In case you missed it, last January was the third hottest January in Australian history. Join us and pray with hands and feet that February doesn’t follow suit.
You know it’s bad when beach plans sound like more of a sweaty chore than anything else. You have to contend with the scorching rays coming straight at you through that hole in the ozone layer. Better hope you were liberal enough with the Banana Boat four hours ago. Time to reapply, btw. And if that wasn’t hot enough for you, there’s third-degree burns from your seatbelt buckle and steering wheel waiting for you in the car.
Yep, if this month is anything like the last, February-in-the-outdoors is cancelled. Time to load the freezer up with zooper dooperz, wrap yourself in cold towels, and start a new show. Here are our picks.
On Body and Soul (film)
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Where did you last find love? Let’s be real, it was probably on Tinder. And unlike the app’s name suggests, there was probably no spark. Maybe you need to try other avenues: a coffee shop, a bar – a slaughterhouse, even. Just hear us out on this one.
In Ildiko Enyedi’s On Body and Soul, two lonely people in a Budapest slaughterhouse connect after discovering they share the same animalistic dream every night. As expected, this freaks them both the fuck out. After calming down, they set to work on recreating the dreams in real life.
On Body And Soul airs February 2.
Altered Carbon (series)
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Remember the San Junipero episode of Black Mirror where old people could upload their consciousness to the cloud and chill out in a cool beach town? Altered Carbon is not like that. Yes, it’s set in the future where consciousness can be digitized, and death is no longer the end. But no, there is no arcade gaming and slow dancing with your lover to melodic ‘80s synths.
Based on the novel by Richard K. Morgan, the show follows Takeshi Kovacs (Joel Kinneman), a prisoner whose consciousness is revived after 250 years in order to solve a murder.
Come for the story, stay for the visuals. Showrunner Laeta Kalogridis’ world is one of soaring skyscrapers awash in neon, and shrouded by so much fog and rain that Rick Deckard would suffer PTSD.
Altered Carbon airs February 2.
Fred Armisen: Standup for Drummers
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In a few short years, Netflix has seemingly managed to round up every comedy legend with a pulse to do a stand-up special. There’d been one glaring omission from its call list until now. Fred Armisen (of SNL and Portlandia fame) will be combining his two loves – drumming and comedy – for a show literally centred around drumming, to an audience made up entirely of drummers. Drum roll, please.
Fred Armisen: Standup for Drummers airs February 6.
The Ritual (film)
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In all horror movies since time immemorial, the overarching message to viewers can be surmised as “don’t go into the woods”.
In The Ritual, four friends hike through the Scandinavian wilderness in honour of their friend’s memory. A wrong turn leads them to the edge of the woods. Guessing these guys have never seen Blair Witch or Evil Dead or even The Cabin in the Woods, because they straight up go into the fucking woods. Three guesses on what fate will befall them.
The Ritual airs February 9.
Seeing Allred (documentary)
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Gloria Allred is perhaps one of the most famous attorneys in the world, thanks to her tireless efforts over 40 years to assert and protect women’s rights. Seeing Allred will tell her story through archival footage and revealing interviews with both her supporters and critics. It will also look back on her most high profile cases against Bill Cosby and Donald Trump.
Last year, Allred filed a subpoena that sought documents from then President-Elect Trump’s campaign over allegations of sexual harassment. Her client Summer Zervos was a contestant on 2006’s The Apprentice, and alleged that Trump once grabbed her breasts and “thrust his genitals” at her. Trump’s response to the subpoena was that “it’s totally fake news”.
Safe to say we stand with Allred.
Seeing Allred airs on February 9.
Seven Seconds (series)
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Showrunner Veena Sud had been formulating Seven Seconds for more than two years. It was born shortly after the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray, who died in April 2015 from neck injuries while in police custody. Sud felt as though she was seeing a different black person meeting the same fate every night on the news.
Her story begins with the hit-and-run of a black teenager by a police officer who attempts to cover up his crime. So begins the uncomfortable conversation of race relations between law enforcement and the people they serve.
Sud was adamant that Seven Seconds focused on the “human stories behind the headlines.” The character with perhaps the most poignant arc is KJ Harper, a black assistant prosecutor who grapples with the weight of the case, and realizes that justice won’t easily be served.
Seven Seconds airs February 23.
Ugly Delicious
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In Ugly Delicious, esteemed chef and Momofuku restaurateur David Chang travels the world to taste wonderfully weird flavour combinations. Along his stops are writers and chefs, activists and artists who are innovating ways of using food to break down cultural barriers, tackle misconceptions and uncover shared experiences.
The show was partly inspired by Chang’s late acceptance of Korean cuisine, which he grew up with but refused to cook in his early chef years, but “now, I’m just like, I don’t give a fuck.”
Ugly Delicious airs February 23.
