Every week, MobileSyrup outlines some of the most notable movies and TV shows that recently hit Canadian streaming platforms.
Our ‘Streaming in Canada’ column typically focuses on new content from Amazon Prime Video Canada, Crave and Netflix Canada, but other services like Apple TV+ and Disney+ will be mentioned when relevant.
We’ll also highlight shows or movies that are made in Canada, involve notable Canadian cast or crew and/or are filmed in Canada.
Finally, with the COVID-19 pandemic causing many movies to hit digital platforms much sooner than planned, we’ll make note of any major films — as well as any other notable streaming service news — that fall into this category when applicable.
Apple TV+
Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry [Apple Original]
Directed by R.J. Cutler (The War Room), this documentary offers an inside look at the coming-of-age story of popular singer-songwriter Billie Eilish.
Specifically, the film chronicles then-17-year-old Eilish as she balances family life and the creation of her debut album When We Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go?
Apple TV+ Canada release date: February 26th, 2021
Genre: Music documentary
Runtime: 2 hours, 20 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: 96 percent (based on 46 reviews)
Stream Billie Eilish: The World’s a Little Blurry here.
An Apple TV+ subscription costs $5.99 CAD/month.
For more on what’s coming to Apple TV+ later this year, click here.
Crave
Framing Britney Spears
This documentary offers a new assessment of the court-mandated conservatorship of Britney Spears, shining new light on her career and downfall.
Framing Britney Spears was directed by Samantha Stark (The New York Times Presents).
It’s also worth noting that Framing Britney Spears is part of The New York Times Presents eight-documentary series, which will come to Crave in March.
Original release date: February 5th, 2021
Crave release date: February 26th, 2021
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: 98 percent (based on 28 reviews)
Stream Framing Britney Spears here.
RuPaul’s Drag Race: Corona Can’t Keep A Good Queen Down
RuPaul’s #DragRace: Corona Can’t Keep a Good Queen Down, drops TONIGHT at 9:30E on Crave! https://t.co/cPqrdfZlRr
— Crave (@CraveCanada) February 26, 2021
This series offers a behind-the-scenes look at how the thirteenth season of RuPaul’s Drag Race (also streaming on Crave) was filmed amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
Corona Can’t Keep A Good Queen Down features interviews with the season’s queens, as well casting reels and other never-before-seen footage.
Crave release date: February 26th, 2021
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: 1 hour, 15 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: N/A
Stream Corona Can’t Keep A Good Queen Down here.
A standard Crave subscription is priced at $9.99/month, with Starz costing another $5.99/month and HBO an additional $9.99/month.
The full list of movies and shows hitting Crave this month can be found here.
Disney+
Star
Disney+ Canada got hundreds of new shows and movies this week with the addition of Star, the entertainment giant’s international version of its U.S. service Hulu.
While the service’s price has gone up to reflect this change, it now features a variety of programming from the likes of 20th Television, 20th Century, Freeform, Searchlight and FX. Some of this is adult content which can be locked behind parental controls to prevent kids from accessing it, like Logan, Deadpool, Alien, Deadpool, The Shape of Water, Kingsman: The Secret Service, Borat and Black Swan.
There are also a variety of more adult-oriented shows included in Star, such as Empire, Homeland, Futurama, Family Guy, How I Met Your Mother and The X-Files.
Finally, there are some titles on Star that were exclusive to Hulu in the U.S. that are branded ‘Star Originals;’ at launch, these are Solar Opposites (an animated sitcom co-created by Rick and Morty‘s Justin Roiland) and Love, Victor (a TV spin-off of the film Love, Simon). There are two episodes of each show so far, with new episodes rolling out every Friday.
The full list of Star’s launch content can be found here.
For more on Star, check out our interview with Greg Mason, Walt Disney Studios Canada’s vice president of marketing.
Disney+ now costs $11.99/month (previously $8.99) or $119.99/year (was $89.99) in Canada.
This week in Disney+ news: If the launch of Star wasn’t enough, Disney also revealed what’s hitting the service in March (including new Star content) and the release dates for several 2021 Disney+ series, including Marvel’s Loki.
Netflix
Canine Intervention [Netflix Original]
Follow a dog trainer in Oakland, California as he works with various dogs and their owners.
Netflix Canada release date: February 24th, 2021
Genre: Documentary
Runtime: Six episodes (24 to 36 minutes each)
Rotten Tomatoes score: N/A
Stream Canine Intervention here.
Ginny & Georgia [Netflix Original]
A mother tries to settle down with her two children to give them a better life than she ever had.
Ginny & Georgia was created by Sarah Lampert (Haze) and stars Brianne Howey (Batwoman), Antonia Gentry (Raising Dion) and Diesel La Torraca (Little Monsters).
It’s worth noting that the series was filmed in Toronto.
Netflix Canada release date: February 24th, 2021
Genre: Comedy-drama
Runtime: 10 episodes (50 to 57 minutes each)
Rotten Tomatoes score: 70 percent (based on 23 reviews)
Stream Ginny & Georgia here.
Pelé [Netflix Original]
This documentary chronicles the significant career of world-renowned soccer player Edson Arantes do Nascimento, better known as “Pelé.”
Netflix Canada release date: February 23rd, 2021
Genre: Sports documentary
Runtime: 1 hour, 48 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: 76 percent (based on 21 reviews)
Stream Pelé here.
The full list of movies and shows hitting Netflix Canada this month can be found here.
A ‘Basic’ Netflix subscription costs $9.99/month, a ‘Standard’ subscription (HD-supported) costs $14.99/month and a ‘Premium’ membership is priced at $18.99/month (4K-supported).
This week in Netflix news: Netflix has revealed the full list of movies and shows hitting its platform in March.
Premium video on demand (PVOD)
Minari
One of the most critically-acclaimed films of the past year is finally available on PVOD.
The semi-autobiographical film follows a South Korean immigrant family trying to make it in rural American during the 1980s.
Minari was written and directed by Lee Isaac Chung (Abigail Harm) and stars Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead), Han Ye-Ri (Secret Zoo), Alan Kim (breakout role) and Youn Yuh-jung (Keys to the Heart).
Canadian PVOD release date: February 26th, 2021
Genre: Drama
Runtime: 1 hour, 55 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: 98 percent (based on 211 reviews)
Minari can be rented for $14.99 on Google Play and $19.99 on iTunes and the Cineplex Store.
Tom & Jerry
When Jerry moves into New York City’s finest hotel on the eve of a historical wedding, the event planner hires Tom to get rid of them, leading chaos to ensue.
Tom & Jerry was directed by Tim Story (Ride Along) and stars Chloë Grace Moretz (Hugo), Michael Peña (Narcos: Mexico), Colin Jost (Saturday Night Live) and Rob Delaney (Catastrophe).
Tom & Jerry is Warner Bros.’ third film this year to undergo a simultaneous theatrical and digital release, following last month’s The Little Things and Judas and the Black Messiah. However, in the U.S., these films are streaming at no additional cost on the HBO Max service; in Canada, they’ve been made available for purchase on PVOD platforms.
Canadian PVOD release date: February 26th, 2021
Genre: Live-action/animated comedy
Runtime: 1 hour, 41 minutes
Rotten Tomatoes score: 26 percent (based on 31 reviews)
Tom & Jerry can be rented for $24.99 on iTunes, Google Play and the Cineplex Store.
What are you planning on watching this week? Let us know in the comments.
For more suggestions, check out last week’s Streaming in Canada column.
The latest edition of our gaming-focused companion column, Stream ‘n Load, can be found here.
Image credit: A24
