on the telly...
POWER COUPLE
I love Issa Rae of comedy drama series
Insecure, and Kumail Nanjiani (remember that flick The Big
Sick?). So when I saw that these two actors played the lead couple in romantic crime comedy The Lovebirds,
I was in.
Full disclosure: if you’re looking for a profound movie, then this isn’t it; if you want something that will take your mind off the trash fire that is 2020, hit play on Netflix.
Leilani and Jibran’s relationship starts off hot and heavy, but flashforward four years, and the spark is gone. That is, until they have to solve a murder mystery to clear their names, while on the run from the real killer and the police.
While I’m not sure that Issa and Kumail are all that convincing as a couple, they’re brilliant as a pair of whiny, bickering people. The plot takes a weird turn, but you’ll be swept up in the comedy and magic of the two leads. – Charis
THREE’S A CROWD
Do you ever wonder what would happen if you ran into someone who looked exactly like you? Turns out three strangers had this very experience in 1980. This is the subject of Showmax documentary Three Identical Strangers.
Initially, this doccie invites you into the heartwarming reunion of identical triplets who were separated at birth and adopted. But the feel-good tale takes a dark turn when people start questioning how they came to be separated in the first place. The film cracks open a secret social experiment, conducted to find out which would triumph – nature or nurture. If you place identical siblings in radically different homes and make them grow up apart from their birth parents and one another, will their DNA still make them similar, or do their environments shape them to be who they are?
This extraordinary true story will have you wondering whether you might have a secret twin somewhere out there. – Caroline
WHEN TV KILLS
As a journalist, you’d like to think that your words have the power to reveal the truth, and that by doing this, you can change the world for the better. But, as Trial by Media shows, that’s not always the case.
This Netflix docuseries looks at some of the biggest court cases that many feel had their outcome influenced by media coverage. Pleading a case in front of TV cameras often becomes about theatrics, perfectly summed up by one lawyer in the series who says that it isn’t about the law but about who can tell the best story.
Warning: some episodes are difficult to watch, particularly the ones about racial bias, sexual assault and police brutality, more so than usual because while they happened more than 20 to 30 years ago, we’re still dealing with those problems today. – Charis
LAST LAUGHS
With everything that’s going on, sometimes you just need a bit of comfort TV – and that’s exactly what laugh-out-loud Netflix series Schitt’s Creek offers.
It tells the story of the Roses, who lose all their wealth and are reduced to living in a rundown motel in a town they’d bought as a joke. It’s the only show that I know of in which LGBTQ+ characters are just characters, without their sexuality being a plotline. It’s 2020 people – we want more of this!
As soon as the final season arrived, I binged the entire series again, cried my way through the final season, then cried some more while watching the documentary Best Wishes, Warmest Regards: A Schitt’s Creek Farewell.
Season 1 might not be the highlight – but persevere. I swear, by episode six you’ll be hooked! Before you know it, you’ll be swearing that David and Patrick are the best on-screen couple in the history of TV (and yes, I will fight you on that). – Charis