‘Alien: Covenant’ packed with intense action, suspense
In the wake of “Prometheus,” along comes “Alien: Covenant,” a top-flight “Alien” prequel about a crew of colonizers (Katherine Waterston, Danny McBride, Billy Crudup, Michael Fassbender) who get more than they bargained for after deciding to explore a mystery planet.
Director Ridley Scott uncorks a sci-fi thriller that hits home in nearly every scary, suspenseful particular. The aliens are acid-dripping monsters; the action explodes with intensity; and Fassbinder’s performance as twin androids is mesmerizingly good. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu
Also New To VOD and Streaming Hickok:
When Wild Bill Hickok (Luke Hemsworth) rolls into Abilene, he’s not looking to become sheriff. But after he accepts the position from a weary mayor (Kris Kristofferson), he takes it seriously, imagining he can escape the sins of his past. Hickok’s chief foe is a corrupt saloon owner (Trace Adkins) whose companion is a woman (Cameron Richardson) Hickok once loved. Even though the movie doesn’t offer much in the way of originality, it looks good and moves well. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu Mali Blues: Widely regarded as the birthplace of the blues, the West African country of Mali has always had a vibrant musical scene. But, today, that tradition is in danger of disappearing as fundamentalist Muslims are taking over the country. Under the new laws, dance and secular music are prohibited. This involving doc focuses on four musicians whose lives have been impacted by the prohibitions. The musicians, who chat candidly about politics and culture, perform a handful of numbers which somehow manage to sound optimistic and hopeful. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu Sid and Nancy: Two of punk rock’s most notorious figures – Sex Pistols bassist Sid Vicious and his groupie gal pal Nancy Spungen – achieve a kind of grunge grandeur thanks to Alex Cox’s chronicle of their twisted romance. The action begins in the mid-70s as the Pistols were just starting to make waves in London. Nancy (astonishing Chloe Webb) is a scenemaker who winds up attaching herself to Sid (superb Gary Oldman), and quickly getting him hooked on heroin. It’s all downhill from there. But this is no simplistic cautionary tale. Sid and Nancy are desperate to go out in a blaze of glory and, against all odds, that’s exactly what they managed to do. On FilmStruck.com. Supergirl - The Complete Second Season: Not only are there lots of new characters to enliven the latest batch of episodes, including Lena Luthor (Katie McGrath), Lillian Luthor (Brenda Strong) and M’gann (Sharon Leal), but Kara Danvers/Supergirl (Melissa Benoist) is forced outside of her comfort zone at Catco Worldwide Media. She eventually teams up with her Kryptonian
cousin Kal El – also known as Superman (Tyler Hoechlin) — to battle new villains both terrestrial and extraterrestrial. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu Ash Vs. The Evil Dead Season Two: After passing control of the deaditekilling machine to Ruby (Lucy Lawless) at the end of the first season, Ash (Bruce Campbell) vows to kick back and enjoy life in Jacksonville, Florida. Of course, his retirement from the evil-dead business doesn’t last long and soon he’s returning to his hometown in Michigan to confront his past, which involves lowering the boom on hordes of zombies and making peace with his Pop (Lee Majors). Expect torrents of gore as Ash does what he does best. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu. The Tick - Season One: In this reboot of the Fox series, Griffin Newman stars as an underdog accountant with no superpowers who comes to realize his city is owned by a global super villain long-thought dead. As he struggles to uncover this conspiracy, he falls in league with a strange blue superhero named the Tick (Peter Serafinowicz). Jackie Earle Haley, Valorie Curry and Brendan Hines co star. On Amazon.
For The Kids Diary of a Wimpy Kid - The Long Haul:
The franchise based on Jeff Kinney’s popular book series continues with all-new cast members but the fresh actors can’t spruce up this tired entry, the fourth in the series. While the first three movies revolved around middle-schooler Greg Heffley (Jason Drucker) and his incredibly relatable adventures at school and at home, the latest outing is nowhere near as keenly observed. This time around, the Heffleys go on a road-trip but it’s just an excuse to throw together random slapstick gags involving car chases and country fairs. There’s a few funny moments involving Greg and his older, dim-witted brother (Charlie Wright) but “The Long Haul” is short on laughs. On Amazon, Google, iTunes and Vudu Dragons - Race to the Edge - Season 5: If “How To Train Your Dragon” left the young ones eager for more tales of friendly prehistoric beasts, check out this series from the creators of the hit movie. In the show, Hiccup and Toothless are back and facing all new adventures. Over the course of 13 episodes, the pals set up camp far from Berk, battle old enemies while discovering new dragons, and rescue Gustav from Dagur the Deranged. On Netflix.
Teen Title
Death Note: Based on the famous Japanese manga written by Tsugumi Ohba and Takeshi Obata, this horror thriller follows a high school student (Nat Wolff) who stumbles upon a supernatural notebook. The journal bestows great power on its owner who only has to inscribe someone’s name into it for that person to quickly perish. Intoxicated with his new godlike abilities, Wolff begins to kill those he deems unworthy of life. Of course, complications ensue. Margaret Qualley, Shea Whigham and Willem Dafoe co-star. On Netflix.