We’re on the eve of the Spooky Season, and what better way to kick things off than with some cackling witches as long-anticipated sequel Hocus Pocus 2 headlines the streaming releases for the week. Stephen King adaptation Mr. Harrigan’s Phone, and teen horror My Best Friend’s Exorcism add to the creepiness, but if you’re not into ghoulish escapism, we also have an unbelievable true story in the Zac Efron led Vietnam War dramedy The Greatest Beer Run Ever, a new 007 documentary, and more!
MOVIES
Hocus Pocus 2
Disney+ – 30 September 2022
The Sanderson sisters are back! Following that… eye-catching tease at the end of the first film nearly 30 years ago, Bette Midler, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Kathy Najimy (alongside a returning Doug Jones) reprise their witchy roles originated in the beloved 1993 classic in this new sequel. This time around, Winnie, Sarah, and Mary must face off against a trio of high-schoolers in modern-day Salem, Massachusetts, who are out to stop the supernatural sisters from exacting their revenge. This one will also be digging into the Sanderson sisters’ past though, revealing just how they became the cackling child-stealing villains they are.
The Greatest Beer Run Ever
Apple TV+ – 30 September 2022
They say that fact is often stranger than fiction, and that appears to be exactly the case in this outlandish based-on-a-true-story biographical war dramedy. Set in 1967, Zac Efron stars as John Donahue, a returned home Vietnam War vet, who decides to take up a preposterous challenge proposed by his friends while drinking at a bar: Sneak back into Vietnam, find his old friends still doing their tours, and deliver to them some beers along with words of encouragement.
Entergalactic
Netflix – 30 September 2022
Here’s one the blurs the media lines a bit. Co-created by and starring hip-hop star Scott “Kid Cudi” Mescudi, Entergalactic is an animated romantic drama “TV special” that serves as a companion piece to the Kid Cudi’s new musical album of the same name also launching today. Mescudi and co-creator Kenya Barris has assembled a star-studded voice cast – including Jessica Williams, Timothee Chalamet, Vanessa Hudgens, Laura Harrier, Macaulay Culkin, and more – in this gorgeously animated tale about a charming, streetwise artist whose chance encounter with his cool new photographer neighbor leaves him introspective about life and love.
My Best Friend’s Exorcism
Amazon Prime Video – 30 September 2022
Thanks to Netflix’s Stranger things, 1980s based teen horror is all the rage. Now Prime Video is throwing its own contribution onto the pile with My Best Friend’s Exorcism. Set in 1988, this follows life-long best friend high-schoolers Abby and Gretchen, who are about to be separated with Gretchen moving away. When one last summertime adventure – in a building where a girl was allegedly sacrificed in a ritual! – goes wrong though, it leaves Gretchen acting a little… devilish. And that’s in a very literal sense, as Abby soon starts to suspect that she may need to save her bestie’s soul or actually lose her forever.
Mr. Harrigan’s Phone
Netflix – 5 October 2022
When it comes to modern adaptations of Stephen King’s literary works, Mike Flanagan has become the gold standard of filmmakers. That doesn’t mean others can’t try their hands at bringing King’s horror works to life though, with the latest to throw their hat in the ring being The Blind Side and The Founder’s John Lee Hancock. The Oscar-nominee both writes and directs this one about a bullied young boy (It’s Jaden Martell) who befriends an old man (Donald Sutherland) before the latter’s subsequent passing, only to find that his late elderly friend may be looking out for him from beyond the grave in the most violent ways.
The Sound of 007
Amazon Prime Video – 5 October 2022
There are few things as iconic James Bond movie music, and this great new feature length documentary – released to coincide with the franchise’s 60th anniversary – delves into the musicians and composers that have scored the adventures of 007, giving it that unmistakable sound.
SERIES
A Private Affair S1
Amazon Prime Video – 30 September 2022
Set in Galicia in the 1940s, this Spanish-language murder mystery romp stars Aura Garrido as the upper-class daughter of a police commissioner, who finds herself frustrated by the lack of opportunities for women in a police department. When she witnesses a murder though – the latest in a spate of serial killings – the bold young woman sets out to catch the killer, dragging her faithful butler Hector (Jean Reno) along for the ride.
High Water S1
Netflix – 5 October 2022
In 1997, Poland and the Czech Republic unexpectedly experienced some of the heaviest rainfalls ever recorded in history over the course of just a few days. The result was a devastating flood – dubbed the “Millennium Flood” for its rare 0.1% chance of occurring – that would leave over a hundred people dead and over $4.5 billion in damages. Inspired by these events, High Water is the gripping 6-episode Polish-language miniseries that tells the story of the people that had to battle to hold back the watery carnage and save their city.