This week is all about ‘You’
Plus CBC Gem shares the story of Willie O’Ree, the NHL’s first Black player
With so many different streaming platforms and cable offerings to navigate, choosing what to watch has never been harder. To make things easier, here are our best tune-in suggestions for the week ahead.
STREAMING Blind Ambition
This documentary shares the story of a quartet of Zimbabwean refugees who go on to become South Africa’s top sommeliers. Zimbabwe’s first wine-tasting team sets a goal to compete for the title of world blind-tasting champions and embarks on a trip to France to pursue their dream. The movie was the winner of the Audience Award at both the Tribeca and Sydney film festivals.
CBC Gem
TUESDAY Willie
A particularly poignant watch during Black History Month, this documentary shares the story of Willie O’Ree, the first Black player to skate in a National Hockey League game. The resiliency of O’Ree is undeniable as viewers learn how he was blind in one eye and went on to become the NHL’s diversity ambassador in 1994 after his playing days were over.
CBC Gem
WEDNESDAY Kindred
Adapted from the Octavia E. Butler novel, this new series focuses on Dana James (played by Mallori Johnson), a young Black writer who has moved to Los Angeles to find and live her best life. Before she is able to leave familial obligations behind, however, she finds herself being pulled back in time to a 19thcentury plantation.
Disney Plus Empire of Light
This drama about the power of human connection is the brainchild of director and writer Sam Mendes (“1917” and “Skyfall”). It follows cinema manager Hilary (Olivia Colman), who struggles with her mental health, and the relationship she develops with Stephen (Micheal Ward), a new employee who is seeking a better life.
Disney Plus
Not Dead Yet
Gina Rodriguez stars in this new comedy about a broke writer looking to restart her career as an obituary writer. The twist? She gets advice from the dead people she is writing about. The series is adapted from “Confessions of a 40-something F**k Up” by Alexandra Potter. Keep an eye out for Hannah Simone, the British-Canadian actor who graduated from Toronto Metropolitan University and was a VJ at MuchMusic.
CTV & CTV.ca The Spencer Sisters
This new Canadian drama stars Lea Thompson (“Back to the Future”) and Stacey Farber (“Degrassi”) as a mother and daughter crime-solving duo. Thompson plays a bestselling mystery novelist while Farber is her daughter, a former cop whose friend is wrongfully accused of plagiarism. This leads to an ongoing partnership between the dynamic duo who try to solve other puzzling cases. If you’re wondering why the show is titled “The Spencer Sisters” when it’s about a mother and daughter, apparently it’s because the lead characters are often confused as siblings.
CTV & CTV.ca Bill Russell: Legend
Basketball fans will enjoy this interview with National Basketball Association superstar and civil rights activist Bill Russell that was done before he died last year. Netflix
THURSDAY You
The pick of the week is an easy choice. “You” finally returns for the first part of its fourth season. I have been binging this one for weeks, as it has consistently remained my favourite show for the past couple of years, but this season takes a bit of a step back. Perhaps that’s because there is only so much you can do in the fourth season of a show about an undetected serial killer. Joe Goldberg (Penn Badgley) is now living in London under the false identity of Prof. Jonathan Moore while he continues to stalk his flame from last season. That’s really where the similarities end. Joe/Jonathan almost immediately finds himself in a “Glass Onion”-esque whodunnit. It’s a little tired, but where could the writers really go after a nearly perfect first three seasons? Here’s hoping things get better as the series continues.
Netflix
FRIDAY Love Is Blind: After the Altar
The third instalment of this TV after-show train wreck you can’t help but tune into airs on Netflix. The three-episode special catches up with the Season 3 couples as they come together to celebrate a birthday. I can’t wait to see the sarcastic snipes taken by Zanab and Cole or to see what Colleen and Matt are doing now.
Netflix Homestay
This movie begins when a character is informed by a mysterious caretaker that he is dead. Shiro (Kento Nagao) then meets a teenager (Makoto Kobayashi) who died at the same time and decides to use his body to get some answers. The twist is that Shiro only has 100 days and three guesses to find out what happened to the teenager. If he is successful, he gets to keep his new body. If he isn’t, both souls will disappear forever.
Prime Video
DON’T MISS Black Ice
After debuting last week, this TSN/ Crave original documentary is still available to stream. Directed by Oscar nominee Hubert Davis, and featuring LeBron James and Drake as executive producers, it examines the role of Black players in hockey and the systemic marginalization in Canada’s game, offering insight from many groundbreakers or, in this case, icebreakers in the sport. Voices includes Akim Aliu, Sarah Nurse and P.K. Subban.