FILMS
Top Picks
The Brothers Bloom – Amazon and Hulu 7/1
Go – Hulu 7/1
Her – Netflix 7/29
You might have heard Rian Johnson’s name in the last six months. As the director of Star Wars: The Last Jedi, 2017’s biggest movie, he’s received praise from most critics and harassment from the most horrid fans. I’ve loved his films from the jump, and I have a very soft spot for his less-heralded sophomore feature, about two con-artist brothers (Adrien Brody and Mark Ruffalo) and their attempt to defraud a quirky heiress (Rachel Weisz).
I’m also an enormous fan of Go, a raucous triptych about a crazy night in Los Angeles and Las Vegas and the less glamorous places in between. It got compared to Pulp Fiction for its overlapping narratives, but it’s less self-aware and much funnier. One of many great film’s from cinema’s greatest year.
And then Her? Yes, Spike Jonze’s Oscar-winning rom-com of sorts is one of the most fascinating and lovely films of recent years, featuring a great, low-key performance from Joaquin Phoenix, tremendous voice work from Scarlett Johansson and a great bench of supporting players from Amy Adams to Chris Pratt.
Recent Selections
20 Weeks – Hulu 7/1
An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power – Amazon and Hulu 7/1
Closing Gambit – Hulu 7/1
Le Ride – Hulu 7/1
The Lost Wife of Robert Durst – Hulu 7/1
Oscar Pistorius: Blade Runner Killer – Hulu 7/1
Borg vs. McEnroe – Hulu 7/3
Heart of Nuba – Hulu 7/6
Along with the Gods: The Two Worlds – Hulu 7/10
Cover Versions – Hulu 7/10
Zombie Spring Breakers – Hulu 7/10
Winter Out West – Amazon 7/13
The Forgiven – Amazon 7/14
Wanderland – Amazon 7/16
Sharp Edges – Hulu 7/17
Status Update – Hulu 7/21
Leaning into the Wind – Hulu 7/22
How to Talk to Girls at Parties – Amazon 7/24
Black Cop – Hulu 7/26
The Glass Castle – Amazon and Hulu 7/27
Before We Vanish – Hulu 7/30
Originals
The Legacy of a Whitetail Deer Hunter – Netflix 7/6
The Skin of the Wolf – Netflix 7/6
White Fang – Netflix 7/6
How It Ends – Netflix 7/13
Ballet Now – Hulu 7/20
Father of the Year – Netflix 7/20
The Warning – Netflix 7/24
Extinction – Netflix 7/27
Check out TV picks after the jump…
NEW SHOWS & SPECIALS
Top Picks
Castle Rock (Season 1) – Hulu 7/27
Orange Is the New Black (Season 6) – Netflix 7/27
The Americans (Season 6) – Amazon 7/29
Up first is the start of Hulu’s Stephen King anthology series, which features new stories from the interconnected universe of King’s Castle Rock, Maine. Like all King adaptations, it could be great or terrible, but with a stellar cast (including Andre Holland and Sissy Spacek), I’m expecting something top-notch.
I felt like one of the few who loved OITNB’s controversial Season 5, which took place over the course of three days in the aftermath of a prison riot. It was a rumination on power and the power of forgiveness. This season will deal with the fallout of the ladies’ act of rebellion, and the death of one of its most complicated characters: Piscatella, the abusive, authoritarian C.O., who harbored a past of devastation.
And of course there’s the last season of one of the best shows ever made: FX’s The Americans. It just finished airing in May, so it’s hitting Amazon a little earlier than usual. Experience the way the showrunners nailed the landing after a rocky Season 5, or experience it from the beginning, when all the conflict of the show is present from the jump.
Originals
Anne with an E (Season 2) – Netflix 7/2
First Team: Juventus (Part 2) – Netflix 7/6
Free Rein (Season 2) – Netflix 7/6
Inside the World’s Toughest Prisons (Season 2) – Netflix 7/6
Sacred Games – Netflix 7/6
Samantha! – Netflix 7/6
Somebody Feed Phil: The Second Course – Netflix 7/6
Drag Lords (Season 2) – Netflix 7/10
The Epic Tales of Captain Underpants – Netflix 7/13
Sugar Rush – Netflix 7/13
Bonusfamiljen (Season 2) – Netflix 7/15
Amazing Interiors – Netflix 7/20
Dark Tourist – Netflix 7/20
Duck Duck Goose – Netflix 7/20
Home: Adventures with Tip & Oh (Season 4) – Netflix 7/20
Jimmy: The True Story of a True Idiot – Netflix 7/20
Last Chance U: EMCC & Life After – Netflix 7/20
Last Chance U: Indy (Part 1) – Netflix 7/20
The Last Ship (Season 4) – Netflix 7/20
Luna Petunia: Return to Amazia (Season 2) – Netflix 7/20
Tumble Leaf (Season 4, Part 1) – Amazon 7/24
Roman Empire: Reign of Blood – Netflix 7/27
The Bleeding Edge – Netflix 7/27
The Worst Witch (Season 2) – Netflix 7/27
Welcome to the Family – Netflix 7/27
Sofia the First (Season 4) – Netflix 7/29
A Very Secret Service (Season 2) – Netflix 7/30
Casual (Season 4) – Hulu 7/31
Terrace House: Opening New Doors (Part 3) – Netflix 7/31
El Chapo (Season 3) – Netflix TBD
OLD SHOWS
Blue Bloods (Season 8) – Netflix 7/1
Burn Notice (Complete Series) – Amazon 7/1
The Closer (Complete Series) – Amazon 7/1
Damages (Complete Series) – Amazon 7/1
Hawaii Five-O (Season 8) – Netflix 7/1
The Librarians (Season 4) – Hulu 7/1
Madam Secretary (Season 4) – Netflix 7/1
NCIS (Season 15) – Netflix 7/1
NYPD Blue (Complete Series) – Amazon 7/1
Rica Famosa Latina (Seasons 1-4) – Netflix 7/1
Good Witch (Season 4) – Netflix 7/2
The Sinner (Season 1) – Netflix 7/2
UnREAL (Season 3) – Netflix 7/2
The Fosters (Season 5) – Netflix 7/6
You’re the Worst (Season 4) – Hulu 7/6
Better Things (Season 2) – Hulu 7/14
Deep Undercover (Collection 3) – Netflix 7/20
Cupcake & Dino: General Services – Netflix 7/27
Shameless (Season 8) – Netflix 7/28
COMEDY SPECIALS
Top Pick
Jim Jefferies: This Is Me Now – Netflix 7/13
The Australian comedian didn’t quite pull off his own show on FX’s Legit. (It was fine, but never transcendent.) He seems much more at home on Comedy Central’s The Jim Jefferies Show. But that comfortable nature hasn’t made his comedy any less sharp.
Other Specials
Queens of Comedy (Season 2) – Netflix 7/1
Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee: Freshly Brewed – Netflix 7/2
The Comedy Lineup – Netflix 7/3
The Joel McHale Show with Joel McHale (Part 2) – Netflix 7/15
Iliza Shlesinger: Elder Millennial – Netflix 7/24