New albums from Lizzo and Death Cab for Cutie and the streaming service debut of animated hit “Hoppers” are some of the new television, films, music and games headed to a device near you.
Also among the streaming offerings worth your time this week, as selected by The Associated Press’ entertainment journalists: the new season of “Love Island,” a new rom-com starring Jennifer Lopez and Brett Goldstein, XXX and the quiet puzzle game “Swan Song.”
New movies to stream from June 1-7
— With strong reviews and good ticket sales, “Hoppers” was one of the better received Pixar originals in recent years. The film, a zany body-swapping comedy about environmental protection, arrives June 3 on Disney+. In it, Mabel (Piper Curda) is trying to defend a pristine pond from development by the local mayor (Jon Hamm) when she transforms, or “hops,” into the body of a robotic beaver. In her review, AP Film Writer Lindsey Bahr called it a “buoyant, freewheeling adventure.”
— “Office Romance” (Netflix June 5) pairs Jennifer Lopez and Brett Goldstein (“Ted Lasso”) in a workplace rom com. Lopez stars as a chief executive of an airline who falls for the company’s new lawyer (Goldstein). Goldstein also wrote the movie with “Ted Lasso” co-creator Joe Kelly.
– Ahmir “Questlove” Thompson continues his documentary tours through music history with “Earth, Wind & Fire (To Be Celestial vs. That’s the Weight of the World).” Questlove’s tribute to the seminal Chicago group debuts on HBO and HBO Max on June 7, days after its premiere at the Tribeca Festival.
— Harry Lighton’s “Pillion” (HBO Max June 5) is one of the more memorable love stories in recent years. Harry Melling and Alexander Skarsgård star as an unlikely BDSM couple: one sings barbershop quartet, the other is a gruff biker. In my review, I praised “Pillion” as the portrait of a relationship “in the extreme, one that ultimately, like any other, is guided by needs and wants.”
New music to stream from June 1-7
— It has been four years since Lizzo last released a full-length project. That was “Special,” lead by the ubiquitous funk-pop “About Damn Time.” This time around, she’s promised “good, clean fun” on her new one, the suggestively titled “B—-.” Led by the ’80s ballad “Don’t Make Me Love U,” it’s clear that she’s still in it for the big pop songs.
— Death Cab for Cutie’s forthcoming studio album, “I Built You A Tower,” has two main inspirations, if they can be called that. It’s the beloved indie rock band’s first full-length project since the end of the anniversary tours for their career-defining albums, 2003’s “Transatlanticism” and 2005’s “Plans,” which reinvigorated their songwriting. It was also written while principal songwriter and frontman Ben Gibbard was going through a separation and eventual divorce. “I was doing a lot of context switching,” Gibbard told the AP. “I started to write a lot about how we contextualize, compartmentalize, specifically our grief.” Luckily, that kind of humanity is the stuff the band excels in.
— Of the former members of One Direction, Niall Horan has stayed truest to the boy band’s propulsive pop-rock, but don’t think that means his matured work is derivative. He’s taken those classic tools and aged them. “Dinner Party,” his fourth full-length album as a soloist, draws inspiration from the place where he met his long-term partner. Damien Rice is a main influence, and the songs are dreamy and romantic.
— It began with “Blackberry Marmalade,” Vince Staples’ first solo song in two years. It was a heavy introduction to his hyper-independent “Cry Baby” album, out Friday – all noise-rock, critical messaging (“Empires build on bloodstained ground,” he opens the first verse) and a music video styled like a first-person shooter video game. Then came the even darker “White Flag.” The musician, known for his inventiveness and often surrealist approach to art making, is clearly taking a direct approach here.
— AP Music Writer Maria Sherman
New series to stream from June 1-7
— Some people look forward to the summer months because of the warm weather and because school is out. Others get hyped because of a new season of “Love Island USA,” which begins airing five nights a week Tuesday on Peacock. The season is approximately six weeks of scantily clad, single contestants sequestered in a villa in Fiji. They must couple up or they’re sent home. The last couple remaining wins a cash prize.
— AMC has given the third season of “Anne Rice’s Interview with a Vampire” series a new name. The show is now called “The Vampire Lestat” with Lestat de Lioncourt (Sam Reid) sharing his story. Unhappy with the way he was written in Daniel Molloy’s book, Lestat forms a rock band and goes on the road. Lestat craves attention and admiration and he’s certain his rock star persona will attract adoring fans. AMC is leaning into Lestat’s music, making it available on music streaming apps. Fun fact: Reid performed his own songs. “The Vampire Lestat” premieres Sunday, June 7, on AMC and AMC+.
New video games to play from June 1-7
— Amid all the noise and chaos of modern culture, sometimes you just want to solve a nice, quiet puzzle. That’s what Belgium’s Business Goose Games is aiming for with “Swan Song.” It’s essentially a music box with two compartments: one contains sheet music, while the other contains a maze. You need to choose the right notes in order to make each maze solvable. The developer’s last mellow brainteaser, “Sizeable,” found an enthusiastic audience, and its new puzzler has a similar vibe. Open the box Thursday, June 4, on PC or Mac.
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