Hi friends,
Welcome to our weekly dispatch of top picks and other noteworthy titles. We hope you find it useful.
And as always, have a nice weekend!
OUR TOP TV SHOW OF THE WEEK
The Summer I Turned Pretty
On Amazon Prime Video 🍅 rating: 90%
From the author of To All the Boys I Loved comes The Summer I Turned Pretty, a nine-part coming-of-age series that also finds its young protagonist stuck in a love triangle—Belly Conklin is turning 16 soon and her main wish is to finally be seen as a woman by her childhood friends, Conrad and Jeremiah.
It’s a predictable premise to be sure, but The Summer I Turned Pretty still manages to be poignant (edgy, even) as it dares to tackle racism, ageism, and sexuality with impressive grace. To quote the AV Club’s review: “The show strikes a delicate balance between lightness and heaviness… [it’s] an extremely fun watch, for sure. But there’s still depth.”
OUR TOP MOVIE OF THE WEEK
Leave No Trace
New on Netflix 🍅 rating: 100%
Based on a true story, Leave No Trace centers on military vet Will and his daughter Tom as they hide away in a public park in Oregon. There, they live in isolation and persist on Will’s survival skills and the occasional town run.
When social services find them, however, they’re quickly relocated to a proper home and forced to assimilate and interact with their community. Tom eventually takes to it, but Will’s PTSD makes it difficult for him to do the same.
Deeply moving and effectively unsentimental, Leave No Trace rightfully made its way into many “Best of 2018” lists when it was released, including ours.
Top picks outside of Netflix and Amazon Prime
The latest season of Westworld, new on HBO Max, is one of our top picks this week. It takes place seven years after the events of last season, and this time, the amusement park from hell dons a 1930s mafia look (it previously took on the appearance of the Wild West, feudal Japan, and Nazi Germany). The new Westworld is still mysterious and twisty, which could be frustrating for some, but if (like me) you’re happy to just sit back and watch an intricate, gleaming sci-fi world unfold before you, then this show is for you.
Our last pick for this week is Some Kind of Heaven, an astounding documentary streaming on Hulu. It centers on the residents of the largest retirement community in America as they grapple with the slipperiness of meaning in their later years. Their bleak outlook is contrasted with the senior home’s vibrant Floridan setting and its false promises of happiness, making for a thoroughly fascinating watch. Darren Aronofsky (Black Swan) co-produces this film.
New titles worth your time
New arrivals on Netflix include King of Stonks, a live-wire series about the fintech boom in Germany, and Fast & Feel Love, a romantic comedy that explores the adulting difficulties millennials face, from Thai director Nawapol Thamrongrattanarit (Happy Old Year).
Also new on Netflix are the period dramedy Boogie Nights, the cat-and-mouse film Catch Me If You Can, the gangster classic Goodfellas, the psychological thriller Se7en, and the crime comedy Snatch.
The critically-acclaimed sketch comedy series Alternatino is new on Amazon Prime Video. Other new titles on the streamer include the tender love story Blue Jay, the legal drama Dark Waters, the lovable buddy cop film Hot Fuzz, the holiday indie treat Pieces of April, the psychological thrillers Dead Ringers and Jacob’s Ladder, and the revealing documentary The Queen of Versailles.
Great titles that will soon expire
On July 11, two great documentaries will expire on Amazon Prime Video: Girl 27, which explores the sexual assault of Hollywood film extra Patricia Douglas and other young girls in the industry, and Humberto Mauro, a loving tribute to the pioneer of Brazilian and Latin American cinema.
On July 14, Can't Cope, Won't Cope will be leaving Netflix. It’s an interesting miniseries that explores the best friendship and eventual fallout of two twentysomethings living in Dublin, Ireland. The show narrowly escapes the best friends living in the city trope by exploring not just the ups but as well as the many downs of a codependent friendship.
That’s all for this week. This edition of the newsletter will be back on Friday, July 15.
Until then,
Renee
