Q Wave’s Watchlist: April 2021
"There's nothing to watch" is not a phrase that should exist in a world drowning in content. Join us every month to get curated content - from the latest and greatest to revisiting oldies - we'll help you avoid the dreaded “Netflix Block” and find something to watch!
Operation Varsity Blues: The College Admissions Scandal (Netflix)
If you like to walk that fine line of being outraged by what the rich and famous can get away with while also seeing everything come crashing down around them, then buckle up because Operation Varsity Blues is about to take you for a ride. The insane, almost impossible-to-believe, true story explores the 2019 scandal that saw a swath of elites, including actresses Felicity Huffman (Desperate Housewives) and Lori Loughlin (Full House), charged by the FBI for paying bribes to scam the system and get their kids into prestigious schools across the United States.
The story is filled with twists and turns, and as crazy as the events are, the subject is in safe hands with director Chris Smith at the helm, having previously directed the hit Netflix doc exploring the much-maligned Fyre Festival. Smith makes a daring choice in the film to have FBI recorded conversations reenacted throughout, a technique that often misses the mark far more than is utilized effectively. Still, it pays off here with the brilliant casting of Matthew Modine as Rick Springer, the man at the centre of the entire scheme.
Keep an ear out; the score was co-written by Nine Inch Nails member Atticus Ross, who won an Oscar for his work on The Social Network soundtrack.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Fyre: The Greatest Party That Never Happened, Dirty Money
Runtime: 100 minutes
Genre: Documentary
Ted Lasso (Apple TV+)
Pandemic life can be an absolute bummer, to put it mildly, which makes the timing of Apple’s new feel-good comedy all the more necessary.
SNL alum, Jason Sudekis, plays the titular character, an American college football coach recruited to coach an English Premier League soccer team, despite having no real knowledge about the sport. The show has been lauded by critics for its upbeat tone and being a hilarious show while still remaining good-natured. Sudekis picked up a Golden Globe for his performance of Lasso last month, which he famously accepted while wearing a tie-dye hoodie.
The genesis for the show is nothing if not unconventional. The Ted Lasso character was first introduced through a series of commercials in 2013 promoting NBC Sports and their coverage of the Premier League. In 2017, TV producer and Scrubs creator Bill Lawrence was brought in to develop a show based on the character, and the series debuted in the summer of 2020. Shooting for season 2 is currently underway.
The Falcon and the Winter Soldier (Disney+)
Finished binging WandaVision and have a hankering for more Marvel? Well, you are in luck because the barrage of MCU content continues, this time with The Falcon and the Winter Solider.
The series picks up six months after the events of Avengers: Endgame with Anthony Mackie and Sebastian Stan stepping back into the roles of Captain America’s go-to-guys, Sam Wilson and Bucky Barnes (AKA The Falcon and the Winter Soldier). The characters have to deal with the fact that their shield tossing pal isn’t around anymore, the pressure of Sam being handed the mantle of Captain America, and perhaps most challenging, each other. While WandaVision offered fans a more cerebral story from the MCU, The Falcon and the Winter Soldier is more in line with previous offerings from the comic book powerhouse with high octane action scenes and some charming banter between the leads sprinkled in throughout.
Marvel has had the audacious task of juggling their entire slate of both television and film releases with the pandemic continuing to shutter theatres all over the world, which make the prospect of pulling off an intricate Phase 4 all the more challenging. The Falcon and the Winter Soldier was actually supposed to hit Disney+ before WandaVision, but filming was delayed due to the pandemic.
I Care A Lot (Amazon Prime)
Anchored by a sizzling performance from Rosamund Pike (Gone Girl), who gets a chance to do what she does best in movies and access her conniving side, I Care A Lot is the story of a con artist on the surface but has a lot to say about the American healthcare system and capitalism as a whole if you really want to dive in and start peeling back the layers.
Pike plays Marla Grayson, who can best be described as a total boss. But her success comes directly at the expense of the most vulnerable: seniors. Marla’s hustle is swindling her way into becoming a court-appointed guardian for elderly wards, who she then sticks in a home while simultaneously selling off their assets and pocketing the profit. Perhaps most horrifically, her entire scam is more or less legal, albeit incredibly morally corrupt. Things are going swimmingly for Marla until she crosses the wrong woman and bites off more than she can chew.
The movie had its world premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival this past fall. Rosamund Pike took home a Golden Globe for her role in February, but in a puzzling move on the Academy’s behalf, was snubbed when the Oscar nominations were announced. If nothing else, her performance alone makes this one worth a watch.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Focus, American Hustle
Runtime: 118 minutes
Genre: Comedy
Zack Snyder’s Justice League (Crave)
The story surrounding the ‘Snyder Cut’ of Justice League is a long and complicated one, so we’ll do our best to break it down. Zack Snyder was tapped to direct the Justice League movie that came out in 2017. During the making of the film, Snyder’s daughter passed away, leading to him leaving the project and director Joss Whedon replacing him for the remainder of post-production. This included writing and directing additional scenes as well as reshooting a large portion of the film, which ultimately changed many aspects of the overall story. The resulting movie was...not great, and as a result, fans created an online petition to release the ‘Snyder Cut.’
Well, almost four years and $70 million (the amount needed to complete the special effects, score, editing and re-shoots) later, we are presented with Snyder’s original vision for the DC universe and to wonder what could have been is now a compelling thought experiment.
The movie we are gifted with now has an eye-popping four-hour runtime, and yet almost unbelievably, never seems to drag. It is essentially an epic superhero odyssey that sees Ben Affleck’s Batman assemble a team of heroes to fight against a supernatural villain named Steppenwolf, which is essentially the bare-bones plot of the original movie. However, with an extended backstory for key characters and more attention focused on plot development, it is an entirely different movie. Snyder’s work to restore his vision and give fans a more coherent and thoughtful version of his vision is an impressive feat.
Don’t let the runtime intimidate you either; the film is broken up into six parts and an Epilogue, making it easy to break up into separate viewings.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Man of Steel, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice
Runtime: 242 minutes
Genre: Science Fiction, Superhero
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