How to Watch the Copa América Quarter Finals Using a VPN

The Copa América quarter finals are set to start this week at the same time as the EURO 2024. Argentina will face Ecuador, an undefeated Venezuela plays Canada, a strong Uruguayan team meets a struggling Brazil, and Colombia looks to beat their Panamanian neighbors. If you're looking to stream the Copa América with a subscription, there are plenty of options for you to choose from. However, if you want to watch the matches without signing up for a standalone streaming service, a VPN is a good alternative—but it won't be totally free, either.

To watch the upcoming Copa América games using a VPN, head over to Sportitalia, which is streaming all of the Copa América matches in Italy. Yes, you might not be physically in Italy, but that's where a VPN comes into play. Express VPN is our favorite VPN for bypassing geo-blocking restrictions. It will run you $12.95 per month, $9.99 per month for six months, or an annual plan for $8.32 per month. VPNs are useful beyond just streaming these matches, so you may find that a month or two of the subscription price is worth it—if not, don't forget to set yourself a reminder to cancel before you're charged more than you expected.

Once you have ExpressVPN, open the app and go to Sportitalia on the same device (you'll probably need your browser to translate to English unless you speak Italian), and you'll be able to watch the Copa América matches there.

The Copa América 2024 match schedule

Thursday, July 4

• 09:00 PM ET: Argentina vs. Ecuador (FOX, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Friday, July 5

• 09:00 PM ET: Venezuela vs. Canada (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Saturday, July 6

• 06:00 PM ET: Group D winners vs. Panama (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

• 09:00 PM ET: Uruguay vs. Group D runner-up (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Tuesday, July 9

• 08:00 PM ET: Argentina/Ecuador vs. Venezuela/Canada (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Wednesday, July 10

• 08:00 PM ET: TBD vs. TBD (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Saturday, July 13

• 08:00 PM ET: TBD vs. TBD (FS1, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

Sunday, July 14

• 08:00 PM ET: TBD vs. TBD (FOX, Univision, TUDN, Fubo, DirecTV Stream, Sling Blue)

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The 25 Most Misunderstood Movies Ever Made

That fact that a film is misinterpreted can’t always be laid at the feet of an audience: Director François Truffaut famously suggested that it’s nearly impossible to make an anti-war film, since the job of a filmmaker is to create compelling characters and situations that inevitably make war look exciting. You can extend that thinking to the creation of compelling villains and anti-heroes—Michael Douglas’ Gordon Gekko, the odious stockbroker in Oliver Stone’s Wall Street, became a hero to many who took his satirical “greed is good” catchphrase literally.

It’s true that sometimes filmmakers do their jobs too well, undercutting their own point by making their bad guys too compelling. Darth Vader racked up one of the biggest body counts in cinematic history, and still wound up on every kid’s lunchbox. Marketing can also be a problem; trailers train us to look for a certain type of movie, so once we’re in the theater, it can be hard to see anything different. A film that looks like a failure as horror can seem brilliant once we realize that we’re in a comedy—think Evil Dead II. We’re trained to limit our expectations, and sometimes it just takes a more open mind.

So what are the most misunderstood movies ever—deservedly or not? In answering that question, I’ve tried to stick to fairly objective readings, and avoiding overly elaborate fan theories (The Shining is probably not about the moon landing). And I’ll start with a caveat: No truly interesting movie can be subject to a single interpretation—even if the writer and director say it’s about one thing, some viewers may have a different take. I’m not saying you’re wrong, just that there might be things you hadn’t considered. (You’re wrong if you buy that Shining/moon landing bit though.)

Starship Troopers (1997)

Starship Troopers is a wildly fascinating adaptation in the ways in which it takes straightforward source material—in this case, Robert A. Heinlein’s 1959 novel—and satirizes largely by taking it at face value. It’s a rather shocking bit of literary criticism disguised as a B-sci-fi movie, turning the novel’s themes on their heads. At the risk of oversimplifying Heinlein, the novel (with a nearly identical plot) suggests that war is inevitable and that military service might be the best possible cure for a general moral decline.

Director Paul Verhoeven, who grew up in German-occupied Netherlands, called bullshit (while claiming he couldn’t even finish the book). Instead, he created a wildly over-the-top satire that brings to the fore the novel’s possible fascistic interpretations, opening his film with an “homage” to Leni Riefenstahl and including a series of Nazi-inspired propaganda segments. The lead characters have no compunctions whatsoever about treating the alien “bugs” to any and all manner of cruelty and medical experimentation because, well, they’re the enemy, after all. Many early reviewers say it as a mindless spectacle or a straightforward paean to fascism; they clearly didn’t get the joke.

Where to stream: Netflix, Digital rental

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Skinamarink (2022)

I'm not sure what people expected when they went to see instant cult film Skinamarink, nor how they interpreted it afterwards—but the relatively low audience score compared to fairly decent reviews from critics suggest that many viewers were various shades of unimpressed and/or confused. Part of the problem, I think, was in managing expectations: It's very hard to describe the film's plot, as it largely has none—we're entering here a world that's all atmosphere and vibe. Prior to completing this feature, writer/director Kyle Edward Ball ran a YouTube channel where he created short videos based on user-submitted childhood nightmares. Skinamarink, filmed in Ball's own childhood home, extends the nightmare to feature length and, on that level, makes perfect non-sensical sense, capturing the feeling of disorientation and fear so common to young childhood. Outside of David Lynch's oeuvre, I can't think of any other film that best captures the feeling of being at sea in a world made for grownups.

Where to stream: Hulu, Shudder, AMC+, Digital rental

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Fight Club (1999)

To what extent ought a movie be held responsible for its fanbase? I’ll spare you a rundown of all of the actual fight clubs that rose up in the years following this 1999 David Fincher film’s release, but a quick internet search reveals there’s probably one near you, if you’re so inclined. Like the various men’s encounter groups that cropped up in the mid-’90s, Fight Club looked to an awful lot of viewers like a plea to reconnect with a certain type of stock masculinity—take off your shirt, make some soap, and beat the shit out of other guys, if only to feel something. Tyler Durden became a hero.

The thing is, that’s the furthest thing from what writer Chuck Palahniuk intended; the book the film is based on makes the case that replacing numbness and capitalistic materialism with typical American male tough-guy bullshit is a like-for-like exchange. The film falls down, perhaps, by making Durden too seductive (his plot to wipe out credit card debt also has a certain appeal), but the film concludes with Ed Norton’s Narrator using a gun to free himself from Tyler Durden’s influence, after all. That’s the bit many viewers seem to have overlooked.

Where to stream: Hulu

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The Shining (1980)

Where to start with The Shining? It’s a movie that both defies explanation and, simultaneously, has generated enough interpretations to inspire a whole other movie (Rodney Ascher’s Room 237) that delves into the pet theories of fans. The biggest misunderstanding here is about what the movie is intended to be. Stephen King was notoriously dissatisfied with the adaptation of his book, a (very) loosely autobiographical work about his struggles with alcoholism. The Jack Torrance character, played by Jack Nicholson in the movie, provides the book’s central point of view, struggling, in the early chapters, to overcome his own demons and earning a last-act redemption.

