What to stream this weekend: Disney+'s 'The One and Only Ivan,' Netflix kid flick 'The Sleepover'

Brian Truitt, USA TODAY
·5 min read

Most theaters are still closed, but new streaming movies are coming to entertain you and your family during socially distanced times.

This weekend, a family-geared critter movie starring Sam Rockwell and Angelina Jolie hits Disney+; Netflix unleashes a kid spy comedy; a World War I drama looks at Black soldiers facing racism on the home front; Ethan Hawke plays a genius inventor in an unconventional biopic; and "Riverdale" star Lili Reinhart headlines an Amazon young-adult romance.

If that's not enough to get you online and watching movies, two virtual film festivals launch this weekend for fans of Black cinema: the American Black Film Festival (featuring an online conversation with "Black-ish" creator Kenya Barris on Saturday) and the BlackStar Film Festival.

'The One and Only Ivan' review: Angelina Jolie can't fix Disney+'s all-star critter conundrum

New 'Skin' documentary: All the best revelations about movie nudity

Here's a rundown of new movies hitting streaming and on-demand platforms this week, for every cinematic taste:

The gorilla Ivan (center, voiced by Sam Rockwell) leads an animal escape with his friends – elephant Ruby (Brooklynn Prince), chicken Henrietta (Chaka Khan), stray dog Bob (Danny DeVito), rabbit Murphy (Ron Funches), seal Frankie (Mike White) and parrot Thelma (Phillipa Soo) – in "The One and Only Ivan."
The gorilla Ivan (center, voiced by Sam Rockwell) leads an animal escape with his friends – elephant Ruby (Brooklynn Prince), chicken Henrietta (Chaka Khan), stray dog Bob (Danny DeVito), rabbit Murphy (Ron Funches), seal Frankie (Mike White) and parrot Thelma (Phillipa Soo) – in "The One and Only Ivan."

If you're a sucker for talking-animal movies: 'The One and Only Ivan'

Katherine Applegate's beloved children's book gets a so-so live-action adaptation with CGI critters. Ivan (voiced by Rockwell) is an artistic gorilla and main attraction of a mall circus who decides, with the help of a wise elephant (Jolie) and a stray dog (Danny DeVito), that he wants to embrace freedom. A thoughtful animal-rights message, however, is sort of defeated by comedic high jinks and family-friendliness.

Where to watch: Disney+

A married couple (Ken Marino and Malin Akerman) and a bunch of kids (Maxwell Simkins, Lucas Jaye, Sadie Stanley and Cree Cicchino) get embroiled in a heist in the family adventure comedy "The Sleepover."
A married couple (Ken Marino and Malin Akerman) and a bunch of kids (Maxwell Simkins, Lucas Jaye, Sadie Stanley and Cree Cicchino) get embroiled in a heist in the family adventure comedy "The Sleepover."

If you want to ease your kid into James Bond movies: 'The Sleepover'

"Spy Kids" meets "Mr. & Mrs. Smith" in this mediocre family adventure comedy starring Malin Akerman as an ex-thief in witness protection forced to do one last job, and her kids (Sadie Stanley and Maxwell Simkins) get involved in secret-agent shenanigans. Ken Marino is the vanilla dad, Joe Manganiello is the butt-kicking mom's former beau and partner, but Simkins is the highlight – and an easy No. 1 pick for a "Goonies" reboot.

Where to watch: Netflix

An attraction grows between classmates Henry (Austin Abrams) and Grace (Lili Reinhart) in "Chemical Hearts."
An attraction grows between classmates Henry (Austin Abrams) and Grace (Lili Reinhart) in "Chemical Hearts."

If you prefer your teen romance on the tortured side: 'Chemical Hearts'

While the adaptation never rises to the level of Krystal Sutherland's excellent YA novel, the performances of its young stars help the love story grow on you. Henry (Austin Abrams) dreams of editing the school paper, but has to share the gig with transfer student Grace (Reinhart), who wields a cane and wears oddly oversize clothes. An attraction forms, though Grace's tragic backstory creates a hefty obstacle for them both.

Where to watch: Amazon

Trai Byers (center right) stars as a well-educated private in an all-Black Army regiment in "The 24th."
Trai Byers (center right) stars as a well-educated private in an all-Black Army regiment in "The 24th."

If you're interested in a war film with timely themes: 'The 24th'

Frequent Spike Lee collaborator (and Oscar-winning "BlacKkKlansman" co-writer) Kevin Willmott directs this brutal, affecting and infuriating drama about the Houston riot of 1917. An all-Black Army regiment in Texas (including a fantastic Trai Byers, who co-wrote the script) is itching to fight Germans in World War I, though the unit's biggest enemy is racist local cops, leading to a fateful night when the soldiers demand justice in bloody fashion.

