Coronavirus viewing guide: which streaming shows and movies to watch, and how to watch them – PennLive
As the social distancing plan to slow the spread of coronavirus carries on, the question remains of how to keep yourself and your family entertained while you all spend a lot more time at home.
Thankfully, our entertainment technology has never made it easier to have access to an amazing library of television, movies and documentaries that you can watch at any time. All it takes is internet service and a quick subscription – and in some cases, you can even grab a free trial, just to see if any particular service is right for you.
Hang in there with a few suggestions of series and films to catch up on while you’re practicing social distancing.
Netflix
How much: $8.99 a month
Free trial: yes, for 30 days
Original programming highlights: There’s the raunchy adult animated series “Big Mouth,” fantasy action with “The Witcher,” sci-fi excitement with “Altered Carbon,” and highbrow British royal drama with “The Crown.” Or maybe you want to turn your brain off for a bit? Try the reality dating show “Love Is Blind.” Or you could finally watch “The Irishman” – yeah, it’s long, but where do you have to be right now?
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For families: The adaptation of the book series “Lemony Snicket’s A Series of Unfortunate Events” is perfect for all ages, despite the narrator of the title frequently warning viewers away. “My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic” is great, and not just for little girls (there’s a reason that bronies became a thing). The original series “The Dragon Prince” is good for more action-adventure types. And if you’re too young (or too impatient) to sit through “The Irishman,” you could instead try Martin Scorsese’s “Hugo.”
Recent additions: New to additions Netflix this month include “Silver Linings Playbook,” ’90s family classics like “Space Jam” and “Hook,” and perennial re-watchable favorite “The Shawshank Redemption.”
Hulu
How much: $5.99 a month for streaming (or a version with zero ads for $11.99), or $54.99 for streaming plus access to live TV. Also a bundle option with Disney Plus and ESPN Plus (see below)
Free trial: yes, one free month for streaming only, and one week for the streaming/live TV access
Original programming: Adaptations of novels like the dystopian drama series “The Handmaid’s Tale” or dark comedy film “Catch 22,” mature comedy series like “Shrill” and “PEN15,” news documentary “The Weekly,” or teenage superhero hijinks with “Marvel’s Runaways.”
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For families: Solve the case with the wisecracking, Ryan Reynolds-voiced lightning mouse in “Pokemon: Detective Pikachu,” save the day with “Steven Universe” or “Justice League Action,” get mathematical with “Adventure Time,” go old-school with “Pinky and the Brain” or “Rugrats,” and enjoy a sunny day on “Sesame Street.”
Recent additions: Party on with “Wayne’s World,” fight off the infected in “28 Days Later,” laugh at horror movie tropes in “Cabin in the Woods,” and have what she’s having in the classic relationship comedy “When Harry Met Sally.”
Amazon Prime
How much: $8.99 a month for Prime Video, with more expensive options to also get the benefits of Amazon Prime shipping
Free trial: yes, for 30 days
Original programming: Feeling slightly apocalyptic lately? Try “Good Omens,” a comedy about the end of the world, or maybe the alternate-history drama “The Man In The High Castle.” There’s also the highly acclaimed comedy series “The Marvelous Ms. Maisel” and “Fleabag,” and two great but distinct flavors of superhero deconstruction: dark and mature, with “The Boys” or silly and fun with “The Tick.”
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For families: Whooooooo lives in a pineapple on Amazon Prime TV? “Spongebob Squarepants”! You can also enjoy “Mister Rogers Neighborhood” and “Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood,” the delightfully weird PBS show “Odd Squad,” and Disney hits like “Moana” and “Frozen 2.”
Recent additions: How do you like your animals: silly and fighting with secret martial arts powers, like in “Kung Fu Panda,” or evil resurrected monsters like in “Pet Sematary”? (The pets are really the least of the problems, but still) And if you’re feeling claustrophobic, “The Descent” might add some perspective.
