New movies to stream this week: ‘Found,’ ‘Four Hours at the Capitol’ and more
A SYNOPSIS of the documentary ‘Found’ - which tells the story of three teenage Chinese American girls who learn that they’re cousins after having been abandoned on the streets of Guangdong province as infants and later adopted by Americans - sounds like a vague hybrid of “Three Identical Strangers,” about brothers separated at birth, and “One Child Nation,” which looks at the former Chinese policy of limiting family size. (The film notes that the draconian one-child policy led to more than 130,000 foreign adoptions between 1979 and 2015.) But “Found” turns out to be about a lot more. For one thing, the three girls discover, very early in the film, they’re related, after taking DNA tests through the genetic testing operation 23andMe. That takes some - but by no means all - the drama and emotion out of the film, whose main theme is the search for one’s personal history, no matter where that leads.Two of the girls decide to look for their birthparents, using selfdescribed genetic “detective” Liu Hao of My China Roots; one cousin opts out. This search leads to the uncovering of many stories, not just those involving its three main subjects, but of the Chinese “aunties,” nannies and orphanage workers who took care of abandoned babies, and of parents searching for children they were forced to give up. Even Hao’s backstory is explored, to moving effect. The title “Found,” in short, has many meanings, referring not only to how the film’s subjects were picked up off the street by caring strangers, or how the girls came to know each other, but also to the discovery of what family, connection and identity really mean. PG. Available on Netflix. Contains mature thematic elements and brief smoking. 98 minutes.
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The documentary “Four Hours at the Capitol” looks back at the events of Jan 6, a mere 10 months after supporters of President Donald Trump’s reelection disrupted Congressional proceedings to officially acknowledge Joe Biden’s win. According to the Hollywood Reporter, viewers of the film - depending on their point of view - will either think that it has arrived “at exactly the right moment, as our visceral memories of the insurrection might be fading and becoming selective, or that it’s far, far too soon.” TV-MA. Available on HBO Max. 92 minutes.
Jorge Lendeborg Jr. (“Bliss”) stars in the vampire thriller “Night Teeth” as Benny, a college student moonlighting as a chauffeur who picks up a couple of sexy female bloodsuckers (Debby Ryan and Lucy Fry) one night in Los Angeles.
The New York Times writes: “Underutilizing actors with recognizable skills (like Megan Fox, Sydney Sweeney and, as Benny’s vampire-hunting brother, Raúl Castillo), ‘Night Teeth’ is an enervated parade of hot colors and cold hearts.” TV-14. Available on Netflix. 108 minutes.
In the drama “The Subject,” Jason Biggs (“American Pie”) plays a documentary filmmaker attempting to make a comeback after a teenager was murdered during the making of his last film. While making his new film, he struggles with guilt, remorse and the unfamiliar feeling of being scrutinized, instead of the scrutinizer. The movie, according to Film Carnage, is “unexpectedly emotional, impressively gripping and full of tension, with a satisfyingly dramatic turn from Jason Biggs and a brilliantly powerful performance from Aunjanue Ellis” - even though the actress does not appear until the film’s last half-hour. Unrated. Available on demand. 119 minutes.
The sci-fi thriller “Warning” is a collection of loosely interconnected vignettes, set in the near future, that take place as a global storm is causing electronics to go haywire. According to the Guardian, the film - which stars Thomas Jane, Annabelle Wallis, Alex Pettyfer, Alice Eve and Kylie Bunbury plays like an assortment of ideas that “Black Mirror” creator Charlie Brooker had “while tipsy,” but then “crumpled up and threw in his wastebasket.”