Q Wave’s Watchlist: April 2023
"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!
Beef (Netflix)
If you aren’t familiar with A24, they are an indie powerhouse studio known for churning out critically acclaimed content. Their film, ‘Everything, Everywhere All at Once,’ took home 7 Oscars at the ceremony last month, and now they are gearing up to release their dark comedy series ‘Beef on April 6th.
Starring Steven Yeun (The Walking Dead) and stand-up comedian Ali Wong, the series is about a road rage incident between two strangers that goes awry. Yeun plays a down-on-his-luck contractor who finds himself in a dispute with a self-made entrepreneur, played by Wong. The rising stakes of their feud begin to unravel their lives and relationships and eventually consumes them both.
First-time showrunner and creator Lee Sung Jin said that the idea for the show was loosely based on a real-life road rage incident that happened to him. After someone went off on him, he impulsively decided to follow them, and things went sideways, albeit to a much lesser extent than seen in the show.
The series already has a 100% rating on Rotten Tomatoes, signifying that A24 has another critical darling on their hands.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Feud, The Bear
Runtime: 10 episodes
Genre: Comedy, drama
Citadel (Amazon Prime)
Joe and Anthony Russo have directed some of the biggest movies ever, having helmed both Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, so they are no strangers to creating something that garners viewers from around the globe. With their new streaming series ‘Citadel,’ they are attempting to do just that in a groundbreaking fashion.
At its core, Citadel is a sci-fi spy thriller. Citadel stars Richard Madden (Game of Thrones) and Priyanka Chopra (The White Tiger), about a global spy agency that has fallen, and the memories of its agents erased. Now, a powerful Manticore crime syndicate is making their play to seize power in Citadel’s absence. The Citadel agents must remember their past and find the strength to fight back.
Sporting a massive budget, Amazon is banking on Citadel being a hit - but one of the most exciting aspects of the series is how it’s being expanded. The series has been labelled the first ever ‘global TV series.’ Citadel will act as the main show, and then there will be local spin-offs worldwide, created through co-productions with film industries from around the globe. The hope is this will boost the show to be a hit everywhere, and the first announced spin-off has already begun filming in Italy. Productions in India and Mexico are also currently in development.
It’s certainly an ambitious idea and would appear to be an expensive balancing act. Still, given how much money the Russos have banked with Marvel Cinematic Universe, it’s a bet Amazon seems excited to make.
The first two episodes of Citadel will be available on Amazon Prime on April 28th.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: The Grey Man, The Night Agent
Runtime: 6 episodes
Genre: Action, spy thriller
Barry (Crave)
Hot off the heels of the finale of one of its biggest shows (Succession), HBO is saying farewell to another beloved series, Barry.
If you aren’t familiar with the series, SNL alumni Bill Hader plays the titular Barry, a depressed hitman who has been looking for a way out. After heading to Los Angeles on a job, he stumbles into an acting class and immerses himself in the community. The series follows Barry as he attempts to escape his life of crime and become an actor, but his deadly past won’t let him walk away that easily. Without giving anything away, the end of season 3 set up a complicated future for Barry, so it is no surprise that this season will be the show’s last.
The series has been a massive success, receiving 44 Emmy nominations and winning 9, including back-to-back wins for Hader in the Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series. The series also netted Henry Winkler an Emmy, the first of his historic television career.
The final season debuts on April 16th and will air weekly, with the series finale scheduled for June 4th.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: Dexter, Fargo
Runtime: 8 episodes
Genre: Comedy, drama
Peter Pan & Wendy (Disney Plus)
Seemingly every Disney classic is getting a live-action remake these days, but Peter Pan & Wendy is the first one intended to debut directly on Disney Plus.
Starring relative newcomers Alexander Molony and Everr Anderson as Peter and Wendy, respectively, the cast also features Jude Law as Captain Hook, Jim Gaffigan as Mr. Smee and Alan Tudyk as George Darling.
Given that the original film came out in 1953, there were some problematic elements, to say the least, something Disney is trying to rectify in this version of the story. Director David Lowery and Toby Halbrooks, his co-writer on the script (the pair also worked together on the 2016 remake of Pete’s Dragon), are attempting to tackle the issue head-on, specifically with the character Tiger Lily. Instead of removing the character altogether, they have expanded her role to try to replace a stereotype with legitimate indigenous representation. These modern updates in the live-action films provide a much-needed update to the source material.
The film has some Canadian ties, having been shot mainly in Vancouver, while additional filming took place on the Bonavista Peninsula of Newfoundland and Labrador.
Peter Pan & Wendy premieres on Disney Plus on April 28th.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: The Jungle Book, The Lion King
Runtime: 106 minutes
Genre: Fantasy, adventure
Tetris (Apple TV+)
From The Last of Us to the new Super Mario movie, video games are moving from consoles to scripted shows and movies. Enter, Tetris!...kind of.
Tetris isn’t based on the actual game itself but rather on the story of how it became a massive phenomenon. Taron Egerton (Black Bird) plays Henk Rogers, who discovers the game in 1988 and subsequently risks everything by travelling to the Soviet Union, where he connects with inventor Alexey Pazhitnov to bring the game to the public at large. What results is a Cold War set thriller with villains, heroes and a race to the finish that will leave viewers on the edge of their seats.
Although based on a true story, both Rogers and Pazhitnov made suggestions to the script but have admitted that while they are happy with the finished product, much of the movie has been beefed up for Hollywood, as is often the case.
You'd like this if you enjoyed: The Founder, The Offer
Runtime: 118 minutes
Genre: Drama