Home Viewing Roundup for Feb. 19, 2024
NEW YORK (OSV News) 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 March 3, 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:
"The Elephant Man" (1980; Amazon Prime)
Touching fact-based portrait of an impoverished man deformed by a rare disease who is rescued from a London freak show by a dedicated doctor only to become the curiosity of fashionable Victorian society. Directed by David Lynch with evocative black-and-white photography, it features a fine performance by Anthony Hopkins as the concerned physician who rehabilitates the outcast (John Hurt under great wads of makeup). Some intense scenes of brutality. The OSV News classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is PG -- parental guidance suggested. Some material may not be suitable for children.
"Nomadland" (2021; Hulu)
A sense of loneliness pervades this poignant drama in which Frances McDormand gives a bravura performance as a working-class widow from a failed factory town who takes to the road in search of seasonal employment, becoming part of a subculture of marginalized nomads who move from one trailer park to the next in their struggle to evade economic ruin. Though she forms friendships along the way, including with a few real-life sojourners playing themselves, she resists possible romance with another fellow migrant (David Strathairn) and a couple of opportunities to abandon her travels and settle down in one place. Drawing on journalist Jessica Bruder's 2017 book, writer-director Chloe Zhao highlights how momentary encounters and emotional connection help to relieve the cycle of menial labor and anxiety for the future her vulnerable but resilient protagonist endures. She also emphasizes the spiritual lineage all her travelers share with the pioneers of old. Parents will have to weigh whether delicately handled elements that would normally bar younger viewership should be overlooked in the case of mature teens. Brief full and partial female nudity in nonsexual contexts, mature themes, including suicide and euthanasia, fleeting scatological material, at least one profanity and a milder oath, a single crude and a couple of crass terms. The OSV News classification is A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association rating is R -- restricted. Under 17 requires accompanying parent or adult guardian.
"The Other Boleyn Girl" (2008; Netflix)
Fresh telling of the oft-dramatized liaison of Anne Boleyn (Natalie Portman) and King Henry VIII (Eric Bana), including the monarch's break with the Catholic Church so he could divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon (Ana Torrent), with an emphasis on Anne's younger sister, Mary (Scarlett Johansson), who was the first Boleyn to win the monarch's favor. This adaptation of Philippa Gregory's best-seller from director Justin Chadwick keeps the story admirably intimate, and features surprisingly authentic performances by its non-British leads with predictably solid supporting work from Kristin Scott Thomas, David Morrissey and Mark Rylance. Royal bedroom intrigue with nongraphic sexual encounters including a rape, incest reference, adultery, divorce, light sexual banter and innuendo, discreetly depicted executions. Acceptable for older teens. 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.
Looking Ahead:
Sunday, March 3, 10-10:30 a.m. EST (EWTN) "EWTN Bookmark." This episode of the literature-themed series features a Napa Institute talk by Jesuit Father Robert Spitzer in which he discusses the topics treated in his 2023 book "Science, Reason and Faith: Discovering the Bible" (TV-G general audience).
Sunday, March 3, 6-9 p.m. EST (AMC) "Iron Man" (2008). Sleekly effective science-fiction tale about a devil-may-care playboy weapons manufacturer (Robert Downey Jr.) who, after being captured by an ambitious Afghanistan-based warlord (Faran Tahir) and ordered to build a replica of his most advanced product, with the help of another captive and scientist (Shaun Toub), instead constructs an impregnable suit of armor, escapes, and begins to re-evaluate his life, with the support of his loyal girl Friday (Gwyneth Paltrow) and despite the doubts of his junior partner (Jeff Bridges) and military liaison (Terrence Howard). In between the impressive special effects, executive producer-director Jon Favreau's screen adaptation of this popular comic-book series charts its main character's conversion from callous genius to dedicated defender. Nongraphic sexual activity, torture, a graphic medical procedure, sci-fi violence, occasional crude language, brief profanity, sexual humor, innuendo. 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, March 5, 5:45-8 p.m. EST (TCM) "Citizen Kane" (1941). When a Hearst-like newspaper tycoon (Orson Welles) dies, a reporter (William Alland) interviews the man's former associates (Joseph Cotten and Everett Sloane among them) and wives (Ruth Warrick and Dorothy Comingore) in an effort to pin down the essence of the contradictory, larger-than-life millionaire by discovering the meaning of his dying word, "Rosebud." Also co-written (with Herman J. Mankiewicz), produced and directed by Welles, the movie is a landmark in American cinema, both for its superb use of film technique and its intriguing story of a man who came from nothing, acquired fame and fortune but died without the love he sought. Marital infidelity. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II -- adults and adolescents. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.
Wednesday, March 6, 5-8 p.m. EST (TCM) "America America" (1963). Earnest story of a Greek family in 1896 Turkey who send their eldest son (Stathis Giallelis) to work in Constantinople, but he's determined to start a fresh life in America and after much hard work, many misfortunes and a bit of luck, he finally gets his chance. Writer-director Elia Kazan's heartfelt tribute to the hope America inspired in Europe's oppressed minorities at the turn of the 20th century is undercut by a confusingly episodic narrative, though Haskell Wexler's brilliant photography brings the period to life in compelling fashion. Stylized violence, menacing situations and some implied sexual encounters. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III -- adults. Not rated by the Motion Picture Association.
Thursday, March 7, 6:30-8 p.m. EST (EWTN) "Opening Mass of 24 Hours for the Lord." The annual worldwide Lenten initiative "24 Hours for The Lord" begins with this Eucharistic liturgy at Washington's Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception (TV-G -- general audience). (The closing Mass will be broadcast Saturday, March 9, 4:30-6 p.m. EST)
Saturday, March 9, 6:05-8 p.m. EST (HBO) "The Devil Wears Prada" (2006). Entertaining comedy-drama about an aspiring writer (Anne Hathaway) who takes a job as junior assistant to an imperious editor (a delicious Meryl Streep) at a high-powered fashion magazine, while those around her, including her boyfriend (Adrian Grenier), chide her for losing sight of her real values as she gets caught up in the competitive environment. Director David Frankel's handsomely photographed adaptation of Lauren Weisberger's 2003 best-seller is a fast-moving morality tale with a simple but commendable message about staying true to your ideals and not selling out, with good performances all around, including those of Emily Blunt and Stanley Tucci. Admirably light on objectionable content. A couple of implied premarital situations, some crass expressions, brief profanity and innuendo, a couple of uses of the S-word. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-II -- adults and adolescents. The Motion Picture Association rating was PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.
Saturday, March 9, 6:06-8 p.m. EST (Cinemax) "Leatherheads" (2008). Diverting romantic comedy, set in 1925, about a veteran professional football player (George Clooney) who hires a celebrated college star (John Krasinski) to revive his team's fortunes, only to find himself in a rivalry for the affections of a sassy, sophisticated newspaper reporter (Renee Zellweger) who's out to debunk his new teammate's heroic war record. Clooney, who also directed, evokes the tangy wit of the best screwball pairings of 1930s Hollywood and, despite a few inconsistencies in the plot and some objectionable language, creates an enjoyable period piece that thrives on the rough and tumble of the pro game's unregulated infancy. Probably acceptable for older adolescents. Some profanity, occasional crude and crass language, mild fistfighting, light sexual banter, innuendo. The OSV News classification of the theatrical version was A-III -- adults. The Motion Picture Association of America rating was PG-13 -- parents strongly cautioned. Some material may be inappropriate for children under 13.- - - John Mulderig is media reviewer for OSV News. Follow him on X (formerly Twitter) @JohnMulderig1.