As we proceed into the Fall TV season, the biggest new movies streaming online this week have their fair share of stars. Will you stream them all? Or will you just turn your streaming device to see Pete Davidson and Kaley Cuoco star in Peacock‘s Meet Cute, a romantic comedy about a seemingly-spontaneous rendezvous that’s anything but.
Want something more dramatic? Liam Neeson’s doing Liam Neeson things, as an assassin in trouble. Need a more family-friendly movie? Kids and kid-ults alike will rave at the latest Pokémon feature to hit Netflix, which reunites Ash with Brock, on a quest that sees a dimensional doorway open up. Want something real? HBO’s latest documentary questions about the U.S.’ exit from Kabul.
Elsewhere in the world of streaming, Netflix has Tyler Perry’s latest, and Paramount Plus has a young adult story about a second-generation rapper whose success conflicts with the message she wants to send.
Want more? Check out our guide to all the biggest Fall TV debuts, and our Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power review to see why we think it’s great — and divisive.
Meet Cute (Peacock)
After what appears to be the perfect first date — where Sheila (Kaley Cuoco) introduces herself to Gary (Pete Davidson) and the two are almost instantly in synchronicity — Sheila reveals that she’s a time traveler. And that she’s been going on this date over and over again. This is their seventh time out.
Sheila is trying to do her best to make this date work, but it keeps not working out. She’s also had to go to weird lengths to avoid the normal issues related to time-travel. I don’t think the Peacock Original film Meet Cute is supposed to make me think about Nathan Fielder’s The Rehearsal, but here I am. Sheila, trying to make things perfect, is getting in her own way. And it looks like a fun watch.
Stream it on Peacock (opens in new tab) starting tomorrow (Sept. 21)
Escape From Kabul (HBO Max)
HBO’s documentary team is here with another important must-see feature. Escape from Kabul stitches together all of the different vantage points from the U.S.’ withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan in 2021. That includes, of course, many of the civilians who were in danger, and the soldiers who were evacuating those at risk, including Afghans and U.S. citizens.
Through its series of interviews, Escape from Kabul raises many questions about the decisions made in the evacuation. Escape from Kabul also looks to stand out from the news reports by offering “never-before-seen archival footage from those on the ground at the airport.”
Stream it on HBO Max (opens in new tab) starting Thursday (Sept. 22)
The Dreamlife of Georgie Stone (Netflix)
You may not know the name Georgie Stone, but you probably should. Stone’s life, which has largely been lived in the public eye (including appearances in the Australian TV show Neighbours), has had a significant impact on the world. The Australian transgender teen has been one of the public faces in the fight for trans rights. This documentary follows 19 years of her life, tracking her path as she works to change laws, affirm her gender and become an adult.
Stream it on Netflix (opens in new tab) starting Thursday (Sept. 22)
On the Come Up (Paramount Plus)
On the Come Up, which is actress Sanaa Latham’s feature directorial debut (based on Angie Thomas’s best-selling Novel), is all about family legacies. Bri (Jamila C. Gray) is the daughter of a local rap legend whose tragic death pushes her to represent for the family. After she flops in her first battle rap scene, Bri manages to pull herself back up to find some confidence that leads to time in the recording booth.
Unfortunately, once she finally gets a hit song? It seems she’s on the wrong side of a bad message — and the record industry is too eager to market her as someone she isn’t.
Stream it on Paramount Plus (opens in new tab) starting Friday (Sept. 23)
A Jazzman’s Blues (Netflix)
Tyler Perry’s latest movie A Jazzman’s Blues (which he’s written, directed and produced) is a soulful story about a forbidden love shared by a young Black couple in the deep south. Joshua Boone (Bayou) is finding all of life’s difficult moments, but things turn around once he meets Solea Pfeiffer (Leanne). He wants to run away with her, but her family’s dead set against it — seeing him as beneath her.
Bayou soon goes off to war; Leanne gets married to a white man who has money; and the two drift away. But things turn around for Bayou, once he finds a career as a musician. Somehow, Leanne soon drifts back into his life. But her family is still not happy about it.
Stream it on Netflix (opens in new tab) starting Friday (Sept. 23)
Pokémon: The Arceus Chronicles (Netflix)
A brand-new Pokemon special event spins out of Pokémon Legends: Arceus and onto Netflix this week. This film dives into the history of the Sinnoh region, and features Ash, Pikachu, Goh and Dawn on an adventure after they get a message from the Mythical Pokémon Arceus. And along the way, they meet up with a familiar friend: Brock is back.
Ash & co. will need all the help they can get, though, as Team Galactic is actually still active, and have a dangerous plan they’re trying to execute. In an attempt to find their missing leader, team Galactic is going all MCU 2022 and opening a passageway between dimensions.
Stream it on Netflix (opens in new tab) starting Friday (Sept. 23
Memory (Prime Video)
Liam Neeson’s still got it. And by it, I mean “starring roles in movies where he does very bad things and is trying to prove that he’s still … got it.” Here, he plays Alex, who bails on an assassination mission where he was being paid $10 Million USD. He makes that call because the target is a teenage girl — and then he becomes a target in the process.
Soon, Alex’s memory is slipping, and he tries to make things better by sending intel to a detective (Guy Pearce). And it doesn’t look like anyone’s getting out clean — including the woman who hired him (Monica Bellucici).
Stream it on Prime Video (opens in new tab) (where it moves from paid video on demand to a Prime Video movie) starting Friday (Sept. 23)
