Yes, it’s that time again, the weekend, and time to review the best new movies and television shows added online this week, to Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime. And there are some exciting new adds this week, so let’s get started.
HULU
Hulu has an exciting add this week with Culprits, a 2023 British thriller series. here, a team of ex-criminals who took part in a big heist three years ago, are being killed, and soon, they shift into high gear to find out who’s responsible. but while they fight for their lives, they try to keep their dark past a secret from their contemporaries. Nathan Stewart-Jarrett stars as our main protagonist, Joe, who’s trying to go straight and marry , and Gemma Arterton, Kirby Howell-Baptiste, Niamh Algar, and Tara Abboud alos star, and there are 8 episodes available now. And, no, this isn’t a new story(some compare it to Reservoir Dogs) but the excellent cast makes it worth while. And so it gets an 81% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Rebecca Nicholson of the Guardian says “it is highly stylised and whips along at a pace; it looks great and the cast is fantastic. In all its glossy richness, though, it also manages to sneak in a few intriguing horror-adjacent ideas that offer greater depth than you might expect.” So I’m watching. Hulu also offers Adamas, a 2023 South Korea thriller series. Here, twin brothers, mystery novelist Ha Woo-shin and public prosecutor Song Soo-hyun , both played by Ji Sung, fight to find the murderer of their father, killed 22 years ago. When Ha Woo-shin is invited to ghost write a book about millionaire Kwon Jaekyu(Lee Kyung-young)the owner of the powerful Haesong Group, and he gets a lead from a reporter , he starts to uncover the truth. And begins a dangerous trip down the rabbit hole that may lead him to his father’s murderer. Seo Ji-hye, Lee Soo-kyung, Heo Sung-tae, Oh Dae-hwan and Choi Deok-moon also star, and there are 8 episodes available for bingeing now. and this series gets an amazing 7/10 on IMDb, and Abhishek Srivastava of the Times of India wrote it’s “intriguing, enigmatic and keeps you entertained.” And I love a mystery, so it’s on my list. Also newly added is Aporia, a 2023 sci-fi drama. Judy Greer(!) stars, here, as Sophie , a woman left reeling and overwhelmed with her 11 year-old daughter, Riley (Faithe Herman) and full-time job, after her husband, Mal(Edi Gathegi), is killed by a drunk driver. So when her friend Jabir (Payman Maadi), an exiled Iranian physicist, shows her his time travelling machine, she , of course, ends up taking the leap. But when she back in time, she meets her husband, and together with Jabir, the three come up with a plan they think can’t fail, but of course, the butterfly effect is always a factor. And the pair may end up dooming their daughter Riley in the process of saving Mal. Whitney Morgan Cox, Veda Cienfuegos, Rachel Paulson and Adam O’Byrne also star, and Jared Moshe directs. And this movie gets a very respectable 89% on Rotten Tomatoes, and Robert Abele of the Los Angeles Times wrote it “needn’t stay one step ahead of smart viewers to keep us intrigued and off-balance, glued to how these flawed, well-intentioned characters use their irrevocable power and face the consequences.” So I’m watching. And finally, Hulu has added El Mantequilla, a 2023 Mexican drama series. This tells the story of Emiliano Escamilla(Alberto Guerra), a son of a con man in 1982 Mexico, who wants to avenge his mother, who served time for the crime his father , El Mantequilla, committed. El Mantequilla, or the Butter Man, was a famous con man, and still in action, so Emiliano decides to impersonate him, in order to find him. But the first female detective in her division, Elena Robles (Mayra Batalla), is hot on his trail, and anxious to prove herself. Abril Schreiber, Alejandro Calva, Iván Aragón, Azalia Ortiz and Enrique Arreolaalso star, and there are 8 exciting episodes available now. And this intriguing series gets an incredible 7.6/10 on IMDb, and Isabella Endrinal of A Good Movie to Watch says it “has the charming, slick style of heist films from decades past.” I agree, and I’m definitely tuning in.
