Leigh Paatsch streaming guide: What to watch this weekend
Brad Pitt gets pulses racing in sci-fi flick Ad Astra, Nicole Kidman gives standout performances in Bombshell and Boy Erased and there’s even one for basketball fans in High Flying Bird. From science fiction to comedy to sports drama, this weekend’s streaming options have the lot.
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THE ONE WHERE BRAD PITT ROAMS AN OPEN SPACE
AD ASTRA (M)
****
FOXTEL
A serenely captivating work of science fiction, where the fiction heavily outweighs the science. Keeping this disparity in relative balance is yet another economical and deftly convincing lead performance from Brad Pitt. He plays Major Roy McBride, a veteran astronaut facing the most dangerous mission of his career. The movie takes place in a future where space travel to the moon has been commercialised, and the rest of the solar system could yet follow suit. However, increasingly powerful energy surges from the planet Neptune may not only threaten Earth’s reach across this new frontier, but the lifespan of all mankind as well. To identify and isolate the threat at hand, McBride must make contact with a lost explorer who disappeared in the same region as the surges: his father Clifford (Tommy Lee Jones). By turns, a cerebral and compelling experience — imagine 2001: A Space Odyssey delicately dovetailing with Apocalypse Now — equally adept at raising pulses and expanding minds when least expected.
THE ONE EXPLODING (AND EXPLAINING) A SILENT CONSPIRACY
BOMBSHELL (M)
***
RENT VIA FOXTEL STORE, GOOGLE, ITUNES, YOUTUBE MOVIES
An interesting drama covering the controversial downfall of former Fox News chief Roger Ailes (John Lithgow). It is important to note Bombshell is not an Ailes biopic. We’ve already had one of those (an acclaimed miniseries The Loudest Voice, starring Russell Crowe). Instead, the movie keeps its focus on three women whose linked experiences working for Ailes traced a fault line that would crack open #MeToo into a fully fledged movement. Gretchen Carlson (Nicole Kidman) was the first to dare take on Ailes in the middle of last decade, when the news chief’s reputation was at its most daunting. Destined to join Carlson on her earth-scorching crusade against sexual harassment are fellow broadcaster and rising network star Megyn Kelly (Charlize Theron), and ambitious production back-roomer Kayla Pospisil (Margot Robbie).
THE ONE WITH A MAN, A MICROPHONE AND MANY A JOKE
JERRY SEINFELD: 23 HOURS TO KILL (M)
***
NETFLIX
At this late stage of his career, no-one would be advancing the theory that Jerry Seinfeld’s stand-up comedy is continuing to evolve in new and surprising ways. He’s in strong enough form for his latest live special for Netflix to justify the look-see, even if there are periods where the big laughs are a little more spaced apart than we have come to expect. Though Seinfeld can get a bit too whiny about the perils of being rich, famous, married, white and in your sixties, his powers of observation regarding the absurdities of everyday living are undiminished. Running time wisely keeps everything tidily inside an hour.
THE ONE WHERE THE EXPLORER FINDS A NEW AUDIENCE
DORA AND THE LOST CITY OF GOLD (PG)
***
AMAZON
An irresistible feature-length — and more importantly, live-action — adaptation of the long-running Nickleodeon TV cartoon series Dora the Explorer. This isn’t just kids’ stuff, by the way. It will play equally well with teens who are up for a rollicking blend of the Jumanji and Indiana Jones flicks to boost the adventure factor in play. The title character (well played by rising star Isabela Moner) is temporarily transferred from the jungle to the big city while her intrepid parents go off in search of a lost Incan kingdom. However, it isn’t long before Dora returns to the wild to alert her mum and dad to a looming danger. A fast pace, friendly vibe and a willingness to send itself up are all big pluses for this crowd-pleasing affair. Well worth a look with the school holidays drawing near.
THE ONE WHERE THE REDNECKS ARE ON A RAMPAGE
DELIVERANCE (MA15+)
****
FOXTEL, BINGE
Four city slickers from the American south hit the backwoods of Georgia to canoe down a ferocious river shortly before a new dam is scheduled to flood the waterway. There are black clouds gathering over the heads of these unhappy campers (led by a maniacally macho Burt Reynolds) from the get-go. Following a brutal encounter with a pair of local yokels, the quartet discover their absolute survival will depend on how well they adapt to the unnatural laws of the hillbilly heartland. This gripping drama was a controversial release back in the early 70s, and its distressing intensity hasn’t really diminished in the decades since. Just remember, once you go with its powerful flow, there ain’t no turnin’ back.
THE ONE WHERE BASKETBALL HAS MORE DOLLARS THAN SENSE
HIGH FLYING BIRD (M)
***
NETFLIX
This intriguing, if erratic drama should have already beeped on the radar of Netflix users who love their sports. Devotees of American basketball will probably press ‘play’ without a second thought. Hold it right there: High Flying Bird might be a movie about basketball, but you’re not going to see much basketball going on. This is more a deep-dig into the off-court machinations of the NBA, where players and team owners are always at loggerheads over who gets a bigger cut of the billions on offer for broadcast and endorsement rights. Director Steven Soderbergh (Magic Mike, Ocean’s Eleven) frames the tale around a fictional lockout where an NBA game hasn’t been played in six months. Emerging stars not yet to cash in on their fame are beginning to panic. Established stars whose spending habits are out of control are also sweating bullets. Enter cocky manager and manipulator Ray Burke (Andre Holland), who just might have the tricks up his sleeve to defuse this explosive standoff. Co- stars Zazie Beetz (Deadpool 2).
THE ONE WHERE THE CURE TURNS OUT TO BE THE SICKNESS
BOY ERASED (M)
****
FOXTEL, NETFLIX
This fascinating, moving and well-acted drama focuses on the controversial practice of conversion therapy, in which homosexual youth are shipped off to religiously inclined rehab facilities to “pray the gay away.” Working in writer-director mode, Australian actor Joel Edgerton tackles this complex, hot-button topic with impressive levels of tact, sensitivity and balanced insight. The true story told here is based on the best-selling memoirs of Garrard Conley (played by Lucas Hedges), the gay son of an American Baptist preacher (Russell Crowe) who was transferred to a conversion clinic during his first year in college. Edgerton also stars as Victor Sykes, the tightly wound head of the clinic whose misguided mission in life is to “make real men” of those who are supposedly anything but in God’s eyes. Performances across the board here are strong and committed — Nicole Kidman is a standout as Garrard’s quietly supportive mum — as is the film’s eloquent push for greater acceptance and understanding.
Originally published as Leigh Paatsch streaming guide: What to watch this weekend