The best new TV and films to stream this week – from One Day to Upgraded
IF you are wondering what to put on tele this week for a cosy night in – we’ve got your covered with a bunch of suggestions on what to watch.
Once again, The Sun’s TV Mag has come up with a brand spanking new list of new shows and films that you can binge on.
NETFLIX
One Day – Available from Thursday
Around 15 years ago, it seemed that everywhere you went – on trains and buses, in airports, parks and cafes – people were reading One Day by David Nicholls. Now that romantic, bittersweet book – which follows the story of two people, Emma and Dexter, by giving us a snapshot of their lives on 15 July every year for 20 years – has been turned into a 14-part TV series.
Starring Ambika Mod and Leo Woodall as the star-crossed pair who first meet on their last day of university, it’s a series that’s filled with love, pain, joy, despair, hope and change – and it’s likely to be a huge hit.
Sure, making a drama with 14 episodes demands that viewers really get invested but it also gives the story more room to breathe than the rather disappointing 2011 film adaptation. Prepare to be put through the emotional wringer.
Lover, Stalker, Killer – Available from Friday
Online dating can be a risky business, but you certainly don’t expect it to end in a twisted love triangle, a missing person and possibly even murder.
That’s what happened in 2012 when newly single Dave Kroupa, from Nebraska, USA, decided to dip his toe in the dating pool.
This fateful decision would bring him into contact with two women – single mums Liz Golyar and Cari Farver – but before long, one of them would disappear without a trace, leaving Kroupa and the authorities scratching their heads.
A riveting and sobering true-crime series that could give you trepidation next time you’re about to open that dating app…
Raël: The Last Prophet – Available from Wednesday
In December 1973, French sports-car journalist and test driver Claude Vorilhon had what he would later claim was an encounter with extraterrestrials.
After this experience, during which he says he was given the mission of telling humanity about its supposed extraterrestrial origins, he decided to change his name to Raël and founded a UFO religion known as the Raëlian Movement.
This intriguing four-part documentary tells Raël’s strange story, taking a deep dive into his religion – which some have labelled a cult – and revealing the many controversies that have surrounded it, talking to both supporters, critics and Raël himself.
Dee & Friends In Oz – Available from Monday
Finding out that this cute-looking animation was created by Trey Parker – one half of the team behind notorious adult animation South Park – might make you think twice before parking any pre-schoolers in front of the TV to watch it.
But fear not, this time Trey really is aiming a show at young children, and it’s a fun and fantastical one. When a mysterious key transports little girl Dee to the land of Oz, she soon finds herself on a marvellous musical adventure to save magic.
Along the way she makes friends with some familiar characters, including the Tin Man, the Scarecrow and the Lion. Crammed with memorable songs and imaginative adventures, it’s a fun return to Oz.
Alpha Males – Available from Friday
If you missed the first season of this smart Spanish comedy series, here’s what you need to know: Pedro (Fernando Gil), Raúl (Raúl Tejón), Luis (Fele Martínez) and Santi (Gorka Otxoa) are four male friends in their 40s.
Clearly going through something of a midlife identity crisis, brought on by a new era of empowered women as well as by their age, the four spend their time clumsily trying to get a grip on their lives and the changing world around them, often with disastrous results.
Think And Just Like That…, only with men and in sunny Spain. Now it’s back for a second series, and the guys’ struggles with relationships, work and what it means to be a deconstructed male leads them into yet more outrageous situations.
A Killer Paradox – Available from Friday
When college student Lee Tang (Parasite’s Choi Woo-Shik) accidentally kills a man who he’d got into an argument with, he’s tormented by guilt and fear.
However, after he discovers that the man he murdered was actually a serial killer, he begins to realise that he has a special, supernatural ability which allows him to identify evil people.
Before long, he starts using his power to bring justice to people who’ve done terrible things, all the while being pursued by Jang Nan-gam (Son Suk-ku) a ruthless and relentless detective. A violent but enjoyably irreverent eight-part subtitled thriller from South Korea.
