Genre: Action & Adventure, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Adrian Lester, Alice Kremelberg, Bo Bragason, Craig Parkinson, Enyi Okoronkwo, Florence Keen, Frank Dillane, Jake Dunn, Joely Richardson, Louisa Harland, Nick Mohammed, Pip Torrens
Genre: Action & Adventure, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Adrian Lester, Alice Kremelberg, Bo Bragason, Craig Parkinson, Enyi Okoronkwo, Florence Keen, Frank Dillane, Jake Dunn, Joely Richardson, Louisa Harland, Nick Mohammed, Pip Torrens
Genre: Comedy, Drama, Family
Actor: Emily Carey, Jemima Rooper, Sandra Yi Sencindiver, Sarah Parish, Tim Downie
Genre: Crime, Documentary
Actor: Debbie Pollack, Katrin Faust, Lucia Lu, Miroslaw Wawak, Monika Laschke, Niklas Kohrt, Patrik Berg, Rick Hübner, Tristan Bumm
Director: Caroline Schaper, Jan Zabeil
Genre: Documentary
Attempting to be both a serious, well-researched documentary and a serious, hard-hitting drama is nothing new. Many shows on educational channels like History have long employed skilled actors and directors to elevate their reenactments. But Netflix’s Alexander: The Making of a God doesn’t seem to know where (or when) to draw the line. There is no tonal balance, no tasteful blending of the two; instead, drama and docu are smushed into one incoherent mess. And that’s a shame because, on their own, they could have been worthwhile. The production value and acting that goes into the drama have enough heft to carry it through, while the history and research (though not the strongest) are engaging enough to whet our appetite for learning more. But as they stand, these mixed genres only distract us from appreciating either.
Genre: Documentary, Drama
Actor: Agni Scott, Alain Ali Washnevsky, Buck Braithwaite, Christopher Sciueref, Dino Kelly, Jadran Malkovich, James Oliver Wheatley, Kosha Engler, Mido Hamada, Mohamed Attougui, Salima Ikram, Souad Faress, Steven Hartley, Waleed Elgadi, Will Stevens
Director: Hugh Ballantyne
Genre: Documentary
Actor: Bubba Wallace, Denny Hamlin, Ross Chastain, Ryan Blaney, William Byron
More a recounting of the matches and key moments of the 2023 Six Nations season (albeit from a more personal point of view) than a more analytical documentary series, Full Contact nevertheless delivers where it matters most. By never privileging one team's experience over another, the series establishes a different set of stakes for every match, and helps even non-rugby fans get the gist of what each national team was working towards or against during their respective runs. This is still a show that should hold more value for rugby diehards than casual viewers, of course, but it should be a reasonable enough diversion for anybody curious.
Genre: Documentary, Reality
Actor: Dan Biggar, Ellis Genge, Freddie Steward, Marcus Smith, Stephen Varney
Genre: Comedy
Actor: Mentari De Marelle, Mo Sidik, Muttaqiena Imaamaa, Pamela Bowie, Raditya Dika, Soraya Rasyid, Susan Sameh, Temi Diya
Genre: Comedy
Actor: Chris O'Connor, Kilah Fox, Shane Gillis, Stavros Halkias, Steve Gerben
This story sounds a lot less ice-cold on paper. What is the heart of the show? Is it trusting in conscience? Is it finding out who the other is? When the show gets settled, it contains an intriguing game of cat and mouse, of push and pull through double-crossing, and you don’t really know who to hatch your wagon to. Imogen (Elisabeth Moss) is polarizing and dodgy, Adilah (Yumna Marwan) has a warm manner of speech, and together their arresting dynamic creates a steady heartbeat. But for a miniseries, it sure takes its sweet time getting there, if it ever does.
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Dali Benssalah, Elisabeth Moss, Josh Charles, Thibault de Montalembert, Yumna Marwan
Genre: Drama
Actor: Alessandro Nivola, Andre Holland, Glynn Turman, Jordane Christie, Marc Menchaca, Moses Ingram, Olli Haaskivi, P. J. Byrne, Rebecca Dalton, Tiffany Boone
Sengoku Youko isn’t bad. With a historical setting, fantastic powers, decent action, and teenagers out to save the world despite societal differences, the anime has teen-friendly entertainment that anyone can enjoy. So far, the show is a better adaptation than mangaka Satoshi Mizukami’s other work Lucifer and the Biscuit Hammer, so fans of the artist would appreciate the dedication in adapting this story. However, with early 2024’s slate of boundary-pushing fantasy anime, the show doesn’t really stand out with its dated 2010s tropes and slightly derivative character designs. For viewers seeking for more fantasy, Sengoku Youko isn’t a bad watch, but there’s far better series currently available right now.
Genre: Action & Adventure, Animation, Drama, Sci-Fi & Fantasy
Actor: Aina Suzuki, Aki Toyosaki, Ayahi Takagaki, Hiroki Nanami, Hiroki Touchi, Kazuki Miyagi, Kenji Nomura, Kenjiro Tsuda, Maaya Uchida, Ryohei Kimura, Soma Saito, Tetsu Inada, Tomoyo Kurosawa, Yuuki Takada
Genre: Crime, Drama
Actor: Arica Himmel, Bonnie Mbuli, Dax Rey, Giancarlo Esposito, Ivan Mbakop, Paula Malcomson, Skeet Ulrich, Zackary Momoh
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
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