Netflix’s ‘Beast’, ‘Look Both Ways’

Unfortunately, the summer movie season is coming to an end, even though Idris Elba makes sure the cinema stays wild.

This weekend, the A-list British actor plays a father protecting his family from a lion (of the computer-generated image genre) in a new survival thriller. “Riverdale” star Lili Reinhart plays the same character who goes down two different paths in a “Sliding Doors”-style coming-of-age movie, Isabelle Fuhrman returns as the unhinged girl Esther in a horror prequel “Orphan,” and “Parasite” The essential Song Kang-ho plays a desperate cop in the face of a terrorist attack in a Korean disaster film.

Here’s a guide to new movies that will satisfy all cinematic tastes, plus some standout theatrical movies that are making their streaming and on-demand debut:

‘The beast’:Idris Elba has Leonardo DiCaprio to thank for his ‘realistic’ lion fight

If you want to see Idris Elba punch an angry lion: “Beast”

It’s hard not to respect an unnatural B-movie man who proudly knows what it’s like. Elba plays a recently widowed father on a trip to the South African savannah when his family is attacked by a lion who wants to kill any human he finds. (For good reason, by the way.) Elba’s game for all the CGI animal madness, and the film unleashes more than a few hair-raising thrills to make up for a rather lackluster plot.

Where to watch: In theaters

If you’re a big ‘Riverdale’ fan: ‘Look Both Ways’

Natalie (Reinhart) has a one-night stand with her friend Gabe (Danny Ramirez), on the night of their college graduation, she takes a pregnancy test, and the film reveals parallel storylines: a negative test takes her on a planned path to LA and a dream animation career, while that a positive result brings her home to raise a child. Reinhart does what she can but the predictable film lacks nuance and fails to execute on a potentially insightful premise.

Where to watch: netflix

If you like scary movies for kids: “Orphan: First Kill”

The 2009 original “Orphan” was a bonkers treat, with Fuhrman as a psychopathic 30-something pretending to be a 9-year-old. The prequel spreads a little thin, with Esther (Fuhrman) escaping from an Estonian asylum and posing as the missing daughter of a wealthy American family. It’s a chilling and downright weird thriller that oddly casts Esther as an anti-hero, though it’s fun to see Fuhrman come back as a killer child, thanks to camera angles, body doubles and more. cinematic magic.

Where to watch: In the halls and on Paramount+, AppleTV, Vudu, google play

If you like a good disaster movie: ‘Declaration of Emergency’

A modern take on old-school thrillers like “Airport,” the sprawling Korean film centers on a father (Lee Byung-hun) taking his boy on a flight from Incheon, South Korea, to Honolulu that goes awry when deadly virus is left loose on the crowded plane. It’s a gripping exercise exploring aerial bioterrorism but also the chaos caused on the ground, with police and law enforcement dealing with criminal and corporate issues.

Where to watch: In theaters

If You’re an Alison Brie Finalist: ‘Spin Me Round’

Brie plays the manager of an Olive Garden-type restaurant chain chosen for an all-expenses-paid trip to a training program in Italy. What she finds there is utter chaos with eccentric co-workers (Zach Woods and Molly Shannon), the restaurant’s handsome founder (Alessandro Nivola), and his bewitching assistant (Place Aubrey) in a hilarious European travel comedy suffering from a frustrating lack of direction.

Where to watch: In the halls and on AMC+, AppleTV, Vudu

Place Aubrey:Actress drove ‘more recklessly’ than ‘Emily the Criminal’ stuntman

If you like cosmic horror and/or the absolutely absurd: “Glorious”

After a breakup leaves him living in a car, Wes (Ryan Kwanten) pulls up to a rest stop, gets seriously drunk, and goes to the bathroom the next morning. He has a strange conversation with the man in the next cabin (an unseen JK Simmons) who claims to be an ancient god and asks Wes to do “a favor” to save the universe. What unfolds is a trippy, bloody, funny affair that does wonders with a simple setting.

Where to watch: quiver

Also streaming

• The Satirical MysteryRevenge“, written and directed by BJ Novak (who also stars as a true crime podcaster), is available now on AppleTV and other on-demand platforms.
• “Paws of Fury: The Legend of Hank,” an animated comedy starring Michael Cera as a canine samurai and Samuel L. Jackson as a feline mentor, is viewable for kids of all ages on demand.
• ‘On the Count of Three,’ the dark comedy from director and star Jerrod Carmichael that premiered at Sundance Film Festival in 2021broadcast on Hulu.
• And also on demand is “Sharp Stick”, Lena DunhamThe coming-of-age film of a young woman who loses her virginity and embarks on a journey of sexual exploration.