

Video on Demand

"Holmes & Watson": Even as an unapologetic fan of Will Ferrell and John C. Reilly, I am sad to report that there just aren't many laughs in this ridiculous farce. The two comedians portray Sherlock Holmes and his sidekick Dr. Watson in this broadly dumb comedy that mostly exists to serve up anachronistic jokes. There is an undercurrent of a storyline where the two detectives have to protect the Queen from a threat at Buckingham Palace but note that "storyline" is used here in the loosest definition of the word. Worst of all is that the film has been watered down to a PG-13 rating so there are multiple instances of noticeable dialogue replacement where raunchier jokes and words have been tamed down. If for some reason you decide to purchase this as opposed to renting, there are nearly an hour's worth of deleted scenes that must only exist to prove that things can always be worse. (Cable and digital VOD, 4K Ultra HD available)

Also on streaming services

"Destroyer": It's a shame that Annapurna flat-out gave up on this movie during awards season. When you plan an entire release schedule around award nominations that don't surface, you have to just dive in or retreat, and the distributor chose the latter method. And it's all the more shameful because Karyn Kusama's gritty police drama is terrifically bold and uncompromising. Nicole Kidman gives the best performance of her career as Detective Erin Bell, a woman whose experiences going deep undercover in the LAPD have left her completely broken and emotionally scarred. Kidman is note-perfect, able to express a lifetime of bad decisions with one glance. We're given a flashback structure that floats between her present day and several years earlier when she infiltrated a gang with her partner Chris (Sebastian Stan) and things went very badly. The timeline shifts frequently throughout, slowly providing context for her gruff attitude and frequent drunkenness. Now she is dealing with the distinct possibility that the former leader of the gang she had helped to take down has resurfaced and is out to get her. To make matters even more complicated, she has a surly 16-year-old daughter named Shelby (Jade Pettyjohn) who is dating a much older man, and an ex-husband (Scoot McNairy) who isn't sure how to handle any of these problems. Bradley Whitford chews the scenery with an amazing bit part as a crooked lawyer, and "Orphan Black" star Tatiana Maslany is outstanding but sadly underutilized as the bridge between Bell's former and current life. (Hulu)