Month: June 2024

Every single week, our TV and film experts will list the most important ten streaming selections for you to pop into your queues. We’re not strictly operating upon reviews or accrued streaming clicks (although yes, we’ve scoured the streaming site charts) but, instead, upon those selections that are really worth noticing amid the churning sea of content. There’s a lot out there, after all, and your time is valuable.

10. Bad Boys for Life (Sony Pictures movie streaming on Hulu)

You know the drill — a new movie from an enduring franchise moves into theaters, and people want a refresher on the film that most recently arrived. In this 2020 installment, Will Smith and Martin Lawrence’s buddy cops must reconcile their old-school ways (or not) with the flashier, younger cops on the scene. That’s not the easiest feat when a Mexican drug cartel is out for vengeance, but as always with this law enforcement duo, they survive by the skin of their teeth while still mining laughs out of material that has no right to still be so funny.

9. Presumed Innocent (Apple TV+ series)

Jake Gyllenhaal’s lead character has screwed himself so hard in this adaptation of Scott Turow’s same-named legal thriller, in which a prosecutor’s affair with a colleague leads him to become a murder suspect. His DNA is all over the victim’s bedroom, and it does not look fantastic for Jake’s Rusty in this show that dives into the overarching concepts of sex, power, obsession, and whether Gyllenhaal’s Road House abs can be adequately concealed by a suit. Enjoy his “out of shape” treadmill running, too, while wondering whether his character will be able to get himself off the culpability train and also learn to keep his zipper closed. Intrigue!

8. Sweet Tooth (Netflix series)

Team Downey’s savory slam-dunk series has returned to put a bow on the post-apocalyptic adventures of Gus and Jeopardy. In this final season, the questing parties head to Alaska in search of Gus’ mother, who is on a search of her own for the origins of the Sick. Unfortunately, Gus is the target of a new threat on the horizon, so it’s anyone’s guess how the hybrids and humanity will fare in the end.

7. Your Honor (Showtime series streaming on Netflix)

If you were scratching your head and wondering whether you dreamed that this show actually aired years ago on Showtime, then you would be correct. The ability of Netflix to resurrect dead series strikes again. The show stars Panic Cranston face as a judge who isn’t so honorable after his son gets involved in a mafia death, and that leads into an intense race against time and many mini-cleanups that remind audiences how Bryan Cranston is the dude that Hollywood calls when they want a sort-of everyman who cannot and will not stop breaking bad. Too bad about the lack of an Aaron Paul cameo, though.

6. Star Wars: The Acolyte (Disney+ series)

As far as Star Wars shows go, this series tackles a galaxy far, far away from a new perspective. The show does begin prior to the Empire’s ascendance, and it leans into police-procedural vibes when a crime spree brings a dangerous warrior back from a Jedi Master’s past. Co-stars include part-time furry Amandla Stenberg, Dafne Keen Margarita Levieva, Carrie-Anne Moss, Charlie Barnett, and Manny Jacinto.

5. Godzilla Minus One (Toho Studios movie streaming on Netflix)

The first Oscar-winning Godzilla movie hit streaming with barely any advance notice, and that’s alright. Not only that, but this movie rolled out as a low-budget sensation that had already earned exponentially against its budget, which goes to show that — given that there’s also the ongoing Apple TV+ show and Kong buddy comedies (not really), too — Japan and the rest of the globe will never tire of the nuclear lizard. There have been some less than stellar Godzilla flicks over the decades, but this ain’t one of them.

4. Hit Man (Netflix movie)

Glen Powell — he is everywhere right now, and that’s more than alright. He portrays a dramatized version of real-life undercover officer Gary Johnson in this Richard Linklater film that takes inspiration from Skip Hollandsworth’s 2001 Texas Monthly article that detailed Johnson’s life as an undercover/fake killer for hire. Disguises are embellished for the sake of cinema, but Powell’s charisma shines through during even the most darkly humorous moments. He’ll soon be seen in Twisters, where the Austinite actor hopefully does not actually attempt to ride a tornado like he’s on a bull.

3. Under Paris (Netflix movie)

Considering how angry the oceans seem at mankind these days, this film actually doesn’t seem implausible. Also, Stephen King is a fan of the final 25 minutes of this relatively serious film that does not take a Sharknado approach to a shark invasion of the Seine River. Bérénice Bejo (The Artist) stars, and yep, this French take on the Jaws themes couldn’t be more conveniently timed with the Paris Olympics on the horizon.