The film doesn’t have nearly as much sympathy for Jack. Seen from the outside, minus the character’s internal monologue, he’s a mere bully and an abuser. It’s fair that Stephen King was disappointed in the depiction of a character who so closely reflected his own struggles, but the film isn’t trying to be the story of a man driven off the deep end by trauma and substance abuse (and maybe ghosts); it’s about what happens to an asshole when he finds himself untethered from society’s constraints. It’s true that he doesn’t have much of a character arc, but that’s by design: He’s a bastard. The horror is faced by the ones who have to live with him.

Where to stream: Shudder, AMC+, Digital rental

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Barbie (2023)

Even many of Barbie's biggest fans see it as an exclusively pro-feminist film—and it certainly is that, but the message here is a bit more complex. Margot Robbie's Barbie goes on a journey of self-discovery into the real world, discovering the ways in which she's been stifled and limited by the world's expectations of a beautiful doll, while Ryan Gosling's Ken discovers a world of male privilege and toxic masculinity. Many perceived an anti-male message, but the movie sets both characters on the same journey: Both Barbie and Ken realize that they've been limited by cultural norms; experiment with breaking those norms with mixed results; and gradually discover that their best selves have little to do with what's expected of them. Without discounting the movie's feminist messages, it's key that the two characters start and arrive at very similar places—it's all about being yourself.

Where to stream: Max, Digital rental

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A.I. Artificial Intelligence (2001)

Oh look, it’s another Stanley Kubrick project. The late director was notorious for his attention to detail; he acquired the rights to Brian Aldiss’ 1969 short story “Supertoys Last All Summer Long” in the early 1970s with an eye toward making a film version that he continued developing right up until his death in 1999. The director had considered some sort of collaboration with Steven Spielberg on the project in the early 1990s that never came to be, so it was with the full support of Kubrick’s heirs that Spielberg returned to it, penning a script based on a Kubrick-commissioned treatment from writer Ian Watson. The result was a fascinating blend of styles that lead audiences and critics to wonder how much of the movie belonged to each director.

One bit that was debated at the time is the fairy tale ending involving Haley Joel Osment’s robot child David finally getting to experience one final day with his human mother, Monica (Frances O’Connor) in the far future. Some audiences thought that the mysterious beings who made the reunion possible were aliens, and therefore likely a Spielberg addition (the director having a known penchant for friendly extraterrestrials, especially before War of the Worlds). But no! They’re not aliens, but highly advanced robots. Moreover, the seemingly happy ending is actually incredibly bleak—David hardly becomes the “real boy” he sought to be, and his affection is revealed to be only programming, satisfied as it is by a recreated, utterly false version of his “mother.” Dark stuff—and pure Kubrick, if filtered through the gauze of Spielberg.

Where to stream: Paramount+, MGM+, Digital rental

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American Psycho (2000)

Most audiences, I think, got it, but American Psycho came in for plenty of early criticism among viewers and critics who found its ultra-male ultra-violence not only off-putting, but offensive. Those interpretations are complicated by the fact that the film is based on a book by Bret Easton Ellis, a not-entirely uncontroversial figure in his own right. Still, the movie’s satirical style is clearly over the top, and director and co-writer Mary Harron has made clear it was her intent to mock and bury misogyny, not to praise it.

Where to stream: Netflix, Tubi, Digital rental

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The Wolf of Wall Street (2013)

Stockbroker and scammer Jordan Belfort (Leonardo DiCaprio) is having a fabulous time throughout most of The Wolf of Wall Street running around, high as balls, living a lavish and unrestrained life on other people’s dimes. Scorsese invests a lot of time and energy in making Belfort look cool, or at least like it would be fun to be him, and then blows it all up in depicting the character’s fall, gradually incorporating violence and sexual assault, and laying out the cost to the victims. The ending sees Belfort out of prison and on the lecture circuit, but it’s presented as yet another con job, ending on a shot of an enraptured audience that turns a mirror on us, asking us to consider why we ever thought this asshole was cool (or worth making a movie about).

There’s certainly an argument to be made that Scorsese went too far in depicting the salacious parts of Belfort’s life, and not far enough in showing the cost to his victims, but that stinger makes it clear his intent was never to lionize the crook.

Where to stream: Paramount+, Digital rental

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Taxi Driver (1976)

History got away from both Taxi Driver and Martin Scorsese. Starring Robert De Niro as Travis Bickle and Jodie Foster as the underage sex worker he “rescues,” the movie incorporates an attempted presidential assassination on Bickle’s part—and very unintentionally inspired would-be real-life assassin John Hinckley Jr. to shoot President Reagan in order to impress Foster.

All that, and the string of “scared white people” vigilante films that cropped up in the ‘70s, impacted Taxi Driver’s legacy, and the ambiguous ending had led many viewers to conclude the violent Bickle is meant to be seen as a hero. Certainly Bickle isn’t portrayed as an outright villain, but an alienated Vietnam-era outsider; he’s briefly praised by the media at the movie’s conclusion, which is meant to be ironic: If Bickle had succeeded in his assassination plans, he’d have been treated much differently. In subsequent years, both Scorsese and writer Paul Schrader have spoken about the ending’s intended ambiguity.

Where to stream: The Criterion Channel, Prime Video

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Child’s Play 3 (1991)

A very different film from Taxi Driver, but one also colored by real-world events; in the case of Child’s Play 3, the horrifying murder of a two-year-old boy by two 10-year-olds in Merseyside, England. The British press got the idea that the kids were recreating a scene from the movie in carrying out the killing, though investigators found no such link—they determined the killers had never even seen the film. The resulting moral panic nonetheless led to legislation, and the film never quite escaped the shadow of the murders.

Where to stream: Tubi, Digital rental

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Land of the Dead (2005)

As with Day of the Dead, the earlier George Romero zombie movie that grew in esteem over time, the zombies here are smarter and more interesting than the shambling hordes of old. While critics homed in on the issues of class this sequel raises (they’re right there on the surface), they often missed the broader, more existential themes: The zombies are shown developing their own society, and we’re encouraged to sympathize with them when the humans attack. Romero appears to be suggesting that humanity, as it is, is all but unredeemable. Zombies might not be the end of things, but a new (better?) beginning.

Where to stream: Starz, Digital rental

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A Serbian Film (2010)

Upon release, A Serbian Film earned a not-undeserved reputation as one of the most depraved films ever made. That alone has garnered it a cult following, though it’s genuinely tough to sit through for all sorts of reasons. What many of the reviews missed, however, was the film’s stated subtext: Srđan Spasojević has talked about efforts to parallel the strife of the Balkan world following the disintegration of Yugoslavia, and, in particular, to satirize what he sees as a scourge of political c

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This Cava Slushy Is the New Drink of Summer

The Aperol spritz has been selfishly hogging the summer spotlight. With its fizzy refreshing bubbles, sunset hue, and cute orange slice—I mean enough is enough, already! Sure, it's delightful, but that doesn’t mean we can’t make room in these long balmy evenings for another refreshment: the slushy, foamy Cava sorbet.

