All The Cool Stuff Coming To Netflix In February
Valentine’s Day may make February the month of love. But the more interesting premieres on Netflix wind up changing up love stories with a little extra something. There’s love between a woman whose features change one week out of the month and a man who can’t remember faces (“The Beauty Inside”). Another series has as its protagonist a 40-year-old divorcee seeking new love in her Arab culture (“Finding Ola”). Or readers can try a tale which mixes love stories with globe-hopping true crime thrills (“The Tinder Swindler”).
Speaking of true crime tales, another hot show this month is the new Shonda Rhimes-produced mini-series. It concerns a woman who scammed figures on the New York party scene by claiming to be a German heiress (“Inventing Anna”).
February’s animated offerings are particularly worth checking out. Craig McCracken brings the final season of his superhero parody “Kid Cosmic.” Matt Groening returns with a new season of ribbing fantasy tropes in “Disenchanted.” An adaptation of a popular video game gives a nod to the animation of Max Fleischer (“The Cuphead Show”). Or get your mind blown seeing the creators of “Black Mirror” try their hand at an animated show (“Cat Burglar”).
For those who prefer getting their anti-corporate hate on, a documentary about the roots of the deadly 737 Max crashes will definitely get the viewer’s blood steaming (“Downfall: The Case Against Boeing”).
The big documentary commitment of February, though, might be “jeen-yuhs: a Kanye Trilogy.” It’s an epic three-part film following rapper Kanye West over 20 years from beginnings where the only people who believed in his musical talent were himself and his mother.
The Tinder Swindler
TBD
Love, Life, & Everything In Between–Tired of being bombarded by Islamophobic media spew? Try this anthology series depicting love and relationship scenes from various Arab cities. How people care for each other in Arab cultures might not be as different from the West as people think.
February 1
The Beauty Inside—Top actress Han Se-kye has an unusual secret. One week out of every month, her appearance changes to that of a totally different person. Airline executive Seo Do-Jae also has a secret. He’s literally unable to recognize faces, which he hides by remembering people’s habits and mannerisms. When the two meet, their lives will change.
Patsy And Loretta—Callie Khouri (“Thelma And Louise”) directs this biopic about the friendship between country music legends Patsy Cline and Loretta Lynn. Lynn’s rendition of “I Fall To Pieces,” which she dedicated to the then-recuperating Cline, would bring the two women together. Aside from becoming friends, Cline would help Lynn navigate the ins and outs of the country music industry. The two women would provide mutual support when their rising stardom would put strains on their marriages. The legacy of that friendship would even outlast Cline’s tragically young death.
Raising Dion Season 2–When widowed single mother Nicole discovers her son Dion starts manifesting super powers, she struggles to both keep these abilities under wraps and find out how her son got these abilities. The new season jumps ahead two years. Dion’s continuing to train with Tevin to learn how to use his powers. He also befriends Brayden, another super-powered kid like him. What Dion doesn’t know yet is that the Crooked Man, the entity that absorbed Dion’s father Mark, has now possessed Brayden…and the villain hasn’t abandoned his hunt for other superpowered kids.
February 2
The Tinder Swindler—Simon Leviev put himself out on Tinder as a diamond company CEO who lived a luxury lifestyle of fast cars, high-end restaurants, and exotic holidays. When Cecilie Fjelhoy met Leviev, she wound up being swept off her feet by the man and eventually moved in with him. But when her boyfriend convinced her his life was in danger, Fjelhoy’s offer of financial help led to her being saddled with hundreds of thousands of dollars of debt. That’s when she soon discovered Leviev was actually a professional fraudster…and she wasn’t the only woman he scammed with this M.O. Fjelhoy eventually wound up teaming up with Ayleen Charlotte and Pernilla Sjoholm, two more victims of Leviev, in a plot to get the fraudster arrested for his crimes.
February 3
Finding Ola—Tunisian actress Hend Sabry executive produced and stars in this Arab dramedy about life after divorce. Ola Abdel-Sabour got divorced at age 40. But even though this pharmacist still has family responsibilities to juggle, she’s also determined to find a new love. This series takes a semi-lighthearted look at the challenges women in Arab society still face.
