Each week our staff of film and TV experts surveys the entertainment landscape to select the ten best new/newish shows available for you to stream at home. We put a lot of thought into our selections, and our debates on what to include and what not to include can sometimes get a little heated and feelings may get hurt, but so be it, this is an important service for you, our readers. With that said, here are our selections for this week.
20. The Underdoggs (Prime Video)
Want to know what happens if you take Little Giants, Mighty Ducks, and Snoop Dogg and whir them up into a cute little paste? Well, you get The Underdoggs, which stars Snoop as a former football star who gets roped into coaching a group of little football misfits to avoid a stretch in prison. You know what you’re getting here. There won’t be any big surprises. But it has a chance to be a sweet little movie, which would all really be a heck of a thing to explain to anyone who was frozen back in the mid-90s and was just thawed out this year. Maybe not the first thing we should explain to them, but still. It’s on the list.
19. Foe (Amazon Prime)
Irish national treasures Paul Mescal and Saoirse Ronan partner for this thought-provoking sci-fi experiment that’s filled with big themes, unanswered questions, and a strangely large amount of bug shots. Mescal and Ronan play Junior and Hen, a couple stranded in their mundane life, living in a future ravaged by climate change. When one of them is offered a chance to escape with the caveat that their robotic replica will stay behind to keep the other company, hard questions about their marriage, their identities, and their purpose threaten to tear them apart. It’s a lo-fi love story with a twist ending you won’t see coming.
18. May December (Netflix)
There’s been a debate online on whether May December qualifies as “camp.” We have no idea, but we do know it’s a very good movie, one of the year’s best. The Todd Haynes film stars Natalie Portman as an actress who shadows a one-time tabloid sensation played by Julianne Moore for a role. It’s best to go in without knowing more than that, although fair warning: while May December is very funny, it’s also quietly devastating.
17. Death and Other Details (Hulu)
What do you get if you cross Knives Out with Only Murders in the Building and add Mandy Patinkin and set it all on a boat? Well, this show, apparently, which is described thusly by Hulu: “Imogene Scott finds herself in the wrong place at the wrong time and becomes the prime suspect in a locked-room murder mystery; to prove her innocence, she must partner with a man she despises, Rufus Cotesworth, the world’s greatest detective.”
It still feels like maybe we should just do a Knives Out/Only Murders crossover event series on a boat, but this works too.
16. Maestro (Netflix)
Bradley Cooper has been nominated for nine Oscars (including four times for Best Picture as a producer) with zero wins. He’s really going for the gold with Maestro. Cooper not only stars alongside Carey Mulligan in the biopic of American composer Leonard Bernstein, he also co-wrote the script, directed the thing, and produced it. Did he also provide the catering? Maybe! Give the man an Oscar for all his hard work, jeez.
15. Criminal Record (Apple TV+)
Hey. Hey. Are you guys missing Slow Horses a little bit? Are you getting that itch for another extremely British spy show, maybe one starring Peter Capaldi? One that you can stumble across without even closing the Apple TV app that’s been open on your devices sapping battery power for a week because you just straight up forgot to close it? Well, good news. Look at this.
An anonymous phone call draws two brilliant detectives into a confrontation over an old murder case; one is a young woman in the early stages of her career, and the other is a well-connected man determined to protect his legacy.
Yeah, buddy. That’s the stuff.
14. Role Play (Amazon Prime)
Role Play, quickly:
— A new Prime Video series described as folllows: “A young married couple’s life turns upside down after secrets are revealed about each other’s past.”
— Stars Kaley Cuoco, who rules, and David Oyelowo, who also rules and has seen his star rise big time in the last year
— Maybe don’t watch this with the spouse you just married?
Lots to consider here.