Italians don’t get to have all the fun—the Spanish also know how to keep it cool when the sun feels like it's 20 feet from your face. Cava sorbet, or sorbete de limón al Cava, is made by mixing an icy, refreshing lemon dessert with a bubbly wine. The resulting drink (if served fast enough) is frothy, and temptingly slushy, but not in that suspicious frozen-margarita-mix kind of way. The foamy sweetness and bright citrus pop are sure to put a smile on your face, even through the sweat droplets. 

How to make a simple cava sorbet

This drink is dead simple to make, it’s almost mind boggling how it isn’t more popular already. Add eight ounces of lemon sorbet to a blender container, or into a deep measuring cup if you’re using an immersion blender like I do. Pour three or four ounces of Cava over the dessert, and drop in a fresh mint leaf or two. If you like a creamy drink, you can add a spoonful of cream or sweetened condensed milk to the concoction. Blend it all until smooth. Divide the mixture into wine glasses and enjoy. 

Chopped lemon sorbet popsicles ready to be transformed. Credit: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

Can’t find Cava? No sorbet to be found? Thankfully, it’s a rather flexible ingredient list. My Shoprite in Brooklyn didn’t have lemon sorbet in a typical pint container, and the freezer with the small tubs of Italian ice was broken. So necessity took the wheel. I used Talenti mini lemon sorbetto popsicles. Yes, that is the shady professional operation I’m running over here. I broke the sorbet chunks off of the stick and moved on.

That’s not the only thing you can fudge. You can switch up the sparkling wine if you’re partial to prosecco instead, or even better, champagne. Cava is a sparkline wine made using the same traditional fermentation method as Champagne. You could even say Cava is the Spanish version of Champagne, so if you can’t find Cava, you know what to do. You’ll get an equally delicious flavor and no one has to know your Spanish beverage is French. Or is it Italian if you use sorbetto? I’ll get back to you on that, after I finish my Cava sorbet. 

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Payouts for Apple's Butterfly Keyboard Lawsuits Are Finally Coming

Were you involved in a typing accident that left you with double keypresses or no keypress at all? Were your laptop keys sticky and/or unresponsive, in a way that left you with lasting trauma? If you were the victim of Apple's "butterfly" keyboard design on your MacBook, MacBook Air, or MacBook Pro, you may be entitled to compensation. In fact, that compensation is rolling out to victims soon.

What's up with my MacBook's keyboard?

Let's clear something up quick: This situation has nothing to do with the MacBooks Apple has released in recent years. If you have a relatively new laptop from Apple, your keyboard experience is likely just fine, if not above average. However, for a period of time (roughly 2015–2019) Apple made some questionable design choices for their lineup of notebooks—namely, the butterfly keyboard.

These keyboards ditched the traditional scissor switch mechanism Apple used for its previously beloved MacBooks for a "butterfly switch," which reduced the travel distance necessary for each key press. This design allowed Apple to make all their MacBooks ultra thin, which looked good visually, but wasn't the best choice for an optimal computing experience.

But the issue with the keyboards wasn't necessarily their thinness; it was the flawed design in general. Butterfly keyboards were prone to failure, for one reason or another, that could eventually result in nothing happening when pressing the keys, repeated entries when pressing the key once ("AA" appearing when you only typed "A" one time), or the feeling of "sticky" keys, since the keys would grind against the keyboard and get stuck in place.

Apple tried fixing the keyboards with small changes, like a thin membrane underneath the keys to prevent dust and debris from getting stuck, but none of these changes worked: The design was simply too flawed. Apple even started a repair program, so affected customers could fix their keyboards for free. The problem was the repair program only lasted for four years following the retail sale of your computer, not even when you bought it. If Apple sold your computer in fall of 2016, but you bought it in 2018, the program ended in 2020 regardless.

How much can I get paid?

Enter the lawsuits: It wasn't just that Apple had sold customers a faulty keyboard; it was that the company knew the keyboards were doomed to fail, and continued to sell them anyway. Apple denies all wrongdoing, but did in the end agree to a settlement of $50 million.

If you qualify, your payment will depend on your exact situation: If you had to get your MacBook's topcase replaced at least twice within that four year time period, you could get up to $395 in the settlement. If you replaced it once, you get $125. If you just had the keycaps themselves replaced, that's $50.

That said, if you didn't make a claim, you don't get anything. The deadline to make one was March 6 of 2023, so unless you stated your case back then, you're out of luck now.

Payments are coming

As spotted by MacRumors, payments for qualified victims are coming soon. The court issued a payment order on June 27, and the payments themselves will be issued by August. If you made your claim last year, be on the lookout for your payment by the end of summer.

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The Best Kids' Shows Are on Apple TV+

There's no denying that PBS Kids, the home of Daniel Tiger, was once the gold standard for children's programming. Unfortunately, many of their shows now feel recycled or like they're spoon-feeding their audience. For example, they've turned Elmo and Cookie Monster into transforming robots. A parent can't help but wonder if they're more interested in selling toys than entertaining kids. 

Apple TV+ has quickly (and quietly) been overtaking PBS' throne in quality programming for kids, bringing considerable value to this parent's dwindling streaming budget. Several creatives behind Sesame Street and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood have their own programs on the streaming service, and the shows are targeted toward specific age groups, not just preschoolers.

Toddlers and preschoolers

Hello, Jack! The Kindness Show

After playing 30 Rock's Kenneth Parcell with "aw-shucks" aplomb, Jack McBrayer practically seemed destined to host a Mr. Rogers Neighborhood-type show. Here, he plays a version of himself, who also happens to be the kindest resident of Clover Grove, and spreads his fondness for others around his colorful hometown. Behind the scenes, McBrayer co-created this musical show (with songs by pop group OK Go) with Angela C. Santomero, the mind behind Blue's Clues and Daniel Tiger's Neighborhood. According to my oldest son, this program is strictly for preschoolers, as he doesn't enjoy the show as much as his younger brother does. 

Frog and Toad

Every streaming service has a children's series based on a book. Netflix has Captain Underpants, and Prime Video has If You Give a Mouse a Cookie, and each show translates its source material to the screen with varying degrees of success. Apple TV+ has Frog and Toad, which captures what made Arnold Lobel's award-winning series so delightful to read, from the color palette of its illustrations to its contagious positivity. The show moves at the same pace as your preschooler, so their senses aren't overloaded, and its core themes about communication and embracing differences are slipped in subtly. Both my sons love it. Don't be surprised if this becomes the next kids' show you watch without your kids.

