STREAMING THIS WEEK
WHAT’S NEW ON NETFLIX “Rebecca” (2020)
Relive the story that never truly dies with “Rebecca,” premiering Wednesday, Oct. 21, on Netflix. When a beautiful young lady’s maid (Lily James, “Cinderella,” 2015) arrives in Monte Carlo for work, she soon falls head over heels in love with a wealthy and dashing man named Maxim de Winter (Armie Hammer, “Call Me by Your Name,” 2017). The couple is married and, soon after arriving at Manderley — his cold and dreary family estate in England — Mrs. de Winter begins to realize that things may not be exactly as they appear. Hearing a series of stories concerning Maxim’s first wife, Rebecca, the current Mrs. de Winter begins to grow suspicious of the husband she was recently united with. Based on the classic gothic fiction novel of the same name by Daphne du Maurier, this 2020 film, directed by Ben Wheatley (“High-Rise,” 2015) is — like the Oscar-winning 1940 Alfred Hitchcock masterpiece — an original take on the 1938 source material. It also stars Keeley Hawes (“Death at a Funeral,” 2007) as Beatrice Lacy, Bill Paterson (“How to Lose Friends and Alienate People,” 2008) as Dr. Baker and Kristin Scott Thomas (“The English Patient,” 1996) as the stark and sinister Mrs. Danvers.
“Cadaver” (2020)
Hungry for horror this Halloween? You’re in luck. The terrifying Norwegian film “Cadaver” is coming to a screen near you on Thursday, Oct. 22, courtesy of the popular streaming service Netflix. Following a tragic nuclear disaster that left many hungry and scrounging for their next meals, a three-person family takes up a mysterious offer for a fancy dinner in exchange for their involvement in a play for charity at a local hotel. Upon their arrival, the host (Thorbjørn Harr, “Vikings”) distributes a mask to each participant and sets the parameters for the production about to begin. When the night kicks off, however, and their daughter, Alice (budding actress Tuva Olivia Remmen), goes missing, her parents, Leonora (Gitte Witt, “The Sleepwalker,” 2014) and Jacob (Thomas Gullestad, “The 12th Man,” 2017), begin to suspect a different, more sinister, reason behind the swanky gathering. This dark commentary on human nature and the cutthroat quest for survival was directed by rising star Jarand Herdal (“Everywhen,” 2013).
“The Queen’s Gambit”
Get ready to plot your next move with “The Queen’s Gambit,” premiering Friday, Oct. 23, on Netflix. This six-part miniseries, which comes from the mind of acclaimed novelist Walter Tevis — the author behind the “The Hustler” (1961), “The Man Who Fell to Earth” (1976) and “The Color of Money” (1986) — paints a seedy picture of the underworld of chess. Set in Cold War-era Kentucky, Beth Harmon’s (Anya Taylor-Joy, “The Witch,” 2015) parents brought her up to believe that she is just as powerful as any man. When she suddenly becomes orphaned at the age of 8, young Beth channels her life into playing chess, learning how to dominate the game with each precisely calculated move of a wooden piece. Of course, by the time she competes in the U.S. Open Chess Championship at the age of 16, the stakes have gotten higher and her fear begins to grow; a fear, due in part, to her ominous Russian opponent. This series, directed by the Oscar-nominated Scott Frank (“Logan,” 2017), also stars Thomas Brodie-Sangster (“Game of Thrones”),
Harry Melling (“Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix,” 2007) and up-and-comer
Moses Ingram (“Candace,” 2018).
WHAT’S NEW ON HULU “Bad Hair” (2020)
If you thought you were having a bad hair day, think again. “Bad Hair,” the new horror-comedy from the mind behind “Dear White People,” is premiering exclusively on Hulu, Friday, Oct. 23. When she feels pressured by societal standards to get a weave to fit into her new job in music television, Anna (Elle Lorraine, “Insecure”) begins to experience some strange and unexplained events. As time goes on and her situation worsens, it becomes clear that Anna’s hair is fighting back in a very otherworldly way. Worse yet, her new hairstyle might just come at the cost of the swanky job she was trying so hard to keep. Justin Simeon (“Rings,” 2006) wrote and directed this darkly comedic social-commentary film that also stars big names Jay Pharaoh (“Saturday Night Live”), James Van Der Beek (“Dawson’s Creek”) and Lena Waithe (“Master of None”).
“Cyrano, My Love” (2019)
Fall in love with the theater this month as “Cyrano, My Love,” a comedy about a comedy, comes Wednesday, Oct. 21, to Hulu. French playwright Edmond Rostand (portrayed by Thomas Solivérès, “Sales gosses,” 2017) has it all; well, if you consider “having it all” to mean two kids, ridicule from his friends, a world of anxiety and a failing career. Desperate not to live with his writer’s block any longer, he pitches a play idea on the fly to famous stage actor Constant Coquelin (Olivier Gourmet, “The Young Karl Marx,” 2017), who, remarkably, loves it. The problem now lies in that there is nothing yet written. Relying on his writer’s instinct, imagination and cues from the world around him, Rostand begins to craft one of France’s most beloved comedic plays — the tale of the creative alliance between a dim-witted pretty boy and a large-nosed but kind-hearted poet — “Cyrano de Bergerac.” This French-language film was written, adapted for the screen and directed by the multi-talented Alexis Michalik (“At Eternty’s Gate,” 2018) and also stars Mathilde Seigner (“With a Friend Like Harry…,” 2000) and Alice de Lencquesaing (“Headfirst,” 2012).
