‘Unseen’

Paramount+ – ‘Reinventing Elvis: The ‘68 Comeback’, ‘Sick of Myself’, ‘Catch Me If You Can’, ‘War of the Worlds’, ‘Mercy’

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