TV & Movies/Reviews

Where: CBC Gem
Where: Series, 6 episodes, 22 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Docu-series
Why you should watch: The Big Sex Talk isn’t your mother’s sex-ed series — but you should make her watch it anyway! This groundbreaking CBC anthology went coast to coast interviewing real Canadians — including me — about the ways they engage with sex, sexuality and relationships, and its six episodes cover everything from sex in the digital age to asexuality, polyamory and more. It’s often hard for mainstream sources to talk about sex in a way that feels realistic and fun, but the series’s diverse range of guests, tongue-in-cheek humour and stylized aesthetic check every box.

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Where: In theatres
What: Movie, 112 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Romantic comedy
Why you should watch: Satisfying, classic rom-com. Sandra Bullock and Channing Tatum pack sparkling wordplay amidst the foreplay as a romantic novelist and himbo who appears on her book covers. The two find themselves facing tropical terrors and ignite credible sparks. Brad Pitt is great in a self-parodying extended cameo and the amusingly droll Daniel Radcliffe could be auditioning to be the next Bond villain.

Where: In theatres
What: Movie, 84 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: An eye-opening, must-see documentary that exposes the cost to locals of current travel practices that also, thankfully, offers solutions.

Vancouver-based writer and director Tyson Sadler has created a powerful expose of how even well-intended travel like “ecotravel” and “voluntourism” can have devastating effect on visited communities. It’s not all bad news as Sadler offers local-friendly alternatives.

Where: Disney+
What: Movie, 76 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: The performances are the star of this film, in which meandering musings about her songwriting themes and process provide more detail than any but the most rabid fan would require. But the beautifully shot and produced performances, ostensibly grabbed as Rodrigo retraces an apocryphal car trip from Salt Lake City to Los Angeles, which helped inspire her megahit drivers license debut, are sensational.

Where: In theatres
What: Movie, 128 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: This clever, poignant Swedish film is already one of the most beloved indies of the year. The underground hit follows four years in the life of Julie, a young woman full of existential dread, as she struggles with her work life, her love life and the unbearable terror of self-improvement.

Where: Netflix
What: TV series, 8 episodes, 60 – 70 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Period drama
Why you should watch: The Shondaland staple made headlines and broke records with its modernized approach to the period piece bodice-ripper (and its pop-goes-baroque soundtrack) while following two elite families in Regency-era Britain. Bridgerton’s unbridled sexuality and breakout cast made it an instant phenomenon — and as it returns for a heavily anticipated second season, expect steamy scenes, crackling tension, eye-candy costumes and another eight-odd hours of delightful distraction.

Where: Disney+
What: Movie, 100 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Animation
Why you should watch: A fun affirmation of adolescent awkwardness and the clumsiness of transitioning from little kid to teen all against a backdrop of cultural clashes. And, despite what a foolish critic said, it’s a story everyone can relate to — even white dudes. Featuring glorious animation that’s a tribute to filmmaker’s Toronto hometown. In the first two minutes alone we get the CN Tower, TTC logos, red rocket street cars and Chinatown

Where: Prime Video
What: Miniseries, 3 episodes, 57 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: More ‘90s nostalgia with this excellent doc ostensibly about the Phat Tuesdays Black comedy night at L.A.’s legendary Comedy Store launched in that decade that’s also a larger look at how and why Black comedy exploded then. Black comics found the club on Sunset Blvd. and Hollywood booking agents found them there as hip hop, fantastic fashion and NBA stars all converged at a comedy oasis.

Where: Crave
What: Movie, 135 mins.
When: Tues., April 5
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: Skateboarding legend Tony Hawk emerges as a pretty likeable, driven and ultimately decent guy in this revealing, sometimes inspiring, doc. Most of the major players in the skateboarding world weigh in to discuss Hawk and the history of the sport. We watch as Hawk and the industry go from exuberant beginnings, falling in and out of favour and ultimately enduring.

Where: Apple TV+
What: Series, 8 episodes, 60 mins.
When: Now, new episodes weekly
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: Beautifully filmed and satisfying, sprawling drama that follows four generations of a Korean family, from Japanese occupation in the homeland in 1915, through the money-chasing ’80s to present day. Apple TV+ doesn’t produce a lot of content, but this series, based on a New York Times bestseller, meets its quality over quantity criteria and feels like an event.

Where: Disney+
What: Series, 8 episodes, 55 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: After it was discovered that Elizabeth Holmes — inventor of blood-tech disruptor Theranos and “world’s youngest female self-made billionaire” — had forged results and fooled investors in the creation of her monumental health-care company, her story captured public imagination like few others. Now, like many iconic scammers before her, she’s receiving the miniseries treatment with Disney+’s The Dropout. Starring Amanda Seyfreid, the series is juicy, compelling and very well done.

Where: Crave
What: Miniseries, 6 episodes, 58 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Documentary
Why you should watch: There’s a Warholian quality to this docuseries on “the most important artist of the 20^th century.” It’s a pasted-together pastiche based around an actor using AI to read Warhol’s actual diary in his voice while showing home movies, film clips, news reels and contextual footage of his paparazzi-pleasing life. Chaotic, clever and focused all at once — just like Warhol.

Where: Prime Video
What: Series, 12 episodes, 58 mins.
When: Now
Genre: Drama
Why you should watch: Regular Ricky Gervais collaborator Stephen Merchant created and stars in this charming British series set in Bristol that finds seven random strangers thrown together as part of a community service work team. Amusing and, at times, sentimental, a good crime story emerges at its core and Christopher Walken is superb as a truly bad grandpa and one of the criminal, community servers.