What to watch this weekend.
Credit: Netflix / Focus Features
It’s starting to feel a lot like Christmas, although this list of new TV shows and movies coming out this weekend includes very few Christmas movies. I’ll have a separate guide to the best vacation-themed fare soon. It’s about that time of year, when the lights go down and sweet, happy Christmas songs come on the radio.
It’s another big weekend for streaming content, though not quite as big as last weekend and its highly anticipated release Stranger Things 5.
In entertainment news, we just learned that Netflix is acquiring Warner Bros. and will gobble up HBO Max in the $82.7 billion deal. It’s the end of an era. My only prediction is grim: We’ll never make it The Sopranos or Deadwood or The Wire or even Pete quality series from HBO again. Everyone will move towards Netflix’s horror algorithm, towards lower quality cinematography. It’s also a dead draw for movie theaters, not to mention the high-caliber films Warner Bros. puts out — you can kiss them goodbye. Kiss your wallet goodbye, too, as this kind of acquisition leads to significant price increases for subscribers. Competition is good. Massive media mergers? Not so much.
Don’t get me wrong. Netflix has made a lot of really good TV shows and movies, but those are generally the exception to the rule. HBO has many of the best TV shows ever made. All good things come to an end. I just wish, perhaps selfishly, that I didn’t have to witness so much in my life.
Anyway, on a brighter note, we have shows and movies to discuss. As always, I’ve searched high and low for all the best new shows and movies for you to stream on the various streaming services we all subscribe to these days.
Let me know if I’ve missed anything and I’ll add it to an update. Send me any tips you have Twitter, Instagramor Facebook.
Also be sure to check out last weekend’s streaming guide here.
New TV shows to watch this weekend
The Abandons (Netflix)
When I heard that Lena Dunham and Gillian Anderson were starring in a new Western drama, I was excited. When I found out Sons of Anarchy The creator, Kurt Sutter, was making it for Netflix. I was nervous. I’ve enjoyed this show and other things Sutter has worked on, but overall I’d say it’s a mixed bag. Add in the Netflix algorithm effect and it’s no surprise to see The Abandons with a Rotten Tomatoes rating of 29%. The public isn’t much happier, with a 41% popcorn meter. The revisionist western might still be worth checking out, if only for the caliber of its leads. If you’re not impressed, think American Primeval, a violent Netflix Western starring Taylor Kitsch that I thoroughly enjoyed.
Spartacus: House of Ashur — Season 1 (Starz)
While I liked the shows like Rome on the cable TV network formerly known as HBO (RIP), I never got around to watching the Starz series, Spartacus. I’ll have to add it to my backlog. Now we have a spinoff of this series in an alternate timeline where one of its main characters didn’t actually die. Imagine a Game of Thrones spinoff all about Ned Stark’s long, happy life. I would watch it.
New movies to watch this weekend
Jay Kelly (Netflix)
George Clooney and Adam Sandler star in this new Noah Baubach film about a famous movie star on a European trip to Europe. This is very much a character-driven drama about two men reflecting on their past and the choices they’ve made, their relationships and issues of legacy. It has an RT rating of 77%. Baumbach has made countless films and collaborated with filmmakers such as his wife, Greta Gerwig. Barbie and director Wes Anderson in movies like The Life Aquatic with Steve Zissou.
Diary of a Wimpy Kid: The Last Straw (Disney+)
The latest Diary of a Wimpy Kid The film lands on Disney+ this weekend. I actually know very little about these stories, although my children read the books when they were younger, and I have never seen the film adaptations. Still, this should be a fun, festive family film, although there are virtually no reviews for it yet.
Forrest Gump (Netflix)
Forrest Gump
Credit: Paramount
I liked it Forrest Gump much when I saw it as a teenager. I liked it a lot less when I watched it closer to 40. It’s still a good movie, and Tom Hanks is great, and I love all the bits of history Gump dips his toes into during the Robert Zemeckis film. But I think it’s absolutely crazy that it won best picture, beating out the next movie on this list.