Patsy And Loretta
Kid Cosmic Season 3–It’s the final season for the new superhero parody series created by Craig Mc Cracken (“The Powerpuff Girls”). The title for the season is “Kid Cosmic And The Global Heroes.” Read into that what you will.
Murderville Season 1–This crime thriller/improvised comedy hybrid adapts the British TV series “Murder In Successville.” In each episode, Senior Homicide Detective Terry Seattle (Will Arnett) is paired with a celebrity guest star to solve a murder case. However, said guest star does not get an episode script. To solve the case and name the murderer, the guest star will have to improvise A Lot.
February 8
Child Of Kamiari Month—Kanna is a 12-year-old girl who’s a descendant of the Gods. Her family has been tasked with roaming Japan to collect offerings to the Gods and deliver them to Izumo, the place where the Gods gather. Kanna’s mother died before making the final delivery. Now a year after her mother’s death, responsibility for the final delivery falls on Kanna. The girl hopes that completing the task will result in a reunion with her dead mother.
February 9
Disenchantment Season 4–Matt Groening returns with his animated series mocking the fantasy genre’s tropes. In the new season, see what happens after the core trio of Princess Bean, Luci, and Elmo are forced to separate and go on personal journeys whose outcomes will tie into the kingdom of Dreamland’s future. Expect trips to such places as the pits of Hell, insane asylums, and the Dreamscape. Along the way, viewers will be clued into the origins of Dreamland and even more of the central trio’s backstories.
February 11
Bigbug—It’s a science fiction comedy from director Jean-Pierre Jeunet (“Amelie”). In 2050, artificial intelligence has become sophisticated enough to allow for the creation of artificial mechanical beings handling everything from cleaning a house to delivering sexual pleasure. So why do a quartet of domestic robots imprison their human masters in their home? Maybe it’s because the new generation of mechanical beings known as the Yonyx are trying to take over everything. But what protection comes from in-house confinement might be undone by the humans’ own personal foibles.
Inventing Anna—Shonda Rhimes produced this true crime miniseries about con artist Anna Delvey. Posing as a German heiress, the woman born as Anna Sorokin managed to con her way into the upper reaches of the New York party scene and live the high life on the dime of real rich people. New York Magazine reporter Jessica Pressler is determined to uncover the truth about “Delvey”’s double life.
Finding Ola
Love And Leashes—In this adaptation of the webcomic “Moral Sense,” Jung Ji-Woo is interested in her fellow employee Jung Ji-Hoo, but hasn’t found a way to express her feelings to him. Fate plays a hand in the form of a mis-delivered package intended for Ji-Hoo. Ji-Woo discovers a dog leash inside…which Ji-Hoo uses for S&M play. However, Ji-Hoo is in need of a S&M mistress. Ji-Woo agrees to do so on a trial three month basis.
February 12
Twenty Five, Twenty One—This Korean romantic drama series begins in 1998. Na Hee-Do is a member of her high school fencing team. Baek Yi-Jin belongs to a wealthy family. They are 18 and 22, respectively, when they first meet. Then the South Korean financial crisis hits, which brings about serious changes in their lives. By the time Yi-Jin and Hee-do fall in love, they are (respectively) 25 and 21.
February 14
Fishbowl Wives Season 1–This Japanese drama series is an adaptation of the Kurosawa R manga series “Goldfish Wife.” Sakura Hiraga seems to lead a glamorous life thanks to her marriage to a hair salon owner and her living in a luxury penthouse apartment. But in reality her life is miserable thanks to her abusive husband. She feels like a goldfish in a fishbowl…but she’s not the only wife in the building who feels that way.
February 16
jeen-yuhs: a Kanye Trilogy–It’s the first part of a three part documentary series made from 320 hours of footage shot over 20 years. Co-director Clarence “Coodie” Simmons began filming his friend as he struggled to break into the rap industry. His friend’s name: a then up-and-coming rapper named Kanye West. This first segment follows West’s efforts to become the next Jay-Z at a time when the only people who believed in the future rap star’s talent were himself and his mother Donda. Watch for the scene where West crashes the Roc-A-Fella offices to play his demos in hopes of getting signed.