2. Bridgerton (Netflix series)

The final four episodes will be dominating Netflix for weeks to come, especially due to the series longest sex scene yet, and it’s even steamier than that Carriage Scene, but do not worry, Kate and Anthony are still doing their thing and plenty of it. The Lady Whistledown matter does not get ignored, and viewers are also calling this the best batch of episodes yet. Get your smelling salts ready and go to town, Shondaland devotees.

1. The Boys (Prime Video/Amazon series)

Yes, this juggernaut and flagship series still specializes in doling out depravity, but the storytelling slaps harder than the show has ever done before. Homelander is still an absolute nightmare, and two new Supes (Firecracker and Sister Sage) are here to bring out new shades and weaknesses of The Seven’s leader. Also, Victoria Newman is still bloodbending towards D.C. again while Billy Butcher’s days are numbered, so he’s got nothing to lose. And oi, Hughie’s seasons continue to grow more grueling with time after enduring the first tragedy of the series.

Six Oscar nominations for Amy Adams might be enough, even without a win, for the American Hustle and Enchanted star to do whatever she wants. That includes a new horror-comedy film that adapts the same-named bestselling novel from Rachel Yoder.

The film should be as flat-out bonkers as the book, which became a club favorite and, as such, arrives with a built-in audience. Actually, the story is so bitingly funny that this movie is virtually guaranteed to be a runaway hit. Let’s talk about what to expect when this story comes to life onscreen, Oscar material or not:

Plot

Marielle Heller will be in the director’s seat and wrote the script, which presents a scathing take (with a feminist slant) on societal expectations of motherhood. Adams will portray, well, a woman whose name we will not actually learn. In the book, she’s known as a “mother,” but then, according to the longline, she is — get this — “thrown into the stay-at-home routine of raising a toddler in the suburbs, who slowly embraces the feral power deeply rooted in motherhood, as she becomes increasingly aware of the bizarre and undeniable signs that she may be turning into a canine.”

It happens? Well, perhaps the psychological horror of motherhood needed a good shake at the movies. Nothing quite turns a life upside down like sudden parenthood, but this story takes things into the body-horror-esque realm. She starts to grow hair on her body and sprouts additional nipples, and after her husband (Scoot McNairy) tells her that she acted like a “bitch,” Adams’ character becomes known as “Nightbitch.” Yes, it’s freaking weird stuff, and Variety warns viewers to expect not simply a horror comedy but a “darkly comic Neo-horror.”

Cast

Adams will portray the protagonist, of course, and Scoot McNairy will be in a role like we’ve never seen him before. His character travels plenty for work, so it remains to be seen how much of Mr. Nightbitch we will see, but some Scoot is better than none. The film’s cast also includes Zoe Chao, Laura Meadows, Mary Holland, Jessica Harper, and Ella Thomas.

Release Date

The film will eventually stream on Hulu as a Hulu Original movie. No word yet on whether a theatrical release is in the cards.

Trailer

No trailer exists yet, but something tells me that Adams might draw from the same well of inspiration that she did while portraying Camille in HBO’s Sharp Objects, based upon the Gillian Flynn novel.

Gervonta “Tank” Davis (30-0-0, 28 knockouts) made his return to the ring after more than a year away on Saturday night in Las Vegas, as he faced off with the previously undefeated challenger Frank Martin (18-0-0, 12 KOs) for the WBA World Lightweight championship. We hadn’t seen Davis since his knockout victory over Ryan Garcia last April, and despite over a year away, he didn’t show much sign of ring rust in what became an eighth round knockout win.

Martin was a game challenger for much of the fight, often having a response to Davis flurries with strong punches of his own, but he never seemed to truly bother Davis, who continued to walk him down even as he got tagged with counters.

Eventually, Davis was able to back Martin up against the ropes in the eighth and caught him flush with a vicious combination, first a left uppercut that stunned Martin and caused him to drop his hands, followed by a clean left hook that put him out for good.

Davis celebrated the knockout win with a backflip off the ropes, as he knew Martin wasn’t getting up from that left and started his celebration before the referee had even finished the count.

There are a number of potential big fights to make for Davis at lightweight going forward, as Shakur Stevenson holds the WBC belt and Vasiliy Lomachenko holds the IBF belt at the moment. Either would be tantalizing matchups, but as is always the case in boxing, it’s much easier to said than done to get the top fighters against each other.

When we think about the era of American slavery, many of us tend to think of it as the far distant past. While slavery doesn’t exist as a formal institution today, there are people living who knew formerly enslaved black Americans first-hand. In the wide arc of history, the legal enslavement of people on U.S. soil is a recent occurrence—so recent, in fact, that we have voice recordings of interviews with people who lived it.

