Steve Baltin
The Greatest Show on Earth: Springsteen, E Street and ‘Road Diary’
Having been a music journalist for over 30 years for the likes of Rolling Stone, The L.A. Times, Billboard, Chicago Tribune and pretty much everywhere else, I have been to easily 5000 plus shows. I can safely say there is nothing on earth like being at a Bruce Springsteen and The E Street Band show.
Norah Jones’ Streaming Watchlist
After three long years, Grammy-winning star Norah Jones is going back on tour. She tells the Watercooler’s Steve Baltin what she’s been listening to and watching — and what she’s up to on her podcast.
Meet The Real Beatles: Get Back and the Human Side of the Mythical Band
Veteran music journalist Steve Baltin analyzes the Beatles doc ‘Get Back’ and sees their human side, their joy — and the truth behind their split.
Community
At its best, this show is high art, mixing creativity, believability, thoughtfulness, and heart into some of the finest individual episodes of TV you can find.
Steve Baltin
Bolívar (South America)
“Sex and revolution – what else is there?” This irresistible telenovela is also a biopic about one of the most important figures in world history: Venezuelan liberator Simón Bolívar.
Maria
Kenya’s sweeping family drama has hooked 90% of the population with its tear-jerking story — while throwing East Africa’s rich and poor divide into stark relief.
Utopia
The conspiracy and thriller elements keep the audience guessing, but it’s also comforting to know that the answers have already been sorted out by the writers before the first episode even begins.
Star Trek: Discovery
Stands out from other Trek series by embracing a more serialized storytelling model and incorporating mature themes like the harm of colonialism and the tension between the pursuit of science and the promotion of militarism within the Federation itself.
Aggretsuko (Aggressive Retsuko)
What if Pam from The Office was secretly a head-banging heavy-metal girl by night? Created by the team behind Hello Kitty, this animated Japanese series has become an international hit.
The Third Day
Think Lost meets Midsommar, with a generous helping of The Wicker Man thrown in for good measure.
Ice Fantasy (Huànchéng)
An anti anti-hero romance about a powerful immortal who falls for a mere mortal, consider this an epic fantasy for anyone who found Game of Thrones too violent.
Beastie Boys Story
Money and fame be damned, it’s our relationships that sustain us and love that will save the day.
Unorthodox
A surprising and moving thriller about an unhappily married young Hasidic woman who dares to flee her suffocating life and marriage in an ultra-orthodox Brooklyn community.
The Something for Everyone Show: Poker Face is Back
Can’t agree on what to watch together? Consider putting on your Poker Face. Peacock’s acclaimed mystery-of-the-week series created by Rian Johnson (best known for Star Wars: The Last Jedi and, most relevant here, the Glass Onion films) and starring Natasha Lyonne, is finally back for another season after two long years. That’s great news for
It’s not HBO, it’s The Pitt: How streamers are embracing old TV network models
“It’s not TV, it’s HBO.” Remember that old tagline? For nearly all of its history, broadcast television has been fighting against the perception that it’s subordinate to film as a storytelling medium. Television was just media for the masses, as opposed to the more erudite aficionados of cinema (who, by the way, poured into theaters
Boyhood
Boyhood captures the importance of moments in time as people grow up and contests the idea that any singular moment is defining to your childhood. It’s a film filled with the full breadth of the emotions of childhood, conveying each one delicately to leave you reflecting on its many pensive conversations.
Why Andor is Luring in Non-Star Wars Fans
An edgier Star Wars prequel with a timely story about rebellion, Andor skips some of the more familiar elements of the franchise — from lightsabers to Jedi to the Force — in favor of a more grounded story with parallels in both history and our current moment. While it sets up the legendary world of
Inside the War Zone: A sit down with Warfare’s director and cast
A harrowing new film from Alex Garland’s production banner, Warfare drops viewers into a real-time combat mission in Iraq. Set in 2006, it follows a team of Navy SEALs on a surveillance mission gone awry. Co-written and co-directed by Garland and Ray Mendoza—whose own platoon was ambushed during the real-life event—the film is both brutal
Black Bag
A taut, stylish and steamy take on the high-stakes espionage thriller, Steven Soderbergh’s Black Bag keeps you second-guessing every character’s motives until the very end. The tension, the suspicion, the sense that the walls are closing in? It’s all here.
The Icon Party: The Cast & Producers on Mid Century Modern
A nostalgic tribute to classic sitcoms that adds some R-rated edge, Mid Century Modern has all the making’s of a breakout hit. It follows three gay best friends – played by Nathan Lane, Matt Bomer, and Nathan Lee Graham – who decide to live out their golden years together in Palm Springs after the unexpected