NETFLIX
Netflix has a huge title added this week with Leave the World Behind, a 2023 sci-fi apocalyptic thriller. Based on the 2020 novel of the same name by Rumaan Alam, this the family of misanthrope Amanda Sanford, played by Julia Roberts, vacationing offline in a rented house in Long Island, with husband Clay(Ethan Hawke) and the children, none too pleased with their lack of tech. But when an oiler washes up on shore one evening, and the Sanfords find themselves without even TV. When later that night, another family, led by G.H. Scott, played by Mahershala Ali(!) shows up, claiming the house as his own, and saying a blackout struck New York City that caused their exodus, Amanda doesn’t trust them, although Clay allows them to stay. But with the following days, the chaos becomes widespread, with an unending high pitched noise accompanying the disasters, that drive everyone to the brink. Myha’la Herrald, Charlie Evans, Farrah Mackenzie, Vanessa Aspillaga and Kevin Bacon also star, and Sam Esmail directs. And it gets a 71% on Rotten Tomatoes, with Clarisse Loughrey of the Independent (UK) writing “America’s sweetheart [Julia Roberts] has sprinted over to the dark side, and it’s a thrill to see what she does with it.” But critics are all over the map with this one, John Serba of the Decider calling it “shameless manipulation that wields provocation like a shotgun blast. It drove me nuts.” You decide. I’d rather watch Analog Squad, a 2023 Thai comedy series. This takes place in 1999, with Pond(Nopachai Chaiyanam) heading home, finally , to see his desperately ill father, after 10 years. The only problem is, he has no family, so he assembles a fake one, including his ex-girlfriend, Lily (Namfon Kullanat Preeyawat), and a couple of unemployed actors, to play the children. But as they remove his father’s respirator, and wait for a death that doesn’t come, his family ‘begins’ to fall apart, and the whole facade may come falling down. Kritsanapoom Pibulsonggram, Wipawee Patnasiri, Greg Garcia and Natthapol Pernmunkong also 5star, and there are 8 episodes available for bingeing now. And this series gets an amazing 7.5/10 on IMDb, with Manjima Das of Leisure Byte calling it”a commendable entry in the genre. It offers a poignant exploration of the delicate dance between reality and deception in the pursuit of familial connection.” And I’m watching. Netflix also offers Dhak, Dhak, a 2023 adventure movie. This tells the true story of 4 Indian women who set off(by themselves) on motorbikes for a road trip across the highest mountain pass in the world. Shashi Kumar Yadav or Sky, played by Fatima Sana Shaikh, a YouTuber with a passion for bikes and travel, hatches the plan for the trip with Manpreet Kaur Sethi or Mahi (Ratna Pathak Shah), and soon they’re joined by mechanic Uzma (Dia Mirza) and Manjari (Sanjana Sanghi). But , of course, their families (and Indian society as a whole) doesn’t approve of single women even riding motor bikes, let alone travelling together on a risky journey. Nevertheless, the ladies persist, and find their way to success, and satisfaction, on the way. Hrriday Malhotra, Harshpal Singh, Dheerendra Dwivedi and Kallirroi Tziafeta also star, while Tarun Dudeja directs. And this movie gets a 6.6/10 on IMDb, and Nandini Ramnath of the Scroll India says “four principal actors are wonderful, conveying their yearning for freedom with warmth, humour and sensitivity towards others not as fortunate as them.” I’m tuning in. Netflix also has Welcome to Samdal-ri, a 2023 S. Korean rom com series. Here, Cho Sam-dal, (Shin Hye-sun) returns to Jeju Island after big success as a photographer in Seoul, only to suffer insufferable humiliation there, as well. So she returns to Jeju island, to find her childhood friend, Cho Yong-pil(Ji Chang-wook) still on the island, but resentful that she left. And so, they steadfastly avoid each other, with the viewer knowing in the end,.well, you know. Seo Hyun-chul, Kim Mi-hwa, Yang Kyung-won, and Baek Hyun-joo also star, and there are 16 episodes available now. And this series gets an astounding 8.3/10 on IMDb, with Anjali Sharma of the Midgard Times calls it ” a vibrant tapestry woven with romance and nostalgia against the picturesque backdrop of Jeju Island.” So I’m watching. And, finally, Netflix also offers Tale of the Nine Tailed, a 2020 S. Korean fantasy series. This follows Lee Yeon (Lee Dong-wook), a magical creature called a Kumiho, and a former guardian mountain spirit, now living in the city, chasing dangerous spirits called foxes, there. But he is spotted by TV producer Nam Ji-ah (Jo Bo-ah), who realizes what he is, and makes him reveal himself as a Kumiho, and together they seek out malevolent spirits. Kim Jung-nan, Ryu Kyung-soo, Kim So-yeon and Ahn Kil-kang also star, and there are 16 episodes available now. And this series gets an outstanding 7.9/10 on IMDb, and Hidzir Junaini of NME calls it “a foxy, funny and campy delight.” And I’m definitely tuning in.
