Five things for you to watch this weekend
SWEET GIRL — NETFLIX Jason Momoa recently bemoaned the lack of consideration given to action films by the Academy Awards. He may have a point. However, there’s no alternative universe in which this lacklustre tale of one man’s mission to avenge his wife’s death from cancer against the greedy pharmaceutical company who denied her access to a potentially lifesaving drug, deserves any award except a Golden Raspberry for silliest film of the year.
BOB ROSS: HAPPY ACCIDENTS, BETRAYAL AND GREED NETFLIX
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Joshua Rofé’s documentary was promoted with an unnerving trailer which simply told audiences that as much as the filmmakers would like to show audiences something about the film, they couldn’t. That did not bode well for the millions of fans across generations of the world’s sweetest and most beloved television art teacher, Bob Ross. Thankfully, and surprisingly in the “all your favourites are problematic” age, it turns out that the film does not tarnish Ross’s cuddly image and, if anything, he comes off even better than before.
THE DEFEATED
— NETFLIX A potentially intriguing Cold War espionage drama set in the politically messy and flattened ruins of postwar Berlin is made difficult to watch by seemingly insurmountable obstacles to enjoyment or believability offered by its choice of star, Taylor Kitsch. Sporting an overthe-top Brooklyn accent, Kitsch furrows his brow and skulks his way through his performance as an NYPD cop recruited to assist the city’s shabby police department in the capture of a predatory killer, while also looking for personal redemption through his search for his mysterious older brother.
MODERN LOVE SEASON 2 AMAZON PRIME VIDEO
Creator John Carney’s series based on the popular New York Times column attempts to rely less heavily on the gloss of an all-star cast for its second season. This time it tries to concentrate with frustratingly uneven results on ordinary but touching stories of romance drawn from real life that attempt to capture the eternally elusive nature of love in the modern era.
TRUTH BE TOLD SEASON 2 APPLE TV+
Octavia Spencer is still the best reason to stay interested in this crime drama about a podcaster who gets herself in the middle of true crimes she reports on. Kate Hudson fails to impress as she joins the cast for this season’s exploration of an adequate whodunnit involving the murder of a famous LA photographer. New episodes are added weekly.