Hi friends,
I come bearing new shows to share, including the new Netflix series Mo (must watch, if you appreciate observational humor and relevant commentary) and the new Peacock romcom Everything I Know About Love (can watch, if you’re looking for something fizzy and fun). These are just two of my favorites from this week, but there are a lot more titles to choose from below.
Happy start of September, by the way! And as always, I hope you have a lovely weekend.
OUR TOP TV SHOW OF THE WEEK
Mo
New on Netflix 🍅 rating: 100%
Mo is a bittersweet series that brings the Palestinian and immigrant experience to the forefront. It’s the semi-autobiographical tale of creator and star Mo Amer, whose tricky bouts with immigration, interfaith relationships, and growing up Arab-American all figure in the show.
Mo is a great series with a big heartfelt message at the center, which it tells with genuine warmth and humor and without ever being too self-serious and preachy. With just eight episodes in (and hopefully more to come), it’s a breezy but meaningful watch.
OUR TOP MOVIE OF THE WEEK
Let the Right One In
New on Amazon Prime 🍅 rating: 98%
New on Amazon Prime is the 2008 horror romance, Let the Right One In. It follows 12-year-olds Oskar and Eli, recluses who form an us-against-the-world bond. After a series of bloody encounters, however, Oskar grows suspicious of Eli as he realizes she might be more than just an outcast.
Previously recommended on our website, the stunning Swedish film deftly “explores the boundaries of its genres with unprecedented finesse, and offers a stunning alternative for those disappointed with recent vampire love stories.”
Top picks outside of Netflix and Amazon Prime
Everything I Know About Love is new on Peacock (the first episode is streaming for free) and all I have to say is, yet another show about a group of girls figuring things out in the big city has no right being this good. But it is, and it’s irresistible. Set in 2012-era London, Everything I Know About Love mainly follows best friends Birdy and Maggie as they try to keep their friendship intact despite the many hurdles adulting throws their way. It’s very reminiscent of Girls, if you enjoyed that HBO series, minus all the high-brow and niche New York references.
Welcome to Wrexham is another top pick of ours, thanks in large part to its magnetic leads, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney, and to an underdog story you can’t help but root for. The docuseries, whose first four episodes are streaming now on Hulu, documents Reynolds and McElhenney’s acquisition of Welsh football team Wrexham A.F.C. It’s basically “a Ted Lasso in real life,” as the Guardian puts it, but with an extra dash of soul put in by the real-life people and community affected by the purchase.
New titles worth your time
Over at Netflix, great recent arrivals include romantic drama If Beale Street Could Talk, action thriller Collateral, political drama State of Play, and the gangster classic Scarface.
New seasons of acclaimed Indian thriller Delhi Crime and docuseries I Am a Killer have also just arrived on Netflix.
New on Amazon are even more classics—cult favorite Fight Club, twisty horror The Silence of the Lambs, fantasy romance The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, Che Guevara biopic The Motorcycle Diaries, and the psychological drama 21 Grams.
Great titles that will soon expire
On Netflix, the Queen of Scots drama Reign is leaving on September 4. The psychological thriller Nightcrawler, starring Jake Gyllenhaal, leaves on September 9th while the beloved children’s animation How to Train Your Dragon 2 leaves September 10th.
No notable titles are leaving Amazon Prime next week.
That’s all for this week. This edition of the newsletter will be back on Friday, September 9.
Till then,
Renee