New to TVNZ+ in August

The TVNZ+ platform continues to broaden and expand its content each month, with August’s highlights ranging from a suite of foreign language dramas and a front row seat at the UK’s biggest festival to premium sport and drama.

They include an outstanding Irish crime thriller that TVNZ’s picked up from the strip-mining of the AMC+ library for tax write-downs and licensing revenue.

Both seasons of Kin will stream from August 24, and in a higher resolution than the 720p at which AMC+ maxes out.

They revolve around the Dublin gang war that erupts in the aftermath of a boy’s killing; Charlie Cox (Daredevil), Aidan Gillen (Game of Thrones), Ciarán Hinds (The Dry), and Emmett J Scanlan (Peaky Blinders) star.

Fifteen-Love (August 15) is billed as “a gripping and sensitive exploration of trust, power and obsession – and what can be lost when you’ll do anything to win”.

It centres on a teenage prodigy (Ella Lily Hyland) whose meteoric rise in Grand Slam tennis is cut short by a career-ending injury — only to hit the headlines five years later when she makes an explosive allegation against her former coach (Aidan Turner), with whom she had an intense rapport.

The series went to air the month in the UK, where The Guardian gushed “the acting in this impeccably tense drama is absolutely mesmerising”.

Harold Perrineau, Eion Bailey and Catalina Sandino Moreno star in sci-fi drama From (August 11). Reads the blurb:

The Matthews’ family road trip takes a horrifying turn when they are detoured to a small town from which they cannot leave. As the unwilling residents fight to keep a sense of normalcy and search for a way out, they must also survive the threats of the surrounding forest – including the terrifying creatures that come out when the sun goes down.

The 2022 MGM series earned top reviews, ranging from “no simple splatterfest” (Sydney Morning Herald) to “a smart, extremely watchable horror show” (RogerEbert.com).

If you prefer non-scripted fare, TVNZ+ promises a “VIP pass” to Glastonbury 2023, including coverage of headlining acts Elton John, Lizzo, Arctic Monkeys and Guns ‘N’ Roses, as well as performances by Foo Fighters, Lana Del Rey, Lil Nas X and Blondie among others.

Music fans also can stream:

• Right Here, Right Now, which documents the chaos that ensued when DJ Fatboy Slim’s free concert on Brighton Beach in 2002 drew 250,000 ravers — six times more than expected.
• punk rock doco American Hardcore
• It Might Get Loud, the story of the electric guitar featuring The Edge, Jimmy Page, and Jack White.

Other factual newcomers include:

• Alone Australia (August 29), in which 10 Aussies are dropped off alone in the Tasmanian wilderness in the middle of winter with nothing but a backpack to survive nature, hunger and loneliness;
• The Family Stallone (August 1), in which Sylvester Stallone reveals his biggest supporting role in life — that of father ands husband;
• Catching Lightning (August 8) is the surreal tale of Great Britain’s Securitas Depot robbery in 2006, which UFC champ “Lightning” Lee Murray nearly pulled off one of the largest bank robberies in history — expect “part ripping heist yarn, part riveting sports drama, and one wild ride.”

Spearheadsing August’s sports highlights are basketball (FIBA Men’s World Cup), tennis (US Open), hockey (Oceania Cup), cricket (The Hundred, Blackcaps v England), and rugby (Samoa v Tonga, Samoa v Barbarians). Here’s the full schedule for August.

August’s new movies include:

• Passengers
• Bend It Like Beckham
• Whiplash
• The Lobster
• Captain Phillips 
• As Good As It Gets
• The Interview 
• Open Season 
• Eagle vs Shark
• Get Carter
• Gothika
• Bad Teacher 
• Dope 
• Lords of Dogtown 
• St Trinian’s 
• The Diary of a Teenage Girl 
• The Squid and the Whale 
• The Proposition 
• The Patriot 
• Vertical Limit 
• Anaconda 
• Austenland 
• Bottle Rocket 
• Drinking Buddies 
• Just Go With It 
• Surf’s Up 2: Wavemania 
• The Swan Princess: A Royal Family Tale 
• Hachi: A Dog’s Tale 

New to the branded channels are:

Filmstream

• Slalom
• The Night

iwonder

• Cyborgs Among Us
• Will a Robot Steal My Job?
• To Kid or Not to Kid 
• Guns in the USA: Child’s Play 
• No Evidence of Disease 
• The Ransom 
• Slaves to Habit 

Lifetime

• Giving Hope: The Ni’Cola Mitchell Story
• Framed by My Husband
• Hider in My House
• Paris Can Wait

Outdoor Channel

• Hard Truths of Conservation S1
• Mega Transports S1
• Adventure All Stars S3

OUTtv

• Da Fuq? S3
• Sew Fierce S1

Pulse

• Larger Than Life: The Kevyn Aucoin Story
• In the Shadow of 9/11
• The Man Putin Couldn’t Kill
• This Is Joan Collins