Stream on Demand: ‘Boba Fett,’ ‘Harry Potter,’ ‘Stay Close’ and ‘Lost Daughter’
What’s new for home viewing on Video on Demand and Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu, Disney+, HBO Max and other streaming services.
Top streams for the week
Oscar winner Olivia Colman brings a compelling complexity to “The Lost Daughter” (2021, R) as a literature scholar on a vacation in Greece whose fascination with a young mother (Dakota Johnson) stirs up troubling memories. It’s the directorial debut of Maggie Gyllenhaal, who also adapts the novel by Elena Ferrante, and she draws superb performances from her entire cast, including Jessie Buckley as the younger incarnation of Colman’s character, Ed Harris and Peter Sarsgaard. (Netflix)
Another character from the “Star Wars” universe gets its own series in “The Book of Boba Fett” (TV-14), starring Temuera Morrison as infamous bounty hunter Boba Fett and Ming-Na Wen as his loyal partner Fennec Shand. The highly anticipated spinoff from “The Mandalorian” opens with the pair returning to the sands of Tatooine to stake their claim on the territory once ruled by Jabba the Hutt and his crime syndicate. Jon Favreau writes and produces with Dave Filoni, and Robert Rodriguez directs the debut episode. New episodes on Wednesdays. (Disney+)
The documentary “Finding Kendrick Johnson” (2021, TV-14) digs into the unanswered questions around the death of a high school student and the lies in the official investigation and reveals the institutional racism behind the negligence and injustice. (Starz)
If you’ve cut the cable cord, you can still stream New Year’s Eve countdowns live on Peacock and Paramount+.
And on New Year’s Day, Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint and Emma Watson celebrate “Harry Potter 20th Anniversary: Return to Hogwarts” (2021, TV-14) in a reunion special with other members of the cast and creative team. Then you can test your knowledge in the quiz series “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Tournament of Houses” (TV-PG) hosted by Helen Mirren. (HBO Max)
Pay-Per-View / Video on Demand
A childless couple raise a strange newborn found on their farm as their child in “Lamb” (Iceland, 2021, R, with subtitles), a surreal thriller starring Noomi Rapace.
Netflix
The crime thriller “Stay Close” (TV-MA), starring James Nesbitt, Cush Jumbo and Richard Armitage is the latest Netflix limited-series adapted from a Harlan Coben novel.
The limited-series documentary “Stories of a Generation With Pope Francis” (TV-14) features men and women from around the world over the age of 70 sharing their life stories.
The fourth season of “Cobra Kai” (TV-14) follows the troubled partnership of the former rivals (William Zabka and Ralph Macchio).
True crime: The limited series “Crime Scene: The Times Square Killer” (TV-MA) looks at how one man was able to commit brutal crimes in the late 1970s and early 1980s in New York City. Joe Berlinger directs.
International TV: A failed bank robbery spirals into a crazy hostage situation in the limited series “Anxious People” (Sweden, TV-MA, with subtitles), a mix of crime drama and black comedy.
Kid stuff: In the animated adventure comedy “Seal Team” (2021, TV-Y7), a crew of misfit sea creatures team up to take on sharks.
Hulu
The 10th season of the clever, quick-witted Canadian comedy “Letterkenny” (TV-MA) streams in its entirety.
Sean Axmaker is a Seattle film critic and writer. His reviews of streaming movies and television can be found at streamondemandathome.com.