Disney Plus
How much: $6.99 a month, with the option to bundle with Hulu and ESPN Plus for $12.99
Free trial: yes, for seven days
Original programming: If anything can lift our spirits right now, it’s the adorable Baby Yoda of “The Mandalorian.” There’s also a new (relatively) season of “The Clone Wars,” a live-action remake of “Lady and the Tramp,” the comedy season “Diary of a Future President,” and the docu-series “the World According to Jeff Goldblum.”
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For families: Gee, where to start? There’s a huge collection of classic Disney content, which you can read about here. My personal recommendation would be to peruse the Pixar collection, particularly the shorts, which you may have missed or forgotten about. And of course, there’s all nine episodes of the “Star Wars” films.
Recent additions: As mentioned above on Amazon Prime, “Frozen 2” has just been released to streaming. So too has “Black Panther,” and “A Wrinkle in Time” will be coming to the service on March 25.
Special mention: “The Simpsons.” It’s always worth a special shout-out, especially now when we’re all reaching for ways to stay entertained.
HBO Now
How much: $14.99 a month
Free trial: yes, for one week
Original programming: Some of the most acclaimed television series, going back to “The Sopranos,” “Sex and the City” and “The Wire,” up through “Deadwood,” “Rome,” “Six Feet Under,” “Curb Your Enthusiasm,” “Band of Brothers,” “Veep,” and current series like “Watchmen” and “Game of Thrones.”
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For families: You can catch new episodes of “Sesame Street” first on HBO, as well as shows like “Esme & Roy” and “Pinky Dinky Doo.”
Recent additions: Enjoy some Beatles songs in a world where the band doesn’t exist in “Yesterday,” or a high-octane action-fest with “Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw.” The third season of “Westworld” has just begun, plus some older movies like “Babe,” “Fight Club,” “Gangs of New York” and “Raising Arizona.”
Broadway HD
How much: $8.99 a month or $99.99 a year
Free trial: yes, for one week, specifically in response to the coronavirus
Original programming: All of it, I suppose? Broadway HD is a chance to stream performances of theatrical performances, staged for film or recorded directly from a live show. Musicals from “Cats” (not the movie) to “Carousel” to “Kinky Boots” are available, as are plays like “Death of a Salesman,” “Driving Miss Daisy” and “The Diary of Anne Frank.”
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For families: Live theater isn’t just for us grown ups, either. There’s productions of “Peter Pan,” “The Sound of Music,” “Sleeping Beauty” and “The Wind in the Willows.”
Recent additions: There is probably a really simple way to figure this out, but I didn’t find it. Acquiring rights to stream these plays requires permission from playwrights or their estates, so it can be a little complicated getting the most recent of plays and musicals.
https://www.broadwayhd.com/
The Criterion Channel
How much: $10.99 a month, or $99.99 for a year
Free trial: yes, for two weeks
Original programming: The Criterion Channel is the classic film streaming service, allowing access to the Criterion Collection of great films such as “Dr. Strangelove, or How I Learned to Stop Worrying and Love the Bomb,” “The Graduate,” “Some Like It Hot,” “8 1/2,” “Rashomon” or “Metropolis.”
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For families: Um … well, there’s a whole lot of titles on the service, so I’m certain at least some of them would be okay for families to watch together. They might just take a bit more digging, since “Family” or “Kids” isn’t a search category, and “Animation” leads you to movies like “Watership Down.” It’s a great movie! Just not really for kids, as many families found out the hard way back in the ’80s.
Recent additions: In addition to collections of works by particular artists, such as the recently deceased Max von Sydow, movies like “The Cabinet of Dr. Caligari” and “Nosferatu” have been recently added to the service. There’s also an extensive collections of interviews with celebrities and creators like Patton Oswald, Rian Johnson, Julie Taymor, Sophia Coppola and more.
ESPN Plus
How much: $4.99 a month, or $12.99 a month when bundled with Hulu and Disney Plus
Original programming: Not so much original programming, but exclusive streaming of Major League Baseball, National Hockey League, Major League Soccer, Ultimate Fighting Championship, Top Rank Boxing and more, as well as access to college football, basketball and lacrosse.
For families: Kids of all ages can enjoy sports! I mean, maybe not the boxing and mixed martial arts, depending on how old they are, but really that’s a parenting judgment call, I suppose.
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