P-Valley — Showmax
The 12th-highest-rated new TV show of 2020 so far, according to Rotten Tomatoes, and the one which set a new record on the Starz App for the most-viewed series premiere ever. As Rotten Tomatoes’ 100% critics consensus says: “A stunning, lyrical piece of neon noir, P-Valley explores the unseen lives of strippers in Mississippi through Katori Hall’s singular gaze, celebrating the beauty of the craft without sugarcoating the challenges.” Indiewire hailed it as “unlike anything ever seen on TV ... the series knows exactly what it wants to be: a sexy, fast-paced drama that sets out to de-stigmatise the world of stripping and shatter misconceptions.” Welcome to the Dirty South.
Rebecca — Netflix
The master of suspense, Alfred Hitchcock, only won one Oscar over the course of his decades-long career and that was for his brilliantly creepy and almost perfect screen adaptation of Daphne du Maurier’s novel, Rebecca, in 1940. Ben Wheatley, a singularly excellent director in his own right, has unfortunately chosen to see if he can out-Hitchcock Hitchcock. Thanks to solidly awful help from stars Armie Hammer and Lily James, and a script that fails at almost every turn to capitalise on the wealth of psychological material so ably provided by the novel, Wheatley fails miserably. Watch only for its lushly realised technicolour period setting and as an impetus to watch or rewatch Hitchcock’s original.
A Suitable Boy — Netflix
Mira Nair’s adaptation of Vikram Seth’s legendary epic saga may be a little too optimistic and on the nose for many devotees of its source material. However, there is plenty of charm in its lush period detail and endearing characters to keep you pleasantly entertained, if not too enlightened for its six episodes.
Barbarians — Netflix
Barbarians offers enough historically faithful re-enactment and solidly executed battles in its story of the showdowns between the disparate group of Germanic tribes and the mighty Roman Empire. There’s adequate human drama to keep those who aren’t aficionados of this period suitably engaged and plenty of good evocation of what the period might actually have been like for those who are.
Blood of Zeus — Netflix
The visceral action of anime meets the eternally intriguing world of Greek mythology in this well-executed and entertaining animated series. It’s got all the political intrigue and epic battles between gods and men that Game of Thrones fans love, and it’s beautifully realised too.
