As fall officially begins, you can check out our Fall Preview coverage, highlighting the best in films, TV shows, books, and video games out in the coming months. But if you’re more interested in what’s coming out this weekend on streaming and digital rentals, read on; you’re in the right place.
Moana is finally available on VOD. The live-action adaptation of one of Disney’s most beloved and recent princesses stars Dwayne Johnson and Catherine Laga’aia as Maui and Moana, respectively. Supergirl is also available on HBO Max. The second entry into James Gunn and Peter Safran’s cinematic universe came out earlier this year to middling reviews and a poor box office performance, but introduces a key figure in the DCU going forward.
1
Moana
Image: Walt Disney Studios
Available on VOD
Genre: Adventure
Run time: 1h 55m
Director: Thomas Kail
Cast: Dwayne Johnson, Catherine Laga’aia, Rena Owen
Moana is the latest entry into Disney’s live-action adaptations, following the titular teenager from the fictional Motunui island as she sets sail across the ocean to find Maui, a demigod who can help her save her home.
Per our Polygon review:
That story returns beat-for-beat in the live-action movie, with minimal changes. Johnson gets a few new lines as Maui, the rakish, narcissistic shapeshifting demigod, and fan-favorite dumb chicken Heihei gets a few more visual gags. (Alan Tudyk voiced him in the original; this time out, he doesn’t have a voice credit.) It isn’t quite a shot-for-shot remake: comparing any given scene, it’s clear that the angles and visual focus vary. Director Thomas Kail (who helmed Disney’s live-on-Broadway Hamilton movie) makes more time for Polynesian dance in particular, with Laga’aia, her parents, and a large cast of extras adding synchronized movement to their village rituals.
2
Supergirl
Image: Warner Bros. Pictures
Available on HBO Max
Genre: Action
Run time: 1h 48m
Director: Craig Guillipsie
Cast: Milly Alcock, Jason Momoa, David Corenswet
Supergirl serves as the proper introduction to Kara Zor-El, who was previously teased in Superman. The film follows Supergirl across space as she hunts a mercenary who’s murdered and kidnapped his way through the galaxy while also injuring her beloved dog Krypto.
Per our Polygon review:
If you squint, it’s hard to tell Supergirl from a pre-Superman James Gunn movie. Director Craig Gillespie (Cruella) and writer Ana Nogueira (a playwright and actor with several DC projects in preproduction) go all-in on Gunn’s signature style, from spinning-camera combat sequences to a Guardians-esque messy universe crammed with aliens to the snarky, subversive, but ultimately admiring and sentimental take on superheroes. The result isn’t exceptionally exciting, but it’s serviceable, good-natured, and frequently fun — particularly when the film rests in the hands of Milly Alcock as Supergirl.
3
Mutiny
Image: Lionsgate
Available on VOD
Genre: Action
Run time: 1h 35m
Director: Jean-Francois Richet
Cast: Jason Statham, Annabelle Wallis, Roland Moller
Jason Statham’s latest action movie features him as Cole Reed, a bodyguard who witnesses the killing of his boss and is then framed for his murder. On the run, he boards a cargo ship full of pirates and uncovers an international conspiracy. Mutiny just hit theaters in late August, but after a bungled debut, it’s leaping overboard and swimming for safer shores.
4
One Night Only
Available on VOD
Genre: Romance
Run time: 1h 42m
Director: Will Gluck
Cast: Monica Barbaro, Callum Turner, Maya Hawke
The source of one of the year’s best memes is now on VOD. One Night Only is set in an alternate New York, following two singles looking for a meaningful connection. The twist is that they meet during the 12-hour window where the government allows premarital sex.
5
Call My Agent: The Movie
Available on Netflix
Genre: Comedy
Run time: 1h 57m
Director: Emilie Noblet
Cast: Camille Cottin, Laure Calamy, Nicolas Maury
The French TV show Call My Agent! was a big Netflix hit, following a group of talent agents trying to keep their business afloat while managing bombastic personalities. The movie reunites the original cast, following Andrea Martel (Cottin) as she tries to direct her first feature film five years after the closure of the talent agency she used to work at.
6
Marama
Available on Shudder
Genre: Horror
Run time: 1h 29m
Director: Taratoa Stappard
Cast: Ariāna Osborne, Toby Stephens, Umi Myers
Set in the Victorian era, Marama follows an orphan woman who receives a mysterious letter claiming to have information about her birth parents. She embarks on a journey from New Zealand to England, acquiring a job as a governess and making some dark discoveries on the manor she lives in.
7
In the Grey
stills from the guy ritchie film ‘In the Grey’IMAGE: Black Bear Pictures
Available on Starz
Genre: Action
Run time: 1h 38m
Director: Guy Ritchie
Cast: Jake Gyllenhaal, Henry Cavill, and Eiza González
Guy Ritchie’s new movie reunites him with frequent collaborators Eiza González and Henry Cavill, this time around following a powerful lawyer and her team of fixers as they try to make up a billion-dollar debt.
8
Hot Spot
Image: Focus Features
Available on VOD
Genre: Sci-fi
Run time: 1h 41m
Director: Agnieszka Smoczyńska
Cast: Andrzej Konopka, Noomi Rapace, Reika Kirishima
Set in the near future in a post-apocalyptic world ruled by sentient AI, Hot Spot follows a detective investigating the murder of a member of an anti-AI rebel faction.
9
Sheep in the Box
Available on VOD
Genre: Sci-fi
Run time: 1h 6m
Director: Hirokazu Kore-eda
Cast: Haruka Ayase, Daigo Yamamoto, Rimu Kuwaki
Sheep in the Box follows a couple in the wake of a tragedy. After losing their 7-year-old son to an accident, Otone and Kensuke are approached by an AI company called REbirth, which builds generative AI replicas. The couple accepts an identical copy of their son and tries to get back to the life they used to lead.
10
Rich Flu
Image: VRC
Available on Hulu
Genre: Sci-Fi
Run time: 1h 46m
Director: Galder Gaztelu-Urrutia
Cast: Mary Elizabeth Winstead, Rafe Spall, Lorraine Braco
Rich Flu follows Laura (Winstead), a woman who reaches the peak of her career, right around the time when a deadly virus erupts, targeting the wealthiest people in the world.