Many of us have read written accounts of enslavement, from Frederick Douglass’s autobiography to some of the 2,300 first-person accounts housed in the Library of Congress. But how many of us have heard the actual voices of people who were enslaved telling their own stories?

ABC News’ Nightline with Ted Koppel aired a segment in 1999 in which we can hear the first-person accounts of people who had been enslaved taken from interviews conducted in the 1930s and 40s (also housed in the Library of Congress). They include the voice of a man named Fountain Hughes, who was born into slavery in 1848 and whose grandfather had “belonged to” Thomas Jefferson.

As Koppel says in the segment, “The results of these digitally enhanced recordings are arresting, almost unbelievable. The idea of hearing the voices of actual slaves from the plantations of the Old South is as powerful—as startling, really—as if you could hear Abraham Lincoln or Robert E. Lee speak.”

Indeed, hearing formerly enslaved people share their experiences of being bought and sold like cattle, sleeping on bare pallets, and witnessing whippings for insubordination is a heartbreaking reminder of how close we are to this ugly chapter of our history. The segment is well worth ten minutes to watch:

This article originally appeared on 03.09.20

Tony Hale has had a mighty successful acting career. In fact, the actor stars in Disney and Pixar’s Inside Out 2, which is currently showing in theaters. However, none of this has quite impressed Hale’s daughter.

Yesterday (June 14), during an appearance on The Talk, Hale confessed that he found a way to earn some cool points with the help of Beyoncé.

To help kick off the Cowboy Carter rollout, the “Texas Hold ‘Em” singer partnered with Verizon, for an internet-breaking Super Bowl LVIII commercial.

When asked by host Sheryl Underwood about keeping the secret from his certified Beyhive member daughter, Hale shared how hard it was. “So [when] I got this gig, I was like, ‘This is so cool,’” he said. “But I had to sign [some paperwork] so I couldn’t say anything. But my daughter had just been to Beyoncé’s [Renaissance] concert. Usually is super bored by what I do. She doesn’t care, and I had that [one thing] and I couldn’t say it. So she had to wait to see it on the Super Bowl.”

He then went on to reveal the exchange they had after the commercial aired. “I was out of town, unfortunately,” he said. “But she texted me and was like, ‘Dad?’ So I texted her an emoji of a bee. And I was like, ‘Yeah. I got it.’”

Watch the full clip below.

CM Punk cost Drew McIntyre the WWE World Heavyweight Championship as Damian Priest retained at WWE Clash at the Castle from Glasgow, Scotland.

McIntyre fed off the crowd throughout the match. Priest eventually gained the advantage, looking for a dive to the outside, but got his right leg caught in the ropes as he flipped. Priest favored his ankle throughout the match but was able to hit a Razor’s Edge for two.

McIntyre sent Priest down and set up for the Claymore, but Priest rolled out of the ring. McIntyre kicked Priest through the barricade and dragged him back into the ring. He set up for another Claymore when Priest reversed into the South of Heaven chokeslam for two. Priest hit a hurricarana off the top rope, but McIntyre jumped back to his feet and hit a Claymore out of nowhere for two.

The referee was knocked out before McIntyre hit another Claymore. CM Punk ran down in a referee shirt and counted two before hitting a low blow and setting Priest up for the South of Heaven chokeslam for the win.

Priest won the World Heavyweight championship at WrestleMania, cashing in his Money in the Bank briefcase five minutes after McIntyre had claimed the belt from Seth Rollins. On that night, it was CM Punk, who pulled a showboating McIntyre off the announce table in celebration and provided the opening for Priest’s win.

Priest will now move on to face Gunther at SummerSlam, while it seems like we’re set up for a clash between Punk and McIntyre.

(WARNING: Spoilers for this week’s Power Book II: Ghost episode will be found in the recap below.)

The first half of the final season of Power Book II: Ghost continues with Tariq and Brayden adjusting to a law-abiding life off the street after their deal with Noma in the season opening episode “I Don’t Die Easy.” Their struggles are hard to endure for the duo, as they’re forced to work normal jobs in the second episode of the season “To Thine Own Self” and make much less money than they used to. Eventually, enough is enough and the two agreed to begin work on a plan that would get them back onto the streets, increase their cash flow, and stay under the radar enough to avoid the ruthless eye of Noma.

“To Thine Own Self” also delivers big news about Diana, who must keep it under wraps and figure out her next move while also playing her role as one of Noma’s workers, something Effie reminds of her in the episode. Speaking of Effie, she made a big move this week in securing work, with help from Cane, from a Russian group for Noma. Elsewhere, Monet continues her search for her shooter as she recovers from her injuries and Detective Don Carter turns up the heat in his investigation into FBI Agent Angel Valdes’ murder and Carter is quite sure that Tariq is behind it.

