Here’s five new films and TV shows to gorge on this week
Billie Eilish in Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles
Screen Time: Billie Eilish’s ode to LA, vampire slayers, Selena Gomez as a true-crime caper and loads more – the best films and TV shows to keep you occupied from 3rd September.
Summer’s over – officially anyway, but it never really started, did it? If you count those two measly weeks in June, you’re a fool.
Anyway, enough bashing (for now): it’s September and autumn is nigh. Now you can flip a finger at the outside world, curl up in a back-busting position and watch films and TV all weekend long – unless we’re in for an Indian summer. In which case, stop reading.
Only joking, stay with us, because the next week is full of box treats for you, yourself and I. Selena Gomez stars in a sort-of-true-crime murder mystery alongside comedian-actor Martin Short, Awkwafina shines in Marvel’s first Asian-led action blockbuster, Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings (and even took time to speak to us, THE FACE), and there’s a couple of hangover cures thrown in for good measure, too: a home repair show and the return of cult vampire sitcom What We Do in the Shadows.
If that ain’t enough and you’re still mourning summer, get a life. There’s always next year, alright?
For bingeing…
Got time? Watch it all in one go
Only Murders in the Building
In co-creator, director and actor Steve Martin’s entertaining whodunnit, three strangers (Selena Gomez and Martin Short are the other two) share one commonality: a grisly obsession with true crime. Hey, who doesn’t like an episode of CSI: Miami? Which is all well and good until they become wrapped up in a crime caper themselves. After the trio suspect a murder, crime aficionados turn into self-taught investigators in this 10-part series. And like a steady game of Cluedo, truths, lies and danger with a capital D begins to unravel. Will they find the killer… or will it be too late? Dun dun sodding dun.
Streaming on Hulu
For splurging…
The film worth leaving home to see
Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings
In a long-awaited first, Marvel releases its first east Asian-led film – ever. Starring Simu Liu as the titular character, with scene-stealing performances from support acts Awkwafina (Ocean’s 8, The Farewell), Ben Kingsley (X‑Men, Shutter Island) and Benedict Wong (Netflix’s Marco Polo), Shang-Chi is an explosive, glittering 130 minutes laced with knock-outs, tough guys and – hats off to Awkwafina – laughs. Speaking on the film’s much-needed representation, the New Yorker told THE FACE this week:“What this movie is saying – and what any movie says when it has an all-Asian cast – is always going to be important. It’s going to add to this larger collection of films that will later define and reshape what‘representation’ means. It’s so important that kids have a superhero they can see themselves in.”
Out now, in all good cinemas (and some of the bad ones)
For thinking…
A documentary to feed the brain
Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles
In the wake of the release of Billie Eilish’s second LP, Happier Than Ever, now she presents a first-hand concert experience-slash-doc. A Disney+ original, Happier Than Ever: A Love Letter to Los Angeles features intimate performances of all 16 tracks from the Billie-and-brother-Finneas-penned album in its sequential order – the first and only time this will be done. Directed by Robert Rodriguez (Sin City, Spy Kids) and co-directed by Oscar-winning animator Patrick Osborne (Feast), A Love Letter also includes commentary from Finneas, animated elements and dreamy sequences journeying through the siblings’ hometown. Think of it as a holiday at home, sort of.
Streaming on Disney+
For laughs…
Absurd comedy or reality TV to crack a smile
Motel Makeover
Who doesn’t love a makeover scene? Especially when, at the helm, are two kinda likeable budding entrepreneurs stripping a deadbeat motel in Ontario, Canada, talking in a looong draaawl à la Kardashian-speak and finding solace in blush pink neons and gold pineapples. One for the hangover, we’d say, when thinking just won’t cut it.
Streaming on Netflix
For chatting…
Talking points for when your next wave of social fatigue hits
What We Do in the Shadows
We ain’t knowitalls, but we do know what’s funny, and vampire comedy What We Do in the Shadows is exactly that. Very, very funny. In its third season, the Staten Island vampires return, picking up from the aftermath of Guillermo’s slaying in S2’s finale. But with it comes problems – killing your own kind doesn’t go down lightly, apparently. If you’re still feeling jaded by the summer’s lack of lustre, join the darkside. You’ll love it.
Available on FX
