
Lauren Vanderveen

Minx
The streaming series about the intersection between feminism and smut could endear even the most skeptical. And what it might lack in delicacy, it certainly makes up for in swagger.

Love & Gelato
Love & Gelato is pretty corny but it’s the exact kind of sweetly innocent confection that will melt in your mouth. What’s more, the film offers a slightly more authentic ending than the average rom-com fare.

Becoming Elizabeth
Becoming Elizabeth goes beyond mere court intrigue and makes a testimony to the influence of the powerful over the powerless. It’s assisted majorly by an eager and incredibly telling arrangement of sounds that stitches the lofty narrative together. In short, it’s a bold entry in the arena of historical dramas.

Watercooler Guide: What You Need to Know about The Staircase
Our Watercooler guide to The Staircase will help you jump right into the conversation about HBO Max’s new true-crime series.

Outlander: What We Talk About When We Talk About Assault
It’s no coincidence every major character in Outlander has experienced some form of assault. I’d argue that’s what the whole show is about.

The Adam Project
The Adam Project is one of those movies you go into imagining big explosions and kids hilariously making life-or-death decisions (like Zathura, for example). And, to be sure it throws everything it has at the wall and then some: time-travel jiu jitsu soldiers, a stacked all-star cast, and lots of heart.

The Alpinist
Joie de vivre never looked so effortless as it does in The Alpinist. While the spectacular cinematography wows the senses, the beautiful character portrait at its core of an eccentric, backwoods mountain climber stirs the humanity in us all.

The Best New Movies and TV Shows in February 2022
Love, history, and choices well off the beaten path are arriving on streaming platforms this month. See our picks in categories you won’t find anywhere else.

The Best New Movies and Shows to Stream in December 2021
This month’s picks include big stars, highly anticipated returns, sci-fi epics, and an international Oscar contender—all for your streaming pleasure!

Lauren Vanderveen

Universal Language
An absurdist dramedy about the clash of two worlds, Universal Language entertains as much as it motivates. Beyond the madness lies an urgent plea for unity, an appeal that resonates with people hoping for a better, more harmonious future.

Industry S1
Industry is a series fueled by greed, drugs, sex, and money, and provides all of these ingredients in Federal Reserve-sized quantities. There’s never a dull moment.

Minx
The streaming series about the intersection between feminism and smut could endear even the most skeptical. And what it might lack in delicacy, it certainly makes up for in swagger.

The Sympathizer
Told through the perspective of a conflicted hero with contradicting loyalties, The Sympathizer is an ambitious examination of a spy who can’t help but sympathize — hence, the title of the series — with the enemy. It might make you rethink everything you were taught about the Vietnam War too.

Robert Redford’s Impact: Four Films to Watch
He was “one of the lions,” as Meryl Streep put it, an American touchstone who changed filmmaking and opened the gates for new generations of storytellers, becoming a central force in independent cinema. To understand the impact his films have had – on previous generations, on our culture, on so many other films – we’ve

Itaewon Class (Itaewon Keullasseu)
A colorful, ultimately inspiring tale for budding entrepreneurs, restauranteurs, and empire-builders. It also works as a vicarious adventure in Seoul.

The Back-to-College Binge Watch Playlist
Remember when you could sleep until noon, stumble to class in pajamas, and stay up until 2am watching weird art films? Fall is when many of us become wistful about that bumpy chapter of extended adolescence, when you start to discover who you truly are and make some truly regrettable choices. In honor of all

Eddington is a pandemic parable. But what is it trying to say?
Set in May 2020 in a fictional New Mexico town, Pedro Pascal and Joaquin Phoenix’s new film Eddington draws some parallels to two of the biggest breakout shows of the past decade: The Last of Us and The Walking Dead. It’s a story about a virus that’s less about death and more about exposing the living.

A Watercooler Watch: Barbara Walters: Tell Me Everything
Before social media and podcasts, there was one undeniable truth about news-making interviews: if a story mattered, Barbara Walters would be the one to tell it. Landing a one-on-one with her didn’t just mean publicity, it meant you had become part of a national conversation. But while the interview signified that you had made it,

tick, tick… BOOM!
Lin-Manuel Miranda and Andrew Garfield bring Jonathan Larson’s life and work to the screen in a way that’s universal, but will have a special resonance for fans of musical theater.

Eternals
A Marvel movies this also wholeheartedly Chloé Zhao’s movie, too; a kinder, gentler tale of God-like creatures that’s rooted in nature, humanity, and the fierce drive to protect what you love at all costs. Add in a few honestly surprising plot twists, and you have a little bit of something for everyone.

If You’re Enjoying Ghosts, You May Also Enjoy…Ghosts
You may have seen promotional spots for the new CBS comedy Ghosts, or perhaps even watched the show, and wondered, “Where in the world did this come from?” The simple answer is: the United Kingdom.

Star Trek: Prodigy
The values of Star Trek, and then some: unity, diversity, individuality, optimism, idealism and hope. What more could you ask for? How about the return of Captain Janeway? Yeah, it’s got that too.

Colin in Black & White
You’ll want to talk about this scripted dramatic series about Colin Kaepernick’s childhood – created by Ava DuVernay and Kaepernick – which reveals how he faced down racism and classism while rising to the top of the sports world.

Book vs. Movie: Denis Villeneuve’s Dune
Will the latest version of Dune capture the hearts of loyal readers as well as new audiences? Maybe.

Only Murders in the Building
Only Murders in the Building is a gripping mystery with a touch of comedy, a strong sense of style, and charm to spare. There’s nothing else like it on TV right now.

Halloween Kills
Halloween Kills is a worthy entry in the Halloween franchise. It doesn’t reinvent the wheel, but it’s an above-average slasher movie that will get you in the spooky season mood.

Watch These Sopranos Episodes to Appreciate The Many Saints of Newark
Thanks to the recently released prequel film The Many Saints of Newark, a lot of viewers are rediscovering—or even discovering for the first time—the brilliance of The Sopranos (which scored record ratings on HBO Max in the wake of the film’s release). In case you don’t have time to binge all six seasons of the