Let’s dive into a recap of the second episode in Ghost season four with a few takeaways we have after watching “To Thine Own Self.”

For Tariq & Brayden, There’s No Turning Back

Tariq and Brayden had plenty of opportunities to step out of the drug game and enjoy a comfortable life far removed from killers, robbers, and the many other criminals of the world. That chance flew out of the window as soon as Tariq’s trust fund money went down the train thanks to an investment in Brayden’s family business Weston Holdings which was later discovered as a Ponzi scheme, thus shutting the Weston family business down. Tariq and Brayden had their safety nets snatched away making their life in the streets a requirement and not a second hustle. With them being so accustomed to that life, it’s no surprise that their attempt to live on the straight and narrow lasted no longer than an episode of SpongeBob Squarepants. For the money and lifestyle they want, Tariq and Brayden have to increase their cash flow by figuring out how to work around Noma’s request for them to never sell drugs again. One thing’s for sure, there’s no going back to a law-abiding life.

Life Just Got More Complicated For Diana (And Who’s The Father??)

In “To Thine Own Self,” Diana Tejada’s scariest fear became her reality: She is pregnant. We’ve yet to find out who the father is — Tariq and Salim seem to be our options here — but this news couldn’t come at a more worse time for Diana. She is still scrambling to hide her and Dru’s involvement in their attempted murder of Monet. She, along with Dru, Cane, and Effie are now working under Noma leaving Diana to somehow figure out how to balance the heavy responsibilities of being both a drug dealer and a college student under immense pressure to live up to their respective expectations. Diana was supposed to stay out of the streets, but when push came to shove with her family, she found herself right beside them in it. Now, with the confirmation of her pregnancy, things just got a more lot complicated for Diana

Detective Carter Makes Us Miss Cooper Saxe (RIP)

It was just a year ago that Cooper Saxe was wreaking havoc amongst the lives of Tariq St. Patrick and associates prior to his shocking death in Ghost season three. The longtime role of the nuisance to the show’s main characters is now being filled by Michael Ealy who plays Detective Don Carter. Detective Carter is a rising NYPD officer who was on track to become Police Commissioner until his wife was killed in a crossfire between rival drug gangs. Now he’s hit the New York streets with a vengeance, and following the death of FBI Agent Angel Valdes, Carter has made it his mission to solve his murder which brings him right to Tariq’s doorstep — or college campus. Carter also visits Davis McClean and Noma’s right hand man Obi as his investigation into Tariq unfolds. During his visit to Tariq’s campus, Carter looks Tariq in the eye, slanders his father, and promises that he will take him down for the murder of Agent Valdes, which Tariq denied doing. Detective Carter is here to do what Saxe couldn’t which could make for an interesting ending to Ghost in its final season.

Noma And Cane? It Can’t Be What I Think It Is

Noma and Cane worked a bit more closely together in “To Thine Own Self,” but it appears that they will get even closer in this season of Ghost. After Monet spoils Noma’s initial meeting with the Russians, set up by Effie, Noma tasks Cane with finding another way to make the meeting happen. Cane, again, with help from Effie, is able to convince the Russians to work for Noma by offering them both military-grade weapons and drugs in exchange for them working for her. When Cane informs Noma of this, she is initially offended by him initiating a deal without her sign-off instructs Obi to choke Cane. However, when Cane proves that he understands Noma’s ways and thought-processes, Noma turns her anger to appreciation and offers to discuss the deal further with Cane over a glass of scotch, but not before she demands that Obi leave the room. What happens over this glass of scotch remains to be seen, but I would rather it not be another romantic foray for Cane, who would certainly go on a power trip if that happened and there have been enough of those in the lifespan of Ghost.

Monet Will Find What’s Been In Front Of Her This Whole Time

Though recovering from her gunshot wounds that left her in a coma is her main priority at the moment, the second thing on the list for Monet is finding out who shot her. We the viewers, of course, know that Tariq’s mom Tasha was responsible for the gunshots in question, but the plan was to have Tariq shoot Monet, something he, Diana, and Dru came up with together. Seeing that Monet is alive, Diana and Dru have done their best to cover their tracks, but a highly inquisitive Monet and Cane have been relentless in their search for answers. Just like we saw with Lorenzo in season three, it’s only a matter of time until Monet finds out the truth and realizes that the answer she’s been looking for has been in front of her and in her home this whole time.

