Welcome to the latest issue of Stream On, the weekly newsletter from Consequence that answers the eternally confounding question: What films and TV shows should you be watching? (Subscribe here!) We’re looking at all the new and recent releases from Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, Prime Video, Paramount+, Peacock, HBO Max, and more for ideas — not to mention a Blast From the Past and streaming recommendations from this week’s special guest: The Terror: Devil in Silver director/producer Karyn Kusama!
This Week’s Picks
Remarkably Bright Creatures (Film)
Remarkably Bright Creatures (Netflix)
Directed by: Olivia Newman
Cast: Sally Field, Lewis Pullman, Joan Chen, Kathy Baker, Beth Grant, Sofia Black-D’Elia, Colm Meaney, Alfred Molina
Streaming on: Netflix
There are plenty of sweet small movies about unexpected multigenerational bonds, but only Remarkably Bright Creatures is narrated by an octopus (voiced by the one and only Alfred Molina). The octopus plays a minor but important role in the story of a cleaning lady at a local aquarium (Sally Field) who ends up bonding with a kind but down on his luck musician (Lewis Pullman), both of them finding they have far more in common than expected. This is straight-up feel good entertainment that doesn’t pander, with Pullman in particular proving how well he’s coming into his own as an actor. The supporting cast is also filled with standouts — in particular, I love to see Colm Meaney do anything (he remains one of my favorite Star Trek cast members ever).
The Other Bennet Sister (TV)
The Other Bennet Sister (Britbox)
Directed by: Jennifer Sheridan, Asim Abbasi
Cast: Ella Bruccoleri, Ruth Jones, Richard E. Grant, Maddie Close, Poppy Gilbert, Grace Hogg-Robinson, Molly Wright, Indira Varma, Richard Coyle, Dónal Finn, Laurie Davidson, Lucy Briers, Tanya Reynolds, Varada Sethu
Streaming on: Britbox
If you’re at all a Jane Austen fan, then you’ve seen plenty of remixes and updates and other riffs on Pride & Prejudice — I know I have, at least. However, this Britbox series is the first time I’ve seen poor nerdy Mary Bennet (played here by the wonderful Ella Bruccoleri) take the spotlight, as writers Sarah Quintrell and Maddie Dai (working off the novel by Janice Hadlow) give one of the story’s most undersung characters a true journey of her own. Between the 30-minute episodes, the sparkling period details and dialogue, and Richard E. Grant as Mr. Bennet, there’s plenty to recommend this series.
M.I.A. (TV)
M.I.A. (Peacock)
Created by: Bill Dubuque
Cast: Shannon Gisela, Cary Elwes, Danay Garcia, Brittany Adebumola, Dylan Jackson, Alberto Guerra, Maurice Compte, Gerardo Celasco, Marta Milans
Streaming on: Peacock
For fans of Miami-set crime dramas, M.I.A. is an easy slam dunk, but I unexpectedly found myself hooked on this Peacock series thanks to its central character, a young woman whose genius-level IQ, eidetic memory, and remarkable problem-solving abilities aren’t quite enough to help save her family from the mob after a deal goes bad. However, her talents might be able to help her get bloody revenge, giving this story a frisson of MacGyver-esque competency porn. It’s an overall well-cast series, from Shannon Gisela’s solid lead performance to welcome supporting cast members like Cary Elwes, David Denman, and Mike Colter. (I will rarely hesitate to recommend a show in which Mike Colter wears a well-tailored suit.)
Send Help (Film)
Send Help (20th Century Studios)
Directed by: Sam Raimi
Cast: Rachel McAdams, Dylan O’Brien
Streaming on: Hulu
Send Help isn’t Sam Raimi’s best movie — it is, however, a welcome return to form for one of our great horror auteurs. The stripped-down story of survival features a simply fantastic performance from the wonderful Rachel McAdams, whose Linda Liddle finds herself stranded on a desert island with her young new boss (Dylan O’Brien). The ensuing battle of wills is packed with unexpected twists, goofy moments, and enough buckets of blood to ensure that everyone is soaked in it by the end.
Blast From the Past
The home screens of streaming services are always packed with the latest new releases, but we don’t spend enough time appreciating how much good library content is streaming across all of these platforms. Each week, Stream On will spotlight one less-than-new favorite (must pre-date the founding of Consequence, so 15 years or older) that deserves attention from modern-day eyes.
