Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Arica Himmel, Bonnie Mbuli, Dax Rey, Giancarlo Esposito, Ivan Mbakop, Paula Malcomson, Skeet Ulrich, Zackary Momoh
In life and cinema, drama is everywhere. You’ll find it in thrillers, animations, romances, you name it. For entertainment that explores the human experience with sensitivity and sincerity, here’s a mixed bag of the best dramas to stream now.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Arica Himmel, Bonnie Mbuli, Dax Rey, Giancarlo Esposito, Ivan Mbakop, Paula Malcomson, Skeet Ulrich, Zackary Momoh
The best thing about a Cinderella story is knowing she'll get a Prince Charming™ by the end (with or without the rats and pumpkins). The first episode of My Happy Marriage sets up the fairytale expectations to a T. Mistreated by her step-mother and step-sister - and a tragic mom-is-dead backstory - this anime hits expected beats which means it'll either be a comfortable watch or a predictable skip. The silver lining comes when Miyo's step-sister marries her long-time crush while she is sent away to marry a difficult man known to repel his suitors. A swoon-worthy, slow-burn romance is surely on the horizon, enveloped in a strikingly beautiful, dreamy animation.
Genre: Animation, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Akira Ishida, Ayane Sakura, Hiro Shimono, Houko Kuwashima, Kaito Ishikawa, Koutaro Nishiyama, Reina Ueda, Ryohei Kimura
Genre: Crime, Drama, Thriller
Actor: Angela Robinson, Connor Weil, Kelly Rowland, Kerry O'Malley, Nick Sagar, RonReaco Lee, Sean Sagar, Shannon Thornton, Trevante Rhodes
Director: Tyler Perry
Beat for beat, word for word, Love is in the Air moves just like any other romantic comedy. Within that genre, it slots easily into the category of romcoms that follow a city guy who falls in love with a country girl, eventually learning and preferring the ways of small-town living. But Love in Air is even more improbable than usual because of how eerily perfect the two leads are. Goodrem, in particular, is always manicured to perfection, which makes her role as a down-to-earth no-nonsense go-getter very hard to believe. Still, the movie isn’t entirely unwatchable. There are pockets of humor to be found, and the stunning visuals almost make it worth the watch. Almost.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Craig Walker, Delta Goodrem, Hugh Parker, Joshua Sasse, Mia Grunwald, Roy Billing, Simon McLachlan, Steph Tisdell
Director: Adrian Powers
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Ana Torrent, Chino Darín, Cosimo Fusco, Daniel Grao, Eduard Fernandez, Enric Auquer, Giannina Fruttero, Jaime Lorente, Melina Matthews, Natalia de Molina, Raúl Briones, Roberto Mateos, Salva Reina, Sergi Lopez
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Actor: Adolf Hitler, Aidan McArdle, Albert Einstein, Andrew Havill, Gethin Alderman, Helena Westerman, James Musgrave, Jonathan Rhodes, Leo Ashizawa, Rachel Barry, Simon Markey, Toby Longworth
Director: Anthony Philipson
As has become increasingly common among Disney-Marvel projects, there's plenty of culture and character at the heart of Echo—that all gets flattened by the franchise's usual action-thriller formula. In its first two episodes watched for this review, the miniseries doesn't develop the titular hero as much as she deserves, but it does sketch out the image of a community deeply rooted to its past, trying to forge past its unfortunate criminal connections. But these episodes end up concerning themselves far too much with more of the same types of dimly lit set pieces and hand-to-hand fights. These sequences may be cleanly shot and choreographed but they're ultimately just as uninspired as they've been for a long time, upholding the status quo within this dull superhero world.
Genre: Action & Adventure, Crime, Drama
Actor: Alaqua Cox, Chaske Spencer, Cody Lightning, Devery Jacobs, Graham Greene, Tantoo Cardinal, Vincent D'Onofrio
Genre: Drama, Mystery
Actor: Ane Dahl Torp, Ardalan Esmaili, Henrik Norlen, Jhullian Carlsson, Mahmut Suvakci, Yusra Warsama
While the film attempts to depict teenage sexuality, Dear David misses the mark due to certain plot points. At the heart of the film, Dear David is all about expression – that teenagers actively seek for ways to explore their sexuality like fanfiction, photos, and clothing. In taking on this premise, the hope for these kids would be to be able to to express these feelings through safe and constructive spaces. But because the film only presents Laras’ work as porn without plot, her relationship with David doesn’t feel like it stems from genuine affection. David isn’t characterized as popular enough for everyone to have a good concept of him, to have a positive canon narrative about him, and so, as Laras’ work spreads, it’s only his objectified self people have in mind. Her creative work comes across as some form of sexual harassment, rather than innocent expression.