Older kids

Stillwater

From each hair on the titular panda's face to the blades of grass that move with the breeze, Stillwater is far too beautiful for children's television animation. Even its sound design is soothing, which is on purpose, given the show's premise. Each episode deals with a problem that one of Stillwater's child neighbors brings to them. Rather than letting their emotions take over, he supports them in finding a solution by taking a deep breath and looking at the problem from a different perspective, offering a way to navigate complicated feelings so viewers can work on becoming more self-aware humans. Surprisingly, my kids love this show, particularly the beautiful fables Stillwater tells his young neighbors to get his point across.

Camp Snoopy

When Apple TV+ announced it was becoming the new streaming home for all things Peanuts, I wondered why, considering that most of the television specials had their heyday in the '70s and '80s. I obviously underestimated Snoopy's power, especially considering parents were up in arms when word got out that A Charlie Brown Christmas wouldn't be on broadcast television because of the arrangement.

The agreement also allows Apple to create new content featuring Charles Schultz's characters. Their most recent offering is Camp Snoopy, which follows Charlie Brown and siblings Lucy and Linus Van Pelt to the great outdoors. There are the usual shenanigans from Snoopy and Woodstock (which drew my kids in), but the other characters have issues of their own, such as getting homesick or fear of trying new things, that are dealt with gracefully.

Tiny World

Who needs to watch Honey, I Shrunk the Kids when the documentary program Tiny World breaks down the microscopic ecosystems of the jungle, savannah, and outback for viewers? Soothingly narrated by Paul Rudd, the series offers fantastic images they wouldn't likely see anywhere else to captivate your child's imagination. I recommend waiting to watch this on your new big-screen TV instead of your iPad, as the detail in these images is enough to make your family's jaw drop.

Tweens

Ghostwriter

My oldest son, a bookworm by his own admission, dove right into this reboot of the '90s live-action series about a group of kids who solve mysteries with literary characters mysteriously brought to life. He was caught up in solving the identity of the titular character, who communicates with the four young detectives through spilled drinks and a mysterious typewriter, as well as the other themes dominating the character's personal lives (like grief, for example). The greatest trick this show pulls off is making classic stories like The Jungle Book and Alice in Wonderland relevant when so many other characters (and toys) vie for your child's attention.

Circuit Breakers

Goosebumps. Are You Afraid of the Dark? In the '90s, there was no shortage of creepy anthology shows aimed at tweens. Now, there is Circuit Breakers, which focuses on the effects of using technology to solve kid-related problems, such as overbearing parents or waiting for your growth spurt. It's unusual content from a technology company, especially one known for policing its adult content for disparaging remarks that its creators say on-air. It's still refreshing that this exists, and, unlike its '90s predecessors, there are no jump scares or monsters to impede your child's enjoyment.

Wolfboy and the Everything Factory

Joseph Gordon-Levitt voices one of the characters in this animated show about a creative kid sent to boarding school to make friends. However, he wears a wolf mask (hence the nickname Wolfboy), so he doesn't quite fit in. He finds his tribe inside a magical portal in the woods near his school and finds the Everything Factory, where everything on the Earth's surface, from clouds to trees, is manufactured. The show has an Adventure Time vibe, but it feels like something one of my boys would make in a comic book. 

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Use 'Flowtime' As a Flexible Alternative to the Pomodoro Technique

The Pomodoro technique is the superstar of the world of productivity methods because its premise—that you should work hard for 25 minutes, then reward yourself with a few minutes off—is effective and appealing. But that doesn’t mean it works perfectly for everyone. Like anything else, it’s adaptable. Try the flowtime technique if you find that 25-minute work sessions with five-minute cooldowns aren’t cutting it for you. 

What is the flowtime technique?

The flowtime technique is a spin on Pomodoro, and as such, relies on the same principles: You work for a while, then get a break. The difference is that you determine how long the work and play time last. Sometimes referred to as “flowmodoro,” this method is also all about keeping you in the zone on a task, luring you into deep work by using the goal of taking a break to keep you going.

The key here is the uninterrupted work you do while you’re gunning for that break. Like Pomodoro, you’re supposed to stay focused intently on a single task for the duration of your grind time, rather than do a little work, check your phone, type a little more, check your email, etc. The only way flowtime is truly different is that you decide how long you work for, instead of relying on the "25 on, five off" framework. With Pomodoro, you are stricter, typically using a timer to keep you working and from checking your phone. You may not think you need the timer with the flowtime technique, but you should use one that has a stopwatch function to track how long you actually end up working and keep it on hand for days when you need the extra structure of the timer itself. In fact, once you finish a few days of flowtime and figure out your own working habits with the stopwatch, you'll need the timer so you can set it in personalized increments.

How to set up your personal flowtime

The downside to using flowtime over Pomodoro is the same as the upside: You’re in charge of how long you work. While the Pomodoro technique is straightforward and outlines exactly how long you get to work and play, setting up your personal flowtime requires a little bit more work. You’ll need about a week to figure it out before you really put it into action. 

During this exploratory setup period, here’s what you do:

1. Track when you start working on a specific task with no distractions. You can use time-tracking software, but in this case a spreadsheet might be better because you also …

2. Write down when you start feeling restless, distracted, or disinterested. Check your stopwatch to see exactly how long you were working, then take a break.

3. Jot down when you feel energized enough to get back to the task and restart your stopwatch.

4. Repeat until the task is done. 

In a spreadsheet, dedicate one sheet to each task that needs to get done. Your columns can be labeled however makes sense to you, but something like the below—including a date, start and break times, and an ultimate conclusion time—is helpful. After using the spreadsheet for a while, you’ll get a sense of how long you can usually stand working on something before you need a break, and how long those breaks typically need to be for you to feel rejuvenated enough to get back at it. 

Credit: Lindsey Ellefson

Once you have a sense of your own work abilities and preferences, you can put them into action. If you can usually focus on cleaning for 15 minutes, start setting your timer for 15 minutes every time you clean, then give yourself a break that works for you, whether it’s five or 10 minutes. Commit to getting back to the task. 

You can challenge yourself to add more time to your work sessions gradually, but that’s optional. If your specific method is working for you, great. If you want to get better at focusing for long periods of time, start by adding one minute every time you do a task, inching it from, say, 15 to 16 to 17 minutes every time. It’s helpful to use the spreadsheet if you plan to do this, so you can see if you’re starting to tap out too early and readjust your flowtime. 

This isn’t an easy way out if Pomodoro doesn’t work for you. Rather, it’s a challenge to find a time combination that does work for you. Something is always better than nothing, so find the flowtime that fits your needs and tap into the power of uninterrupted work with the promise of breaks, even if it looks a little different from the norm. Don't get discouraged if you don't feel like you're working in long enough chunks at first; productivity falls off when you don't give yourself enough breaks, so look at this as a way of making sure that doesn't happen.

