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I've scoured the January releases on Amazon's Prime platform to find the best new and new-to-streaming movies and shows. The days of tons of innovative streaming shows and movies seem done for now. Prime is focusing on sure shots: There's You're Cordially Invited, a can't-miss comedy with Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon; Unstoppable, an inspiring sports drama with Jennifer Lopez; On Call, a police procedural created by Dick Wolf; a new season of Harlem; and a playoff football game. All safe bets—solidly entertaining without pushing the envelope.
Comedic icons Will Ferrell and Reese Witherspoon star in a domestic comedy in which bridal parties battle for supremacy. A terrible planner booked both Ferrell's daughter's wedding and Witherspoon's sister's weddings for the same time and place. Instead of cooperating, the families go head-to-head and try to destroy each other. You're Cordially invited was directed by Nick Stoller (Forgetting Sarah Marshall, Neighbors), so you're in good hands if you like solid comedy from solid comedy professionals.
Starts streaming January 30.
On Call
Police procedural series have been a staple of television since Dragnet premiered in 1951 for good reason: What's more dramatic than good guys chasing bad guys? On Call makes a classic cop show set-up (a veteran Long Beach, Calif. police officer teams up with an idealistic, wet-behind-the-ears rookie) more visceral and immediate by presenting the action through footage shot on dashcams, bodycams, smartphones, and security cameras. Joe Friday probably wouldn't approve of On Call's vérité style, but it's an interesting new wrinkle in the genre.
Starts streaming January 9.
Unstoppable
Jennifer Lopez anchors this inspiring story based on the real life of one-legged wrestler Anthony Robles, played by Jharrel Jerome. In Unstoppable, Lopez plays Anthony's mother Judy, one of those devoted movie moms who will not let her son give up on his dream of becoming a college wrestling champion, no matter how many sacrifices she has to make. Man, isn't the human spirit something?
Starts streaming January 16.
Harlem, season 3
In season 3 of Harlem, the drama continues as four best friends in the city navigate career struggles, motherhood, singlehood, sisterhood, and more. Cast members Meagan Good, Grace Byers, Jerrie Johnson, and Shoniqua Shandai return, but there are some new faces too, including Kofi Siriboe who plays Seth, a handsome MLB player who catches one of the ladies’ attention.
Starts streaming January 23.
The Rig
The Rig has a perfect set up for a horror-thriller: A mysterious fog rolls over an offshore oil rig, cutting off all communication. Paranoia, claustrophobia, and terror rise and the tension becomes unbearable. Then the crew learns that the fog besetting the oil rig leads to something unnatural and unspeakable, forcing desperate men to work together to survive.
Starts streaming January 2.
NFL Wildcard Game
For the first time ever, an NFL playoff game will not be available on broadcast television, nor will be available to subscribers to the NFL package sold on YouTube TV. I'd like to tell you who is playing and when the game will be played, but that information won't be locked in until January 5, so the best I can do is tell you that the game will be called by Al Michaels and analyst Kirk Herbstreit, and point out that Amazon's optional "alternative stream" of the game (all the action is shown from an overhead camera) can be kind of cool if you're a football nerd who wants to watch the whole play instead of just the ball carrier.
Starts streaming January 11 or 12.
Last month's picks
Beast Games
YouTube’s most famous creator, Mr. Beast, makes a bid for crossover success with this competition reality show where 1,000 competitors compete for a grand prize of $5 million. If you’re in the market for a real-life version of Squid Game, or you find mindless spectacle TV an engaging time-waste, you’ll want to check out Beast Games.
Starts streaming December 19.
Pop Culture Jeopardy
Saturday Night Live’s Colin Jost hosts this Jeopardy spin-off in which all of the questions are about pop culture, so it’s like Jeopardy for people don’t read books. Jost has the perfect persona to host a light game show, and a modernized version of Jeopardy is a great idea, so check out Pop Culture Jeopardy if you’re into game shows.
Starts streaming December 4.
The Sticky
Get ready for a quirky crime comedy. The Sticky fictionalizes the story of a gang of Canuck criminals who boosted around 300 tons of maple syrup in 2011 and 2012 from Canada's strategic reserve of maple syrup—that's about $18-million in pancake sauce. So if you're in the mood for a Fargo-style series with colorful characters up to dark deeds, check out The Sticky.
Starts streaming December 6.
A Quiet Place: Day One (2024)
This prequel to A Quiet Place brings us back to the start of the series, the day the blind, noise-averse aliens invaded earth and killed almost everyone in the world. Lupita Nyong'o stars as Sammy, a terminally ill woman whose journey to New York City for a slice of pizza is interrupted by the end of the world. A film that’s equal parts horror and character study, A Quiet Place: Day One is a great movie for fans of horror movies looking for something a little more elevated than the “teenagers get murdered” flicks typical of the genre.
Starts streaming December 31.
Secret Level
Secret Level is an animated anthology series featuring stories set in the universe of various video game franchises. From the team behind the excellent sci-fi series Love Death + Robots, Secret Level features episodes set in the worlds of Pac-Man, Warhammer 40,000, Mega Man, Unreal Tournament, and many others—it's the perfect show for gamers.
Starts streaming December 10.
Glitter & Greed: The Lisa Frank Story
Designer Lisa Frank is known for a unicorn-and-rainbow-overdose style that captured the imaginations of flighty people all over the world, but, as this documentary shows, things were not all cotton-candy-pink behind the scenes of the Lisa Frank empire. Through interviews with people who were there, Glitter and Greed lays out the toxic work environment and tumultuous personal drama under the surface of the Lisa Frank dream world.
Starts streaming December 5.
ChiefsAholic: A Wolf in Chief’s Clothing
You don't have to be a football fan to watch documentary ChiefsAholic: A Wolf in Chief’s Clothing. It's not about the team; it's about their biggest fan, Xaviar Babudar. Babudar's character, ChiefsAholic, was fan-famous for showing up at every Chief's game in a wolf costume. But NFL tickets aren't cheap, and it turns out that the "-aholic" part of ChiefsAholic wasn't a lie. Dude was robbing banks to pay for his Chiefs addiction—and his gambling addiction.
Starts streaming December 24.
Beau Is Afraid (2023)
A harrowing look at mental illness from Ari Aster, Beau is Afraid isn’t like any other movie. It’s a terrifying, surreal, and often inscrutable journey into the psyche of the main character, played by a fully committed Joaquin Phoenix. Beau's routine trip to visit his mother turns into an epic personal journey in which reality and delusion merge.
Starts streaming December 13.
Jack in Time for Christmas
In this star-encrusted holiday romp, British comedian Jack Whitehall is stranded in the United States with just four days to make it back to the UK for Christmas. For “just go with it” reasons, every flight is canceled, forcing Whitehall to spend time with celebrities like Michael Bublé, Dave Bautista, Rebel Wilson, Jimmy Fallon, Daisy May Cooper, and Tom Davies, doing things like playing hockey and going bobsledding. Told through a mix of scripted segments and improv, Jack in Time for Christmas lives (or dies) on the strength of its stars’ charisma.
Starts streaming December 3.
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