Welcome to Stream Scene, where we highlight any noteworthy new movies and series hitting online streaming services.

Whether you like devilish scares, mischievous devils, kick-ass action, uplifting drama, heartbreaking romance, ensemble mysteries, real-life documentaries, crime epics, rebooted cartoons, or… something else, the new streaming releases this week have got you covered as just about every service delivers for a huge list of notable new titles in the coming week.

Deeeeeep breath…

On the movies side, the biggest release is James Wan’s new horror film, Malignant, spooking it up on HBO Max (if you can get to it via VPN), while history-making Oscar-winning Minari debuts on Showmax, and Mary Elizabeth Winstead gets her action-hero thing on in Netflix’s Kate. Changing gears, Netflix also debuts Schumacher, the feature-length documentary about legendary Formula 1 driver Michael Schumacher, while Amazon Prime Video gives us steamy thriller The Voyeurs. If “new” old movies are your thing though, Francis Ford Coppola’s long-awaited director’s cut re-release of The Godfather: Part III is on Apple TV+ for rental.

As for series, the final season of Lucifer finally kicks off on Netflix, Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain set the screen ablaze in marital-themed limited series Scenes From a Marriage on HBO Max, another He-Man animated series charges onto Netflix, and Amazon Prime Video offers an A-list star-studded ensemble in mystery-drama Nine Perfect Strangers.

Movies

Malignant

HBO Max (US) – 10 September 2021

From James Wan, the acclaimed filmmaker behind the Conjuring and Insidious franchises, and the original Saw, comes a whole new film to scare the poop right out of you. This one sees Annabelle Wallis as a young woman who discovers the creepy imaginary friend she has as a child isn’t so imaginary after all.

Minari

Showmax (SA) – 10 September 2021

When this hugely emotional drama about a family of South Korean immigrants pursuing the American dream debuted last year, it racked up accolades at the Oscars, Golden Globes, BAFTAs, Screen Actors Guild Awards and more. It also made history as 74-year-old Yuh-Jung Youn became the first Korean to ever win an Oscar for acting. Following a very limited theatrical release, South African viewers can finally see why Minari was declared one of the best films of last year.

Kate

Netflix (SA) – 10 September 2021

If you somehow still doubted Mary Elizabeth Winstead’s butt-whipping credentials after Birds of Prey, Kate is here to silence those doubts. With a bullet to the brain. The Netflix action film sees Winstead as the titular assassin who gets lethally poisoned while on a job with only 24 hours left to live… so she decides to spend that time hunting down the people who did it and raising hell.

Schumacher

Netflix (SA) – 15 September 2021

Arguably the greatest talent the sport has ever known, Michael Schumacher’s legendary domination of Formula 1 stands as a stark contrast to the horrific skiing accident that nearly claimed his life and has left him bedridden and in need of constant care since 2013. This new documentary, the first to be officially supported by Schumacher’s family, delves into the triumphs and tragedy of the legend.

The Voyeurs

Amazon Prime Video (SA) – 10 September 2021

Starring rapidly up-and-coming young stars Sydney Sweeney and Justice Smith, The Voyeurs is a Hitchcockian cautionary tale about why you shouldn’t spy on your neighbours. No matter how hot they are and how much sex they’re having.

Mario Puzo’s The Godfather Coda: The Death of Michael Corleone

AppleTV (SA) – 9 September 2021

When it was released in 1990, the final chapter in director Francis Ford Coppola and writer Mario Puzo’s mafia epic earned seven Oscar nominations but was still not as warmly received as its predecessors. However, 30 years later, the filmmakers decided to do something about that with an absurdly titled recut that changed the film’s beginning and ending as they originally envisioned it, while tweaking other scenes, music, etc. And after a very limited mid-pandemic theatrical release and a Blu-ray release, you can now rent the film on Apple TV for just R45.


SERIES

Lucifer Season 6

Netflix (SA) – 10 September

The devil is in the details. And in your TV screens… but not for much longer as the sixth and final season of the hugely popular supernatural procedural (which absolutely butchered its epic mythological comic book source material… but I digress!) drops on Netflix today. Go binge the hell out of it.

Scenes From a Marriage

HBO Max (US) – 12 September 2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mRuVWHnQlV8

Stars Oscar Isaac and Jessica Chastain set tabloids (and a number of people’s underwear) ablaze this past week with the sizzling chemistry they displayed on the red carpet while out promoting Scenes From a Marriage. Now you can see where it all came from as this five-episode English-language remake of iconic filmmaker Ingmar Bergman’s 1973 original Swedish series. Scenes From a Marriage is about a couple whose marriage is spiraling out of control spectacularly, and debuts on HBO Max.

He-Man and the Masters of the Universe

Netflix (SA) – 16 September 2021

No, this is not deja vu. Netflix debuted Kevin Smith’s Masters of the Universe: Revelation just a few months ago, but the streamer is heading back to Eternia again. Whereas Revelation was a direct sequel to the classic Masters of the Universe cartoon that took the established story in unexpected directions, this new He-Man and the Masters of the Universe is an unrelated reboot, complete with CG animation and a much lighter tone. Now you can pick which approach you prefer.

Nine Perfect Strangers

Amazon Prime Video (SA) – 10 September 2021

Originally released by Hulu in the US last month before being distributed by Amazon Prime Video in other countries (now including SA), Nine Perfect Strangers is about as star studded as you can get. Created by David E. Kelley, the producer behind just about all your favourite shows in the 90s and 00s, this eight-part miniseries is about nine people who meet at a wellness retreat, only to uncover shattering secrets about each other and the venue. It stars Nicole Kidman, Melissa McCarthy, Michael Shannon, Luke Evans, Samara Weaving, Bobby Cannavale, and more!