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Here’s How Much Every Streaming Service Has Increased Since 2023

You don't have to look far to find digital subscriptions for just about anything now: From AI chatbots to photo editors, from cloud storage to music streaming, most of us are paying multiple monthly subs to access our content and tools. What's more, the prices on these products, especially the streaming services, are only going in one direction.

Over time it can be difficult to remember just how many price rises there have been, and you can easily find yourself with a significantly bigger monthly bill because of them. Here then, in cold black and white, are all the video streaming service price hikes we've seen over the last 18 months—since January 2023.

Tracking these price rises isn't an exact science, as sometimes the service you're getting changes together with the price—you might get a broader selection of movies, for example, or access to an extra bundled service—but these are the changes in the monthly prices over time. Head to the end to see what the overall shift has been.

All the numbers mentioned are monthly payments, though some of these services offer discounts for paying full years in advance. The monthly price rises are often, but not always, matched in what you'll pay for a year in advance.

Netflix

The only Netflix price hike of this period came in October 2023, when the cheapest ad-free Basic plan went up $2, from $9.99 to $11.99, and the most expensive Premium plan went up $3, from $19.99 to $22.99. There have been rumors that we're going to see further increases sometime in 2024, but nothing is official yet.

Disney+

Like Netflix, Disney+ raised its prices in October 2023, with the standard ad-free plan going up from $10.99 to $13.99, a jump of $2. That's the only price rise we've had in the U.S. over the last 18 months, and while further price rises before the end of the year are always possible, we haven't heard anything about them.

Hulu

Disney also owns Hulu, and at the same time as the 2023 Disney+ increases, there were ones for standalone Hulu subscriptions as well: The ad-free plan went up by $3, from $14.99 to $17.99 a month. The Hulu + Live TV packages both went up by $7 as well, to $76.99 a month with ads and $89.99 without.

Hulu's last price jump was in 2023. Credit: Hulu

Max (HBO Max)

In February 2023, Max saw its first ever price hike, with the standard ad-free package getting a $1 bump to go from $14.99 to $15.99 a month. Further price hikes then followed in June 2024, with the standard ad-free and ultimate 4K ad-free options both going up by $1 a month, to $16.99 and $20.99 respectively.

Paramount+

Last year, monthly prices for Paramount+ went up from $4.99 to $5.99 for the Essential tier, and from $9.99 to $11.99 for the ad-free plan with Showtime. In August 2024, the price goes up again: $7.99 for the Essential plan (though only for new subscribers, for now), and $12.99 for the Showtime one.

Peacock

Peacock has given us advance notice of July and August 2024 price hikes: The ad-supported Premium plan is up to $7.99 from $5.99 a month, while the Premium Plus plan goes to $13.99 from $11.99. Those plans got bumps in 2023 too: $1 for the cheaper plan and $2 for the more expensive one.

We haven't seen an Apple TV Plus price hike in 2024 yet. Credit: Lifehacker

Apple TV+

In October 2023 Apple TV+ went up from $6.99 a month to $9.99 a month, following a 2022 bump (the Apple One bundle, including Apple TV Plus, went up from $16.95 to $19.95 a month at the same time). As yet there haven't been any murmurings of further price increases happening in 2024.

Amazon Prime Video

Right at the end of 2023, Amazon announced that if you didn't want to see ads on Prime Video, it would cost an additional $2.99 on top of the $8.99 monthly subscription (or $14.99 for the general Prime subscription, which includes Prime Video). That's the only price rise over the last 18 months.

Overall

If you were subscribed to all of the subscription services we've mentioned here at the start of 2023—ignoring bundles, trials, and special offers, and assuming you were signed up for the cheapest plans that have been affected by increases—you would've been paying $76.92 a month. Late in 2024, you'll be paying $98.91.

That's close to a rise of 30% in 18 months, a sign of the pressures on these companies to squeeze more and more money out of the same number of customers. If you've been noticing your bank account apparently draining faster and faster each month, it's really no surprise.

Admittedly, those numbers are simplified for our purposes. You can get Disney+ and Hulu bundled together for less money, for example, and some plans haven't changed prices but have introduced advertising. There are also annual plans at varying rates, and certain tiers have remained at the same level while others haven't.

It's a complicated picture, which is probably how the streaming services prefer it—but it's clear that price hikes have affected just about every platform in the business. What's more, they show no sign of stopping, which means you might have to be even more picky about what you're signed up to going forward.

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How to Decide Between a Roku and a Fire Stick

As streaming devices go, Roku and Fire TV Stick both seem similar from the outside. They’ll both cost you around $20 to $40 depending on the device (and if there’s a sale going on). They both do a good job of turning your regular TV into a smart TV where you can stream your favorite shows, as well as watch live TV online, and you can install apps to further enhance your TV experience.

But that’s kind of where the similarities end. Both Roku and Fire TV Stick have their own ways of doing things when it comes to hardware, software, and how their own services work.

Free and live TV, Alexa Voice Remote Lite, smart home controls, HD streaming.

Amazon Fire TV Stick Lite

$29.99 at Amazon

$29.99 at Amazon

Portable Roku Streaming Device 4K/HDR/Dolby Vision, Roku Voice Remote, Free & Live TV

Roku Streaming Stick 4K

$49.00 at Amazon

$49.00 at Amazon

What both Roku and Fire TV Stick get right

As I mentioned above, there are things that both devices do well right out of the gate. 

• Budget-friendly: You can get either streaming device for around $30, and they're often on sale for even cheaper. 

• Robust app support: Both devices feature thousands of TV apps and are popular enough that you’ll find apps for even obscure channels and utilities. 

• Fast and responsive: If you’re buying the 4K versions, then both Roku and Fire TV Stick are pretty quick to use, and as long as you have a good internet connection, you won’t face any issues. 

• One remote control: Except for the cheapest Rokus, both devices offer a TV remote with HMDI CEC support, which lets you control the TV volume and turn the TV on or off. This means you can stream anything using a single remote, enhancing the TV experience even further. 

• Voice control: Both devices feature remotes with voice control built in. 

Best for UX, menus, and ease of use: Roku

Credit: Roku

Roku’s overall interface, especially the menus, is far better designed than Amazon Fire TV Stick. Roku has a simple app-based navigation system that you can customize however you like. Getting to Netflix or Prime Video can happen in just a couple of clicks. 

Fire TV Stick’s Home Screen, by comparison, is a mess. Amazon focuses more on TV shows and movies in addition to the apps, which are given just a thin strip between all the other content. Right on top, you’ll find an autoplaying trailer (thankfully you can turn off autoplay) for a new TV show from Amazon. 

Credit: Amazon

In day-to-day use, this becomes quite annoying. A couple of apps in the top bar fall short, and opening the full App Library takes extra clicks. 

Overall, Roku’s experience is faster, seamless, and far less annoying. Fire TV Stick’s interface is also not slow, especially when you get the 4K Max model, but it takes longer to wade through all the unnecessary promotions and tiles.

