Sling TV lets viewers stream cable networks
Cutting the cable has become more popular as households turn to streaming services for programming, but you can’t get your news and sports from Netflix or Amazon Prime.
Sling TV, a new service created by Dish Networks, lets subscribers stream 14 cable channels, including ESPN, ESPN2, TNT, CNN, ABC Family and Disney Channel, on their computers, smart devices and TVs. The basic service costs $20 a month, with packages of additional sports channels, kids TV programming, and news and lifestyle channels for an extra $5 a month each. Details at www.sling.com.
Pay-per-view/ video on demand
Two Oscar-nominated films debut on Cable On Demand this week, just in time to catch up before the awards are handed out Sunday.
“The Theory of Everything” stars Eddie Redmayne as theoretical physicist and author Stephen Hawking, who became one of the most influential thinkers in the world even as his body succumbed to ALS, and Felicity Jones as his wife. It’s up for five Academy Awards including Best Picture, Actor and Actress. Also on iTunes, Amazon Instant, Xbox and Vudu, plus Blu-ray and DVD.
“The Tale of the Princess Kaguya” is a Japanese fairy tale animated by hand in a style that evokes ancient Japanese watercolor, ink artworks, and charcoal and pastel drawings of illustrated storybooks. It’s up for Best Animated Feature and the American version features the voices of Chloë Grace Moretz, James Caan and Mary Steenburgen.
Also new are the comedies “Dumb and Dumber To,” which reunites Jim Carrey and Jeff Daniels 20 years after the original hit film, and “St. Vincent” with Bill Murray as a cranky old man who befriends an eccentric only child.
Netflix
Netflix has a new original series for kids: “Richie Rich,” based on the comic books and starring Jake Brennan as the richest boy in the world. The first season is now available to stream.
Also for kids is “Earth to Echo,” a science-fiction adventure in the vein of “E.T.” about a group of kids who help a cute little stranded alien.
Amazon Instant Prime
The whimsical French comedy “Mood Indigo” stars Audrey Tautou as a woman with a flower growing in her lungs.
And from 1995 comes “Sense and Sensibility,” one of the best of the Jane Austen adaptations, this one from director Ang Lee and star/screenwriter Emma Thompson. Kate Winslet, Hugh Grant and Alan Rickman co-star.