What to Watch - September 1, 2021
In which I anticipate subtitles may be required on Sunday night
Yet another fairly short week and one dominated by 9/11-related coverage and movies, including a movie about the 9/11 Victim Compensation Fund which is, based on reviews, a must-watch. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Wednesday - September 1
Apple TV+ / 9/11: Inside the President’s War Room (documentary). This well-reviewed 90 minute documentary about that fateful day is told from the perspective of then-President George W. Bush and his advisors including Dick Cheney, Condoleezza Rice, and Ari Fleischer, and features their anecdotes, some never previously shared publicly. While acknowledging that the film may suffer from some (understandable) legacy-burnishing by its interviewees, 'the editing and the photo assets are breathtaking, and it could be the last time that so many government officials at the center of this tragedy go on the record in one film.' A joint production with BBC, this premiered yesterday in the UK on BBC and is available today everywhere on Apple TV+ (except the UK where it's currently available on BBC and BBC iPlayer).
Netflix / Turning Point: 9/11 and the War on Terror (docuseries). Director Brian Knappenberger is behind this well-timed five-part series examining the events of 9/11 and the strategic decisions made around the war on terror, with a heavy focus on the US's actions in Afghanistan. Trailer here.
Disney+ / Dug Days, S1 (animated). From Pixar, this series of shorts continues the adventures of Dug, the squirrel-obsessed talking dog from Up. The timing is bittersweet, given the loss earlier this week of Ed Asner who gave voice to adventurer emeritus (and balloon aficionado), Carl Fredrickson. All five episodes stream today. Trailer here.
Netflix / How to Be a Cowboy, S1 (reality). YouTube star Dale Brisby describes himself thusly on his website: 'Here's the thing; Dale Brisby lives a simple life- ridin' bulls and punchin' fools. I ain't on your time. I don't even really care about time. Theres [sic] only one time that matters to Dale Brisby- Rodeo Time! I'm a lone ranger, a lone wolf. When life hands you lemons, put a bull rope on 'em. POW POW .' Dale has a Netflix show now and I’m mad all over again about Netflix canceling Tuca & Bertie. Trailer here.
Thursday - September 2
Netflix / Q-Force, S1 (animated). Sean Hayes (Will & Grace) stars as the voice of an elite gay spy who forms an all-LGBTQIA+ squad from his West Hollywood headquarters. Trouble ensues when he's forced to add a new member who's straight (voiced by David Barbour, Black Widow). In development since 2019, the series comes from Gabe Liedman who's written extensively for The Kroll Show, Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Broad City, and PEN15 (and also provides voice work). Also stars (the voices of) Gary Cole (Office Space), Laurie Metcalf (Lady Bird), Wanda Sykes (The Good Fight), and Patti Harrison (Shrill). Reviews aren't great, suggesting the show suffers from beyond-their-sell-by-date pop culture references along with a viewpoint that's far too focused on living in LA. Ugh, traffic, amirite? Trailer here.
Netflix / Afterlife of the Party (movie). A party girl commits a major faux pas: she dies during her birthday celebration. Why yes alcohol was involved! Post-death (or is it post-life? Is this a flammable/inflammable, bone/debone, ice/de-ice thing?), she finds herself in a kind of purgatory but fret not, concerned reader! Our hero’s guardian angel gives her a list of wrongs to right and a very tight deadline in which to do them before she can graduate to the party upstairs instead of getting downgraded to whatever's happening downstairs (is it a baby shower?). Stars Victoria Justice (Victorious). Trailer here.
Returning - Hulu+FX, What We Do in the Shadows (this season has gotten raves and the show is greenlit for a 4th season; trailer here); Peacock, A.P. Bio and Trolls: TrollsTopia; Bravo, Million Dollar Listing Los Angeles
Friday - September 3
Disney+ / Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles (special). Billie Eilish performs her new album, Happier Than Ever, at the Hollywood Bowl with a little help from the LA Philharmonic and a few special guests. Trailer here.
Netflix / Worth (movie). After the 9/11 attacks, the US created a compensation fund for its victims and it fell to attorney Ken Feinberg to determine how to distribute the money. In essence, he and his team had to determine how much each life was worth. Based on Feinberg's memoir and produced by the Obamas' Higher Ground Productions, Worth garnered positive reviews when it premiered at Sundance in 2020, ostensibly held back for release by Netflix until now to coincide with the 20th anniversary of the events. Stars Michael Keaton (Spotlight), Stanley Tucci (Big Night), Amy Ryan (Gone Baby Gone), and Laura Benanti (Younger). Trailer here.