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Romance
Actor: Agnes Naomi, Caitlin North Lewis, Chanceline Ebel, Claudy Putri, Emir Mahira, Frans Nicholas, Izabel Jahja, Jenny Zhang, Lutesha, Natalius Chendana, Palestina Irtiza, Restu Sinaga, Ricky Saldan, Shenina Cinnamon
Director: Lucky Kuswandi
With political intrigue, deceit, and romance, Captivating the King has all the elements we’re familiar with in Korean sageuk romances. It’s easy to appreciate the impeccable production design and every time Jo Jung-suk pulls at the heartstrings through the Grand Prince Jinhan’s tears, but the series starts incredibly slowly. Apparently, before Hee-soo can captivate said king, the first few episodes must delve into every single detail that made the prince into a king. This does help set up the political landscape Yi In has to operate in, but it keeps its viewers waiting too long for the undercover love story implied by the premise.
Genre: Drama, War & Politics
Actor: Cho Jung-seok, Cho Seong-ha, Lee Sin-young, Park Ye-yeong, Shin Se-kyung
Director: Cho Nam-guk
Genre: Drama
Actor: Ahn Yeon-hong, Chae Soo-ah, Jung Yi-rang, Kim Ho-young, Kim Ji-eun, Lee Kwang-hee, Lomon, Park Ki-deok, Yang Hye-ji
Director: Jeong Heon-su
The most obvious cultural reference point for Barracuda Queens is The Bling Ring: both tell the based-on-real-life stories of a group of (mostly) wealthy young women who rob rich people’s houses. But where Sofia Coppola’s movie was rooted in a very specific era and explored the fascinating generational and psychological quirks that drove its disaffected teen burglars to do what they did, this Swedish Netflix series, at least in the first four episodes viewed for this review, makes only a half-hearted effort to evoke its ‘90s setting and takes a much soapier, less forensic approach to its story.
Here, the young women’s gateway into crime is the sky-high bill they rack up after a debauched weekend away. In need of cash to pay it off quickly, they convince themselves that they’re only robbing their wealthy neighbors to solve that problem, but other motivations soon arise. The women — who are mostly university-age, but seem closer to the protagonists of a teen drama — eventually begin to target people they have petty grievances with (like a love interest who spurns the ringleader after a one-night stand) as well as those who have wronged them more seriously (including a rapist, who gets off bizarrely lightly). The adrenaline rush of it all proves addictive for the gang, too. What’s more, for Mia (Tea Stjärne), the only member of the group not from a wealthy background, there’s also a Robin Hood-ish appeal to the burglaries, although this aspect regrettably takes something of a backseat to the girls’ escapades in the show.
Between the gang’s crime spree and their unbelievably dysfunctional home lives, there’s enough broad drama here to keep Netflix’s autoplay function in good use. Even if it doesn’t provide keen insight, sharp nuance, or a remotely realistic plot, the show does go beyond a surface-level approach by exploring something of the girls’ inner lives, the class dynamics of their friendship group, and the shallowness of their parents’ milieu. At three hours total — and with an opening scene that teases a dramatic rise-and-fall story ahead — it all makes for a very bingeable, if ultimately forgettable, watch.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Alva Bratt, Carsten Bjornlund, Izabella Scorupco, Johannes Bah Kuhnke, Max Ulveson, Sandra Strandberg Zubovic, Sarah Gustafsson, Tea Stjärne, Tindra Monsen
Genre: Action & Adventure, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Dallas Liu, Daniel Dae Kim, Gordon Cormier, Ian Ousley, Kiawentiio
Air Mata di Ujung Sajadah tugs at the heartstrings because it recognizes the pain of losing one’s child, whether that be to elopement, death, or to their biological parent. This, with a stirring score, and the tears of Titi Kamal and Citra Kirana, makes Aqilla and Yumna easy to root for, as they try to settle who would best be Baskara’s mother. It’s not an easy decision, and the film thankfully refrains from turning either woman to be an antagonist. However, all the sorrow, pain, and suffering hinges on Halimah’s decision, that, in the first place, shouldn’t have been possible. As the film plays out into its inevitable conclusion, the journey there is heartwarming, maybe even tearjerking, but it doesn’t feel as satisfying as it could have been if Halimah dealt with the consequences of her actions.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Citra Kirana, Dendy Subangil, Fedi Nuril, Krisjiana Baharudin, Mbok Tun, Muhammad Faqih Alaydrus, Titi Kamal, Tutie Kirana
Director: Key Mangunsong
In a world when women are sexualized and objectified, but also judged and excluded under the guise of religious righteousness, Adire seeks a middle ground. It dares to explore how women’s beauty can be a force for good, rather than a source of shame, even within the religion that traditionally excludes women from its leadership. That being said, Adire focuses on this to the detriment of all other ideas loosely stitched to the narrative, such as the cultural heritage in using the adire fabric for modern lingerie, sex and desire as an impetus for art, and the need for intimacy, not just sex, in relationships. Adire has the ideas, but not the execution, especially when it loses its way in the second half of the film.
Genre: Drama
Actor: Femi Branch, Funlola Aofiyebi, Kehinde Bankole, Mike Afolarin, Yvonne Jegede
Director: Adeoluwa Owu