Best for voice assistance and home theater: Fire TV Stick

Credit: Picturesque Japan/Shutterstock

If you like using your voice to control your TV— especially if you already have Amazon’s Alexa devices in your house—you’ll get more out of the Fire TV Stick 4K (originally $49.99) or Fire TV Stick 4K Max (originally $59.99) as your streaming device. 

Fire TV Stick has Alexa built in, and is much better at launching apps and looking for content than Roku is. That said, Roku’s search feature overall is faster. But when it comes to voice assistance and integration, the Fire TV Stick is superior. 

If you have an Alexa speaker, you can use the entire Fire TV interface without even picking up the remote. You can just ask Alexa to launch Netflix or to watch a show, and Fire TV Stick will turn on the TV, and launch the show. This is also a neat way to sidestep the entire issue of Fire TV Stick's home screen interface.

Roku can integrate with Alexa and Google Nest speakers, but you have to add “on Roku” to the end of each query, and it doesn’t support TV control options.

And if you have a home theater setup with an AV receiver or a sound bar, you might be better off using a Fire TV Stick. Fire TV Stick will let you control your audio devices using the same remote, so you can truly use one remote for your TV and your sound system. Roku doesn’t have this feature. 

If you want to go for a Fire TV Stick, I would suggest spending a bit more for the $59.99 Fire TV Stick 4K Max. It comes with a new 2.0 GHz quad-core processor, Dolby Vision support, DHR10+ support, 16GB storage, and more. One of the advantages of using a Fire Stick is that you can install Kodi into it, which essentially gives you free access to virtually anything you can stream.

Best overall pick: Roku Streaming Stick 4K

Credit: renata colella/Shutterstock

When all is said and done, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K is my overall best pick. It’s small, fast to use, and fast to boot up. Plus, it supports 4K, HDR10/10+, and Dolby Vision content. It comes with a feature specific to Rokus: You can listen to audio via your smartphone using the Roku app. 

If you don’t want to spend the $49 for the Roku Streaming Stick, Roku Express 4K+ is also a great option. It’s currently $20 less, and you miss out on a sleek form factor, and HDR, but you get the same fast interface, and all the great Roku features. 

Best budget option: Fire TV Stick Lite

Sometimes, a $29.99 streaming stick is just too hard to beat. If you’re on a budget, or if you want to buy a streaming stick to keep in your travel bag, you can’t go wrong with the Fire TV Stick Lite (sometimes it drops to $19.99). It can’t do 4K, but it will run Full HD content just fine. It also doesn’t have a remote with volume or TV controls, but it will run all your apps and channels. Just don’t expect a super-fast experience like with the Fire TV Stick 4K Max, or Roku Express. 

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The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Hulu This Month

Hulu's schedule this month is a bit summertime light, but there are some gems premiering if you dig a little. There's a new season of Futurama, for instance, and a grip of shark-based specials streaming as part of National Geographic's Sharkfest. If you're a ghoul like me, you can check out a couple of interesting looking new true-crime shows too: Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order and Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer.

Futurama, season 12

Matt Groening and David X. Cohen's iconic sci-fi cartoon Futurama is back this month for a 12th season, with 10 new episodes coming. Fry, Bender, Leela, and everyone else will be back to discover the secret of Bender's ancestors, learn the story behind coffee, and make sardonic jokes about the present even though it takes place in the year 3,000 or so. If you've never seen Futurama, you'll have nearly all month to catch up on the previous 12 seasons—they're also available on Hulu.

Starts streaming July 29.

Sharkfest

You know why they don't call it "Shark Week" anymore? Because it's expanded to an entire damn month. Hulu will feature a ton of streamable specials in July concerning Mankind's underwater enemies, including Attack of the Red Sea Sharks, Baby Sharks in the City, Shark Attack 360, Shark Beach with Anthony Mackie, Shark vs. Ross Edgley, Sharks Gone Viral, Supersized Sharks, and When Will We Finally Kill all these Goddamn Sharks? (I made that last one up).

Starts streaming July 1.

Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order

If you're a true crime fan, do not miss Sasha Reid and the Midnight Order. Reid is a psychologist with a singular obsession: catching killers. So she recruited a cadre of women that share her passion from various disciplines and backgrounds, dubbed them "The Midnight Order," and started tracking down criminals. The Midnight Order works outside the system and uses cutting-edge data skills and forensic knowledge to heat up cold cases—like Batman, but not fake. This series takes viewers inside their most intriguing investigations and introduces us to the women who have made Justice their profession.

Starts streaming July 10.

Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer

In 1978, psychiatric nurse Ann Burgess received a call that would change her life. It was the FBI's Behavioral Science Unit, and they wanted her help digging into the minds of serial killers. Mastermind: To Think Like a Killer explores this unsung woman who helped create criminal profiling as well as digging into the details of the killers who informed Burgess's work including infamous criminals like Ed Kemper and Ted Bundy, as well as lesser-known monsters like the Ski Mask Rapist.

Starts streaming July 11.

Hit-Monkey, season 2

The hero of Hit-Monkey is a Japanese snow monkey who teams up with the ghost of an American assassin to become the "killer of killers" and take out the most fearsome assassins in Japan. Season 2 finds the strange duo in New York trying to escape their shadowy existences, but it's not easy to give up that kind of life. Hit-Monkey is based on a Marvel comic, and the first season of the animated action show earned rave reviews from both critics and fans, so if you like heroes, action, cartoons, or just things that are awesome, check this one out.

Starts streaming July 15.

Last month's picks

The Bear, season 3

Hulu’s critically acclaimed, audience-favorite series The Bear is returning for a third nerve-jangling, poignant season. Now that they’ve opened The Bear, their ideal high-end restaurant, Carmy (Jeremy Allen White), Sydney (Ayo Edebiri), Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) and the rest of crew must navigate the treacherous, cutthroat Chicago culinary scene. Expect things to get stressful. 

Starts streaming June 27.

Becoming Karl Lagerfeld

Before he became a fashion legend and fashion icon, Karl Lagerfeld was just some guy named Karl; this Hulu original bio-series Becoming Karl Lagerfeld explores this remarkable transformation. The series follows Lagerfeld, played by Daniel Brühl, as he navigates the 1970s Parisian high fashion scene. He encounters fierce rival Yves Saint Laurent (played by Arnaud Valois), forms a business partnership with Pierre Bergé (Alex Lutz), and develops a more personal relationship with bon vivant Jacques de Bascher (Théodore Pellerin). If you’re fascinated by fashion or the jet-set lifestyle, Becoming Karl Lagerfeld is a must-watch.

Starts streaming June 7.

Saw (1-7)

Saw movies are like comfort food to horror fans. From its humble beginnings with James Wan’s low-budget, indie horror movie Saw in 2004, the gritty franchise has grown into a horror mainstay with 10 feature films, a (bad) AAA video game, and more merchandise than you could collect in 10 lifetimes. Some are better than others, but all the Saw movies are variations on the theme of a madman putting people into devious traps so we can watch them die, escape, and/or enact revenge on their tormentor. Hulu is streaming the first seven movies in the series to celebrate the start of summer, a fact that will delight horror fans, even if horrifies everyone else. 

