Streaming guide: What you should be watching this weekend

At a loss for what to watch when you hit the couch this weekend? Leigh Paatsch suggests a five-star scare-fest, a hybrid indie comedy mashed with a blockbuster monster movie and a gently engrossing documentary.

At a loss for what to watch when you hit the couch this weekend?

Leigh Paatsch suggests a five-star scare-fest, a hybrid indie comedy meets monster picture and a gently engrossing documentary.

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BEST DYSFUNCTIONAL FAMILY MOVIES

HOTEL MUMBAI VIOLENT AND VACANT

FILM ONLY A SERIAL KILLER COULD APPRECIATE

Scene from the horror movie Hereditary. StudioCanal Films.

THE ONE WEARING A MEAN PAIR OF GENES

HEREDITARY (MA15+)

*****

FOXTEL NOW, NETFLIX

One of the best movies of 2018 finally makes its 2019 bow on home streaming. This sophisticated and artfully accomplished scare-fest weaves familiar elements of the psychological thriller and gut-wrenching horror into something fresh, unworldly and utterly terrifying. So put down your glasses. Pick up those smelling salts. For Hereditary slowly and sinisterly builds a tower of cower from which there is no coming down. Luring you all the way up to the intimidating heights scaled by this astonishing movie is an incredible, career-best performance from Toni Collette, riskily reaching for notes clearly beyond most actors. When she hits them — and oh my, does she hit them — the effect is palpably powerful in every regard. Collette plays Annie, an artist experiencing a delayed reaction to the death of a mother she loved and loathed. Annie’s grieving process manifests itself in ways that put her worried husband and troubled children in a danger that defies all description. A modern masterpiece, immaculately and intimidatingly crafted by first-time filmmaker Ari Aster. Co-stars Gabriel Byrne.

Paul Rudd and Steven Coogan in Ideal Home.

THE ONE THAT SUDDENLY STARTS A FAMILY

IDEAL HOME (MA15+)

***

FOXTEL NOW

A clever light comedy about the tensions that can arise when a family forms where there was no family before. Steve Coogan (currently starring in the winning cinema release Stan & Ollie) plays Erasmus, the self-indulgent and rather oblivious host of a popular TV cooking show. Paul Rudd (Ant-Man) is Paul, the producer of the program and Erasmus’ loving, if exasperated partner for almost a decade. Not all is cosy and settled in the lives of this successful couple, and the relationship will soon face a surprise acid test in the form of Bill (Jack Gore), the biological grandson Erasmus never knew he had. Coogan, Rudd and their (thankfully) un-precocious co-star handle this feel-good fare deftly and likably throughout.

Anne Hathaway in Colossal.

THE ONE THAT’S ALWAYS THINKING BIG

COLOSSAL (M)

***

NETFLIX

An unconventional hybrid of monster picture and indie comedy. The story centres on a semi-alcoholic and totally insecure woman (Anne Hathaway) in the throes of a major identity crisis. Rekindling a friendship with an old school buddy (Jason Sudeikis) who also happens to own a local bar might not be the most obvious path to recovery. Meanwhile, in the South Korean capital Seoul, a Godzilla-like monster is appearing on a nightly basis to terrorise the city. So how do these two diverse plot points intersect? You will be surprised, intrigued, amused, frustrated and annoyed by the answer. Possibly all at once. By all means take the risk here. Just don’t go expecting the reward you think should be in order.

Gemma Arterton in Their Finest.

THE ONE WHERE A WORLD WAR DOESN’T SPOIL A GOOD TIME

THEIR FINEST (M)

***1/2

SBS ON DEMAND

A sincerely endearing tale of quiet achievement and self-discovery, set in WWII London. Gemma Arterton plays an inexperienced copywriter who lands a plum job penning dialogue for British propaganda movies. Combining just the right dashes of drama, comedy and romance, this calculated crowd-pleaser goes about its business amiably, but never aimlessly. A delightfully motivated support cast (led by Bill Nighy as a faded film star looking for another shot at the big time) keep the good times on a roll.

Ruth Bader Ginsburg. Picture: AFP

THE ONE THAT IS HERE TO JUDGE

RBG (PG)

****

ABC IVIEW

Some of the finer points of this gently engrossing documentary (which went close to winning the Best Doco Oscar just last month) will be lost on Australian viewers. Nevertheless, the subject herself will win all hearts and minds in seconds flat. This is the inspirational life story of US Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, who at 85 years of age remains one of the most actively influential figures in American law. Before her controversial appointment to the Supreme Court in 1993 — selections for seats on the bench are political in nature, and can shape the direction of the nation for decades to come — Ginsburg made her name as a tireless defender of women’s rights. Having experienced outright discrimination in the formative phase of her career, Ginsburg went on argue several crucial cases as a trial lawyer that transformed equality for women into an issue that had to be finally (but not always fairly) addressed.

Britt Robertson and Scott Eastwood in The Longest Ride.

THE ONE THAT DOES IT BY THE (NOTE) BOOK

THE LONGEST RIDE (M)

**1/2

FOXTEL NOW

The golden rule to the gloomily gilt-edged formula of romance novelist Nicholas Sparks (The Notebook) is to frame events around a young couple making all the wrong choices in all the right ways. In what could be construed as an absolute bargain in some circles, The Longest Ride serves up two panting pairings for the price of one. In the present day, it’s all about an dedicated arts student (Britt Robertson) and a reckless rodeo rider (Scott ‘Son of Clint’ Eastwood). In the distant past, it’s all about a beautiful Jewish refugee (Oona Chaplin) and a soldier (Jack Huston) drafted to fight in WWII. File under ‘more of the same,’ save for a face-planting finale which is insane, even by Sparks’ crazy-coincidence standards.

THE ONE THAT COULD BE HARD TO BEAR

THE COUNTRY BEARS (G)

**1/2

GOOGLE PLAY, NETFLIX

At the urging of their biggest fan, a band of guitar-pickin’ grizzlies cease their long-running feud to stage a comeback concert. Patchy (and sometimes bizarre) combo of live-action and animation, based by Disney on their popular theme-park attraction. With a lot of music-biz in-jokes throughout the script, kids won’t always get what’s happening here. Then again, some adults may appreciate Christopher Walken’s armpit-fart version of the 1812 Overture.