New episodes in ‘Power Book II: Ghost’ season 4 are available on the STARZ app on Fridays at 12:00 am EST and on the STARZ TV channel at 8:00 pm EST. Season 1-3 of ‘Ghost’ are now streaming on the STARZ app and website.

50 Cent’s transition to mogul has been a sight to witness. The “In Da Club” rapper struck TV gold with Power, and its spin-offs.

With Power Book II: Ghost starring Michael Rainey Jr. and now Power Book IV: Force with Joseph Sikora entering its final season, viewers are ready to say goodbye for good. However, yesterday (June 14), 50 Cent made it clear that Power Universe fans should expect something special rather soon.

While sharing the Sikora’s teaser video on the set of Force, 50 Cent used the post’s caption to hint at the beloved TV series’ future. “I’m glad all the fans have been so supportive of ‘Force,’” he wrote. “We have more heat coming, my ‘Power Universe’ is still expanding… wait till you see what I have up my sleeve, you haven’t seen the last of Tommy.”

Sikora echoed the sentiments in the clip. “When Gary Lennon and the other writers and I were mapping out our third season, we saw that we were telling a complete story,” he said. “And that this was the perfect opportunity to stay true to our artistic vision and make this the final chapter in Tommy’s journey in Chicago. But don’t worry, Tommy’s journey is far from over with. We’re just getting warmed up, and I can’t wait to show you what we have planned next.”

Power Book II: Ghost is available for viewing on STARZ network and the STARZ app. Find more information here.

Grandparents can be a wealth of history and knowledge. But one TikTok user, Reagan Jones, was blown away by her grandmother’s ability to write in shorthand, so she did what a lot of people do in this century—uploaded it to TikTok. Not surprisingly, most people who viewed the video had no idea what shorthand was and some thought the whole thing was made up. The reaction to it certainly makes you question if it’s more than a lost art, but a forgotten part of history.

Shorthand is a method of quickly writing that has been around for a centuries. The first recorded history of a form of shorthand being used was in the 4th century B.C.. In the 1800s, two different types of shorthand became popular, Pitman in 1837 and Gregg in 1888. Looking at the shorthand alphabet may make you furrow your eyebrows because a lot of the symbols look ridiculously similar. It’s full of lines that are straight, slightly curled or partially looped and some that just look like a squiggle. It’s something to behold and resembles a super secret language.

Judging by the comments on the video, other people feel the same way. One commenter, Jamie wrote, “I’ve heard the term shorthand but I think my brain always took it as abbreviations not this 😳😅”

Another commenter, Samantha said, “Nah this has to be a glitch in the timeline I’ve never heard of this from any of my family member.”

@reaganjones176

This is called “short hand” and its a real form of old-style note-taking. She uses this to write herself notes daily. 😂#coolgrandma #funwithgrandma #grandparents #handwriting #shorthand

In a reply to a commenter, Jones revealed, “My grandma was a legal secretary for the railroad 🙂 She won a lot of awards for her work and shorthand in school.”

Now, that’s just cool. Sure there are still professions like court reporters and such that use shorthand, but it’s not as common as it was back when most people’s grandparents and great-grandparents were young adults. This was such a neat blast from the past. It’s clear that Jones’ grandma could probably still take home some awards for her unique skill.

This article originally appeared on 09.13.22

Taylor Swift is on top of the world. The “Fortnight” singer has a fresh set of international The Eras Tour stops, a new album (The Tortured Poets Department), and a Super Bowl-winning boyfriend in Travis Kelce to cuddle up with.

Although Swift is quite cozy under superstardom’s bright lights, not everyone in her orbit is a fan of fame. In fact, the musician’s ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn claimed that their breakup was an “unusual and abnormal situation” given the public’s sudden interest in him.

Today (June 15), during an interview with The Times, Alwyn discussed dealing with the breakup and all the attention that came with it.

“I would hope that anyone and everyone can empathize and understand the difficulties that come with the end of a long, loving, fully committed relationship of over six and a half years,” he said. “That is a hard thing to navigate.”

He went on to address fans’ opinions on him, the split, and more. “What is unusual and abnormal in this situation is that, one week later, it’s suddenly in the public domain,” he said. “The outside world is able to weigh in.”

Ultimately, since their decision to go separate ways in April 2023, Alwyn has worked through his feelings on everything, including the unwanted notoriety. “There is always going to be a gap between what is known and what is said,” he said. “I have made my peace with that.”

Users online have praised Alwyn for the way he managed the split in the media in comparison to Swift’s most recent ex-lover, The 1975’s frontman Matty Healy.