Hi friends,
TV and sci-fi fans rejoice: a live-action series of Blade Runner is in the works over at Amazon Prime. The director of the original film, Ridley Scott, is set to executive produce the project, tentatively known as Blade Runner 2099.
I hope you have a lovely weekend!
OUR TOP TV SHOW OF THE WEEK
Sins of Our Mother
New on Netflix 🍅 rating: —
True crime fans might already be familiar with the names Tylee Ryan and J. J. Vallow, young siblings who were found dead in June 2020. Sins of Our Mother is the surreal story of how their mother, Lori Vallow, came to be indicted for their murder—among other crimes.
As is often the case in these situations, Lori seemed like any normal woman her age. She was devoted and God-fearing, up until she meets her fifth husband and things start to spiral into the unbelievable and harrowing. Her only surviving child, Colby, gives the documentarians an exclusive look into the deterioration of his family’s stability.
OUR TOP MOVIE OF THE WEEK
Official Competition
On Amazon Prime Video, starting at $3.99 🍅 rating: 96%
Last year’s festival darling Official Competition is finally available to rent online. The Spanish dark comedy stars Penelope Cruz as Lola, an idiosyncratic director. She casts for her latest film two of Spain’s best (albeit at odds) actors—Ivan (Oscar Martinez) and Felix (Antonio Banderas).
After receiving virtually unlimited funding from a wealthy businessman, Lola sets out to mount an ambitious adaptation of a bestselling novel. To make her vision work, she wilfully employs renowned actors Ivan and Felix, knowing full well that their opposite philosophies in art and life will clash. What follows is a series of preps and rehearsals that play out like social experiments in their twistedness, which all in all speak to the outrageousness of film, art, and life itself.
En español.
Top picks outside of Netflix and Amazon Prime
Our top film pick outside of Netflix and Amazon Prime is Mija, streaming now on Disney+. The moving documentary follows Doris Muñoz and Jacks Haupt, who bond over their shared desire to make it in the music industry as well as their status as the first-born American members of their undocumented families. It’s a deft fusion of the star journey and immigrant tale, as inspiring as it is heartbreaking.
Our top pick among non-Netflix and Amazon Prime shows is Los Espookys, whose second season premieres today on HBO and HBO Max. The miniseries centers on the adventures of a group of horror-loving friends who call themselves Los Espookys. Following their passion, they start a business providing gory services to those who seek them. It’s an absurd yet surprisingly sweet show that trades self-seriousness for lighthearted and quirky fun.
New titles worth your time
The highly anticipated Do Revenge, described as a Hitchock-meets-Mean Girls teen drama, is now on Netflix and worth checking out based on early reviews thanks to its playfulness and wit. It stars Riverdale’s Camila Mendes and Stranger Things’ Maya Hawke.
Also new on Netflix is Terim, a docuseries about Turkish football manager Fatih Terim.
On Amazon Prime, the underrated crime drama The Outfit just arrived. It stars Mark Rylance as an English tailor who primarily serves a family of gangsters. The latest season of legal drama The Good Fight is also new on the platform.
Great titles that will soon expire
On Netflix, the sci-fi series Dark Matters expires September 24. Giants of the genre Blade Runner (the final cut) and Blade Runner 2049 are also leaving the platform the next day, September 25.
No noteworthy titles are leaving Amazon Prime next week.
That’s all for this week. This edition of the newsletter will be back on Friday, September 23.
Till then,
Renee