13. Lift (Netflix)
PRO
— The official description of the Netflix Kevin Hart movie — “A master thief is wooed by his ex-girlfriend and the FBI to pull off an impossible heist with his international crew on a 777 passenger flight from London to Zurich” — sounds awesome
— It’s directed by F. Gary Gray, whose résumé includes Friday and Set It Off and The Italian Job, which is a fascinating collection of films for one man to direct
— Also stars Billy Magnussen and Jean Reno, which is cool
CON
— It… feels… like… it… should… be… bad?
Real toss-up. You watch it and tell us.
12. Self Reliance (Hulu)
From the mind of New Girl and Minx (RIP) star Jake Johnson comes a wild movie about a guy trying to win a million bucks by constantly being near other people whilst being hunted. Apologies for the old-assed references, but Self Reliance is what would happen if you took the Richard Pryor classic Brewster’s Millions and crossed it with Schwarzenegger’s Running Man and then turned it into a rom-com. Plus it’s got Anna Kendrick, Andy Samberg, and Biff Wiff. You in?
11. Pete Davidson: Turbo Fonzarelli (Netflix)
Netflix continues its run of ultra-high profile specials from super polarizing comedy giants with this check-in on Pete Davidson’s standup comedy stylings. From the soiled underthings of his alleged stalker to ruminations on the lengths he’d go to get his mom laid and the hidden benefit of Make-A-Wish kids, Davidson is as shocking and on point comedically as ever. He’s also in black and white. We do not know why.
10. Leave the World Behind (Netflix)
You want a psychological thriller? Cool. Check out this premise: “A family’s getaway to a luxurious rental home takes an ominous turn when a cyberattack knocks out their devices, and two strangers appear at their door.”
You want a solid creative pedigree? Cool. This movie comes from the brain of Mr. Robot creator Sam Esmail (who knows a little something about psychological thrillers ), who writes and directs based on a book of the same name.
You want star power? Cool. This sucker stars Mahershala Ali and Ethan Hawke and Julia Freaking Roberts, and features rising star Myha’la Herrold in a major role and Kevin Bacon in a smaller one.
All your bases are covered here.
9. In the Know (Peacock)
Okay, Apple is getting into the adult animation game, making cartoons for grown-ups. And if you’re going to do that, you can sure do a lot worse than Beavis & Butthead creator Mike Judge, who teams up for a show with his Silicon Valley breakout Zach Woods that the service describes thusly:
The stop-motion comedy follows the staff of the public radio show, In the Know, hosted by Lauren Caspian (Zach Woods), a well-meaning but hypocritical nimrod. Each episode follows the making of an episode of the radio show, in which Lauren conducts in-depth interviews with real human guests and collaborates with a diverse crew of public radio staff (who are puppets).
Yes. Sure. This can work. All the pieces are right there.
8. Expats (Prime Video)
No one plays a grieving mother on the fringes of a mental breakdown quite like Nicole Kidman and this latest prestige drama from Amazon Prime Video she more than stakes her claim on the character archetype. As a wealthy American housewife living in Hong Kong and desperately searching for her missing child, Kidman anchors this Lulu Wang-created series about womanhood, identity, and loss. The subject matter is a bit heavy – best consumed in small portions instead of a full binge – but the visuals are stunning, as is the immersion into a culture we rarely see on screen. Will Nicole Kidman ever be happy on a TV show? We hope not.
7. The Brothers Sun (Netflix)
Everything Everywhere All At Once star Michelle Yeoh is seemingly, you know, everywhere… all at once, and there are no complaints there, except possibly from this piano player from the awards circuit. Creators Brad Falchuk (Glee, American Horror Story) and Byron Wu (The Getaway) bring us the story of Bruce (Sam Song Li), who begins to realize that his mom, Eileen (Yeoh), hasn’t exactly been forthcoming about her past. Soon enough, it becomes obvious that a family business exists and has already been joined by older brother Charles (Justin Chien), a powerful assassin. Expect both comedy and action as roundhouse kicks collide.
