THE SMALL SCREEN
New movies to stream this week:
“Rise Again: Tulsa and the Red Summer”: The new documentary by Dawn Porter (“John Lewis: Good Trouble”), “Rise Again” marks a somber anniversary: the centennial of the 1921 Tulsa Race Massacre, in which as many as 300 Black Tulsans were killed — and a neighborhood known as Black Wall Street destroyed — during a race riot in the aftermath of the arrest of a Black teenager accused of assaulting a White girl. But Porter’s film — which relies heavily on the reporting of Washington Post journalist DeNeen L. Brown, who appears in the film as a consultant and guide — doesn’t just go over the same ground Brown has written about extensively. Rather, the film, and Brown, metaphorically walk in the footsteps of journalist Ida B. Wells, contextualizing Tulsa in the larger narrative of White resentment of Black success that exploded violently into the open two years before Tulsa, in 1919. Dubbed the Red Summer by writer and civil rights activist James Weldon Johnson, the period included multiple incidents of White violence against Black Americans. The film’s context is powerful and sobering, and not just because of what it unearths from 1919. “Rise Again” opens and closes in a Tulsa cemetery, where searches are ongoing for the mass graves of Black Tulsans, but it places the events of the past against the backdrop of today’s headlines about police shootings and the continuing calls for racial reconciliation. Not rated. Available on National Geographic and Hulu. Contains some disturbing archival images, discussion of violence and mature thematic elements. 1 hour, 28 minutes.
“Fatherhood”: Based on Matthew Logelin’s memoir “Two Kisses for Maddy, “Fatherhood” is a dramedy by director/co-writer Paul Weitz about a widower (Kevin Hart) struggling to raise his daughter (Melody Hurd) alone. PG-13. Available on Netflix. Contains some strong language and suggestive material. 1 hour, 50 minutes.
“Enfant Terrible”: Oliver Masucci plays the late German filmmaker Rainer Werner Fassbinder in this dramatic biopic. According to Screen Daily, Oskar Roehler’s film is “somewhat repetitive, but it’s never boring. It’s just not very insightful.” Not rated. Available on various streaming services and major cable providers. In German, with subtitles. 2 hours, 14 minutes.
“Revolution Rent”: This documentary follows co-director Andy Señor Jr., the son of Cuban exiles, and his effort to stage a production of the musical “Rent” in Cuba. The New York Times writes: “Despite the intriguing premise of the film, its cursory and lopsided narrative approach dilutes its salient themes and messages.” TV-MA. Available on HBO Max. In English and Spanish, with subtitles. 1 hour, 30 minutes.
“Night Walk”: A crime thriller about an American traveler in the Middle East (Sean Stone) who is unjustly arrested and imprisoned by corrupt officials after the death of his girlfriend (Sarah Alami). Mickey Rourke plays a fellow prisoner in this gritty action-thriller about one man’s quest for justice. R. Available on various streaming platforms. Contains coarse language throughout, including derogatory slurs, violence and sexual references. 1 hour, 37 minutes.