“Friend Request” (2016)
Be careful what you put on social media because it might just come back to haunt you — “Friend Request” is coming to Hulu on Sunday, Oct. 18. When young Laura (Alycia Debnam-Carey, “Fear the Walking Dead”) posts photos of her night out to Facebook, a mysterious campus outcast named Marina (Liesl Ahlers, “Daylight,” 2018) is inexplicably upset with her. Proceeding to unfriend the loner from her account — an act ultimately undoing her original gesture of generosity and acceptance — Laura hears that Marina has recently committed suicide. It won’t be long before Laura also learns of Marina’s supernatural mission to hack her account and, more terrifyingly, her life, from beyond the grave. This horror flick also stars Connor Paolo (“Gossip Girl”), Brit Morgan (“True Blood”) and veteran actor Shashawnee Hall (“A Nightmare on Elm Street,” 1984).
WHAT’S NEW ON DISNEY+ “Once Upon A Snowman” (2020)
Do you want to build a snowman? Find out how snowmen come alive in the longawaited animated short “Once Upon a Snowman,” coming Friday, Oct. 23, to Disney+. Set as a subplot to the events of the iconic film “Frozen” (2013) and before those of its sequel, “Frozen 2” (2019), “Once Upon a Snowman” follows the creation and first steps of Elsa’s (Idina Menzel, “Rent,” 2005) lovable snowy sidekick, Olaf (voiced by Josh Gad, “Beauty and the Beast,” 2017). While Disney has been rather secretive when it comes to releasing trailers and specific information about the origin story, we have reason to believe that the film will finally explain, among other things, why the winter-dwelling character loves summer so much. Written and directed by Trent Correy (“Moana,” 2016) and Dan Abraham (“Space Jam,” 1996), both of whom worked on Olaf’s “Frozen 2” animation, this second Olaf short also features the returning voices of “Frozen” stars Idina Menzel as Elsa, Kristen Bell (“Veronica Mars”) as Anna, Jonathan Groff (“Hamilton,” 2020) as Kristoff, and Frank Welker (“Wizards”) as the faithful reindeer, Sven.
“The Big Fib”
So, you think you can spot a phony? Learn to separate the truth from the lies in the family-friendly game show “The Big Fib,” airing 15 new episodes Friday, Oct. 23, on Disney+. Young contestants face off against two adults who claim to be the expert in a particular field. What’s the catch? One of these so-called “experts” is lying, and it is up to the kid to figure out who it is. Once the fibber has been properly identified, they are subjected to a ritual foaming as their punishment. From popular reality show producers Josh Halpert (“The Floor is Lava”), Leigh Hampton (“Who Wants to Be a Millionaire”) and “Camp Getaway” duo Irad Eyal and Aaron Rothman, “The Big Fib” stars Yvette Nicole Brown (“Community”) as the host and Rhys Darby (“Flight of the Conchords”) as her brainy robot sidekick, C.L.I.V.E. The show’s first season premiered in May of this year.
WHAT’S NEW ON PRIME “Mirzapur” Season 2
Get in on the action and escape to Uttar Pradesh, India, for the weekend by bingewatching “Mirzapur,” back for a second season on Friday, Oct. 23, on Prime. Everyone’s favorite Indian crime-thriller series returns for another nine-episode season that is sure to be just as action-packed as the first. Centered around government corruption, mafia plots and featuring a lot of guns, drugs and crime, “Mirzapur” captivated its audiences when Season 1 premiered back in 2018. Now, after a full season worth of deceit, doublecrosses and death, Season 2 will bring to light the consequences of the first season’s actions. Both Golu (Shweta Tripathi, “The Trip”) and Guddu (Ali Fazal, “Victoria & Abdul,” 2017) team up for some mutually beneficial revenge, while Sharad (Anjum Sharma, “Slumdog Millionaire,” 2008) has some plans of his own. Meanwhile, Munna (Divyendu Sharma, “Chashme Baddoor,” 2013) will have to be wary of his father’s punishment as the proverbial pendulum swings back following his failure to take over the family business. This popular Hindi-language series was created by showrunners Karan Anshuman and Puneet Krishna, both of “Inside Edge” and “Bangistan” (2015) fame.
“Get Duked!” (2020)
Get lost in the Scottish Highlands with the award-winning black comedy “Get Duked!” available now on Prime. This is the first full-length feature film from writer-director Ninian Doff (“The Chemical Brothers: We’ve Got to Try,” 2019) and it follows four hip-hop-loving teenage boys — Duncan (Lewis Gribben, “T2 Trainspotting,” 2017), Dean (Rian Gordon, “Final Score,” 2018), Ian (Samuel Bottomley, “Tyrannosaur,” 2011) and one who only goes by the name of DJ Beetroot (Viraj Juneja, “Home Girl,” 2019) — as their Duke of Edinburgh Awards program hiking trip turns chaotic when they need to avoid the threat of a menacing collective of hunters. While the film has a deeply engrained horror vibe, it is, at its base, definitely a satire. Also starring the absurdly comical Eddie Izzard (“Across the Universe,” 2007), this quirky survival story features the work of music director Sophie Urquhart (“Kissing Candice,” 2017) and Scottish music producer Bobby “S-Type” Perman in his movie debut.