Pulp Fiction (Netflix)
Pulp Fiction
Credit: Miramax
It’s probably the most ridiculous part of Oscar history. How Forrest Gump beat Quentin Tarantino Pulp Fiction it surpasses me. Out of control. Pulp Fiction it is a masterpiece. Change movies. It changed the crime drama and catapulted Tarantino to a level of fame that few directors have ever achieved (though he’s certainly taken his sweet time making new movies over the years). Every time I watch Pulp Fiction, I love it more.
The Phoenician Scheme (Prime Video)
Speaking of directors who have become household names, Wes Anderson’s newest film hits Prime Video this weekend. I missed it The Phoenician Design when it comes to theaters, so I’m excited to give it a watch. As always in a Wes Anderson film, the cast is stacked to the point of absurdity, including: Benicio del Toro, Michael Cera, Benedict Cumberbatch, Scarlett Johansson, Tom Hanks, Bill Murray and many, many more.
Oh. What. Fun. (First video)
Another Christmas movie for the holidays, Oh. What. Fun. (as in “oh what fun it is to ride on a one-horse open sleigh, hey!) stars Michelle Pfeiffer and Chloe Grace Moretz, as well as Denis Leary, Felicity Jones, Eva Longoria and Dominic Sessa. Michael Showalter’s movie gets very bad reviews, unfortunately, and so do most Christmas movies.
TV shows that run on a weekly stream
The Mighty Nein — Season 1 (Prime Video)
The Mighty Nein, the latest Critical Role fantasy animated series, is just as enjoyable The Legend of Vox Machina and I’m really enjoying the weekly release schedule that extends our enjoyment of what would surely be a very uncomfortable show. The story follows a group of misfits who come together by chance and embark on a dangerous mission to uncover secrets about an evil witch. I think Jester is my favorite character at this point, but they’re all great.
Pluribus — Season 1 (Apple TV)
I’m kind of . . . disappointed that the big reveal from last week Pluribus The cliffhanger was basically exactly what everyone thought it would be. At the same time, I appreciate the fact that this show messes with our expectations a bit. It’s hard to explain the way without spoiling things, so I’ll just have to write something separate about it. But if you’re a fan of it Breaking Bad or Better Call Saul or The X-Files, This is another Vince Gilligan series and it’s pretty good, though not as good as any of them. The mystery of the strange alien virus that turns almost the entire population of the earth into a happy, peaceful hive mind is definitely unique and I’m very curious to see where it all goes.
IT: Welcome to Derry — Season 1 (HBO Max)
IT: Welcome to Derry ended on a huge cliffhanger last week, but it’s the kind of cliffhanger where I’m absolutely dreading what’s next. I guess that means I’m pretty invested in this Stephen King series (its prequel THE) though a few things, like crappy CGI and frankly very mixed acting, keep it from separating itself from many other HBO shows. (Indeed, this is similar to what we would get from Netflix HBO).
Blue Lights — Season 3 (BritBox)
I’m still working on my review Blue Lights Season 3, but I’ll still urge everyone to watch this fantastic Irish crime drama, which is in its third season every week on BritBox here in the US (and previously aired on the BBC in the UK). Fantastic characters, extremely tense scenes and a very human look at the city of Belfast and its people all combine to make it one of my favorite TV shows right now.
Landman — Season 2 (Paramount+)
Billy Bob Thornton is the main draw for Taylor Sheridan’s Texas oil business drama, but I’m still behind. I hear such mixed things, and my first impressions of the first two episodes of Season 1 were pretty mixed as well. Some people praise it as Sheridan’s best show ever. Others find the daughter/mother subplot too disturbing and creepy. I’ll get around to it, I’m sure. It is very popular!
Check out last weekend’s big streaming guide here.
And that’s it guys! Let me know what you’re watching and if I missed anything you think I should add to this guide. If there’s anything on your radar, let me know about that too! You say to me: What are you watching these days? What else did I miss? What should I put on this list or add to my backlog? Please let me know Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook.
