WHAT WE CAN’T WAIT TO WATCH
Mute
Duncan Jones’s 15-years-in-the-making “spiritual sequel” to his 2009 film, Moon (also newly available on Netflix this month), finally has a release date. The British director’s passion project, billed as a “sci-fi Casablanca” and the second entry in a trilogy, features Alexander Skarsgård as a mute bartender searching the seedy underbelly of a near-future Berlin for his missing girlfriend. Along the way he encounters two American surgeons played by Paul Rudd and Justin Theroux. Moon star and current Oscar nominee Sam Rockwell also appears in the film. February 23
On Body And Soul
Hungarian director Ildikó Enyedi’s first film in nearly 20 years won three prizes at last year’s Berlinale – including the Golden Bear – and was among the surprise nominees in the best foreign film category for this year’s Academy Awards. Forget the usual rom-com for Valentine’s Day and queue up this romance about two slaughterhouse employees who discover their shared dream of meeting in a forest as deer and falling in love – and then set out to make that dream a reality. February 2
Irreplaceable You
Another romantic drama dropping in time for your next Valentine’s Netflix and Chill session (which could happen anytime, really) is this film from Veep director/executive producer Stephanie Laing. Gugu Mbatha-Raw (Beyond The Lights, Belle) stars a woman diagnosed with terminal cancer who decides to find a new love for her fiancé and best friend (Game Of Thrones’ Michiel Huisman). The stacked supporting cast includes Kate McKinnon, Christopher Walken, Steve Coogan and Jacki Weaver. February 16
Seeing Allred
Fresh from its Sundance premiere, Sophie Sartain and Roberta Grossman’s doc profiles notorious feminist lawyer Gloria Allred. The directors began shooting while Allred was making headlines for representing 28 women who accused Bill Cosby of sexual assault and harassment. Whenever a celebrity scandal breaks, you can usually rely on Allred to convene a press conference: her client list has included women accusing Donald Trump and Roy Moore of sexual misconduct and assault, Tiger Woods mistress Rachel Uchitel and the family of Nicole Brown Simpson. February 9
Ugly Delicious (season 1)
Momofuku chef David Chang and 20 Feet From Stardom filmmaker Morgan Neville have teamed up on the latest post-Bourdain docu-series to combine food and social and cultural commentary. The twist: the food in question is not conducive to food porn. The show pits Chang against celebs like comedian Ali Wong, writer Ruth Reichl and chef René Redzepi in a series of humorous convos about comfort food that might be delicious but not exactly Instagrammable (hence the title). February 23
Queer Eye (season 1)
The original Queer Eye For The Straight Guy was a pop culture phenomenon that lasted five seasons, helped solidify the Bravo TV brand and, of course, helped spread the cliché that gay men are arbiters of fashion, culture, good food and wine. Now the addictive makeover show is back on Netflix with a whole new crew of gay gurus to help what we’re told is a diverse group of people trying to live their best lives. The show’s setting of Atlanta (rather than the original’s NYC) should provide some interesting subjects. And in the buzzed-about teaser trailer, the new fab five even get to dispense some solid LGBTIQ+ info and advice to their clueless subjects. So the times they have a-changed. February 7
Seven Seconds
Of the new original series premiering this month, this crime drama from The Killing creator Veena Sud looks the most intriguing. Regina King (American Crime, The Leftovers) stars as a New Jersey mother whose son is accidentally run over by a white cop. The ensuring drama plugs right into headlines about police cover-ups and racial tension. Based on the 2013 Russian action film The Major. February 23
The Frankenstein Chronicles
The latest cult series from Britain to hit Netflix is The Frankenstein Chronicles, a 19th-century crime show that reimagines Mary Shelley’s classic novel. Sean Bean stars as a London inspector looking into the deaths of children whose corpses appear to be composites of various body parts. Is someone re-animating the dead? Seems likely! Two seasons have aired in the UK and both will be available on Netflix this month. February 20
The Mermaid
SOLID BETS
The Mermaid
Kung Fu Hustle and The God Of Cookery director Stephen Chow’s 2016 comic fantasy is about a wealthy tycoon (Deng Chao) who falls for a mermaid (Jelly Lin) attempting to thwart his waterfront development plans. A massive box office hit in China, Sony Pictures barely released the film theatrically in North America despite reviews touting it as a non-stop laugh fest and Chow’s best movie since Hustle. February 1
Midnight Special
One of our favourite movies of 2016, Jeff Nichols’s sinister sci-fi film starring Michael Shannon and Adam Driver falls on the subtle and moody end of the 80s genre revival spectrum. “It does the Stranger Things thing better than Stranger Things did,” NOW film critic Norman Wilner wrote following its release. February 7
A Most Violent Year
Since Molly’s Game star Jessica Chastain was passed over by Oscar voters this year, why not revisit another role for which she was also snubbed by the givers of the little gold man? In A Most Violent Year, she plays the wife of an entrepreneur brushing up against crime and corruption in 1981 New York City. Reminiscent of Sidney Lumet’s Dog Day Afternoon and Prince Of The City. February 7