Starts streaming June 1.

Queenie

Queenie Jenkins, the hero of Hulu original comedy series Queenie, is a British Jamaican woman in the U.K. who is suffering from a quarter-life crisis, a bad breakup, and the general horror and annoyance of urban life in 2024 all at once. With the vibrant yet challenging landscape of South London as a backdrop, Queenie struggles to navigate her dual cultural identity and find her place in the world. If you enjoy witty, contemporary character studies that tackle themes of race and identity, Queenie is a must-watch.

Starts streaming June 7. 

Breakin' On The One

This documentary tells the story of how the Black and brown kids from New York’s poorest neighborhoods spawned a worldwide musical and cultural revolution through dance, music, and fashion. On August 15, 1981, New York breakdance crews the Rocksteady Crew and the Dynamic Rockers appeared at the Out-of-Doors Festival to settle their differences through a breaking battle. Ripples from the showdown reverberated all over the world, and Breaking on The One explores that epic breakin’ battle and the significance of breakdancing and hip-hop through archival footage and interviews with the dancers, DJs, MCs and B-boys and girls who were there. If you’re into hip-hop, or fascinated with how cultural revolutions begin, check out Breakin’ on the One. 

Starts streaming June 24.

Candis Cayne's Secret Garden, season one

Trans icon Candis Cayne hosts a gardening show like none other. In her “literally groundbreaking” comedy/DIY/gardening show, Cayne and her friends will teach you how to transform your home and garden into a magical place. Billed as a whimsical and visually stunning experience that combines the real-life gardening expertise of Candis Cayne with a playful and imaginative world, each episode of Secret Garden presents a different DIY project designed to inspire your imagination and motivate you to make your backyard and home magical. 

Starts streaming June 9.

Brats

To teenagers in the 1980s, no one was cooler, sexier, or more famous than The Brat Pack, that cadre of young actors that starred in every teen movie and seemed to rule Hollywood. Directed by original brat packer Andrew McCarthy, Brats gives us a view from inside the fame fishbowl through interviews with brat packer Demi Moore, Rob Lowe, Emilio Esteves, Ally Sheedy and more. (Spoiler: being in the Brat Pack wasn’t as much fun as you probably imagined.) 

Starts streaming June 13. 

Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown

This National Geographic docuseries examines the history, impact, and people behind Jim Jone’s terrifying People’s Temple cult. Told through never-before-scene footage and interviews with survivors and eyewitnesses, Cult Massacre: One Day in Jonestown explores the group’s rise and eventual mass murder/suicide in Guyana, shedding light on the causes of the grisly day that shook the world.

Starts streaming June 17. 

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The Best Movies and TV Shows to Watch on Netflix This Month

I've pored over Netflix's release schedule to bring you the best movies and TV shows premiering on the service this month. Netflix is packed in July. The month starts with Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F, the long-anticipated sequel to 1984's Beverly Hills Cop; a few weeks later, the first part of the final season of Cobra Kai drops; and the month closes out with a new season of Unsolved Mysteries.

Not everything on the streaming service is based on intellectual property from the 1980s, though. There's a new season of "very-now" reality show Too Hot to Handle, Exploding Kittens (based on the card game), and a pair of getting-ready-for-the-Olympics documentaries: one on gymnast Simone Biles and one about the world's top sprinters.

Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F 

It's been almost 30 years since cop-out-of-water Axel Foley busted bad guys in Beverly Hills, and Eddie Murphy returns to the title role with some world-weariness to add to his panache. Old pals Billy Rosewood (Judge Reinhold) and Taggart (John Ashton) are on hand, but there's some new blood too: Joseph Gordon-Levitt plays Axel's partner, and Taylour Paige plays his daughter, whose life is in danger until Pop F. comes to save the day. The mixture of action, comedy, and Eddie Murphy worked in the 1980s, but will it in 2024? Watch Beverly Hills Cop: Axel F to find out.

Starts streaming July 3.

Cobra Kai Season 6, Part 1

Cobra Kai's mix of 1980s nostalgic meta-comedy, teen soap opera cheese, and martial arts shouldn't work so well, but somehow, the charm of its cast and its breezy, "none of this is important in any way" tone make it a must-binge series. This is the first part of the sixth and supposedly final season for the show, and it sees the members of the Miyagi-Do dojo pondering “if and how they will compete in the Sekai Taikai—the world championship of karate." So the plot is whatever, but the original cast are all expected to return to their places in the karate-based alternate universe in which they live, which is reason enough to watch.

Starts streaming July 18.

Too Hot to Handle

The hook of Too Hot to Handle is brilliant: the reality-competition show puts a gaggle of extremely attractive and sexed-up 20-somethings together in an exotic location, makes them sleep in pairs, then penalizes them for hooking up—the only way anyone can win the $250,000 prize is through abstinence. It's dumb reality show spectacle, perfect as a mid-summer guilty pleasure, and I promise I won't tell anyone you watched it all.

Starts streaming July 19.

The Man with 1000 Kids 

If you're interested in the future of Humanity, check out docu-series The Man with 1000 Kids. It tells the story of Dutch musician Jonathan Meijer who is accused of fathering hundreds, maybe thousands, of children through sperm donation. If the accusations are true, Meijer's DNA will have more influence on succeeding generations than just about anyone else's on Earth, and he's a super-creepy YouTuber who eats raw meat, stares directly at the sun, and makes absolutely terrible music. Good luck, human race!

Starts streaming July 3.

Exploding Kittens 

Based on the popular card game, Exploding Kittens is a cartoon-for-adults in which God and the Devil are sent to Earth in the form of house cats. That's not in the game, but it does capture the oh-so-random tone of the source material. Whether it'll work or not remains to be seen, but producers Mike Judge (King of the Hill, Beavis and Butt-Head) and Greg Daniels (The Office) know something about making comedy, so it's a solid bet.

Starts streaming July 1

Sprint: The World's Fastest Humans

Sprint: the World's Fastest Humans takes us into the world of elite sprinters so we can learn what motivates someone to devote their lives to the pursuit of speed. If you're planning to watch the track and field events at the Olympics later in the month, this is a perfect way to get to know some of the top athletes competing.

Starts streaming July 2.

Receiver 

Last summer's Quarterback followed three of the NFL's best quarterbacks; in this summer's Receivers, we learn about the dudes they throw to. This Netflix original documentary series details the 2023 seasons, both on and off the field, of Davante Adams, Justin Jefferson, George Kittle, Deebo Samuels, and Amon-ra Saint Brown, five best-of-the-best players that football fans either totally love or begrudgingly admit are awesome, even though they hate them, depending on their team loyalty.

Starts streaming July 10.

