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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

New movies to stream this week: ‘Black Site,’ ‘Along for the Ride’ and more

By Michael O’Sullivan Washington Post

I like Michelle Monaghan – even in an entirely fungible action thriller like “Black Site,” in which she portrays a CIA analyst playing a deadly game of cat-and-mouse with a ruthless killer (Jason Clarke) who is methodically picking off the staff of a secret desert facility for the interrogation of terrorist suspects. Clarke, who barely has any dialogue as an assassin code-named Hatchet (appropriately enough), faces off against a beefy ex-military contractor (Jai Courtney) and other soon-to-be-victims as he dispatches them in spectacular ways.

But this is really Monaghan’s show, as she plays a woman with a special reason to want Hatchet apprehended: She holds him responsible for the deaths of her husband and child, who were killed in an explosion at a Turkish medical facility that opens the film. The violent action is predictable and the plot slightly ludicrous at times. But Monaghan, who knows her way around an action film (“Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol”) is never less than watchable.

Maybe that’s why the ending of this sophomore feature from director Sophia Banks, working from a screenplay by John Collee (“Hotel Mumbai”) and Jinder Ho, sets up Monaghan’s character for the (as yet completely theoretical) sequel “Black Site 2: This Time It’s Even More Personal.” Unrated. Available on Amazon, iTunes, Vudu, Google Play, Redbox on Demand, Vudu and other on-demand platforms. Contains strong, bloody violence and crude language throughout. 93 minutes.

Also streaming

Based on the young-adult romance novel by Sarah Dessen, “Along for the Ride” tells the story of two insomniacs (Emma Pasarow and Belmont Cameli) who entertain each other in the middle of the night. Andie MacDowell and Dermot Mulroney also star. TV-14. Available on Netflix. 107 minutes.

Based on the book by Father James Martin, the documentary “Building a Bridge” looks at the Catholic priest’s efforts to make the church more accepting of the LGBTQ+ community. Unrated. Available on demand; also available June 21 on AMC Plus. 95 minutes.

”Randy Rhoads: Reflections of a Guitar Icon” is a documentary portrait of Rhoads, who was the lead guitarist for Quiet Riot and Ozzy Osbourne before dying in a plane crash in 1982 at age 25. Unrated. Available on demand. 85 minutes.

The documentary “Spring Awakening: Those You’ve Known” looks back on the Tony Award-winning musical on the occasion of a one-night-only reunion concert in 2021 – the show’s 15th anniversary – to benefit the Actors Fund. TV-MA. Available on HBO Max. 83 minutes.