ITVX
G’Wed – Available Thursday
There’s a long and rich history of comedy shows set in Liverpool, including some real classics like The Liver Birds and Bread. Now, here comes another, G’Wed, a six-episode glimpse into the lives of a group of Liverpudlian working class teenagers, struggling to make their way in the world.
At the heart of it all is Reece (Dylan Thomas Smith), a brash and super-confident but sometimes surprisingly sensitive Jack the lad, his group of friends and his dinner lady mum Jodie (Leanne Best).
While it’s a world away from those other comedies, both in terms of tone and subject matter – crude and sweary, this is definitely more Derry Girls than Liver Birds – it’s still warm-hearted, silly and filled with laughs.
PARAMOUNT+
Halo – Available Thursday
When it was first announced that popular shoot-em-up video game Halo was being adapted into a TV series, even die-hard fans might have doubted whether the finished product would be any good. But the first season proved to be exciting, well-acted and unexpectedly multi-layered.
Now, Master Chief John-117 (Pablo Schreiber) has returned for more sci-fi adventures, leading his team of elite Spartans against nasty aliens the Covenant.
Fearing that the Covenant is getting ready to attack humanity’s greatest stronghold, the planet of Reach, Master Chief sets off on a mission to prevent humanity’s extinction. The eight-episode series starts with a double bill, followed by weekly episodes.
PARAMOUNT+
The Tiger’s Apprentice – Available Saturday
San Francisco teenager Tom Lee (voiced by Brandon Soo Hoo) is struggling following the death of his grandmother – until he meets a mysterious talking tiger called Mr Hu (Henry Golding), who helps change his life completely.
After learning that he’s actually one of a long line of magical protectors called the Guardians, and that he possesses mystical powers, Tom quickly finds himself on a fantastical mission to reunite all twelve Zodiac animal warriors and to protect a precious phoenix egg.
Based on the hugely popular novel of the same name, this thrilling kids animation also stars Lucy Liu, Sandra Oh and Michelle Yeoh.
CHANNEL 4
Reindeer Mafia – Available Friday
Wrap up warm before settling down in front of this deliciously dark and twisted new six-part crime thriller from Finland. Brought to us by the always reliable Walter Presents, Reindeer Mafia is set amid the frozen wastes of the Arctic and follows the fortunes – or should that be misfortunes – of a family run mafia organisation, tottering after the matriarch, Brita, dies.
When the family meet to hear the reading of Brita’s will, and to distribute the inheritance, a series of shocking revelations tears the clan apart and sparks a desperate and bloody power struggle. Already a hit in its homeland, prepare to be swept along.
PRIME VIDEO
Upgraded – Available Friday
New York art intern Ana (Camila Mendes) is taken on a work trip to London by her boss, only to fall for charming and wealthy British guy William (Archie Renaux) on the flight over.
But when she gets carried away and tells William that she’s the director of her company’s New York Office – rather than a lowly intern – events start to spiral out of control.
Will he still be interested when he finds out the truth? Okay, it’s all fairly predictable romcom fare but spirited performances from a strong cast, which also includes Marisa Tomei, Anthony Head, Derry Girls’ Saoirse-Monica Jackson and Gregory Montel from Call My Agent, not to mention a funny script, help boost Upgraded from decent to definitely worth a watch.
NETFLIX
Ashes – Available Friday
Fantasy clashes with reality for Gökçe (Funda Eryiğit), the frustrated wife of a book publisher, when she reads an unpublished novel called Ashes and it awakens old emotions and long-forgotten desires.
Before long, she finds herself carried away by a passionate but dangerous love affair with mysterious and handsome carpenter Metin (Alperen Duymaz), shattering her marriage and the comfortable life she used to lead.
But is any of it real, or has Gökçe become too caught up in the imagined and fantastical events of the novel? An intense romantic drama from Turkey.