Prime Video / Cinderella (movie). This feminist retelling of the classic fairytale stars Camila Cabello as an aspiring seamstress whose life is made difficult by her wicked stepmother (Idina Menzel, Frozen) and stepsisters. Reviews are wildly mixed, though all praise Cabello's winning performance along with that of Pose's Billy Porter as Cinderella's fairy godmother, now rechristened as 'Fabulous Godmother': '[Porter's] charisma sparkles as brightly as his sequined ensemble, and his appearance is filled with magnificent, magical splendor.' Also stars Minnie Driver (The Riches) and Pierce Brosnan (Remington Steele). Available in theaters this weekend. Trailer here.
Netflix / Dive Club, S1. This Australian teen drama follows a group of skilled young divers in Australia whose friend goes missing during a storm. Trailer here.
Showtime / Bitchin': The Sound and Fury of Rick James (documentary). From director Sacha Jenkins comes this documentary exploring the knotty legacy of rock-funk-R&B pioneer Rick James who died in 2004 at the age of 56, leaving behind some of music's greatest hooks and a history that included some truly heinous crimes. Review here. Trailer here.
Hulu / The D'Amelio Show, S1 (reality). Follows the D'Amelio sisters whose sudden popularity on TikTok is so huge that the family moves from Connecticut to LA to pursue the girls' dreams of even bigger stardom. I, of course, have never heard of them. Is this on GeoCities? Trailer here. (And The New York Times did a review that was less review and more of a D'Amelio explainer.)
Returning - Netflix, Money Heist/Casa de Papel (fifth and final season)
Sunday - September 5
PBS / Guilt, S1. From Scotland comes this dark comedy about a pair of estranged brothers who drunkenly drive home from a wedding and hit a pedestrian named Walter. The brothers proceed to commit more and more serious crimes to hide their original crime, kind of like getting a snake to catch a rat and then getting a mongoose to get the snake and soon you're pretty much guaranteed never to get your deposit back. Reviews are raves, complaining only that 4 episodes is too short of a first season. Trailer here.
Returning - Showtime, Billions (trailer here)
Monday - September 6
Netflix / Countdown: Inspiration4 Mission to Space (docuseries). This five-parter comes from the director of ESPN's hit Chicago Bulls docuseries The Last Dance and follows the crew of the Inspiration4, the all-civilian mission to go to space - and orbit for three days - via a SpaceX Dragon capsule. This is apparently meant to be shown in 'near real-time,' with behind the scenes imagery of the four-person crew prepping for liftoff along with footage from inside the craft itself, so the actual dates depend on the mission schedule. Trailer here.
Returning - Adult Swim, Robot Chicken
Tuesday - September 7
FX+Hulu / Impeachment: American Crime Story (miniseries). The latest in Ryan Murphy's anthology series focuses on the Monica Lewinsky scandal and finally premieres after a nearly yearlong COVID-related delay. Lewinsky herself serves as a producer on the series and is played by Booksmart's Beanie Feldstein. The stellar cast includes Clive Owen (Croupier) as Bill Clinton, Edie Falco (Nurse Jackie) as Hillary Clinton, and longtime Ryan Murphy muse Sarah Paulson as Linda Tripp. Cobie Smulders (The Avengers) took over the role of conservative pundit Ann Coulter from GLOW's Betty Gilpin after Gilpin had to drop out due to pandemic-related scheduling. Reviews suggest that despite the actors' strong performances and the series' success in nailing the era's aesthetic details that the series nonetheless suffers from a lack of purpose at best and is shallow and clunky at worst. (I, for one, will tune in to see Sarah Paulson in her 'problematic fat suit' - but then I am not a deep person.) Trailer here.
Apple TV+ / Being James Bond (documentary). Daniel Craig discusses playing James Bond in this documentary that features extensive clips from the movie franchise. This is available to non-Apple TV+ subscribers for the next month. Trailer here.
Returning - OWN, Queen Sugar (trailer here)
And that's it for the week!
In Other News...
Fairly short news week, starting with some sad news: prolific actor and activist Ed Asner passed away at the age of 91. Rolling Stone TV critic Alan Sepinwall pays tribute to Asner's legacy. || Apple announced the The Problem with Jon Stewart will premiere on September 30 and will have an official companion podcast. || Festivus comes early as Netflix announced that all 180 episodes of Seinfeld will be available on October 1. || Wannabe game show host Mike Richards is out as producer of Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune. || Netflix saved Manifest giving it a fourth and final season, edging out its former home NBC in the deal. || HBO Max dropped the trailer for the upcoming third season of Doom Patrol, premiering September 23. || And finally, The New York Times has a lovely interview with Harvey Guillén, the break-out star of What We Do in the Shadows.
Have a great rest of the week! And try to relax after the sprint to a much-deserved long weekend.
Moira