Oculus
Mike Flanagan’s clever horror flick about an evil old mirror was a highlight of the Toronto International Film Festival’s Midnight Madness program in 2013. Brenton Thwaites and Karen Gillan are great as siblings who square off with the apparently murderous aforementioned mirror, and the script is full of layers that add tension and thrills to a story that amounts to a slight variation on the standard haunted house premise. February 1
Mama
Another horror gem from 2013 arriving on Netflix this month is Andy Muschietti’s fairy tale about two children who are abandoned by their father in a cabin and raised by an entity called “mama.” If it sounds very Guillermo del Toroesque, it is – The Shape Of Water helmer was the exec producer. Jessica Chastain transcends the supernatural set-up in a terrific dramatic turn as one of the people who takes in the kids. February 19
Nightcrawler
Jake Gyllenhaal plays an off-kilter loner who realizes his lack of empathy makes him ideal to work as an ambulance-chasing tabloid videographer trolling the streets of Los Angeles. Director/writer Dan Gilroy’s satirical ambitions aren’t always successful, but Gyllenhaal’s creepy, nuanced performance is one of his best, making Nightcrawler an easy choice for a night in on the couch. February 1
Being John Malkovich
After solidifying a rep as one of the most inventive music video directors of the 90s, Spike Jonze segued into feature films with this bizarro meta-comedy about a depressed puppeteer (John Cusack) who enters the mind of acclaimed actor John Malkovich. The great Catherine Keener scored an Oscar nod for her supporting performance, and Charlie Sheen(!) somehow wound up playing himself as Malkovich’s showbiz buddy. February 1
How To Be Single
Okay, this loose adaptation of Liz Tuccillo’s (Sex And The City, He’s Just Not That Into You) novel is by no means a great movie. But if you’re looking for passable romantic comedies to distract yourself from impending Valentine’s Day, you could do worse. Certainly the cast – including Alison Brie, Rebel Wilson, Leslie Mann and Dakota Johnson – is watchable. And there’s a complexity to some of the situations and dialogue that rings true – or truer than most romantic Hollywood fare, anyway. February 1
Full list of new titles available in February, by date:
TV SHOWS
February 1
Damnation (season 1)
Dynasty (season 1, new episodes weekly)
Powder (season 1)
Riverdale (season 2, new episodes weekly)
Série Noire (season 1)
Under Arrest (season 8)
Z Nation (season 4)
February 2
Altered Carbon (season 1)
Coach Snoop (season 1)
Luna Petunia: Return To Amazia (season 1)
The Mindy Project (season 6)
February 5
24: Legacy (season 1)
February 6
Black Lightning (season 1)
February 7
Imposters (season 1)
Queer Eye (season 1)
February 9
Fate/Apocrypha – Part 2 (season 1)
My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman: George Clooney – Part 2 (season 1)
February 14
Greenhouse Academy (season 2)
February 15
Re:Mind (season 1)
Deep Undercover Collection (Collection 2)
February 16
DreamWorks Dragons: Race To The Edge (season 6)
Everything Sucks! (season 1)
First Team: Juventus FC (season 1)
February 18
The Joel McHale Show With Joel McHale
February 20
Bates Motel (season 5)
The Frankenstein Chronicles (seasons 1-2)
February 23
Marseille (season 2)
Seven Seconds (season 1)
Ugly Delicious (season 1)
February 27
iZombie (season 4, new episodes weekly)
February 28
PAW Patrol (season 4, new episodes weekly)
MOVIES
February 1
42 Grams
About Time
American Fable
Apollo 13
Being John Malkovich
Blue Crush
Chef
Friday Night Lights
Ghost In The Shell
How The Beatles Changed The World
How To Be Single
In Good Company
John Mellencamp: Plain Spoken
Liberated: The New Sexual Revolution
Limitless
Lovesick
Moon
Nightcrawler
Oculus
Paint It Black
Ray
Rolling Stones: Crossfire Hurricane
S.W.A.T.
Secret In Their Eyes
Take Me Home Tonight
The Danish Girl
The Mermaid
The Nutty Professor
The Strange Name Movie
The Theory Of Everything
The Transporter Refueled
February 2
Homefront
Kavin Jay: Everybody Calm Down!
On Body And Soul
February 6
Fred Armisen: Standup For Drummers
Sharknado 5: Global Swarming
February 7
A Most Violent Year
Fun With Dick & Jane
Midnight Special
February 9
Baywatch
First Kill
Seeing Allred
The Ritual
The Trader (Sovdagari)
When We First Met
February 12
Safe
February 13
Trophy
February 14
Love Per Square Foot
February 15
2 Guns
Django Unchained
Machine Gun Preacher
Snitch
The Heart Of Man
The Intouchables
The Vatican Tapes
Unleashed
February 16
Irreplaceable You
February 17
Blood Money
February 18
The Final Year
February 19
Dismissed
FullMetal Alchemist
Mama
February 21
Forgotten
The Bachelors
February 23
Mute
February 26
Batman V Superman: Dawn Of Justice
Begin Again
People You May Know
The Heyday Of The Insensitive Bastards
The Rift: Dark Side Of The Moon
Winnie
February 27
Derren Brown: The Push
Marlon Wayans: Woke-ish
February 28
Big Bear
Burnt
LAST CALL
TV series and movies leaving Netflix this month:
February 1
Eddie The Eagle
The Man From U.N.C.L.E.
Tron: Legacy
February 2
Wayne’s World
February 9
Mission: Impossible
February 16
Saving Private Ryan
February 22
The Intern