6. The Holdovers (Peacock)
Paul Giamatti is picking up awards left and right for his performance in Alexander Payne’s latest film, which is great. For Paul Giamatti. But also for us. Like, as a society. Look at this: “A curmudgeonly instructor at a New England prep school remains on campus during Christmas break to babysit a handful of students with nowhere to go. He soon forms an unlikely bond with a brainy but damaged troublemaker, and with the school’s head cook, a woman who just lost a son in the Vietnam War.”
Our official position here is twofold: one, we support anything where Paul Giamatti gets to be curmudgeonly; two, we love to see Paul Giamatti thrive. This checks both boxes.
5. Barbie (Max)
Greta Gerwig’s massive summer blockbuster hits streaming. There’s not much to say that hasn’t been said. It’s wickedly smart and funny and sly. It’s much weirder than people expected, in the best ways possible. Margot Robbie is incredible as Barbie, providing layers of depth to a character who has rarely before had more than one. Ryan Gosling is a delight as the deeply confused Ken who is watching his simple little world crumble around him. There are cameos galore and touching moments and belly laughs. If you haven’t seen it yet, now’s the time. If you have, well, now’s the time to watch it again. This one is worth a rewatch. Or two. Or five. How you spend your time is your business.
4. True Detective: Night Country (Max)
Can Season 4 recapture the magic of Season 1? At the very least, this new story seems to be hitting some of the same atmospheric and tonal notes as the original story starring Matthew McConaughey and Woody Harrelson, who shall not be seen but are executive producing. There will be plenty of literal and figurative chills while Jodie Foster’s detective teams up with an old colleague portrayed by Evangeline Navarro. Together, they will attempt to unearth frozen truths involving horrors that took place during a Polar Night when an entire research died under mysterious circumstances. Are your teeth chattering already? Same.
3. Echo (Disney Plus)
Disney+’s first street-level entry into the MCU is as kickass as its Netflix predecessors with a magnetic anti-hero in Maya Lopez (Alaqua Cox) and the kind of gritty, neck-breaking fights that more than earn its TV-MA rating. Picking up after the events of Hawkeye, Maya has cut ties with the Tracksuit Mafia and her adoptive dad, Wilson Fisk (Vincent D’Onofrio), fleeing to Oklahoma to connect with her roots. The show plays up its connection to Netflix’s Daredevil – Fisk is in every episode and Charlie Cox returns as Hell’s Kitchen’s most pious vigilante for a vicious fight sequence that sets the tone for the rest of the season. But the draw here is Cox, and the character-driven storytelling Marvel is committing itself to with these more grounded entries into its universe.
2. Masters of the Air (Apple TV)
Here’s a stellar Band Of Brothers followup from Steven Spielberg (Amblin Television) in conjunction with Tom Hanks and Gary Goetzman (Playtone). This new series is based upon Donald L. Miller’s book of the same name about the “Bloody Hundredth,” i.e. the 100th Bomb Group, who risked everything they had to conduct bombing raids upon Nazi Germany. Austin Butler dropped his Elvis voice to portray a U.S. major alongside Callum Turner. There’s a “Buck” and a “Bucky” in the character list, and there’s also the ever-present Barry Keoghan joining in the camaraderie while the U.S. carries out perilous missions to take down Hitler’s Third Reich. It’s an adventure-filled yet harrowing viewing experience but fully worth the ride.
1. Griselda (Netflix)
Here comes “the Godmother” of cocaine. Original Narcos co-creator Doug Miro and Narcos: Mexico executive producer Eric Newman team up to tell the story of Colombian drug cartel leader Griselda Blanco, a prolific cocaine trafficker as portrayed by Sofia Vergara. We haven’t seen the Modern Family star get dramatic on TV yet, so this series should attract eyeballs for more reasons than one. Griselda reigned in Miami in the 1970-’80s, and her tour of terror included operating under 20 aliases, moving hundreds of kilos per month, and ordering dozens of murders.