AMAZON
Amazon has a new movie added this week, with Silver and the Book of Dreams, a 2023 fantasy drama. Based on Kerstin Gier’s Silver trilogy, this tells of Liv, played by Jana McKinnon, a teenager who, upon moving to London meets the mysterious Henry(Rhys Mannion).He and his three friends tell her of their group of dream-wanderers, and that she’s a natural. But as she joins them in their extraordinary adventures, she finds that her very life may hang in the balance of those dreams. Riva Krymalowski, Chaneil Kular, Efeosa Afolabi, Théo Augier and Josephine Blazier also star, while Helena Hufnagel directs. But it gets a 5.6/10 on IMDb, and Joana Müller of Film Starts says it “feels like a teenager’s “Inception” fever dream that hardly brings anything new to the table and takes too little time to credibly tell the story and its fantastic world. Genre fans will still find solid entertainment here with a charming cast in a modern London that invites you to dream.” Luckily for me, Amazon also offers the award-winning Freaks vs. the Reich, a 2023 historical fantasy movie. This takes place in 1943, with a magical circus troupe led by (Jewish)Israel(Giorgio Tirabassi), in an Italy overrun by Fascists, and Nazis. But when Israel goes missing, his troupe, who have special powers, like the electrically charged Matilde (Aurora Giovinazzo), go in search of him. To make matters worse, the 12-fingered Nazi pianist Franz (Franz Rogowski), another member of the troupe, has had visions showing Israel and his players as being the salvation of Hitler, and so, he is hot on their trail. Giancarlo Martini, Claudio Santamaria, Pietro Castellitto, Max Mazzotta and also star, and Gabriele Mainetti directs. And this movie won 8 awards at the 2021 Venice Film Festival, including Best Young Actress for Aurora Giovinazzo, Best Actor for Franz Rogowski and Grafetta d’Oro for Best Film, and went on to win 6 David di Donatello Awards, including Best Actor for Rogowski, the next year. And it gets an impressive 7/10 on IMDb, and Nicolas Rapold of the New York Times calls it “big-hearted, blithely odd adventure.” And I’m watching. And, finally, Amazon has added Everything Everywhere, All at Once, the 2022 award winning fantasy drama. Michelle Yeoh(!) stars, here, as Evelyn Wang, a woman dissatisfied with her life married to Waymond , played by Ke Huy Quan, and living above their laundromat. So when she’s suddenly confronted by a different (lively) version of Waymond in an elevator on their way to an IRS audit, who tells her that only she can save the limitless parallel universes that exist, she is disbelieving. But a few minutes later, after an encounter with an encounter with a (different) auditor Deirdre Beaubeirdre (Jamie Lee Curtis!), with a third eye, she changes her mind. And so begins a riotous journey down a multiple universe rabbit hole, that changes Evelyn‘s life(lives?) and threatens that of her daughter Joy. James Hong(!), Stephanie Hsu(!),Jenny Slate, Harry Shum Jr., and Sunita Mani also star, and the Daniels(Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) directed. And this movie won tons of awards last year, including 2 Golden Globe Awards, 5 Critics‘ Choice Awards and, incredibly, 7 Oscars at the Academy Awards, including Best Supporting Actress for Curtis, Best Supporting Actor for Ke Huy Quan, Best Actress for Yeoh, and Best Film. And it gets a stunning 7.8/10 on IMDb, and a 94% on Rotten Tomatoes. And Caryn James of BBC.com said its “delightfully bonkers on the surface, this inventive extravaganza from the directing team called Daniels (Daniel Kwan and Daniel Scheinert) has a deep layer of family feeling and a well-earned emotional pull at the end.” And I totally agree. My favorite movie of 2022, I’m going to watch again and again.
So sit back and binge this weekend, on classics, old and new, on Netflix, Hulu and Amazon Prime. Enjoy!
Grownups Guide to Streaming 