I loved these 10 true movies you can stream this weekend

First about this image. I asked AI to “make a pic of me watching a movie,” and somehow it nailed my husband, our two goldens (even Bella the puppy!). But there’s something off. Can you spot it? At the end of the newsletter, rate it, then drop your guess, name and email. I’ll pick five winners to get a Kim Komando Show ballcap (a $29.99 value)! 🧢

Moving on…

Looking for something great to watch this weekend? Forget feel-good fluff, this list is packed with real stories that’ll leave your soul gently dismantled. Better yet, all these movies are based on real events. I’ve watched every one. 

They’re powerful, emotional and full of people who overcame the impossible, made history or changed the world in quiet but unforgettable ways. 

Hit the link to watch the movie’s trailer and find out where it’s streaming.

Unbroken
An Olympic athlete survives a WWII plane crash, 47 days adrift at sea and brutal captivity in a Japanese POW camp and never gives up.

Nyad
Annette Bening stars as Diana Nyad, who swam 110 miles from Cuba to Florida at age 64. Talk about determination.

Reality
Sydney Sweeney plays NSA whistleblower Reality Winner in a real-time thriller using actual FBI transcripts. It’s tense and intimate.

The Burial
Jamie Foxx and Tommy Lee Jones face off in a legal battle over a family-run funeral home. It’s smart, funny and based on a real 1995 case.

Lion
A boy gets lost in India, adopted in Australia, and years later finds his way home using Google Earth. Bring tissues.

Father Stu
Mark Wahlberg plays a boxer turned priest whose life is upended by a rare illness. It’s raw, redemptive and surprisingly funny.

The Theory of Everything
Stephen Hawking’s rise, struggle and love story are brought to life by an incredible performance from Eddie Redmayne.

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Hotline bling: The Google Pixel 6a just added “pyromaniac” to its resume. After a mandatory July software patch meant to reduce overheating, at least one updated phone straight-up caught fire while charging overnight. On the bright side, Pixel 6as can help preheat your room. 

5

That’s how many people it takes to keep your mental health from tanking. A study by Medibank and Growth Distillery found people with “high mental well-being” had an average of five reliable friends. Those struggling? Just three friends. That tiny gap is the difference between “I’ve got support” and “I don’t want to bother anyone.”

Fix Spotify recs: Getting songs on Discover Weekly that make you go, “Why … this?” Give it a nudge: Find the bad playlist, tap the three-dot menu and select Exclude from your taste profile.

An app without a cause: I don’t see the point. Jack Dorsey (yep, the Twitter guy and CEO of Block) just dropped Bitchat, a free chat app that doesn’t need Wi-Fi, servers or a login. It runs on Bluetooth, so it’s you and whoever’s nearby within about 30 feet. Kind of like passing notes, but way nerdier.

🛰️ Scammers in low orbit: Facebook is crawling with phony ads offering “lifetime Starlink service” for as low as $127. Now real Starlink service starts at $120 per month, with no such thing as a lifetime package. These ads link to fake websites that mimic Starlink’s branding but have sketchy URLs, typos and unsecure payment pages. The only thing connecting here is your credit card to a scammer. Don’t fall for it.

🐱 You’ve got to be kitten me: Every year since 2016, people have gone to theaters to watch a full-length film of cats being chaotic, cute and ridiculous (case in point). CatVideoFest is a compilation of viral clips and fan submissions aka YouTube, but on the big screen. The kicker? It’s a hit. Last year alone, it clawed in over $1 million. That’s the cat’s meow.

Fur-get hide-and-seek: Whistle dog GPS trackers are shutting down on Aug. 31. Why? Rival Tractive bought them. Trade in your old Whistle for a free Tractive tracker by Sept. 30. Subscriptions roll over, but warranties don’t. 

30%

The share of telescope images now tainted by Starlink’s signal leakage. One out of every three cosmic snapshots gets photobombed by a satellite. Researchers spotted unintentional radiation, using 76 million images from the EDA2 telescope. These signals aren’t even part of the satellites’ jobs, they’re just leaking and contaminating data meant to map the cosmic “dark ages.”

Kicking the bucket: Dropbox is shutting down its free password manager, Dropbox Passwords, on Aug. 27, 2025. All your logins and saved passwords will vanish. If you’re looking for a reliable alternative, NordPass is a smart, secure pick that’s easy to use, packed with features and won’t suddenly disappear on you.

💼 Bring your bot to work day: If you’re applying for a job at Meta, you can now use AI coding assistants during the interview. Makes sense. You wouldn’t make an accountant use an abacus. 

72 hours

That’s the weekly grind for typical AI startup workers. It’s the infamous “996” warning label, that’s 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. six days a week, that feels more like working in the 1950s (minus the pensions, drinks, cigars and long lunches). AI may replace us eventually, but until then, it’s replacing our sleep.

Lithium-ion battery fire: A home in Fairway, Kansas, caught fire after a lawn mower battery blew up in the garage. It was on the charger when family members heard an explosion, and the fire spread quickly. Thankfully, everyone got out safely. PSA: Charge your electric goodies outside, not in the garage.

399 billion

The gallons of water Texas data centers are expected to chug annually by 2030. That’s nearly 7% of the state’s entire projected water use. They’re actually telling people not to take so many showers. Good thing I don’t live in Texas. I love nothing more than getting up at 6 a.m. for a cold shower. So I don’t.

✨ Manifesting, but make it AI: Vision boards are so 2006. Now it’s all about editing yourself into a trailer for your future. AI tools like Freepik and Runway let you simulate dream jobs, podcast guest spots, even private jets, with your own face (paywall link). Does it help? Maybe. Is it a little Black Mirror? Definitely.

3 in 4

The number of new grads saying “nah” to working at Big Tech firms. Turns out, job security and vibes matter more than kombucha on tap. Layoffs, ethical murkiness and burnout culture make Google and Meta feel like cautionary tales. Instead, job hunters are going for startups and anywhere they won’t be laid off by lunch.

Windows 11 22H2 support is ending: Microsoft will stop security patches and bug fixes for this version on Oct. 14, 2025. To update, go to Settings > Windows Update and enable Get the latest updates as soon as they’re available. FYI: Support for Home and Pro editions already ended last October.

🔥 Today is the last day: Microsoft is killing off password storage in its Authenticator app. Your logins were migrated to Edge in early July, and the rest, like payment info, is toast tomorrow, Aug. 1. Passkeys are sticking around, but this is your sign to switch to a new password manager before your digital pantry gets cleaned out on Microsoft’s schedule. I use and recommend NordPass.

📹 No cellfies here: Turns out the FBI does have the “missing minute” from the Epstein prison footage. You know, the one that mysteriously vanished from the DOJ’s public video. The metadata shows it was recorded, just not released. Officials now claim the raw footage exists and shows nothing sketchy, obviously.

$16.5 billion

That’s how much Tesla’s spending on AI chips from Samsung, and that’s just the appetizer. Interestingly, not buying ’em from Nvidia. Elon Musk says it’s a “baseline,” which in Musk-speak usually means “buckle up.” The AI6 chips will be homegrown in Texas, giving “Made in America” a futuristic glow-up.