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, FandangoNOW

Nikola Tesla, Tears for Fears fan? Ethan Hawke plays the pioneering inventor and also sings "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" in the biopic "Tesla."
Nikola Tesla, Tears for Fears fan? Ethan Hawke plays the pioneering inventor and also sings "Everybody Wants to Rule the World" in the biopic "Tesla."

If you like a little Tears for Fears in your historical biopics: 'Tesla'

Get ready for a Nikola Tesla movie featuring an Apple laptop, an ice-cream fight between Tesla and Thomas Edison, and Ethan Hawke singing "Everybody Wants to Rule the World." In this interestingly oddball film, Hawke plays the 19th-century powerhouse inventor as he deals with rival Edison (Kyle MacLachlan), patron George Westinghouse (Jim Gaffigan) and J.P. Morgan's daughter Anne (Eve Hewson).

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, Google Play

Jacki Weaver stars as a conservative Texas mom who inherits a San Francisco drag club when her estranged son overdoses in the dramedy "Stage Mother."
Jacki Weaver stars as a conservative Texas mom who inherits a San Francisco drag club when her estranged son overdoses in the dramedy "Stage Mother."

If you need a feel-good pick-me-up with drag queens: 'Stage Mother'

Jacki Weaver stars in the solid musical dramedy about a conservative Texas church-choir director who inherits a San Francisco drag club after her estranged gay son's overdose. A cultural fish out of water living with her kid's best friend (Lucy Liu), she does knows how to put on a show, finding a way to jump-start the business while weathering her husband's homophobia and the cold shoulder from her son's lover (Adrian Grenier).

Where to watch: Apple TV, Google Play, FandangoNOW

Thomas Jane (left) and Anne Heche play a couple desperate to find their missing daughter, with Jason Patric as the investigating sheriff, in "The Vanished."
Thomas Jane (left) and Anne Heche play a couple desperate to find their missing daughter, with Jason Patric as the investigating sheriff, in "The Vanished."

If you're down for a twist on the usual kidnapping drama: 'The Vanished'

What seems on the surface like a run-of-the-mill missing-kid psychological thriller is, in the hands of writer/director/actor Peter Facinelli, a sneakily complex and even a bit bonkers whodunit. Thomas Jane and Anne Heche star as a struggling couple on a family getaway whose daughter disappears, which begins a rash of assorted deaths and uncovered secrets that plague the embattled local sheriff (Jason Patric).

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, FandangoNOW

A comic-book creator (Jesse Williams, right) runs into a real version of his masked slasher character in "Random Acts of Violence."
A comic-book creator (Jesse Williams, right) runs into a real version of his masked slasher character in "Random Acts of Violence."

If you prefer your comic-book movies with gore: 'Random Acts of Violence'

Directed by Jay Baruchel, this nasty (in a good way) piece of horror business stars Jesse Williams as the Canadian creator of a successful comic in which the masked protagonist is based on a real-life serial slasher, and during a road trip to New York City, he runs into familiar scenes of disturbing carnage. Look underneath the kills for an intriguing exploration of artistic responsibility and modern morality.

Where to watch: Shudder

Zachary Knighton stars as the leader of an outlaw gang who runs afoul of a coven of witches in the Western horror "The Pale Door."
Zachary Knighton stars as the leader of an outlaw gang who runs afoul of a coven of witches in the Western horror "The Pale Door."

If you're yearning for one seriously witchy Western: 'The Pale Door'

A train robbery goes south for the Dalton gang – including their outlaw leader (Zachary Knighton) and his younger brother (Devin Druid) – and they end up a ghost town that, unfortunately for them, contains a coven of bloodthirsty witches. The indie horror film nicely twists multiple genres and tropes to create a refreshing fright fest, and the monster designs for the wicked women are top notch.

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, FandangoNOW

JIm Schubin and Chloe Carroll star as a couple who embark on a 30-day scientific experiment in the sci-fi thriller "The Honeymoon Phase."
JIm Schubin and Chloe Carroll star as a couple who embark on a 30-day scientific experiment in the sci-fi thriller "The Honeymoon Phase."

If you're up for a two-bit 'Black Mirror' episode: 'The Honeymoon Phase'

The middling sci-fi thriller stars Chloe Carroll and Jim Schubin as a young lovers who pass themselves off as a married couple to be part of a 30-day social experiment that comes with sweet self-isolation digs and $50,000. An increasingly weird situation drives a wedge between them, the third act reveals aren't terrible and "Lost" mystery man Francois Chau shows up as the similarly enigmatic Director.

Where to watch: Apple TV, Vudu, FandangoNOW

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 'The One and Only Ivan,' 'The Sleepover,' more new movies to stream