Back to the Future series 

Back to the Future is a perfect movie, and the other two entries in the series are alright too. If you have a few rainy days this summer, there are a lot worse ways to spend them than gathering the family and basking in the '80s glow of this trilogy. It still works all these years later.

Starts streaming July 1.

Lost: Seasons 1-6 (series)

Lost's ending was so epically terrible, it's easy to forget that its first few seasons were as good as any prestige television that has ever been produced—and it was made before "prestige television" even existed. Co-created by J.J. Abrams, and co-written by Damon Lindelof, Lost features a talented cast that includes Evangeline Lilly, Terry O'Quinn, and Dominic Monaghan, and mind-bending plot that ultimately doesn't make much sense, but it's still a fun trip.

Starts streaming July 1.

The Boy Next Door (2015)

Jennifer Lopez stars in good, old-fashioned domestic thriller The Boy Next Door. She's a teacher who has an affair with her much younger new neighbor, but he turns out to be one of her students, and he's a psycho who sets out to destroy her family and her life. You know the drill—it's a potboiler, but with the always charismatic J-Lo at its center.

Starts streaming July 16.

Simone Biles Rising

Gymnast Simone Biles grabbed the world's attention when she withdrew from the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. But the shocking move, partly in response to Biles' mental health concerns, didn't end her career. Biles is back for another go at Olympic glory this year, and Simone Biles Rising details her hard road back to potential greatness at the 2024 Olympics. This docuseries is a pre-Olympics must-watch.

Starts streaming July 19

Star Trek: Prodigy (Season 2)

If you've been looking for a first Star Trek series to watch with your children, Star Trek: Prodigy is for you. The CGI-animated series captures the thoughtful adventure-and-exploration vibe that makes Star Trek great, and does it in a kid-friendly way that isn't adult-unfriendly. The first season of the CGI series earned a 94% "fresh" rating on Rotten Tomatoes for taking the dusty franchise in unexpected directions; hopefully season two measures up.

Starts streaming July 1.

Skywalkers: A Love Story 

If you like white-knuckle cinema, Skywalkers is for you. It chronicles the life and relationship of Angela Nikolau and Ivan Beerkus, a young couple who live to climb the world's tallest buildings. Skywalkers: a Love Story follows the couple's elaborate plans to conquer Malaysia’s Merdeka 118 super-skyscraper without harnesses, ropes, or permission. It makes me nervous just thinking about it.

Starts streaming July 19

Dirty Pop: The Boy Band Scam 

Lou Pearlman, the impresario behind The Backstreet Boys, *NSYNC, and Britney Spears might not have been a super honest guy—shocking, I know. Dirty Pop details how Pearlman changed music while building his personal empire, and doesn't shy away from the dark side of the business of fame, power, and exploiting talented young artists.

Starts streaming July 24.

The Decameron

If you like unconventional comedy, check out The Decameron. Loosely based on Giovanni Boccaccio’s The Decameron, published in the 14th Century, this Netflix period comedy is set in Florence, Italy, in 1348 among a rag-tag group of nobles and their servants who are camped out in an opulent villa as the plague rages outside. To pass the time, they tell each other stories that range from from touching to ribald, while the social order descends into chaos. Seems relatable. Netflix describes it as "Like Love Island, but Back in the Day," and that's enough for me to give it a watch.

Starts streaming July 25.

Unsolved Mysteries, Volume 4

The first three seasons of Netflix's revival of Unsolved Mysteries are excellent. Netflix hasn't released a ton of details about volume four yet, but if previous seasons are any indication, it will feature a mixture of unexplained deaths, strange disappearances, paranormal activity, UFOs, and other "what the hell?" content presented in a thorough, thoughtful way.

Starts streaming July 31.

Tickled (2016)

Tickled is one of the strangest documentaries I've ever seen. Journalist David Farrier starts off hunting a quirky story about the "sport" of competitive tickling, but uncovers a strange underworld that's not funny at all. I don't want to spoil any of the twists and turns in this narrative, so I'll just urge you to watch this movie.

Starts streaming July 10.

Last month's picks

Hit Man

Directed by the supremely talented Richard Linklater, Hit Man tells the real story of a fake Hit Man. Gary Johnson's job is pretending to be a professional killer for police sting operations (where can I send a resume?) but he puts everything on the line when he falls in love with a potential client. Co-written by and starring Glen Powell, Hit Man takes a darkly comedic look at an unusual lifestyle. If you're looking for a funny, perfectly crafted, and intelligent movie, look no further.

Starts streaming June 7.

A Family Affair

Nicole Kidman, Zac Efron, and Joey King lead the cast of A Family Affair, a romantic comedy that begins with Zara (King) walking in on her mom (Kidman) and her ex-boss (Efron) in the middle of a passionate tryst. The ex-boss is an impossibly self-centered celebrity—so Zara is not at all sure how to deal with the new relationship. This exploration of love, sex, and identity is the kind of charisma-powered, crowd-pleasing movie that romantic comedy fans can't get enough of.

Starts streaming June 28.

My Next Guest Needs No Introduction With David Letterman, Season 5

David Letterman's in-depth interview series My Next Guest Needs no Introduction returns for a fifth season where Dave chops it up with basketball legend Charles Barkley and pop-singing legend Miley Cyrus. If you care about these specific people, or you're interested in larger-than-life people in general, Letterman's long-form, deep-dive interviews are worlds better than five minutes of banter on a late-night show's couch.

Starts streaming June 12.

Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial

At the risk of starting a sentence with "You have to hand it to the Nazis for..." Hitler and company inspired more compelling documentaries than anyone else in history. This one examines the post-World War II trials of the Nazi leaders who survived. Hitler and the Nazis: Evil on Trial explores our failing cultural memories of the Third Reich and asks if forgetting about the past dooms us to a hellish repeat. It's not a lighthearted movie, but it is an important one.

Starts streaming June 5.

Trigger Warning

For her role as Parker in Netflix original action movie Trigger Warning, Jessica Alba learned Indonesian knife fighting skills to make the flick's intense hand-to-hand combat scenes extra real. Parker is a Special Forces commando who returns to her home town her father's funeral, only to discover a dangerous conspiracy that might be responsible for his death. Does she confront the evil men behind the plot with Indonesian knife-fighting skills? Goddamn right she does. Mark Webber, Tone Bell, Jake Weary, Gabriel Basso, and Anthony Michael Hall also appear in this treat for action movie fans.

Starts streaming June 21.

Worst Roommate Ever, Season 2

Learning that a second season of Worst Roommate Ever was coming to Netflix is the best news I've heard in months. If you're not familiar, this documentary series tells the stories of bad roommates through interviews with victims and animated re-enactments. If you're like, "Why would that even be interesting?" you're not grasping how monumentally, spectacularly, and unbelievably horrific these people are. Imagine your worst college roommate, now multiply their awfulness by 100; these people are worse than that. If you like well-made freak show TV as much as I do, you'll be hitting "play" at

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