Mortal Kombat (1995, Film)
Mortal Kombat (New Line Cinema)
Directed by: Paul W.S. Anderson
Cast: Linden Ashby, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa, Robin Shou, Bridgette Wilson, Talisa Soto, Christopher Lambert
Streaming on: HBO Max
This week marks the theatrical release of Mortal Kombat II, which I enjoyed for the way it improved upon the 2021 “gritty” reboot of this franchise. But you know what mistake it didn’t fix from the previous movie? It did not open with a guy screaming “MORTAL KOMBAT!!!” over the New Line Cinemas logo! And everyone knows, thanks to director Paul W.S. Anderson, that this is the only correct way to start a Mortal Kombat cinematic adventure.
Is Anderson’s tightly paced 1995 martial arts fest a better movie than Mortal Kombat II? Well, I’ll give the new movie this: Karl Urban makes for a somewhat superior Johnny Cage to Linden Ashby, and Josh Lawson’s Kano remains a true scene-stealer. Otherwise, Anderson has the edge, with this tonally consistent take that established early in his career how skilled he is at video game adaptations.
A Special Guest Recommends!
Liz isn’t the only person in the world capable of suggesting stuff for people to watch… So each week, Stream On will now feature picks from a special guest! Said special guest could be literally anyone from the world of entertainment — actors, writers, directors, musicians, or anyone else Liz thinks might be watching something interesting.
This Week: Karyn Kusama!
Karyn Kusama, photo courtesy of AMC Global Media, and Families Like Ours (Netflix)
Who Are They? Few filmmakers have had as cool, powerful, and definitive a debut as Karyn Kusama did with her first feature film, the stellar Girlfight (currently streaming on Criterion!). After making Michelle Rodriguez into a star, Karyn didn’t stop making the kind of movies that crawl under your skin and stick with you, from the mayhem of 2009’s Jennifer’s Body to the creeping dread of 2016’s The Invitation. Her newest project is the third season of AMC/Shudder’s The Terror — subtitled Devil in Silver, it’s a decidedly creepy horror tale starring Dan Stevens as a man who finds himself trapped in a psychiatric institution filled with, um, terrors. I’ve literally been a fan of Karyn’s for 26 years, and so it’s a thrill to have her picking for us today!
What Do They Recommend? Karyn suggests a below-the-radar series that sounded so fascinating that I literally started watching it this week, and can confirm it is gripping:
I was really riveted by Families Like Ours on Netflix, a limited series directed by Thomas Vinterberg, who’s working with a lot of the amazing actors he’s cast in his previous films like Another Round and The Commune. The show imagines that due to the rising water levels around Denmark, the entire population needs to move, methodically, and through a somewhat bloodless bureaucracy, to other regions of the world. Some of those places are welcoming, many of them are not. It’s just real enough to be terrifying, and results in an emotional epic about the costs of scientific denial that never for a second feels like eating your broccoli.
Thank you so much to Karyn for this incredible pick! The Terror: Devil in Silver is streaming now on AMC+ and Shudder.
One Last One Before Bed
Finally, let’s spotlight a movie or TV show that’s not only great, but won’t take up too much of your time: Think of this section as the answer to the question “What’s something I can watch before hitting the hay, that won’t keep me up too late?” The only rule is that it has to be less than 95 minutes if it’s a movie, or less than 30 minutes an episode if it’s a TV show. Otherwise, sky’s the limit!
Archer (TV)
Archer (FX)
Created by: Adam Reed
Cast: H. Jon Benjamin, Judy Greer, Amber Nash, Chris Parnell, Aisha Tyler, Lucky Yates, Jessica Walter, George Coe, Adam Reed
Streaming on: Hulu, Tubi
There are a lot of reasons why you might say the last few years have felt pretty bleak, but here’s an unconventional theory: Is the world a little sadder because FX’s Archer is no longer on the air? The madcap spy parody/animated series released its last episodes in 2023, capping off an incredible decade-plus run during which creator Adam Reed often reinvented the show, largely for his own amusement. Remember the space season? Or the season when Pam got really into cocaine? I sure do, along with so many other great moments. Archer — gone but never forgotten. Forgetting this show feels like an impossible feat.
We’ll be back next week with more picks — in the meantime, stay safe out there, or better yet stay inside, where it’s definitely safe, and there’s so much film and TV to watch. Be sure to subscribe to the newsletter!
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