February 17
Forgive Us Our Trespasses—In Nazi Germany, Hitler enacts Aktion T4. This decree allows all disabled people to be killed. A young boy with a limb difference goes on the run. He’s convinced there’s more to life than avoiding people who want him dead. But he’ll soon need to make a decision about his next steps.
Heart Shot—High schooler Sam has led a lonely and loveless life. Newcomer Nikki’s arrival in town eventually leads to Sam believing she’s found The One. But Nikki has a less than savory past, and it’s about to intrude on her relationship with Sam in a really big way.
Bigbug
Wu Assassins: Fistful Of Vengeance—You don’t need to watch the “Wu Assassins” series to enjoy this standalone movie. Just know that apparently ordinary cook Kai Jin (Iko Uwais) is actually a super-powered assassin backed by the power of 1000 monks, and he’s fighting the Chinese Triad’s efforts to get their hands on the ancient powers known as the Wu Xing. In the new film, the fridging of a loved one sends Kai and his friends on a trip to Thailand, where they encounter the Queen of Bangkok’s underworld, a mysterious billionaire, and an ancient mystical force eying world conquest.
February 18
The Cuphead Show Season 1–This animated adaptation of the video game “Cuphead” follows the misadventures of the title character and his easily swayed brother Mugman. The series follows their crazy adventure through the Inkwell Isles. If you were ever a fan of the rubbery animation and surreal characters of Max Fleischer’s early 20th century animated shorts, you’ll love this one.
Downfall: The Case Against Boeing—Remember the two 2018 fatal air crashes involving new Boeing 737 Maxes? Director Rory Kennedy’s documentary revisits those tragedies, and shows how corporate greed and hubris resulted in the deaths of 346 passengers and crew. The film shows how the transformation of Boeing’s corporate culture from engineer-led to share price-led resulted in bad decisions that compromised safety and made the 737 Max crashes inevitable.
February 22
Cat Burglar Season 1–Would you believe the creators of “Black Mirror” have come out with an animated series? Rowdy the cat burglar must outwit Peanut the guard dog to swipe stuff from a museum. Whether the burglar gets caught or not depends on viewers correctly answering an interactive trivia game. Think a Tex Avery cartoon crossed with a game show.
RACE: Bubba Wallace—This documentary mini-series follows Bubba Wallace, NASCAR’s only full time Black driver, over the course of the 2020 and 2021 racing seasons. As part of the 23XI Racing Team, he has to deal with pressure from two fronts: winning races and a racist backlash against his efforts to have the Confederate Battle Flag banned from being displayed at NASCAR events.
Wu Assassins: Fistful Of Vengeance
February 25
Back To 15 Season 1–The joy of returning to her hometown for her sister’s wedding soon turns sour for Anita. A string of disasters causes her to retreat to the room where she grew up as a teenager. After idly turning on the old computer in her room, Anita suddenly finds herself transported back to the first day of high school. Her body’s that of a 15-year-old girl, but her brain is that of her adult 30-year-old self. Anita decides to use her knowledge of the future to “fix” the lives of those around her. But whatever changes Anita makes in the past aren’t necessarily ones that changes the lives of the affected people for the better.
Vikings: Valhalla Season 1—In this spinoff of the popular “Vikings” series, the new show jumps a century into the future, to the early 11th Century. The Vikings control most of England and Normandy. It is the age of such heroes as Leif Eriksson and Harald Hardrada. But the Kingdom of England is attempting to resist the Viking presence. Will this be the beginning of the end for the Vikings?
February 28
My Wonderful Life–This Polish drama focuses on Joanna, a teacher who seems to have all aspects of her personal and professional life under control. But in reality, she’s having trouble making the pieces of her life fit together perfectly. Perhaps that frustration explains why she embarks on an extra-marital affair. However, when somebody tries blackmailing her over the affair, Joanna needs to get her family together to figure out her next steps.
The Cuphead Show
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