What’s new this weekend?

MYRNA BROWN, HOST: Today is Friday, March 17th.

Thank you for turning to WORLD Radio to help start your day.

Good morning. I’m Myrna Brown.

NICK EICHER, HOST: And I’m Nick Eicher.

Coming next on The World and Everything in It: newly available movies.

It’s the weekend, so maybe you’re looking for something new to watch. Here’s Collin Garbarino with a rundown on your options both at the theater and on streaming.

MUSIC: [SHAZAM! THEME] 

COLLIN GARBARINO: This weekend, the only new movie in wide release is DC Studios’ Shazam! Fury of the Gods. It’s the sequel to 2019’s Shazam! Actor Zachary Levi returns as a teenage kid who transforms into a superhero by uttering the magic word “shazam.” In this movie, our hero battles imposter syndrome and some Greek goddesses called the Daughters of Atlas.

HESPERA: You play the part of a man, but you are a lost boy. Give us the powers or we will annihilate everything.

Helen Mirren and Lucy Liu play the bad guys, but there’s not much motivation for their wickedness. Just generic supervillain stuff.

SHAZAM: Look, I might not have as much experience as you because I’m not like super old. But I’ve seen all of the Fast and the Furious movies and it’s all about family. Family! Guys, that was the signal!

The film has some amusing scenes, but it’s at least half an hour too long. We’ve seen generic cityscapes get demolished in similar ways too many times before. The movie’s PG-13 for some unnecessary language, and there’s also the obligatory LGBT box checking.

DC Studios will soon reboot its entire franchise. Unless you’re looking for a mindless popcorn flick, you won’t want to spend your movie dollars on this sequel.

But you don’t need to head to the theater to see something new this weekend.

For adults who enjoy the true-crime genre, Boston Strangler debuts today on Hulu.

The film stars Keira Knightley and Carrie Coon as Loretta McLaughlin and Jean Cole—the female journalists who broke the story 60 years ago.

LORETTA: Jack. I think I found something. Three women were strangled over the last two weeks.

JACK: I don’t see the interest. These are nobodies.

LORETTA: Who do you think our readers are? And that’s just it, why would anybody go around killing three nobody women?

Boston Strangler is a pretty good movie that explores the dynamic between journalists and police and how each manages public perception.

All but one of the 13 Boston Strangler cases are still unresolved, allowing the film to create its own take on what really happened. There’s some speculation and hedging in the movie, but its explanation seems quite plausible.

Sensitive viewers will want to steer clear of Boston Strangler. It’s rated R for disturbing scenes and some bad language. But it manages to depict its heavy subject matter with a fair amount of restraint.

For the kids, on the other hand, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish recently arrived on the Peacock streaming service. Antonio Banderas once again voices the swashbuckling feline from the Shrek movies.

PUSS IN BOOTS: Relax! I am Puss in Boots. I laugh at death. [laughs] You see? And anyway, I am a cat. I have nine lives.

DOCTOR: And how many times have you died already?

PUSS IN BOOTS: Uh. I don’t know. I didn’t count it. I’m not really a math guy, you know.

Puss wasted his first eight lives, and he becomes afraid of losing his last one. He enlists help from old and new friends to help him find a wishing star that can restore his lost lives.

Like other films in the Shrek franchise, Puss in Boots: The Last Wish pushes the boundaries of its PG rating with rude humor and mild language. Younger kids might also find the action a little scary.

Puss in Boots: The Last Wish might be a sequel to a spinoff of a sequel, but I think it’s the best animated feature film of 2022—not that 2022 was a great year for animated feature films.

MUSIC: [MRS. HARRIS GOES TO PARIS THEME]

For a quiet and all round pleasant viewing experience, I’ll once again recommend Mrs. Harris Goes to Paris which just hit Amazon’s Prime Video this week.

It’s a wonderful movie about a working-class woman from London who takes a trip to Paris to buy an extravagantly expensive gown from the House of Dior.

MRS. HARRIS: Oh. Excuse me, dear. Where would I find the frocks?

MRS. COLBERT: I fear you have the wrong address, madame. I will call someone to show you the way.

MRS. HARRIS: No, no, no. Sorry. I’m… I’m after a frock. One of them 500-pound ones.

MRS. COLBERT: Please, if you could wait over here, someone will attend you directly.

Along the way she changes many people’s lives for the better with her acts of selfless kindness. It's a modern-day fairy tale in which Mrs. Harris manages to play both Cinderella and Fairy Godmother at the same time.

Mrs Harris Goes to Paris is rated PG, but parents should note that about halfway through the movie, Mrs. Harris’s French friends take her to a cabaret that features bikini-clad dancing girls. For the most part though, it’s the kind of movie families can enjoy together.

I’m Collin Garbarino.

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